Hong Kong: New govt strives for stability Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong today quoted the four proposals put forward by President Xi Jinping and said he hoped the officials of the new-term Government and citizens will jointly maintain harmony and stability. Mr Wong made the remarks as he officiated at the ceremony marking Sham Shui Po (SSP) districts celebration of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as well the SSP Festival 2022. He also mentioned President Xis four musts, emphasising that the "one country, two systems" policy should be fully implemented. The deputy finance chief said that the Government needs every citizen to work together, adding that Hong Kong, a place full of opportunities, will have a very bright future in the next 25 years. He thanked the Legislative Council members attending the event for liaising closely with the community on Sham Shui Pos redevelopment plan in recent years in order to timely implement livelihood-related policies. He hoped that the Government would be able to map out policies that would benefit the residents. This story has been published on: 2022-07-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 Threats came prior to Newsweek Editor Naveed Jamali Publishing Multiple Hit Pieces Against Pragad's Newsweek Co-owner Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad is facing powerful accusations of having swept all media and business ethics under the carpet by leveraging his own newsroom to launch a "nuclear bomb" against adversaries with intent to take sole control of the company. Court research indicates that on Thursday, Newsweek's parent company digital media publisher IBTimes filed a lawsuit against Pragad, alleging that his deceit actually began in 2018 when he was entrusted to manage the company, and he has been scheming to take over the company ever since. The damning lawsuit alleges that when IBTimes ran into legal troubles in 2016, Pragad seized on that "opportunity" and convinced those around him to spin-off the magazine into an entity that he controlled. That motive, the lawsuit alleges, was recently evidenced with Pragad using the Newsweek newsroom to launch scathing attacks on Johnathan Davis, the other shareholder of Newsweek. The actions of Dev Pragad, who publicly champions Newsweek's journalism independence and integrity, begs the question - is he two-faced? The IBTimes lawsuit appears to suggest so - that Pragad has engaged in a carefully calculated and deceitful plan to pull the wool over the eyes of the world, including Harvard University, the Poynter Institute, and his own newsroom, and portray himself as the owner and savior of the newspaper - which he allegedly isn't, according to the suit. Newsweek Newsroom Hijacked by Pragad Earlier in 2022, Pragad began to voice his threats against the other shareholder of Newsweek, Johnathan Davis, and threatened to leverage Newsweek's reporters against him if he did not give Pragad the company. In a text message exchange that this correspondent has seen, an anonymous source shared a recent conversation with Pragad, in which the Newsweek CEO told a friend that he is "inseparable from Newsweek" and he will "detonate a nuclear bomb and kill [Davis and his associates]." He further bragged that he has "a lot of lawyers," and that his adversaries would be like "puppies in front of a machine gun" because "I am a PhD." Pragad continued with the "nuclear bomb" threats a few days later: "This is nuclear bomb. Don't engage if you don't know how to deal with a nuclear bomb. If it goes off, it will nuke everyone. And it's the end. I don't want that to happen and for this to happen unintentionally coz some silly people who don't know what they are doing start tinkering. There is nothing they can do. It will just blow up on their face if they try to do anything. This may trigger a congressional investigation in Olivet. I'm so close to congress and senators and they love what I'm doing at Newsweek. They are all watching so closely along with world leaders." As reported earlier today by HNGN, Dev Pragad went on to say that he would release a damaging article against Davis, against the church that Davis attends, and against Olivet University where Davis' wife worked, saying, "I'll go to the media about Olivet University raid by DHS for human trafficking to protect myself." Late April 2022, Pragad followed through with his threat. Newsweek authors Naveed Jamali and Tom O'Connor ran a peculiar story titled "Christian University at the Center of Federal Trafficking and Fraud Probe" which reported on federal authorities visiting the campus of the small, California-based bible college. Oddly enough, the actual event took place more than one year before Newsweek wrote the article, making it particularly untimely for an organization with "News" in its name - yet, the timing perfectly matched Pragad's threats, the lawsuit alleges. And with no other media writing about the event, neither at the time of the event, nor after Newsweek's publishing, the newsworthiness of and motives behind the article are called into question. "You should be aware that your CEO Dev Pragad is attempting to leverage the newsroom and yourselves for his personal advantage in a corporate shareholder dispute," Davis, the Newsweek shareholder, said at the time to Newsweek. "He has said publicly and privately that he wants my shares and full control of the company." Upon hearing this serious claim, Newsweek failed to confirm or even investigate the claim, instead claiming Pragad was "unreachable" despite being the CEO of Newsweek itself. Pragad himself did take on the role of investigative reporter though. Immediately following the article, the CEO of Newsweek was seen reaching out to various former students who attended the university. Utter Newsroom Corruption Apparently unhappy with results of his first article, with Davis firmly undaunted in relinquishing any share of the Newsweek ownership or his board position, Pragad and his newsroom attempted again to do harm to Davis and to target Davis' church. This time, Jamali teamed up with Alex J. Rouhandeh, a purported "national security reporter" to write "Chinese Pastor's Arrest Ordered as Feds Circle Olivet Christian Sect" on June 27. This time, the article focused on an individual who graduated from the university nearly a decade ago in 2014, and was charged with selling Chinatown-like knockoff bracelets online for "$50 to $100." The incident allegedly happened in 2019, even less timely than the topic of their first article with a full three years passing between it and the "news" article. Jamali and Rouhandeh apparently strained to connect the story to Olivet, the church denomination targeted by Dev Pragad's ongoing attacks, with the most notable revelation being the journalists' own admission about the lengths to which they would go to influence the agencies they were speaking to. The North Carolina Secretary of State's office, the prosecuting agency, stated in the article that it "was unaware of Lan's connection to Olivet until Newsweek sought comment on the link in May." Tellingly, the article stayed on as the main headline story of the Newsweek.com homepage for hours, even being published as the top story in Newsweek's newsletter the next day. Despite the G7 meetings, Ukraine's escalating war, and historic overturning of Roe v. Wade, Newsweek editors Jamali and Nancy Cooper deemed this to be the most important story in the world on June 27, 2022. While it was supposed to be a heavy hitting piece, readers saw right through it. Editor's note: HNGN was registered by Davis in 2016, before he divested the publication in 2018. HNGN was an advertisement partner of Newsweek during 2017 and 2018, a period when Dev Pragad was the CEO of Newsweek. Ryan Lee is an acquaintance of Dev Pragad, and is a member of the same church that Davis attends. Pragad left the church just before Newsweek articles were published. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate COLEBROOK Camp Jewell is working to replace its cabins that they said have been used by hundreds of thousands of visitors since 1956. Weve been doing this for a long time, providing safe, great programs for kids, Craig Dawson, the camps director, said after the first day of camp. This year, camp is more like normal than it has been in a long time. The camp, which started in 1901, is a branch of the YMCA of Greater Hartford and serves more than 1,500 campers annually. Thats one reason staff members decided they needed to replace all 24 of their cabins, which they use all year long. Being built in 56, the buildings are getting a bit older now, Dawson said. People dont want wooden shacks with screen windows and doors. Theyre like little houses almost. Theyre reaching that age. Theyre inefficient. It costs a lot to heat them and upkeep them. We made the decision that wed need to start replacing them. The camp is working to raise money to replace the cabins through a capital campaign called Building Dreams. Theyve now replaced four of them, just in time for this years campers to arrive for the summer. So far, theyve utilized grants, like the Urban Act Grant from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection that helped them complete the last two cabins. Dawson is hopeful that the statewide reach their camp has will help during the fundraising period. No matter where I go, if Im wearing a Camp Jewell shirt, youll bump into someone who went there for camp or with their school, Dawson said. We dont want to, as a nonprofit, were not going to hike up fees to pay for it. We just need to raise the money to ensure Camp Jewell remains here for the next 50 or 60 years. At one single time, Dawson said, the camp can serve 425 children during an overnight camp. Were a pretty big overnight camp, Dawson said. The other reason were doing them is that our existing cabins have one shower and one toilet, and theyre not accessible. Dawson said the old cabins are still serving their purpose, particularly as demand for camp services this year ramps up with the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Each cabin can accommodate 28 people, are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and feature common areas to encourage bonding and friendships. The old cabins are still nice. The new ones are going to meet people's needs even better than the old ones at this point, Dawson said. Theres a lot of demand this year. Everyone has been tied to technology. Theyve been locked up. Parents want to get their kids outdoors and making friends and doing fun things. Dawson said there has been a lot of excitement around camp this year, as they look to continue their goal of teaching children social-emotional skills. We make people realize that theres more thats similar about each other than thats different, Dawson said. The world can be quite divided. Its getting people to say Im a human being and youre a human being. That helps the kids too. That theyre part of a bigger world. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate NEW MILFORD What began as a small but heartfelt gesture of beneficence from his boss has blossomed into a veritable cottage industry of kindness for one local man. Vincent Rodriguez, who has called New Milford home these past 18 years, has now turned his care initiative Smiles I Can't See into an official nonprofit. It's kind of snowballed, he said. Now I'm an official company. In the process, Rodriguez has obtained and subsequently given away 120 guitars to children who might not otherwise get the chance to have one. I've raised over $24,000 at this point ... People are donating guitars as well, he said, noting the initiative began simply as an encouraging opportunity to do something to ease the pains of the pandemic but continues to blossom. The idea for the nonprofit originated with a gesture from his longtime boss, Mike Boyle, president of BASE Technologies in Bethel, where Rodriguez works as an IT technician and tech supporter. In August of 2020 ... he gave each of his employees $500 to do whatever we wanted to do with to give back to the pandemic, to donate however we wanted, Rodriguez said. While others from throughout his business went forward donating money to various initiatives and charities, Rodriguez called on his own early experiences with and love of music to try something a little different with the money. What I decided to do with my $500 was I wanted to buy about three acoustic guitars and find three children to give them to, he said. While he was born in the Bronx, N.Y., when Rodriguez was around age 9 he moved to Yonkers, N.Y. At that time he didn't know any other kids, but sought solace and companionship in the acoustic guitar that his parents bought for him. My guitar was my best friend for a while ... Even if I didn't know how to play it, it was great, he said. Likewise, he has watched dozens of young people find joy, solace, purpose and more through the gift of an acoustic guitar. A lot of these stories get to me," said Rodriguez, who is married with two sons, and the kids don't even realize what it does for me. I've discovered this calling that people are gravitating to, he said. Megan Gouveia of New Milford, whose daughter Margaret, 10, was the recipient of the Rodriguez's 10th guitar, is still enjoying the impact and experience. Vincent had posted that he was looking to donate a guitar to a local child in one of our town Facebook pages, Gouveia said. I said I was interested and we were later contacted. Margaret has strong aspirations to be an entertainer, has taken singing lessons and even performs on occasion. She was so thrilled to receive the guitar and work something else into her talents, Gouveia said. She took online classes through Fender and searched several YouTube videos, learning the basics and continuing to devote time to learning the new instrument. Also, she said, her daughter is always thrilled to randomly run into Rodriguez around town, as he remains encouraging about playing the instrument. He has done so much and come so far with his program, she said. It is impressive. In fact, request for guitars have popped up around the country and Rodriguez has done his best to accommodate. He has sent or helped coordinate the gifting of guitars in California, Washington, Florida and more. People are invited to apply through his website and, following an informal interview process, he makes a determination of whether the need is there to provide a guitar gratis. Vincent is doing something so selfless, making people happy, in a time when there is so much uncertainty, fear, hate and anger, said Heather Cyr of Brookfield, who made inquiries that helped get her nephew Jack, 9, the 72nd guitar that the initiative donated. Jack is now taking guitar lesson and loves it, she said. And being a middle child, this is something of his own and he is very proud. She said the experience has also given the boy and other young people a firsthand experience of how a small act of kindness can make a huge impact in someone's life. I don't know if Vincent will ever know how powerful his actions are, Cyr said. Those interested in learning more about Smiles I Can't See are encouraged to visit the website at https://smilesicantsee.wixsite.com/smilesicantsee, or to reach out at SmilesICantSee@gmail.com. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Ronan Delancy was born on May 21. He died 34 days later. His mother, Katherine Delancy, wants her sons death to mean something. Ronan was born healthy, but 10 days later his mother noticed some strange symptoms. The newborn had a rash on his cheeks and a redness on his chest. He wasnt as active as he had been. His doctor thought it might be colic, but when he stopped crying, Delancy, from Hamden, became even more concerned. I just had a bad feeling, she said. He just seemed different to me. He seemed more tired. Not that he was feeling better, just that he was sick of crying or tired from crying versus feeling like something wasnt bothering him anymore. Out of an abundance of caution, Delancy took the newborn back to Yale New Haven Hospital. In that span of 20 days, they did every possible test, she said. They did genetic testing, looking if it was an inborn error of metabolism. They checked him for epilepsy and certain seizure disorders. They also were looking to see if he maybe had a head injury of some sort. Seizures in babies, Delancy explained, dont present like they do in older people. After he was admitted to the hospital, she watched as Ronans tongue flicked repeatedly toward the side of his mouth, his eyes moving erratically. During that entire hospitalization, we tried everything, Delancy said. They tried different seizure medications, and none of them were controlling the seizures, and they were getting worse. Eventually doctors put the baby into a medically induced coma. They did a battery of tests, on his cerebral spinal fluid, MRIs and more. Doctors learned that the infant was suffering from a variant of human parechovirus, and though they held out hope that he would survive, Ronan Delancy died at 34 days old, in his mothers arms. Testing There is a PCR test for human parechovirus, which is how Ronans diagnosis was ultimately determined. But its most deadly variant is thought of as a rare virus, so its not tested for very often. Its not a new virus it was first identified in 1956 but it may be underdiagnosed. The typical clinical presentation includes fever, severe irritability, and rash, often leading to descriptions of hot, red, angry babies, according to a 2018 study from researchers in New Zealand and published online by the National Institutes of Health. Delancys doctor shared with her an internal newsletter sent in June after her sons death to clinicians and infectious disease specialists at Yale New Haven Health intended to serve as a reminder of the clinical presentations in young infants and test availability. Parechovirus can cause neurologic disease in young infants, which can be severe, and may be underdiagnosed due to lack of awareness, the newsletter said. Human parechoviruses are not common. A1, the less deadly variant, most often occurs in children less than 1 year old, and almost all children are infected by age 5, the newsletter says, though severe disease is rare from that strain. By contrast, the A3 variant is far more virulent. It has been reported as the leading cause of central nervous infection in children, the newsletter says. It is a virus that has been more routinely recognized in the last couple years as a cause of infection in young children, said Dr. Eric Hoppa, clinical director of the pediatric emergency Department at Connecticut Childrens Hospital. Its classically not something we would have thought about or tested for, he said. Rick Martinello, director of infection prevention at Yale New Haven Health, said that like flu, the different strains of parechovirus come in waves. One year we may have one type, another year we have A3, he said. It does seem like there are two- to three-year cycles. Most of the time, Martinello said the disease is self-limiting. Patients will have a cold, maybe some gastrointestinal issues and then get better. But when A3 circulates, as the Delancy family learned, it can be much worse. On occasion, we see severe infections in this neonatal population and as we unfortunately know it can be just devastating, Martinello said. Transmission Human parechoviruses are so common that its difficult to tell how they spread. The Delancys have been extremely worried about spreading disease in light of the COVID pandemic. My family had been isolating, I had been neurotic about COVID, she said. I work in the hospital. I didnt eat lunch with any of my co-workers. For the past two years I have only seen my family with masks on for short periods of time, usually outside. If it happened to us, it really could happen to anybody, she said. Ronan had only been home for eight days before he went back to the hospital. He met his grandparents outside, while they wore masks. Its possible that Ronan caught the virus from his mother or father, or perhaps in the hospital. The only other person that he met was my daughter whos in daycare, and that, unfortunately, is the common link that Ive seen with the other families, Delancy said. They all have a child whos under the age of three. Its horrible. Its horrible to know. I beat myself up and say, we should have kept them further apart, she said. Delancy believes that severe disease caused by the virus that killed her son is more prevalent than doctors know, and shes hoping they start testing for it more often. Theres a good chance its more prevalent, or its going to be more prevalent soon, she said. Moms compare notes Delancy herself works in health care and after her sons diagnosis she started doing her own research, including turning to social media. She found an online support group of parents around the world whose children had either died from human parechovirus or had been severely impacted by it. A lot of the mothers shes connected to had similar stories, she said: Went into the doctors office, told my baby was colicky, sent home, went to the emergency department, was nearly sent home, and then my baby stopped breathing while I was in there. Death from human parechoviruses is most common in children younger than 90 days, but it may also cause long-term health issues. After an outbreak in Australia, researchers found that five out of eight surviving patients developed neurodevelopmental problems. Two were diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Delancy said moms in her Facebook support group reported similar issues with their surviving children. All of them left the hospital with what they thought was a healthy baby, she said. And then years later, they realized, oh, hes not meeting his milestone, or shes not meeting her milestones, oh, she needs to be on a feeding tube for life. Its not just a virus that someone has, and then its gone, she said. The babies that survived did so, Delancy said, because it was the moms pushing, pushing, pushing, saying somethings wrong. While she said that speaks a lot toward a mothers intuition and knowing your child, Delancy also believes it suggests that there needs to be a change in policy. It also says that some sort of standard of practice has to change where there is a PCR test for this virus. That, she said, is what is keeping her going. She has a two-year-old daughter who needs care and attention, but she wants more than anything for her sons death to matter. The only thing that gets me out of bed in the morning is thinking that maybe I can prevent this for another family, she said. Because its horrible. More than anything, I want my child back, and I cant do that. But if something can change, and some other family doesnt have to go through the same thing, then at least Ronan has made an impact. The Danbury-area will celebrate Independence Day this weekend with a parade, road race and, of course, fireworks. Theres only one opportunity to catch fireworks in the area this weekend, however. New Milfords show is on Friday night. Ridgefields fireworks celebration isnt until next weekend. Danbury Fair mall is not hosting fireworks this year. Fireworks over Candlewood Lake, hosted by the Danbury Volunteer Fire Department, were held last weekend. The Redding RockN Roots Revival & Fireworks Show was also held last weekend. Here are the events happening this weekend and next. New Milford New Milford and the New Milford Chamber of Commerce are hosting a fireworks celebration on Friday. The schedule of events are: 6 p.m.: Womens Club of Greater New Milford, New Milford Cake on the Green. 6:30 p.m.: Opening ceremony on the Green 7-9:30 p.m.: Songhorse, music on the bandstand Full dark (approximately 9:30 p.m.): fireworks. The rain date is July 9, with just fireworks at 9:30 p.m. The band, cake and fireworks will be set up at 5 p.m. Bethel The 56th annual John DeMille 8K Firecracker Road Race, sponsored by Bethel Parks and Recreation, will take place Monday morning. The event will kick off from the Clifford J. Hurgin Municipal Center, 1 School St., at 8 a.m., with racers of all ages making their way through the center of town. Prizes will be awarded to the first three male and female racers in each age category $200 for first place, $100 for second and $50 for third. There will also be other prizes awarded in each of the nine age categories, which range from 10-and-under to 70-and-over. All proceeds from the race will go to support the Scotty Fund and Bens Bells. For more information, call Bethel Parks and Recreation at 203-794-8531. New Fairfield The New Fairfield Lions Club will hold its annual Fourth of July parade on Monday. With the theme of Patriotic - Red, White & Blue, the parade will kick off at 9:30 a.m. July 4, from the New Fairfield Senior Center on Route 37. The procession will head north toward Hillside Drive and go south onto Route 37, west onto Route 39, past town hall and end at Memorial Field, where ceremonies will be conducted and refreshments served. There will be awards given out for best theme, best float, best marching unit and largest group. There will also be a Lions Presidents Award. Ridgefield After a two-year hiatus, Keeler Tavern Museum & History Center will celebrate Independence Day and its 56th anniversary with its opening day held from 1 to 3 p.m. Monday. In addition to July 4s national significance as Independence Day, the day holds a spot of honor in Keeler Taverns own history: on July 4, 1966, the museum opened its doors to the public for the first time, kicking off a decades-long commitment to preserving and sharing the sites history with the widest audiences possible. Keeler Taverns annual July 4 festivities have long been a fun and patriotic Ridgefield tradition, the museum said. Admission is free. Interpreters will be stationed throughout the historic tavern. Attendees are encouraged to check out the new exhibit in the Gilbert Wing of the museum and enjoy family activities in the historic carriage barn. Angry OHaras will perform bluegrass music on the tented terrace. Kids can pick up a sitewide scavenger hunt from the visitor center and participate in games and crafts on the front lawn, designed especially for younger visitors. At the dunk tank, visitors get a shot at dunking a costumed King George III. Free watermelon slices for all and ice cream available for purchase. At 2 p.m., Keeler Tavern will join organizations and individuals throughout Ridgefield, the state and the nation in a coordinated bell ringing: Let Freedom Ring is a long-standing tradition where groups ring bells 13 times at 2 p.m. on the Fourth of July to celebrate the countrys freedom and independence. Following the bell ringing, there will be a dramatic reading of the Declaration of Independence. Ridgefield Ridgefield will have its fireworks celebration at 6 p.m. July 9, with a rain date of July 10. Gates open at 6:30 p.m. Fireworks begin at dusk (approximately 9:15 p.m). Tickets are available online at ridgefieldct.org. GRAY, La. (AP) Graduates caps and gowns replaced prison uniforms as 14 current and three former inmates at the Lafourche Parish jail received diplomas. Two graduated from college, one with a bachelors and the other with an associates degree. Fifteen others, including three former inmates, received their high school equivalency diplomas. About 45 family members, friends and law enforcement officials attended the ceremony June 21 at Covenant Church in Gray. Use this day as a stepping stone to a brighter future, said Class Representative Christopher White. I want you to show the world that we are more than a statistic. White, 29, earned a bachelors degree in arts and applied communication from Ashland University of Ohio and is part of the jails Transitional Work Program. He also earned minors in business management and business administration. White said he didnt want to share his crime, just that I made a stupid decision. He said his brother died, which led to the decision, and shortly after he was jailed, his wife died. White encouraged his fellow graduates not to let their past mistakes define them and said sacrifices must be made to reach goals. He gave up a year of work-release to finish his degree and did so while working 80-100 hours a week. To balance a full-time job and do schoolwork, its not easy, he said. I had to give up everything that was not related to self-improvement: television, socializing, recreational activities and anything else that detracted from achieving my educational goals. Nobody will do for you like you will do for you, he added. With his degree, White now hopes to open an electrical business. Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre told the graduates success requires knowledge. You have a degree, diploma or certification and a sense of self-satisfaction that no one can take from you, he said. I want you to stand before any other person who is in your situation ... and you can be a symbol to let them know this is achievable. The fully accredited college degrees were awarded by Ashland University. It has a correctional education program in Louisiana and other states. Kimberly Evans, Ashlands state director for Louisiana, said the program hopes to start in Terrebonne Parish next year. Educational achievements improve inmates chances of making a successful transition back into the community, Webre said after the ceremony. Inmates face many barriers in that journey, and a degree is a valuable tool for finding jobs. The field of academics is a field of individual achievement, Webre said, and it shows the employers they didnt simply spend their time incarcerated just sitting there waiting for release. AP ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) A person using a flamethrower set fire Saturday to a Pan-African flag flying on a pole outside the headquarters of the Uhuru Movement, a Black international socialist group based in Florida. Security video released by the group shows the driver of a white Honda sedan pulling up outside the group's St. Petersburg headquarters, removing a flamethrower from the trunk and shooting a tower of fire at the flag flying about 30 feet (9 meters) above the ground. The group says the man stopped when a worker inside the building yelled at him. The video shows him putting the flamethrower back in the trunk and then driving away. A photo supplied by the group shows the flag with a large hole. Hearst Connecticut Media / Lisa Backus BERLIN Berlin police are investigating an untimely death at a residence on Deming Road in Berlin on Saturday. The investigation began at 9 a.m., but officers were unable to immediately determine the cause of death or the circumstances leading up to the victims death, according to a statement from police. WFO NEW YORK CITY Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, July 2, 2022 _____ SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING The National Weather Service in Upton NY has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for... Central Fairfield County in southern Connecticut... Southwestern New Haven County in southern Connecticut... Eastern Putnam County in southeastern New York... * Until 700 PM EDT. * At 559 PM EDT, a severe thunderstorm was located near Pawling, moving east at 35 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Minor hail damage to vehicles is possible. Expect wind damage to trees and power lines. * This severe thunderstorm will be near... New Fairfield around 605 PM EDT. Danbury and Brookfield around 615 PM EDT. Newtown and Bethel around 620 PM EDT. Redding around 625 PM EDT. Monroe around 635 PM EDT. Shelton and Trumbull around 640 PM EDT. Seymour and Derby around 645 PM EDT. Milford and Stratford around 650 PM EDT. Orange around 655 PM EDT. New Haven around 700 PM EDT. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather By Nam Hyun-woo The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) will jointly host a conference of Asia-Pacific civil aviation chiefs in Incheon this week, the ministry said Sunday. The conference, the 57th Conference of Directors General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Asia and Pacific Regions, will take place from Monday to Friday at the Incheon Paradise City Convention Center, with civil aviation chiefs from 41 countries gathering to discuss aviation policies in the region. This is the third time for Korea to hold the conference and the first in 21 years since it was last in Korea. The 2020 and 2021 editions of the conference were skipped due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the theme of Strengthening Regional Cooperation for the Restoration of Air Network with No Country Left Behind, the conference will include civil aviation chiefs of ICAO member countries, ICAO Council President Salvatore Sciacchitano, ICAO Secretary General Juan Carlos Salazar and a number of officials from international aviation authorities. During the conference, Kim Yong-suk, the ministry's director general for Airport and Air Navigation Policy, will accept the chairmanship of DGCA Asia and Pacific Regions for the first time as a Korean national. The transport ministry said Kim's chairmanship represents Korea's active contribution to ICAO activities for promoting international aviation safety as a member of the ICAO council. During the conference, Transport Minister Won Hee-ryong will express his hopes for the conference to be a stepping stone for the international aviation industry to fly again and a stage where aviation chiefs can discuss various recovery policies based on the ICAO's No Country Left Behind initiative. During the conference, Korea will sign a letter of intent to participate in the ICAO's Digital Transformation Fund, aimed at supporting member countries through digital technologies. Gordon goodie two-shoes Brown has adopted a new golden rule: theres no hypocrisy in cosying up to dictatorships while preaching about how to make the world a better place. Lately, the former Labour Prime Minister has been popping up all over the place playing the elder statesman and promoting his latest book, Seven Ways To Change The World. Brown, we are told in the blurb, is concerned about environmental damage, climate change, poverty, health, barriers to education and opportunity and global inequality. So, it might be expected that Azerbaijan an oil and gas-rich kleptocracy that has all these issues would get a mention in the book. Gordon goodie two-shoes Brown has adopted a new golden rule: theres no hypocrisy in cosying up to dictatorships while preaching about how to make the world a better place Especially as Brown has been a guest of Ilham Aliyev, the strongman whos run the former Soviet republic since taking over from his dad following an election in 2003. But, no not a peep in the book about his Baku friends. Last week, Azerbaijans president renewed his friendship vows with Vladimir Putin, and in February when Ukraine was invaded signed a treaty with him on allied cooperation. That didnt stop Brown, 71, appearing as a guest of honour at Aliyevs Baku Forum in June, where he was given a special award. The ex-PM, seen as the conscience of the Labour Party, began his acceptance speech with a fawning thank-you to Aliyev for his leadership and humanity. Aye, right, big man. Is that the humanity often found in dynastic dictatorships, the torture of and snooping on political opponents and the funnelling of millions by cronies through Londons laundromat, some of which was used to whitewash its international image? Last week, Azerbaijans president renewed his friendship vows with Vladimir Putin, and in February when Ukraine was invaded signed a treaty with him on allied cooperation Not completely glossing over the invasion, and in the presence of another guest of honour, Russias ambassador-at-large, Brown murmured that invading armies will never conquer the hearts and minds of Ukraine something the former PM will know about from his experience in Iraq. This minor rebuke to Putin was in stark contrast to the previous years summit in the Azerbaijani capital, when Brown quoted Russian leaders talking about a global community. Last night Brown, who normally says he gives his appearance fees to charity, declined to say if and how much he has been paid for attending Aliyevs conferences, or comment on the apparent hypocrisy of lending his reputation to prop up such a regime, which is also in bed with BP in developing huge oil and gas fields. Tackling climate change may well be one of the Seven Ways To Change The World. But I offer some smaller steps Brown could also take: Dont whitewash dictators. Dont take trophies from them. Dont support blood oil money. And dont lend your name to Putin enablers. Simples. A year since that CCTV video led to his defenestration as husband and Health Secretary, Matt Hancock is enjoying life. Just in the last week, he hit the dancefloor of a student club in Oxford and took his girlfriend Gina Coladangelo to an Ed Sheeran gig at Wembley. How handy that Jamie Njoku-Goodwin, his aide when he was Culture Secretary, is now chief executive of industry body UK Music and could also magic tickets for his former boss to be at the sold-out concert by Adele in Londons Hyde Park last Friday night. Mrs Sunaks in & out There was a rare sighting of Chancellor Rishi Sunaks wife Akshata Murthy rubbing shoulders with Tory donors at a glitzy farewell bash for Indias High Commissioner. The Indian-born billionaire heiress (pictured, second right, at the bash), who gave up her non-dom tax status in April, has one foot out of Britain, much like her husband, who kept his US green card while running Britains economy (into the ground). And the venue for last Tuesdays soiree? Londons In & Out Club. A bit like the Sunaks, then. A medical worker takes a sample from a person for a COVID-19 test at a public health center in Seoul's Yongsan District, Sunday. Newsis By Lee Hae-rin The daily number of new COVID-19 infections in Korea has surpassed 10,000 again for the second straight day over the weekend, drawing concerns over a resurgence of the virus after months of declining numbers of new cases. According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters, the country saw 10,059 new daily cases on Sunday, including 191 from overseas, adding up to 18,389,611 total infections to date. Sunday's figure is 656 less than Saturday's 10,715, but far more than those of the two previous Sundays, which stood at around 6,000. Followed by the eased quarantine measures on inbound travelers and the rise in international flights, the daily number of imported cases has reached over 100 for 11 days since it first hit 113 on June 24. Since the country saw an all-time high of over 620,000 daily cases in March, the spread of the virus has shown a downward trend, remaining under 10,000 since June 9. The number then reached over 10,000 last Wednesday, June 29 at 10,455, and rebounded again this weekend, although the daily number of infections tends to drop over weekends due to fewer tests. The country reported 53 critically ill patients and eight deaths, raising the death toll to 24,570 and fatality rate to 0.13 percent. Experts point out that several factors have affected the recent resurgence of the coronavirus and warn about a further spike in coming months. Kim Woo-joo, a professor of infectious diseases at Korea University Guro Hospital told The Korea Times, Sunday, that the surge of Omicron's highly contagious sub-variants, including BA.2, BA.4 and BA.5 accounts for the waning immunity against the coronavirus globally and the recent increase in the number of new daily COVID-19 infections. "These are more contagious variants, contracted by those who had already been tested positive and developed immunity against the BA.2 Stealth Omicron sub-variant in many countries," Kim said. According to Kim, such highly contagious variants have been spreading quickly, leading infections to rebound globally, and are likely to become the dominant strains of the virus here within two weeks. Moreover, the eased social distancing measures and increased human exchanges followed by the resumption of international travel, have all together resulted in the rebound of new infections, as well as the waning effectiveness of vaccination-acquired immunity against the virus. The effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine starts to wane after four to six months following receipt of a booster shot, raising risks of breakthrough infections and reinfections, Kim said. "The problem is that the pandemic will most likely rebound on an even greater scale this winter," Kim said, explaining that preemptive preparation through vaccination is crucial. Tony Blair is back. He may be too unpopular ever to stand for high office again, but the newly made Knight of the Garter still thinks he can pull the strings of the minor figures who now lead the Labour and Liberal Democrat parties. And he may well be right. Blair now has more money than he could ever spend and a vast property empire too. But he has plenty of time, and so, at 69, his mind is turning back to his political legacy. As he explained to Andrew Neil yesterday in our sister paper, the Daily Mail, Blair yearns for a new European-style alliance of radical forces. He and his allies call this centrism but it is in fact a hugely revolutionary programme, pursued by people who pretend their Europhile red-green ideas, a melange of windmills, sexual revolution, open borders and high taxes, are the mainstream. Of course, they are not mainstream at all, but a continental-style voting system, the undoubted key to Blairs Future of Britain dream. This would be a revolution, putting anti-conservative radicals in permanent power at Westminster, as it has done in many continental countries, notably Germany. Blair now has more money than he could ever spend and a vast property empire and plenty of time, so his mind is turning back to his political legacy. Pictured: The Future of Britain conference addressed by Tony Blair on June 30 2022 And this is the menace we face. Sir Keir Starmer, Blairs disappointing heir, is most unlikely ever to win a working majority. But with Lib Dem support he could easily form a government after the next Election. Its central aim would be an electoral system which would break up the existing parties, especially the Tories, and so allow Britains Blairites to form an unending succession of post-election coalitions. Voters could not prevent or remove such alliances, because they would be negotiated after the votes were counted. This is a grave danger to our national future. Only the Conservative Party can prevent it from coming to pass. There is a point in every government, like the summit of a roller-coaster, where the whole nature of the ride changes. For a couple of years, Ministers and MPs may indulge themselves and pursue pet projects or personal ambition. But then it all alters. Suddenly, everything is about the next Election. There is no room for indulgence. Even ambition has to be stifled, for in opposition ambition has few outlets. And the other problem with opposition is that it can last a very long time. In the present case, defeat could mean permanent exclusion, the end of centuries of alternating governments and the beginning of an era of so-called proportional representation, in which the elite are the ones who get represented, out of all proportion to their numbers. Under such a method, voters would lose their ancient power to chuck out leaders they do not like. So the coming campaign could not be more important. We have asked before why the Tory party, our bulwark against the Blairites, seems to have a death wish, just at the moment the country most needs to be defended from the destructive, spendthrift, woke and incompetent Left. Now we must also ask why the Prime Minister seems so unable to get a grip on these events. The Pincher affair, in which he has been slow to act and has made feeble excuses for his supposed ignorance of the problem, has made him look weak and foolish. There is no more room or time for this sort of unprofessional messing about. For the sake of Britain, for the Union itself and our historically unique and vibrant form of democracy, Boris Johnson and the Parliamentary Conservative Party have to rediscover discipline, purpose and competence and quickly. A woman with terminal cancer says she is determined to make the most of her life after being given just a few years to live. Vicky McDowell, 32, from Manchester, has secondary breast cancer, which describes when a cancer first found in the breast has now spread elsewhere. In Vicky's case, tumours are now in her spine, lungs, liver and brain. She takes morphine, and has had chemotherapy to keep the cancer at bay, after taking leave from her digital marketing job this January. But despite her prognosis, and the challenges of living with a terminal diagnosis, she has vowed to have a sunny attitude to life and keep having fun, documenting her life online, and 'mocking' her illness 'before it catches up to [her]'. Vicky McDowell was recently given the diagnosis of terminal cancer and given a prognosis of a few years. The 32-year-old, from Manchester, has secondary breast cancer in her spine, lungs, liver and brain after first having breast cancer in 2015 and getting the all-clear Vicky, pictured with puppy Rupert, is on morphine and has had chemotherapy to keep the cancer at bay after taking leave from her digital marketing job this January. But despite her prognosis of a few years and challenges she faces along the way, she has vowed to have a sunny attitude to life and keep having fun The 32-year-old, pictured with boyfriend Fraser, runs Instagram and TikTok accounts @dyingforafollowing, which she set up to poke fun at her diagnosis and document her life after she found out that her diagnosis was terminal She runs Instagram and TikTok accounts @dyingforafollowing, which she set up to poke fun at her diagnosis and document her life after she found out that her diagnosis was terminal. Vicky was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, when she was 25, and was told the cancer had been caught at a good stage. She had chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and was eventually given the all clear. However, the 32-year-old was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer at the start of this year. She has been on morphine and had chemotherapy to keep the cancer at bay after taking leave from her marketing job in January. Her most recent round of chemotherapy finished in the middle of June. Vicky has since had to add seizure medication to her routine, after suffering a seizure while her puppy's dog breeder came round for a visit. She was drinking a glass of sparkling water which she dropped and began convulsing. She now takes Levetiracetam, a medication used to treat epilepsy, daily. The 32-year-old told FEMAIL that the seizures resulted from her brain tumours shrinking, and the resulting space being filled with liquid - which she discovered after having an MRI scan. In one of her clips, filmed on her 32nd birthday, Vicky explained that she had woken up in a hospital bay after having two seizures and quipped 'bae in the birthday bay' and told her followers she would be taking anti-seizure medication The 32-year-old told FEMAIL that she had the seizures as an MRI scan discovered more shrinkage of the brain tumours which opened up space around them and filled with liquid which then caused them 'I am now for the foreseeable on seizure medication, four tablets a day. You have to look at some positives there. 'I may now have seizures but I also have less brain tumour. You have to find the silver lining in everything. I do have seizures but as a result of something good,' she said. Since being given her terminal diagnosis in March of this year, Vicky has turned her attention to living each day to the full, admitting that it is 'liberating in a weird way'. She said: 'It's just like, well today could be the last day, so what am I doing?' She continued: 'You still want to live your life and work a job and have friends and family and date and get a puppy and buy a house.' 'If I have only got a few years which is what I am predicted then they are going to be some good f*****g years.' The 32-year-old, who has been living with her mother in Manchester since the start of the COVID pandemic, recently got her puppy and bought a house where she will soon be living with her boyfriend Fraser and her dog. She explained: 'We were old school friends. He was actually two academic years younger than me. We got back in touch over a podcast and he messaged me about it and we started chatting. Another of Vicky's videos shows her being taken to hospital for a chest infection, pictured, again updating her followers. She wrote that she was posting both the good and bad times and joked that the 'free ride' was a positive 'We were hanging out as friends and then our friendship became more. We dated for a few months and then I got diagnosed. The boy never signed up for this but he has taken it in his stride in the funnest way.' The 32-year-old added that the pair have the same morbid sense of humour and he will often joke: 'when you die this is mine' and point at things belonging to her. Vicky said she has always been outspoken with a dark sense of humour and is unfiltered with a big personality, which she credits with helping her deal with her situation. 'I'm just a little bit more able to take it in my stride then maybe people who struggle more with putting themselves out there and being like f**k it. Maybe that is a benefit, I find that it's a luxury.' Vicky uses this sense of humour in her TikTok videos. In one of her clips, filmed on her 32nd birthday, Vicky says: 'Good morning everyone. It is the 22nd June. It is Wednesday, it's my birthday. 'I am 32 years old today. I am also in a hospital bay.' She then quips: 'Bae in the birthday bay.' In another video, Vicky is taken to hospital after contracting a chest infection. She wrote: 'I know I am posting the good times, but I am also posting the bad times. So I am en route to hospital and I am classing this as a good time because its a free ride. No, this is a bad time. I'll keep you informed if anything goes awry.' The 32-year-old also wants to put recommendations of how to support a family member, friend or loved one with cancer on her website Additionally she wants to do a podcast where she speaks to people with chronic illnesses such as endometriosis in order to raise awareness. And she said she wants to have guest posts on her website from people with the illnesses Speaking to FEMAIL, Vicky said she is creating her own little legacy through her social media content, adding: 'My social medias are a bit of a diary to myself.' Along with her TikTok and Instagram accounts, Vicky has now set up a website which she is planning to use to help other people find out vital information about cancer. 'What I want to do, is basically a big, free [asset-rich] resource that I wish I had, that is readily and easily accessible, and somewhat welcome when someone does get diagnosed with cancer,' she explained. Vicky added she wants to make it clear how much support is available to people through making her website. She explained that there is stigma around claiming benefits but the 'whole point' is that there is a support system and it is not a trick or a shame. Vicky added that if she only has a few years she wants to make sure they are 'f*****g good ones' spent with friends and family and on holiday She said that as she knows she has a terminal diagnosis, she lives for what she can do now, which she described as 'actually quite liberating in a weird way' Vicky is also hoping to put in recommendations of how to support a family member, friend or loved one with cancer on her website. She added: 'I want to have my social media streams and do a podcast as well and talk to people and go over topics as well. 'I want to cover other chronic illnesses as well such as Crohn's and Endometriosis.' Speaking about how people react when you tell them you have cancer, she said it is common for people to say 'I'm so sorry' but for many people with the illness such as Vicky, it is the last phrase they want to hear. 'It's not what you want right now. There is some merit to throwing your own pity party. You can do all of those things. You can have a cry, you can spend those days in bed. 'But eventually you are all cried out. Well what the f**k now? Because I can't stay sad. Now what? You want to get up and look around and do something productive and make something. I want to prove that I am alive.' She added: 'This diagnosis has given me a purpose. It has given me a motivation. It is kind of sad but at the same time kind of liberating which is also something which has been unexpected but is something I hope to take in my stride and deal with every day.' A businessman has revealed how he combines a gruelling work schedule as founder of a tech company with life as a single father to six children. Umesh Perera, 50, from Bushey, Hertfordshire, is founder of Ayozat, a broadcasting, production and distribution company with its own online streaming and gaming platforms. But between building the business and making calls to his teams in Singapore, India and Europe, Umesh also finds time to cook family meals and do the school run twice a day. Umesh Perera, 50, from Bushey, Hertfordshire, is founder of Ayozat, a broadcasting, production and distribution company with its own online streaming and gaming platforms. But between building the business and making calls to his teams in Singapore, India and Europe, Umesh also finds time to cook family meals and do the school run twice a day The engineering graduate became a primary carer to his children Alex, 21, Yazmine, 19, Oliver, 18, Zane, 14, Amali, 12, and Tassia, 10, after splitting from their mother. 'I won custody of my children in the family courts,' Umesh said. 'Their mum passed away not long afterwards which was tough for them but we've come through it all together. I loved my work but I left it behind at that point to raise my children.' He'd already had a distinguished career by this point: in the aftermath of the Kosovo war he was part of the effort to repatriate more than a million refugees, collaborating with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Microsoft and the United Nations. And his expertise was subsequently called upon by NATO and the Ministry of Defence to deal with other refugee crises. But for most of the last two decades he put his career in second place to bringing up the kids. When lockdown hit, Umesh founded his company Ayozat, which he runs from a home office in his family's extended Edwardian cottage. The engineering graduate became a primary carer to his children Alex, 21, Yazmine, 19, Oliver, 18, Zane, 14, Amali, 12, and Tassia, 10, after splitting from their mother The broadcasting, production, and distribution tech company he founded has already expanded to includ interests in intellectual property, OTT platforms, patented compression technology, advertising and gaming platforms. Umesh's daily schedule makes for exhausting reading - tailored as it is around the needs of both his kids and his staff in different time zones. Umesh rises at 5am to start to plough through a bulging inbox of emails. By 6am he is starting his daily conference call with teams in India and Singapore who are well into their working day and at their desks. My family loves it when I cook and I'm a firm believer in gathering together to break bread and share those special moments around gorgeous food His employees are well-drilled, they know reports must be completed by 8am so Umesh can read them before jumping in his car with his three school aged kids to do school runs to three different schools around the Harrow area. He's back at his desk by 9am, ready to tackle his demanding work day head-on, with their European offices now on stream for liaison. When 1pm arrives he stops the company clock and goes to the kitchen to knock up one of his famous Sri Lankan curries which he will share with whoever is around. Umesh's older children - Alex, Yazmine and Oliver - all often work for their father on various Ayozat projects so are often at home during the working day to keep him company. And to eat with him. Alex is involved full time with students Yazmine and Oliver getting involved when student life allows. 'My family loves it when I cook and I'm a firm believer in gathering together to break bread and share those special moments around gorgeous food. I'm self-taught in the kitchen but the reviews I get are decent Although perhaps my kids are biased!' Umesh admits that balancing the needs and demands of six children while running an international company is not easy Umesh and his older children will return to their desks to continue work through the afternoon - with colleagues in north and south America now coming into their working days as their Asian counterparts are well into their evenings. At 3pm it's time for the second school run of the day. Collecting Zane, Amali and Tassia. When they get home from school their favourite tasks are to test out whatever new software or applications their dad has been working on that day. 'I tell them that homework comes first, then they are allowed to do the fun things later.' He himself carries on the working day until well into the early evening before again cooking a meal for the whole family and unwinding before it all starts again early the next day. Umesh admits that balancing the needs and demands of six children while running an international company is not easy. 'There have been very challenging periods,' he says. 'I have to be their dad, share unconditional love, affection and support, while also showing them the value of hard work. When they have not put in the best effort I address that, realising that the long term gains outweigh the short term headache of being an occasionally-strict dad, 'But while discipline is important they know I'm a softy at heart, I just try my best to get the balance right. Like every parent I make lots of mistakes along the way and every day is a humble learning experience.' Umesh's son, Alex, is now Ayozat's head of network operations so his father is also his boss. 'He is not a normal dad and is involved in all aspects of our lives,' Alex said. 'That includes the household - he even brushes the girls hair in the morning. 'For him, it's not about a separation between work and life, it's about 'life' - about trying to do the right thing. He added: 'The company's focus on media and gaming was initially based on the interests of us kids and he regularly consults us on business decisions and products.' Umesh harnessed his years of computer network-building skills and set about building a platform that he felt could rival the world's tech giants. 'It seems crazy when I say it now but I just somehow knew that this was destined to be huge, he said. 'Now, with multi-million pound deals and our own Sky channel slot, it's easier for people to understand the potential, we reach thirty million monthly viewers, but there was never any doubt in my mind that everything was about to change.' That sounds euphemistic It does, doesnt it? Its not, though. So its a gap between an orgasm and what? Dinner? No, between the number of women whove had an orgasm and the number of men who have. yes, yes yes? Emma Thompson with Daryl Mccormack in Good Luck to you, Leo Grande. Ever since it's release a few weeks ago, women have been discussing orgasms Tell me more Ever since Emma Thompsons latest film Good Luck to You, Leo Grande was released a few weeks ago, women have been discussing orgasms. And bemoaning the lack of them. I havent seen the film In brief, Emma Thompsons character Nancy is a retired (and recently widowed) RE teacher. Shes never had an orgasm until she gets together, in a hotel room, with a handsome young sex worker called Leo. Is this a repressed British thing? Yes, in that Nancy is a repressed British woman (her sexual fantasies are a list of attainable goals) but no, in that it has caught the American imagination too. As the Los Angeles Times put it: Its hard not to embrace its still-rare vision of a woman learning to articulate and satisfy her most human impulses. I object to the idea that were a nation of Nancies! You say that but while promoting the movie Emma Thompson revealed (while talking to Lorraine Kelly) that 15 per cent of women have never had an orgasm. Meg Ryan in When Harry met Sally. Researchers at the University of Ottawa have been trying, but have concluded that the female orgasm particularly in older women is an under-investigated and poorly understood aspect of the female sexual response What, never, ever, ever? That is exactly what Lorraine said. Well, something has to be done That is exactly what Lorraine said too. Is anything being done? The trouble is that scientists and psychologists still dont really know how female sexual pleasure works. Why on earth not? They need to get on to that Researchers at the University of Ottawa have been trying, but have concluded that the female orgasm particularly in older women is an under-investigated and poorly understood aspect of the female sexual response. So their study showed that there arent enough studies? They did find other stuff. What happened in that hotel room was all down to Emma Thompson Such as? That reliable physical indicators include throbbing, shuddering, trembling and quivering. But not moaning. So that When Harry Met Sally scene wouldnt have stood up in a lab then? The researchers touched on that. Apparently copulatory vocalisations are likely to be under womens conscious control. The boffins have concluded that women sometimes fake it? Yes. Dare we ask how you actually measure orgasms the Richter scale? There are, in fact, two existing scales: the orgasm rating scale and the bodily sensations of orgasm scale. You would, however, probably only know that if you were an Ottawan sex researcher. So is anyone having any fun? There is cause for hope. According to market analysis by accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, the global sexual wellness devices market was estimated at $19 billion [15.5 billion] last year and growth is predicted to accelerate over the next four years. The global sexual wellness devices market? They are accountants Has Emma Thompson broken cover on vibrators? Not yet, but she did say that it was important to both her and to the film-makers that it wasnt Leo who gives her the orgasm. But it was Leo, wasnt it? Youre being far too literal. The point was that she went after the experience herself. What happened in that hotel room was all down to her. Did Emma reveal anything about what she, personally, would like to do in a hotel room? She told New Yorks The Cut website that shed like to order soup. Right but after that? Fish and chips and she doesnt even mind if she gets ketchup on the sheets. Celebrity photographer Rankin has unveiled an exhibition featuring images that have been 'unfairly' censored on social media. The British photographer, real name John Rankin Waddell, who has worked with Kate Moss, Madonna, David Bowie and the Queen, said: 'Censorship is a tool, but one that is often used inadvertently to silence marginalised voices.' Statistics have shown that 29.6 per cent of content relating to the female body and experiences relating to sexism or misogyny taken down. One in 10 posts about homophobia are also removed. Beija London had this image taken down after being labelled as 'adult content'. The brand appealed but nothing happened This image from lesbian photographer Renee Jacobs was censored for nudity mostly and once for 'soliciting sex work.' Renee explains that even her tames, most censored images get pulled THE UNSEEN is highlighting this breadth and of censorship, and those who have joined the community showcase the core reasons marginalised people feel they are being censored. Lingerie brands such as Beija London are featured in the gallery, after they had images taken down for 'adult content.' The brand said: 'Social media and advertising giants are a great force which controls how women are represented. 'Female "nudity" is managed in such a way that the images we're served are heavily censored and often totally hyper-sexualised. 'Female nipples," and "excessing visible skin" would all be deemed a violation of community guidelines regardless of the intent. Our brand is penalised constantly for this which affects our reach as an independent brand.' This image posted by the photographer AdeY was removed because the platform deemed it unsafe and sexuality explicit. The photographer explains that their work is not and has been fighting this battle for many years and once wrote a public letter to Instagram Lesbian photographer Renee Jacobs has also had her work censored on social media. She has had images pulled mainly for nudity, but once for 'soliciting sex work.' Renee explains that she has never once knowingly or intentionally violated social media rules. She said: 'There is no question that heavy-handed censorship has a chilling effect on queer speech, thought and action. The algorithms are mindless and childish.' This image from Imogen Rolfe was censored because it was deemed against community guidelines. The artist said: 'It was really disheartening as I was steadily growing my account and art business during the pandemic and it was the one thing keeping me going' Samra Lovelady woke up one morning to discover that Instagram had removed her fitness account with no reason given. She reveals that this has had a huge impact on her life as she used the account to deal with her depression UNSEEN community member Dr Carolina Are said: 'It's a continuous, frustrating game of whack-a-mole with platforms, so much so that I've ended up blending my PhD in the moderation of online abuse with my experiences of censorship.' Rankin added: 'We've had an incredible response so far, and we're just getting started. This is an important issue, and those affected deserve to have a voice in the policies that affect them on the platforms they love and build their businesses on.' The project has generated incredible interest, even at its early stages, with hundreds of people from all over the world sharing their stories and joining the discussion. Sheridan Smith and Jenny Agutter were all smiles as they boarded the train to attend the world premiere of The Railway Children Return today in Yorkshire today. Reprising her role as Bobbie Waterbury from the beloved 1970 film, Jenny, 69, joined Sheridan, 40, playing her daughter Annie. The two women boarded a train at Oakworth Station, West Yorkshire to attend the premiere in Keighley. For the premiere, at Keighley Picture House Cinema, Sheridan wore a pale blue midi dress with large white floral pattern and matching platform sandals. Sheridan Smith (left) and Jenny Agutter (right) attended the world premiere of The Railway Children Return with other cast members She swept her blonde locks to one side, which were loosely curled, and accessorised with delicate silver earrings. The mother-of-one spiced up her elegant outfit with shocking red pointed nails. Meanwhile Jenny's dress matched Sheridan's nails. The coral mid-length number had a rolling high neck and long sleeves. She opted for low heel black pumps and wore large twisted gold studs. She kept her hair neat in a bob with her fringe swept to to one side. L-R: Danny Brocklehurst, Jemma Rodgers, KJ Aikens, Morgan Matthews, Zac Cudby, Austin Haynes, Jenny Agutter, Eden Hamilton, Beau Gadson, Sheridan Smith, John Bradley-West and Tom Courtenay all attending the world premiere at Oakworth Station, West Yorkshire The cast travelled via train from Oakworth Station in West Yorkshire to attend the world premiere in Keighley Other cast members who attend Oakworth Station ahead of the premiere were John Bradley-West, KJ Aikens, Zac Cudby, Austin Haynes, Eden Hamilton, Beau Gadson and Tom Courtenay. Speaking ahead of the premiere, Tom Marshall, from Keighley & Worth Valley Railway said: 'We are very excited at KWVR to welcome the cast and crew back to the railway before the premiere. 'The Railway Children's Return will greatly boost the area, especially the tourism and celebration of the local area and the railway. 'The 1970s film Railway Children shone a light on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway, and we hope the new film will continue to shine on the area, adding another accolade and further celebrating the City of Culture win.' Reprising her role as Bobbie Waterbury from the beloved 1970 film, Jenny, 69, joins Sheridan, 40, playing her daughter Annie Jenny is pictured here boarding the train. For the premiere she wore a red mid length, long sleeve dress with a roll neck Set in 1944, the sequel shows a time where life in Britain's cities becomes increasingly perilous. Three evacuees - Lily (Beau Gadsdon), Pattie (Eden Hamilton) and Ted (Zac Cudby) Watts - are sent to the Yorkshire village from Salford by their mother. Sheridan and Jenny were beaming as they embarked upon the journey to the world premiere of the long anticipated sequel Sheridan swept her blonde curls loosely over one shoulder and added ferocity to her outfit with bright red, pointed nails Bobbie, Annie and Bobbie's grandson Thomas (Austin Haynes) are there to greet the young children and help them settle into their new life in the countryside. However when they discover injured American soldier Abe (KJ Aikens), hiding out in the railyard at Oakworth Station, they are thrust into a dangerous quest to assist their new friend who, like them, is a long way from home. Jenny kept her make up natural, with a bronzed look and delicate pink lipstick. She chose a pair of large gold stud earrings For the premiere Jenny wore her hair neatly in a bob, with her fringe swept to one side by the wind At the directorial helm is Morgan Matthews, whose previous credits include Taxidermy: Stuff the World, Channel 4's My Crazy Parents and feature-length Beautiful Young Minds. Matthews is known for films X+Y and Shooting Bigfoot, while Jemma Rodgers will produce the film for StudioCanal, which owns the rights to the original. Sheridan opted for a pastel blue dress with large white floral print and blue platform heels. Her toe nails matched the colour of her striking nails The cast and crew attending the world premiere of The Railway Children at Keighley Picture House Cinema in West Yorkshire Game of Thrones star John Bradley (left) also stars in the film, which is directed by Morgan Matthews (right) Meanwhile, Danny Brocklehurst, whose writing credits include Brassic and Shameless, penned the screenplay. The original film was based on the novel by E Nesbit, which tells the story of three children who are set to be shipped off to live in the country at The Three Chimneys house beside a railway line, following their father's arrest on spying charges. The crew shot scenes in key locations from the original film, including the Haworth, Oakworth Station, The Bronte Parsonage and the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway. Typical Yorkshire weather! Jenny Agutter is seen here underneath an umbrella on the train platform with Tom Courtenay Three evacuees - Lily (Beau Gadsdon), Pattie (Eden Hamilton) and Ted (Zac Cudby) Watts - are sent to the Yorkshire village from Salford by their mother TV presenter Christine Talbot was among the premiere's guests at Keighley Picture House Cinema Married at First Sight's Marilyse Corrigan wore a white and black floral dress to attend the event, with black sandals Coronation Street stars, Katie McGlynn (left) and Dolly-Rose Campbell (right) were also in attendance at the premiere Other Coronation Street stars in attendance included Bhavana Limbachia (left) and Martelle Edinborough (right with guest) Leeds Rhino's star Kruise Leeming attended the world premiere with his partner Alex May Hancock Former Emmerdale star Natalie Anderson was also in attendance. She opted for a butterfly print dress and gold wedge espadrilles Actor David Tag looked laid back in a casual white shirt as he turned up a the premiere in Keighley At last I have something in common with Kate Moss. Sadly, it's not the supermodel looks, the bank balance or the Cotswolds country pile. She aged 48, me 16 years older at 64, are both unfortunate enough to have 'barcode' lips. This is when horrible vertical lines develop as part of the ageing process. Also known as 'lipstick lines' they appear most prominently above top lips but can also develop under the lower lip, whether a smoker, like Kate, or not. Technically they're called 'perioral' lines. Whatever name you prefer, it's all shorthand for those ghastly grooves that just get deeper as the years pass and age us horribly. Smokers may develop the lines prematurely but no woman can avoid them altogether. They develop just from talking, laughing, living and worst of all sunbathing. Mine first started to bother me five years ago, the result of growing up in Australia in the days before sun damage was truly understood and a casual smoking habit. As we get older we lose collagen, the protein that keeps our faces plumped and elastic. Depressingly, it starts to deplete at age 30. By 50, we're lucky to have any left at all. Amanda, pictured left before her treatment and right afterwards, asked her prescribing nurse practitioner Lee Garrett how to get rid of the 'barcode' lines on her face and had an Upper Lip Rejuvenation Treatment which he said could help reduce them I was particularly struck by the sight of this 'barcode lip' affliction at a friend's ladies-only 60th-birthday lunch recently. Seated around the table were a bunch of beautiful women who'd looked after themselves over the years, yet all had succumbed to barcode lips. Most had never smoked, a few had spent too many hours in the sun and, naturally, the subject came around to 'what the hell can we do about our crinkled lips?' You can have the freshly dyed, bouncily blow-dried hair, designer dresses and a honed and toned body from all those gym and Pilates sessions but lipstick lines will date you like a shaggy perm and frosted lipstick. So having turned 64 and on a mission to banish the barcode, I called the only man I would ever trust with my face, Lee Garrett, and asked what I could do. As readers may know, I am no stranger to cosmetic tweaks that slow the ageing process. My relationship with Lee (yes I am on first name terms with my cosmetic practitioner) has survived two decades, more than that of any boyfriend. More importantly, he knows my face and how to tweak it. He's a 'less is more' physician, a tender sculptor. I will not and never have had a facelift. I draw the line at knives. Needles I'm okay with for dermal fillers or baby Botox, which I have had and written about. Every six months, over the past two decades, I've had 'something done' on my face and I've always been honest about it. No fibbing and attributing my smooth complexion to plenty of sleep and two litres of water a day, as so many do. There was the 'vampire' facial favoured by Jennifer Aniston, where your blood is sucked out, the good bits are extracted then reinjected into your skin to rejuvenate it. Then there was the 'Smurf' blue chemical peel that made my skin fall off and had children fleeing in horror in M&S when they saw me. I consider myself something of a trailblazer in the field of cosmetic procedures having had my first treatment in my 40s at a time when such things were still taboo. After talking to Lee, he said that while he couldn't completely do away with my barcodes, which would be a miracle, they could be reduced with Upper Lip Rejuvenation Treatment. I booked in. Amanda, pictured having the treatment, firstly had a numbing cream applied and then her face measured before Lee administered tiny injections across her cheeks, nasolabial folds and marionette lines. The lipstick lines were treated by injecting filler in an upwards direction The treatment isn't new but Lee custom tweaks it so that the injections are tailored to each face. It's one of his most in-demand procedures and he told me that recently he had a day where he did nothing but lip smoothing. The first step was to apply a numbing cream which took half an hour to work. Then he measured my face with a calliper a bit like an old-fashioned geometry compass to find the sweet spot on my cheeks where he injected Belotero (a dermal filler with a hyaluronic base) to replace lost collagen. Cheek filler may sound strange as part of a lip procedure but, as Lee explained, our full, youthful cheeks are all part of the scaffolding that holds our face up and lifting them will give a better lip result. He drew lines on my face with a white crayon, first from halfway down from the sides of my nose to my lips where the nasolabial folds are or 'grumpy lines,' as I call them. Then around my marionette lines, which run from the corner of the bottom lips to the chin that, with age, make lips droop slightly and we look sad. When it came to my barcode upper lip there was no need for crayon to mark them out. The skin above my top lip was as dry and cracked as a Saharan riverbed after a drought. Lee then gave me several tiny injections, using the same filler. First in my cheeks, then in the nasolabial folds, then the marionette lines, to smooth out the other lines around my lips before tackling the barcode. The lipstick lines were treated individually by injecting a little filler in an upwards direction the 'blanching' technique. After 45 minutes I was done and hadn't felt a thing. I put on some lipstick and slap and went out for lunch. Amanda said that she had the same barcode lines which Kate Moss has and that can be caused by smoking I was relieved there was none of the unsightly swelling or redness I had anticipated. The next day I had one tiny bruise half the size of a pin head and was on live TV that night. Within days I noticed the difference, those lines not completely gone but clearly smoothed. For those feeling queasy at the thought of it all and dreading ending up with a hideously unnatural trout pout, there was nothing injected into my actual lips. No industrial quantities of collagen, no derma lip fillers so favoured by celebrities. You can see the result on reality TV stars, like so many on Love Island. During the fortnight since I've had the treatment, friends say my face looks 'fresh' and that I appear younger. One even had the temerity to poke my lips to make sure that they hadn't been filled. Even she was satisfied. While the injections didn't sting, some may wince at the price. The treatment starts at 900, the worse your lines the more filler you'll need. And the treatment will need topping up in three months time a further 555. Yes it's a lot during this cost-of-living crisis, but I worked out it was less than I might spend in a year on frocks I hardly ever wear, overseas holidays I don't want to go on and careless Deliveroos when I can't be bothered to cook. With the cosmetic industry in the UK currently worth 3.6 billion, I know I am not alone in trying to hold back the years. And while I have the greatest admiration for women who choose to grow older gracefully I, like millions of others, am not one of them. Lee Garrett is a prescribing nurse practitioner at Cosmetic Skin Clinic (cosmeticskinclinic.com). Just when you thought Britain's obsession with spoiling its dogs couldn't get any sillier, along comes ice cream for pooches. Yes, really. We've had dog advent calendars, even pawsecco for pampered pekingeses. Now, there are an increasing number of doggie iced treats on the market, sorbets for your salukis and gelatos for your German shepherds. And it's not just found in a few upmarket pet shops. Last month Aldi, the discount supermarket, started selling pea & vanilla and apple & carrot flavoured doggy ice cream as a 'special buy' and the tubs sold out in just over a week. Emma Holmes, a dog groomer who works at Pets Pavilion which sells Doggy Doggy Yum Yum, explains why so many customers like buying the product. 'Dogs have become such a big part of the family, you think, 'I'm off to the park. I want an ice cream, but I also want my dog to have one.' So you can now have it together.' Harry Wallop, with the help of his cockapoo Darcey, put some of the dog-friendly sorbets and ice creams to the test to see which were the best She insists pet owners have not gone soft in the head. 'It's not just a gimmick, they do help a dog cool down better than a bowl of water.' Some but not all dogs are lactose-intolerant and all pets really should avoid sugar, so traditional, human ice creams are not suitable. These dog ice creams, as a result, tend to be dairy-free and none of them have added sugar. Which are the best? To find out I roped in my cockapoo, Darcey, to test them. But as she gladly eats anything out of a rubbish bin and worse I am not sure she is a very discerning tester. So, I also tried a bit of them myself (they are perfectly safe for human consumption), to see if they are top dog or a bit ruff. NOT-SO-MUCKY PUP Doggy Doggy Yum Yum, peanut butter and banana (2.98, doggydoggy yumyum.com) Dairy free? Yes Doggy Doggy Yum Yum, peanut butter and banana (2.98, doggydoggy yumyum.com) is surprisingly tasty according to Harry 'No muck inside' is the promise from this Dorset-based company. It's organic, it's vegan, it's dairy-free and gluten-free. The ice treat is made up of banana puree, yoghurt made from coconut milk, some agave syrup and peanut butter. I found it surprisingly tasty and Darcey gave it a big paws up too. SWEET TREAT Jude's ice cream for dogs (1.40, ocado.com) Dairy free? Yes Jude's ice cream for dogs (1.40, ocado.com) is mainly made of fruit juice- strawberry, apple and banana puree and Harry says it is good as a sorbet for humans too Jude's, the upmarket human ice cream brand, has been going for 20 years but it branched out into tubs for dogs just last year. The main ingredient is fruit juice: strawberry, apple and banana puree, which makes it surprisingly sweet. It's pretty good as a sorbet for humans, too! FIDO'S FROYO Frozzys lickable frozen yoghurt for dogs, original flavour (5 for 4, Morrisons) Dairy free? No Frozzys lickable frozen yoghurt for dogs, original flavour (5 for 4, Morrisons) has the consistency of a block of ice and Harry says Darcey did not seem to enjoy it Frozzys is frozen yoghurt but the company says these little tubs are lactose-free. The taste (to a human) is unsweetened, watery yoghurt, with a slight vanilla flavour. It has added vitamins too. The consistency is that of a block of ice, which in some ways is quite good your dog can't wolf it down in one go. But Darcey seemed less keen on this one. MIX-YOUR-OWN Sunny Daze, ice pops with blueberry (3, Pets At Home) Dairy free? No Sunny Daze, ice pops with blueberry (3, Pets At Home) are a faff according to Harry but he says that some mind find them very clever Some might find these very clever; I thought they were a faff. You get sachets of frozen yoghurt powder with added dried blueberries, carrot powder and corn starch. You mix the powder with water in a jug and then pour it into a reusable and washable rubber popsicle sheath, before freezing. The taste, to me, was sour yoghurt but Darcey loved it. POSH PET-POPS Woof & Brew ice pops (5.99 for 6, Pets At Home) Dairy free? Yes Woof & Brew ice pops (5.99 for 6, Pets At Home) are made of elderflower, linden blossom, ginseng and a preservative. Harry says they were almost completely tasteless Woof & Brew made a name for itself by making pawsecco and doggy beer. Now, it has 'luxurious pet-pops' made from elderflower, linden blossom, ginseng and a preservative. They are, however, almost completely tasteless. Darcey gnawed away happily, but then again she loves an ice cube which would be far cheaper. SCRUMMY SCOOP Marshfield Farm Scoop's, vanilla (2.95, marshfield-icecream.co.uk) Dairy free? No Marshfield Farm Scoop's, vanilla (2.95, marshfield-icecream.co.uk) is the closest of the treats to an ice cream, Harry says This is the closest of all the treats to an actual ice cream. Because it contains milk and buttermilk powder, it is quite smooth and, frankly, as good as some human ice creams. It also has the added joint and muscle supplement Joint Aid For Dogs, which I hope thanks to my spoonful will aid my ageing knees. If your dog doesn't tolerate dairy, this isn't for them. But Darcey is a cheese monster and was a big fan of this. You don't need us to tell you the cost-of-living crisis is in full swing, with bills for groceries, petrol, electricity and, frankly, everything else soaring. Can your bog-standard 500g tub of Lurpak really now be 4.99? Yes, it can. But it is still possible to live the good life. In order to enjoy the odd luxury, you just need to cut back elsewhere. We asked five experts from the worlds of fashion, beauty, interiors, food and drink what they save on and what they think is still well worth a splurge. BUDGET BEAUTY Deborah Joseph, European editorial director of GLAMOUR, has been a skincare and haircare lover since her late teens. Her bathroom cabinet houses both Elf's 6 Putty Blush and Sisley's 155 Black Rose Skin Infusion Cream. SAVE Cleanser This is where you can look for a budget option. I use a gentle oil and then a foam cleanser that removes all my make-up including that on my eyes without needing to use cotton wool, which means less waste. CeraVe, the American brand formulated with dermatologists, is one of the best and its cleansers cost around a tenner (boots.com). I'm also a fan of Simple Refreshing Facial Wash (2.30, tesco.com) because it removes all of my make-up. Sun protection One area to save on is your SPF brands such as La Roche-Posay, Vichy and Nivea all have broad-spectrum sunscreen with added skincare benefits which protect against UVA and UVB. The first two come in at under 20, while you can get a 200ml bottle of Nivea for 6 (all boots.com). It's important to wear SPF daily and plentifully, and you don't want the cost to be a barrier. Skincare The Ordinary is a low-cost brand that has invested in technology and offers hard-working skincare, with prices ranging from around 4 to 20 (theordinary.com). Beauty influencer Sali Hughes collaborated with budget brand Revolution, and you will be hard-pushed to find the number of ingredients and concentrations in her Must-C Anytime Daily Serum (11.98, superdrug.com) in any similar products on the High Street. Deborah Joseph likes Guerlain Terracotta bronzer SPLURGE Leave-in haircare Olaplex hair products have transformed my thick, curly hair, making it softer, more moisturised and easier to blow-dry at home. The masks cost the best part of 30 but they mean fewer split ends, so my hair needs cutting less often (28, uk.olaplex.com). Moisturiser Ever since a beauty editor showed me the difference between the skin on her left and right hand one wrinkled with age spots, the other, on which she tested products, smooth and without so much as a freckle I have obsessively applied a results-driven moisturiser morning and night. To get your money's worth, I would recommend multi-tasking moisturisers, infused with either hyaluronic acid (plumping), retinol (fights pigmentation and fine lines) or an SPF. I like MZ Skin Hydrate & Nourish Age Defence Retinol Day Moisturiser SPF 30 (95, libertylondon.com) or Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine Cream SPF 30 (89, uk.elemis.com). Bronzer I have tried pretty much every bronzer under the sun over the past 25 years and I always go back to the same one Guerlain Terracotta (above left, 40, guerlain.com). I wear it every single day. It lasts a year and is worth every penny of the 40 outlay. DO UP YOUR HOME ON THE HIGH STREET The former editor of Elle Decoration magazine, Michelle Ogundehin, is head judge on the BBC's Interior Design Masters and author of Happy Inside. 'The big-picture cost-saving step for interiors is to set yourself some ground rules,' she says. 'What are your favourite colours, materials and textures? Stick to shopping within these constraints. It shouldn't feel limiting because you're defining what you love.' SAVE Kitchen cabinets Buy kitchen unit carcasses from Ikea. They are standard-sized, solid, inexpensive and come in many permutations. Firms such as Superfront, Custom Fronts and Reform all make stylish doors and handles designed to fit Ikea models. A fake carpet Many carpet retailers sell end-of-roll offcuts cheaply. This means you can create a room-sized, 100 per cent wool rug in a colour you love for a fraction of the price of a fitted carpet. Bed linen Buy your sheets on the High Street. Places such as H&M, Zara and French Connection all do affordable, high-thread-count cotton and even 100 per cent linen sheets (89.99, zarahome.com). Linen duvet sets at H&M cost from 59.99 and cotton ones from 17.99 (hm.com). Graphenstone makes paint that cleans your air by absorbing CO2 as it dries. Pictured: Edward Bulmer Natural Paint at 20 per litre SPLURGE Flooring This is the No 1 thing to spend money on. The flooring underpins everything else in your home. Bad flooring won't last as long and is a pain to replace. Do not skimp. Mattress Expect to pay at least 500 for a decade of good sleep. Look after it with a bamboo or eucalyptus silk mattress protector (from 85, paragon bamboo.com, or 19.95, panda london.com). Paint Cheap paint is a false economy it ends up flaking or needs multiple coats. Low VOC (the volatile organic compounds emitted by paint) is a must. But some brands have gone further. Graphenstone makes paint that cleans your air by absorbing CO2 as it dries, above. Edward Bulmer Natural Paint is made from 100 per cent raw plant and mineral materials. And Yes Colours offers paint in plastic-free recyclable pouches. Expect to pay 20 per litre for these premium paints. BAG SOME FABULOUS FOOD FOR LESS Melissa Hemsley is a chef, food writer and bestselling author. 'Growing up in an army family, everything was a resource,' she says. 'Nothing was wasted.' SAVE Tinned beans Cannellini. Kidney. Brown. Black. Beans are my cupboard staples. If you're cooking with them, buy the supermarket brand Asda Smart Price Red Kidney Beans is just 33p (asda.com). But as a central part of a dish, such as in a salad, go for a more expensive option such as Brindisa Navarrico Black Beans (5.45, ocado.com). Frozen fruit Frozen fruit doesn't go off. Frozen raspberries are 2 for 300g (below, asda.com) compared to 3 for fresh ones. Olive oil In cooking, don't waste your money on extra virgin olive oil. Sainsbury's Olive Oil is just 2.60 for a 500ml bottle (sainsburys.co.uk). SPLURGE Butter I'd rather pay more and use less. My go-to is Calon Wen (2.45, ocado.com). Meat I buy good-quality organic meat, often from Pipers Farm (pipersfarm.com). Sea salt My favourite is Maldon Sea Salt (5 for 570g, ocado.com). Feel Good by Melissa Hemsley is out now (Ebury, 22). Melissa says frozen fruit doesn't go off and that frozen raspberries are 2 for 300g (asda.com) compared to 3 for fresh ones Advertisement GET THE DESIGNER CHIC LOOK FOR DISCOUNT PRICES Jo Elvin, former editor of YOU and Glamour magazines, regularly shares her fashion expertise on ITV's Lorraine show. She says: 'When I need to rein in my spending I do what presenter Gaby Roslin made famous and go 'shopping in my wardrobe'. 'It's fun to assess what you have and try combinations that have never before occurred to you.' SAVE Jeans and T-shirts Uniqlo is one of my regular go-tos when I'm craving a little retail moment, but I know I probably shouldn't. The choice of jean styles is excellent, as are the prices and size ranges (from 14.90, uniqlo.com). I also love its graphic print T-shirts (14.90), which I wear with pleated skirts. They are made of quality cotton which washes well. Shoes I have been featuring the budget brand Linzi in my fashion segments on Lorraine a lot lately. I can't believe how great its shoes look for the prices. This green pair (below, 24.99, linzi.com) are a gorgeous holiday option. Dresses Eco-conscious and well-priced, a pretty midi dress (49, nobodys child.com) is the kind of all-occasion look you can find at Nobody's Child. Net-a-Porter is often a budget-buster, but have you discovered theoutnet.com, its outlet store? I like stalking it for old-season Tory Burch and Ulla Johnson dresses, which I can find marked down by 50 to 60 per cent. SPLURGE Tailored trousers When you find a brand that suits you, it's so worth the investment. I love everything Me + Em does, but I'm a huge fan of its trousers because they are a brilliant fit for me. They're not cheap, at the best part of 200 (meandem.com), but they're often timeless cuts and usually machine washable, so no dry-cleaning bills. Statement shoes Gucci shoes are my most indulgent investment, at around 600 a pair (net-a-porter.com). The brand is brilliant at designing quirky flat shoes so over the years I've built up a wardrobe of glitter-encrusted slippers and loafers embroidered with bee motifs. I've had them for years and they still look box fresh, so the 'cost per wear' justification works out. Leather bags A beautiful, quality bag will elevate the most basic outfit. I'm a big fan of the London brand DeMellier. It has butter-soft leathers in an amazing range of styles, such as the Midi New York (395, demellier london.com). Every bag sold buys a set of vaccines to save the life of a child. Jo Elvin says these green shoes from linzi.com at 24.99 are a cheaper and gorgeous holiday option BARGAIN BOOZE Former hotelier and super-host Steph Parker starred alongside her husband Dom in Channel 4's Gogglebox, where they were renowned for their superlative drinking skills. 'Keep your eyes peeled for cheap offers on alcohol and stockpile when you find a good one,' she says. 'Our laundry room is stuffed with gin!' SAVE Spirits All spirits into which you're going to pour a mixer can be supermarket-own brands. Especially vodka (10.29, sainsburys.co.uk). Cider If you are offended by the price of beer, how about a pint of cold, refreshing cider instead? There are loads of great-value, flavoured craft ciders on the market. We like Henry Weston (tesco.com) and Old Mout (asda.com), both 2.20 for 500ml. Decant it and nobody will know . . . Steph Parker says that Co-op's Les Pionniers is a cheaper champagne option at 22 Fine wine purists would be horrified, but one of the tricks we learned as hoteliers is that you can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear when it comes to regular red wine. The key is to get it to the right temperature (I've even been known to pop it in the microwave for 15 seconds), then whoosh it about as you decant it and leave it to breathe for a couple of hours. This will help elevate a 5 bargain into something that could pass for a far pricier bottle. A decanter has no label. Try Carta Roja Gran Reserva (5.75, sainsburys.co.uk). SPLURGE Mixers While you can get away with cheap spirits, you must not compromise on mixers. Our favourites are Fever Tree tonics (around 2 for 500ml). We also like a splash of Rose's Lime Juice Cordial (2.40, sainsburys. co.uk) in our vodka or gin. Whisky Having said that any old spirit will do, whisky is an honourable exception. If it is to be drunk neat or over ice, get the real deal. Occasionally, I am partial to Glenrothes, which can range from 41.95 to 1,350 from thewhiskyexchange.com. Champagne It is possible to get bargain champagne Co-op's Les Pionniers (19, above, coop.co.uk) is made by the producer of Piper-Heidsieck. However, for a special event, do not contemplate going for a lower priced fizz. No one wants to be known as a stingy host, so this is the time to showcase the best that you can afford. Our favourite brands are Ruinart (43.77, thewineilove.com), Bollinger (49) and Veuve Clicquot (36.75)( both waitrosecellar.com), not forgetting Dom Perignon Vintage (160, sainsburys.co.uk). There have been many highlights in the seven years Sam Smith has been judging the Everywoman Awards, which celebrate female entrepreneurs. But the one she's never forgotten was the 2016 ceremony when there was an appearance from the women who inspired the film Made In Dagenham, about the female workers at the Ford factory in Essex who, in 1968, went on strike for wages that were in line with those of their male colleagues with the same skills. Their fight eventually led to the Equal Pay Act of 1970. 'All those women who'd worked on the shop floor and were obviously by then in their 90s went on stage,' Sam recalls. 'There wasn't a dry eye in the house. For at least a year afterwards every time I thought about it I'd start welling up. It made you realise how just a few women could create huge changes, and change is what I'm all about.' There's no question Sam, 48, the single mother of eight-year-old Aoife, is one of the greatest trailblazers for businesswomen. The founder and chief executive of finnCap Group plc the largest broker for companies listed on the London Stock Exchange's AIM growth market, advising 118 clients and raising 52.4 million in the past financial year she was the first woman (as well as the youngest at 33) ever to run a stockbroking company. Sam Smith, 48, was the first and youngest woman ever to run a stockbroking company. Her company finnCap Group plc turned over 52.4 million in the past financial year and advised 118 clients Many years later, she's still the only one. And of companies in the FTSE 100 index, she's one of just nine female CEOs. Over the decades, Sam's seen 'massive, massive shifts' for women in the workplace. A grammar school girl from Surrey, at 17 she bagged work experience at the London Commodity Exchange, to find she was one of only two women on the trading floor. 'I walked in, in my skirt and blouse, and it was unreal. There was wolf-whistling, a lot of the men making really crude animal noises and they had pictures of naked women pinned to their desks. The amazing thing was I didn't think it was particularly awful. I just thought, 'Well, I'm going to have to be a bit punchy.' 'I had this Teflon attitude that came from my mum and my grandmother, who were both very strong, of the 'no one's going to stop me doing what I want to do' mould. But if I hadn't had that, it would have been a horrendous environment.' For years, Sam also never questioned being in a tiny minority at City events. 'I remember an awards dinner early in my career. There were 600 people; probably five were women. The comedian hosting joked: 'Where are all the women?' 'But at that time, that was just normal in any business pitch, any entertaining, any networking event. Whereas now, in every meeting, generally you find at least one woman. So that seems like a huge change. 'It's still not enough, but now you feel you're pushing on an open door rather than fighting for these shifts.' Over the years, Sam, who founded finnCap in 2007 in a management buyout, has witnessed a dramatic move away from macho boardroom posturing to a gentler style of leadership. 'That Alan Sugar 'You're fired' stuff is very, very old style. When I see that I just cringe. Are we really still showing this on TV, making people think business is about belittling people?' In contrast, her 'more feminine' style now seems to have gone mainstream. 'Leadership is definitely becoming more open, more empathetic, more kind. Someone said to me once: 'You're just too nice.' I thought: 'How weird.' I could be too indecisive or too weak, but how could 'too nice' be anything but a positive?' Sam has always been refreshingly honest about the struggles of combining work and family. 'We need to be more vulnerable and not this stereotypical hardcore business person who won't let feelings get in their way, so women can see that's OK and normal.' After her daughter Aoife was born eight years ago, Sam was running finnCap from home within ten days. 'I had a nanny and a night-nanny so I could do my job. The night-nanny left, but Aoife was sleeping. So I went back to the office after five months, thinking: 'This is OK.' Sam Smith says that she has proved she can make a little difference in a man's world and she is now going to do things for her and has stepped down as boss of finnCap Group plc but is still on the board and taking on lots of non-executive roles NOW ENTER OUR AWARDS Have you started a business while being a mother? Then enter our Daily Mail Everywoman Aphrodite Award. You must be based, or have your chief operation, in the UK and have set up your business from scratch while raising a child or children aged 12 or under. The Everywoman Awards give your business instant prestige, plus access to an elite group of the UK's top female entrepreneurs and mentors and valuable coverage in the Daily Mail. The deadline for entries is July 11, 2022. For full entry details go to: everywoman.com/ewawards Advertisement But when Aoife was six months old, she fell ill. 'She lost all her baby weight and it was like having a newborn again, feeding all night.' On holiday, both she and Aoife came down with a nasty parasitic bug, which left them vomiting all night. 'For 16 months I went to work every day on two hours' sleep,' says Sam. 'I didn't feel I could say anything. I felt people were judging me if I left early. It was horrible.' Eventually, a doctor signed Sam off sick for two weeks. 'I was walking across the street and was so tired I nearly fell under a bus. I just stayed in bed for a fortnight. I was too tired even to walk downstairs but I still did my emails. 'It took about three years to stop feeling bone-tired all the time, but I worked right through with no time off.' Now, Sam's determined to make life easier for the next generation. She's made it mandatory for staff to take a minimum four weeks' holiday a year (though they're allowed unlimited leave). That holiday allowance doesn't have to be substituted for other necessary time off for example, to care for ageing parents or children, for school parents' evenings or having to wait in for a plumber when the boiler's broken. 'Those are not holidays,' Sam says. 'These parts of a woman's life can be extreme, and unless you support them you will lose talented women, who are really hard to find. They drop out because everything feels too hard.' Unsurprisingly, Sam's team were devastated to learn recently that in September she's resigning as finnCap boss (she'll remain on the board). 'We had a meeting with all our women because they were worried it wasn't about losing me personally, it was about losing a female CEO. John [Farrugia], my successor, who's amazing, who fights for women, was the only man with 50 women and you could tell he was a bit uncomfortable. I said: 'Welcome to the last 24 years of my life.' Sam will still be super-busy with lots of non-executive roles. She's already bagged a spot on the Government's new Task Force for women-led businesses. 'We're trying to increase substantially the number of women who set up and can scale up their business, because male-led businesses are five times more likely to get a 1 million turnover.' And, of course, she'll still be judging Everywoman, this year on the panel for the Mail-sponsored Aphrodite Award for women who've started a business while their children are 12 and under. 'I love hearing about women who don't come across as your stereotypical entrepreneurs, who have no business experience, so other women see they can do it, too. That's so important.' Yet, with characteristic frankness, Sam doesn't conceal that having split with Aoife's father several years ago, she also wants to smell the roses. 'I might even have time to go on an actual date! Running a business during Covid was brutal for family life; now I want to collect Aoife from school every day. And I cannot wait to spend more time with friends without being distracted by emails or phone calls about some disaster. 'I've proved I can make my little difference in a man's world. Now I'm going to do stuff just for me.' Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol, second from right, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, second from left, attend a NATO summit at the IFEMA Convention Center in Madrid, Spain, June 29. Yonhap By Kwon Mee-yoo Japanese media has been focusing on Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol's "sales diplomacy," which centers on promoting the exports of Korean products, during his first overseas trip. Yoon visited Madrid, Spain to attend a NATO summit and met with a handful of heads of state from June 27 to July 1. According to Yonhap News Agency, Japanese news outlet Asahi Shimbun reported Saturday that Yoon showed the face of a "merchant," making efforts to expand the market for Korean weapons and nuclear power plants. Yoon mainly promoted Korea's nuclear energy and defense industries during his summits with Australia, the Czech Republic, France, the Netherlands and Poland. Korea is one of the world's top 10 arms exporting countries (since 2010), with defense exports topping $10 billion in 2021. Korea was the world's ninth-largest weapons exporter from 2016 to 2020, climbing up the ranks from the year before, according to the Global Defense Market Yearbook 2021 by the Korea Research Institute for Defense Technology Planning and Advancement. The Japanese media analyzed how Korea aims to reform its economic structure, which is heavily dependent on trade with China taking up about 25 percent of exports and 22 percent of imports. Korea is looking to diversify its market because of the U.S.-China rivalry. Another Japanese daily Sankei Shimbun also reported Korea shifting from dependency on China to exploration of new markets in Europe amid increasing demand for arms due to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. Japan's interest in Yoon's sales diplomacy is a way to thaw Korea-Japan relations as it looks toward the Yoon administration to improve bilateral relations. During his trip, Yoon did not hold formal talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, but they met briefly a few times during official NATO events as well as at the Korea-U.S.-Japan trilateral summit. The Korean presidential office said that Prime Minister Kishida told Yoon to "(let's) make efforts to make healthier Korea-Japan relations," but Japanese Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihiko Isozaki said Kishida told Yoon to do his best to improve Korea-Japan relations, pressing Korea to make the first move. Kim Hyun-wook of the Korea National Diplomacy Academy said this is the time for Korea to restructure its regional policies so as to seek its national interest due to the ongoing U.S.-China trade rivalry and Yoon's attempt in promoting exports to Europe, is one of them. "China expressed discontent over Korea and Japan attending the NATO summit, which is moving to contain China in the Indo Pacific region, as the two countries are neighbors of China," Kim said. "Korea-Japan relations are closely related to this geopolitics. Korea and Japan have been chilly due to historical issues for years, but the Yoon administration is willing to improve relations with Japan and if Yoon can bring a solution to the historical issues, it will be a breakthrough." With winter well and truly digging its heels in across Australia many lucky travellers are packing their bags in search of sunnier climes - but they don't want to leave behind their beauty essentials in the process. With a four-week European holiday on the cards for July I was frantically searching for a travel-sized hairdryer that would still have enough power to blast my short hair dry in seconds, so as not to waste precious relaxation time on nailing the perfect style. Countless websites suggested Dyson's Supersonic as the ultimate choice, and despite not being marketed specifically as carry-on sized, experts maintained that its lightweight nature and detachable styling tools were far superior to the tiny, plastic-ridden dryers you can pick up at the airport on your way out of the country. As with any Dyson product it's an investment at $599 but comes with five attachments, including the new Flyaway tool, and promises no extreme heat alongside maximum efficacy. So I decided to test it. As with any Dyson product it's an investment at $599 but comes with five attachments, including the new Flyaway tool, and promises no extreme heat alongside maximum efficacy The Dyson Supersonic comes with five different attachments that snap onto the motor using a magnet I've recently cut my hair short, as in above the shoulders length, and as anyone with shorter locks can attest it almost doubles your styling time trying to create volume and a slick 'do with less strands to play with. No longer can I just let my hair 'air dry' as I once did with waist-length hair... now it's straight to the dryer the moment I've finished towel-drying it. I started by snapping the Styling Concentrator attachment onto the V9-powered motor and putting both the heat and strength settings on medium. Rough drying my hair took all but a few seconds, and I did so with my head flipped upside-down to build volume from the root. Next I picked up my Dyson vented barrel brush ($49), and using the same Concentrator tool, began smoothing out the slightly wavy strands until they looked like they'd been newly straightened. So far about four minutes had elapsed. To finish I chose to change the attachment to the new Flyaway option, smoothing the top of my hair on both sides of the part in seconds. I started by snapping the Styling Concentrator attachment onto the V9-powered motor and putting both the heat and strength settings on medium (left) My arm wasn't tired from holding the dryer aloft and the motor wasn't searing hot like most other dryers get at the end of a session My arm wasn't tired from holding the dryer aloft and the motor wasn't searing hot like most other dryers get at the end of a session. The Flyaway attachment harnesses the Coanda effect - a phenomenon first engineered for styling within the Dyson Airwrap styler - to attract and lift longer hairs to the front, whilst pushing flyaways through the tress and out of sight. The Flyaway attachment harnesses the Coanda effect - a phenomenon first engineered for styling within the Dyson Airwrap styler 'Our engineers are driven to rethink convention and our obsession with airflow led us to push the potential of Coanda after observing how stylists use a "brush and blow dryer" technique to smooth flyaways,' Dyson Hair Care Category Director Emma Sheldon said. 'Traditionally this skilled technique involves the stylist using a round brush to section and manage the hair, whilst directing airflow from the dryer to push the flyaways into the style and out of sight. 'We set out to find a way to innovate a way to mechanise this method for the everyday styler.' The size of the Dyson digital motor V9 allowed engineers to reposition the motor to the handle for optimum balance in the hand when it was first launched in 2016. Intelligent Heat Control measures air temperature over 40 times a second and regulates the heat. This prevents extreme heat damage, to help protect your hair's shine. While my hair is normally straight after regular washing there are other attachments for use on afro, wavy and curly hair including the Diffuser and Wide Tooth Comb While my hair is normally straight after regular washing there are other attachments for use on afro, wavy and curly hair including the Diffuser and Wide Tooth Comb. If you've got a more sensitive scalp or finer locks the 'Gentle Air' attachment can also be used to diffuse the air, creating a gentle, cooler airflow - while still drying hair fast. I'll certainly be packing the Supersonic with me on a month-long trip overseas to cut down on drying time and ensure I'm looking polished even by the beach. A cleaning and organising guru has shared how she gets rid of pesky hard water stains that collect around the base of bathroom taps that involves no scrubbing. Carolina McCauley, from Perth, showed how she uses vinegar and a microfibre cloth to 'say goodbye to stains' in a video posted to her popular Instagram page. The 'home hacks' queen starts by filling a bowl with white vinegar and soaking microfibre towels. Scroll down for video Carolina McCauley (pictured) explained how she gets rid of stubborn hard water stains that accumulate around the base of bathroom taps Before and after: The Perth mum showed how she uses vinegar and a microfibre cloth to 'say goodbye to stains' without scrubbing She then wraps the towels around the taps that are stained and leaves them for 30 minutes. Once the time is up, Carolina removes the vinegar-soaked towels showing the marks have disappeared thanks to the acidic pantry staple. In just a few hours, the handy hack video has racked up more than 637,000 views and hundreds of comments from many of Carolina's 2.2million followers. 'Vinegar is such an amazing cleaner,' said one fan while another agreed: 'Works every time'. The 'home hacks' guru starts by filling a bowl with white vinegar and soaking microfibre towels 'I can vouch that this works but I left it for much longer than 30 minutes. Probably a good 5 hours,' a third explained. 'Disclaimer: Vinegar can damage Chrome finishes. Always check your manufacturers cleaning and care section on their website for suggested cleaning advice,' one mum warned. Others shared their ways to clean their taps and get rid of stubborn stains in the bathroom. 'I use citric acid powder. Works like magic. Taps look shiny as new and hard water stains removed,' one viewer said. Carolina then wraps the soaked towels around the taps and leaves them for 30 minutes banishing the stains for good 'Get a toothbrush youre favourite cleaner, spray and brush it off,' suggested a second. Previously, the handy mum revealed how to prevent your washing machine from accumulating mould and achieving a fresher wash by cleaning the detergent drawer. She said to clean the compartment every three months to stop black mould from growing. Mould tends to grow in damp, warm areas with high condensation - such as the shower or bathtub, sinks, microwave, stove, blinds and windows. Previously, the handy mum revealed how to prevent your washing machine from accumulating mould and achieving a fresher wash by cleaning the detergent drawer 'Did you know your washing machine tray is probably mouldy? Remove and clean it every three weeks to prevent this from happening,' Carolina said in the short clip. It's commonly known to clean the rubber seal of the washing machine and leave the door open after use, but thousands were shocked by the suggestion with many admitting they've never thought to clean the drawer before. To remove any lurking mould, Carolina first removed the drawer and sprayed inside the compartment with a homemade concoction consisting of equal parts vinegar and water with a few drops of lemon essential oil. Carolina also used a toothbrush to clean tiny, hard-to-reach areas on the drawer and inside the washing machine (left). The compartment and tray were wiped down with a microfibre cloth before being reinserted back into place While wearing gloves, she cleaned the drawer itself using detergent and a sponge then rinsed it under water. Carolina also used a toothbrush to clean tiny, hard-to-reach areas on the drawer and inside the washing machine. The compartment and tray were wiped down with a microfibre cloth before being reinserted back into place. The chore likely would've taken 10 minutes to complete. An Australian shopper has been left disappointed after finding her 1kg packet of mince weighed less than 650grams after being cooked and drained but one commenter was quick to point out her mistake. The Perth mum took to popular Facebook group Budget Friendly Meals Australia to complain about her 1kg of three-star Australian beef mince from Coles weighing 360grams less after cooking. 'Cooked and drained. All water. It's getting worse. So disappointed. Where do you shop that gives you value for money for mince please?' she wrote in the post alongside an image of the mince on the scale weighing 641grams. A mum was shocked to discover her 1kg pack of Coles beef mince weighed just 641grams after she cooked and drained it - but one eagle-eyed cook online was quick to point out her mistake The Coles customer's query was flooded with comments as many group members shared their suggestions and similar frustrations. 'I live in Melbourne but now buy all our meat from a reputable butcher in the area! The quality is so much better, a little dearer but well worth it,' one mum explained. 'I'm in Perth and I'm finding mince at our local IGA to be much better quality than what I buy from Coles or Woolies because we have a butcher out the back who does all of the prep for non pre-packaged items,' suggested another. The Coles customer's query was flooded with comments as many sharing their frustrations while another said draining the mince would have got rid of 'typically 17 per cent fat' as stated on the packet 'I get my mince from Aldi and get no water or fat. It's fantastic,' a third said. Poll Where do you buy your mince? Coles Wooloworths IGA Aldi Local butcher Where do you buy your mince? Coles 70 votes Wooloworths 98 votes IGA 27 votes Aldi 81 votes Local butcher 158 votes Now share your opinion However one home cook had a simple explanation for the weight discrepancy. She said draining the mince would have gotten rid of 170 grams or 'typically 17 per cent fat' as stated on the packet. 'At 17 per cent fat, 170g or thereabouts would have been fat. Hope you didn't pour that down the sink now your meat will have less taste. I buy this mince regularly but also buy 2kg for $20 from a local butcher sometimes,' she pointed out. 'It's normal for meat to lose weight when cooked. It's like chicken or beef steaks, when cooked they shrink. And if you had have just cooked it a bit more and not drained it, you would have found so much more flavour in your dishes,' a second wrote. 'If you buy five star Coles mince rather than regular it's definitely a lot better, more expensive but you're getting meat, not fat that melts away into juices once it's cooked. However best bet is butchers though maybe more expensive again,' a third recommended. Health and fitness sensation Kayla Itsines has shared her 'best ever' four-ingredient scone recipe that can be whipped up in less than an hour. The 31-year-old Adelaide influencer demonstrated the recipe in a video posted to her 14.8million Instagram followers. Kayla's quick and easy recipe uses just self-raising flour, regular lemonade, thickened cream and a pinch of salt. Scroll down for video Fitness sensation, Kayla Itsines, from Adelaide, has shared her 'best ever' scone recipe that only has four ingredients - self-raising flour, thickened cream, lemonade and salt She starts by sifting three and a half cups of flour into a bowl and mixes in a cup each of thicken cream and lemonade as well as a generous pinch of salt 'I literally get called to people's houses to make these scones, they are so easy. People over-complicate scones but I guarantee you these are the best scones you will ever have,' she said in the clip. She starts by sifting three and a half cups of self-raising flour into a bowl then makes a well in the middle for the wet ingredients. 'Depending on how heavy your hand is, if you put too much lemonade or too much cream you might need to add a little more flour but right now we're going to gauge it on three and a half cups,' she explained. The 31-year-old lightly kneads the dough, rolls it out so it's a few centimetres thick, cuts them out using a cookie cutter or cup and places them on a baking tray with greaseproof paper Kayla places the scones in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for about 20 minutes, checking them every five minutes until they're golden brown The fitness queen then adds one cup each of thickened cream and lemonade to the middle as well as a generous pinch of salt and mixes to combine. With clean hands, Kayla says to knead the dough slightly into a ball, dust the bench with some extra flour and roll it out into a sheet a couple of centimetres thick. She said if you don't have a rolling pin, an empty wine bottle does the trick. 'When your scones are in the oven, they'll obviously get bigger so you don't want to run it super thin - it's not a pizza base. You want it nice and thick,' she said. 'I literally get called to people's houses to make these scones, they are so easy. People over-complicate scones but I guarantee you these are the best scones you will ever have,' she said Kayla then uses a cookie cutter or a cup to cut out the scone shapes and places them on an oven tray lined with baking paper making sure they're not too close together. She heats her oven to 180 degrees Celsius and puts the scones in for about 20 minutes. 'Put a timer on every five minutes and just look because after 15 minutes sometimes they're ready. It depends how hot your oven is, so when they get a little bit golden brown on the top, just take them out, they'll be ready,' she said. Kayla whipped some more cream to serve with the scones along with some jam. At just 26, Jessica Thompson is fighting a 'rare' form of bowel cancer usually only found in people over 65 after doctors found a 2cm tumour blocking half of her right colon earlier this year. The sales associate from Auckland, New Zealand was diagnosed in March despite no known family history of cancer after suffering 'stomach issues' she'd put down to gluten sensitivity. Once she started experiencing awful stomach cramps, chronic diarrhoea and vomiting in January, Jessica went to the emergency room multiple times but doctors assumed she had gastro. However, the symptoms were due to a genetically mutated (BRAF), cancerous mass that had grown in her large intestine, blocking the entire right side and causing extreme pain. Jessica Thompson, Auckland, New Zealand, (pictured) was shocked and terrified after doctors found a 2cm tumour in her colon It wasn't until after surgery in March 2022 that doctors confirmed the tumours was cancerous. In January started experiencing awful stomach cramps, chronic diarrhoea and vomiting 'The stomach cramps were excruciatingly painful to a point where I thought I was going to pass out, so I called the ambulance because I live alone,' she told FEMAIL. After arriving at the hospital, doctors completed a blood test and immediately noticed Jessica's red blood cell lever was incredibly low resulting in the need for four blood transfusions. 'I instantly knew something wasn't not right but I didn't know what it meant - now I know it's a sign of internal bleeding,' she said. Jessica also had an ultrasound which came back clear as it doesn't pick up bowel issues, followed by a CT scan where doctors noticed 'something' but weren't sure what it was. 'The stomach cramps were excruciatingly painful to a point where I thought I was going to pass out, so I called the ambulance because I live alone,' she said After arriving at the hospital, doctors completed a blood test and immediately noticed Jessica's red blood cell lever was incredibly low resulting in needing a total of four blood transfusions The following week she was booked in for a colonoscopy - an internal exam that usually doesn't require anaesthetic to inspect the internal bowel. 'I could tell they noticed something by the energy in the room, which was stressful,' she said. 'Later that afternoon it was confirmed I had a tumour in my colon but they couldn't tell if it was cancerous or not - though the size likely meant it would be. 'I asked the doctor what the chances were of it not being cancerous, and he said 'slim to none'.' Doctors also found at least 20 smaller polyps in her intestine. The following week the biopsy results confirmed the tumour was cancerous, but couldn't determine the stage it was at until surgery. 'The C-word is so scary; I felt overwhelmed and terrified, it was a lot to process,' she said. 'Later that afternoon it was confirmed I had a tumour in my colon but they couldn't tell if it was cancerous or not - though the size likely meant it would be,' she said. From there Jessica was quickly booked in to have surgery the following week From there Jessica was booked in to have surgery the following week but went on a weekend trip away to process everything that had happened. 'I wanted to relax before my surgery but unfortunately ended up in hospital as the colonoscopy caused inflammation in my bowel and food had become backed up in my stomach,' she said. The food needed to be removed through a nasogastric tube, which Jessica described as one of the 'worst things' she's had to endure. The surgery itself was a combination of laparoscopic and open, as doctors had to make a larger insertion due to the huge amount of food stuck in Jessica's intestines The surgery itself was a combination of laparoscopic and open, as doctors had to make a larger insertion due to the huge amount of food stuck in Jessica's intestines. Lucky there were no complications but Jessica said surgeons removed the epidural too early, and so at times she was in a lot of pain. Doctors removed the entire cancerous tumour and also found a tiny lump outside the intestine on her fat tissue, so they removed 36 surrounding lymph nodes to test if the cancer had moved - which took two weeks to determine. 'It was a long time to wait and I didn't really know what to think,' she said. Unfortunately when Jessica met with her surgeon he delivered the devastating news that the cancer had spread to two of her lymph nodes, meaning she'd need chemotherapy. Doctors removed the entire cancerous tumour and also found a tiny lump outside the intestine on her fat tissue, so they removed 36 surrounding lymph nodes to test if the cancer had moved - which took two weeks to determine The pathology report also confirmed the cancer itself had a 'mutation' for an unknown reason, deeming it to be 'rare'. Jessica said this means there's a mutation in the genetics of the cancer, rather than her own genetics - and it has no growth 'off switch'. 'It grows to a whole other extent and grows at a faster pace compared to a regular cancer,' she said. 'My oncologist told me this only happens within 10 per cent of people with cancer, and it's usually in melanoma not colon cancer in people over 65. 'It was a very grim conversation because she said chemotherapy might not be affective because the cancer is aggressive and unpredictable. 'I had gone from thinking it was going to be fine to thinking this might not work.' The following week she had a PET scan to search for any microscopic cancer cells in the body and started questioning her situation. Unfortunately when Jessica met with her surgeon he delivered the devastating news that the cancer had spread to two of her lymph nodes, meaning she'd need chemotherapy. The pathology report also confirmed the cancer itself had a 'mutation' for an unknown reason, deeming it to be 'rare' Doctors are unsure what caused the cancer but believe it's due to a 'genetic disposition' relating to the mutation found. During that time she used Dr Google to search for information on the mutation, which doctors advised against, and read nothing but negative research. 'I started freaking out and asking how long I had left to live, it was really scary because from what I had read this mutation was really, really bad,' she said. To her surprise, the PET scan came back completely clear which meant the cancer is 'curable'. Prior to starting chemotherapy she had a portacath surgery and is currently in her third round of nine treatments. She won't need radiotherapy. 'I bawled my eyes out during the first round - I'm usually the youngest person there,' she said. Prior to starting chemotherapy she had a portacath surgery and is currently in her third round of nine treatments. She won't need radiotherapy She detailed some of the side effects, including neuropathy which she described as 'pins and needles' in your fingertips and sensitivity to the cold such as the wind and cool drinks. 'For me, it can turn into cramps in my hands, which is annoying because then I can't pick up anything. She also often feels a lump in her throat, difficulty swallowing water and a general 'gross' feeling as if you've had a hangover. After the final round Jessica will need regular scans to ensure the cancer hasn't returned. Symptoms of bowel cancer: - Change in bowel habits with diarrhoea, constipation or the feeling of incomplete emptying - Thin or loose bowel movements - Blood or mucous in stools - Abdominal pain, bloating and cramping - Anal or rectal pain - Lump in the anus or rectum - Unexplained weight loss - Fatigue - Unexplained anaemia Source: Cancer Council Australia Advertisement 'I feel really grateful; I feel like I've been given a fresh perspective on life,' she said, adding: 'Walking out of hospital, everything looks brighter.' Jessica has also shared her experience with thousands of others by posting videos on TikTok, which she finds to be 'therapeutic'. 'I want other people to know what you're not alone going through experiences like this,' she said. 'Social media can be a highlight reel of amazing things but it can also be ways to connect with others and share your experiences.' When asked she'd say to others also going through treatment, Jessica said to 'don't be hard on yourself when you have bad days' and to take it one day at a time. 'Be gentle with yourself and give yourself time to rest too,' she said. A trip to the pub on the way to a winery in May 2021 sparked an unlikely competitive eating career for James Webb. The 33-year-old from Sydney shocked locals of the Khartoum Hotel after demolishing a 5kg burger challenge most deemed to be impossible. The former general manager smashed the food down in just 25 minutes and 37 seconds and won a $650 reward from the venue's pot of money; 55 others had previously attempted the challenge but failed. Since last year he's quickly become one of the best competitive eaters in the country, successfully completing 400 challenges at different venues across New South Wales and interstate. James told FEMAIL he's able to smash down 1kg burritos in one minute and sometimes eats up to 10,000 calories a day - but isn't concerned about his health and doesn't like vegetables. Scroll down for video James Webb (pictured) from Sydney shocked locals of the Khartoum Hotel after demolishing a 5kg burger challenge most deemed to be impossible. The 33-year-old completed the challenge in just 25 minutes and 37 seconds, sparking his career for competitive eating James told FEMAIL he's able to smash down 1kg burritos in one minute and sometimes eats up to 10,000 calories a day - but isn't concerned about his health and doesn't like vegetables James and his partner Kate were on their way to the Hunter Valley, 250km north of Sydney, when they stopped at the Khartoum Hotel for lunch. He had never attempted an official eating challenge before but has always had a love for food Before he devours into the food, James thinks about how he's going to 'attack' the challenge. 'I always eat any protein first and carbs last because carbs (like hot chips) expand in your stomach,' he said. 'I always leave the parts I enjoy eating the most until last, like chicken breast, because it helps me get through.' Prior to a huge competition James fasts and ensures he stays hydrated. To keep his stomach 'stretched' James said he consumes as much food as possible, often consuming 10,000kg of food per day. At the moment James isn't concerned about health implications of eating greasy burgers, fries, pizza and chips daily, and remains fit by exercising daily. 'I've had check-ups with my doctor who thinks what I do is hilarious he's given me guidelines on what [health warnings] to look out for,' he said. For the moment James says he still 'wakes up hungry', eats after challenges and 'sleeps like a rock'. And while he looks ripped James admitted he's 'definitely put on a few kilos' since last year, which he's accepted. 'I train weights every morning for around 40 minutes and eating so much motivates me to exercise - and there's no point in counting calories during challenges,' he said. Before he devours into the food, James thinks about how he's going to 'attack' the challenge. 'I always eat any protein first and carbs last because carbs (like hot chips) expand in your stomach,' he said James added how he couldn't be a competitive eater without the support of his partner Kate (left), who has been cheering him behind the scenes at every event As for the 'worst' aspect about competitive eating, James said he usually feels bloated and dehydrated from eating fatty foods that are high in salt. Growing up there was always 'plenty of food in the house' and paid a bid of thanks to his Croatian mother who's 'brilliant in the kitchen'. 'We would always have the food in the middle of the table and would serve ourselves, so we had to act quickly if we wanted to eat,' he said. As for the 'worst' aspect about competitive eating, James said he usually feels bloated and dehydrated from eating fatty foods that are high in salt This week at a Hungry Diner event in Sydney's Circular Quay, James bet the record for a 'Ribdiculous Challenge' and demolished an entire rack of ribs along with onion rings, hot chips and chicken wings in just five minutes and three seconds - the previous time was 14 minutes. Onlookers were cheering as soon as the clock stopped and were amazed at the incredible achievement. The prize was a set of high-quality steak and rib knives along with the winning title. Earlier this year he attended the music and barbecue festival 'Meatstock' to participate in some the biggest eating challenges in the country (pictured at event) An 8kg pizza big enough to feed four people was one of the few contests James has failed, but he gave it his best attempt and only left two slices. Earlier this year he attended the music and barbecue festival 'Meatstock' to participate in some the biggest eating challenges in the country. He visited the Melbourne event in March, Tawoomba in April and Sydney in April - and went on to become the first participant to win all three eating competitions at each event. He visited the Melbourne event in March, Tawoomba in April and Sydney in April - and went on to become the first participant to win all three eating competitions at each event The impressive skill has gained James a combined social media following of more than 600,000 people - with one TikTok video exceeding more than 9.5million views. 'It's sometimes odd to think people enjoy watching me eating food, but I'm grateful for the support,' he said. James added how he couldn't be a competitive eater without the support of his partner Kate, who has been cheering him behind the scenes at every event. 'It's not always glamorous, for the most part I'm usually hanging out around burger trucks in the middle of winter, so it's important to have someone who's willing to be there with you no matter what,' he said. Frank Gardner's tweet on Thursday summed up his frustration: 'FFS not again! Just why are UK airports so consistently crap at getting disabled people off planes?' Gatwick staff employed to assist disabled passengers had failed to show up, leaving the BBC's security correspondent who had flown back with Iberia Express after covering the Nato summit in Madrid stranded, alone, in the cabin. Gardner, who uses a wheelchair, said this time he was 'only' left for 20 minutes, but added: 'I have personally been left stranded on a plane five times in four years, waiting in an empty aircraft long after all the other passengers have been offloaded. 'This is nothing short of discriminatory and Britain's premier air hubs should be ashamed of the way their disabled passengers have been repeatedly treated as a low priority.' The incident came less than a week after The Mail on Sunday and Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson launched a campaign to end indignities faced by people with disabilities when travelling. Frank Gardner's tweet on Thursday summed up his frustration: 'FFS not again! Just why are UK airports so consistently crap at getting disabled people off planes?' (Above, Gardner in 2017) Gatwick staff employed to assist disabled passengers had failed to show up, leaving the BBC's security correspondent who had flown back with Iberia Express after covering the Nato summit in Madrid stranded, alone, in the cabin. (Above, the recent photo he tweeted) Above, his despairing social media post. Gardner, who uses a wheelchair, said this time he was 'only' left for 20 minutes, but added: 'I have personally been left stranded on a plane five times in four years, waiting in an empty aircraft long after all the other passengers have been offloaded' The 11-time gold medallist revealed that she had been forced to crawl to the toilet on one flight, as no one would assist her. After another flight, the airline lost her wheelchair for three months. The Baroness called on the Government and airline bosses to take immediate action, and ensure all disabled passengers are treated with dignity and respect. And letters have poured in from MoS readers, recalling their own travel nightmares. Many tales beggar belief. One woman's disabled daughter had been forced to use a toilet on a flight with the door open, because there were no handrails that would have helped her use the facilities alone. Others had missed crucial connecting flights because the special assistance they needed never arrived. A 75-year-old man described how airline staff refused to help him get his disabled wife, who suffers from dementia, from her seat to the toilet. There was an outpouring of public support as stories were shared and commented on thousands of times online yet, frustratingly, the response from airline bosses and politicians, who are ultimately responsible for ensuring that disabled Britons are given adequate support, was lukewarm at best. We contacted all British airlines and airports, as well as the aviation watchdog and Government Ministers, and asked if any would commit to the demands set out by Baroness Grey-Thompson. The incident came less than a week after The Mail on Sunday and Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson (pictured) launched a campaign to end indignities faced by people with disabilities when travelling Chloe Smith, the Government's Minister for Disabled People, said she felt 'passionately' about the issue but argued it was the responsibility of the Department for Transport to force the travel industry to make changes. The Department for Transport, run by Grant Shapps, said it was up to the Civil Aviation Authority. The Civil Aviation Authority said it would 'consider some of the ideas' proposed by Baroness Grey-Thompson in an upcoming new set of guidelines for airlines yet the regulator previously said that for change to happen, the Government must lead the way. As for the airlines and airports, they also showed little appetite for change. Both London Stansted and Manchester airports said that the issue was largely out of their control, as they claimed the airlines were responsible for caring for disabled passengers. Chloe Smith, the Government's Minister for Disabled People, said she felt 'passionately' about the issue but argued it was the responsibility of the Department for Transport to force the travel industry to make changes. The Department for Transport, run by Grant Shapps (above), said it was up to the Civil Aviation Authority But according to easyJet, the current regulations don't allow airlines to provide special assistance services directly they are third-party contractors, employed by the airports so cabin crew cannot help passengers stuck in the situation Frank Gardner and so many others have found themselves in. British Airways claims it is already 'accessible to all' ignoring the recent incident in which television producer Victoria Brignell, a wheelchair user, was stuck in her seat for an hour and a half before she was helped off a BA jet at Gatwick Airport. The airline also failed to commit to any of Baroness Grey-Thompson's demands. Heathrow said it 'wouldn't comment' on specifics, but is 'working closely' with airlines and regulatory bodies on making improvements for disabled passengers. Ryanair simply did not respond to our requests for a comment. Speaking to The Mail on Sunday, Baroness Grey-Thompson said: 'People are worried about travelling. The industry can't hide and action needs to be taken.' Our five key demands 1 Fine airports and rail operators that keep disabled passengers waiting on planes and on trains for special assistance. 2 Wheelchair users allowed to use their own chair to the plane door and the chair waiting for them when they arrive. 3 Storage space for at least one collapsible wheelchair in the cabin of every plane, so they don't have to go in the hold. 4 An accessible toilet on every aircraft. 5 A disability champion on board every flight, fully trained in accessibility needs and able to assist passengers if they need it. Advertisement James Taylor, director of strategy at disability charity Scope, added: 'Our transport system fails disabled people,' he said. 'It's time for the Government, transport operators and regulators to step up and take responsibility. This has been going on too long.' One Mail on Sunday reader who got in touch was Martin Wilson, who suffers from a type of muscular dystrophy. His wife struggles to walk after two knee replacements, and the couple had requested help disembarking from a Jet2 flight from Faro to Manchester Airport last month. 'We arrived at 2.20am but were left on the plane for an hour. There were no wheelchairs, so we were given sticks to help us walk. We eventually got through passport control and started our journey home to Merseyside at 5.20am, three hours after landing.' Another was 25-year-old Georgia Hart from Hartlepool, who was on a Jet2 flight from Malta to Newcastle without an accessible loo. When she needed to go, her mother, Bev, had to help her sit and stand inside with her so the door couldn't be closed. Bev wrote: 'I have not seen Georgia cry for a long time, but she had just had enough.' Jet2 said it was 'sorry to hear' about the incidents, but that their toilets were no different to anyone elses, and special assistance wasn't their responsibility. Irene Wilson, 69, from Merseyside, missed her onward flight from Frankfurt to Lyon earlier this month. The lift she needed to exit the plane did not arrive, meaning she missed her connecting flight. Figures from 2019 show that 700 disabled people missed flights between 2015 and 2018 because special assistance either failed to show up on time or the appropriate equipment was available. Mr Taylor said: 'No disabled passenger should be left stuck on a plane, or a train, whether due to staff shortages, delays or miscommunication,' he said. 'The impact is often degrading, stressful and anxiety-inducing and stops some disabled people from travelling altogether.' If FTSE chief executives wore badges in solidarity with counter staff at the Halifax, almost all would read he/him. A crashing irony of the row over pronouns at the mortgage lender is that it coincided with a reduction in the already tiny number of women at the head of elite UK companies. When Alison Brittain announced her retirement from Whitbread, their modest ranks there have never been more than ten in the top 100 were depleted again. Sign of the times: If FTSE chief executives wore badges in solidarity with counter staff at the Halifax, almost all would read he/him Even the minuscule minority of women who get to the top are subjected to disgusting sexism. Amanda Blanc, the boss of Aviva, and Dame Emma Walmsley at GSK have fielded chauvinistic questions from male private shareholders. Both, along with Alison Brittain, have also been targeted by activist investors, who seem to have a knack for homing in on the few companies led by women. Academic research suggests male share analysts and they are mainly men are more aggressive in their questioning of female chief executives. Our own analysis of pay packages in the FTSE 100 has found the women are paid, on average, much less than the men albeit still very large sums. Banking is riddled with gender inequality. Women are hugely under-represented in the high echelons of the mainstream lenders, and in fin-tech. Fewer than 2 per cent of financial institutions' CEOs are female, according to the IMF. In the UK, two major lenders, NatWest and Nationwide, have women chief executives, as does challenger bank Starling, which is in that context not too bad. Finance and banking has been run by men and shaped, probably unconsciously, to meet male needs. Loans and savings products are often inflexible and not best suited to female lifestyles which are more likely to involve time out or part-time work. When NatWest chief executive Alison Rose conducted a study of female entrepreneurs, she found women still do not start up and expand their own businesses at anywhere near the same rate as men. Her report suggested 250billion of value could be added to the economy if women's entrepreneurial verve were fully deployed. That would go a long way in bouncing back from the post-pandemic slump, but female-run businesses still face difficulty raising venture capital funds. Rose set up a 1billion fund to back female-led firms: a male banker might not even have thought to commission the research. The IMF found a higher proportion of women in senior roles is associated with greater resilience in banks. In other words, they lack the testosterone for a reckless takeover spree, an affair, a corporate jet and a scallop kitchen, with billions of toxic off-balance sheet debt on the side. It is hard to imagine a female Fred Goodwin. The inequality and the macho culture that contributed to the financial crisis will not be solved by badge-wearing. Nor will the contempt for customers endemic in the banks. Wearing a woke badge is no substitute for genuine respect. Perhaps the Twitter team is too young to remember, but it is only 14 years since Halifax or HBOS as it was then known was bailed out by taxpayers and a mere five since it paid the money back. Some of those taxpayers are now being smeared as too bigoted to bank with Halifax. So too are some of the private shareholders who lost in the near collapse. Tony Hetherington is Financial Mail on Sunday's ace investigator, fighting readers corners, revealing the truth that lies behind closed doors and winning victories for those who have been left out-of-pocket. Find out how to contact him below. R.H. writes: My wife and I run a small bed-and-breakfast in Devon, and we were contacted by UK Business Profiles to list our website in its online database so searchers would find us. As far as we were aware, this was an annual contract, though we have never received contract details. We were always contacted by phone to renew, and we have been trying to cancel this. The company phones after already charging our card. We paid last September, yet it charged us again in March and took another 479 in May. Rip-off: Mr H was charged 479 to list his Devon B&B in the online database Tony Hetherington replies: It is easy for small businesses to be taken in by directory firms. When you looked at the website at ukbusinessprofiles.com, you saw listings for big outfits including Royal Mail, the Post Office and Costa Coffee, but the signs are that these were bait aimed at luring you into taking a listing yourself. The Post Office told you it was not a customer of the firm, and when you checked again all three big names had vanished from the website. I asked UK Business Profiles to comment on what you told me, and within days the company itself called you to say there had been 'confusion'. You previously had a different address and this may have led to you being charged for both. A refund has now been made to your card. But there are bigger questions here than just a clerical error. The real name of the company behind the website is BHP Global Limited. It uses two addresses, one in Wimbledon in South West London and the other in Blackburn in Lancashire. Both belong to firms that take in mail for anyone who pays. There was no real sign of the website and its bosses in London, but I traced director Daniel Heald to Blackburn where he lives, and his colleague Paul Brown is not far away in Clitheroe. I also traced records of a couple of County Court Judgments against Heald, including one last year for 2,334. I asked both men to comment, and in a statement from their company they told me: 'We had some initial difficulties in contacting Mr H after receiving a letter from him' not much of an advertisement for their own directory service. But this does raise the very basic question of what use their directory service might be to anyone. It could only ever be any use if the directory itself was widely advertised to the public, but when I asked this question, Heald and Brown failed to give any answer. So, I gave their website a test drive. I searched for an electrician in Birmingham, Glasgow, Dundee, or Cardiff. Back came the answer: 'There are no results for your search.' How about plumbers in Cardiff, Newcastle, Exeter, or Birmingham? Again, Heald and Brown have none. I even tried for a shoe repairer in Manchester, Liverpool, Swansea, or Edinburgh. Again, none. Why should anyone be expected to pay hundreds of pounds for a listing in a directory which fails to tell the public it exists, and which is so poor that it has no record of basic services in big cities? The answer, of course, is that nobody should pay. Why is my Amazon refund so slow? T.K. writes: I needed to return two computers to Amazon and was told both would be collected, which they were. I was told my refund of 480 was in hand, but a week later I was asked for the name of the driver who collected the computers. Now I have heard nothing more. Missing money: T.K. is still waiting for his refund from Amazon after returning two computers Tony Hetherington replies: You had a genuine reason to return the computers. They had graphics which would not connect to your smart TV, nor would they upgrade to Windows 11. Amazon accepted what you said and raised no problems about taking back the computers. I asked Amazon to look into what had happened to your refund, and a few days later you were told it was on its way. But Amazon has refused to say why you were kept waiting for months. A spokesman seemed to think I was some sort of debt collector. I asked repeatedly whether Amazon customers who return goods should ask for the driver's proof of identity. Amazon refuses to say. Customers should be warned, and perhaps take a picture of the driver or the licence plate of the van. Fears over friend's 100,000 will Mrs S.V. writes: I am concerned about the handling of my friend Annie's will. She died in March 2020 and there was an interim payment to beneficiaries in March 2021, but nothing since, despite my writing to the solicitors. No response: Mrs S.V. is concerned about the handling of her friend's will Tony Hetherington replies: You told me that shortly before she died, your friend said she had almost 100,000. Her will provided for one bequest of 1,000, with everything else to be shared between you and three other beneficiaries. The payments made in March last year by Brian Mackenow, the Sunderland solicitor handling the estate, totalled 41,000, and he told you he hoped to pay the rest a month later. I asked Mackenow what had gone wrong. He told me there was a mistake in the date of death shown in the Grant of Probate, and this had to be corrected to satisfy NS&I. He also blamed 'a surge in work' and staff issues. None of this seems to account for a delay of more than a year, but I am glad to say that you have now been sent a cheque for 9,227 together with accounts showing how much was in the estate and how it has been distributed. We're watching you In charge: James Scotney A month ago we revealed that Town & Country Law Limited, which holds a licence from the Financial Conduct Authority as a credit broker, is run by James Scotney, who has a prison record for dealing in Class-A drugs. And we reported former directors of the company are awaiting trial on fraud-related charges linked to the company. Now the Lincoln-based business, which also sells services such as drafting wills and other legal documents, has asked the FCA to withdraw its licence. A spokesman for the regulator said: 'The firm has applied to cancel its authorisation. Once the cancellation process has finished, the firm and Mr Scotney will no longer be able to offer regulated financial services. We are still looking into the circumstances surrounding the disclosure of Mr Scotney's conviction.' Applicants for FCA approval must declare any criminal convictions, and it is unclear whether Scotney, left, concealed his prison record or declared it but was nevertheless allowed to be the sole director of Town & Country Law. The FCA may also be investigating suggestions that although Scotney is the only named boss of the business, there might also be a shadow director who is not approved by the regulator. If you believe you are the victim of financial wrongdoing, write to Tony Hetherington at Financial Mail, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TS or email tony.hetherington@mailonsunday.co.uk. Because of the high volume of enquiries, personal replies cannot be given. Please send only copies of original documents, which we regret cannot be returned. Just over two weeks ago, Inchcape, the car dealership and sales group, released an unexpected trading update. Having told shareholders back in April that profits would be around 300million for 2022, chief executive Duncan Tait said the group was now likely to do considerably better than that. With sales and margins moving at pace and order books at record levels, Tait suggested full year profits would be closer to 370million, a 54 per cent increase over 2021 underlying figures. Sales drive: Inchcape has over 100 dealerships in the UK but more overseas, including Australia and the Caribbean The news was a surprise to City analysts, who quickly upgraded their forecasts for the company. But it was perhaps even more of a shock to the wider market. After all, prevailing wisdom has it that the motor industry is struggling, as sales fall and supply chains buckle. Inchcape's current performance indicates that theory may be wrong. It operates just over 100 dealerships in the UK, selling around 80,000 cars a year, from top brands, such as Mercedes, Porsche and Jaguar, to runarounds like Toyota and Volkswagen. Electric vehicles and hybrids add to the mix, with a healthy sprinkling of used cars too. The business helps Inchcape to form close bonds with big carmakers, but it is small beer from a profit perspective. Inchcape makes the vast majority of its money overseas, operating in 40 countries around the world, from big developed economies such as Australia and New Zealand to tiny Pacific islands such as Guam. The firm also works in a host of Latin American, African and Caribbean states, as well as many smaller European countries, from Romania and Bulgaria to Belgium and Luxembourg. In these regions, Inchcape acts as a distributor rather than just a dealer. That means the company does pretty much everything for car producers apart from actually making their vehicles. They bring cars from the factory gate, set up clever marketing strategies, sell the cars and handle servicing and repairs as well. The markets where Inchcape operates vary hugely but share certain characteristics. Consumers want to be able to buy cars easily and cost-effectively and carmakers want to work with firms they can trust. Inchcape ticks both boxes. The company has long had a reputation for reliability and integrity, qualities that carmakers really seek out, especially the more upmarket brands, where reputation is paramount. Under Tait, however, Inchcape has made a real push in the digital world so that would-be car owners can do almost everything online, including customising vehicles and securing finance. Some places will even deliver new cars to the home so motorists do not need to set foot in a showroom. Going online: Inchcape is making inroads into the digital world, which makes sense given 90% of customers start their search for a new car on the internet The digital push makes sense. More than 90 per cent of consumers the world over start looking for a car online. Tait and his crew make it their business to put the carmakers they work for near the top of the pile. The group is also investing heavily so that consumers can find what they need once their search becomes serious. Inchcape performs all kinds of clever analysis too so it can work out which cars are most likely to appeal to certain markets and how best to make the buying process as effortless as possible. All these tactics are really bearing fruit. In Chile, for example, Inchcape recently took over a dealership which was selling 400 Volvos a year. This year, it is forecast to sell more than 4,000. This is the type of growth that Tait is looking for. Around 90 million cars are sold each year, of which 17 million are sold by independent distributors. Inchcape is the largest of the breed but it has little more than 1 per cent of the market, a percentage Tait intends to increase organically and by acquiring smaller distributors, many of which find it hard to keep up with the demands of top car firms. The group is keen to up its game in the used car market too, and Tait is making a determined effort in the electric vehicle sector, even in countries where charging networks are relatively undeveloped. Challenges remain. Earlier this year, Inchcape moved out of Russia, selling its highly profitable Russian business to management. Looking ahead, there may be dips here and there, if economic pressures become deeper and more widespread. Yet Inchcape is robust and cash-generative, and it operates in places where car ownership is a real aspiration because it can transform lives and livelihoods. As such, brokers expect sustained sales and profits growth over the next few years, accompanied by rising dividends 27.55p for 2022, 28.9p for next year and almost 33p in 2024. Midas verdict: At the beginning of this year, Inchcape shares were 9.40. Today they are 6.91, even after the recent profits upgrade. The slide reflects wider market worries about economic growth but it does not reflect Inchcape's long-term prospects or its proven resilience over many years. The stock is a buy and the dividend provides an income kicker too. Traded on: Main market Ticker: INCH Contact: inchcape.com or 020 7546 0022 By Kwon Mee-yoo The Embassy of Ukraine in Korea thanked Korean first lady Kim Keon-hee for wearing an outfit evoking the colors of the Ukrainian flag during her visit to Madrid. The embassy posted pictures of Kim visiting a Korean grocery in the Maravillas Market in Madrid, June 30, wearing a yellow blouse and a blue skirt, on social media, Friday. "First lady of Korea Kim Keon-hee wearing the colors known throughout the world yellow and blue, which mean resistance and courage," the embassy wrote on Twitter with yellow and blue heart symbols. Yellow and blue are the colors of the Ukrainian flag and have been used to show solidarity with the country during Russia's invasion since February. Kim made her first overseas trip as a presidential spouse by accompanying President Yoon Suk-yeol to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Madrid, Spain from June 27 to July 1. According to the presidential office, Kim mentioned Ukraine to U.S. first lady Jill Biden during an official program for the spouses of leaders, June 29. Kim told Biden that she was moved by the U.S. first lady's visit to Ukraine alone in May and that the visit had served as an opportunity for more people to take an interest in the war in Ukraine. Kim wore the yellow-and-blue attire the next day, when she visited one of the largest markets in Madrid to show encouragement to Koreans living in Spain, instead of participating in the official spouse program. Kim met with a Korean grocery owner who has been living in Madrid for 33 years and thanked her for her efforts to bridge Korea and Spain. British Gas owner Centrica has signalled it will throw its financial might behind the Sizewell C nuclear plant in Suffolk, bringing a significant boost to the project. The utility giant will join French rival EDF as a significant backer of the plant alongside the British Government. The Prime Minister wants Sizewell C to be one of up to eight new reactors built by 2030. Planning ahead: Centrica will join French rival EDF as a significant backer of the Sizewell C plant alongside the British Government It is a core part of his energy security strategy launched in April after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Centrica's commitment will help smooth a path towards a restructuring of the 20billion joint venture and the removal of Chinese state-backed CGN as an investor. A new ownership structure is being drawn up by Ministers that will see EDF's stake reduced from 80 to 20 per cent. The Government will take a 20 per cent stake under the new plan. Advisers at Barclays have been drafted in to find investors to cover the remainder. The Mail on Sunday understands Centrica which has not yet put the decision before its company board is prepared to take a stake. But this will be lower than Centrica's existing 20 per cent shareholding of Britain's operational nuclear power stations, reflecting its reduced role in Britain's energy provision compared with the past. It also shows the group's renewed commitment to nuclear energy after announcing it would sell off its interests just four years ago. It reversed that decision last year and now believes that nuclear will play a vital role in the country's future energy provision, sources said. Its support will be welcomed by Ministers keen to strengthen Britain's domestic energy supplies as gas prices soar. It will also be seen as a tacit approval of the Government's regulated asset base or RAB funding model, which has been used to fund other big infrastructure projects, such as gas networks and airports. This works by charging bill payers early on, helping to pay for large initial costs without borrowing huge sums. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said last month the new model would give investors greater certainty in the early stages of a project and cut the lifetime cost of a new nuclear plant by 30billion, reducing consumer electricity bills. National Infrastructure Commission chairman Sir John Armitt has called for more transparency on the upfront cost of nuclear plants in light of the rising bill for Hinkley Point C, in Somerset. If the hat fits: GSK boss Emma Walmsley GSK's plans to build a new life science campus in the UK moved a step closer after it secured project partners. The asset management arm of Swiss investment bank UBS has linked up with London-based property developer Reef Group to create a joint venture that will construct the campus in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. The venture will deliver 900m of investment for the site, which will be one of the largest of its kind in Europe. The campus should create 5,000 new highly skilled jobs as part of chief executive Emma Walmsley's plan to revitalise GSK's credentials as a life science innovator. GSK will sell 33 acres of land to develop the new campus, which is due to open in 2025. It will be built next to GSK's existing research and development hub in Stevenage. 'The campus will add laboratory space and facilities for new companies to locate here,' said Tony Wood, GSK's chief scientific officer. Sainsbury's is bracing for a shareholder backlash over pay when it faces investors at its annual general meeting on Thursday. The UK's second biggest grocer is facing calls to pay the independently set living wage for all staff and contracted workers. Responsible investment charity Share Action has tabled a resolution calling for the supermarket to commit to paying the sum, currently 9.90 per hour across the UK and 11.05 per hour in London. Demand: The UK's second biggest grocer is facing calls to pay the independently set living wage for all staff and contracted workers Share Action campaign manager Rachel Hargreaves said as well as being the right thing, 'the business case is compelling'. She said: 'There is no excuse for a highly profitable company with multi-million pound executive salaries refusing to guarantee all its staff a basic standard of living.' Sainsbury's has urged shareholders to reject the motion as it wants to manage its own wage bills. It has spent 100m this year increasing salaries and was the first major retailer to pay the real living wage. Chairman Martin Scicluna has argued Sainsbury's pays more than rival grocers. In a letter to shareholders, he said: 'We believe it is right to make independent decisions, rather than have them determined by a separate external body.' Shareholder advisers ISS and Glass Lewis have also recommended shareholders reject the motion. It requires 75 per cent support to pass, but even a vote of 20 per cent would force Sainsbury's to hold talks with shareholders on the issue. But the motion has won high-profile backers, setting the stage for a rebellion. In recent weeks insurer Aviva, which has a 0.3 per cent stake in Sainsbury's worth 15m, indicated it would back the motion. Other supporters include Fidelity International, HSBC Asset Management and the Queen's bank, Coutts. The showdown comes a month after Sainsbury's boss Simon Roberts faced a backlash after his pay tripled to 3.8m 183 times as much as an average Sainsbury's employee. Hargreaves added : Low pay drives inequality which slows economic growth and stokes instability, presenting material risks to investors. We expect investors to support this resolution.' Danny Magill of The Equality Trust said: 'Sainsbury's is asking shareholders, workers and customers to believe that they can either commit to paying all their staff in line with living costs or keep the price of essential items down for their customers. 'Meanwhile, their CEO pay has tripled and dividends are at their highest since 2015.' Sainsbury's posted profits of 730m for the 12 months to March 5. Australia's city centres are filled with ghost office towers as people continue to work from home, devastating the small businesses left behind in the abandoned central business districts. Hectares of city centre office space now lies vacant, with commercial office vacancy rates in double-digit figures two years after the pandemic first broke out. And even those offices still operating are on vastly reduced capacity, with many staff only coming in two or three times a week. Hectares of city centre office space now lie vacant with commercial office space vacancy rates in double-digit figures two years after the pandemic first broke out Australia's city centres are filled with ghost office towers as people continue to work from home, devastating the small businesses left behind in the abandoned CBDs But the shift in work from the CBD to the suburbs and bush has wrecked the cafes, restaurants and other mum and dad businesses set up to support city workers. Their businesses survived through Covid on JobKeeper wage subsidies - but eight months after most Covid restrictions ended, they are now in turmoil. 'We thought it would pick up after Christmas - but that never happened,' said Sonya Gee of Martini Dry Cleaning in Sydney's glitzy Barangaroo business strip. 'Then we thought it would be after the summer holidays, but nope - then Easter, but no. Now we just accept this is how it is.' She's had to shed her five staff in the wake of the WFH revolution, leaving just her and her husband to handle all the work. 'Our turnover has gone - it's dropped 60 to 70 per cent,' she said. 'People are only coming into the office sporadically. 'And because people aren't meeting face-to-face anymore, many of them aren't even wearing suits and shirts now - so don't need them cleaned. 'I'm not sure how much longer we can go on. We'd move to a new location if we could, but we've got a long lease.' Sonya Gee of Martini Dry Cleaning in Sydney's glitzy Barangaroo business strip has had to shed all their staff and now just runs the business with her husband Even those offices still operating are on vastly reduced capacity, with many staff only coming in two or three times a week. Cafes and restaurants are also living in fear of the ghost town central business districts. Vicky Vardis of Barangaroo's Vessel restaurant has had to axe three-quarters of her staff since the pandemic broke out, down from 11 to just four, with no hope of recovery. She's also facing a double-whammy of rocketing food costs along with the dwindling customer base. 'We had to pay $240 for 10 kilos of green beans at the market this week,' she revealed. 'We used to pay $1 a kilo. 'I'm having to get the chefs to change all the recipes, so we don't actually lose money.' Shorter working weeks in the city are hurting revenue. 'People are only in the office from Tuesday to Thursday now - Mondays and Fridays are dead. It's hard. Really hard. Business is down 70 per cent,' she said. The long lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne unchained staff from their desks and demonstrated they can still work efficiently from home. Barangaroo's Vessel restaurant has had to axe three-quarters of their staff since the pandemic broke out, down from 11 to just 4, with no hope of recovery Vessel's Vicky Vardis says cafes and restaurants are facing a double-whammy of rocketing food costs as well as the dwindling customer base, with some prices soaring 24-fold In the wake of the pandemic, many offices are now virtually empty on a Friday as companies adapt to the new reality and allow professionals to work a hybrid system. In one part of Sydney, one in five central business district offices are still vacant. Social researcher Mark McCrindle said city centre offices in particular were more likely to stay empty as more professionals could continue working from home several days a week. 'It's the central CBDs of our cities where it's been harder to get the numbers back,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'Even at best, we'll end up with 80 per cent of the pre-Covid occupancy in our CBD offices.' UK'S LEAD GIVES HOPE FOR SOME Barber shop boss Stephen Parker is pinning his hopes on Australia following the UK's lead of dropping Covid isolation rules will spark a return to office life. His men's hair studio in Sydney's Barangaroo has also been smashed by the WFH epidemic which has seen their turnover slashed by around two-thirds. They've had to let all their assistants go in a bid to survive but are still holding on to the dream of a return to normality within a few months. Barber shop boss Stephen Parker is pinning his hopes on Australia following the UK's lead of dropping Covid isolation rules will spark a return to office life 'The UK is completely back to normal now since they dropped the rules about having to isolate if you catch Covid,' said Mr Parker. 'I'm hoping that once the weather warms up a bit, that will also be adopted here and things will change for the better. That would be a game-changer. 'I think we've been through the hardest time - now it's just a case of getting used to the hard times.' Advertisement Mr McCrindle said double-digit vacancies in major cities centres were rare before the pandemic, at least in the prime real estate market. 'In some of what they call the B-grade and the C-grade, you had that but not in our capital city CBDs, some of the secondary CBDs had that because they didn't have quite the allure, I'm talking from a Sydney perspective,' he said. A lot has changed in 2022. Figures from JLL, a commercial real estate company, showed the national CBD vacancy rate stood at 13.5 per cent in the March quarter of this year. That is above the 10-year average of 11.2 per cent. But in Melbourne, it sits at 14.8 per cent. In the wake of the pandemic, many offices are now virtually empty on a Friday as companies adapt to the new reality and allow professionals to work a hybrid system Australia's highest vacancy rates WEST PERTH: 21.4 per cent ST LEONARDS, Sydney lower north shore: 21.2 per cent SYDNEY OLYMPIC PARK, RHODES, Sydney inner west: 20.5 per cent PERTH CBD: 19.7 per cent NORTH SYDNEY: 19.4 per cent CHATSWOOD, Sydney lower north shore: 17.4 per cent BRISBANE CBD: 14.9 MELBOURNE CBD: 14.8 per cent ADELAIDE CBD: 14.6 per cent SYDNEY CBD: 12.3 per cent Source: JLL Office Market Overview report for the March quarter Advertisement Sydney's city centre had a lower vacancy rate of 12.3 per cent. At St Leonards, on the city's lower north shore, the vacancy rate was 21.2 per cent - the highest since it began compiling data in 1990. But at Norwest, in Sydney's northwest, the vacancy rate is just 5.4 per cent. 'It's interesting how it's all turned around, and those suburban CBDs have actually been where there's been quite a return,' Mr McCrindle said. 'It's true of those outer-suburban business parks and CBDs as well, that's where we're getting a lot of activity. 'The business of the cafes in the outer-ring suburbs and the regions is busier than the CBDs.' Jones Lang LaSalle's NSW leasing manager Will Hamilton said the popularity of working from home meant corporations were relocating from outdated offices. 'Some businesses are taking less space and being more efficient,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'A lot of companies have come out of a 10-year-old fit out which might not be fit for purpose as what you'd build today. 'There is definitely a lot of hybrid working and work from home. 'People are working on a more flexible schedule.' Mr Hamilton said corporations on average signed five-year leases for office space. The property sector has a two-tiered system of classifying office space, with large spaces in newer buildings referred to as 'prime' grade and less glamorous spaces described as 'secondary'. 'Prime grade is benefiting from a lot more demand, and that comes back to the quality of the workspace, the amenity, the health and wellness components,' Mr Hamilton said. 'If we look at where the new leasing deals are being struck, and where that demand is, it's predominately in the prime-grade end of the market, that's what we are seeing the evidence showing. In one part of Sydney, one in five central business district offices are still vacant The seachange shift in work life has wrecked the cafes, restaurants and other mum and dad businesses set up to support city workers 'A lot of corporate Australia has been quite vocal about a return to work in many ways, and we're seeing businesses respond to their employees' needs.' Mr Hamilton was reluctant to draw a link between the rising of working from home and higher office vacancy rates. 'I don't think I can draw that correlation,' he said. Mr McCrindle said two-thirds to three-quarters of staff would still be heading into an office as employers reconfigured the spaces for more collaborative working, featuring better internet and Zoom connections. With unemployment in May remaining at a 48-year low of 3.9 per cent, bosses need to make workspaces more attractive to retain talent and convince them of the need to occasionally commute to an office. 'For the businesses in the CBD to "win the commute", you've got to earn the commute because people can do the work from home,' Mr McCrindle said. Businesses were put into cold storage during lockdown - but eight months after most Covid restrictions ended, they are still in turmoil The CBDs turned into ghost towns after the long lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne unchained staff from their desks and revealed they can still work efficiently from home 'That's why they are making this investment in their office space, they're providing better meals, and condiments in the kitchen. 'They're refitting to make it really an exciting space that can't be replicated at home.' A McCrindle Research study found Australians still made their friendships in the workplace. 'That's what makes the workplace, the people: 70 per cent of Australian workers say that the workplace is their key point of regular and meaningful social connection and community,' Mr McCrindle said. 'In modern Australia, one of the few, social bottlenecks in our life is work that is not achieved when we are all working remotely. 'That's the opportunity for businesses to create an opportunity for people to connect.' The feud between two of Australia's biggest TV stars over a car space has been revealed in full for the first time after it raised its ugly head following this year's controversial Logie Awards. Network Ten insiders have lifted the lid on Lisa Wilkinson's clash with respected news anchor Sandra Sully back in 2017 which earned The Project host the nickname 'car park thief' and divided loyal staff. It began, says one former Ten employee, when Wilkinson made her high-profile switch from Nine in the wake of her controversial sacking after a decade on Today. 'And you don't upset Sandra. You just don't. We love Sandra,' says an ex-Ten staffer Lisa Wilkinson has been accused - publicly and in private - of pinching Sandra Sully's car spot in 2017 Lisa Wilkinson allegedly cruised into a car space reserved for Sandra Sully at Ten's Sydney studios (pictured) No sooner had the decorated presenter and journalist arrived at Ten's Pyrmont studios in a sparkling white Audi convertible (for whom she is a longtime ambassador), Wilkinson allegedly cruised into a well-positioned car space - one of just a handful - within close proximity to the staff entrance. The only problem was the space - clearly marked as 'reserved' - belonged to Ten legend Sully who would arrive later in the day to prepare for her usual 5pm broadcast. The secure space was of particular importance to Sully who, the same year, had spoken for the first time about the violent attack she had survived 20 years earlier which took place in the car park of her apartment complex in 2007. Held at gunpoint by a masked offender, Sully managed to escape a fate much worse after the man pulled the trigger twice - only for the gun not to go off. 'I still don't like to be surprised. If someone makes a loud noise, I jump. I am always aware in a car park,' Sully told Stellar in 2017. Sources at Ten say Wilkinson - who joined the network a month prior to Sully's tell-all - was politely informed by car park security that the space was not to be used by anyone but the newsreader and one would be arranged for her. Despite this, it's alleged Wilkinson continued to use the reserved space and even mowed down traffic cones which were placed around the spot to prevent her from taking it. 'At first it became a bit of a joke that this was happening and it was just something that we all gossiped about in hair and make-up,' said one Ten staffer who has since switched networks. 'But then it kept happening. And we all started to see how much it was upsetting Sandra. 'And you don't upset Sandra. You just don't. We love Sandra.' It's understood a small handful of defenders sided with Wilkinson, with one senior Ten executive suggesting that Wilkinson and Sandra 'share' the space given the newsreader usually arrived at the studio later in the day. Wilkinson, he reasoned, could use it until Sully arrived. Wilkinson was politely informed by car park security that the space was not to be used by anyone but Sully back in 2017 However this tactic apparently failed as Sandra allegedly arrived at Pyrmont to find her spot continuously occupied by Wilkinson's white Audi. 'This is when colleagues really started to rally [around Sully],' the Ten insider said. 'And it became this big thing because who in their right mind gets offside with Sandra?' Ultimately the matter was quickly resolved itself when Wilkinson stopped visiting the Pyrmont studios and became solely based out of Melbourne where The Project is filmed. But the incident still lingers at Ten - resurfacing last week when former Channel Ten weatherman Tim Bailey took a very public swipe at Wilkinson following her problematic Logies speech. 'Happily retired' but Tim Bailey made his thoughts on Wilkinson clear 'Just accept ya F-ing little trophy and F off!' tweeted Bailey, referencing a comment once famously made by comic Ricky Gervais. He the signed off with the hashtag #carparkthief Contacted this week for additional comment, Bailey - who was sensationally sacked from his popular weatherman post at Ten back in 2020 - backed away from the controversy telling Daily Mail Australia: 'Am in Thailand on holidays...Had no idea of the brouhaha.' He added: 'I'm a million miles away from all that stuff and happily retired.' However Ten staff close to the ex-weatherman confirmed he and Sandra remained 'firm friends' on the back of their 20-year working relationship. Former Ten news consultant and broadcast legend Peter Meakin - who has since left Ten and now works for Roving Enterprises (which produces The Project) - declined to discuss the now infamous saga despite being present at the network. 'I've got nothing to say that will add anything to this story I'm afraid,' Meakin told Daily Mail Australia. 'But I know both (Sully and Wilkinson) and have a lot of time for both of them,' he said. However several hints as to current relations between the pair were made clear last week in the wake of Wilkinson's Logies speech which resulted in a warning from the ACT Supreme Court to The Project star to refrain from public discussion of the Brittany Higgins' case. Wilkinson came under criticism from both the public, the legal fraternity and the media for mentioning Higgins despite the case having not yet been heard in court. Tellingly, Sully 'liked' a tweet condemning Wilkinson which read: 'If only she'd stuck to silly stories like the paparazzi who stalked her in Chapel Street. Hope she now backs away now and lets people seek justice they (both parties) deserve.' Wilkinson has 'stepped away' from The Project in the wake of the Logies furore Sully later removed her 'like' but not before many of her colleagues at Ten - past and present - made note of it. 'A few of us saw it and knew exactly what that was about,' one said. Interestingly Ten has since done away with the staff car park entirely, with employees now permitted to 'rent' a space if they choose. Both Wilkinson, Sully and a spokeswoman for Network Ten declined to comment further this week when contacted by Daily Mail Australia. In the meantime Wilkinson, one of the highest-paid personalities on Australian TV, has stepped away from her role on The Project until mid-July according to reports. Nine has also allegedly wiped Wilkinson's speech - given when she collected the gong for most outstanding news coverage for her interview with Brittany Higgins - from its Logies streaming coverage. WASHINGTON (AP) - The Marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court has asked Maryland officials to step up the enforcement of laws she says prohibit picketing outside the homes of the justices who live in the state. "For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have picketed Justices' homes," Marshal Gail Curley wrote in the letters to GOP Gov. Larry Hogan and Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich, which were dated Friday. Curley wrote that both Maryland and Montgomery County laws "squarely prohibit picketing" at the justices' homes, and she asked the officials to direct police to "enforce" those provisions. Justices' homes have been the target of protests since May, when a leaked draft opinion suggested the court was poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. The protests and threatening activities have "increased since May," Curley wrote, and have continued since the court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was issued last week. "Earlier this week, for example, 75 protesters loudly picketed at one Justice's home in Montgomery County for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket at another Justice's home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first Justice's home to picket for another 20 minutes," Curley wrote in the letter to Elrich. "This is exactly the kind of conduct that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit." Abortion-rights and anti-abortion demonstrators gather outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, Friday, June 24, 2022. The Supreme Court has ended constitutional protections for abortion that had been in place nearly 50 years, a decision by its conservative majority to overturn the court's landmark abortion cases. Abortion, guns and religion _ a major change in the law in any one of these areas would have made for a fateful Supreme Court term. In its first full term together, the court's conservative majority ruled in all three and issued other significant decisions limiting the government's regulatory powers. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe, File) Curley's request came about a month after a California man was found with a gun, knife and pepper spray near the Maryland home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh after telling police he was planning to kill the justice. The man, Nicholas John Roske, 26, of Simi Valley, Calif., has been charged with attempting to murder a Justice of the United States. Supreme Court justices living in Virginia have also become the target of protests. GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin pushed in May for a security perimeter around the homes of justices living in Fairfax County, but local officials rebuffed the request. He also attempted to create a new felony penalty for certain actions during demonstrations aimed at judges or other officers of a court, which state lawmakers rejected. A spokeswoman for the Supreme Court provided copies of Curley's letters to reporters Saturday morning. A spokeswoman for Montgomery County police referred a request for comment to a spokesman for Elrich. The spokesman did not immediately respond to an inquiry from The Associated Press. Spokespeople for Hogan also did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Millions of residents have been told to stay home and put their travel plans on hold as 'life-threatening' storms batter NSW. More than 500,000 people were urged to evacuate flood-prone areas before they became trapped by rapidly rising floodwater. Camden, Woronora, Chipping Norton, Georges Hill, Lansvale, Moorebank, and Warwick Farm residents were told to leave immediately. 'If you remain in the area you may be trapped without power, water and other essential services and it may be too dangerous to rescue you,' the SES warned. Millions of residents have been told to stay home and put their travel plans on hold as 'life-threatening' storms batter NSW (pictured, an abandoned car trapped in floodwaters at Lansvale in western Sydney on Sunday) Evacuation orders were later issued for parts of North Richmond East, Ebenezer, Sackville North, and Leets Vale on the southern side of the Hawkesbury River. East Hills, Picnic Point, Penrith, Emu Plains, Mulgoa, Jamisontown, North Richmond, Pitt Town, Cornwallis and Cattai have been sent evacuation warnings. More than three times the average July rainfall has so far fallen in some parts of NSW this weekend, while emergency services received more than 1,400 calls for help and rescued 29 people from flash flooding over the past 24 hours. Defence force helicopters are on standby to help with rescue efforts if residents become trapped with no way to escape. Emergency Services and Resilience and Flood Recovery Minister Steph Cooke said the flooding was 'a life-threatening emergency situation' and told residents to postpone travels along the central and south coast of NSW. Heavy rainfall and flash flooding is expected to intensify throughout Sunday prompting thousands of residents to evacuate their homes Floodwaters have hit Camden prompting thousands of residents to flee the suburb in south-west Sydney A submerged petrol station as floodwaters continued to rise in Camden on Sunday 'To all communities between Newcastle and Batemans Bay, I am respectfully asking that you reconsider your travel plans at this time,' she said. 'Please stay home if you can. It is really not the time to travel if you are in those areas that are impacted. 'While I absolutely accept that it couldn't come at a worse time for a lot of people and a lot of families, at the end of the day we want everyone to be safe and if that means that you need to reconsider where you go for your holiday, perhaps postpone it or delay just even by a few days.' The Bureau of Meteorology had a severe weather warning in place for heavy rain leading to flash flooding, winds up to 90km/h and damaging surf along the coast on Sunday afternoon. The Hawkesbury-Nepean River have also exceeded major flood levels. Ms Cooke said an east coast low formed over the coast of NSW and expected the heavy rainfall and flash flooding to continue until at least Tuesday. 'For Sydney, the Central Coast and the South Coast, and the Illawarra, we are now facing dangers on multiple fronts - flash flooding, riverine flooding and coastal erosion,' she said. Several roads are closed around the state with Richmond Bridge, Windsor, and Yarramundi bridges closed in both direction in north-west Sydney. Flood waters have almost risen above Windsor Bridge with the heavy rain set to continue until at least Tuesday Residents cut off from roads as floodwaters in Camden, south-west Sydney, make it impossible to access Residents left stranded as heavy rain continued to fall and flood waters rose in Camden Newbridge Road and Milperra Road are closed between Nancy Ellis Leebold Drive and Governor Macquarie Drive. Henry Lawson Drive is closed between Milperra Road and the Hume Highway, and between Wester Street And Cheatle Street. Camden was one of the towns worst hit by the floods with the deputy mayor saying floods had become too common - after it was ravaged by flooding earlier this year. 'It's devastating. It's the worst kind of deja vu imaginable,' Paul Farrow said. 'Here we are finding ourselves, for a fourth time, facing it again.' NSW SES Commissioner Carlene York urged residents to brace for the worst, shore up their homes with sandbags, and head to their closest evacuation centre. 'If you think you need sandbagging, go to your area that is on the SES website or the local council website where you can get your sandbags and stop preparation for your property,' she said. 'Have an emergency evacuation kit ready with your documents and have some - if you are in an isolated area - food, water. 'Look after your domestic animals and make sure that you have a plan and try and ring family and friends and organise where you might go if you do need to evacuate.' Flooded amusement park at Camden, in south-west Sydney, following heavy rainfall on Sunday Inundated waste bins in Camden, south-western Sydney, as wild weather batters the state Evacuation orders across NSW The NSW SES has issued several evacuation orders across the state: -North Richmond East -Parts of Ebenezer -Pitt Town Bottoms -Parts of Cattai -Cornwallis and the eastern part of Richmond Lowlands -Parts of Pitt Town -Low-lying areas of Agnes Banks -Gronos Point -Plough and Harrow Dam -Parts of Pleasure Point -Parts of Wallacia -Parts of Camden and Ellis Lane -Low-lying parts of Woronora -Parts of Chipping Norton -Parts of Georges Hall -Parts of Lansvale -Parts of Moorebank -Parts of Warwick Farm Advertisement Evacuation centres have been set up at Cabra-Vale Diggers Club in Canley Vale, the Narellan Family and Community Centre, Gymea Tradies Club, Richmond Club and North Richmond Community Centre. Ms York urged residents to steer clear of floods and not attempt to travel through them. 'It is extremely dangerous out there. Stay out of the floodwaters, and we always warn don't drive through floodwater and particularly don't walk through them or allow children to play near them,' she said. 'There is no room for the rain to stay in the dams, and they are starting to spill. The rivers are flowing fast and dangerous and then there is the risk of flash flooding depending on where the rains are. 'There are a lot of risks the community needs to be aware of, and I ask you to heed the warning.' Warragamba Dam exceeded capacity earlier than expected with the main reservoir spilling at 2am on Sunday. Shellharbour recorded 193mm of rainfall, 3.2 times its July average rainfall, Albion Park measured 172mm, 3.1 times its average, and Beaumont 161mm, 1.6 times the average, over the past two days. Major flooding hit Menangle in Macarthur, southwest of Sydney, with river levels exceeding those seen in March this year. Riverine flooding is also expected along the Hawkesbury and Colo Rivers from Sunday, with major flooding at North Richmond possible from the afternoon. Authorities are confident they are ready to help NSW residents caught out by the wild weather, and avoid a repeat of their heavily criticised flood response earlier this year. A marquee is almost totally submerged in floodwaters in Camden, south-west Sydney A children's playground half underwater as heavy rain battered the state More than 500,000 residents across south-west Sydney have been warned to evacuate as flash flooding and heavy rain batters NSW NSW SES warned residents who remained behind in areas with evacuation orders risked becoming trapped by rising floodwaters It comes as more than three times the average rainfall has fallen in some parts of NSW over the weekend, with more than 1,000 calls for help made to emergency services and defence force helicopters on standby to help with rescue efforts. Road closures across the state Several major roads have been closed as residents are warned to stay indoors and avoid travelling. -Windsor Bridge is closed between Wilberforce Road and George Street in both directions. -North Richmond: Richmond Bridge is closed in both directions. -Yarramundi: Yarramundi Bridge is closed in both directions. -Milperra: Newbridge Road/Milperra Road is closed between Nancy Ellis Leebold Drive and Governor Macquarie Drive. -Georges Hall: Henry Lawson Drive is closed between Milperra Road and the Hume Highway. -East Hills: Henry Lawson Drive is closed between Wester Street and Cheatle Street. -Between Narrabeen and Oxford Falls: Wakehurst Parkway is closed in both directions. Oxford Falls Road is closed. -Manly: Buses are replacing ferries. -Royal National Park: Audley Weir is closed in both directions. Advertisement Defence force helicopters and troops are on standby and emergency services personnel are working around the clock. The cold front battering the state's east coast is forecast to get worse before it gets better, with wild winds, rough seas, and heavy rain expected to last until Monday. With three flood rescues carried out on Friday and Saturday, people were urged to avoid non-essential trips as the deluge put a dampener on the opening weekend of the NSW school holidays. Flooding is also possible for the Hunter, Central Coast, Sydney, and the south coast, with flood watches in place for catchments between Newcastle and Batemans Bay, including Sydney and the Illawarra. Areas at risk include Newcastle, the Central Coast, Lake Macquarie, and the Upper Coxs, Colo, Macdonald, Woronora, Patterson, Williams, and Lower Hunter rivers. A severe weather warning for damaging winds and heavy rainfall was in place on Sunday for Sydney, the Illawarra, and parts of the Hunter, Central Tablelands, and Southern Tablelands forecast districts. The Upper and Lower Nepean and Hawkesbury rivers are also causing concern as already-soaked catchments endure another lengthy drenching. Dramatic footage shows the moment a terrified young woman was rescued from surging floods as wild weather wreaked havoc in NSW on Saturday night. A severe weather warning for damaging winds and heavy rainfall was in place on Sunday for Sydney's metropolitan areas, the Illawarra, and parts of the Hunter, Central Tablelands, and Southern Tablelands forecast districts The woman, believed to be in her 20s, desperately clung to a tree as the freezing current ripped at her after she was swept away by the treacherous waters. Emergency workers bravely fought to save her and managed get a lifeline to her before plucking her to safety in Holsworthy, southwest Sydney, on Saturday night. 'Please be ready to evacuate on short notice,' NSW Emergency Services Minister Stephanie Cooke said. 'Please ensure that you prepare your properties as best you can and if in any doubt, please evacuate earlier. 'Don't necessarily wait for us to put out an order, asking or suggesting that you leave.' The terrified woman clung to a tree as she was battered by flood waters in southwestern Sydney Around 500,000 residents in southwest Sydney have been told to evacuate as the heavy rain pounding the NSW east coast triggered multiple flood warnings The terrified young woman was rescued from surging floods as wild weather continued to wreak havoc in NSW on Saturday night The SES warned: 'If you receive a text message from +61 444 444 444, it's an official alert that requires attention and to take action early.' Authorities also fear that Sydney's main water source, the Warragamba Dam, could overflow and unleash widespread flooding as the deluge smashed a 118-year record. Ambulance, fire, police and SES personnel desperately tried to find one man who was washed away in the Hacking River near Otford, in the Illawarra, south of Sydney. A rural firefighter spotted the man in a nearby creek, and got in the rising icy waters to pull him to safety onto the riverbank. Additional RFS crew members then helped him up to higher ground, where he was assessed for injuries and taken to hospital Another nine people were also rescued from flood waters in Austral, southwest Sydney, when two cars were stranded in rising waters, 'The two cars were in approximately 40cm of water, which is enough to be very dangerous,' the Rural Fire Service said. 'The occupants from two vehicles were assisted to higher ground by our members and they have gone home safely.' Authorities warned earlier on Saturday the wet weather was only going to get worse, with more rain, powerful winds, and surging seas expected. Ambulance, fire, police and SES personnel desperately tried to find a man who was washed away in the Hacking River near Otford, in Illawarra region, south of Sydney The federal government approved ADF support at the request of NSW on Friday night, with 100 troops and two helicopters available from Sunday onwards, Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said. 'I want to assure people that the federal government is 100 per cent prepared for what might lie ahead,' Senator Watt said from Brisbane on Saturday. 'One of the things that we've learned over the last couple of years is that when we don't have a federal government that takes responsibility and isn't proactive, bad things can happen.' The Bureau of Meteorology's Jane Golding said there would be a 'deterioration' of weather overnight, with a risk of flash flooding and landslips. 'The rainfall rates will increase,' she said. 'We'll start to see the wind increase as well. We'll see the seas whipped up and we'll see the rivers respond to the rain that's falling.' NSW Emergency Minister Steph Cooke said flash flooding could occur anywhere from Newcastle to Jervis Bay Torrential rain, flash flooding, landslides, damaging winds and power outages are all threatening Sydney and NSW residents More than 200mm of rain fell south of Wollongong overnight, with between 80 and 150mm falling on Sydney and the Illawarra in just six hours. The Illawarra district was hit by its heaviest July rainfall since 1904. The deluge is on the first weekend of school holidays, and drivers were urged to take extra care. 'We know floodwater is extremely dangerous, especially for drivers. If the road is flooded, turn around and find another way,' Transport for NSW's Roger Weeks said. Routes in and out of Sydney are likely to face congestion, with heavy traffic expected at known pinch-points, particularly around the airport. Hazardous surf is also expected. The Bureau of Meteorology issued a severe weather alert for metropolitan Sydney, Illawarra and parts of the South Coast, Central Tablelands and Southern Tablelands on Saturday morning A young boy has been mauled by a dog in a vicious attack at a remote Western Australian campground. The eight-year-old was camping at a site in Gnaraloo, near Carnarvon, when he was attacked by a dog around 7.30am on Saturday. He was flown by a Royal Flying Doctor Service plane to Carnarvon Hospital for urgent medical treatment. An eight-year-old boy has been severely injured after he was mauled by a dog at a campground in Gnaraloo, near Carnarvon in Western Australia. (Pictured: A campsite in Gnaraloo) The boy was then airlifted by the Royal Flying Doctor Service again on Saturday evening to Perth. The plane was scheduled to arrive at Jandakot Airport around 9pm. He was transported to Perth Childrens Hospital for further treatment and care after landing. In a horrific update, 7News was told by police that photographs of the boy's injuries were too gruesome to release publicly. It's unknown if the boy was familiar with the dog or the animal was wild. Police have launched an investigation. A Labor MP who quit politics less than a year ago so she could spend more time with her family has sadly died after a six-year battle with breast cancer. Jane Garrett, 49, died on Saturday with tributes immediately flowing for the widely respected former Victorian government minister. Premier Dan Andrews immediately offered her family a state funeral to mark her contribution to Victoria saying she spent her career tirelessly fighting for the rights of working people. Ms Garrett was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016 and after a year-long fight, she announced she had undergone a successful operation and was in remission. However the cancer returned recently and she suffered further complications affecting her health. Ms Garrett's retirement speech in December 2021, where she spoke about wanting to spend more time with her kids, took on a tragic new meaning following her death this weekend. 'To those who are coming after I wish you all the very best,' she said. 'Finally thank you to my three beautiful children who are the great joys of my life. I'm so looking forward to spending more time with you.' Former Labor MP Jane Garrett (pictured) died on Saturday following a battle with breast cancer Her family, including husband James Higgins and their three young children, released a statement on Saturday. 'We are devastated by the passing this afternoon of our beloved mother, sister, daughter, dear friend Jane Garrett, following a long battle with cancer,' they said. 'Unfortunately, Jane's cancer recently returned after some time in remission, and she was admitted to hospital earlier this week. 'We wish to thank the staff at the Epworth Freemasons for their love and care of Jane over the last years and in particular over the past week. 'We will remember Jane always for her contagious love of life and people; her intense compassion and the drive which made her a very fierce advocate for women and those most disadvantaged. 'Her intellect, wit and generosity are irreplaceable, and her loss leaves a huge hole in the Garrett family. 'Jane leaves behind her three children, Molly aged 19, Sasha aged 15 and Max aged 10. The Garrett family's priority is on their welfare at this impossibly difficult time for them. Therefore we ask that our privacy be respected at this time.' Ms Garrett represented both the Victorian Upper and Lower House during her decade-long career in politics. Friend and fellow MP Martin Pakula paid tribute to Ms Garrett (pictured together) on Saturday night She resigned in December last year - one of seven Labor MPs to quit in the span of two weeks - saying she wanted to be with her family and make way for the next batch of young politicians. 'It's a sign of just how strong the Labor Party is when so many people make the call to step aside and give our huge range of talented young people the opportunity to become the next generation of MPs,' she said in a statement. She had already resigned from Dan Andrews' front bench in 2016 following an enterprise bargaining dispute between the United Firefighters Union, CFA and the Victorian government. Weeks later she was left shaken after she was attacked by a woman in her 50s as she walked through Melbourne's CBD. The woman was charged with assault after it was claimed she grabbed Ms Garrett by the hair and pushed her into a glass window. The woman had been known to Ms Garrett going back to when she served on Yarra Council. Ms Garrett was attacked as she walked through the Melbourne CBD in 2016 (pictured) Mr Andrews said on Sunday he felt for Ms Garrett's family. 'Jane was a passionate advocate for the rights of working people and spent her career fighting for safer, secure jobs,' he said. 'Her commitment to education, equality and social justice for all was clear. 'Jane lived a life of service to the labour movement, to the Labor party, and to our state. 'I hope Jane's family accept a state funeral as a fitting way to mark her significant contribution to Victoria. Vale Jane Garrett.' Premier Dan Andrews has offered Ms Garrett's (pictured) family a state funeral Close friend and Keysborough MP Martin Pakula also posted a tribute on Saturday night. 'I am very very sorry to hear of the passing of my dear friend Jane. Love and long life to James, Sasha, Max and Molly,' he said. While former RTBU boss who is running as a Labor candidate, Luba Grigorovitch, praised Ms Garrett's integrity. 'Jane was a wonderful person who was always very positive and an amazing mum to her three beautiful children,' she said. 'Jane was a great mentor to many young women and always treated each and every person equally. 'Jane would light up the room when she entered with her gregarious personality and charm and will be very sadly missed by her many friends.' A college graduate was fired from his first job in NYC after a Twitter mob descended on him for complaining it was hard to shop for dinner at his local bodegas. Griffin Green, 24, moved to the Bronx from Michigan last week for a new opportunity as a sales development rep with the software company Outreach, Reason reported. He took to TikTok to complain that bodegas - corner stores - in his Bronx neighborhood only stocked unhealthy instant foods, and that it was hard to shop properly there, compared to a larger supermarket like Kroger back home. But busybody Twitter hall monitors soon seized on the clips, claiming they demonstrated white privilege, with Green's cowardly employer bowing to pressure from the niche accounts to terminate their staffer. Outreach told Reason that Green was fired for sharing an offer of employment letter on social media, not because of the controversial bodega videos which earned him the moniker 'Bodega Bro.' But the publication suggested Outreach was using that as a fig leaf to justify its decision to fire him over the innocuous bodega clips The series of videos that sparked the online outrage shows Green walking around his Bronx neighborhood, where he had moved for his new job, while he blasts the local bodegas and asked his viewers how he was supposed to make dinner and where he could find a 'big grocery store.' 'OK, so I just moved to New York and I'm going to go grocery shopping, and so I type in like, 'grocery stores,' on my Apple Maps, and every fking one I go to they're like this st,' he told the camera in one video. Midwest college grad, Griffin Green, 24, who recently moved to the Bronx for a job, posted TikTok videos complaining about shopping at bodegas, earning him the moniker 'Bodega Bro' Outreach told Reason that Green was fired for sharing the offer letter on social media, not because of the controversial bodega videos which earned him the moniker 'Bodega Bro' 'Like bro, that's not a grocery store,' he said as he turned the camera to show one of the small stores. 'I'm trying to get, like eggs, yogurt, cheese, st like that. Like, look at this place.' Green continues to walk through his Bronx neighborhood and states he's been to several and doesn't know what to do about dinner. 'Like I've literally been to like five of those now, and like, I don't know what the fk I'm about to do for dinner. Like where are the Krogers and the Whole Foods at? Like I'm about to eat fking like cereal and ramen for dinner, like what the fk?' The clip went viral after a Twitter user posted it with some saying Green was exuding white privilege for blasting bodegas, which are a staple in New York communities. Blogger Perez Hilton - best-known for bullying female stars including Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan on his website - circled the wagons further, by tweeting that the video seemed 'racist.' 'I'm sure this 'bro' thought he was being funny, but did anyone else view this as racist? Or just me?' Blogger Perez Hilton tweeted that the video seemed 'racist' TikTok star Dutch De Carvalho chimed in on the video: 'I mean, what, he's been here like two days? And he's found a way to make fun of the stores that many people in the community rely on.' More videos surfaced which prompted further backlash on social media. In one clip, which seemed to have surfaced during Pride, Green commented on how many gay people are in New York, and asked whether 'being gay is just a thing now.' In another one, he pointed out that he was wearing an NAACP shirt to the gym in the Bronx so 'these people' vibe with him more. 'I'm in the Bronx for a few weeks so I'm like the only white dude in this whole gym, so I got this NAACP shirt so these people vibe with me more,' he purportedly said in one video, the New York Post reported. The series of videos that sparked the online outrage shows Green walking around his Bronx neighborhood, where he had moved for his new job, while he blasts the local bodegas and asked his viewers how he was supposed to make dinner 'OK, so I just moved to New York and I'm going to go grocery shopping, and so I type in like, 'grocery stores,' on my Apple Maps, and every fking one I go to they're like this st,' he told the camera in one video Video that Green posted of his offer letter and announcement of moving to New York resurfaced and a Twitter user alerted the company. 'I don't think it's very flattering to have this type of person representing your company,' the user wrote. 'I would revalue his employment if I were you.' Outreach responded, 'Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Upon investigation, we took swift internal action in accordance with our company policies and in alignment with our core values. He is no longer an employee of Outreach.' The firm said Green was fired for sharing the offer letter on social media, even though it was only visible for a few seconds. 'It is against company policy for employees to leak private and confidential information, and grounds for termination,' Outreach's vice president of communications told Reason. 'We remain committed to building our culture that finds strength in our diversity, equity and inclusion and a company where all can succeed.' Green, who had just signed a 1-year lease with an apartment in the Bronx, told Reason he was fired on his second day of work. He asked for a chance to explain, but said he was denied. 'People can be painted as these mean awful people when really they're just trying to explore new things,' Green told Reason. 'I was exploring New York for the first time I didn't know that people do grocery shopping at these corner stores.' 'It was more of an intent to almost like make fun of myself for being a new person in the city,' he said. Green set his TikTok account to private but on Saturday night posted a new video that addressed the backlash and included a compilation of the grad ordering food at a local bodega. Green posted a new video to TikTok Saturday night of buying food at a local bodega and distributing it to various homeless men in the area 'If you came here from Twitter, you probably know me as "Bodega Bro,"' Green said. 'So I came off private to show you guys what Bodega Bro is really all about.' Green then bags up the bacon, egg and cheese rolls and chopped cheese rolls that he bought, along with gatorade and fruit, and films himself distributing them to various homeless men in the area. In the video, Green adds that 'if anyone is hiring in tech sales or needs a workout partner in New York,' to let him know. South Korea and China agreed Sunday to hold a ceremony returning remains of Chinese troops killed during the 1950-53 Korean War in September, in what would be the ninth such repatriation, Seoul's defense ministry said. Kim Sang-jin, the ministry's director-general of international policy, and Li Jingxian, a Chinese veterans affairs official, met in the southeastern Chinese city of Xiamen, and agreed to hold an event casketing the remains on Sept. 15 and return them the following day. The ministry did not elaborate on how many sets of troop remains will be repatriated. Since 2014, when the two countries agreed on the return of the Chinese troop remains, Seoul has returned 825 sets of remains of Chinese fighters. The agreement on the latest repatriation plan comes as Seoul and Beijing mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations this year. (Yonhap) Soaring numbers of British holidaymakers on shopping sprees in European cities are claiming millions of pounds in VAT thanks to a tax loophole. They can get up to a fifth of the cost of their purchases back within days of returning home. Thierry Andretta, chief executive of high-end fashion firm Mulberry, told The Mail on Sunday that he had encountered travellers on the journey back to the UK laden with luxury shopping worth thousands of pounds. He said the shoppers were candid about the fact that the money returned through the rebate was enough to cover the cost of the fare, food and accommodation. The trips have been dubbed Jimmy Choos cruises after the booze cruises to Calais in the 1970s and 1980s, when Britons flocked to France to buy duty-free wine, beer and spirits. Soaring numbers of British holidaymakers on shopping sprees in European cities are claiming millions of pounds in VAT thanks to a tax loophole The VAT rebate is available to international travellers visiting Europe but has been available to UK tourists to the Continent only since Britain left the EU. The bulk of the transactions are from high-spending Middle Eastern, Chinese and US shoppers but Global Blue, the Swiss tourism shopping tax refund company that process the rebate, said UK travellers already accounted for more than 1 in every 20 claimed back. Derrick Hardman, Global Blue managing director in the UK, Ireland and Finland, said: We are seeing UK residents start to take advantage of this. People havent really been aware of previously, but I think over the summer months it will become more prevalent as people realise what is going on. There are big retailers in Europe who are targeting UK travellers. Retailers advertise the saving to travellers at airports in Spain and Italy. France is also a hotspot. A banner at an Italian airport read: More reasons to smile UK customers can claim their taxes back. They can get up to a fifth of the cost of their purchases back within days of returning home. In Spain, department store giant El Corte Ingles has been offering a 10 per cent shopping voucher on top of the saving to British tourists arriving in Madrid and Barcelona. It said the saving on purchases of more than 154.95 would exceed 25 per cent. UK travellers are obliged to declare any goods purchased overseas at UK border control. A VAT charge of 20 per cent is applied on goods over 135. But Mr Andretta said the savings of shopping in Europe can still be substantial. He estimated the cost of many French and Italian luxury items was around 15 per cent more in London where retailers have to absorb the substantial cost of the highest business rates in Europe and eye-watering rents into prices. More and more, I see people making the most of this. You see them returning from Paris and its evident theyve been on a shopping weekend, he said. A banner at an Italian airport read: More reasons to smile UK customers can claim their taxes back He claimed UK shops were missing out after Chancellor Rishi Sunak closed a similar loophole for international tourists visiting here, adding: Its frustrating because we are missing the opportunity. He said shops on the continent are enjoying this and were not. There is already evidence that some high-spending foreign visitors are taking their custom to Paris and Milan. Mr Hardman said it led to the cannibalisation of businesses in the UK, adding: Its a shame the Government took this away. An experienced public servant who lost a high paying job to a politician has asked to give her evidence via a private, in-camera hearing so she can properly detail her 'distress' about the scandal. Jenny West was told she had secured a $500,000 trade ambassador role in New York last August, but the high-flying public servant saw the job ripped away weeks later, when retiring NSW deputy premier John Barilaro changed the selection process, which eventually allowed him to claim the position for himself. The controversial appointment is now the subject of a state parliamentary inquiry that began on Wednesday, with Mr Barilaro two days later announcing he had withdrawn from the job because the saga was a 'distraction' for the government. Ms West, who was deputy secretary of Investment NSW, has confirmed she will given evidence at the hearing on July 11. The Westpac 'women of influence' winner lodged a request for an in-camera hearing to tell her side of the story in person due to the 'distress' the job loss has caused her 'and my family', The Daily Telegraph reported. Jenny West (pictured), was 'extremely upset' when she learnt the plum trade ambassador role she had won through an interview process was to be taken off her due to a ministerial decision that eventually led to the job being given to former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro In the written request, Ms West pointed to the 'short-term and long-term career implications' she has faced as a result of the debacle as a reason to provide her account over live video. She also asked to appear in private, signalling her evidence - which includes a 45-page dossier she sent to Department of Premier and Cabinet secretary Michael Coutts-Trotter after losing the role - will likely be damning. Ms West's evidence, which was initially scheduled for July 6, will be vital in determining the level of interference in the selection of the position and who was involved. Speaking at the inquiry on Wednesday, Trade Department Secretary Amy Brown, who had to break the bad news to Ms West in September said 'she was not pleased about the backflip on the job, leading to an 'irreconcilable' situation. 'She was extremely upset about that, understandably so,' Ms Brown said. John Barilaro last week announced he was stepping aside from the role as the saga was a 'distraction' for the government In the days after her appointment was blocked, Ms West met with Mr Coutts-Trotter, NSW's top bureaucrat, to express her concerns about what happened, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Mr Coutts-Trotter, who is secretary of the Department of Premier and Cabinet, was given a 45-page report by Ms West outlining her concerns over what transpired. Ms West has now left the public service with an undisclosed payout. The New York Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner would have capped off a CV bristling with achievement for Ms West. She entered the NSW public service after being head of trade and investment at federal agency Austrade, where she led digital innovation efforts. Her private sector experience included four years as the NSW/ACT regional director for Telstra, where she was in charge of 130 retail stores and oversaw the NBN rollout. In her seven years at Westpac, she headed the migrant and expatriate banking division, and was also general manager of the Sydney CBD operations. In 2013, she won a Westpac 'Women of Influence' Award for business outcomes. Ms West is also listed as a UTS Business School Industry Advisory Board member and a governor for the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia. Ms West, here seen addressing Indian students in her capacity as deputy secretary of Investment NSW was described as an 'eminently qualified' candidate for the New York job Labor's Deputy Leader Prue Car told the parliamentary inquiry that a highly accomplished woman had been brutally passed over for a former member of the government. 'We now know that the very eminently qualified Jenny West was dumped by this government, given a taxpayerfunded settlementbecause she was offered a job that was then taken away from her,' Ms Car said. As NSW trade minister, Mr Barilaro created the New York trade commissioner role in November 2020, one of five similar jobs in major capital cities across the world. Ms Brown said Ms West was an 'excellent candidate' who had exceeded all the criteria to win the New York job after beating out a select shortlist of four people interviewed. However, all appointments had to be frozen after a request on October 3 from Mr Barilaro's office that commissioner positions be moved from being an in-house departmental decision to one requiring cabinet approval. Mr Barilaro, who was then-NSW trade minister, intervened to change the process for hiring the state's trade ambassador to the US and eventually claimed the job himself Despite cabinet agreeing to draft legislation to this effect, the New York job was given without ministerial signing off, unlike other similar roles. The job was then re-advertised in December and the process was handled by Investment NSW and a global recruiting company with Mr Barilaro being announced as the successful candidate earlier this month. NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet, who called the appointment an internal public service, established an independent inquiry separate to the parliamentary one into the hiring process. Mr Barilaro retired from politics on October 4, just days after Gladys Berejiklian sensationally quit as premier after the state's anti-corruption watchdog, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, announced it was investigating her. He signed a three-year contract in June to take up the position of New York trade commissioner and had been due to begin the role in July. MPs are being threatened with deselection if they change the rules to hold another confidence vote in Boris Johnson as soon as this month. A Downing Street source said that in such a scenario MPs risk the rules for their own position 'changing on them every five minutes'. One rebel MP said of the threat: 'No 10 is in such a mess, they are desperate.' Another insider said the 'threat of deselection' is being 'put around both directly to some MPs and as rumours to others'. In June the Prime Minister survived a vote of no confidence by the narrow margin of 211 to 148. Under existing rules he cannot be challenged again for a year. However, that can be changed at any time by the 18-strong ruling executive of the 1922 Committee, which is up for re-election. The committee's senior members will choose a date for the election at their weekly meeting this Wednesday. Downing Street last night said the 1922 elections will be the scene of a 'proxy war' for pro and anti-Johnson MPs. A Downing Street source said that in such a scenario MPs risk the rules for their own position 'changing on them every five minutes' The Mail on Sunday can reveal Sir Charles Walker, the veteran Tory MP, plans to run. He does not support changing the rules. Downing Street is expected to put forward a 'slate' of four or five pro-Boris candidates for positions. One rebel MP told The Mail on Sunday they fear their side is less organised and may end up having too many candidates 'The problem for our side is if have too many anti-Boris candidates, we could split the vote.' Critical MPs including Andrew Bridgen and Steve Baker have already said they plan to run. Ministerial aides parliamentary private secretaries who are on the Government's payroll, will be allowed to vote, a source on the committee said last night. An 11-year-old boy and his eight-year-old sister armed themselves with a kitchen knife and rolling pin to fight off two teenagers who allegedly broke into their home. Kaleedre Andrew and another teenager allegedly broke into the home in Tarneit, in Melbourne's west, about 5am on Christmas Eve 2021. Andrew pleaded guilty to charges including stealing a vehicle and trespassing in Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Friday. Kaleedre Andrew (pictured) and another teenager allegedly broke into the home at Tarneit, in Melbourne's west, at 5am on December 24 2021 A police summary alleged the pair approached a woman in her bed and demanded she hand over her car keys. The woman's eldest daughter confronted the pair and was allegedly pushed to the ground and her head 'stomped on', the Herald Sun reported. Her 11-year-old brother and eight-year-old sister fought off the alleged intruders with a knife and a rolling pin, forcing them to flee. The police summary alleged the pair made off in a vehicle with a third person before they were pursued by police, crashed the car into a power pole, and were arrested. Senior Constable Hayden Chalmers said the home invasion traumatised the family and one of the children slept with a knife under their pillow ever since. 'All are completely traumatised... They're absolutely terrified,' he said, calling the home invasion the worst he'd ever seen. Andrew pleaded guilty to charges including stealing a motor vehicle and trespassing in Melbourne Magistrates' Court (pictured) on Friday Andrew appeared via video link in court with his parents sitting on either side of him. He told police he was affected by alcohol, marijuana and Xanax that morning and his memory was 'hazy'. He pleaded guilty in exchange for aggravated home invasion charges being dropped and will face court for a pre-sentencing hearing on August 22. A 16-year-old and 17-year-old boy were denied bail when they previously faced the Children's Court. Police are investigating a death threat against J.K. Rowling after a trans activist urged Twitter users to send a bomb to the authors home. The offensive tweet included a picture of the Harry Potter creator, her familys address, an image of a pipe bomb and the cover of a bomb-making handbook. Ms Rowling shared a screenshot of the June 14 threat on Friday, complaining that the activists Twitter account had been active for several weeks. She added: The account remains active, naturally. The account, featuring the transgender flag, had also tweeted the day before that feminist writers such as campaigner Julie Bindel should keeeelllll themselves. JK Rowling tweeted out how a trans activist on twitter tweeted a picture of her familys address and an image of a pipe bomb and the cover of a bomb-making handbook The tweet in question remain online for hours despite it violating Twitter's terms of services Last night, a Police Scotland spokeswoman said: Officers are carrying out enquiries. Fiona McAnena of campaign group Fair Play For Women told The Mail on Sunday: The fact that people can make death threats publicly without worry is a telling indictment. Yesterday, the abusive profile was finally deleted for violating Twitter rules. In 2020, Ms Rowling tweeted that she objected to the phrase people who menstruate because it avoided the word women. #IStandWith JKRowling was trending on Twitter last night. Ms Rowlings representatives declined to comment. Up to 100 insurers are being probed by the City watchdog over concerns they are hitting customers with hefty price hikes when they renew home or car cover policies, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. New rules introduced in January by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) were supposed to ban insurers from charging existing customers more than new ones. But this newspaper has heard from hundreds of readers who say they have been hit by big price rises on renewal and some found they could get a cheaper rate if they applied to their insurer as a new customer. Hundreds of Mail on Sunday readers say they had big price rises on renewal of their insurance The MoS understands the FCA has now asked between 60 and 100 companies comprising both brokers and insurers to prove they are not breaking the rules. They have been targeted by the regulator after complaints were made by MPs on behalf of constituents, and by consumer groups and the MoS. This follows a six-month investigation by this newspaper into whether the rules, designed to ensure all customers are treated fairly, are being adhered to. All insurers vigorously deny they are breaking the rules. The FCA said: 'We are in the process of testing data from insurers of various sizes to make sure they are meeting their obligations to get rid of the discrimination against loyal customers' When the FCA launched its crackdown, it promised to save long-standing insurance customers 4.2 billion over the next ten years by eradicating the 'loyalty premium' or 'price walking' as it is also called. This is the practice of offering a cheap introductory rate and then hiking the price each year to claw in more profit from loyal customers. The FCA said: 'We are in the process of testing data from insurers of various sizes to make sure they are meeting their obligations to get rid of the discrimination against loyal customers. 'We are thankful for the market intelligence provided to us by various parties, including The Mail on Sunday, along with many customers, which has greatly assisted us.' Civil servants are fighting against Brexit reforms because they still want to be in the EU, the Attorney General has claimed. Suella Braverman said that some mandarins cannot imagine 'life outside the EU', with her 'biggest battles' among officials instead of politicians. The MP said that she did not expect this challenge, after campaigning for Brexit 2016. Suella Braverman said that some mandarins cannot imagine 'life outside the EU' She told The Sunday Telegraph that Brexit provides a 'great opportunity to peel back ... onerous rules and bureaucracy to actually help the consumer.' The 42-year-old said that the prime minister highlighted post-Brexit deregulation as a goal for the Government, with the Conservatives promising a 'red tape challenge' to create 'sensible and proportionate' regulations. She added that British rules should 'work for British companies'. Some European Union law kept by Government includes essential parts of the country's approach to VAT which remain based on its definition of 'business' and the EU view of 'abuse'. The MP said that she did not expect the challenge from civil servants, after campaigning for Brexit 2016. File image Ms Braverman also criticised companies, such as Halifax, for allowing a 'collective frenzy' to develop over gender, and 'take hold of common sense'. She told the newspaper that as both an MP and mother, she is concerned about 'gender dysphoria' in schools. She rejected calls from some pro-EU rebels for a renewed 'meaningful vote' in the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, suggesting a possible clash over constitutions with the Scottish Government. A change being assembled by Nicola Sturgeon could make it easier for people in Scotland to change their legal sex. Home Secretary Priti Patel praised the National Crime Agency last night after more than a dozen suspected people smugglers were arrested over the deaths of 27 migrants in the Channel. The victims drowned in November when their boat sank off the coast of Calais as they attempted to cross to Britain. The tragedy caused widespread outrage and sparked a diplomatic row between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron. It was believed to be the deadliest incident in the Channel since records began to be collected almost a decade ago. Patel has hailed the NCA for the bust of the suspected people smugglers Victims on the boat included a child aged seven, 17 men aged under 26, seven women between the ages of 22 and 46 as well as a 16-year-old. Sixteen of the dead were Kurds from Iraq while four were Afghan men. There were also three Ethiopians, a Somali woman, an Iranian and an Egyptian man. Now French immigration investigators, assisted by NCA officers in the UK and abroad, have arrested 15 people across France last week in connection with the deaths. Among those detained were nationals from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq and France. It follows another five arrests shortly after the incident. Those arrested are suspected of being part of a network of middlemen who organised places on the boat for a number of those who died. They will all now be subject to French judicial proceedings. Ms Patel said: My thoughts continue to be with the families of all of those who tragically lost their lives in this horrific incident. Victims on the boat included a child aged seven, 17 men aged under 26, seven women between the ages of 22 and 46 as well as a 16-year-old The NCA and other agencies across the UK and France will continue their tireless work to deliver justice for the victims and their families by identifying those responsible and ensuring they feel the full force of the law. By working together and through the tough new domestic measures we have just brought into law we will crack down on the evil people smugglers in our efforts to prevent any more loss of life. Andrea Wilson, NCA deputy director of organised immigration crime, said: The events of last November were a tragedy, but in that time our resolve to bring those responsible for these deaths to justice has not diminished. We have worked closely with our French partners to identify those who we suspect were involved. It is also assisted by Border Force and Maritime and Coast Guard Agency in the UK. Many of those involved in organising these dangerous crossings operate outside the UK, so it is vital we work closely with law enforcement partners in France and beyond to target them. Women's state pensions will not equal mens until 2040, a Government Minister has admitted. Work and Pensions Minister Baroness Stedman-Scott told the House of Lords the gender gap in state pensions was closing. But she added that, despite efforts to improve things, women still ended up with lower pensions by retirement age because they took periods out of the workplace or worked fewer hours. The pension is based on the number of years in which workers pay National Insurance. The shortfall has been described as unacceptable by campaigners, who warn that the gender pensions gap is even higher than the gender wage gap. Women are more likely to spend time out of the workforce looking after children or caring for elderly parents. Work and Pensions Minister Baroness Stedman-Scott (pictured) told the House of Lords the gender gap in state pensions was closing Those aged 65 to 69 in February 2016 received on average just 82 per cent of the state pension handed to men. A revised pension has since been introduced that includes a credit-based system to account for time off work on maternity leave, those receiving child benefits or a carers allowance so that people could top up the state pension in years when they were unable to work. But the Institute for Fiscal Studies think-tank said women in the 65-to-69 age band still received 8 per cent less than their male counterparts in 2020. Jan Shortt, general secretary of the National Pensioners Convention (NPC), said women should not have to wait another 18 years for the gap to close. She said waiting until it evens itself out left women out of pocket, adding: The gender pension gap is more than twice the gender pay gap, which in the 21st century in the sixth-richest country in the industrial world is unacceptable. We see no firm resolve or strategy from the Government that gives us reason to believe there is a political will to deal with it. The shortfall has been described as unacceptable by campaigners, who warn that the gender pensions gap is even higher than the gender wage gap The NPC is calling for the state pension to be overhauled so that all pensioners receive 70 per cent of the national living wage. Labour peer and accountancy professor Lord Sikka said women were treated as second-class citizens, adding: Theres misery for millions. He claimed the Government could afford to increase womens payments because there was a 42.5 billion surplus in the National Insurance fund account from which the state pension is paid. Lord Sikka said: The Government can easily pay it. All they are doing is inflicting misery on women. The Department for Work and Pensions said: The new state pension was introduced in 2016. Outcomes are expected to equalise for men and women by the early 2040s over a decade earlier than they would have under the old system. Angela Madden, of Women Against State Pension Inequality, said: Governments have mishandled reform of pensions to the particular disadvantage of women born in the 1950s. This has put many women in an impossible financial position. The stories we hear from women are heart-rending. Employers should move away from advertising 'graduate only' jobs in a bid to diversify the workforce, the Education Secretary will say this week. Nadhim Zahawi is set to urge bosses to look at bringing on more apprentices or people with T levels new technical-based qualifications rather than just those with degrees amid his push for a more skills-based economy. Unless a role requires a specific degree, Mr Zahawi wants companies to look outside the usual talent pool to help fill the UK's 1.3 million job vacancies. 'All too often I hear employers' frustrations with a limited pool of graduates, but we are still seeing job ads that state "graduate" in the essential criteria,' said Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi (pictured) Ahead of a speech at the Royal Institute of Arts, Commerce and Manufacturing, Mr Zahawi has written an open letter to employers calling time on graduate-only job adverts. He said: 'All too often I hear employers' frustrations with a limited pool of graduates, but we are still seeing job ads that state "graduate" in the essential criteria. 'So, I'm urging employers to think differently about their recruitment. Think about whether they really need someone with a degree. 'The chances are there will be someone with other relevant skills, experiences, or qualifications that they are looking for. Unless a role requires a specific degree, Mr Zahawi wants companies to look outside the usual talent pool to help fill the UK's 1.3 million job vacancies 'Our economic strength will only turn on our ability to nurture and utilise the full range of talent available to us. So too will our efforts to level up opportunity, because upskilling people gives them chances to create a better life and regenerate their regions.' Mr Zahawi has branded his Skills Bill as the 'backbone' of his plans to reform the route from learning to earning and has committed to increasing apprenticeship funding to 2.7 billion by 2024-25. He continues to push for T levels, launched in 2020, to be as trusted as A levels. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), a major umbrella labor group, on Saturday staged large-scale rallies of nearly 50,000 members in the country's capital despite scorching heat. Various labor unions under the KCTU, including those representing construction and service business workers, started occupying the streets in central Seoul around noon and gathered for the KTCU's main rally around 3:25 p.m., demanding the new government of President Yoon Suk-yeol to improve workers' rights and ensure better working conditions. They were the first large-scale rallies staged by the KCTU since the Yoon government was launched in May. Although the apparent temperature reached as high as 33.5 C around 3 p.m. in Seoul, the protestors, wearing wide-brimmed hats while placing wet towels around their neck, held placards and chanted slogans, like "workers are dying." From downtown Seoul, the unionized workers started marching toward Samgakji Station near the presidential office in Yongsan ward around 4:30 p.m. They disbanded after the KCTU called an end to its rallies at 5:45 p.m. The rallies caused huge traffic congestion in central Seoul, as cars were forced to use bus-only lanes. Police mobilized more than 10,000 personnel in the central Seoul area to respond to the rallies, but no major clashes between the unionists and police have been reported. Police earlier warned any illegal rally or demonstration that violates the conditions permitted by the court would be strictly handled. (Yonhap) To be or not to be forewarned is the question troubling dons teaching the classics of English literature to todays snowflake students. The Open University, which has the greatest number of students of all UK institutions, has now issued trigger warnings for all but one of the texts studied in its English Literature from Shakespeare to Austen module. Undergraduates are informed that reading William Shakespeares Hamlet, Gullivers Travels by Jonathan Swift, and Jane Austens Persuasion may trigger feelings of distress and trauma. Critics branded the warnings the height of stupidity and claimed that students could be deterred from discovering some of the worlds literary treasures. Only Jane Austens Pride And Prejudice avoids the Open Universitys trigger-warning list, obtained by The Mail on Sunday after a Freedom of Information request. Works such as Hamlet by Shakespeare will come with trigger warnings for students at the Open University Students of the Open University's English Literature from Shakespeare to Austen module will receive warnings of 'trauma' and 'distress' with almost every text they study It states: Apart from Austens Pride And Prejudice, the other set texts contain some material (including depictions of violence, assault or self-harm) that some students might find distressing. Other works carrying warnings include the Shakespeare plays Julius Caesar and As You Like It, the Arabian Nights collection of stories and plays by French writer Moliere. A briefing note for tutors states: It is impossible to know how or why some students react negatively to potentially distressing content, as material that might be innocuous to some students might trigger traumatic memories in others, and vice versa. Only Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice will not come with a trigger warning Fearful course students are also directed to a university-produced podcast dealing with distressing content, which features an imaginary scholar quizzing a senior tutor about potentially problematic works of literature. The university has three categories of warnings covering more than 30 topics likely to provoke unwelcome emotions, memories and mental health issues. These include suicide, self-harm, child abuse, racism, colonialism, divorce and common phobias such as needles, blood and spiders. Established in 1969 to help those without formal qualifications gain degrees, the Open University may be responding to its growing appeal among younger students, with more than one in three undergraduates now aged under 25. But critics condemned the move. Frank Furedi, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Kent, said: Aside from the stupidity of using trigger warnings, they directly contradict the academic journey involved in reading literature. Reading literature should be a voyage of discovery where a student responds to its content in a personal way. Trigger warnings short-circuit this voyage of intellectual discovery. It prompts students how to react rather than allow students to work out their own response. An Open University spokesman said: We want our students to enjoy studying these classic novels, which is why we teach them. Most students wont have any concerns. A small number, however, may have suffered from trauma in the past and may benefit from a prior warning. With those students in mind, we think it is sensible to flag some course content and work with them so they, too, can have the opportunity to access these classic texts. Biographer and literary critic Andrew Lycett suggested the warnings could backfire on the university. I can think of few things more likely to encourage undergraduates to read books than a trigger warning, he said. Labour moderniser Wes Streeting, a favourite to succeed Sir Keir Starmer, is set to be a surprise defender of Jeremy Corbyn in a coming libel trial. The Mail on Sunday can reveal that Corbyn critic Mr Streeting will give evidence for the former leaders legal team against libel claims from a Jewish political blogger. Richard Millett claims Mr Corbyn defamed him by accusing him of being disruptive at a 2013 meeting featuring a Palestinian speaker. Mr Streeting confirmed last night that he had been asked by Mr Corbyns defence team to give evidence for trial this October at the High Court. Mr Streeting confirmed last night that he had been asked by Mr Corbyns defence team to give evidence for trial this October at the High Court A spokesman for Mr Streeting said last night: Wes was asked by Jeremy Corbyns legal team to provide a factual account of an event that took place on 24th October 2017, which he did. As there is an ongoing court case, it would be inappropriate to comment further. It is understood the Shadow Health Secretary has given evidence on a separate Labour Friends of Palestine meeting in 2017 that he attended. Labour MPs joked last night that Mr Streetings involvement in the case would do the Blairite, arch-Right-winger no harm in reaching out to Left-wing support for a future leadership contest. Mr Millett declined to comment last night. Mr Corbyn could not be reached for comment. Separately last week, former Labour Minister Chris Bryant was overheard on the Commons Terrace saying he would stand for party deputy leader if Angela Rayner was fined over the Beergate event by Durham Police and forced to resign. Mr Bryant responded last night by saying he did not expect either Ms Rayner or Sir Keir to be fined and said he fully supported both of them. Richard Millett claims Mr Corbyn defamed him by accusing him of being disruptive at a 2013 meeting featuring a Palestinian speaker The Corbyn libel row began four years ago when MailOnline revealed footage of Mr Corbyn in 2013 saying that British Zionists had no sense of English irony despite having lived in Britain all of their lives. On the Andrew Marr Show the following week, the then Labour leader said he was referring to an event at which two British Zionists were disruptive. Although he was not named, Mr Millett is suing on the basis that coverage of the 2013 speech identified him as one of the people Mr Corbyn was referring to. The case is going ahead at the High Court this Autumn after Mr Corbyn last year lost an appeal over the case. Court of Appeal judges agreed that viewers would have known the ex-Labour leader was referring to blogger Richard Millett when he complained on TV about people being abusive at a meeting. Tens of thousands of patients who had heart valve operations as far back as 2005 should be alerted they are at risk of a potentially deadly blood-eating bug, it was warned last night. Five years ago, The Mail on Sunday revealed how the NHS was about to contact 47,000 patients who had heart valve operations between 2013 and 2016, after concerns about contaminated operating theatre equipment emerged. Now survivors of Mycobacterium chimaera infection, victims' families and their lawyers are calling for the alert to be extended to cover those operated on years earlier. It follows disturbing new evidence that the germ can lay dormant in the body for much longer than previously thought up to 13 years and possibly more. Spotted early enough after M.chimaera becomes 'invasive', it can be successfully treated with antibiotics. Tens of thousands of patients who had heart valve operations as far back as 2005 should be alerted they are at risk of a potentially deadly blood-eating bug But if left to fester the infection can spread, causing deep-tissue abscesses and triggering deadly complications. Up to 250,000 people have had heart surgery in Britain in which a potentially contaminated type of 'heater-cooler unit' (HCU) was used. HCUs are needed to regulate the temperature of blood as it is passed outside the body to be pumped with an artificial heart, while the organ is temporarily stopped. But one common type of HCU, the Sorin 3T made by firm LivaNova, is thought to have been prone to M.chimaera colonisation if not thoroughly sterilised. Last night, solicitor Paul Balen of Freeths Solicitors, who has acted for many victims, said: 'All patients who have undergone open heart surgery using LivaNova HCUs since 2005 should be warned of this danger.' Senior Coroner Alison Hewitt (pictured)wrote a report warning that 'the true incidence of [invasive M.chimaera] infection is very likely to be higher' than 1 in 5,000 In January, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said 'the earliest implicated surgery was performed in 2006'. It states there have now been 33 deaths from 49 confirmed cases, up from 15 deaths from 26 confirmed cases when this paper first highlighted the scandal. But there are concerns these numbers seriously underestimate the true scale of the problem. Last year, City of London Senior Coroner Alison Hewitt wrote a report warning that 'the true incidence of [invasive M.chimaera] infection is very likely to be higher' than the official estimate of one from every 5,000 surgeries. Public Health England dismissed her concerns and batted away her request for in-depth research. Yet the agency, since replaced by UKHSA, failed to say how it knew no cases were missed. An NHS England spokeswoman said it would review coronial findings and 'take any further action required'. LivaNova said: 'The question of what caused an infection that appears long after surgery can be a complicated one, and connection to an aspect of the surgical environment can be uncertain.' A collection of letters the Prince of Wales wrote to the former head of his American foundation has thrown fresh light on his controversial fundraising activities. The cache shows how closely involved Charles was in trying to secure contributions from wealthy donors, in contrast to official assertions from Clarence House that he kept himself at arms length from such decisions. Written in his characteristically clear but spidery handwriting, the correspondence with Robert Higdon, when he was managing director of the Prince of Wales Foundation USA, has been put up for sale by a leading collector of Royal memorabilia. The 19 letters show he took a close interest in the fundraising, even taking time on Christmas Day and New Years Eve to write about tactics. The cache shows how closely involved Charles was in trying to secure contributions from wealthy donors In one, he complains about throwing a Clarence House dinner for potential donors before they had pledged any money, saying: I fear I was not amused as, of course, it was a total waste of my time! Previously Charless courtiers have issued statements insisting his charities operate independently of the Prince himself in relation to all decisions around fundraising and that it is the trustees who are responsible for all operational and governance duties. Last week, it was revealed that the Prince had received 2.58 million in cash from a Qatari sheik, including one payment of 1 million in a suitcase delivered to him personally at Clarence House in 2015 and another cash donation made in bags from upmarket grocer Fortnum & Mason. All the money was handed to Coutts bank and deposited in the accounts for his charitable organisation, the Prince of Wales Fund, and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing. The Princes office now say a cash payment would not happen again. Mr Higdon ran the Washington-based Prince of Wales Foundation from 1997 to 2011. He raised millions for the charity but his high salary a reported 500,000 a year attracted criticism. Further controversy came over his introduction of American fundraising methods into what had previously been a rather staid and controlled Royal world. The 19 letters offered for sale at $3,500 (3,000) each, were written between 1997 and 2008. In one, dated December 31, 2008, the Prince bemoans the fact that wealthy philanthropist Lee Annenberg, the widow of Walter Annenberg, a former US ambassador to Britain, had donated only $100,000 (82,000) towards a visitors centre at the Castle of Mey, the late Queen Mothers Scottish estate. He wrote: As you can imagine... trustees are very sad a bit more help wasnt possible, particularly in view of Walters great affection for my grandmother... I hate being a bore about this but I must just make one final plea to see if we could get a bit nearer to the $1.4 million that [was] hoped for? Forgive my pestering, especially at New Year, but I feel I owe it to my darling grandmother to do as fine a job as possible with this building. In another letter, dated June 21, 1997, and written on notepaper from his private Gloucestershire residence Highgrove House, he praises Mr Higdon for organising a dinner where all the charitable donations were made in advance. Charles wrote: I cant tell you what a difference it made to my morale to know, in advance, that the money had already been raised! He also wrote about a conversation he had after dinner with two guests who mentioned what vast amounts of personal wealth are waiting to be tapped... In the same letter the Prince reveals one guest muttered something about having no children to leave all his money to & how interested he was in my foundation. And he talks about raising money by selling prints of his watercolours. Written in his characteristically clear but spidery handwriting, the correspondence with Robert Higdon, when he was managing director of the Prince of Wales Foundation USA, has been put up for sale by a leading collector of Royal memorabilia The letters include a memorandum dated August 14, 2004, in which the Prince expresses his frustration at having to attend dinners without having secured charitable donations up front. I only wish they would listen to you as regards not holding dinners unless people have committed to help in advance, he told Mr Higdon. When I hear that this was the case recently for the dinner I had to give at Clarence House, I fear I was not amused as, of course, it was a total waste of my time! The Los Angeles-based collector who put the letters on sale, Alicia Carroll, purchased the letters from the estate of Mr Higdon shortly after his death in 2018 aged just 58. They are now published in full on her Everything Royal website and have been sent to her 92,000 email subscribers. Mr Higdon, who was hired to boost Prince Charless profile with American benefactors, had previously worked with the US branch of Margaret Thatchers foundation. He also worked with Charless former valet Michael Fawcett who is now at the centre of a police probe into revelations in The Mail on Sunday that he offered to help a Saudi tycoon obtain both British citizenship and a knighthood. A Clarence House spokesman said: The Prince naturally encourages his charities to deliver their objectives, transforming the lives of millions of people. But decisions on whether to accept donations are a matter for the charity concerned and not the Prince himself. Australians have been warned warned China is 'seeking to shape the world in a way we've not seen before' and we must have the courage to stand our ground. Defence Minister Richard Marles, acting prime minister while Anthony Albanese is in Europe for a week, ramped up Australia's rhetoric on Sunday. He said the communist dictatorship, and in particular its policies on the South China Sea, were a direct threat not only to the 'global rules based order' but to Australia directly. Acting PM Richard Marles warned China was seeking to 'shape the world in a way we've not seen before' (pictured: China's frigate Yuncheng and missile destroyer Hefei) In additon to Beijing's ambitions of 'unification with Taiwan' which borders the sea to the east, about a third of the world's shipping passes through the region that China is seeking to control. Mr Marles said the route was vital for Australia as it provided passage between two of the country's top five trading partners - Japan and South Korea. 'I think China is, seeking to shape the world around it in a way that we've not seen before and that does present challenges for us,' he told Sky News. 'It's important that in our relationship with China, we have the courage to articulate our national interests when that differs from Chinese action and we've been doing that and will continue to do that. 'It's important that we meet those challenges. We can't take any backward steps in relation to this.' Defence Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles (pictured) said a meeting with his Chinese counterpart last month was productive but there is a long way to go Chinese President Xi Jinping (pictured) has ambitions to 'unify' China and Taiwan which border the South China Sea to the east Mr Marles just last month met with his Chinese defence counterpart General Wei Fenghe in Singapore, breaking a three-year standoff between defence officials from both countries. The pair talked for an hour and had 'full and frank' discussions, which Mr Marles called 'very significant' and a 'critical first step.' He on Sunday expanded on the meeting saying both parties were interested in repairing the strained diplomatic relationship. 'It was a meeting that was much longer than I expected and to be honest, much more interactive than I expected and that's a good thing to be able to say,' he said. He said the pair discussed an incident in May in which an Australian RAAF P-8A Poseidon aircraft carrying out maritime surveillance was intercepted by a Chinese J-16 fighter aircraft. A P-8 Poseidon was intercepted by a Chinese jet in May (pictured: a P-8 is seen with two Pilatus PC9 planes over Adelaide in 2019) A Chinese J-31 stealth fighter aircraft (pictured). A Royal Australian Air Force aircraft was intercepted by a Chinese J-16 fighter last month The jet cut across the Australian plane's flight path and released flares and a bundle of chaff containing pieces of aluminium, in front of plane. 'We talked about the incident which occurred to our aircraft on the 26th of May, we talked about human rights, we talked about strategic contest in the Pacific,' Mr Marles said. When asked if he could gauge if China might scale back its aggression towards Taiwan, Mr Marles said they 'didn't get to that'. 'I think what we were really doing was starting with baby steps here and trying to get the bilateral Australian-Chinese bilateral relationship back to a better place,' he said. Mr Albanese visited Madrid for the NATO Leaders' Summit, where China was a major issue, and went to Paris at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron. NATO's strategic concept, published last week, said China's ambitions challenged the free world's interests, security and values and condemned Beijing's 'harmful trade practices'. Earlier in the weekend, Mr Albanese arrived at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Friday, to mend ties with President Macron after Australia scrapped a $90 billion submarine contract last year. French President Emmanuel Macron, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Jodie Haydon and French First Lady Brigitte Macron pose for a picture prior to their meeting at the Elysee Presidential Palace (pictured) Mr Macron said he had no hard feelings toward ANthony Albanese over the scrapping of a $90billion submarine contract by the previous government Mr Macron was asked if Mr Albanese should apologise over the handling of the deal, but the French president indicated the relationship had mended. 'He (Mr Albanese) is not responsible for what happened.' he said. The previous coalition government's decision to sink the contract with Naval Group in favour of acquiring nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS partnership with the UK and US damaged the relationship. France temporarily recalled its ambassador from Canberra, and Mr Macron told Australian reporters that former prime minister Scott Morrison lied to him. Mr Albanese was fresh off a visit to Madrid where he met with the leaders of Italy, Germany, and the European Commission, as well as New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea - who alongside Australia form a group known as the Asia-Pacific Four. Mr Albanese visited Paris after flying out from Madrid for the NATO leaders' meeting He also had a one-on-one meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, gifting him a Rabbitohs rugby league jersey at their first meeting as leaders and pledging to work together on security in the Indo-Pacific region and climate change. China was branded a threat to the values of the NATO alliance at the meeting in Madrid - of which Australia is not a member but was invited as a strategic partner. The 30-member security organisation approved a new blueprint for the next decade on Wednesday, condemning China for the first time in its more than 70-year history. 'The PRC's (People's Republic of China) malicious hybrid and cyber operations and its confrontational rhetoric and disinformation target allies and harm alliance security,' NATO said in its first planning document in a decade. 'China's stated ambitions and coercive policies 'challenge our interests, security and values. China's ambitions to seize Taiwan led then defence minister Peter Dutton to emphasise last November that Australia would join a US mission to defend the democratic island's autonomy Leaders of the G7 and their allies pose for the cameras at a summit in Bavaria, Germany following the NATO meeting in Madrid (pictured) 'The PRC employs a broad range of political, economic and military tools to increase its global footprint and project power, while remaining opaque about its strategy, intentions and military build-up.' NATO also accused China of using its economic leverage to 'create strategic dependencies and enhance its influence'. Mr Albanese told NATO leaders that China aimed to become the 'most powerful nation in the world', adding a strengthening of relations between Beijing and Moscow posed a risk to all democratic nations. He added Australia was subjected to 'economic coercion' by China and urged democratic leaders to pursue trade diversification. Beijing systematically banned Australian exports of wine, barley, coal, copper, and seafood among others after Australia refused to remain silent on issues ranging from the source of Covid-19, to human rights issues and China's expansion in the Pacific. Younger office workers are suffering burnout because theyre baffled by old technology such as fax machines and photocopiers, a new report has discovered. In a reversal of traditional roles, employees aged 18 to 24 known as Generation Z are having to turn to colleagues of their parents age for technical help. Researchers found many offices still use outdated computers, phone systems and even fax machines that leave 49 per cent of Generation Z staff confused and needing assistance from baby boomer colleagues, aged over 55. So-called legacy systems are one of the main reasons that 78 per cent of younger workers suffer imposter syndrome, according to the report. By comparison, just 32 per cent of baby boomers suffer from the condition, which leaves workers doubting whether they are competent enough to do their jobs. Old technology like fax machines are causing Gen Z office workers to suffer from burnout, as the machinery confuses them and contributes to their imposter syndrome A spokesperson for the study said Gen Z employees are particularly sensitive to the impact of legacy systems and highly value modern technology More than eight in ten Generation Z workers said they also struggled with burnout, partly because of frustrations with old technology slowing down their work. Yet only 47 per cent of baby boomers said burnout was an issue, as they are more comfortable at switching between old and new tech. The study was conducted by Asana, which provides work management technology. Spokesman Simon OKane said: Gen Z is particularly sensitive to the impact of legacy systems and highly values modern technology. They push back against established norms, hoping companies will update legacy systems in favour of modern technology and efficient processes. It is clear that organisations either dont have clear processes that Gen Z connects with or have legacy processes that they find cumbersome and demotivating. But generations who didnt grow up with technology in the same way are less likely to be affected. The findings are based on a survey of 10,624 office workers in Australia, France, Germany, Japan, Singapore and the UK. Researchers also found that 65 per cent of Gen Z workers become exasperated by laboriously searching for information on outdated systems that they feel should be available at their fingertips. Just 53 per cent of baby boomers suffered the same frustrations and are comfortable dealing with such problems because it is what they were used to in the old days. The survey also found that technology is so embedded in the lives of Gen Z workers that 37 per cent struggle to log off after office hours and keep working on phones and tablets. Only ten per cent of baby boomers have the same problem. New York prosecutors have said the killing of a young mother by her ex-boyfriend was a 'premeditated execution'. Azsia Johnson, a mother of two, was allegedly shot in the head by Isaac Argro on Manhattan's Upper East Side on Wednesday night. Johnson was pushing the stroller of their baby infant girl at the time before she was shot at point-blank range. Argo was arrested on Friday and arraigned on Saturday on charges of second-degree murder and second-degree weapons possession. He is now being held without bail. The court heard how Argro was dressed in black and despite warm temperatures was wearing a ski mask while pacing back and forth as he lie in wait for Johnson, Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Brittany DeCesare told Judge Eric Schumacher. Isaac Argro is arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court after he was arrested for shooting Azsia Johnson, the Mother of his child, in the head killing her 'This case can only be described as a premeditated execution. The defendant persuaded the victim to meet after work and under the guise that he wanted to give the deceased items for their 3-month-old daughter,' DeCesare said. 'The defendant shot the mother of his child at point-blank range in the head, keeping his crying 3-month-old [daughter] in the stroller as he ran away,' the prosecutor said. 'With respect to bail your honor, the people are requesting that the defendant be remanded. This case can only be described as a premeditated execution,' DeCesare told the judge. Argro will be back in court next week on July 7. He faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted. Johnson's mother, Lisa DeSort, was in Manhattan Criminal Court along with her other two daughters in order that she should come face to face with the alleged killer as he was arraigned, three days after her daughter was gunned down. She began sobbing uncontrollably as the details of her daughter's killing were read aloud. Isaac Argro, 22, was arrested on Friday and charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon, after his ex-girlfriend was shot and killed 'I welcomed you into our life. I treated you like a son. And this is what you did to our family,' she said to the New York Daily News when asked if she had a message for him. 'I don't want him to get out, and I'm just focused on what needs to be done,' DeSort said as she waited for Argro's arraignment. 'I'm sure the adrenaline will wear out, and I'll be able to grieve. But right now, I'm focused.' DeSort revealed to the News that she had not yet returned to her own home since the murder but felt an urge to attend the court hearing. 'I want to see him in court. I've been here because I had to be here. Nobody told me to come. I just knew I had to be here.' 'I thought that I could be stronger than what I was but I did have a little moment of a breakdown because it's the first time I actually heard what really happened in chronological order,' DeSort told the New York Post after court. 'To be honest, I wanted to jump up and scream out, "Coward! You're not a man, you're a monster." That's what I wanted to scream out,' she said. 'I honestly allowed you into my home. I dont allow people into my home. I tried to treat you like a son. I wanted you to be a part of your daughters life. But you couldnt be civil. Thats all we wanted. Thats all my daughter wanted,' she said. 'The babys perfectly fine and in great hands,' DeSort said. A GoFundMe set up to help raise money for both of Johnson's children has raised $14,000. DeSort was also joined at the courthouse along with two of Johnson's younger sisters, devastated at their sibling's death. Lisa DeSort, mother of Azsia Johnson, 20, who was murdered on Wednesday is pictured at a vigil for her daughter on Friday night 'I want to see him in court. I've been here because I had to be here. Nobody told me to come. I just knew I had to be here,' DeSort said of her wanting to be in court at Saturday's arraignment 'My sister shouldn't have given him another chance,' said Dakota Johnson. 'She sought help for domestic abuse but they just didn't care and they couldn't help her,' said another sister, Jade Johnson. Authorities say Johnson was heading to meet up with Agro last Wednesday evening after he had supposedly promised to bring clothes for the child, but he never showed up. The pair were also going to discuss their relationship before Johnson was killed. Just as she left the Samuel Seabury Playground around 8:30pm police said the suspect appeared wearing a hoodie and shot her in the head at point-blank range. Argro was arrested on Friday in Brooklyn on charges of murder and criminal possession of a weapon. Azsia Johnson, 20, was fatally shot in the head while pushing her baby in a stroller on the Upper East Side on Wednesday. Isaac Argro, 22, has been charged with her murder Johnson is pictures with another of her children who is being looked after by a family member Johnson's family said Argro was a stalker and had threatened Johnson with phone calls and text messages in the past. Johnson, meanwhile, had been living in a shelter close to where she was murdered. Argro was arrested and charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon on Friday evening having been apprehended in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn. He is said to be refusing to answer investigators' questions, and has reportedly demanded that he be allowed to speak with a lawyer. On Thursday night, at a vigil, Johnson's mother said she had repeatedly called the police to report domestic violence, and her daughter moved into a shelter for abused women in East Harlem, near where she was killed. She pointed the finger immediately at Argro. Isaac Argro, 22, is seen leaving the 19th Precinct, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, on Friday night Argro's ex-girlfriend Azsia Johnson, a 20-year-old mother of two, was shot in the head at 8:30pm on Wednesday. He is charged with her murder Argro has been charged with murder and possession of an unlawful weapon Isaac Argro, 22, has been charged with the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Azsia Johnson, who was shot in the head at point blank range on Wednesday night Johnson's three-year-old child, whose father is another man from a previous relationship, was not with her at the time. Investigators recovered surveillance camera video and other footage from in and around the crime scene - but NYPD officials told CBS News that the cameras facing the spot 'were not immediately accessible'. The sources told CBS they had already recovered video showing the gunman pacing in front of a residence right before the shooting. A single shot was fired at her head before the gunman ran off, eastbound along East 95th Street. One shell casing was recovered at the scene. New York City's 19th police precinct, where the shooting occurred, is generally among the safest in the city. Last year, the precinct recorded just two murders, and until Wednesday had not seen a murder in 2022. A GoFundMe was created by Johnson's cousin Sharon Bell, who explains that the family is in shock over the 20-year-old's death, adding that she is a mother to a 3-year-old and 3-month-old The Manhattan neighborhood is the most affluent in New York, with average house prices at an eye-watering $1.5million and private school fees exceeding $58,000 per year The precinct is one of the most densely populated residential areas in Manhattan, and includes the mayor's residence, Gracie Mansion. It also encompasses a stretch of Madison Avenue with some of the city's most upscale shopping options. However, NYPD data shows that crime is on the rise in the 19th Precinct, as it is across the city. The arrest of the child's father came hours after distraught family and friends of Johnson mourned her loss at a vigil held on Thursday night, where Johnson's mother accused authorities of ignoring her repeated complaints of domestic violence. The vigil was held at the playground near where Johnson was shot in the head. A GoFundMe for the family has raised $8,000 as of Friday night. Johnson's mother Desort, was visibly emotional as she said that her death could have been prevented. 'We called every day to the domestic violence [unit]. You know what they told me, it's not harassment if he makes a threat,' the weeping mother said. 'Now, my daughter is dead. She's dead! A 20-year-old female with a credit score of 800.' Desort told CBS that her message to the baby's father was: 'I treated you like a son. I welcomed you into my home. I spoke to you and calmed you down when you were upset. I fed you. 'Your baby girl does not, and no longer, will have a father or mother.' At the vigil, Desort was seen in quiet conversation with Mayor Eric Adams, who later stood beside her and offered condolences in brief remarks to the crowd. Johnson was born in Brownsville, Brooklyn - the same tough neighborhood where Adams was born - and lived in Jamaica, Queens. The vigil concluded with a balloon release, as those gathered were heard sobbing as they said, 'we love you, Azsia.' Azsia Johnson's mother Lisa Desort (left), who has said she believes an abusive ex-boyfriend is the killer, was visibly emotional at a vigil on Thursday as she said that her daughter's death could have been prevented Mayor Eric Adams speaks to Lisa Desort, mother of Azsia Johnson, 20, who was murdered on Wednesday as she walked with her infant child on the Upper East Side The victims mother Lisa Desort is consoled at a vigil where the community gathered a day after the murder A candlelight vigil for Azsia Johnson, 20, was held on Thursday night Mayor Eric Adams speaks to the press during the candlelight vigil Earlier, Desort alleged her daughter was assaulted by her ex-boyfriend about six months ago, despite being six months pregnant with his child. She accused the man of 'stalking' and 'harassing' her girl after the incident and said they had pleaded with cops to intervene. But Desort claimed he was never arrested and slammed officers for 'failing to protect her' daughter. Johnson had reportedly texted her family to tell them she was planning to meet her ex-boyfriend before she was murdered on the sidewalk. The little girl was unharmed. Desort told the New York Post through tears on Thursday afternoon: 'We called the precinct numerous times to tell the [domestic violence] unit that he was stalking and harassing her. 'Even [though] they knew what apartment he lived in, they failed to apprehend and arrest him,' the mom continued. 'The city failed to protect my daughter.' She added to Fox News: 'All that anyone needs to know in this city is we called numerous times for her protection. No one protected my daughter, and now she's dead.' Lisa Desort, (center) mother of murder victim Azsia Johnson, arrives at the candlelight vigil on Thursday Lisa Desort speaks with Mayor Adams at an emotional vigil mourning her daughter, who was murdered on Wednesday Johnson's mother Lisa Desort, who has said she believes an abusive ex-boyfriend is the killer, was visibly emotional as she said that her daughter's death could have been prevented The vigil concluded with a balloon release, as those gathered were heard sobbing as they said, 'we love you, Azsia' Desort told PIX11 that her daughter had taken her baby daughter to the park when the shooting happened. She had been using a tracking app to keep tabs on Johnson and became concerned when it showed she was in the hospital. Desort said she tried to call, but there was no answer. Police then showed up at her door with the news. 'I fell to the ground,' she said. Sources told the New York Daily News the young mother had texted relatives saying she was planning to meet up with her child's father the night she was killed, so they could talk things out. She had reportedly been assaulted by him while pregnant and wasn't sure if she wanted him in her life. 'It appears she was targeted, not a stray bullet,' a police source said of the shooting. 'Close contact wound to the head. She had powder burns on her head, to show you how close he was.' It's not clear if recent alleged assaults were reported to the police, but the victim's mother claims they called for help 'numerous' times. 'He threatened me with death, my daughter with death, and my other daughter with death,' Desort said. 'We called the precinct numerous times.' Desort said her daughter had everything going for her. 'She had been working since she was 16, and she took care of people. She was the best mother,' she said through tears. 'My daughter did not deserve this.' Ebony Baulin speaks about Azsia Johnson, calling her a 'good person' and said their children played with each other Julio Cruz, 62, father of two, found his SUV riddled with bullets on the UES a day after the fatal shooting of a young mother Neighbor and friend Ebony Baulin told DailyMail.com: 'That's my neighbor's daughter. She was a good person. She was happy. She had a boyfriend. 'She was just a good girl. Whenever there was a confrontation [between me and her mother], she would be the one to say, 'don't fight.' 'She took care of her kids. She was quiet. She went to work and took care of her kids. I've seen [the ex-boyfriend] a couple of times.' Lauren Brandel, 42, a mother who has lived on the Upper East Side for over 20 years, became emotional when she told DailyMail.com that she takes walks with her young daughter every evening in the neighborhood, in the area where Johnson was shot and killed. 'We come here on a daily basis, literally, every single day with her, this is our walk,' she said. 'We play at that playground.' But she said she can't change her daily routine or avoid the area of a place she's lived in for two decades. 'It can happen anywhere,' she said. The Manhattan neighborhood where Johnson was killed is among the most affluent in New York, with average house prices at $1.5million and private school fees exceeding $58,000 per year. Horrified children at the nearby playground witnessed the shooting, and one girl described hearing a loud 'boom' that she quickly realized was a gunshot. Mayor Eric Adams blamed the shooting on the 'over-proliferation of guns' and said that criminals have 'no fear in using these guns on innocent New Yorkers.' The shooting comes four days after President Joe Biden signed into law a legislation that marks some of the biggest changes to federal gun law in decades. The execution-style killing occurred across the street from the Samuel Seabury Playground (above), which was filled with children who witnessed the horrific shooting A person of interest has been identified and the NYPD is probing a domestic violence link in the execution-style shooting of Johnson, who was pushing her three-month-old baby in stroller in Upper East Side 'Lives will be saved,' Biden said during the signing ceremony in the Roosevelt Room of the White House. 'From Columbine to Sandy Hook to Charleston, Orlando, Las Vegas, Parkland, El Paso, Atlanta, Buffalo, Uvalde, and for the shootings that happen every day in the streets that are mass shootings, we don't even hear about the number of people killed every day in the streets. Their message to us was to just something,' the president said. 'Today we did,' he noted. The new law comes in the wake of a spat of mass shootings including one at a grocery store in Buffalo where 10 black people were killed and one at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, where 17 children and two teachers died. Biden conceded the legislation doesn't have everything he wanted but 'it does include actions I've long called for that are going to save lives.' The president praised the bipartisan work on the issue. 'It's time when this seems impossible get anything done in Washington. We are doing something consequential,' he said. The day of the shooting, New York City and state officials announced lawsuits against 10 sellers of gun parts that the officials said can be assembled into untraceable ghost guns and sold without background checks. State Attorney General Letitia James and New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the weapons sold by online ghost gun retailers have been found at a growing share of New York's crime scenes. NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell (center) and NYC Mayor Eric Adams (right) brief the press on the shooting 'These are dangerous weapons,' Adams, a former police officer, said at a Manhattan news conference with James and other officials. 'We should not think these are just kits used for hobbyists. They are being used by murderers. All of them are illegal.' So far this year, major crimes are up 44 percent in the precinct from the same period one year ago, with robbery up 60 percent and felony assault increasing by 23 percent. The precinct has recorded 1,162 major crimes so far in 2022, compared to 805 incidents in the same period last year. Citywide, major crimes in New York are up 38 percent this year compared to last year, with robbery up 39 percent, burglary rising 34 percent, and felony assault jumping 19 percent. However, murders are down 13 percent from last year, and shooting victims have dropped 9 percent, gains that Adams and police officials attribute to a push to get illegal guns off the streets. Australia has reached the grim milestone of 10,000 Covid-19 related deaths, with more than 7,000 fatalities reported in the last six months. Australia has reported 7,755 deaths over the course of 2022, and ticked over the 10,000 mark on Sunday when Victoria and NSW reported its daily death toll, with the nation now losing 10,008 people. There were 909 Covid-19 related fatalities in 2020 and 1,344 in 2021. It comes as the Victorian Government debates whether to bring back a mask mandate ahead of the November state election due to rising case numbers. Australia's Covid death toll has hit 10,000, with more than 7,000 fatalities reported in the past six months (pictured, ICU staff caring for Covid patients at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney) Australia has reported 7,755 deaths over the course of 2022, taking the country's total to 10,008 (pictured, Sydneysiders) New South Wales and Victoria recorded 24 Covid-19 deaths in the last 24 hours, lifting Australia's total number of fatalities over the 10,000 mark. That number is expected to increase even further as other states and territories disclose their numbers on Sunday. One infectious disease expert claims the worrying statistics will put Australia at 14,000 deaths by the end of 2022. 'We are going to actually end up with about 14,000 deaths this year from COVID if we keep going at this rate,' Griffith University infectious diseases and immunology program director Nigel McMillan said. 'That will make COVID the number two or number three killer in the country of all causes of deaths. 'Is this what success looks like for Australia in terms of its control of this virus? I would suggest no.' Prof McMillan said booster uptake wasn't good enough in states such as Queensland - the lowest in the country - at about 63 per cent. The state with the highest booster uptake is Western Australia, at 83 per cent, with other states and territories falling somewhere in between. 'We just seem to have become comfortable with the idea that we're stopping vaccine mandates for all sorts of places, we have loosened our mask restrictions,' he said. 'So we have very little in the way of the virus at the moment in terms of (stopping) the virus spreading.' NSW and Victoria recorded 24 Covid deaths in the last 24 hours. That number is expected to rise as other states and territories disclose their numbers on Sunday. (pictured, Covid-19 testing clinic) Prof McMillan said booster uptake is not good enough in states such as Queensland - the lowest in the country at about 63 per cent The surge in deaths and cases led to the Victorian government debating whether to bring back masks. But Victoria's energy minister Lily D'Ambrosio quickly ruled out a mask mandate despite describing the Covid situation in the state as a matter of 'life or death'. She insisted the debate over the decision had nothing to do with the November state election. 'We are always guided by our health advice,' Ms D'Ambrosio said. 'The current heath advice in Victoria has with us the right settings for our state. 'Health is too important - we're talking about life or death here. 'Conversations can happen around different states depending on their own circumstances. But here in Victoria, we have the right settings in place. 'We know what it's like to have Covid embedded in our community and everything this government has ever done is follow the science and health advice.' Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said on Saturday Victoria had no plans to reintroduce mask wearing Her comments come after the Victorian Department of Health warned Covid deaths and hospitalisations across the state are set to soar. 'The Department of Health anticipates the prevalence of BA.4/BA.5 in Victoria is likely to result in an increase in cases - including reinfections - and hospital admissions and deaths. 'This is because the strain has a greater ability than BA.2 to evade immunity provided by vaccination and earlier Covid-19 infection,' it said on Friday night. Recent case numbers and fatalities in Victoria prompted the Department of Health to 'strongly recommend' bringing back masks in the state. 'Masks are strongly recommended in shared indoor settings; if you can't physically distance; or you are with those more vulnerable to Covid-19. Improve ventilation by opening doors and windows, using fans or purifiers, and gathering outside where possible,' the department said in a statement. 'Face masks are still required for everyone aged eight and above in some locations, including on public transport, ride shares and taxis, and in sensitive settings such as hospitals and care facilities.' The Victorian Department of Health warned Covid deaths and hospitilisations across the state are set to soar Queensland is tipped to be the first to bring back mask mandates in a bid to stem the tidal wave of infection. Queensland Chief Health Officer John Gerrard said he did not want a return to mask mandates, but he admitted the possibility was being talked about. 'It is something that is still being discussed but ... we would prefer not to go down that road,' he told Brisbane 4BC radio on Friday. Federal Labor minister Murray Watt said on Saturday the government had not received any health advice on mask mandates and those decisions tended to be made by state governments. 'I know that this is something that health officials have been discussing nationally,' he said. Prof McMillan suggested policy tweaks be made to the public health system, including widening the availability of antivirals beyond people with comorbidities. Australia is experiencing a succession of Omicron variants that have kept infection rates high, Deakin University epidemiology chair Catherine Bennett said. However Australia ranked low in deaths per capita when compared to other countries, she said. 'Whether we look at the total COVID-19 deaths per case, or deaths per capita, Australia sits low on the league tables, together with New Zealand, Taiwan and Japan,' Prof Bennett said. Australia's daily death rates per capita were comparable to the UK and Canada, and lower than France - countries currently in summer and reporting declines in case numbers, she said. 'It is critical that we learn more about those who are ending up in hospital or not surviving their infections, so that we can identify what needs to be done to avoid preventable deaths and bring the case fatality rate down.' A police officer threatened to arrest a sheriff in a fight over jurisdiction that was caught on camera - with the sheriff branding him a 'f**kboy' in return. Sgt. Tracy James of the Hiawassee Police Department told Towns County Sheriff Ken 'Ode' Henderson in no uncertain terms: 'You get on my traffic stop again, I will arrest you,' following a traffic stop June 24 in northern Georgia. The sheriff responded to James by saying: 'I'll arrest you right now.' When James attempts to explain that the traffic stop began within the city limits, Henderson responds with: 'Shut your f**king mouth.' He also called James a 'f**kboy' for good measure. The shocking bodycam footage was obtained by 11Alive. When the video begins, Sheriff Kenneth Henderson can be seen closest to the car that's been pulled over It's then that the two law enforcement officers get into a heated exchange littered with expletives as they argue over who has jurisdiction At one stage in the argument, the sheriff calls James a 'boy' to which James responds by saying: 'I'm not your boy.' The sheriff then tells James: 'You a f**kboy!' James says thank you several times in a sarcastic tone. When he returns to his car, James calls the sheriff a 'motherf**ker' while also telling his dispatch '10-4' in response to a question regarding his safety. According to 11Alive's reporting, the police and sheriff's departments have been at odds over jurisdiction in recent times. The two organizations do not have an 'overlapping chain of command,' the station reports. Sheriff Henderson, pictured on the left, was elected as the Republican sheriff of Towns County by a margin of 40 votes in 2020. Sgt. Tracy James, pictured on the right, threatened to arrest the sheriff in the bizarre video in which the pair got into a dispute over a traffic stop Towns County Attorney Robb Kiker told 11Alive: 'My advice to the sheriff at this time is to not make any statements because this will be an ongoing investigation. The frustration exhibited by the sheriff on the video is a result of a broader issue and will be referred for further investigation by the proper authorities.' In a separate statement, Hiawassee Police Chief Paul Smith said: 'We regret that this unfortunate event occurred. The Hiawassee Police Department will continue to strive for excellence in safety and service to our citizens and visitors while working with all public agencies to accomplish that goal.' In another recording, the sheriff can be heard referring to members of the Hiawassee Police Department as 'enemies,' reports 11Alive. The station, citing a law enforcement source, said that the sheriff and the sergeant had gotten into a dispute on Memorial Day weekend. While another police source told 11Alive that because Hiawassee is so small, traffic stops often occur outside of the city's limits, even if they begin in the town. According to a social media page dedicated to Henderson's reelection campaign in 2020, the sheriff, a Republican, has 35 plus years in law enforcement and is a lifelong resident of Towns County. He adds that he is a supporter of the second amendment. Henderson writes on the page: 'If you elect me I won't be hard to find. I will be a working Sheriff alongside my officers, always on the job and always available to you.' The sheriff was elected by a margin of 40 votes in August 2020. A driver lost control of a truck while suffering a medical emergency and struck a cyclist and fireworks stand worker, killing both - and reportedly leaving one victim decapitated. Saturday's incident in Washington DC saw both male victims pronounced dead at the scene after being struck by the silver truck, which was badly-damaged by the smash. Neither man killed has been identified. The smash took place around 5:30 pm after the driver of the pick up truck reportedly ran a red light before crashing into the July 4 fireworks stand, Washington DC Police Department said, Fox News reported. No details of the driver's identity or medical emergency they were suffering have been reported. The driver of the truck and a passenger were taken to the hospital, The Washington Post reported. It's unclear if that driver will face charges over the incident. This is the out-of-control truck that ran a red light in Washington DC Saturday, killing a cyclist and worker at a nearby fireworks stand, with one victim reportedly decapitated The crash that killed two male adults happened on Saturday around 5:30 p.m. near Nannie Helen Burroughs Ave Northeast and Minnesota Avenue, Washington Local citizen journalist Killmoe News claimed the smash had left one victim decapitated A male bicyclist was hit by the pickup truck after the driver ran a red light before crashing into the firework stand. Washington DC police pictured during Saturday press briefing There were no other people were injured in the crash, officials said. A mangled gas station sign and fireworks were seen seen scattered on the ground, during its aftermath. Police said that no fireworks were detonated as a result of the crash, the news outlet reported. The ruling and main opposition parties failed to reach a compromise Sunday on sharing parliamentary committees, leaving the National Assembly in limbo for over a month. Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP), and Rep. Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), sat down for closed-door talks for the first time since late May to try to find a solution to the impasse. Both sides said they held candid discussions on their respective positions but failed to narrow their gaps. They declined to give details. Kweon told reporters he and Park agreed to meet again after dinner. The DP has offered to hand over the chairmanship of the judiciary committee, a key Assembly panel that has the power to approve bills before they are put to a plenary vote, to the PPP in exchange for the PPP's cooperation for the launch of a special committee on judiciary reform. But the PPP has rejected the proposal, because the special committee is aimed at completing the process of reducing and ultimately abolishing the prosecution's investigative powers in accordance with recently enacted prosecution reform laws, which the ruling bloc has opposed. The DP, which holds 170 out of 299 seats in the National Assembly, has vowed to select a new speaker on its own at a plenary session Monday if no agreement is reached with the PPP. The impasse in committee formation negotiations has left the Assembly idling for a month, forcing a halt in legislation and Cabinet member confirmation hearings. (Yonhap) It was the crime that rocked Scotland. A Jeep Cherokee loaded with gas and petrol ploughed into Glasgow Airport killing one of the drivers and injuring five civilians as the building burst into flames. The suicide bombing on June 30, 2007 was the nation's first, and only, targeted terrorist attack - leaving many shocked amid the long-standing belief it was immune to terrorism. Police arrested the two occupants of the car, Iraqi-born doctor Bilal Abdulla and Kafeel Ahmed. Ahmed later died in hospital after suffering burns to 90 per cent of his body. But it was what happened next on the opposite side of the globe that would spark one of Australia's most controversial human rights cases and capture the world's attention. Dr Mohamed Haneef (pictured) was falsely accused of terrorism in a human rights case that gripped the world Days later, Gold-Coast based doctor and Indian national Dr Mohamed Haneef was arrested for suspected terrorism and detained while travelling to Brisbane to see his wife and newborn daughter. Australian Federal Police took the 27-year-old into custody as he touched down at the airport on July 2, while officers raided his unit in Southport and British investigators were flown in to work on the case. 'We are alleging that Dr Haneef was connected to a terrorist group,' AFP commissioner Mick Keelty declared at the time. Claims began to swirl that Mr Haneef was associated with banned terror groups and was involved in plans to blow up Gold Coast high rises, with one report alleging his previously-owned sim card was linked to the Glasgow attack, the Gold Coast Bulletin reports. Dr Haneef was held without charge for days and treated as a terror suspect, being kept in 23-hour isolation per day. While police struggled to find any evidence linking him to the bombing, the court repeatedly granted officers' requests to keep him in custody to bide themselves time. 'The extension will allow for the analysis of material obtained in the course of the investigation by joint counter-terrorism teams,' an AFP spokesman told Reuters at the time. '[It] will also allow for inquiries and analysis of material to be conducted in overseas.' During his time in custody, Dr Haneef was not allowed to speak to his wife and was subjected to hours-long sessions of police gruelling - despite not being charged. Two terrorists drove an explosive-filled car into Glasgow Airport on June 30, 2007, in a crime that shocked the world Although police powers at the time only allowed them to question a suspect for 24 hours, officers were able to bypass the rule via a loophole. Using court extensions, detectives could keep people in custody so long as they did not exceed 24 hours of questioning in total over the duration of the person's arrest. Dr Haneef remained locked up for two weeks before his lawyers Peter Russo and QC Stephen Keim were able to stop police extensions to keep him in custody without being questioned. 'My poor client is sitting there waiting, wondering what the hell is going on,' Mr Russo said at the time. But the federal government, then led by John Howard, swooped in, with Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews cancelling Dr Haneef's visa on 'character grounds' - which prevented him from being released. The move sparked outrage and was dubbed a political move by critics as the government, aiming to look tough on terror, trailed behind Labor Leader Kevin Rudd in the polls. Dr Haneef remained locked up for two weeks before his lawyers Peter Russo (pictured) and QC Stephen Keim were able to stop police from gaining further court extensions The Commonwealth's case against Dr Haneef eventually collapsed and all charges were dropped by the Director of Public Prosecutions, who admitted there was 'no reasonable prospect of a conviction'. Dr Haneef was deported and left Australia at the end of July 2007, and continues to live overseas. The following year an inquiry was launched to investigate Dr Haneef's case, which eventually cleared his name and led to a number of legislative and procedural changes being recommended to the government. Dr Haneef received a cash settlement from the government and briefly returned to Australia in 2010. The credibility of John Howard government was tarnished amid the scandal and it subsequently lost the 2007 election to Labor. The Glasgow attack was linked to two non-fatal car bombings in London carried out on June 29, 2007. The vehicles filled with explosives were discovered parked near night clubs but were discovered before they could be detonated. The bomb plot was connected to Ahmed and Abdulla, who then proceeded with the airport attack after their initial London plans were foiled. Abdulla was later found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder in relation to both incidents and sentenced to life imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 32 years. Emirates passengers were horrified after hearing a loud bang 45 minutes into their flight before realising the plane had completed almost the entire 14-hour trip with a hole in its side. The A380 took off from Dubai and landed at Brisbane International Airport at 10.45pm on Saturday. Passengers said they heard the alarming noise shortly after departure and had no clue about what was going on during the long-haul flight. Emirates passengers were left horrified after hearing a loud bang on the aircraft during a flight and then discovering a hole in the side of the plane when it landed It was only when they disembarked that they noticed a large gaping hole had been torn in the left fuselage. Patrick, a passenger on the plane, said airline crew were calm and relaxed despite the concerning sound of the bang. 'There was a loud bang and I felt it through the floor as well,' he told the Courier Mail. 'The cabin crew remained calm, stopped the food service and got on the phone and checked the wings, engines.' Fellow passenger Chris said the remainder of the flight went smoothly and he was surprised to have later discovered the hole in the side of the plane. 'Before we landed they told us we had to land on a different runway and get an engineer to inspect the plane for a suspected landing gear problem,' he said. The hole is understood to have been caused after a bolt detached in the nose gear. Patrick, who was riding on the plane, said airline crew appeared calm and relaxed despite the concerning loudness of the bang An Emirates spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia the aircraft was being repaired. 'Our flight EK430 flying from Dubai to Brisbane on July 1 experienced a technical fault during cruise,' the spokesperson said. 'The aircraft landed safely in Brisbane and all passengers disembarked as scheduled. 'The aircraft will remain in Brisbane for assessment and repairs. The safety of our passengers and crew has always been our top priority.' The marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court has asked Maryland and Virginia officials to enforce laws she says prohibit protesting outside the homes of the justices who live in the two states. 'For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have protesting Justices' homes,' Marshal Gail Curley wrote in the Friday letters to Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and his fellow GOP member Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin as well as two local elected officials, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich and Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeffrey McKay, both Democrats. Curley wrote that Virginia and Maryland laws and a Montgomery County, Maryland, ordinance prohibit protesting at justices' homes, and she asked the officials to direct police to enforce those provisions. Virginia's GOP Governor Glenn Youngkin has since indicated he's in favor of granting Curley's request. In a statement responding to the marshal's request, spokesperson Christian Martinez said that Gov. Youngkin 'welcomes the Marshal of the Supreme Court's request for Fairfax County to enforce state law as they are the primary enforcement authority for the state statute.' The statement went on to call for Attorney General Merrick Garland to 'do his job' to enforce the laws protecting justice's homes, reports Fox News. While Maryland Gov, Hogan said that: 'Maryland State Police, in conjunction with local authorities as appropriate, enforce laws that prohibit picketing outside of the homes of Supreme Court Justices who live in Maryland.' US Supreme Court Marshal Gail Curley is asking officials in Maryland and Virginia to enforce local laws against protesting outside of justice's homes Roske, 26, has been slapped with charges of attempted murder of a Supreme Court Judge by the feds The request came about a month after a California man was found with a Glock 17 pistol, knife and pepper spray near the Maryland home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh after telling police he was planning to kill the justice. The man, Nicholas John Roske, 26, of Simi Valley, California, has been charged with attempting to murder a justice of the United States and has pleaded not guilty. Justices' homes have been the target of abortion rights protests since May, when a leaked draft opinion suggested the court was poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. Thanks to three appointments made during Donald Trump's time in the White House, the court now has a six-three conservative supermajority, with further protests likely to ensue as other contentious rulings are handed down. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin spokesman Christian Martinez said the Virginia governor welcomed the marshal's request U.S. Marshals patrol outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in Chevy Chase, Md., June 8, 2022 Pro-abortion activists with Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights hold baby dolls at the home of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett on June 18, 2022 in Falls Church, Virginia The home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh is guarded by federal marshals as pro-abortion protesters walk by the house Barrett's home became the site of another protest on June 30 as pro-abortion activists marched past her house repeatedly Fairfax County Police officers watch as pro-abortion protesters walk past Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito's house in Alexandria The protests and threatening activities have 'increased since May,' Curley wrote in a letter, and have continued since the court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was issued last week. 'Earlier this week, for example, 75 protesters loudly picketed at one Justice's home in Montgomery County for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket at another Justice's home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first Justice's home to picket for another 20 minutes,' Curley wrote in her letter to Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich. She added: 'This is exactly the kind of conduct that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit.' Curley cited a Maryland law in her letter that states: 'A person may not intentionally assemble with another in a manner that disrupts a persons right to tranquility in the persons home.' The punishment for that crime ranges from 90 days in prison to a $100 fine. U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh speaks during his ceremonial public swearing-in, in the East Room of the White House in October 2018 Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito's draft opinion mobilized pro-abortion protesters across the nation in May 2022 Justice Amy Coney Barrett's home has been the location of several protests since the draft opinion was leaked in May In her letter to Jeffrey McKay, chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, she said one recent protest outside an unspecified justice's home involved dozens of people chanting, 'no privacy for us, no peace for you!' The letters from Curley were dated Friday and shared with reporters by a spokesperson for the Supreme Court on Saturday. Youngkin and Hogan, both Republicans, have both previously expressed concerns about the protests. In May, they sent a joint letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland asking for federal law enforcement resources to keep the justices safe and enforce a federal law they said prohibits picketing with the intent to influence a judge. Hogan spokesman Michael Ricci said in a statement Saturday that the governor had directed state police to 'further review enforcement options that respect the First Amendment and the Constitution.' He also said that 'had the marshal taken time to explore the matter,' she would have learned that the constitutionality of the Maryland statute she cited has been questioned by the state Attorney General's Office. Elrich said he had no recording of having received the letter addressed to him and questioned why it was released to the press. He said he would review it and was willing to discuss it with Curley, but defended the job Montgomery County Police have done so far. 'In Montgomery County we are following the law that provides security and respects the First Amendment rights of protestors. That is what we do, regardless of the subject of the protests,' he said. Christian Martinez earlier said that the Virginia governor welcomed the marshal's request and said Youngkin had made the same request of McKay in recent weeks. 'The Governor remains in regular contact with the justices themselves and holds their safety as an utmost priority. He is in contact with state and local officials on the Marshals request for assistance and will continue to engage on the issue of the Justices safety,' Martinez said. Youngkin in May pushed for a security perimeter around the homes of justices living in Fairfax County, but McKay rebuffed that request, saying it would infringe on First Amendment protest rights. The Virginia government also attempted to create a new felony penalty for certain actions during demonstrations aimed at judges or other officers of a court, which state lawmakers rejected. A spokesperson for McKay said he was working on a response to the letter. Advertisement Thousands of pro-abortion protestors rallied through the streets of New York, and across the nation eight days after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. On June 24, the Supreme Court voted 6-3 striking down a historic ruling that has been upheld for nearly a half a century, permitting abortions during the first two trimesters of pregnancy in the United States. On Saturday, thousands poured onto the streets many flashing signs protesting the high-courts decision to end federal abortion rights protections. Pro-abortion activists filled the streets of the Big Apple, Cincinnati in Ohio and Los Angeles in California. In New York, many were seen squeezed up against one another barely unable to move as temperatures soared and humidity was high, as groups of police tried to control the rambunctious crowd. They protested outside St Patrick's Catholic Church in the East Village, with five of the six justices who voted to end Roe members of that church. The protests were largely peaceful, although scores of NYPD cops were deployed in a bid to keep the peace. A similar scene took place in Los Angeles, where protestors spilled onto roadways some carrying bullhorns as they pleaded for change. Abortion activist like Lisa Navarro and Jessabel Martinez were pictured covered in blobs of red paint expressing their despair that their constitutional rights that are being violated. In Cincinnati, thousands of demonstrators marched carrying signs: 'My Rapist Has More Rights Than I Do!' and 'Back Off My P***Y Bites!' NEW YORK: Pro-abortion protesters are pictured demonstrating in Manhattan Saturday NEW YORK: Thousands marched through the streets of SoHo in New York City as NYPD officers watched LOS ANGELES: In Los Angeles, one protestor covers herself in red paint expressing her outrage with the high court's abortion ban NEW YORK: A woman carries a sign calling for 'reproductive justice for people of all genders.' Some progressives have been blamed for derailing the pro-abortion message by insisting that the problem greatly impacts transgender men and non-binary people JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI: Protesters placed placards on empty chairs outside Mississippi's only abortion facility, calling for greater understanding from anti-abortion campaigners who've called for a ban on terminations NEW YORK: A woman in a bikini holds a pro-choice sign during a protest against the end of Roe v. Wade in the East Village Saturday NEW YORK: Church members were seen outside the old Saint Patrick's Cathedral during ongoing protests in NYC Saturday NEW YORK: A protester holds up a sign saying she'll 'aid and abet' abortions. The slogan has become a rallying cry after Roe v. Wade was struck down by the Supreme Court NEW YORK: A woman wearing a t-shirt saying 'Pro choice AF' marches through the East Village Saturday Pro-choice advocates faced off against New York City police and pro-life advocates of St. Patricks Church of the East Village during a protest at the offices of Planned Parenthood on Mott Street in New York, according to report. For more than 90 minutes, pro-choice demonstrators filled the two-block to the clinic in an attempt to block the parishioners from praying there. LOS ANGELES: Abortion rights demonstrators protest following the decision by the US Supreme Court to overturn the Roe v. Wade ruling in Los Angeles, California NEW YORK: Pro-choice advocates face off against pro-life advocates of St. Patricks Church of the east village during a rally and protest at planned parenthood on Mott Street in New York Hundreds also took to the streets of Cincinnati to protest the end of Roe v Wade in the Ohio city KANSAS CITY: Women bearing signs with body art rally in support of abortion rights in Kansas City, Missouri Thirteen states passed trigger laws to restrict or ban abortion in the event Roe v. Wade was overturned Abortion advocates gathered on the streets of downtown Sacramento demanding that abortion is a 'lifesaving' procedure. Cassie Lou was there with her young daughters sharing her story: 'Seven years ago, I had an ectopic pregnancy and if I did not have it if i would died if I lived in the state of Texas, Missouri, Mississippi right now. She added: 'Abortion is healthcare. We are going back to the 1960s with illegal abortions and have all these women die.' The march comes just hours after President Joe Biden held a virtual meeting with nine Democratic governors in states where legal abortions are protected. California Governor Gavin Newsom was not part of that round table, ABC10 News reproted. Biden admitted he doesn't have the votes right now to do a carve out for the Senate filibuster in order to pass a bill thta would codify Roe into law, and instead called on voters to head to the polls. 'This is going to go one way or another after November,' Biden said, the news outlet reported. 'Lets remember the reasoning of this decision has an impact much beyond Roe and to right to privacy more generally. One of the faces of the Supreme Court decision was a 10-year-old child abuse victim, who was forced to seek an abortion in Indiana after her home state of Ohio barred abortion. The child was six weeks and three days pregnant - therefore, ineligible by just three days to receive the procedure in her home state. Abortion advocates in the state attempted to halt Ohio's six-week abortion ban, but the effort was denied by a judge on Friday. As of Friday, Indiana's only abortion restriction is a law requiring clinics to ask women if their abortion is coerced - which is illegal, Fox 59 reported. The law went into effect on July 1 and more restrictions might pass in the state following The Indiana General Assembly hearing on July 25. The protests began outside the homes of conservative justices shortly after a draft opinion was leaked May 2 indicating the court was on the verge of overturning Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling that protected abortion across the land. Protests have continued since then, especially after the court issued its official ruling last week ending Roe. A man and woman were shot dead at a house in a Texas double-murder suicide, with their killer taking his own life nearby shortly afterwards. Saturday's shooting in Haltom City also injured three cops. Police responded a home in the 5700 block of Diamond Oaks Drive North in Haltom City around 6:45 p.m. where they found a man and woman who had been fatally shot, according to Haltom City police spokesman Sgt. Rick Alexander. Three police officers were injured when an exchange of gunfire erupted on the scene. They were transported to the hospital with non life-threatening injures. After an hourlong manhunt, the suspect was found of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. His body was located less than a mile away from the scene of the initial shooting. The identities of those involved in the shooting were not immediately released, WFAA reported. It is not known what prompted the shooting, and how the victims knew each other, or their killer. Two people are dead and four others, including three police officers, are injured after a gunman opened fire in a Texas neighborhood on Saturday night Police responded a home in the 5700 block of Diamond Oaks Drive North in Haltom City around 6:45 p.m. where they found a man and woman who had been fatally shot Another person, an elderly woman who called 911, was injured when she was shot in the leg. She is expected to survive. A large police presence in the area of the 5700 block of Diamond Oaks Drive North alarmed nearby residents as an hour-long manhunt for the armed suspect. Before the suspect was found dead, police said they were looking for a a suspected gunman who was described as a white male with dark hair, a blue shirt, blue pants and a 'battle belt.' Police responded a home in the 5700 block of Diamond Oaks Drive North in Haltom City around 6:45 p.m. where they found a man and woman who had been fatally shot A large police presence in the area of the 5700 block of Diamond Oaks Drive North alarmed nearby residents as an hour-long manhunt for the armed suspect Residents were asked to stay indoors during the search, according to a post on Facebook The suspect was located about an hour after the initial shooting in the 3900 block of Golden Oaks Drive - less than a mile from where the shooting took place. He was dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, police said. There was a 'military-style rifle' and a handgun next to him. In the 10 p.m. update, authorities assured the residents that there was no longer a threat to the public. Shocking footage has emerged of a supermarket worker being assaulted and having her hair pulled by a young teenager allegedly shoplifting. The worker had confronted the teenager, 14, at Drakes supermarket in Walkley Heights, Adelaide before she was attacked. The assault occurred at about 6:30pm on June 23, according to South Australia Police. CCTV footage from the supermarket, which was released by 7News, showed the teenager and her friend, 17, enter the store. The pair could be seen walking down an aisle and putting grocery items in their clothes. An Adelaide supermarket employee was allegedly assaulted and had her hair pulled after she confronted a teenager accused of shoplifting An employee confronted the duo about the alleged shoplifting before she was attacked by the younger teen and had her hair pulled. The teenager then grabbed a handful of lollipops from a nearby stand and threw it at the worker before fleeing. Drakes Supermarkets Director John-Paul Drake told 7News the assault was one of the 'most horrific' he had seen in his retail career. 'This footage needs to be out there so people can understand this is some of the things we're dealing with on the front line and it's just not acceptable,' he said. 'The power of CCTV in this example is proven to be very successful because the one thing about the camera, it actually doesn't lie.' CCTV footage showed the teen, 14, and her friend, 17, (both pictured) enter the Drakes supermarket in Walkley Heights and stuffed their clothes with groceries. A worker at the store confronted the duo before she was attacked A South Australia Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that the pair have since been charged. 'A 14-year-old girl from Walkley Heights was arrested and charged with aggravated theft and assault. She was bailed to appear in the Adelaide Youth Court on 5 August,' the spokesperson said. 'A 17-year-old girl from Walkley Heights was reported for aggravated theft and will be summonsed to appear in court at a later date.' An Australian missile destroyer has dramatically rescued two sailors who were found clinging to their capsized vessel by a passing ship in a 15-hour ordeal off the NSW coast. The pair got into trouble about 1am on Saturday when their yacht capsized about 15 nautical miles off the coast of Wollongong. Wild weather has been battering the NSW coastline this weekend causing torrential rain and huge swells. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority joint rescue coordination centre triggered a search about 12 hours later, after the yacht was reported missing. Royal Australian Navy destroyer HMAS Brisbane was first to the area, arriving on scene at about 2pm before it started to scour a search area of about 60 square nautical miles (111km). Paramedics wheel one of the sailors off the HMAS Brisbane after the dramatic rescue at sea (pictured) Ambulance and Navy officers depart the ship on Saturday night (pictured) A passing merchant vessel sighted the capsized yacht just over an hour later and the navy destroyer headed to the area, with a rigid-hulled inflatable boat sent out to rescue the sailors. Despite their nearly 15-hour ordeal, which saw them suffering in 56 km/h winds and swells of up to two metres, the pair were assessed as being in good condition after being brought on board HMAS Brisbane. AMSA said the response from HMAS Brisbane and the merchant vessel that spotted the pair clinging to their yacht demonstrated 'the finest traditions of seafarers'. 'We appreciate the commendable seamanship of both ... in sighting the survivors, maintaining visual contact and coordinating a response, and then recovering them in challenging conditions,' AMSA said. The HMAS Brisbane (pictured) collected the sailors after a passing merchant ship spotted them The families of the sailors speak to HMAS Brisbane commanding officer Commander Kingsley Scarce (pictured) HMAS Brisbane commanding officer Commander Kingsley Scarce said the crew was happy they could rescue the two sailors. 'The entire crew was eager to do whatever they could in the rescue effort,' he said. 'I want to particularly acknowledge the bravery of the sea boat crew who conducted the rescue in appalling sea conditions.' The sailors were reunited with their families at Sydney's naval base about 7pm on Saturday. Dozens of decomposed bodies were discovered after locals alerted police to a foul stench coming from an Indiana funeral home where some of the deceased had been stacking up for months. Police in Jeffersonville conducted the grim search on Friday at Lankford Funeral Home where they found 31 rotting bodies along with the cremated remains of at least 16 other people. An air conditioning unit at the funeral home on Middle Road stopped working which is believed to have enhanced the smell of the bodies, 'some of which were in the advanced stages of decomposition, said Maj. Isaac Parker in a statement, the Louisville Courier Journal reported. The owner of the funeral home allegedly got behind on processing the deceased, some of which have been stacking up since at least March, a source told WDRB. No one has been charged with a crime, but the funeral home is under investigation. Lankford Funeral Home remains closed while police conduct their investigation after 31 decomposing bodies were found - some up which have been stacking up for months Dozens of decomposed bodies were discovered on Friday after locals alerted police to a foul stench coming from an Indiana funeral home. Pictured: Investigators suit up in hazmat gear The owner of the Lankford funeral home allegedly got behind on processing the bodies, many which have been stacking up for months. The funeral home is on Middle Road in Jeffersonville According to the staff directory on the funeral home's website, Randy Lankford is the owner. Kenny Kersey, who told WAVE that his family has been in the funeral business for decades, said Lankford gave him a tour when he bought the business. 'He took us into one side room that had about five bodies on stretchers and I thought was kind of odd at the time. Usually they're supposed to go to refrigeration or right to embalming,' Kersey said. One woman commented on the WAVE news Facebook page that she's been waiting nearly three months for her brother's ashes. Lankford responded to her emails saying that he's been out of the office due to personal family issues. Police told WAVE they are in contact with Lankford. Jeffersonville Police responded to the funeral home following a complaint of the smell last week. Parker said police worked through the night and into the morning, and located 31 bodies, 'some of which were in the advanced stages of decomposition,' along with the post-cremation remains of 16 other people. Jeffersonville Police, the Clark County Sheriff's Department and Indiana State Police are investigating the situation at the funeral home which is located in the 3100 block of Middle Road in Jeffersonville - just across the Ohio River from Louisville. 'We're working with the Clark County Prosecutor's Office to ensure that the investigation is efficient and successful,' Parker said. Lankford Funeral Home is under investigation, but no one has been charged with a crime The remains have all been sent to the Clark County Health Department so that their identities can be confirmed and their loved ones can be notified The remains have all been sent to the Clark County Health Department so that their identities can be confirmed and their loved ones can be notified. 'We understand that this is going to be a situation where we're really going to need the assistance of these families,' Parker added. 'I'm sorry that they've already suffered a loss and now they're dealing with this situation. We ask anybody that has information to please reach out to us.' Jeffersonville Police's detective division can be reached at 812-285-6535. A huge increase in sharks has been documented in Queensland as a record-breaking number of predators are caught in nets off the state's coast. Over the past 12 months, 850 sharks - including monster great whites and tigers sharks spanning more than four metres - have been entangled off beaches protected by the Queensland's shark control program. Almost half of those captured were more than two metres long, of which Mackay recorded the highest tally of 39, closely followed by Bundaberg with 36 and Townsville with 32. The annual figure appears to be growing, with 655 caught in the previous financial year and only 496 in the 12 months to June 2020. The trend comes amid renewed calls from environment groups for the program, which has been in place since 1962, to be scrapped ahead of the annual whale migration season to minimise harm to wildlife after a humpback was trapped in June. Queensland has reported a huge increase in sharks caught be the state's beach protection program In the latest reporting period, almost 250 other marine animals, including dolphins, turtles and whales, were snagged in the nets or on baited drumlines. Due to the rise of smart drumlines - which alert authorities to snares in real time - more than 200 of the creatures captured were released alive. However, since the nets were introduced, tens of thousands of animals have died, with figures obtained by Shark Files Queensland showing 406 non-targeted sea creatures were killed between 2009 and 2014. In contrast, there has only been one fatal attack at a shark-netted Queensland beach over the past 60 years. But advocates of the system say it was designed to protect people. Fisheries Minister Mark Furner said the department was investing in research and technology to reduce the risk to marine life but would not make changes to the program unless authorities were convinced they were safe. 'Human life will always come first and these statistics show that the risk posed by large sharks in Queensland waters is real,' he told the Courier Mail. 'Our contractors and marine animal rescue teams do amazing work to minimise impacts on other marine life, while maintaining a program that has helped to keep Queenslanders safe since 1962.' There were 850 sharks detected across Queensland's beaches by the program over the past financial year. Pictured: Greenmount beach Coolangatta Pictured: A humpback whale caught on shark nets off Coolangatta on the Gold Coast in August last year Humane Society International marine biologist Lawrence Chlebeck said the decades-old safety measures needed to be changed to reflect updated knowledge about shark behaviour. He said modern methods like drone surveillance, personal shark deterrents, and improving ocean safety education were more effective at reducing the risk of a shark bite. 'Contrary to what a lot of people think, shark nets dont actually create a barrier to the open sea. They are really just fishing devices, indiscriminately ensnaring dolphins, turtles, rays, sharks and whales,' he said. Surfer Nick Slater became the first person to be killed since the program was introduced when he was mauled by a three-metre great white at Coolangatta's Greenmount beach in September 2020. Pictured: Surfer Nick Slater, who was fatally mauled by a shark in the Gold Coast in September 2020 In the past 12 months, the biggest shark detected was a 4.7m tiger shark caught off Rainbow Beach, while many others - just under four metres - were also snared along the state's coastline. Two weeks ago, a four-metre tiger shark was found in the Gold Coast, while the city also saw a four-metre great white captured in February. Queensland's Department of Fisheries has been also been operating a trial of shark-spotting drones since Mr Slater's death in partnership with Surf Life Saving Queensland. A catch alert drum line trial was also introduced in September 2021, which will run until January 2023. An Australian allegedly behind a massive drug smuggling operation in Bali is on the run from Indonesian police and Interpol. The man, known as 'Mr A', allegedly imported drugs with a street value of $5 million into Bali. Balinese police raided his villa in Kuta on April 12 and found 35kg of meth, 32kg of cocaine, 800 ecstasy pills, and 2.6kg of marijuana. 'Mr A' quickly ran from the scene around the time his villa was raided, leaving his possessions behind. Three Balinese nationals (pictured) were arrested by police after an Australian man known as 'Mr A' had his villa raided and drugs seized. The three nationals claim they worked for 'Mr A' at the villa Police arrested three Indonesian nationals at the residence, who claimed they were working for the Australian man, according to the Daily Telegraph. The trio, handcuffed and dressed in prison jumpsuits, were paraded for the media standing behind the stash of drugs that were seized at the villa. The drugs were then burned by police in accordance with Indonesian law after photos were taken and evidence was documented. Police alleged the three men 'facilitated' the Australian man's operations at his villa. Bali police director of drug investigations Kombes Pol Mochamad Khozin broke down the details of the arrest with local media, who witnessed the drugs being burned. 'The hunt was carried out after the arrest of three Indonesian citizens with the initials AAP, KMS, and KS in one of the villas in Kuta on April 12, 2022,' he said. Detective Khozen claimed police 'knew' who 'Mr A' was. He also said the 'A' in the fugitive's name was his initial and that he was 'approximately 32 years old'. 'We have coordinated with Interpol to find this perpetrator,' he added. Bali police only just released details of the case despite officers raiding the villa almost two months ago. Bali police burned the drugs that were seized at the villa in front of reporters. The drugs were burned by officers in accordance with Indonesian law Police received a tip-off that the Australian man was allegedly bringing 50kg of crystal meth into the country. Indonesia has some of the strictest drug laws in the world. Criminals found guilty of smuggling large quantities of drugs into the country risk execution by firing squad. Bali police did not know whether the Australian fugitive was trying to sell the drugs in Bali or was temporarily storing the drugs at his villa before attempting to smuggle them overseas. By Kim Jin-heon Ms. Park, one of my study group members, suggested donation hiking. This meant she invited her friend, Ms. Yang who lives in Canada, to Suncheon City, South Jeolla Province, to hear stories related to Father Charles Ogada and Joy Village (a charity organization) in Nigeria, and to donate some money to the organization. Last weekend, as a first step, eight members, including the writer, climbed up Baekwoon Mountain for an hour or so. Then we moved to a cafe and heard about Father Charles's life story. He was born in 1971 in Uturu in Abia State, which is located in the southern part of Nigeria in East Africa. In 1960, Nigeria became independent from England. At that time, it was a federal country consisting of 36 states made up of 250 tribes. Each tribe's interest and ideology have made political stability difficult. At the age of 17, Ogada entered a Catholic school. He attended that school for more than nine years and became a priest. But the Christian doctrine that he learned made it hard for him to find the essence of Jesus Christ. Thus, he gave up his pastoral activity and left his home for a spiritual journey with gurus of Hindu, Islam, and Judaism in Asia for more than nine years. As a result, he realized that "all religions become one, where all distinctions of creeds, dogmas, and rituals disappear. At that point, Christ is everyone's self, Christ is within him." As the priest returned to his hometown in the mid-2000s, Nigeria began to have a stable political system, but it suffered from power struggles, poverty, and conflicts between different tribes. In the process, it was natural that numerous orphans would be neglected. Father Charles began to play his role as a priest. His pluralistic view of Christianity helped to unite various tribes and helped young orphans improve their self-esteem. His central business was caring for orphans. He built a school and a hospital and served them with world views. He always confessed to himself: "Service to God is service to humanity and when I serve another, I'm truly serving myself." His benevolent message and activity attracted many orphans to his school. His fame spread around the world. Taylor, a Canadian doctor, invited him to Canada and helped him make a speech about his spiritual life and charitable work. Audiences were impressed with his universal spirituality and orphan management based on nonviolence and just behavior. When a person is touched by someone's message or activity, his or her brain radiates more than 4,000 times the usual level of dopamine. This encourages him or her to do something valuable. Ms. Yang, who worked as a cognitive counselor at a hospital related to Dr. Taylor, was in one of the audience members. Her ardent attitude led me and my friends to the priest's life story. Father Charles's deep mindset and power of execution obtained through spiritual traveling helped children and adults at home and abroad to realize the spirit of Jesus. Father Charles especially influenced citizens as an icon of unity and influenced youngsters by acting as a conscience. His servant leadership, which is based on high spirituality, has enthralled hundreds of thousands of people, but unfortunately he died in 2022 from disease at the age of 51. I pray that his dream will come true on Earth. The writer is a retired teacher. He published a book titled, "Flower Is Flower." Experts fear a deadly livestock disease on Australia's doorstep could have devastating consequences for regional communities across the country. Foot-and-mouth disease, which affects cattle, sheep, goats and pigs, was found in Indonesia in May for the first time in three decades. If FMD makes the short leap to Australia, it could shut down Australia's $80billion meat export trade - which makes up 70 per cent of the entire industry. 'The proximity to our northern border means that the threat level has rapidly dramatically increased,' Andrew Henderson, the independent chair of the Safemeat Advisory Group, said. Around 70 per cent of Australia's meat industry is in the export market. Pictured is a woman talking to a butcher in Sydney What is foot-and-mouth disease? Foot-and-mouth disease is highly-contagious between animals. It can spread by breath, infected milk, semen, faeces and urine. Infected animals develop blisters around their noses or mouths. The disease can have lifelong impacts and reduce productivity among livestock. Advertisement Nineteen of Indonesia's 37 provinces have reported a combined total of about 200,000 cases of FMD since the outbreak started. Australia was able to prevent the last outbreak in Indonesia during the 1980s from contaminating livestock Down Under, but Mr Henderson said much bigger supply chains and the expansion of tourism means the threat is now greater. He added that if the disease entered Australia, the export market would cease across the country immediately and likely hinder it for 'a couple of years at least', he told the Guardian. Australia's then chief veterinary officer Dr Mark Schipp found last year that there is an estimated 42 per cent likelihood the country will get a major animal disease outbreak in the next five years. In light of what is happening in Indonesia, Dr Beth Cookson, Australia's acting chief veterinary officer, said 'an increase in this estimated probability is anticipated given the regional situation'. The federal government's plan for an FMD outbreak - contained in the AUSVETPLAN disease manual - includes the 'destruction of animals on infected premises and potentially on dangerous contact premises'. A restricted area of at least a 3km radius would be drawn around all infected properties. Mr Henderson said the impacts on rural communities would go beyond meat and livestock production, also affecting mental health and tourism. Australia's animal tracing systems differ from state to state, making the danger from a FMD outbreak more acute. If FMD makes the short leap to Australia, there are fears it could shut Australia's $80billion meat export trade. Pictured: Cattle farmers at an auction in the NSW town of Gunnedah While electronic tagging is required nationally for cattle, that is not the case for sheep and goats. Victoria is the only state to mandate electronic tagging for sheep and goats, with other states tracing through visual ID systems. Bonnie Skinner, of Sheep Producers Australia, said reliably tracing livestock is vital in an emergency disease situation. 'The faster animals are traced the greater the chance of controlling the disease outbreak and minimising its economic and social effects,' she said. In March 2020 Safemeat Advisory Group recommended electronic identification of all livestock to improve traceability, but the cost of $1-$1.50 per animal has been a stumbling block. Mr Henderson warned, though, that such tagging is needed for health and economic reasons. 'If you don't have that system, you can't trade and that trade underpins 70 per cent of the value of everything that you produce on your farm,' he said. Mr Henderson added that 'it's a very small price to pay for a lot of benefit'. Australia has taken a giant leap towards Covid-normal as the government finally scraps one of its most tiresome travel requirements. International visitors arriving in Australia will no longer have to be vaccinated against Covid-19, signalling an end to all border restrictions. Arrivals won't need to declare their vaccination status or complete a Digital Passenger Declaration (DPD) from midnight on Wednesday. While returning Australians are not required to be vaccinated, most un-jabbed foreign travellers need to seek an exemption to enter the country. Australia has taken a giant leap towards Covid-normal as the government scraps its final travel restriction s(pictured, passengers arrive at Sydney International Airport) Travellers will no longer have to declare their vaccination status on arrival in Australia, signalling an end to all border restrictions (pictured, international students arrive in Sydney) In May, 1,000 applications were lodged by unvaccinated travellers with just 158 approved - mostly on compassionate grounds. The changes to the Biosecurity Act will also apply to those arriving to Australia by sea such as maritime crew and cruise ship passengers. Unvaccinated visa holders will no longer need a travel exemption to enter Australia. Minister for Home Affairs Clare O'Neil said the scrapping of DPD's was great news for people visiting family during the Australian school holidays. 'As more and more of us travel internationally and we get more confident in managing our risk of Covid our airports are getting busier,' Minister O'Neil said. 'Removing these requirements will not only reduce delays in our airports but will encourage more visitors and skilled workers to choose Australia as a destination. 'And for Australian citizens, with the removal of these requirements, returning home will be much easier.' Minister for Home Affairs Clare O'Neil said the scrapping of the rule was great news for families touching down in Australia during school holidays (pictured, passengers in Sydney) International travellers will no longer be required to complete a Digital Passenger Declaration (DPD) form from midnight on Wednesday (pictured, international students arrive in Sydney) The digital pass was introduced last September and required travellers to upload their vaccination status before arriving in Australia. Travellers are still required to wear masks on international flights arriving in Australia as well as domestic flights. Health minister Mark Butler said the latest Covid-19 health advice had been considered before the vaccination requirement was scrapped. 'The chief medical officer has advised it is no longer necessary for travellers to declare their vaccine status as part of our management of Covid,' he said. 'Unvaccinated Australians, as well as certain groups of visa holders, have been able to travel to Australia for some time.' Boris Johnson faces mounting questions about what he knew and when about the behaviour of a now disgraced top Tory, amid claims he joked about him being 'handsy' two years ago but promoted him anyway. Cabinet minister Therese Coffey endured a torrid round of interviews today about the Prime Minister's handling of the resignation of Chris Pincher last week. It emerged last night that Boris Johnson knew of lurid allegations about former deputy chief whip in 2020, before appointing him to a senior Government job. After his resignation, No 10 said the Prime Minister had not been aware of any allegations before giving him the role. However, The Mail on Sunday has been told that in 2020, Mr Johnson told aides: 'He's handsy, that's a problem. Pincher by name, pincher by nature.' Dr Coffey struggled to defend Mr Johnson in a string of interviews this morning. She said the PM had not been aware of 'specific' complaints, but also confirmed she had not spoken to him about what he knew before coming on television. She said she believes 'to the best of my knowledge' that Boris Johnson was not aware of specific allegations about Pincher before appointing him to the whips office. But she conceded to the BBC's Sunday Morning programme: 'I've not spoken to the Prime Minister, no.' Asked how she could be sure, she said: 'I've been informed this morning that he didn't know about specific allegations.' Pressed about who gave her the assurances, she said: 'Somebody from the No 10 press office.' Pincher, 52, resigned as deputy chief whip on Thursday night, after being accused of groping a man more than 20 years his junior at London's exclusive Carlton Club the day before. But it was not until late on Friday afternoon that Boris Johnson also suspended the party whip pending an investigation. The alleged victim last night voiced his fury at the slow pace of action taken against him as he revealed details of the alleged incident. He told the Sunday Times that Pincher touched his buttocks and groin in a 'bizarre' attack before he managed to extricate himself and flee to the gents toilets. He then flagged the incident with another whip, Sarah Dines, who had been in the club's Macmillan bar at the time. He told the paper he said to her: 'That might have happened in the 1970s and 1980s but it's not OK now.' In other developments engulfing Downing Street last night: A source claimed that Mr Johnson had said in 2019, when he was running for leader, that he had the 'support of all the sex pests' in the party; A Tory staffer told how Mr Pincher threatened to report her to her boss when she tried to prevent his 'lecherous' advances towards a young man at a Tory party conference; A new complainant told The Mail on Sunday he had been subjected to unwanted advances from Mr Pincher a decade ago, when he was 24; MPs circulated claims that a senior Downing Street aide woke to find Mr Pincher in bed with him at a party 'awayday' 12 years ago although the claims are denied by the aide and Mr Pincher, who also denies the other new allegations against him; Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle took advice about barring Mr Pincher from the Commons if the police are asked to look into any of the allegations, although the MP has agreed to stay away while the claims are investigated; Westminster researchers said that when they had complained about the 'sexual harassment culture' in Parliament earlier this year, they were told that Mr Pincher was the person to complain to. Boris Johnson knew of lurid allegations about disgraced MP Chris Pincher two years before appointing him to a senior Government job, it was claimed last night When Mr Pincher quit as deputy chief whip on Thursday following reports he drunkenly groped two men in a private members' club, No 10 said the Prime Minister had not been aware of any allegations before giving him the role Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey this morning denied the PM had advance knowledge of Mr Pincher's proclivities, telling Sky News: 'I don't think that the Prime Minister was aware of specific concerns.' No need to shut bars in Parliament - minister Shutting Parliament's bars is not necessary to improve standards among MPs, Therese Coffey said today. The Work and Pensions Secretary was challenged over whether such a move is needed in response to recent scandals. There are several bars within the Houses of Parliament estate, including the Woolsack and Strangers' Bar. Dr Coffey told Sky's Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme: 'I think, in terms of Parliament's bars, we have a particular sort of working hours and a lot of these situations you're referring to I don't think happened in the bars. 'That's a matter, I guess, for discussion in Parliament but we've already reduced the number of drinking and eating outlets in Parliament.' Shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said he does not believe the parliamentary bars are the issue. The Labour MP told Sky News: 'I don't think Parliament has the kind of modern workplace culture that it should have, I think there's further to go on that. 'But I would just say, if you look at these particular incidents, actually few of them are in Parliament itself, so for me it comes down to something bigger than the hospitality arrangements. 'It's about power, it's about accountability, it's about the standards that are set by the leader of each political party, and I cannot see Boris Johnson as being the kind of person to somehow improve the culture of the Conservative Party.' Advertisement It is also understood that two months ago the Prime Minister was told of claims Mr Pincher had made unwanted advances towards a fellow Tory MP. It is alleged that when he was rebuffed, Mr Pincher contacted the politician's wife with unfounded sexual allegations about the MP as an act of revenge. Mr Pincher who has denied the claims but admitted he had 'drunk far too much' and 'embarrassed myself' at the Carlton Club last week said yesterday that he would be seeking 'professional medical support' following his conduct. Fears are growing in No 10 that the growing scandal could lead to a by-election in Mr Pincher's Tamworth constituency. Although Downing Street tried to draw a line under the affair by suspending him from the party, many Tory MPs are applying intense pressure for him to be stripped of his seat. Claims that Mr Johnson previously knew Mr Pincher had a reputation for inappropriate behaviour stem from 2020, when the MP was being considered for the role of chief whip in a reshuffle. A member of the Prime Minister's inner circle told The Mail on Sunday 'I was in the reshuffle meeting in No 10 when we were discussing making Pincher chief whip. Boris said to us, 'He's handsy, that's a problem. Pincher by name, pincher by nature.' ' Yet when 52-year-old Mr Pincher quit last week, a No 10 spokesman told reporters that he was 'not aware of the Prime Minister being aware [of allegations] before any appointment.' Mr Johnson made Mr Pincher deputy chief whip in February this year, moving him from his role as Housing Minister. It was a return to a position he had previously quit in 2017 after The Mail on Sunday revealed that a former Olympic rower had accused him of an unwanted sexual pass. But an internal party inquiry subsequently concluded he had not breached the code of conduct. On Friday, Downing Street defended the decision to return him to the role, saying it was 'not appropriate to stop an appointment on the basis of unsubstantiated allegations' at the time. In his resignation letter, Mr Pincher admitted that he had 'drunk far too much' and 'embarrassed myself and other people' at the Carlton Club on Wednesday night. Last night, fresh accounts emerged of his conduct, with one of the two alleged victims coming forward to claim Mr Pincher groped his left buttock before moving his hand around to his groin. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the man told The Sunday Times: 'I had my drink in my hand and then he then went down and grabbed my a*** and then slowly... moved his hand down the front of my groin. I froze a little bit and it ended after about two or three seconds.' However, The Mail on Sunday has been told that in 2020, Mr Johnson told aides: 'He's handsy, that's a problem. Pincher by name, pincher by nature' The man, said to be in his mid-twenties, criticised Ms Dines, another whip whom he said witnessed the incident, for asking if he was gay. He said: 'I was a bit taken aback by that and said, 'What's that got to do with it but yes, I am.' And her words were, 'Well, that doesn't make it straightforward.' She saw everything, which is why I am so angry'. Friends of Dines told the Sunday Times she was attempting to establish exactly what had happened and that she later reported the incident to her superiors, proving she took the matter seriously. Other witnesses said Mr Pincher appeared 'extremely drunk'. He was told to leave, but refused, until Mark Fletcher, the Tory MP for Bolsover, physically removed him from the building. Conservative MPs have told this newspaper that Mr Pincher being inebriated at the club was a 'familiar sight' On May 10, he was offered water by fellow drinkers who were concerned about his slurring: one said that he had boasted that evening about loving 'the power' of his job. It is also understood that two months ago the Prime Minister was told of claims Mr Pincher had made unwanted advances towards a fellow Tory MP Downing Street had suggested the Prime Minister considered the matter closed after Mr Pincher's resignation as deputy chief whip on Thursday. The decision to suspend him as a Tory MP was only taken the following day after a formal complaint was lodged with the Commons conduct watchdog. Last night Mr Pincher said he 'respected' the Prime Minister's decision to suspend the whip and has pledged to 'co-operate fully' with an inquiry into his behaviour. He added in a statement: 'As I told the Prime Minister, I drank far too much on Wednesday night, embarrassing myself and others and I am truly sorry for the upset I caused. 'The stresses of the last few days, coming on top of those over the last several months, have made me accept that I will benefit from professional medical support. 'I am in the process of seeking that now, and I hope to be able to return to my constituency duties as soon as possible.' A spokesman for Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said: 'While we do not comment on specific cases, the Speaker has been assured that the member in question will not attend the Parliamentary estate for the foreseeable future.' The 'Poundshop Weinstein' with a history of inappropriate behaviour Chris Pincher's career has been dogged by inappropriate behaviour towards men, especially when he has held roles overseeing party discipline. His resignation as deputy chief whip is the second time he has had to quit a disciplinary role over allegations of sexual misconduct towards men. In 2017 he stepped down as an assistant whip and referred himself to police after The Mail on Sunday revealed how he made a pass at former Olympic rower and Tory activist Alex Story while dressed in a bathrobe. Pincher (right) was sent in to handle party discipline in February after running a 'shadow whipping campaign' for the PM. But reports today suggest that he was not given the top job of chief whip because of allegations about his conduct. Mr Pincher is said to have attempted to untuck Mr Storys shirt after persuading him to come back to his London home. Mr Story, who competed in the 1996 Olympics, said Mr Pincher poured him a whisky, massaged his neck and whispered: Youll go far in the Conservative Party. Mr Pincher then disappeared into another room and returned in a bathrobe like a poundshop Harvey Weinstein, with his chest and belly sticking out, at which point Mr Story, who was 26 at the time, left. A Tory Party investigation later cleared him of wrongdoing. Walsall-born Pincher has been a Tory since he was 18, having previously claimed he was politicised by the 1984-5 Miner's Strike. He worked for Sir Iain Duncan Smith's leadership team in 2001 and made several attempts to win a seat for the Tories before taking Tamworth in 2010. It had been held by Labour since 1997. He went on to become a housing minister and Foreign Office Minister, as well as a senior whip. He was sent in to handle party discipline in February after running a 'shadow whipping campaign' for the PM as he successfully fought off attempts to get rid of him over Partygate in the winter. But reports today suggest that he was not given the top job of chief whip (which went to Chris Heaton-Harris) because of allegations about his conduct. But he was still given a senior role. He has also faced criticism over non-sexual behaviour. In 2019 Tory MP Johnny Mercer received a 'full and unreserved apology' from the then Chief Whip Julian Smith after Pincher was alleged to have tried to persuade an ex-serviceman to provide 'dirt' on the former Army captain. The Daily Mail revealed how Mr Pincher had been accused of seeking damaging information on Mr Mercer after meeting a former colleague of his for a drink. Another former soldier, Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Tom Tughendhat, made similar allegations amid jostling within the party to replace then PM Theresa May. Advertisement 'Pincher by name, pincher by nature': How Boris Johnson allegedly described disgraced Tory MP before going on to make him Deputy Chief Whip By Glen Owen Political Editor When Chris Pincher wrote in his resignation letter to Boris Johnson that he had 'drunk far too much' and 'embarrassed myself' at the Carlton Club on Wednesday evening, it made it sound as if it was one-off aberration. But members of the Tory MPs' club in London's St James's had become used to seeing Mr Pincher in a state of late-evening disrepair: on another night at the club in May, a fellow drinker told The Mail on Sunday that Mr Pincher was 'all over the place' and they begged him to drink water in an effort to sober him up. 'He slurred about how much how he loved the power of being Deputy Chief Whip,' the witness said. 'There were a lot of other MPs there looking very embarrassed about it.' Few of his colleagues were surprised by Mr Pincher's announcement yesterday that he was seeking 'professional medical support' in the wake of his disgrace, having grown used to trading stories about the MP which were striking in their similarities. When Chris Pincher wrote in his resignation letter to Boris Johnson that he had 'drunk far too much' and 'embarrassed myself' at the Carlton Club on Wednesday evening, it made it sound as if it was one-off aberration The Mail on Sunday was the first newspaper to publish a story about Mr Pincher's behaviour, revealing five years ago how Alex Story, a former Olympic rower turned Conservative activist, had been the subject of unwelcome attention from Mr Pincher, later describing him as a 'pound-shop Harvey Weinstein'. Mr Pincher, 52, quit the Whips Office after the story appeared, but returned within two months following an internal party inquiry which concluded that 'there has not been a breach of the code of conduct'. Mr Pincher has been accused of impropriety with a current No 10 aide denied by both men and of 'touching up' former Labour MP Tom Blenkinsop, who is said to have told him to 'f*** off'. Mr Pincher was also said to have made unwanted advances to a Tory MP and when he was rebuffed was accused of being linked to a phone call subsequently made to the MP's wife containing unfounded allegations of a sexual nature about the MP. Mr Pincher has denied these claims. It was against this backdrop that Mr Pincher's name was raised in Downing Street in January 2020 as a possible replacement for Mark Spencer as Chief Whip in the reshuffle which took place the following month. The discussion a senior member of Mr Johnson's inner circle claims that the Prime Minister said of Mr Pincher: 'He's handsy, that's a problem. Pincher by name, pincher by nature' could be seen in the light of Wednesday's events as inappropriately dismissive; one of the main complaints of young staff working in Parliament is that offensive or even illegal behaviour by MPs is often treated as just 'jolly gossip'. A separate source claimed that Mr Johnson had also noted to aides that he had the 'support of all the sex pests' in the Tory Party as backers for his successful 2019 leadership bid, including Charlie Elphicke, who was sentenced to two years in prison for sexual assault in July 2020; Ross Thomson, who was cleared in October 2020 of allegations of groping young men, and Mr Pincher. 'He was basically joking that he had cornered the market in sex pests,' said the source. Given his reputation, Mr Pincher's appointment as deputy to Chief Whip Chris Heaton-Harris raised eyebrows across Westminster. It was nearly even more surprising: a four-hour delay in his appointment being announced can now be explained as a successful blocking operation by Steve Barclay, the PM's chief of staff, to stop Mr Johnson from appointing Mr Pincher as the Chief Whip. Mr Barclay is reported to have contacted the propriety and ethics team in the Cabinet Office to ask for their advice on the idea after he was contacted by an MP who questioned Mr Pincher's suitability for the position. The presumption within the party is that Mr Johnson wanted to reward his loyalty, and in particular for the unofficial whipping operation which Mr Pincher ran to drum up support for him during the Partygate rows. Mr Barclay will have felt quietly vindicated when he read the accounts of Wednesday evening, with one witness saying that Mr Pincher was seen 'staggering around the bar lurching towards young men and propositioning them', before being 'frog-marched' out of the club by two Tory MPs and put in a taxi. One observer said: 'The guy was so drunk, he could barely speak and was unable to tell the driver where he lived. We had to look it up for him. It was embarrassing to watch and completely out of order.' Mr Johnson agreed to withdraw the whip following a conversation with an MP who had been with one of Mr Pincher's alleged victims, which 'was sufficiently disturbing to make the PM feel more troubled by all this', a source said. Last night, one of the two men allegedly assaulted in the Carlton Club told the Sunday Times: 'I had my drink in my hand and then he went down and grabbed my a*** and then slowly moved his hand down the front of my groin,' he claimed. 'I froze a little bit and it ended after about two or three seconds.' The question being asked across the Conservative Party this weekend is whether Tamworth MP Mr Pincher's plea to be allowed to rebuild his health and career while an inquiry is under way will stall calls from restive backbenchers, led by powerful Boris-sceptics such as former Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley, for Mr Pincher to be kicked out of the Commons altogether. Some Tory MPs were irritated by attempts by No 10 to muster sympathy for Mr Pincher on the grounds that he had lost his career Some Tory MPs were irritated by attempts by No 10 to muster sympathy for Mr Pincher on the grounds that he had lost his career, with one aide comparing the stress he was suffering to that of Dr David Kelly, the weapons expert who killed himself after he was exposed as the source of a BBC report that the Blair government's official dossier on weapons of mass destruction had been 'sexed up'. Mr Pincher has no plans to show his face in Parliament for a while, A spokesperson for Sir Lindsay Hoyle said last night that the Speaker had been 'assured that the Member in question will not attend the parliamentary estate for the foreseeable future'. If the police become involved, Sir Lindsay is likely to turn the voluntary move into a formal ban. It is yet another mis-step on sleaze by a Government which, in the past six months has seen one Conservative MP arrested for rape, a second facing allegations of taking cocaine and groping aides, a third convicted of having sexually assaulted a teenage boy and a fourth admitting watching porn in the Commons. Two of the cases triggered by-elections which the party lost badly last month, further destabilising Mr Johnson's rocky leadership. He doesn't want to risk a third one in Tamworth. 'I'm surprised he has been able to get away with it for so long': More complaints made about disgraced Tory MP Chris Pincher as alleged victim claims 'lecherous' behaviour ten years ago left him feeling 'disgusted and uncomfortable' By Georgia Edkins Whitehall Correspondent Disgraced MP Chris Pincher was last night at the centre of explosive new claims about his behaviour, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. In disturbing testimonies, two further people have come forward to tell how the former Deputy Chief Whip's 'lecherous' advances left them feeling disgusted and uncomfortable. One alleged victim said he received unwanted sexual attention from Mr Pincher ten years ago when he was in his early 20s at an event in London. Meanwhile a former parliamentary researcher has revealed the MP threatened to report her to her boss when she tried to block his pestering of a young man at Conservative Party conference in 2013. Last night, his alleged victim who has chosen to remain anonymous, said he was appalled that Mr Pincher had been able to continue targeting young men. Disgraced MP Chris Pincher was last night at the centre of explosive new claims about his behaviour, The Mail on Sunday can reveal He said: 'I am shocked that he has been able to get away with it for so long. He's obviously got a drinking problem, he drinks and then does these things.' In another blow to Mr Pincher, the former parliamentary researcher described how she was sitting with the MP and a young man in his early 20s at a post-conference event when the MP started making 'lingering verbal and visual advances' towards him. Speaking exclusively to The Mail on Sunday last night, she said: 'Chris kept making visual and verbal suggestions and I could tell the guy was getting a bit uncomfortable, so he and I started chatting a lot more. 'He was both eyeing him up and making comments about how the guy looked. We were chatting almost in a weird way to make it clear that the guy wasn't in that space, and Chris just seemed to get jealous and angry. 'I made some kind of jokey remark towards Chris, not about the situation because I wouldn't dare he was an MP but it was really funny, really light hearted and he turned around and snapped and said, 'Who is your boss?'.' In disturbing testimonies, two further people have come forward to tell how the former Deputy Chief Whip's 'lecherous' advances left them feeling disgusted and uncomfortable For the former researcher, who now works in a different sector, Mr Pincher's behaviour was an example of a flagrant 'abuse of power'. She said: 'That phrase kept going through my mind, it was an abuse of power. I just kept thinking how nasty he was when he felt that I was in anyway some kind of competition. It was weird.' She added: 'The irony of someone who is a whip having control over people's secrets when in fact he was in that position himself, I remember thinking how ironic that was. There was just no way people didn't know about it. Everyone knew about it.' Yesterday, a young Conservative activist told how the former Deputy Chief Whip put his hand on his knee and told him he would 'go far in the party' at an event held during the Conservative Party conference in October. He said: 'It is shocking he was anywhere near the whips' office.' Allegations about Pincher's conduct go as far back as 2001, when he is alleged to have acted inappropriately with Olympic rower and Tory activist Alex Story. The fresh claims are likely to widen the scope of an official parliamentary probe launched on Friday. At least three people were killed and hundreds of homes damaged in what appeared to be a Ukrainian airstrike on Russian border city Belgorod early this morning. Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov claimed several explosions hit the city of nearly 400,000, which lies 25 miles (40km) north of the border with Ukraine. At least 11 apartment buildings and 39 houses were damaged, including five entirely destroyed, Gladkov said via messaging app Telegram. Footage shot by eyewitness in the early hours this morning showed smoke rising from the city 'The sound was so strong that I jumped up, I woke up, got very scared and started screaming,' a resident of the city told Reuters. They added that the blasts took place at around 3am (midnight GMT). 'The missile hit residential buildings about 20 metres from my house,' the resident said. 'All the windows in our house were shattered, the doors came out of alignment.' Senior Russian lawmaker Andrei Klishas accused Ukraine of shelling Belgorod and called for a stern response. Images show emergency services clearing the blast zone in Belgorod, 25 miles from Ukraine Five homes were destroyed in the 3am 'attack' and at least 11 apartment blocks were damaged Witness footage shows another angle on the apparent Ukrainian airstrike on Belgorod Emergency service crews were filmed sprinting to the scene of the apparent strike 'The death of civilians and the destruction of civilian infrastructure in Belgorod are a direct act of aggression on the part of Ukraine and require the most severe - including a military - response,' Klishas wrote on Telegram. Moscow has accused Kyiv of numerous attacks on Belgorod and other regions bordering Ukraine since Russia's February 24 invasion. Ukraine has not claimed responsibility but has described the incidents as payback and 'karma' for Russia's actions. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine and Reuters could not independently verify the Russian accounts. Video taken early this morning shows a huge ball of fire above the strategic Russian town The Russian city populated by 400,000 showed significant battle scars earlier today Meanwhile in the Russian-occupied southern Ukraine city of Melitopol, Ukrainian forces hit a military base with more than 30 strikes on Sunday, the city's exiled mayor said in a video address on Telegram. The base had been 'taken out of action,' Ivan Fedorov said. A Moscow-installed official said several private residential houses near the airfield were damaged. 'Shells fell on the territory of the airfield. 'There were no casualties,' Evgeny Balitsky, head of the Russia-installed council in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, wrote on Telegram. The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said its air force had flown some 15 sorties 'in virtually all directions of hostilities.' Russian troops hastily abandoned Snake Island on Thursday, just days after Ukraine's armed forces launched a crippling rocket attack on the outpost, leaving behind equipment 'About 20 units of enemy equipment and two field ammunition depots were destroyed.' Thousands of civilians have been killed and cities leveled since Russia invaded in what Ukraine its Western allies say is an unprovoked war of aggression. Russia denies targeting civilians in what President Vladimir Putin calls a 'special military operation' to demilitarize and 'denazify' its neighbor. Russia is focused on driving Ukrainian forces out of Luhansk and Donetsk provinces in the Donbas, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Kyiv since Russia's first military intervention in Ukraine in 2014. Ukrainian troops describe intense artillery barrages on residential areas, especially around Lysychansk, the last holdout city in Luhansk. 'The Russians are strengthening their positions in the Lysychansk area, the city is on fire,' Luhansk Governor Serhiy Gaidai said on Telegram. 'They attacked the city with inexplicably brutal tactics.' Rodion Miroshnik, ambassador to Russia of the pro-Moscow self-styled Luhansk People's Republic, told Russian television, 'Lysychansk has been brought under control,' but added: 'Unfortunately, it is not yet liberated.' Russian media showed video of Luhansk militia parading in Lysychansk streets waving flags and cheering, but Ukraine National Guard spokesman Ruslan Muzychuk told Ukrainian television the city remained in Ukrainian hands. 'Now there are fierce battles near Lysychansk, however, fortunately, the city is not surrounded and is under the control of the Ukrainian army,' Muzychuk said. Aleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said Russian forces had finally crossed the Siverskiy Donets river and were approaching the city from the north. 'This is indeed a threat. We shall see. I do not rule out any one of a number of outcomes here. Things will become much more clear within a day or two,' he said. 'The more Western weapons come to the front, the more the picture changes in favor of Ukraine.' Ukraine has repeatedly appealed for more weapons from the West, saying its forces are heavily outgunned. Troops on a break from the fighting in Konstyantynivka, a market town about 115 km (70 miles) west of Lysychansk, said they had managed to keep the supply road to the embattled city open despite Russian bombardment. 'We still use the road because we have to, but it's within artillery range of the Russians,' said one soldier as comrades relaxed nearby, munching on sandwiches or eating ice cream. 'The Russian tactic right now is to just shell any building we could locate ourselves at. When they've destroyed it, they move on to the next one,' he said. Far from the eastern fighting, Russia said it had hit army command posts in Mykolaiv near the vital Black Sea port of Odesa, where the mayor on Saturday had reported a number of powerful explosions. 'The Russian occupiers are launching systematic rocket attacks in the direction of Mykolaiv,' Ukraine's general staff said on Sunday. Ukrainian authorities said another missile slammed into an apartment block near Odesa on Friday, killing at least 21 people. A shopping mall was hit on Monday in the central city of Kremenchuk, killing at least 19. A man has drowned after his kayak capsized in floodwaters as Australia's east coast is smashed with severe rainfall. Emergency services rushed to the scene in Abbotsford, on the Parramatta River in Sydney just after 2.45pm on Sunday where they found man struggling to stay afloat. A member of the public tried desperately to rescue the man before authorities arrived but he succumbed to the rising water and died at the scene. 'Police are conducting inquiries to identify the man and will prepare a report for the Coroner,' NSW Police said. It comes as millions of residents have been told to stay home and put their travel plans on hold as 'life-threatening' storms batter NSW. More than 500,000 people were urged to evacuate flood-prone areas before they became trapped by rapidly rising floodwater. Emergency Services and Resilience and Flood Recovery Minister Steph Cooke has asked residents not to assume they are safe from floods - even if they were in 2021. Camden, Woronora, Chipping Norton, Georges Hill, Lansvale, Moorebank, and Warwick Farm residents were told to leave immediately. 'If you remain in the area you may be trapped without power, water and other essential services and it may be too dangerous to rescue you,' the SES warned. A man has drowned after his kayak capsized in floodwaters as Australia's east coast is smashed with severe rainfall (pictured, a local walks past an inundated by floodwaters in Camden) Millions of residents have been told to stay home and put their travel plans on hold as 'life-threatening' storms batter NSW (pictured, an abandoned car trapped in floodwaters at Lansvale in western Sydney on Sunday) Evacuation orders were later issued for parts of North Richmond East, Ebenezer, Sackville North, and Leets Vale on the southern side of the Hawkesbury River. RIVER LEVELS ACROSS NSW ON SUNDAY: MENANGLE: Nepean River at Menangle Bridge peaked at 16.61m at about 7:50am on Sunday and is currently at 14.98m and falling, with major flooding. CAMDEN: Nepean River at Camden Weir peaked at 12.72m at about 2pm on Sunday and is currently at 12.68m and falling, with moderate flooding. WALLACIA: The Nepean River at Wallacia Weir may reach around 13m on Sunday evening, with major flooding. PENRITH: The Nepean River at Penrith is currently at 9.21m and peaking, with moderate flooding. NORTH RICHMOND: Hawkesbury River at North Richmond (WPS) may reach around 15m Sunday evening, with major flooding. WINDSOR: Hawkesbury River at Windsor (WPS) may reach around 13.3m during Monday with major flooding. SACKVILLE: Hawkesbury River at Sackville reach the major flood level (9.70m) Monday night into Tuesday. LOWER PORTLAND: Hawkesbury River at Lower Portland may exceed the minor flood level (4.6m) overnight Sunday into Monday. The river level may reach 7.3m on Monday morning with moderate flooding. WISEMANS FERRY: Hawkesbury River at Wisemans Ferry may reach around 4.2m during Tuesday with major flooding. PUTTY ROAD: Colo River at Putty Road may exceed the minor flood level (2.7m) on Sunday evening. The river level may reach the moderate flood level (5.7m) on Sunday night. Source: NSW Incident Alerts Advertisement East Hills, Picnic Point, Penrith, Emu Plains, Mulgoa, Jamisontown, North Richmond, Pitt Town, Cornwallis and Cattai have been sent evacuation warnings. More than three times the average July rainfall has so far fallen in some parts of NSW this weekend, with the SES receiving more than 1,800 calls for help and rescuing 29 people from flash flooding over the past 24 hours. Defence force helicopters are on standby to help with rescue efforts if residents become trapped with no way to escape. The Bureau of Meteorology's Jane Golding said the system delivering this downpour would be 'at it's worst' on Sunday night. 'That system comes, it crosses the coast before midnight, it looks like, from the guidance, and then it will start to weaken,' she said. The meteorologist said once the weather system comes ashore, it will take some time to weaken, but would be gentler on Monday. Minister Cooke has urged residents to check updated weather warnings before they went to bed on Sunday night and keep in contact with their neighbours. She said the floods were 'a life-threatening emergency situation' and said emergency services had responded to 83 flood rescues in the last 24 hours. 'If your community has flooded in the past, please don't necessarily wait for an evacuation order,' she said. 'If you were safe in 2021, do not assume you will be safe tonight. This is a rapidly evolving situation, and we could very well see areas impacted that have never experienced flooding before.' Ms Cooke said the region was facing a number of challenges, namely coastal erosion, flash flooding, riverine flooding and landslips. 'Don't put your life at risk or the lives of your loved ones at risk and the lives at risk of our emergency services volunteers who are turning out in force,' she said. 'It was a long night last night. It's been a very long day today, and tonight will be another long night for our emergency services workers and our volunteers.' NSW SES Commissioner Carlene York said emergency kits should be prepared now incase residents had to evacuate during the night when meteorologists warn the rain will intensify. More than 500,000 people were urged to evacuate flood-prone areas before they became trapped by rapidly rising floodwater (pictured, a weather map of NSW) Floodwaters have hit Camden forcing thousands to flee the suburb in south-west Sydney A submerged petrol station as floodwaters continued to rise in Camden on Sunday Ms York said water levels at the Hawkesbury, Nepean and Georges rivers could peak at higher levels than in previous floods over the last 18 months. 'Just because it got to the front doorstep on the last floods doesn't mean it won't escalate overnight,' she said, adding conditions could get 'significantly worse'. The Bureau of Meteorology had a severe weather warning in place for heavy rain leading to flash flooding, winds up to 90km/h and damaging surf along the coast on Sunday afternoon. There are now 41 evacuation orders in place across NSW and 43 evacuation warnings, affecting at least 32,000 people. The Hawkesbury-Nepean River has also exceeded major flood levels while the Warragamba Dam is now spilling at a rate of 500 gigalitres per day - after it exceeded capacity earlier than expected and began spilling at 2am on Sunday. The Nepean River at Wallacia in the state's west exceeded its major flood level of 11m just before 6pm, with predictions levels could rise to 13m. Sydney Harbour was impacted by heavy swells on Sunday as parts of NSW received more than their monthly average rainfall within hours this weekend (pictured, the Manly Ferry) People stand on a rock ledge as huge swells hit the headland at Bondi Beach on Sunday Major flooding is also occurring at Menangle and North Richmond with Windsor, Sackville and Wiseman's Ferry also forecast to flood. In Menangle, in the Macarthur Region, levels have exceeded the flood height reached in March (15.92m) and peaked slightly below those in April (16.83m). The river peaked at 16.1m just before 8am on Sunday and is currently at 14.98m and falling. Minister Cooke said an east coast low formed over the coast of NSW and expected the heavy rainfall and flash flooding to continue until at least Tuesday. 'For Sydney, the Central Coast and the South Coast, and the Illawarra, we are now facing dangers on multiple fronts - flash flooding, riverine flooding and coastal erosion,' she said. Brave Sydneysiders watched as huge swells hit the headland at Bondi Beach on Sunday A marquee is almost totally submerged in floodwaters in Camden, south-west Sydney The minister earlier on Sunday asked residents to postpone travel along the central and south coast of NSW as wet and wild conditions continue. 'To all communities between Newcastle and Batemans Bay, I am respectfully asking that you reconsider your travel plans at this time,' she said. 'Please stay home if you can. It is really not the time to travel if you are in those areas that are impacted. 'While I absolutely accept that it couldn't come at a worse time for a lot of people and a lot of families, at the end of the day we want everyone to be safe and if that means that you need to reconsider where you go for your holiday, perhaps postpone it or delay just even by a few days.' Several roads are closed around the state with Richmond Bridge, Windsor, and Yarramundi bridges closed in both direction in north-west Sydney. Flood waters have almost risen above Windsor Bridge with the heavy rain set to continue until at least Tuesday Residents cut off from roads as floodwaters in Camden, south-west Sydney, make it impossible to access Residents left stranded as heavy rain continued to fall and flood waters rose in Camden Newbridge Road and Milperra Road are closed between Nancy Ellis Leebold Drive and Governor Macquarie Drive. Henry Lawson Drive is closed between Milperra Road and the Hume Highway, and between Wester Street And Cheatle Street. Camden was one of the towns worst hit by the floods with the deputy mayor saying floods had become too common - after it was ravaged by flooding earlier this year. 'It's devastating. It's the worst kind of deja vu imaginable,' Paul Farrow said. 'Here we are finding ourselves, for a fourth time, facing it again.' Ms York earlier on Sunday urged residents to brace for the worst, shore up their homes with sandbags, and head to their closest evacuation centre. 'If you think you need sandbagging, go to your area that is on the SES website or the local council website where you can get your sandbags and stop preparation for your property,' she said. 'Have an emergency evacuation kit ready with your documents and have some - if you are in an isolated area - food, water. 'Look after your domestic animals and make sure that you have a plan and try and ring family and friends and organise where you might go if you do need to evacuate.' Flooded amusement park at Camden, in south-west Sydney, following heavy rainfall on Sunday Inundated waste bins in Camden, south-western Sydney, as wild weather batters the state Evacuation orders across NSW The NSW SES has issued several evacuation orders across the state: -Parts of Oakville (Saunders Road) -Southern end of Pitt Town -Northern part of Windsor -Parts of Ebenezer -North Richmond East -Parts of Ebenezer -Pitt Town Bottoms -Parts of Cattai -Cornwallis and the eastern part of Richmond Lowlands -Parts of Pitt Town -Low-lying areas of Agnes Banks -Gronos Point -Plough and Harrow Dam -Parts of Pleasure Point -Parts of Wallacia -Parts of Camden and Ellis Lane -Low-lying parts of Woronora -Parts of Chipping Norton -Parts of Georges Hall -Parts of Lansvale -Parts of Moorebank -Parts of Warwick Farm -Low-lying parts of Freemans Reach Advertisement Evacuation centres have been set up at Cabra-Vale Diggers Club in Canley Vale, the Narellan Family and Community Centre, Gymea Tradies Club, Richmond Club and North Richmond Community Centre. Ms York urged residents to steer clear of floods and not attempt to travel through them. 'It is extremely dangerous out there. Stay out of the floodwaters, and we always warn don't drive through floodwater and particularly don't walk through them or allow children to play near them,' she said. 'There is no room for the rain to stay in the dams, and they are starting to spill. The rivers are flowing fast and dangerous and then there is the risk of flash flooding depending on where the rains are. 'There are a lot of risks the community needs to be aware of, and I ask you to heed the warning.' Shellharbour recorded 193mm of rainfall, 3.2 times its July average rainfall, Albion Park measured 172mm, 3.1 times its average, and Beaumont 161mm, 1.6 times the average, over the past two days. Major flooding hit Menangle in Macarthur, southwest of Sydney, with river levels exceeding those seen in March this year. Riverine flooding is also expected along the Hawkesbury and Colo Rivers from Sunday, with major flooding at North Richmond possible from the afternoon. Authorities are confident they are ready to help NSW residents caught out by the wild weather, and avoid a repeat of their heavily criticised flood response earlier this year. Defence force helicopters and troops are on standby and emergency services personnel are working around the clock. A children's playground half underwater as heavy rain battered the state More than 500,000 residents across south-west Sydney have been warned to evacuate as flash flooding and heavy rain batters NSW NSW SES warned residents who remained behind in areas with evacuation orders risked becoming trapped by rising floodwaters It comes as more than three times the average rainfall has fallen in some parts of NSW over the weekend, with more than 1,000 calls for help made to emergency services and defence force helicopters on standby to help with rescue efforts. Road closures across the state Several major roads have been closed as residents are warned to stay indoors and avoid travelling. Windsor Bridge is closed between Wilberforce Road and George Street in both directions. North Richmond: Richmond Bridge is closed in both directions. Yarramundi: Yarramundi Bridge is closed in both directions. Milperra: Newbridge Road/Milperra Road is closed between Nancy Ellis Leebold Drive and Governor Macquarie Drive. Georges Hall: Henry Lawson Drive is closed between Milperra Road and the Hume Highway. East Hills: Henry Lawson Drive is closed between Wester Street and Cheatle Street. Between Narrabeen and Oxford Falls: Wakehurst Parkway is closed in both directions. Oxford Falls Road is closed. Manly: Buses are replacing ferries. Royal National Park: Audley Weir is closed in both directions. Advertisement The cold front battering the state's east coast is forecast to get worse before it gets better, with wild winds, rough seas, and heavy rain expected to last until Monday. With three flood rescues carried out on Friday and Saturday, people were urged to avoid non-essential trips as the deluge put a dampener on the opening weekend of the NSW school holidays. Flooding is also possible for the Hunter, Central Coast, Sydney, and the south coast, with flood watches in place for catchments between Newcastle and Batemans Bay, including Sydney and the Illawarra. Areas at risk include Newcastle, the Central Coast, Lake Macquarie, and the Upper Coxs, Colo, Macdonald, Woronora, Patterson, Williams, and Lower Hunter rivers. A severe weather warning for damaging winds and heavy rainfall was in place on Sunday for Sydney, the Illawarra, and parts of the Hunter, Central Tablelands, and Southern Tablelands forecast districts. The Upper and Lower Nepean and Hawkesbury rivers are also causing concern as already-soaked catchments endure another lengthy drenching. Dramatic footage shows the moment a terrified young woman was rescued from surging floods as wild weather wreaked havoc in NSW on Saturday night. A severe weather warning for damaging winds and heavy rainfall was in place on Sunday for Sydney's metropolitan areas, the Illawarra, and parts of the Hunter, Central Tablelands, and Southern Tablelands forecast districts The woman, believed to be in her 20s, desperately clung to a tree as the freezing current ripped at her after she was swept away by the treacherous waters. Emergency workers bravely fought to save her and managed get a lifeline to her before plucking her to safety in Holsworthy, southwest Sydney, on Saturday night. 'Please be ready to evacuate on short notice,' NSW Emergency Services Minister Stephanie Cooke said. 'Please ensure that you prepare your properties as best you can and if in any doubt, please evacuate earlier. 'Don't necessarily wait for us to put out an order, asking or suggesting that you leave.' The terrified woman clung to a tree as she was battered by flood waters in southwestern Sydney Around 500,000 residents in southwest Sydney have been told to evacuate as the heavy rain pounding the NSW east coast triggered multiple flood warnings The terrified young woman was rescued from surging floods as wild weather continued to wreak havoc in NSW on Saturday night The SES warned: 'If you receive a text message from +61 444 444 444, it's an official alert that requires attention and to take action early.' Authorities also fear that Sydney's main water source, the Warragamba Dam, could overflow and unleash widespread flooding as the deluge smashed a 118-year record. Ambulance, fire, police and SES personnel desperately tried to find one man who was washed away in the Hacking River near Otford, in the Illawarra, south of Sydney. A rural firefighter spotted the man in a nearby creek, and got in the rising icy waters to pull him to safety onto the riverbank. Additional RFS crew members then helped him up to higher ground, where he was assessed for injuries and taken to hospital Another nine people were also rescued from flood waters in Austral, southwest Sydney, when two cars were stranded in rising waters, 'The two cars were in approximately 40cm of water, which is enough to be very dangerous,' the Rural Fire Service said. 'The occupants from two vehicles were assisted to higher ground by our members and they have gone home safely.' Authorities warned earlier on Saturday the wet weather was only going to get worse, with more rain, powerful winds, and surging seas expected. Ambulance, fire, police and SES personnel desperately tried to find a man who was washed away in the Hacking River near Otford, in Illawarra region, south of Sydney The federal government approved ADF support at the request of NSW on Friday night, with 100 troops and two helicopters available from Sunday onwards, Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said. 'I want to assure people that the federal government is 100 per cent prepared for what might lie ahead,' Senator Watt said from Brisbane on Saturday. 'One of the things that we've learned over the last couple of years is that when we don't have a federal government that takes responsibility and isn't proactive, bad things can happen.' The Bureau of Meteorology's Jane Golding said there would be a 'deterioration' of weather overnight, with a risk of flash flooding and landslips. 'The rainfall rates will increase,' she said. 'We'll start to see the wind increase as well. We'll see the seas whipped up and we'll see the rivers respond to the rain that's falling.' NSW Emergency Minister Steph Cooke said flash flooding could occur anywhere from Newcastle to Jervis Bay Torrential rain, flash flooding, landslides, damaging winds and power outages are all threatening Sydney and NSW residents More than 200mm of rain fell south of Wollongong overnight, with between 80 and 150mm falling on Sydney and the Illawarra in just six hours. The Illawarra district was hit by its heaviest July rainfall since 1904. The deluge is on the first weekend of school holidays, and drivers were urged to take extra care. 'We know floodwater is extremely dangerous, especially for drivers. If the road is flooded, turn around and find another way,' Transport for NSW's Roger Weeks said. Routes in and out of Sydney are likely to face congestion, with heavy traffic expected at known pinch-points, particularly around the airport. Hazardous surf conditions and the potential for coastal erosion are also expected. The Bureau of Meteorology issued a severe weather alert for metropolitan Sydney, Illawarra and parts of the South Coast, Central Tablelands and Southern Tablelands on Saturday morning One of Russia's leading scientists has died less than two days after he was dragged out of a cancer bed and locked up on charges of high treason. Dr Dmitry Kolker, 54, was flown across Russia from Novosibirsk, where he taught quantum physics and maths, to Moscow's notorious Lefortovo Prison on Friday. After 48 hours, the leading laser scientist died, his family announced today. He was under the watch of state security service the FSB, once led by Vladimir Putin. Kolker, who suffered stage 4 pancreatic cancer and was too ill for chemotherapy, is cared for by his mother. The FSB claims it had medical authorisation to detain the world-leading scientist Dr Kolker poses for a snap with daughter Alina, who said her family is 'going through total hell' Dr Kolker's family accused the FSB of 'torture' and abusing the doctor's human rights by pulling him out of his death bed. He had stage 4 pancreatic cancer. The FSB claimed it had medical authorisation to unplug him from his hospital drip and lock him up as part of a major spy probe. The scientist was accused of leading a pro-China spy ring alongside Professor Anatoly Maslov, 75, a hypersonic technologies teacher. Maslov remains in Lefortovo, which became famous during Stalin's Great Purge of political opponents, businessmen and scientists. Dr Kolker was held at infamous Lefortovo Prison, associated with Stalin's 1930s Great Purge Dr Kolker (right) poses with musician son Maxim (left), who insisted his father was not a spy An academic who knew Kolker said: 'Putin is seeing spies everywhere. 'Top scientists were officially urged to collaborate with top foreign partners [and] did so. 'Now they are being accused of espionage.' Dr Kolker was head of Novosibirsk State University's quantum optical technologies laboratory. A slim-looking Kolker is pictured in a recent photo shortly before his fatal detainment He was regarded as a world expert on lasers, having previously collaborated with the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxford. Kolker was too ill for chemotherapy when he was detained. His daughter Alina Mironova, 29, said after his arrest in late June: 'Our family is going through total hell. 'Our father cannot pass away surrounded by his family members.' The scientist's son Maxim, 22, said his father had travelled to China on a lecturing trip. But the scientist - also a talented musician - was accompanied all the time by an FSB agent who approved every word of his lectures, he said. They strongly denied he had passed state secrets on lasers to China. Dr Maslov, chief researcher at the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, part of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, is accused of transmitting hypersonic state secrets to a foreign power, believed to be China. Kolker's colleague Anatoly Maslov, 75, remains in custody at the notorious Moscow jail The exact nature of the alleged crime is not known but his work included hypersonic innovations for aircraft. Maslow is known to have previously worked with Boeing in America and with German and Chinese partners. Academician Vasily Fomin, scientific director of Maslov's institute, said: 'He dealt with the problems of laminar-turbulent transition, which affects the reduction of the resistance of aircraft. Kolker, pictured at an organ rehearsal in Berlin, was also a keen musician in his spare time 'At one time on the instructions of the government, everyone was forced to cooperate with foreign colleagues. 'So, Maslov worked with the American Boeing, and with the Chinese, and the Germans. 'And now scientists, it turns out, have become guilty.' Advertisement A woman has died after a shark bit off her arm and leg at a tourist hotspot in Egypt - as authorities closes sea in the surrounding area for three days. The Austrian pensioner was walking in shallow water while using a snorkel with fins not far from the beach near Hurghada and told her partner: 'I'll go back in for a moment'. The 68-year-old from Kramsach, Tyrol had been in the country for a month with her partner, an Egyptian, and was due to return home today. Horror footage then shows her clamouring toward safety with the aid of a flipper as the waters around her turned scarlet red in Sahl Hasheesh bay, south of Hurghada, in the Red Sea. Terrified onlookers tried to distract the animal, which is believed to be either a Mako or a Oceanic whitetip shark, but no one jumped in to help her. An Egyptian health official said she was then taken to the private Nile Hospital where she could not be resuscitated and is believed to have died from 'painful shock' - most likely a heart attack. Yesterday, officials at the Red Sea Governorate told reporters that area of the attack and Hurghada would be closed to all sea activity including fishing and diving. It will most likely open tomorrow to tourists again. The Austrian tourist, who was married to an Egyptian man, used a flipper to try and clamour back to shore. But she died of 'painful shock' after reportedly losing and arm and a leg The Austrian pensioner, 68, died of 'painful shock' - most likely a heart attack - after the attack at Sahl Hasheesh bay, south of Hurghada, in the Red Sea on Friday Horrified onlookers (left and right) yelled for help and tried to distract the shark, but did not jump in Worried witnesses were pictured watching as the woman received urgent care from doctors What is a Mako shark? A mako shark is a species of swift, active, and potentially dangerous sharks of the mackerel shark family. There is a shortfin and longfin species, depending on whether its open or shallow water. Adults, prized for their fighting qualities and repeated leaps out of the water, can be 4.5 metres (14.8 feet) in length and exceed 500kg (about 1,100 pounds) in weight. They prey on fishes such as herring, mackerel, and swordfish and small cetaceans. Source: Britannica Advertisement After miraculously making her way back to land, doctors gave her CPR at the scene but she died minutes later in an ambulance. Authorities closed the surrounding beaches for three days. According to Tiroler Tageszeitung, the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is in contact with relatives, including the woman's daughter, and the local authorities It said she was walking not far from the beach within the designated bathing when she was attacked and it was still unclear how the shark came so close to her. Video shows witnesses on a nearby jetty record the woman's survival attempt and comment on her predicament. A group of Russian tourists are heard saying: 'Where are the rescuers? 'F***, she's covered in blood. Holy s***. 'Where's the rescue team? 'For f****'s sake. 'Life guards? Where are the life guards? She's going to f***ing die!' The 68-year-old woman, who lost a leg and an arm, died shortly after being taken to the private Nile Hospital in Hurghada, an Egyptian health official said. She was barely alive when she was taken in on Friday, the official said, adding that attempts by medical staff to resuscitate her failed. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to reporters. The governor of the Red Sea province closed the area for three days, banning all 'sea activities' including diving, snorkelling, wind surfing and kite sailing. Fishing boats were also banned from the waters off Hurghada. A local report quoted by Russian news agency RIA Novosti added: 'The woman died in the ambulance from painful shock.' The Austrian tourist was pictured clamouring toward safety as the waters around her turned scarlet red. She used a flipper to make her way back to shore The Red Sea region around Sharm el Sheikh (pictured) is hugely popular with foreign tourists Shark attacks in the Red Sea In June 2021, a parasailer, a 37-year-old Jordanian man, was bit in the leg by a shark. In December 2020, a German woman, 42, was savaged by a shark while diving in near Marsa Alam. In October 2020 a 12-year-old Ukrainian boy on holiday in Egypt and his tour guide lost limbs after an attack by an oceanic whitetip shark. In August 2018, a 41-year-old Czech tourist died after being attacked 12 miles north of the town of Marsa Alam. In 2010, five shark attacks took place at Sharm el Sheikh in the same number of days. Advertisement Shark attacks in Egypt are rare - but the Red Sea has more than 44 species of the fish, some of which can be deadly. Most common are 6ft-long grey reef sharks, which have 13 or 14 sharp teeth. They swim in shallow waters around 60m deep or less. In June 2021, a tandem parasailer, a 37-year-old Jordanian man, was hovering above the water in Aqaba when a shark suddenly emerged and bit his leg. The man lost part of the back of his foot in the attack which also severed tendons, tore muscles and broke several bones. In December 2020, a German woman was savaged by a shark while diving in the Red Sea before instructors pulled her away to safety. The oceanic whitetip shark latched on to the woman, 42, near Marsa Alam in Egypt. The tourist was taken to hospital where she is recovering in a 'stable condition', according to the Governor for the Red Sea Amr Hanafi. In October 2020 a 12-year-old Ukrainian boy on holiday in Egypt and his tour guide lost limbs after an attack by an oceanic whitetip shark. The pair needed amputations after the vicious incident at resort Ras Muhammad in the Red Sea. And in 2010, five shark attacks took place at Sharm el Sheikh in the same number of days. Three Russians, one Ukrainian and one German tourist were injured. The German tourist, 71-year-old resort regular Renata Seifert, died of her injuries. Police officers under investigation for offences such as child sexual abuse and corruption can resign and take up other public roles elsewhere under current College of Policing guidelines. The College of Policing has two lists, active since 2017, which contains the details of individual officers dismissed after an investigation into their behaviour, usually for gross misconduct. Officers who are dismissed for gross misconduct whilst they are still employed by their police force are added to the 'barred' list, which prevents them from taking up another job in policing and certain other public jobs for at least five years. But officers who choose to resign or retire from their role while under investigation are added to the 'advisory' list - which means they could get another public-facing job in the future. Under the current system, officers who resign or retire while under investigation can seek other employment without a new employer being aware of the allegations made against them (Stock image) The latest data from 2020-2021 showed 257 officers were barred from duty in one year, with the Met Police leading the way at 50 officers Data from last year shows 38 officers were barred for abusing their position for a sexual purpose, 16 for assault, seven for child sexual offences or possessing indecent images of children and 20 for sexual misconduct or offences While the barred list is open to the public to view, and employers to check, the advisory list is not - leaving potential employers potentially unaware of the allegations against the applicant. The list is made available only to other police forces, the Home Office, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) and Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services. If an officer is dismissed after the conclusion of an investigation they are then moved to the barred list - but as investigations can take years to complete former officers can generally find alternative employment before this happens. Of the 257 officers placed on the barred list between April 2020 and March 2021, the latest data available, 46 per cent chose to resign or retire while under investigation - meaning they could seek alternative jobs before being added to the list. Data shows for some forces all officers who were eventually placed on the barred list left the force while they were under investigation - for the 2020-2021 year this included Leicestershire, Suffolk and West Mercia forces. The 257 officers barred from future policing jobs in 2020-2021 was a record high since the list began in December 2017 - and makes up just over 30 per cent of all 812 officers on the list. Reasons for dismissal included 38 officers who abused their position for a sexual purpose, 16 for assault, seven for child sexual offences or possessing indecent images of children, 20 for sexual misconduct or offences and seven for domestic abuse or harassment. The Metropolitan Police, which has just been placed in special measures, barred the most officers in 2020-2021, with 50 added to the list. An investigation into officers on the barred list by The Times found concerning examples of officers who have taken up public-facing roles while being on the advisory list. A Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer who was accused of abusing his position to strike up relationships with victims and witnesses of crime, Simon Beech, was allowed to become a safeguarding coordinator at the Royal British Legion. The charity told The Times it was not made aware of any ongoing investigation when it requested a reference for Beech, 35, from GMP. He had been suspended on full pay for two years before he resigned, and the investigation took a total of five years to complete. He was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office after he formed inappropriate relationships with two women he met while on duty, as well as pursuing relationships with a further four women. He allegedly then contacted two of the women and urged them not to speak to police. He has since left the Royal British Legion, where he worked for two-and-a-half years from 2019 to 2021. Before that he had been employed by GMP for almost 11 years. Beech's LinkedIn profile states he has experience in 'safeguarding adults and children, identifying and managing risk, investigation into criminal and safeguarding concerns, [and] covert and overt surveillance.' The Metropolitan Police is also under fire after an officer accused of predatory behaviour became a black cab driver. Phil Hunter, 58, retired during the investigation after being accused of sleeping with a suicidal woman who he met when performing a welfare check. The woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was struggling to cope after her brother took his own life. The complaint was upheld and, after the Metropolitan Police informed Transport for London that a second woman had come forward about further inappropriate behaviour, Hunter's cab license was revoked. Hunter's taxi licence was revoked in August 2021. Graham Robinson, TfL's general manager of taxi and private hire, said: 'We revoked this individual's licence as soon as we became aware of all the relevant information.' Police forces across the UK have come under fire in recent months after a spate of scandals - the most notable of which involve London's Metropolitan Police. The kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard by a serving police officer in March 2021 sparked nationwide anger, which only increased after officers arrested women at a vigil in her memory for breaking coronavirus restrictions. The force has since been found to have acted unlawfully at the vigil. There have also been multiple reports of messages between serving officers on WhatsApp containing sexist, racist and homophobic comments - including officers at Charing Cross who shared 'abhorrent' messages which included joking about domestic violence. A spokesperson for the Home Office said: 'The police must ensure their actions are beyond reproach, acting within the law, being transparent with the public and following all relevant disciplinary processes. 'As part of the Governments commitment to improving police integrity, all officers, special constables and staff members who have been dismissed from policing after investigation are placed, indefinitely, on the College of Policings published barred list. 'Since 2017, officers can now also be pursued for gross misconduct, even if they have already resigned, or retired.' Russian forces and Moscow-backed separatists claimed 'full control' of Lysychansk, the last stronghold held by Ukrainian forces in eastern region Luhansk. The apparent victory after a week of intense fighting means Russia now reigns over the key Donbas region. Claiming that the Battle of Lysychansk had come to an end this morning, Moscow's defence ministry said earlier today that it 'encircled the Ukrainian enemy' inside the city. It stated: 'Russian troops and units of the Luhansk People's Republic are fighting inside Lysychansk, completely defeating the encircled enemy.' Lysychansk is next to Severodonetsk, which Russian forces took days beforehand. A bombed-out car sits alone on a rubble-littered road in Lysychansk, Luhansk region today Russia's claim suggests the eight-year battle to control the Luhansk region is finally over A Ukrainian army handout shows a Russia-destroyed residential building in Lysychansk today The Lysychansk palace of culture is bombed out and battle-scarred after a week of fighting Before Russia's announcement, Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai wrote to followers on messaging app Telegram: 'The occupiers threw all their forces on Lysychansk. They attacked the city with incomprehensibly cruel tactics 'They suffer significant losses, but stubbornly advance. They are gaining a foothold in the city.' President Zelensky spokesman Oleksiy Arestovych also suggested the battle was likely to be over by Monday. A wrecked tank sits along the road between Lysychansk and Severodonetsk, Luhansk Plumes of smoke were seen rising high above Lysychansk as Russia upped its forces days ago Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu confirmed he had told President Putin all of Luhansk was now 'liberated' from Ukrainian forces. The Russian defense ministry added that it had struck military infrastructure in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, as well as a base used by foreign fighters on the outskirts of Mykolaiv in the country's south. Ukraine appeared to hit back overnight with a brief but fierce attack on Russian city Belgorod overnight, killing at least three people. A man sits next to piles of battle damage outside his apartment building in Severodonetsk Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov claimed several explosions hit the city of nearly 400,000, which lies 25 miles (40km) north of the border with Ukraine. At least 11 apartment buildings and 39 houses were damaged, including five entirely destroyed, Gladkov said via messaging app Telegram. 'The sound was so strong that I jumped up, I woke up, got very scared and started screaming,' a resident of the city told Reuters. They added that the blasts took place at around 3am (midnight GMT). Belgorod, southern Russia was the scene of an apparent Ukrainian airstrike late last night 'The missile hit residential buildings about 20 metres from my house,' the resident said. 'All the windows in our house were shattered, the doors came out of alignment.' Senior Russian lawmaker Andrei Klishas accused Ukraine of shelling Belgorod and called for a stern response. The number of people in hospital due to coronavirus is expected to rise further, a health chief has said, as a new spike in infections takes hold. Dame Jenny Harries has spoken out about her concerns around the ability to treat other illnesses as a result. She said it does not look as though the current wave has peaked, and urged people to 'go about their normal lives' but in a 'precautionary way'. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) chief executive's comments come days after the latest figures showed Covid-19 infections in the UK had jumped by more than half a million in a week. Dame Jenny told the BBC's Sunday Morning programme: 'It doesn't look as though that wave has finished yet, so we would anticipate that hospital cases will rise. 'And it's possible, quite likely, that they will actually peak over the previous BA.2 wave. Dame Jenny Harries appealed for people to wear masks in crowded spaces and for anyone eligible for the spring booster to come forward A nurse enters the Covid-19 Red Zone at Glan Clwyd Hospital, Wales - hospitals could see another steep rise in covid admissions, according to health experts 'But I think the overall impact, we won't know. It's easy to say in retrospect, it's not so easy to model forward.' She said the majority of cases in the UK are now BA.4 and BA.5 strains, and that the latter is 'really pushing and driving this current wave'. She added that people should 'go about their normal lives but in that precautionary way', highlighting handwashing, keeping distance where possible and wearing a face covering in enclosed, poorly ventilated places. Dame Jenny appealed to the 'nearly 20% of the 75-plus year-old group' who have not had their spring booster to come forward. She said she has not been routinely wearing a face mask, but she does routinely carry one and would wear it on the Tube and if she was with someone who was 'quite anxious' about Covid. Speaking about masks, she said: 'If I've got any respiratory infection it's a good thing to do and I think it's a new lesson for the country.' Asked if it matters that a lot of people are getting infected with Covid, she said that aside from the effect on individuals, it also 'matters on a national basis'. 'Whilst we have an armament now of vaccines and antiviral treatments, we do have, as you've just highlighted, a rise in hospital admissions and occupancy,' she said. 'And that means it's not just Covid that we're concerned about, but it's actually our ability to treat other illnesses as well.' A total of 2.3 million people in private households are estimated to have had the virus last week, up 32% from a week earlier, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This is the highest estimate for total infections since late April, but is still some way below the record of 4.9 million at the peak of the Omicron BA.2 wave at the end of March. MailOnline reported this week that health officials are expecting an 'early influenza wave' in the UK because there has not been a 'proper' flu season since the start of the Covid pandemic. Dr Susan Hopkins, chief medical advisor at the UKHSA, said she is watching Australia - currently in its winter season - 'very carefully' after a strain of influenza 'started early and spread fast across all age groups'. She said the country is 'having its worst flu season in five years', which could replicate in the UK as early as September. Meanwhile, Dr Hopkins added that we will see at least one more Covid wave later this year partnered with the 'ongoing transmission of monkeypox'. Nation should diversify export markets, cut energy consumption Korea's trade deficit in the first half of the year exceeded $10 billion, hitting a record high. Exports in the January-June period showed the best performance ever, but were far outweighed by import growth due to a surge in energy costs. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, overseas shipments in the first six months increased 15.6 percent year-on-year to $350.3 billion, but imports jumped 26.2 percent to $360.6 billion. This increase resulted in a trade deficit of $10.3 billion, the widest trade shortfall ever for the first half of the year. The previous record was set during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, when the trade shortfall in a half-year period reached $9.16 billion. The nation also registered the imbalance for three consecutive months another first since the third quarter of 2008 amid the global financial crisis. It is, of course, premature to fall into a panic as the more comprehensive current account balance remains in the black. However, few could deny that the record-high half-year trade deficit is a bad economic indicator. Moreover, export growth will likely slow down in the latter half of the year, widening the trade gap further. Suppose the trade shortfall becomes chronic, resulting in simultaneous trade and fiscal deficits. In that case, the nation could fall into an economic crisis as the twin deficits would weaken the local currency and deplete foreign exchange holdings. To maintain robust outbound shipments, Korea should keep its technological lead through public-private partnerships, diversify export markets and secure an energy supply network. More specifically, Korean exporters must reduce their reliance on the Chinese market and diversify shipment destinations to Europe and India. Against this backdrop, the government plans to hold a joint meeting of the public and private sectors later this month. It is natural for the government to provide extensive support to Korea's exporters, as the nation heavily depends on outbound shipments for growth. No less important is how to reduce energy imports. Korea's per-capita energy consumption is the highest among the OECD member nations. The current energy crisis cannot be solved by stopgap measures, such as a fuel tax cut. The government should develop and implement policies to induce people to reduce energy consumption. It also should hurry to change energy-intensive industrial structures and heighten energy efficiency. Zara Aleena 'would not use taxis because she was scared of sharing a car with a stranger and believed it was safer to walk home at night because street lights were on', a friend has said. The aspiring lawyer, 35, was just minutes from her home when she was attacked in Cranbrook Road, Ilford, in the early hours of June 26 following a night out with friends. Louise DeSouza, a neighbour who knew Zara from when she was a child, said she avoided using taxis to get home at night and would instead choose to walk. The 60-year-old told The Mirror: 'Unless someone was sharing or she knew the driver, she wouldnt get in. I said: "Dont walk late at night". 'She said she was safer because the street lights were on.' It comes as a memorial organised by Zara's family on Saturday traced the walk home she would have taken before the fatal attack. The aspiring lawyer, 35, was just minutes from her house in Cranbrook Road, Ilford, when she was attacked as she walked home from a night out with friends in the early hours of June 26 Flowers, candles and tributes have been left outside Zara's home in Ilford, east London, today Zara's murder follows the deaths of Sarah Everard, Sabina Nessa and sisters Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman Pictures of Zara were laid among flowers outside her home in Ilford, East London, the day after hundreds of mourners gathered to walk the route she was taking when she was attacked Family and friends with members of the public attend a vigil in Ilford, east London on Saturday A large quantity of flowers, tributes and candles are place in Cranbrook Road in Ilford, east London A court sketch of Jordan McSweeney appearing by video link from HMP Thameside during a hearing at the Old Bailey on Friday The majority of those walking along Cranbrook Road wore white clothing as requested by the family, others held flowers and pictures of Ms Aleena aloft. Dozens of other mourners left bouquets of flowers and cards in tribute to the latest high profile victim of violence against women in the capital. The latest incident follows the murders of Sarah Everard, Sabina Nessa and sisters Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman. Mina Smallman, the mother of the two sisters, last night offered her support to Zara's family. She said: 'Her mum and grandma said they would appreciate speaking to me. We are a group of people youd never want to be part of.' Ms Smallman, who has slammed police over the death of her daughters, previously labelled the Met as a 'safe haven for thugs'. She has also hit out at the Government's StreetSafe app, a program launched following Ms Everard's kidnap, rape and murder, as a 'tickbox exercise'. But the Home Office has insisted that the app is 'helping us crack down on areas where people feel unsafe'. Jordan McSweeney, 29, was remanded in custody charged with Zara's murder following a hearing at the Old Bailey on Friday. McSweeney, from Dagenham, east London, is also accused of robbing the law graduate of her mobile phone, keys and handbag, and attempted penetration without consent, the court heard. Ms Aleena's maternal aunt, Farah Naz, said Zara's 'independent' and 'big-hearted' niece 'was the joy, the light of our home' Mina Smallman (pictured), the mother of the two sisters, last night offered her support to Zara's family Emergency services were called at 2.45am on June 26 after Ms Aleena was found bleeding and struggling to breathe with serious head injuries in a driveway in Cranbrook Road, Ilford, the court was told. She was dragged onto the driveway - just 10 minutes from her home - before being kicked and stamped on, prosecutors allege. A post-mortem examination revealed that she had suffered 'multiple serious injuries'. Ms Aleena's maternal aunt, Farah Naz, said Zara's 'independent' and 'big-hearted' niece 'was the joy, the light of our home', and spoke of the family's determination to 'change something' in honour of the 'extrovert'. She told reporters on Friday: 'I don't think there is going to be closure, this is just the beginning of the conversation we need to have. 'I want to reach out and do something important and act, because that's what Zara was about - we have got to change something. 'I want to speak to the leaders of this country, I want to talk about the setting up of projects right now to prevent violence.' A man has died following a 'serious incident' on the M4 in South Wales early this morning, police have said. Officers were called to the scene on the Eastbound section of the carriageway between Junctions 29 and 30 at Cardiff Gate at 4:22am. Police initially describing the scene as a 'serious incident' but later confirmed a fatality. The road was re-opened by early afternoon. Police had this morning closed parts of both sides of the M4 in Wales following two incidents early this morning. A second crash took place around 8am, forcing the closure of the Westbound carriageway between Junctions 24 Coldra, including the slip road, and Junction 25 Caerleon. The Eastbound carriageway between Junctions 24 Coldra and 26 Malpas was also closed but reopened before midday. Transport data firm Inrix this morning said there was at least 1.5 miles of congestion from Junction 30 following the incident. Disgruntled motorists said on social media that they had been stuck with 'no water and in need of a bathroom' since 7:45am. A man has died following a 'serious incident' on the M4 in South Wales early this morning, police have said Police have closed parts of both sides of the M4 in Wales following two crashes early this morning (pictured, congestion between Junction 24 Coldra and Junction 25 Caerleon) Transport data firm Inrix this morning said there was at least 1.5 miles of congestion from Junction 30 following the incident Disgruntled motorists said on social media that they had been stuck with 'no water and in need of a bathroom' since 7:45am A second crash took place around 8am, forcing the closure of the Westbound carriageway between Junctions 24 Coldra, including the slip road, and Junction 25 Caerleon (pictured) A spokesperson for South Wales Police said: 'The road was closed for an investigation to be carried out at the scene. The road has now reopened. 'The public are thanked for their patience and understanding. Next of kin has been updated and enquiries are on-going.' South Wales Police earlier described the second incident as 'serious', without giving details. Traffic Wales South said: 'Heavy congestion travelling in both directions. 'Emergency services are on scene. Please find alternative route if you're travelling.' South Wales Police described the second incident on the M4 as 'serious', without giving details Around 6am, the force tweeted: 'South Wales Police are currently dealing with a serious incident on the M4 at junction 30 eastbound. 'The road will be closed until further notice, we would recommend that alternative routes be used. Thank you for your patience and understanding.' A Welsh Ambulance Service spokesperson said: 'We were called to a collision on the M4 near Newport this morning, with multiple resources sent to the scene.' There were no immediate details on the second crash, but a Welsh Ambulance Service spokesperson said: 'We were called to an incident near junction 30 of the M4 earlier today, with multiple resources sent to the scene.' Officers said the first incident happened around 5am and forced the closure of the Eastbound carriageway between Junctions 29 and 30 at Cardiff Gate Ministers have been urged to take action to ensure Armed Forces personnel are fairly treated when injured in the line of duty after the rate of rejected compensation claims hit a record level. Almost 100million was paid out under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme last year. But more than four in 10 (41 per cent) of the almost 6,000 claims made by former and serving personnel were rejected. This is the highest rate since the scheme was set up in 2005. Some 47 per cent of claims received a payout, and a further 12 per cent were accepted by the Ministry of Defence but not deemed serious enough to justify compensation. Fewer than half of claims have been handed payouts in each of the past five years, though due to the length of time taken to handle appeals, the figures are still provisional back to 2017. Last year around one in six rejections went to appeal, with the independently handled process taking on average 17 months to come to a decision. Shadow Veterans Minister Stephanie Peacock said accused ministers of failing veterans, saying: 'Our Armed Forces personnel perform the ultimate public service, and if this causes them serious injury or illness, then they deserve to be fairly compensated. More than four in 10 (41 per cent) of the almost 6,000 claims made by former and serving personnel were rejected. This is the highest rate since the scheme was set up in 2005. Shadow Veterans Minister Stephanie Peacock said accused ministers of failing veterans, saying: 'Our Armed Forces personnel perform the ultimate public service, and if this causes them serious injury or illness, then they deserve to be fairly compensated.' Documents published by the Ministry of Defence last week showed there were 5,824 claims submitted to the AFCS for compensation for an injury or illness in 2021/22 financial year. 'However, at the moment, record numbers are being rejected from compensation schemes, forcing them to either give up, or enter into a lengthy appeals system. 'This is not good enough. Ministers must act now to ensure fairness is placed back at the heart of Veterans UK.' Documents published by the Ministry of Defence last week showed there were 5,824 claims submitted to the AFCS for compensation for an injury or illness in 2021/22 financial year. More than nine in 10 successful claims were made by male personnel, with 88 per cent aged below 40 and almost three-quarters (73 per cent) from soldiers in the British Army, even though land forces accounts for 60 per cent of all personnel numbers. The report apportioned the increase in rejected claims to 'a change in the types of injuries being claimed for, as injuries caused in active scenarios, including combat, have declined in recent years, while injuries from events where the peer-reviewed evidence does not provide a causal link to service have increased'. The figures also showed a four-fold increase in the rate of mental health cases from 3 per cent to 12 per cent, which was attributed to campaigns to raise awareness and lower stigma, resulting on more people coming forward. Mental health cases made up a quarter of all those given a Guaranteed Income Payment (GIP), a regular payment instead of a lump sum, due to the debilitating long-term nature of conditions suffered. The figures come at a time of rising discontent in the forces, as personnel struggle with the cost of living crisis and manpower shortfalls. A new report by the Ministry of Defence found that financial satisfaction rates in the Armed Forces fell by four percentage points this year, for the first time since 2018. Last month the Government was accused of failing to support British forces veterans after it was revealed that up to 70,000 could be on benefits/ Ministers admitted that 33,800 people are currently receiving Universal Credit after serving their country. But the figures, released for the first time, are drawn from an assessment of just 45 per cent of claimants, meaning the actual figure could be more than double that. And in May British soldiers' happiness with their pay fell for the first time in four years. The fall was driven by unhappiness among British Army soldiers and Royal Marines about their basic pay, with RAF and Royal Navy personnel more satisfied. The situation worse among other ranks than officers, with fewer than four in 10 privates and NCOs (37 per cent) happy with their basic rate of pay, according to the report. Just 41 percent believe that the pay and benefits they receive are 'fair' for the work they do, down from 46 per cent last year. And the report admits that the cost-of-living crisis is among the factors involved, along with a public sector pay freeze announced last year that limited increases to personnel earning less than 24,000 a year. This is the moment author and historian Tom Holland celebrates like he's won Wimbledon after fulfilling a childhood dream to own a dinosaur. Video footage from an auction house shows the writer shake both fists in unbridled excitement while sat in his chair after the hammer came down on his winning bid. He then stands up and takes a few steps to try to compose himself before leaping up and down in a celebratory dance. Mr Holland, the presenter of BBC Radio 4 show Making History, was attending his first ever auction. The 54-year-old went along with his father Martin on June 30 to the sale at Woolley & Wallis Auctioneers, of Salisbury, Wiltshire, to bid on a 97 to 119-million-year-old Psittacosaurus (parrot lizard) skeleton. Author and TV historian Tom Holland, 54 (pictured), went home with his very own 97 to 119-million-year-old Psittacosarus (parrot lizard) skeleton, after placing the winning bid at Woolley & Wallis Auctioneers, of Salisbury, Wiltshire Unable to contain his excitement, Mr Holland leapt for joy and did a celebratory dance after becoming the owner of the Cretaceous period bird-like skeleton Mr Holland's father, who sat beside him during the auction, remained calm despite his son's excited outburst He paid a hammer price of 3,500 for the Cretaceous period bird-like skeleton kept in a 2ft by 3ft glazed hardwood case. Mr Holland said he expected to be outbid by an 'American billionaire' so he was thrilled to get 'the bargain of the century'. He said: 'It was a childhood dream. 'I have been obsessed by dinosaurs since the age of four. 'We went to the Isle of Wight and Lyme Regis regularly and I always hoped to find a dinosaur but never did. 'I've always wanted to own one and so when I saw this one I just had to have it. 'This is my first auction and I really thought I was going to get outbid by an American billionaire so I'm just over the moon to have it.' Mr Holland's father, who was sat next to him, kept his emotions firmly in check with his arms crossed while his son showed his joy. Auctioneer Will Hobbs, who was on the rostrum, said it was the most enthusiastic reaction he had ever seen in the saleroom. He said: 'In all my years as an auctioneer I don't think I have ever seen a reaction quite as enthusiastic as Tom's was. 'He put a smile on the face of everyone in the room with his pure delight and excitement. 'If only all of our successful bidders reacted that way. Psittacosaurus, meaning parrot lizard, is a genus of dinosaur which existed between 126 and 101 million years ago. Pictured: The Psittacosaurus fossil, previously in a Hungarian museum, bought by Mr Holland at auction Auctioneer Will Hobbs said Mr Holland's reaction was the most enthusiastic he had ever seen 'Chatting to him afterwards, he said that he had been obsessed with dinosaurs since the age of four and had always dreamed of owing a skeleton. 'It's not often that we get to make childhood dreams come true. 'What was just as lovely was the calmness of his father, who was with him, and who just sat patiently while Tom started jumping up and down.' With fees included, the skeleton went for 4,550, within the estimate range of 4,000 to 6,000. Mr Holland wrote on Twitter that the dinosaur fossil had previously been displayed in a Hungarian museum. In 2011, Mr Holland presented the BBC TV documentary Dinosaurs, Myths and Monsters. He also wrote the 2003 history book Rubicon. A Washington Heights principal accused of wanting to oust white staffers reportedly created a learning environment plagued by 'utter disorganization and insanity.' Students attending New York City's High School for Law and Public Service claim their lives have become 'miserable' under the leadership of Principal Paula Lev. They also allege their quality of education has declined after Lev ousted 'fully experienced and qualified' staff as part of her alleged diversity crusade. A student-created petition claims a handful of Lev's new hires 'are super under-qualified' and that their 'lack of knowledge' has affected students' ability to learn. The petition also cited fears of attending class due to a 'dangerous' environment fueled by an 'insane number of fights, constant arguing and improper administrative action.' Lev was hit with a probe last year by the NYC Department of Education (DOE) after she allegedly told a teacher she was 'going to get rid of all these white teachers that aren't doing anything for the kids of our community.' The complaint will now go before the New York State Division of Human Rights. Students attending New York City's High School for Law and Public Service claim their lives have become 'miserable' under the leadership of Principal Paula Lev (pictured) The probe was launched after faculty members at High School for Law and Public Service accused principal Paula Lev of discriminating against staff and conspiring to get a white colleague fired. Faculty filed a complaint with the Education Department and also voted they had 'no confidence' in Lev's leadership. The complaint alleged Lev 'flagrantly but unsuccessfully attempted to divide our school by race' and told an employee that she 'was going to get rid of all these white teachers that aren't doing anything for the kids of our community.' In the last year, Lev has issued excess notices to four white staffers, insiders told The New York Post on Saturday. DailyMail.com has contacted the Division of Human Rights in attempt to confirm the allegation. The DOE, however, contends that only two staffers had been excessed, alleging the decision was made by 'contractual rules regarding seniority.' The department explained that the school had created a new position focused on 'conflict resolution.' 'The Department of Education is absolutely committed to providing a strong and supportive environment in all of our schools and for all of our students. We work with our principals every day to ensure that students and staff receive the support they need,' DOE spokesperson Jenna Lyle told The Post. High School for Law and Public Service (pictured) students allege their quality of education has declined after Lev ousted 'fully experienced and qualified' staff as part of her alleged diversity crusade Insiders allege some of the excessed teachers have found new jobs so they weren't 'officially considered cut' from school staff. Other former school employees reportedly left on their own, with three additional teachers deciding to call it quits this month. 'There are many more teachers who have voiced that they plan to leave and they feel demoralized,' an unnamed staffer told the paper. Students have issued similar allegations in a Change.org petition started earlier this year by incoming senior and class valedictorian Angel Dilawar, 17. 'Many students at the High School for Law & Public Service would like to bring to your attention that we have had enough and cannot bear to witness the utter disorganization and insanity at our school, especially that we once proudly called home,' the petition states. 'While there have been tremendous efforts to be heard, the higher-ups have not taken any action.' The petition alleges that students are not receiving the quality of education they're accustom and entitled to. 'It is unfortunate that we have some new teachers that are super under-qualified, and staff members that were fully experienced and qualified were excessed,' the document reads. 'It has been our experience that the lack of knowledge of a few new staff members has affected our learning. 'It is frightening to imagine more similar staff members being hired who require student assistance to accomplish simple tasks. What's even more scary is that those are some vital positions.' Students further contend that Lev is more focused on appearances than learning. The petition states that she has prioritized improving the school's appearance by purchasing new furniture, plants and TV screens for the hallways. Dilawar also told The Post that Lev purchased $50,000 worth of hooded sweatshirts to be worn with school uniforms, but the teen claims no one wears them. Scholars allege they would 'much rather prefer to receive new laptops and textbooks' or see school funding invested into 'hiring more teachers to teach AP classes, core subjects and electives.' The students also allege the school looks proper 'communication and transparency.' 'From the outside it may appear that everything is going great, but in reality, none of the members of the school community are aware of what's going on. I compare it to a bad apple, gleaming and shining on the outside but once opened you see how rotten to the core it is,' the petition reads. 'Certain teachers are completely clueless and students can provide many examples that demonstrate there is no communication at all. There is always last-minute notice for students and they feel that they don't matter and are always silenced. 'We are deeply dismayed to see this unfold at a school that had been blossoming before this principal took over. Happiness, pleasure, and contentment have now become filled with tears of agony and sorrow. Many of 'our teachers and administrators' whom we truly valued, are now gone.' The petition has already received more than 400 signatures. A student-created petition claims a handful of Lev's new hires 'are super under-qualified' and that their 'lack of knowledge' has affected students' ability to learn. The petition also cited fears of attending class due to a 'dangerous' environment fueled by an 'insane number of fights, constant arguing and improper administrative action' Dilawar also told The Post that a lack of discipline has made the school a free-for-all environment. 'Right now students can do anything they want and they're not going to get in trouble,' she said. Additionally, she alleged that she was asked to write college recommendation letters for her peers while working the school's college office. Dilawar claimed the current office staffer had a 'limited grasp of English' and needed assistance with the letters. 'These students would be shocked to find out that their recommendation letters would be written by a student, a junior,' she said. Another incoming senior, 16-year-old Hannah Maldonado, alleged that Lev also created division during a Culture Day celebration, which was intended to promote diversity. Maldonado claims she asked for 'greater musical variety' to be played during the event but was shut down by Lev who, speaking in Spanish, told the DJ to play one additional song before going 'back to Spanish music.' 'I was told that the student government curated a playlist to be inclusive to all of our cultures,' the teen said. Dilawar says she has contacted Schools Chancellor David Banks multiple times about the ongoing issues at the High School for Law and Public Service and complaints from students, but has failed to receive a response. Students further contend that Lev is more focused on appearances than learning. The petition states that she has prioritized improving the school's appearance by purchasing new furniture, plants and TV screens for the hallways Investigation into the principal's leadership began last summer after faculty and staff complained that Lev, who is Dominican, was discriminating against employees. According to the DEO complaint filed last year, a faculty member claims approached him with a plan to terminate an unidentified white, female employee. He alleged that Lev asked him to get a state education certification so he would have more qualifications than the white employee and Lev could fire her as 'excess' staff. 'Ms. Lev has asked me to conspire with her on a couple of occasions in getting rid of my colleague,' the faculty member wrote in the complaint. 'She also stated to me in Spanish that she was 'going to get rid of all these white teachers that aren't doing anything for the kids of our community. I believe Ms. Lev is not suited for the position of principal because of the comments she has made to me about white people and the malicious ways in which she thinks and speaks. She is not fit to be a leader of a school. 'As a school staff, we have lost confidence, creditability, trust, and most importantly we have lost hope in Ms. Lev as a principal at the High School for Law & Public Service.' Lev reportedly laid off the faculty member who filed the complaint on the last day of the 2020-2021 school year, claiming he was no longer needed at the school and should look for work elsewhere in the DOE. DOE Press Secretary Nathaniel Styer told DailyMail.com at the time, that the High School of Law and Public Service: qualified to excess a small number of staff at the beginning of next school year. The designation of excess staff is determined by contractual rules regarding seniority. 'Staff would have received a letter regarding potential excessing, which is not uncommon at this time of year as enrollment, budgets, and staffing needs change. All staff have the opportunity to take jobs on the open market, which the staff members at this school have done. Styer said the DOE was 'committed to providing a supportive, high-quality learning environment at all our schools, and the superintendent and executive superintendent are working closely with the principal and the whole community to address concerns.' He added: 'We will work to ensure students and staff continue to receive the support they need.' Lev was hit with a probe last year by the New York City Department of Education after she allegedly told a teacher she was 'going to get rid of all these white teachers that aren't doing anything for the kids of our community' Tensions first flared between Lev and staff in February 2021, when she publicly accused Nick Bacon, the union chapter leader, of being racist after he filed a routine grievance about a scheduling issue affecting faculty members. Lev confronted Bacon in front of a room of his colleagues and said, 'I wasn't sure what your problem with me was, maybe it's because I am a woman of color and you're a white man?' Bacon wrote about the incident on March 2 in a letter signed other staff members and sent to Manny Ramirez, the superintendent of District 6. The grievance was solved in Bacon's favor and Ramirez acknowledged in a staff meeting that Lev's comment was 'inappropriate,' but that the two must work together and move past it. Lev later apologized to Bacon for publicly calling him out, a course told the New York Post. However, she stood by her comment and said it represented how she felt. She also recommended that Bacon read Robin DiAngelo's 2018 book 'White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism.' Tensions first flared between Lev and staff in February 2021, when she publicly accused Nick Bacon (pictured), the union chapter leader, of being racist She then encouraged Bacon to have 'courageous conversations' with her about the themes in the book, referencing a term used by the Department of Education during workshops on implicit bias. Faculty members said that Bacon reached out to DoE Chancellor Meisha Porter earlier this month and asked for her to get involved. He also met with dozens of staff members on June 24 to determine the conditions of their 'no confidence' vote. Their reasons, listed in the complaint, included that she had 'disrespected, slandered, and/or arbitrarily gone after respected educators, to the detriment of our entire school community.' They also asserted that Lev violated their labor contract and left staff out of debates on important school decisions. 'With almost the entire 40+ membership voting, including both tenured and untenured teachers, paraprofessionals, and related service professionals, 83.3percent voted that they no longer have confidence in our principal to lead our school,' reads a statement about the vote, which was obtained by the New York Post. It's not too common for staff to file votes of 'no-confidence' against school officials. In 2019, faculty at Forest Hills High School in Queens filed a no-confidence vote against Principal Ben Sherman because he allegedly took not action to stop students from smoking marijuana. The DOE eventually removed Sherman from his position. Lev began her tenure at the High School for Law and Public Service, on the George Washington Educational Campus, in February 2020 and was promoted to principal after her predecessor Nicholas Politis retired. Before that, she worked for the Department of Education for 13 years in various roles. Since 2015, she has also been an adjunct professor at New York Institute of Technology, specializing in graduate work with students with disabilities. Lev, whose salary was $165,542 2020, is married to Benjamin Lev, who is an assistant principal with the DOE. China is eyeing up a military base 100km from Australian shores, in a concerning development Penny Wong calls the 'most challenging circumstances since World War II'. Australia's foreign minister, since coming to office in May, has been jet-setting around the South Pacific visiting Fiji, Samoa and Tonga and more, to try and ward off China's growing influence in the region. The communist superpower already has a clandestine security agreement in place with the Solomon Islands which paves the way for a naval base to be established on the island 2,000km from Australia. Now Beijing is reaching into its deep pockets to cement a similar pact with Papua New Guinea, less than 100km from Cape York in North Queensland. Beijing is reaching into its deep pockets to cement a similar pact with Papua New Guinea - less that 100km from Cape York in North Queensland China has handed over $30million to get a special economic zone in the town of Kikori in PNG's Gulf Province off the ground and are desperate to invest more. The futuristic $8billion development project is set to include an airport, naval base and military base carved out of out of jungle land in alongside Orokolo Bay at - about 250km northwest of the capital Port Moresby. Peter KenGemar, the project director for the special economic zone, said he does not have a preferred business partner for the ambitious project but admitted Chinese cash is rolling in. 'We're already getting support from China in the military and they have opened the door already,' he told 60 Minutes on Sunday. 'If they increased the amount of support they're giving in that space, in the military space then they might pick up those two bases. 'So yeah, that's why Australia's dropped off. China is inching way around and I don't know what's gonna happen.' 'If Australia wants to have some say in this, then today is the time for us to talk.' Foreign Minister Penny Wong (pictured) said 'We are facing the most challenging circumstances since World War II' The communist superpower already has a clandestine security agreement in place with the Solomon Islands which paves the way for a naval base to be established on the island 2000km from Australia. Pictured: Chinese soldiers in Beijing The under-developed, resources-rich nation of PNG has been a major point of interest for Beijing in recent years as Australian influence has waned. Having a base in PNG would be a huge boost for the authoritarian power in its desire to dominate the region. Chinese state-owned enterprises have already built an array of roads, bridges and port infrastructure across the sun-drenched country and even shelled out to build APEC House in 2018 - when President Xi Jinping was greeted with an official state welcome. Under new Labor leadership, Canberra is moving quickly to counteract China's influence. 'I wouldn't describe it as scrambling. I would describe it as urgency,' Ms Wong said. 'It's about being authentic and demonstrating to the nations of the region that we get that our security is bound together and no one can go it alone. 'We are facing the most challenging circumstances since World War II.' Prime Minister James Marape (pictured) of Papua New Guinea said he understands Australia's concerns about the growing Chinese presence in his country China has already invested more than $30million in a project in Papua New Guinea (pictured) and wants to get more involved as it looks to establish a military foothold close to Australia PNG Prime Minister James Marape has made assurances 'there will never be' a Chinese base in PNG but did leave the door open for China to fund part of their economic zone. 'China is important to us, just as much as Australia is very important to us,' he said. 'There's always space for both nations without compromising our core principles as a country. 'Your security and your future prosperity is tied to ours.' When probed about Solomon Island's controversial military deal with China he claimed he did not know anything about it. 'I have no information to be honest,' he said. 'I try my very best not to get into other nations' sovereign issues,' Mr Marape said. 'We know which boundaries to protect and which boundaries not to cross.' Australia's north could soon be encircled by Chinese military forces as Beijing carries out a secret campaign to wield influence over small South Pacific nations, muscling in their seaports and eyeing off strategic patches of land Around 120 people were evacuated from a 19-storey block of flats in south London after it caught fire today. Fifteen fire engines and about 100 firefighters attended the scene of the flat fire in St Mark's Square in Bromley to get the blaze under control. A Premier Inn next to the tower was also evacuated due to safety concerns. Half of a five-room flat on the 15th floor of the block was alight with part of the roof also on fire. More than 120 residents were evacuated from the building and there were no reports of injuries. Fire crews are expected to remain on scene damping down to fire for several hours to come. Firefighters were called at 11.58am and used a 200ft (64m) turntable ladder to tackle the fire. The Brigade's 999 Control centre received 95 calls alerting them to the blaze. The cause of the fire is not yet known. A resident told MailOnline firefighters managed to get to the fire 'pretty quick'. 'It's a big plaza with a cinema and a Nandos and we could see from the balcony that there were loads of people in the square. I went to my other balcony at the back of the building and that's where you could see the flames. 'Everyone just left, evacuated the building. I guess they evacuated the cinema across the street as well. There's a big square in the plaza and they just moved everyone away.' He added the building is divided into four self contained blocks and said he believed the fire was contained to just one. 'When in a high rise building like that you do worry a little bit, but everything seemed to work as it was meant to.' A large cordon remains in place around the scene of a fire in Bromley, with residents being diverted on longer routes to get to their homes. Fifteen fire engines were at the scene of the flat fire in St Mark's Square in Bromley, London Fire Brigade said, adding that expected this to be a 'protracted incident' Firefighters tackle a blaze that broke out in an apartment on the 15th floor of a block of flats in Bromley on Sunday Firefighters were called at 11.58am and used a 200ft (64m) turntable ladder to tackle the fire The blaze at a 19-storey block of flats in St Mark's Square in Bromley, south-east London, on Sunday Flames and smoke blaze along the roof of a 19-storey apartment block in Bromley, south east London Firefighters tackle a blaze that broke out in an apartment on the 15th floor of a block of flats in Bromley on Sunday Firefighters tackling a blaze at a 19-storey block of flats in St Mark's Square in Bromley, south-east London Smoke rises from a building in Bromley, south east London, after a fire broke out in an apartment in the block around midday Firefighters were called at 11.58am and used a 200ft (64m) turntable ladder to tackle the fire Thick black smoke was seen rising over the slant-roofed apartment block in St Mark's Square, Bromley around midday A resident, who asked not to be identified, told MailOnline he noticed the flames from his balcony after seeing a crowd form in St Mark's Square below London Fire Brigade said its 999 Control centre received 95 calls alerting them to the blaze around midday on Sunday Around 80 firefighters are tackling a fire at a 19-storey block of flats in south London after a flat on the 15th floor and part of the roof were set alight Raquell Viamonte, 22, who works at a restaurant in St Mark's Square, said it was 'terrifying' when the fire broke out. She said: 'It was quite stressful. I had to deal with quite a lot of customers, kick them out and refund their orders. 'The fire alarm started ringing and by the time I walked out there were firefighters running around everywhere. 'It was terrifying.' Guests at a Premier Inn next to the tower were evacuated and have been told they are likely to wait several hours to get back inside. One guest, Jerome Smith, 22, said: ' I was asleep, woke up, came out, my friend messaged me saying there was a fire and they evacuated everyone. 'My car is parked in the car park, so we're just waiting to get in. They're saying it's going to be a three-hour wait.' A man living near a tower fire in Bromley said he saw flames burning 'ferociously' on the building. Rowland Leslie, 63, said: 'I was just walking down to come to Bromley and I don't think it had started not long before that because the fire engines were just coming. 'Where there is the slant of the building there are balconies and flames were burning ferociously at the start. 'I have been in Bromley for over an hour and where I was it looked like the fire had been put out but in the last 20 minutes it looks like it must have started up again.' Josh Gill, 29, a Co-op team leader from Bromley, said: 'I literally live on the doorstep. 'I was in my flat and my mother-in-law came over to pick up my wife's niece who stayed over last night, and as she came she said about the fire and saw all the fire brigade appear and (I) went to have a look. 'Some people were upset and crying whilst others were shocked and confused as to what was going on. The fire brigade are still here and you can see people who live in the flats evacuated in the church.' 'It is scary to see this right on the doorstep as I have a family.' A dozen fire engines are at the scene of the flat fire in St Mark's Square in Bromley, London Fire Brigade said Half of a five-room flat on the 15th floor of the block is alight and part of the roof is also on fire Fire crews from Bromley, Beckenham, Addington, Woodside, Lewisham, Forest Hill, Sidcup and Croydon and surrounding fire stations are attending the scene Images showed thick black smoke rising over the residential area of Bromley around midday on Sunday Footage and images posted on social media showed flames and black smoke coming from one part of a slanted roof Fire crews have come from Bromley, Beckenham, Addington, Woodside, Lewisham, Forest Hill, Sidcup and Croydon and surrounding fire stations. Footage posted on social media showed flames and black smoke coming from one part of a slanted roof. Further footage showed firefighters on the roof with the flames apparently extinguished. Station Commander Colin Digby is at the scene, he said: 'Crews are making steady progress. 'This is going to be a protracted incident and we expect our crews to be on scene for several hours to come.' A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: 'We were called at 12:18pm today to reports of a fire at a building in Bromley. 'We have sent an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of our Hazardous Area Response Team. 'The incident is ongoing and we are working with our emergency service colleagues.' House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy suggested he'd open a Congressional inquiry into Hunter Biden and the president's brother James Biden if his party won the majority in November House Republicans have 'made almost 100 requests for information' on the business dealings of President Joe Biden's family and claim 'many' have been left unanswered, senior lawmakers wrote on Friday night. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, along with the ranking members on the House Judiciary and Oversight committees Reps. Jim Jordan and James Comer, suggested they could open Congressional inquires into the Biden family - specifically the president's son Hunter - if Republicans win the majority of Congressional seats in November. They claim to have uncovered evidence that the president's relatives profited off his years-long career in Washington 'despite Democrats refusal to cooperate' with those efforts' in an op-ed published in the New York Post. In October 2020 the Post was the first outlet to report on the contents of a hard drive from a computer belonging to Hunter Biden, which included salacious images depicting sex acts and drug use. But the main controversy arose from emails and documents purporting to show Hunter Biden leveraging his family name for profit. The hard drive was authenticated by the Post and later by DailyMail.com, but it continued to be dismissed in the mainstream media until it was also verified by the Washington Post earlier this year. 'Congressional Republicans investigations to date have found Biden family members used their connections with Joe to enrich themselves through expectations of access and promises about what a Biden administration might do,' McCarthy and the others wrote in the op-ed. 'Weve made almost 100 requests for information relating to Biden family schemes. Many, including every request made to the Biden administration, have been ignored.' In a Friday night op-ed, he and two other senior Republican lawmakers outline their case against the president's family The White House did not immediately return DailyMail.com's request for comment. They referenced as evidence Hunter Biden's time on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma despite having no prior experience in the sector. His father had a leading role in anti-corruption efforts in the region at the time as US vice president. McCarthy also brought up an excerpt from a phone call between Hunter Biden and British artist Phillipa Horan in which the now-president's son bragged in 2018 about his influence on his father. 'He'll talk about anything that I want him to, that he believes in,' Hunter Biden said according to the Washington Examiner. 'If I say it's important to me, then he will work a way in which to make it a part of his platform.' Comer wrote a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in late May referencing a CBS News report detailing suspicions raised over financial activity of the president's son and brother James Biden. 'According to recent media reports, more than 150 of Hunter Biden and the Biden networks international business transactions have generated suspicious activity reports by U.S. banks for further review by the Treasury Department to determine if there is illegal activity or a threat to national security,' Comer wrote at the time. He, McCarthy and Jordan wrote over the weekend that the 'Bidens were paid hundreds of thousands - if not millions - despite performing no discernible work.' To date, the president himself has not been implicated in any wrongdoing linked to his family's business dealings. But House Republicans claim the smoking gun lies in an email recovered from the laptop that appears to be dividing equity in a Chinese business venture between Hunter Biden and his associates. In the email, he appears to ask for 10 percent to be set aside for 'the big guy' - who GOP lawmakers have suggested to mean Biden himself. 'We have uncovered some answers, but many questions remain. In November, the American people will decide whether they accept being told what information they are allowed to know by a colluding media, including who is making policy decisions for this country and for whose interests,' the lawmakers wrote. 'A Republican majority will be committed to uncovering the facts the Democrats, Big Tech and the legacy media have suppressed.' Late last month, DailyMail.com obtained a voicemail from the president to his son about a New York Times report detailing his business in China. 'Hey pal, its Dad. Its 8:15 on Wednesday night. If you get a chance just give me a call. Nothing urgent. I just wanted to talk to you. I thought the article released online, its going to be printed tomorrow in the Times, was good. I think youre clear. And anyway if you get a chance, give me a call, I love you,' the president said according to the recording. Biden critics claim the voicemail is proof that the president lied when he said he never discussed his son's business deals. Tory rebels seeking to oust Boris Johnson will attempt to change party rules to allow a fresh confidence vote this year. Mr Johnson overcame a ballot on his leadership in June amid fallout from sleaze rows and the slumbering economy. But 148 of his own MPs voted against him - with 211 backing him, showing the scale of munity in backbench ranks. Under current party rules he has to face a vote if 15 per cent of MPs - currently 54 - write letters demanding one - and cannot be challenged for another year if he wins. But since that vote the PM's woes have got far worse, with twin by-election embarrassments in Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton and a new sexual misconduct row involving Chris Pincher. Rebels will attempt to win election onto the executive of the 1922 Committee in elections due soon. According to the Sun on Sunday they will not try to overturn the current rules but amend them so if the number of letters hit a higher threshold they are overruled. They want power to demand a new vote as soon as possible if 25 per cent of Tory MPs - 90 of the current strength - write to 1922 chairman Graham Brady. One told the Sun on Sunday: 'There is a settled view now that the Prime Minister has to go sooner rather than later. 'The two election defeats have convinced many waverers a change is required. But they have a sense of fair play and want to stick by the rules. What we are offering doesn't change the rules.' Mr Johnson overcame a ballot on his leadership in June amid fallout from sleaze rows and the slumbering economy. Critical MPs including Andrew Bridgen (below) and Steve Baker (above) have already said they plan to run. However, MPs are being threatened with deselection if they change the rules. A Downing Street source said that in such a scenario MPs risk the rules for their own position 'changing on them every five minutes'. One rebel MP said of the threat: 'No 10 is in such a mess, they are desperate.' Another insider said the 'threat of deselection' is being 'put around both directly to some MPs and as rumours to others'. Downing Street last night said the 1922 elections will be the scene of a 'proxy war' for pro and anti-Johnson MPs. The Mail on Sunday can reveal Sir Charles Walker, the veteran Tory MP, plans to run. He does not support changing the rules. Downing Street is expected to put forward a 'slate' of four or five pro-Boris candidates for positions. One rebel MP told The Mail on Sunday they fear their side is less organised and may end up having too many candidates 'The problem for our side is if have too many anti-Boris candidates, we could split the vote.' Critical MPs including Andrew Bridgen and Steve Baker have already said they plan to run. Ministerial aides parliamentary private secretaries who are on the Government's payroll, will be allowed to vote, a source on the committee said last night. Korea should try to keep close ties with China President Yoon Suk-yeol made a successful diplomatic debut at the NATO summit last week by opening the way for security cooperation with the transatlantic alliance. He also made a pitch for economic collaboration with NATO members in such fields as semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries and nuclear power plants. Yoon's push for a new global partnership with NATO was well reflected in his speech at the summit: "Freedom and peace are guaranteed through solidarity with the international community." He added, "I hope the cooperative relationship between South Korea and NATO will become a cornerstone for such solidarity." It seems inevitable for South Korea to work with the U.S.-led regional alliance so as to better cope with the rapidly changing international order and emerging security threats. It is all the more so when the country is faced with North Korea's escalating nuclear and missile threats. So it is a step in the right direction for Seoul to strengthen its "value-based solidarity" with the 30 NATO member nations in pursuit of universal values such as democracy and human rights. However, Yoon's attendance in the summit has raised concerns that South Korea may hurt its ties with China. Beijing is strongly against NATO's move to expand its role beyond the North Atlantic region to the Asia-Pacific region. The Chinese foreign ministry denounced NATO for adopting its new strategic concept that defined China as posing "systemic challenges" to global stability. NATO also labeled Russia a "direct threat" to the security of their nations amid its protracted war in Ukraine. China appears to believe that Seoul is moving toward the U.S.-led international coalition against the Asian giant. It has already expressed opposition to Korea's tilt toward the U.S. amid the intensifying great power rivalry. In this situation, no one can rule out the possibility of Beijing taking retaliatory measures against Seoul as seen in the U.S. deployment of a THAAD anti-missile battery on Korean soil in 2017. That's why the Yoon administration should adopt pragmatic diplomacy to maintain close ties with China and maximize Korea's national interests. Seoul should not give the impression that it is taking an anti-China stance. On Saturday, Foreign Minister Park Jin said Yoon's participation in the NATO summit does not target China. Yoon should clearly explain that Seoul wants to keep strategic partnership with Beijing. The government needs to make all-out efforts to avoid unnecessary conflicts with China, South Korea's largest trading partner. It is getting more difficult for Seoul to strike a balance between Washington and Beijing. This is putting Yoon to the diplomatic test. A new Cold War between Western democracies and autocratic countries, such as China and Russia, is emerging rapidly. And Korea is under greater pressure to join the U.S.-led effort to contain China's growing regional and global influence. Under this circumstance, it is necessary to pursue principled diplomacy in order to ensure Korea's security. It is equally important to pursue pragmatic diplomacy to protect Korea's national interests. A large group of white supremacists marched along Boston's Freedom Trail ahead of the Fourth of July in protest that allegedly turned violent. Patriot Front led nearly 100 members carrying white nationalist flags and shields through the Massachusetts capital on Saturday as part of their efforts to 'reclaim America.' Video shows the group walking step with a snare drum, with flags and banners in hand, as they made their way to the Old State House and City Hall Plaza. Boston police have launched an investigation into the protest after a black man reported that he had been assaulted by the demonstrators. He claimed a group of Patriot Front members donning shields surrounded him and knocked him to the ground. Patriot Front has been linked to several instances of violence against protesters. Last month, a group believed to be affiliated with organization was arrested for planning a riot at a Pride event in Idaho. Nearly 100 Patriot Front members marched along Boston's Freedom Trail on Saturday in protest ahead of the Fourth of July Boston police were alerted to the demonstration around 12.30pm Saturday as approximately 100 people carrying Patriot Front flags, upside down American flags and shields marched through downtown. About an hour later, officers were called to Dartmouth and Stuart streets for a report of an assault and battery. The victim, a 34-year-old black man, said he was walking down the street when the group targeted him. He told police he had taken out his phone when he 'found himself being shoved around in the middle of a group of individuals with shields and masks,' according to an incident report obtained by The Boston Globe. The victim allegedly yelled at the group to get away from him and starting swinging his arms in attempt to flee. That's when he claims his more attackers 'joined in, knocking him to the ground and continuing to assault him.' Paramedics took the man to Tufts Medical Center where he was treated with non-life-threatening injuries. His current condition remains unknown. The group carried white nationalist flags and shields through the Massachusetts capital on Saturday as part of their efforts to 'reclaim America' Video shows the group walking step with a snare drum, with flags and banners in hand, as the made their way to the Old State House and City Hall Plaza Boston police have launched an investigation into the protest after a black man reported that he had been assaulted by the demonstrators. It is unclear which Patriot Force members attacked the man Footage shared to social media showed the protest marching through the city's Downtown Crossing, however the exact protest route in unknown. The group was also spotted in front of Back Bay Station, Boston Public Library in Copley Square, Haymarket and the Old State House. Witnesses allege an unmasked man sporting a cowboy hat led the group in chats of 'Life! Liberty! Victory!' as they marched through Copley Square. A bystander, antagonizing the group, asked why the group hid behind face coverings. 'Why don't you show your faces? What are you afraid of?' she questioned. One man responded: 'There's a global pandemic.' 'God bless, ma'am,' another protestor answered. Another pulled down his gaiter, puckered his lips and walked away, the woman told the newspaper. The protesters later boarded a train to Oak Grove Station in Malden. Witnesses allege an unmasked man sporting a cowboy hat (pictured) led the group in chats of 'Life! Liberty! Victory!' as they marched through Copley Square A bystander, antagonizing the group, asked why the group hid behind face coverings: 'Why don't you show your faces? What are you afraid of?' Patriot Front taking a casual stroll along the Freedom Trail pic.twitter.com/bDt0vMkgkp The Rum Tum Taurus (@atotheco) July 2, 2022 A Massachusetts State Police spokesperson told the Globe that troopers had monitored the march 'like we do any other large demonstration' and said he was not aware of any arrests during the protest. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority said there were no reports of the group disrupting train service. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu slammed the group's presence in her city and accused the protesters of being cowards. 'To the white supremacists who ran through downtown today: When we march, we don't hide our faces,' she tweeted. 'Your hate is as cowardly as it is disgusting, and it goes against all that Boston stands for.' 'As we mark Boston's legacy as the cradle of liberty, we celebrate the continued fight to expand those liberties for all,' the mayor added. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu slammed the group's presence in her city and accused the protesters of being cowards City Councilor Ed Flynn posted a letter to Facebook detailing Patriot Force's presence in the city over the past year Robert Trestan, director of the Anti-Defamation League New England, called their presence an 'insult' to those who fought for American freedom City Councilor Ed Flynn posted a letter to Facebook detailing Patriot Force's presence in the city over the past year. 'It is wholly repugnant to once again read reports, and see videos on social media, about dozens of neo-Nazis making another brazen public display with their hateful ideology,' Flynn wrote. 'Although all people of goodwill and decency are both angered and extremely disturbed by the increased activity we continue to witness from neo-Nazis and white supremacist groups locally, we can no longer say that we're surprised with what we continue to see across the country, unfortunately.' Robert Trestan, director of the Anti-Defamation League New England, said 'Patriot Front marching alongside the freedom trail on 4th of July holiday weekend is an insult to all who fought for freedom, equality, justice.' Last month the Patriot Front founder and 30 other members who were arrested for planning a riot at Idaho Pride The group was rumbled when a local resident called cops after spotting the men, all wearing white masks and carrying shields, loading themselves into the vehicle 'like a little army' What is the Patriot Front? Patriot Front is a white supremacist group founded by 23-year-old Dallas man Thomas Ryan Rousseau. The group maintains a white nationalist ideology, firm in its belief that since its white members' ancestors conquered America, the country should be left to them, and no one else. Patriot Front is a white supremacist group founded by 23-year-old Dallas man Thomas Ryan Rousseau The group, which sees black Americans, Jews and LGBTQ people as enemies, argues, argues that through processions and riots against these groups, it is preserving the ethnic and cultural origins of its members white, European ancestors. The Patriot Front spreads its message predominantly through the internet, via social media with materials such as banners, fliers, and posters. In 2020, the group shifted its materials' message from being more antisemitic and white supremacist to a form of 'patriotism' that justifies its bigotry, based in white supremacist, xenophobic, anti-Semitic, and fascist ideals. The group is responsible for the majority of white supremacist propaganda in the US, representing 80 percent of all propaganda incidents nationally in 2020. They currently participate in localized 'flash demonstrations' across the country. Advertisement Patriot Front was founded in 2017 by Thomas Ryan Rousseau, 23, of Grapevine, Texas. He grew up in the suburbs of Dallas and later emerged as the leading figures of the white nationalist right. The group, responsible for more than 80 percent of white supremacist propaganda, was formed by Rousseau in the aftermath of the 2017 white nationalist 'Unite the Right' rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, breaking off from another extremist group, Vanguard America, which was also founded by then teen in 2015. The group is a white supremacist neo-Nazi group whose members perceive black Americans, Jews and LGBTQ people as enemies, says Jon Lewis, a George Washington University researcher who specializes in homegrown violent extremism. Their playbook, according to Lewis, involves identifying local grievances to exploit, organizing on platforms like the messaging app Telegram and ultimately showing up to events marching in neat columns, in blue- or white-collared-shirt uniforms, in a display of strength. Last month, Rousseau and 30 other members who were arrested for planning a riot at Idaho Pride. The arrestees are facing felony charges of criminal conspiracy. The demonstrators had come from at least 11 states across the country for the planned procession. Police said the group had been plotting to incite chaos at a pride event about 10 minutes from where they were arrested, called 'Pride in the Park' event in Coeur d'Alene City Park. The group was reportedly busted after police received a tip from a local resident who called cops after spotting the group of men, donning white masks and carrying shields, load themselves into the vehicle. Footage of the large-scale arrest shows the dozens of men, masked and wearing shirts that bore the message 'reclaim American,' kneeling in cuffs in a field. It was not immediately clear if any of the group had any firearms. A lawyer representing some of the alleged white supremacists has since attested that the charges to leveled against the members - a Class F felony punishable with up to five years in prison - are in violation of their First Amendment rights, citing that they do not have a reputation for violence and that Americans are allowed the right to protest. He told DailyMail.com last month: 'Even if you don't like the speech, they have the right to make it.' Rep. Liz Cheney publicly nudged the Justice Department on Sunday to move against Donald Trump, warning that not holding the former president accountable for January 6 is a 'graver Constitutional threat' to American democracy than letting him off the hook. Cheney - one of two Republicans on the Democrat-led Capitol riot committee - also shared a warning for her own party, which has largely ostracized her for her role on the panel. 'I think that that he can't be the party nominee' in the 2024 presidential race, the Wyoming lawmaker told ABC News of Trump. 'I don't think the party would survive that.' In her first sit-down interview since the January 6 committee's explosive hearings began, Cheney confirmed that 'yes,' the panel was weighing a criminal referral for the former president over his role in the riot. She also suggested Attorney General Merrick Garland could use the evidence lawmakers have presented so far to look into charging Trump. 'We'll make a decision as a committee about it,' Cheney said, adding: 'The Justice Department doesn't have to wait for the committee to make a criminal referral.' 'And there could be more than one criminal referral.' Though the legislator did not elaborate on who else was being considered, the committee she vice chairs has put a number of top political players in its crosshairs. Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney suggested there could be multiple criminal referrals at the end of the January 6 committee's presentation of evidence EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Liz Cheney tells @JonKarl that it is possible that the Jan. 6 Committee will make a criminal referral against former Pres. Donald Trump. What kind of man knows that a mob is armed and sends the mob to attack the Capitol? https://t.co/bbjvh5ugTs pic.twitter.com/L7DZFP8qGM This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 3, 2022 Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, ex-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and several sitting House Republicans like Reps. Scott Perry, Andy Biggs and Marjorie Taylor Greene have all been named as having a part in Trump's alleged scheme to overturn the 2020 election. The committee has sought to frame the January 6 attack on the Capitol as Trump and his allies' calculated 'last stand' in their plot to undermine American democracy rather than an incidental violent outburst. Asked if she believed her colleagues have laid out an effective argument for prosecution, Cheney said that was 'ultimately' a decision for the Justice Department. 'I think we may well as a committee have a view on that and if you just think about it from the perspective of what kind of man knows that a mob is armed and sends the mob to attack the Capitol and further incites that mob when his own vice president is under threat, when the Congress is under threat,' Cheney said. 'I think there's no question, I mean, a man as dangerous as Donald Trump can absolutely never be anywhere near the Oval Office ever again,' Cheney said on ABC News 'It's just - its very chilling and I think certainly we will, you know, continue to present to the American people what we found.' Turning ahead to the next presidential race, Cheney denied that it would undermine democracy for a former president to be prosecuted by the Justice Department of the current chief, in the event of a rematch against President Joe Biden. 'I have greater concern about what it would mean if people werent held accountable for whats happened here,' the Wyoming Republican said. 'I think its a much graver constitutional threat if a president can engage in these kinds of activities and, you know, the majority of the president's party looks away or we as a country decide, you know, we're not actually going to take our constitutional obligations seriously. I think thats a much more serious threat.' However she denied that the hearings are in any way 'political,' an accusation frequently lobbed by Trump and his allies, though Cheney admitted she did not believe he is fit for office. 'I think there's no question, I mean, a man as dangerous as Donald Trump can absolutely never be anywhere near the Oval Office ever again,' she said. If Trump wins the GOP presidential primary a third time, Cheney warned, it could spell the end of the party. 'I believe in the party, and I believe in what the party can be and what the party can stand for. And I'm not ready to give that up,' she said. "There's no question: A man as dangerous as Donald Trump can absolutely never be anywhere near the Oval Office ever again. Cheney tells @JonKarl the goal of the Jan. 6 hearings is to make sure that the American people understand what happened. https://t.co/pcs4b0QqQl pic.twitter.com/knvaK5xuk7 This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 3, 2022 'Those of us who believe in Republican principles and ideals have a responsibility to try to lead the Party back to what it can be and to reject so much of the toxin and the vitriol.' The representative left the door open to her own White House aspirations, which could pit her against Trump in a historically tense Republican race for the 2024 election cycle. 'll make a decision about 24 down the road,' Cheney said. 'But I think about it less in terms of a decision about running for office and more in terms of, you know, as an American and as somebody who's in a position of public trust now, how do I make sure that Im doing everything I can to do the right thing?' The most damning testimony for the January 6 committee so far has come from Meadows' former White House assistant Cassidy Hutchinson, who told the panel last week that the former president tried to physically commandeer his vehicle from his Secret Service detail in a bid to accompany his supporters to the Capitol, and that he 'lunged' for his top agent's throat when he was stopped. She made a very public urge on the Justice Department to further ramp up its investigation of Trump and his allies, after the probe publicly gained steam in recent weeks 'What Cassidy Hutchinson did was an unbelievable example of bravery and of courage and patriotism in the face of real pressure,' Cheney said on Thursday. She pointed out that nobody who was disputing Hutchinson's story in the media has yet cooperated with the committee on the public record. 'The Committee is not going to stand by and watch her character be assassinated by anonymous sources and by men who are claiming executive privilege,' Cheney said. 'And so we look forward very much to additional testimony under oath on a whole range of issues.' Asked if the panel had anything to corroborate the presidential motorcade testimony, the lawmaker replied: 'The Committee has significant evidence about a whole range of issues including the president's intense anger.' Last week, Hutchinson had testified that her former boss Meadows, along with Giuliani, personally sought pardons for their efforts linked to January 6 and Trump's 2020 election fraud claims. Among her other bombshell revelations about Trump were that he approved of his supporters chanting 'Hang Mike Pence' once they broke into the Capitol - adding grim new context to his tweet that day stating his former vice president lacked 'courage.' She also testified that the ex-president knew that his supporters were armed when he encouraged them to march on the Capitol. Since then Trump has distanced himself from Hutchinson and minimized her role in his administration, while hurling a litany of insults at the 25-year-old former aide. 'The woman is living in fantasy land. She's a social climber - if you call that social. I think it's just a shame that this is happening to our country,' Trump said on Newsmax. Advertisement Two women have died in a shark attack within 650ft of each other at a tourist hotspot in Egypt as the first victim has been named as a 68-year-old pensioner from Austria. Egyptian authorities admitted today another woman was pulled out of the sea on Friday after eyewitnesses said her lifeless body was found on a reef in Sahl Hasheesh, south of Hurghada. The woman's identity has not been revealed but she is believed to have been a Romanian tourist who was staying at the adults only five star hotel, Premiere Le Reve. The local Green Party in Kramsach, Tyrol named Elisabeth Sauer, who was a local councillor from 1998 to 2004, as the first woman who was attacked at around the same time as the other tourist. She was walking in shallow water while using a snorkel with fins not far from the beach and told her partner, an Austrian of Egyptian descent, 'I'll go back in for a moment'. Footage then shows her desperately trying to get towards safety with the aid of a flipper as the waters around her turned scarlet red. Terrified onlookers tried to distract the predator, which is believed to be either a Mako or a Oceanic whitetip shark, but no one jumped in to help her. Somehow she made it ashore and it was there that she was then taken to the private Nile Hospital where she could not be resuscitated, according to an Egyptian official. She is believed to have died from 'painful shock' - most likely a heart attack. It is thought she had been in the country for a month, arriving on June 2, with her partner and was due to return home today. Yesterday, officials at the Red Sea Governorate told reporters that the area of the attack and Hurghada would be closed to all sea activity including fishing and diving. The sea is likely to be opened tomorrow by authorities as the nearby beaches have been deserted in the wake of the deaths. Footage shows the tourist desperately trying to get towards safety with the aid of a flipper as the waters around her turned scarlet red Both shark attacks took place very close to each other and near the waters in Sahl Hasheesh, south of Hurghada A second woman whose identity and nationality have not been revealed is believed to have been staying at the Premiere Le Reve five star hotel (pictured). It is thought that this woman is Romania Horrified onlookers (left and right) yelled for help and tried to distract the shark, but did not jump in The Austrian pensioner, 68, died of 'painful shock' - most likely a heart attack - at Sahl Hasheesh bay, south of Hurghada, in the Red Sea on Friday Worried witnesses (left) were pictured watching as the woman received urgent care from doctors. The local Green Party in Kramsach, Tyrol named Elisabeth Sauer (on right), who was a local councilor from 1998 to 2004, as the first woman who was attacked at around the same time as the other tourist A Russian tourist who filmed footage - which is too graphic to be shown - of the first attack posted a new video showing the location of the second fatal incident. Using his finger to explain, he said: 'This is a small lagoon where we saw [the shark] for the first time. And we didn't realise it was a shark. What is a Mako shark? A mako shark is a species of swift, active, and potentially dangerous sharks of the mackerel shark family. There is a shortfin and longfin species, depending on whether its open or shallow water. Adults, prized for their fighting qualities and repeated leaps out of the water, can be 4.5 metres (14.8 feet) in length and exceed 500kg (about 1,100 pounds) in weight. They prey on fishes such as herring, mackerel, and swordfish and small cetaceans. Source: Britannica Advertisement 'The attack I filmed [earlier] was here [in the video he points towards the pier]. And the body of the second woman was pulled out approximately here.' Writing on Facebook Die Grunen Kramsach said: 'We mourn the passing of our Elisabeth Sauer (68), who died in a tragic bathing accident in Egypt. 'Our heartfelt condolences go out to the family [...]. Elisabeth was a committed Green from the first hour in Kramsach, a councillor from 1998 to 2004, and for many years a loyal substitute councillor and [Green] candidate. May she rest in peace. 'We would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere condolences and compassion. She will forever be remembered for her warmth and [compassion].' Hundreds of tourists had seen the first attack on the Austrian woman who had been snorkelling, while wearing flippers, when she was attacked, and complained there were no lifeguards as swimmers fled the sea. The Russian witness said: 'I saw the shark turning and twisting the woman in the water. I didn't manage to film it, but she was twisted in the water.' Earlier he told how he saw the woman 'fighting off [the shark] with her hands at first, but apparently the shark bit off her leg with a flipper first, then her hand, which it threw it on the corals. 'She was already sitting on the corals, showing her hand [and] leg. She was in [a state of] shock. She didn't even scream, didn't cry, nothing.' After miraculously making her way back to land, the Austrian woman was given CPR by doctors at the scene but she died minutes later in an ambulance. A spokeswoman for the Austrian Embassy in Cairo told the MailOnline: 'Our Embassy in Cairo is in close contact with the family, including her partner (an Austrian of Egyptian descent), who witnessed the tragic scene, and her daughter. 'The Austrian Embassy is in contact with relatives of the deceased as well as with the local authorities.' The Austrian tourist was pictured clamouring toward safety as the waters around her turned scarlet red. She used a flipper to make her way back to shore It said she was walking not far from the beach within the designated bathing when she was attacked and it was still unclear how the shark came so close to her. What is an Oceanic whitetip shark? Oceanic whitetip sharks, are large stocky sharks with a huge, rounded first dorsal fins and long, wide-tipped pectoral fins. They grow up to 4m in total length with a maximum weight of 168 kg and usually live an age of 22 years. And are also on the critically endangered list according to Fraser University. Source: Marine Bio Advertisement Video shows witnesses on a nearby jetty record the woman's survival attempt and comment on her predicament. A group of Russian tourists are heard saying: 'Where are the rescuers? 'F***, she's covered in blood. Holy s***. 'Where's the rescue team? 'For f****'s sake. 'Life guards? Where are the life guards? She's going to f***ing die!' The 68-year-old woman, who lost a leg and an arm, died shortly after being taken to the private Nile Hospital in Hurghada, an Egyptian health official said. She was barely alive when she was taken in on Friday, the official said, adding that attempts by medical staff to resuscitate her failed. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to reporters. The governor of the Red Sea province closed the area for three days, banning all 'sea activities' including diving, snorkelling, wind surfing and kite sailing. Fishing boats were also banned from the waters off Hurghada. A local report quoted by Russian news agency RIA Novosti added: 'The woman died in the ambulance from painful shock.' Reports from news agency AFP and Austrian news outlets point to the attack being committed by a Mako shark while local Egyptian newspapers have named the animal as an Oceanic whitetip shark. The same unnamed Russian tourist who filmed footage - which is too graphic to be shown - in the aftermath of the first attack posted a new video showing the location of the second fatal incident Using his finger to explain, he said: 'This is a small lagoon where we saw [the shark] for the first time' The Red Sea region around Sharm el Sheikh (pictured) is hugely popular with foreign tourists How rare are shark attacks in the Red Sea? In June 2021, a 37-year-old Jordanian man was bit in the leg by a shark and survived. In December 2020, a German woman, 42, was savaged by a shark while diving in near Marsa Alam. In October 2020 a 12-year-old Ukrainian boy on holiday in Egypt and his tour guide lost limbs after an attack by an oceanic whitetip shark. In August 2018, a 41-year-old Czech tourist died after being attacked 12 miles north of the town of Marsa Alam. In 2010, five shark attacks took place at Sharm el Sheikh in the same number of days. Advertisement The Ministry of the Environment announced today that an expert group was investigating the attacks, which are seen as rare in the area. The resort area is also popular with Russian tourists, and remains open to them in contrast to many European destinations following the war in Ukraine. 'We ask Russian citizens to remain vigilant when in the water, and strictly follow the bans imposed by the Egyptian authorities on swimming, diving and fishing on the high seas and off the coast,' tourists were told by their consulate-general in Hurghada. They were also told to 'strictly observe the signals from hotel employees and the coast guards'. Shark attacks in Egypt are rare - but the Red Sea has more than 44 species of the fish, some of which can be deadly. Most common are 6ft-long grey reef sharks, which have 13 or 14 sharp teeth. They swim in shallow waters around 60m deep or less. In June 2021, a tandem parasailer, a 37-year-old Jordanian man, was hovering above the water in Aqaba when a shark suddenly emerged and bit his leg. The man lost part of the back of his foot in the attack which also severed tendons, tore muscles and broke several bones. In December 2020, a German woman was savaged by a shark while diving in the Red Sea before instructors pulled her away to safety. The oceanic whitetip shark latched on to the woman, 42, near Marsa Alam in Egypt. The tourist was taken to hospital where she is recovering in a 'stable condition', according to the Governor for the Red Sea Amr Hanafi. In October 2020 a 12-year-old Ukrainian boy on holiday in Egypt and his tour guide lost limbs after an attack by an oceanic whitetip shark. The pair needed amputations after the vicious incident at resort Ras Muhammad in the Red Sea. And in 2010, five shark attacks took place at Sharm el Sheikh in the same number of days. Three Russians, one Ukrainian and one German tourist were injured. The German tourist, 71-year-old resort regular Renata Seifert, died of her injuries. British theatre and film director Peter Brook, whose distinguished career saw him garner worldwide acclaim, has died at the age of 97. The two-time Tony Award winner directed the film adaptations of his best stage works as well as the 1963 movie Lord of the Flies. He was also a renowned interpreter of Shakespeare and set a new benchmark with dazzling stage productions of Titus Andronicus, The Tempest, King Lear and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Brook's publisher Nick Hern Books said in a statement today that he 'leaves behind an incredible artistic legacy'. Brooks had lived in Paris since the 1970s and French media reported that he died there yesterday. His son Simon tweeted: 'My dad passed away last night. I am the luckiest guy in the world to have had such an amazing and loving father. May he rest in peace.' Two-time Tony Award winner Peter Brook, who has died aged 97, directed the film adaptations of his best stage works as well as the 1963 movie Lord of the Flies Director Brook (left) in rehearsals of Your Hand in Mine in 2005 with actors Michael Piccoli (centre) and Natasha Parry (right) who was married to Brook for over 50 years Born in London in 1925, Brook studied at Oxford University and directed his first London show 'Doctor Faustus' while he was still a teenager. He worked for Birmingham Repertory Theatre in the 1940s and then served as director of productions at the Royal Opera House, where his exotic and experimental version of Richard Strauss's Salome drew headlines as well as uproar from cast and crew. But it was his 20-year engagement with the Royal Shakespeare Company that brought him plaudits, firstly with a critically-acclaimed production of Titus Andronicus in 1955 starring Laurence Olivier, followed by King Lear in 1962 with Paul Schofield. He was a Tony Award winner for Best Direction in 1966 for his interpretation of Peter Weiss's Marat/Sade starring Glenda Jackson, which he would later adapt for film, and in 1970 for a production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights Dream which used a minimalist white box as the stage backdrop. Brook was also the recipient of an Olivier Award, an Emmy and an International Emmy during his seven-decade career. Film and theatre director Peter Brook has died at the age of 97 (pictured after being awarded the Great Vermeil medal of Paris in January 2011) Brook pictured in the 1960s with theatre actress Mary Bell After settling in Paris in the 1970s, Brook founded the International Center for Theater Research, for which he would regenerate the rundown Bouffes du Nord theater in the French capital After settling in Paris in the 1970s, the director founded the International Center for Theater Research, for which he would regenerate the rundown Bouffes du Nord theater in the French capital. Worldwide recognition also saw him honored with art prizes including Japan's Praemium Imperiale, Italy's Prix Italia, and most recently Spain's Princess of Asturias in 2019. His death was greeted with a flood of tributes from across the theatrical world, led by the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) - whose spokesman said they were 'deeply saddened'. Erica Whyman, RSC acting artistic director said: 'I was privileged to get to know Peter in the 1990s at the National Theatre Studio where he generously shared his practice with younger theatre-makers, and later when I presented his work at Northern Stage. 'He was a mesmerising person, fascinated by the potential of human beings to communicate the most delicate feelings and thoughts to one another, by respecting the commanding simplicity of an "empty space".' Erica Whyman, Royal Shakespeare Company acting artistic director, hailed Brook as a 'mesmerising person' Brook (pictured at the Venice Film Festival in 2012) still conveyed the boundless curiosity which has characterised his career Gregory Doran, RSC artistic director emeritus, added: 'At 94, he still conveyed the boundless curiosity which has characterised his career.' Elsewhere, actor Peter Egan tweeted: 'A giant, a genius and the greatest theatre director has gone.' Journalist Dr Matthew Sweet, who interviewed Brook for the Guardian, wrote: 'Interviewing him was like spending time with Prospero [from Shakespeare's The Tempest] if Prospero had a sense of humour. Brook thought it appropriate that a man called Looney invented the theory that the Earl of Oxford wrote Shakespeare's plays.' Playwright Luke Barnes tweeted: 'I met Peter when he came to see my play The Jumper Factory at The Young Vic a few years ago and was lucky enough to meet him. Peter gave me life changing advice about life and art. "The only question you have to ask is how am I useful?" Changed my life.' Peter Brook (centre) receives the 2008 Ibsen Award from the committee chairman actress Liv Ullmann, left, and Henrik Ibsens, in Oslo in 2008 Brook was married to actress Natasha Parry from 1951 until her death following a stroke in 2015 (pictured together in 2011) Last year, Brook was interviewed by actress Glenda Jackson - who starred in his stage and film production of Marat/Sade in 1966 - for BBC Sounds shortly after his 96th birthday. During the podcast, Jackson said: 'I have known legendary theatre director Peter Brook for over 50 years, I got my first big theatre break with him. 'His work appeals across generations, he is taught in schools and universities throughout the world. His theories and practices, which helped revolutionise 20th century theatre, are followed by creatives today.' Brook was married to actress Natasha Parry from 1951 until her death following a stroke in 2015. They are survived by two children, Irina and Simon, both of whom are directors. A 19-year-old Amazon employee has been arrested on suspicion he plotted a mass shooting at the depot where he worked, with an AR-15 rifle, authorities said. Rodolfo Valdivia Aceves was arrested on a charge of terroristic threats on June 27, according to San Antonio Police. Police responded to reports of threats at the Amazon warehouse on 8210 Sous Vide Way. Staff at the delivery station said they heard Aceves planning a mass shooting. According to the arrest report, Aceves told a coworker that 'it would be a good idea to pull the fire alarm and have all employees exit the building and to commit a mass shooting,' News4 San Antonio reported. Aceves was arrested at a different location by SAPD Covert operations units, along with the SAPD Street Crimes Unit without inconvenient, police said. 'This case highlights the importance of community collaboration and appropriate responses. This is the essence of 'see something, say something,' San Antonio police said in a statement. 'If not for the witness who came forward, this incident could have resulted in a tragic outcome.' Rodolfo Valdivia Aceves, 19, was arrested on a charge of terroristic threats on June 27, according to San Antonio Police Police responded to reports of threats at the Amazon warehouse on 8210 Sous Vide Way. Staff at the delivery station said they heard Aceves planning a mass shooting A coworker of Aceves told police that she had taken a ride from him and when she said she had to pick up her kids at school, he allegedly said he knew where he was going to commit the mass shooting. The coworker also claimed that Aceves mentioned he 'idolized' the Uvalde shooter who killed 19 children and two adults at an elementary school on May 24, News4 reported. After the arrest, police questioned Aceves' father, who reportedly told authorities the 19-year-old had bought an AR-15 rifle and his family was scared of what he would do. Police seized the rifle when Aceves was taken into custody. Aceves' father also said that his son suffered from an unspecified mental health illness and had received in-patient treatment at a facility when he was 16, according to News4. The man claimed Aceves had recently stopped taking his medication, which he had been on for two years. 'This case highlights the importance of community collaboration and appropriate responses. This is the essence of 'see something, say something,' San Antonio police said in a statement Aceves' arrest comes amid an epidemic of mass shootings in the US. The country has witnessed 293 mass shootings so far this year, according to a report by the Gun Violence Archive. That compares with 309 in the same period last year, but is sharply up from 240 in 2020. Texas is the fourth state with most mass shooting, having reported 129 in 2022. On Saturday, a gunman killed two people and wounded four others, including three police officers, before taking his own life in a home in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Haltom City Police Det. Matt Spillane said early Sunday that all of those wounded in the shooting in a residential neighborhood had non-life threatening injuries and were expected to recover. Spillane said the officers returned fire after being shot at while responding to a report of gunshots at a home around 6.45 p.m. One officer was hit in both legs, and the other two officers were shot in the arm. The suspect died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He said the Texas Rangers would be taking over the investigation. A motive for the shooting was not immediately clear. 'The main focus is on how and why this happened,' Spillane told The Associated Press. A woman was found dead inside a house and a man was found dead outside, Sgt. Rick Alexander told WFAA-TV, speaking at a press conference late Saturday. The older adult woman who had initially called 911 was wounded, he said. The suspect was found with a 'military-style rifle' and a handgun, Alexander said. Liz Cheney says she intends to win the primary election in Wyoming in August despite several polls showing her far behind her Trump-backed challenger Harriet Hageman. The Republican at-large representative also wouldn't rule out the possibility of mounting a run for president in 2024 when speaking with ABC News' Jonathan Karl. The pre-recorded interview, which aired Sunday morning on ABC's This Week program, was the first with the January 6 select committee panel-member after a surprise hearing Tuesday that featured testimony from Cassidy Hutchinson, 25, a former top aide to ex-chief of staff Mark Meadows. Despite a censure from the GOP in her state, Cheney is confident that she still has a chance in the primary elections. 'I don't intend to lose the republican primary in Wyoming,' Cheney said when Karl asked what a loss would mean for her state and the party as it quickly split into pro- and anti-Trump factions. 'How important is it that you win for that larger battle?' the ABC reporter pushed. 'I think it's important because I will be the best representative that the people of Wyoming can have,' she insisted. Representative Liz Cheney says she intends to win her Wyoming primary next month but wouldn't rule out a run for the White House in 2024 Asked by @jonkarl if she will run for president in 2024, Rep. Liz Cheney says she hadnt made a decision yet. "I'm very focused on my obligations to do the job that I have now. And I'll make a decision about '24 down the road." https://t.co/8aNXEy1LH1 pic.twitter.com/Uk182FCtxo This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 3, 2022 Cheney is falling far behind her Trump-backed competitor Harriet Hageman (pictured on June 14) as polls show her trailing by 30 points 'The single most important thing is protecting the nation from Donald Trump,' Cheney added. 'And I think that that matters to us as Americans more than anything else and that's why my work on the Committee is so important and why it's so important to not just brush this passed, I think it's very important that people know the truth and that there are consequences.' One poll from Club for Growth taken in May showed that Cheney is behind Hageman by 30 percentage points, while another poll from Fabrizio, Lee & Associates in June showed her trailing by 28 percent. The signs are dire for the three-term congresswoman seeing her fourth shot to continue representing Wyoming. Cheney has, however, garnered widespread national attention through her opposition to Trump and in her fall from grace with Wyoming Republicans has still managed to out-raise Hageman well over a 2-to-1 margin in the first three months of 2022. The congresswoman has faced widespread criticism from her party for voting to impeach Trump after the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack and then joining the Democratic-led committee probing the events leading up to, following and on that day. Cheney sat down with ABC News' Jonathan Karl in an interview that aired in full on Sunday morning it was the first interview with the Wyoming congresswoman since the bombshell surprise January 6 hearing on Tuesday EXCLUSIVE: The Republican Party can't survive if Donald Trump is the nominee in 2024, Rep. Liz Cheney tells @JonKarl. "Those of us who believe in Republican principles and ideals have a responsibility to try to lead the party back to what it can be. https://t.co/0gtediDHd0 pic.twitter.com/TzOmaSeVxT This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 3, 2022 Wyoming is Trump country and the GOP there censured Cheney after her moved to accept Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's invitation to join the January 6 select committee. The Republican National Committee (RNC) also censured Cheney and the House GOP Conference booted her from her post as its chairwoman, which is the No. 2 Republican post in Congress' lower chamber. Cheney was replaced with New York GOP Representative Elise Stefanik. When asked if she could run for president in 2024, Cheney said: 'I haven't made a decision about that yet.' Trump endorsed Harriet Hageman in her run to take the GOP nomination in Cheney's attempt for a fourth term for Wyoming's at-large representative. The ex-president rallied for Hageman in Casper, Wyoming on May 28, 2022 'I'm obviously very focused on my reelection,' she added. 'I'm very focused on the January 6 committee. I'm very focused on my obligations to do the job that I have now.' 'I'll make a decision about '24 down the road,' Cheney told Karl in her interview. 'But I think about it less in terms of a decision about running for office and more in terms of, you know, as an American and as somebody who's in a position of public trust now, how do I make sure that I'm doing everything I can to do the right thing, to do what I know is right for the country and to protect our Constitution.' At least six were killed when an avalanche in the Italian Alps sent chunks of a melting glacier toward a group of tourists today. Ten people were also injured in the accident at Punta Rocca on Dolomite peak Marmolada, north-eastern Italy. All hikers are being rushed off the mountain as officials confirm the risk of further collapses. Around 15 people were struck by the falling ice, according to Alpine Rescue. On Saturday the mountain recorded an all-time record temperature of ten degrees. A photo handed out by the Alpine Rescue Service shows ice shards fall off the Alpine peak The intense heat wave baking Italy since late June could also be a factor, Alpine rescue spokesperson Walter Milan told state TV. Five helicopters and dog units were sent to the area to search for survivors, according to Italian newspaper La Repubblica. An eyewitness told the newspaper: 'We heard a very loud noise, then we saw the snow and ice avalanche.' Swathes of mountain ice fell off the mountain hours after the summit saw record temperatures Marmolada is the highest peak in the Dolomites (pictured), a southern section of the Alps The mountain range is known for its sharp edges and steep slopes - with temperatures rising Mountain rescuers have been activated. Tourist Reinhold Messner added: 'The ice there is almost all gone, there is none. 'These seracs fall, of course, due to gravity, but the real cause is global warming, which causes glaciers to melt and makes it more likely that a serac will come off.' The footage of the large ice avalanche in Marmolada today in close proximity. We don't know the author, we will write it in the comments as soon as we will know it. Indeed an impressive sequence pic.twitter.com/zDo4q40qOP Alpine-Adriatic Meteorological Society (@aametsoc) July 3, 2022 Measuring 3,343m, Marmolada is the highest mountain in the Dolomites. Regional Councillor for Civil Protection Gianpaolo Bottacin said: 'I am in contact with the Head of the Civil Protection Department Fabrizio Curcio, to keep him informed, and with the Head of the Alpine Rescue Delegation Alex Barattin. 3LUG #Marmolada Video di @cnsas_official La colata di neve, ghiaccio e roccia ha coinvolto anche il percorso della via normale, mentre vi si trovavano diverse cordate. Sul posto gli elicotteri di Pieve di Cadore, Cortina, Trento, PC Veneto. E' in corso la "bonifica" della zona pic.twitter.com/DkKJwEl6Wa SUEM Veneto (@SUEM_Veneto) July 3, 2022 'For the Venetian side, the 2 helicopters of the Suem 118 of the Ulss of Belluno are already operational. 'Also one of the helicopters of the Veneto Region Civil Protection to transport teams of mountain rescuers with canine units to the place. 'All the mountain rescue teams in the area have been activated. The first injured have already been recovered.' Advertisement New photos show how Lake Mead's waters have dropped to their lowest levels in history, revealing objects that have laid hidden beneath the surface for years. Among the latest finds to be revealed by the receding waters is a World War II era landing craft, the same kind that dropped American troops on the Normandy beaches on D-Day in 1944. The boat - a Higgins landing craft - was previously about 185 feet beneath the surface of the lake, but now rests halfway out of the water. Water levels in Lake Mead - the largest reservoir in the US, which is formed by the Hoover Dam River and sits about 24 miles from Las Vegas - have reached their lowest level since 1971. Levels have been declining for the past few years, as a result of the ongoing megadrought in the southwestern US, as well as increasing demand for water. In addition to the Higgins craft and a number of other shipwrecks, the skeletal remains of several bodies that some suspect to be victims of Las Vegas' notorious mob past have been found along the lakes new shorelines. The boat - a Higgins landing craft - was previously about 185 feet beneath the surface of the lake, but now rests halfway out of the water The World War Two-era Higgins landing craft seen through a tangle of steel cables also revealed by the receding waters The boat was manufactured between 1942 and 1945, and was used for surveying the Colorado River The landing craft was revealed under one-mile from Lake Mead Marina and Hemingway Harbor. It was one of thousands manufactured by Higgins between 1942 and 1945 to transport American troops during World War II. It is unclear if the Higgins found in Lake Mead saw duty overseas, but after the war it was for surveying of the Colorado River, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal. The boat was then sold to one of the lake's marinas, before eventually being sunken and used as a breakwater beneath the surface, according to a representative from Las Vegas Scuba, which used to conduct dive tours of the wreck. 'As water levels continue to fluctuate and decline, we know that this boat may come to the attention of park visitors both new and returning,' the National Park Service said in a statement, 'Lake Mead hopes everyone has the opportunity to learn more about its history and ask that as visitors enjoy the site, they leave it as they found it to avoid damaging the boat.' The parched shoreline along Lake Mead. The revealed Higgins boat can be seen in the background As of Friday, the water in in the lake was 1,043.5 feet above sea level. That is 4.5 feet lower than one month ago, over 25 feet down from the same time last year, and at least 54 feet lower than it was two years ago The record low water levels are a result of the worst drought in centuries, with human-caused climate change making it 72 per cent worse, studies have shown As of Friday, the water in in the lake was 1,043.5 feet above sea level. That is 4.5 feet lower than one month ago, over 25 feet down from the same time last year, and at least 54 feet lower than it was two years ago. The record low water levels are a result of the worst drought in centuries, with human-caused climate change making it 72 per cent worse, studies have shown. With weather patterns expected to worsen, experts say the reservoir may never be full again. The rocks that form the hard edges of the reservoir offer a stark illustration of just how far water levels have fallen. A white band of mineral deposits stains the mountainsides like the ring on a bathtub, showing where the water was at its high point after a flood in 1983. In May, a skeletal body was found curled in a metal barrel along the receding shoreline. Las Vegas police said the body belonged to a man who had died from an execution-style gunshot wound to the head sometime between the mid-1970s or early 80s. Officials have not confirmed the theory, but many have speculated that it bears all the markings of the sort of gangland hit that would not have been unheard of in the mob-run Las Vegas the victim was killed during. The remains of another body found in Callville Bay have been speculated to belong to a 1950s Vegas mobster - albeit one who was killed in an innocent accident rather than as a result of foul play. The skeletal body found in a steel barrel along the shores of Lake Mead. Police say the victim inside was killed by an execution style gunshot to the head Another body found along thanks to Lake Mead's receding waters. Todd Kolod thinks these bones may belong to his father, a mobster who died drowned in the lake in 1958 Kolod suspected the bones may belong to his father after seeing a photo of the jaw with missing teeth. His father wore dentures after losing his teeth in a car accident Todd Kolod thinks the body may be that of his father Daniel Kolod - known in the Vegas mob as Ruby - who drowned in the lake in 1958 aged 22, and whose remains were never found. He fell from a speedboat that flipped when it struck by a wake during a fishing trip with a friend 64 years ago. Todd said his suspicions were heightened thanks to a photo of the body that was found - particularly a snap of a skull with missing teeth, as his father wore denture following a car crash which knocked his front teeth out. At the time, Todd was three years old. He says that his family told him that his father had 'went away,' and that he only learned the grim truth when he was older. Todd said in an interview with KLAS that when he heard that remains were found in the Callville Bay section of Lake Mead his eyes 'bulged wide open.' January 6 committee member Rep. Adam Kinzinger said on Sunday that 'new people' have come forward in the wake of former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson's bombshell testimony before the panel last week. Further damning evidence could come from Donald Trump's ex-White House counsel Pat Cipollone, who Rep. Adam Schiff said Sunday is 'in discussions' with the panel on testifying against his old boss. 'We're in discussions with Mr. Cipollone's counsel. I'm hopeful that we can work out bringing him in for testimony,' Schiff told CBS News' Face The Nation after his colleagues subpoenaed the attorney. Schiff said Cipollone 'clearly has information about - concerns about - criminal violations' Trump made or almost committed on January 6.' 'Hard to imagine someone more at the center of things, and I hope that he'll demonstrate the same courage we saw Cassidy Hutchinson display,' Schiff said. Hutchinson's bombshell testimony on Tuesday painted a picture of a lame duck leader who attempted to bully his security detail and aides, including Hutchinson and Cipollone, into letting him accompany his mob of supporters to the US Capitol. The 25-year-old former aide to Trump's final Chief of Staff Mark Meadows claimed Trump knew that some of his supporters were armed when he demanded to follow them to the Capitol and urged them to march toward it during his Stop The Steal speech. Illinois Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger said 'new people' have come forward to the January 6 committee since Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony Asked about Kinzinger's comments about Hutchinson's effect on Sunday, his fellow committee member Rep. Adam Schiff acknowledged the panel now has new 'leads' to follow "Every day we get new people that come forward" -@RepKinzinger says the January 6 committee expects to hear from new witnesses after Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony and to "stay tuned." @CNNSotu #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/2XLJ9iVa5I CNN (@CNN) July 3, 2022 And despite Trump allies' attempts to discredit her, Kinzinger told CNN's State of the Union on Sunday that the panel has fielded a slew of inquiries from people looking to back up Hutchinson's word. The Illinois Republican said 'yes' when asked if more people have come forward in the wake of Hutchinson's hearing but declined to go into further detail. 'I don't want to get into who or any of those details, but - and it's not even just Cassidy, by the way, she's been inspiring for a lot of people,' Kinzinger said. 'This happens every day. Every day, we get new people that come forward and say, "Hey, I didn't think maybe this piece of the story that I knew was important, but now that you guys are talking - like, I do see this plays in here."' Kinzinger also confirmed that there would be more surprise witnesses that 'he did not expect to hear from' with the Democrat-led committee's probe went underway. 'There will be - there is. There will be way more information,' the retiring lawmaker said. Asked about Kinzinger's comments on Sunday, Schiff acknowledged the panel now has new 'leads' to follow after Hutchinson's testimony. The 25-year-old is the former assistant to Mark Meadows, Trump's final Chief of Staff Rep. Adam Schiff tells @margbrennan that the House January 6 select committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol is in discussions with former WH lawyer Pat Cipollones counsel to see if Cipollone will testify to the committee. pic.twitter.com/BlVCIzxtlY Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) July 3, 2022 'I think there's certainly more information that is coming forward. In terms of whether that will materialize into particular witnesses on this topic or that topic, we're going to wait and see, but we are following additional leads,' the California Democrat said. 'I think those leads will lead to a new testimony. It's part of the reason we wanted her to come before the public, is we were hoping it would generate others stepping forward, seeing her courage would inspire them to show the same kind of courage.' He said the next hearing 'will be focused on efforts to assemble that mob on the [National] mall.' She testified last week that ex-White House counsel Pat Cipollone was central to efforts to keep Trump from following his supporters to the US Capitol Images of a gallows erected by Trump's supporters on the National Mall on January 6 are a chilling reminder of the violent intentions harbored by some of the mob that day. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, another Democrat on the committee, backed up Schiff's claim that the committee was in talks with Cipollone on Sunday. 'We have been engaging with Mr. Cipollone. He did have an informal interview or discussion. That was all he was willing to do. But there have been ongoing discussions to see if he would come in and talk further,' she said on NBC News' Meet The Press. 'After Ms. Hutchinson's testimony that was so informative, it's very clear that we would like him to come in.' Lofgren said Cipollone's concerns about violating executive privilege do not grant him 'absolute immunity' and pointed out that President Joe Biden has already waived that right in most cases of the committee's investigation. It falls when there is something more important, and that is true in this case,' the California Democratic lawmaker said. Tuesday's surprise hearing was announced just 24 hours before it was set to take place, nearly a week after Committee Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson told reporters that the remaining presentation of evidence would be delayed until July. Schiff said the committee's next hearing 'will be focused on efforts to assemble that mob on the [National] mall.' This image of a gallows erected by Trump's supporters near the National Mall on January 6 are a chilling reminder of the violent intentions harbored by some of the mob Cipollone was sent a subpoena for July 6 the day after Hutchinson's testimony that suggested he 'repeatedly raised legal and other concerns about President Trumps activities on January 6th and in the days that preceded.' He was among the officials who urged Hutchinson to keep Trump from the Capitol, she claimed. 'Mr. Cipollone said something to the effect of, "please make sure that we don't go up to the Capitol, Cassidy, keep in touch with me",' the former White House staffer said. She said Cipollone delivered a stark warning: 'We're going to get charged with every crime imaginable if we make that movement happen.' Hutchinson said Cipollone warned her boss as the riot unfolded, 'Mark, something needs to be done or people are going to die and the blood is going to be on your effing hands.' The attorney also allegedly threatened to resign if Trump instilled Jeffrey Clark, a loyalist ready to help him overturn the 2020 election results, as Attorney General. Cipollone himself told Trump that installing Clark would be tantamount to a 'murder-suicide pact,' according to witness testimony. Kristi Noem said Sunday that she won't let 'the tragedy' of children getting pregnant through rape lead to another tragedy in her state by allowing cases like these to lead to abortion. 'Every single life is precious,' the GOP South Dakota governor told CNN's Dana Bash when asked if a 'child' should have to give birth. 'This tragedy is horrific. I can't even imagine.' 'I don't believe a tragic situation should be perpetuated by another tragedy,' Noem added. 'And so there's more that we have got to do to make sure that we really are living a life that says every life is precious, especially innocent lives that have been shattered, like that 10-year-old girl,' she said during her interview on State of the Union Sunday morning. The response came after trigger laws went into effect in 13 states following the Roe v. Wade overturn and a heartbreaking case of a 10-year-old girl in Ohio needing to travel over state lines to terminate her pregnancy after she was raped. South Dakota is one of the states with these so-called trigger laws. South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem said Sunday that she would not let 'a tragic situation perpetuate another tragedy' by letting a 10-year-old who got pregnant by rape get an abortion .@DanaBashCNN asks @govkristinoem if South Dakota would force a 10-year-old girl to have a baby after the state banned abortions except in cases where the life of the mother is at risk. @CNNSotu #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/7XkergLyQH CNN (@CNN) July 3, 2022 GOP Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, who served with Noem in the House, said that she is not the same person that she was pre-Trump endorsement. 'I served with Kristi Noem in the House, and it's like 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers,' he told Bash in his own interview Sunday morning. 'This is not the Kristi Noem I served with,' he added. 'The Kristi Noem I served with was conservative, dedicated to truth, and I at the time would have thought would have put her country above her political career at any moment.' 'Look, Dana, it is clear she is running for president or vice president,' he added. 'She's scared to death of the base She used to be something very different.' Noem is a pro-Trump Republican and claimed Sunday that the issue of this particular case needs to be focusing on the criminal who raped a 10-year-old girl. In South Dakota there is an exception for their abortion ban for when the life of the mother is in danger if she carries out her pregnancy. CNN host Dana Bashed asked if allowing a young child to receive an abortion would be protecting her life considering the physical and and mental consequences giving birth could cause. She conceded on this point and lauded how different states could have different laws. 'Yes, that situation, the doctor, the family, the individuals closest to that will make the decisions there for that family,' Noem told Bash. 'That's what's interesting about the time we live in right now, is every state will have different laws on the books.' 'The decisions will be made by the legislators that are closest to the people,' she added. 'That's appropriate. It's the way our Constitution intended. And I think that South Dakota's laws may look very different than California's, may look very different than New York's, where that governor has said she wants to become a destination known for providing abortions.' Thirteen states passed trigger laws to restrict or ban abortion in the event Roe v. Wade was overturned 'That's not our story here in South Dakota. And I think every governor, every state will make a very different decision on what their laws look like.' The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last Friday, which immediately ended federal protections for abortion rights and sent the issue back to the states. The almost 50-year-old law gave women nationwide the right to seek an abortion, but in recent years states have been pushing the limits by imposing more restrictions on timelines for terminating a pregnancy. Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization is the case that ultimately made it to the Supreme Court and caused an overturn of the 1973 ruling after the conservative majority decided that Mississippi could pass and enforce a law banning abortion at 15 weeks or the start of the second trimester. 'Is it a state right, abortion? Or should it be a state right or not?' Bash asked Noem in their Sunday morning interview. 'It's a decision that should be made at the state level, absolutely,' she said in siding with the recent ruling. Noem, however, wouldn't rule out supporting a national ban on abortion. A 10-year-old child abuse victim was forced to seek an abortion in Indiana after her home state of Ohio barred abortion following the Supreme Court decision to overturn of Roe v. Wade. The child was six weeks and three days pregnant, which made her just days shy of being eligible for the procedure in her home state. A child abuse doctor in Ohio sought the help of Dr. Caitlin Bernard, an Indianapolis obstetrician-gynecologist, on Monday to help the girl get an abortion after the state banned the procedure after six weeks - hours after the 6-3 Supreme Court vote. Dr. Caitlin Bernard, an Indiana OBGYN, received a call from a doctor in Ohio about a 10-year-old child abuse victim in need of an abortion Abortion advocates in the state attempted to halt Ohio's six-week abortion ban, but the effort was denied by a judge on Friday. As of Friday, Indiana's only abortion restriction is a law requiring clinics to ask women if their abortion is coerced - which is illegal, Fox 59 reported. The law went into effect on July 1 and more restrictions might pass in the state following The Indiana General Assembly hearing on July 25. 'It's hard to imagine that in just a few short weeks we will have no ability to provide that care,' Bernard told The Columbus Dispatch. Until then, abortion providers in Indiana say they have noticed the impact of the overturn of Roe, claiming they have seen an increase of patients coming from out of state to receive the procedure, according to The Columbus Dispatch. The Women's Med, an Indiana abortion clinic that also has a center in Ohio, has received patients in need of an operation from their Ohio clinic. Dr. Katie McHugh, an OBGYN in Indiana, has witnessed 'an insane amount of requests' from women in Ohio and Kentucky seeking an abortion. McHugh said she receives between five to eight patients per day that come from out of state with some clinics assisting about 20 women per day. All around the country, protesters filled the streets in opposition to the Supreme Court. Some protesters demonstrated outside the state capitals where abortions was banned effective immediately In Kentucky, abortion centers were forced to close down after the Roe ruling when the state's 'trigger law' went into effect. The overturn of Roe v. Wade allowed for states to decide on whether to implement restrictions or bans on the procedure. Kentucky was one of twelve states - along with Arkansas, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming - to pass trigger laws that would outlaw abortion in the instance Roe was overturned. However, a Kentucky judge on Thursday granted a temporary restraining order on Thursday to prohibit the state from enforcing the ban on abortion. Other state including Indiana, Montana, Nebraska, Georgia, Iowa, and South Carolina, and Florida are also attempting to impose new bans and restrictions. Following the overturn of the 1973 right to abortion, advocates scattered to state courts to stop restrictions on abortions that are planned to take effect in 22 states. Abortion clinics in Ohio, Idaho, West Virginia and Mississippi are also seeking temporary halts to state implemented bans. By Andrew Hammond The memorable phrase of Charles Dickens in "A Tale of Two Cities" that, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," is one that NATO can surely relate to. The Western military alliance faced a potential near-death experience during Donald Trump's U.S. presidency. Yet, following the devastating Russian invasion of Ukraine, its fortunes have rebounded, and it had its most successful annual summit in years last week with multiple wins. Not only has Turkey relented on its opposition to the accession of Finland and Sweden to the Western club, but the alliance is also enjoying its strongest international support in years. Take the example of Spain, which hosted the summit, where pro-NATO sentiment has risen to a very high 83 percent, a double-digit increase compared to 2018, according to a survey by think tank Elcano Royal Institute. NATO also agreed to the largest overhaul of its defense posture since the Cold War. This change includes plans to increase its presence in Eastern Europe, including an expansion of the 40,000-strong NATO Response Force, which is more than a sixfold increase to 300,000. The military alliance's new strategy announced at the summit, its first in over a decade, looks east to China, not only Russia. For there are growing Western worries about Beijing too, which is now being called a strategic challenger, with its increasingly sophisticated missile systems, and this situation will become especially concerning if it doubles down on its alliance with Moscow in the 2020s. In this context, it was no coincidence that a unique feature of the summit was the attendance of several Asia-Pacific leaders for the first time at any NATO leadership meeting. The regional politicians there included: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. The turnaround in NATO's fortunes in 2022 underlines how much the Ukraine crisis has highlighted the continuing relevance of the Western alliance of countries with a collective population of about 1 billion. For all its remaining weaknesses, NATO remains one of the world's most successful military organizations ever, helping to underpin the longest period of sustained peace in the West's modern history. This massive, positive shift in sentiment toward NATO since February has allowed it to turn the corner, at least temporarily, on the worst strains in its 70-year history, which were seen during Trump's presidency. Former U.S. officials, including ex-National Security Adviser John Bolton, have confirmed that Trump came close to announcing the U.S.' withdrawal from the alliance. This move would have been a huge blow to its credibility. Indeed, it is chilling to think what a re-elected Trump, who initially described Russia's invasion of Ukraine as "genius," would have meant for the future of NATO while facing one of its gravest threats. Washington's waning commitment under Trump badly irked the alliance, including the White House's failure to consult the Western allies before pulling U.S. forces out of Syria in 2019. French President Emmanuel Macron was even forced to declare that he did not know if the United States could still be relied on to defend the alliance under the terms of its founding charter, which states that any attack on one member will trigger a collective response. It was Macron's exasperation at the diminished commitment of the United States, under the Trump presidency, which drove his astonishing outburst in 2019 about the alliance's supposed "brain death." However, the challenges within NATO during the Trump era were by no means only of his own making. One of his critiques of the alliance that more than half of its members were not spending the prescribed 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense is a long-standing sore point that other U.S. presidents have highlighted, dating back to at least the 1990s under Bill Clinton. It is important, therefore, to see that more nations in Europe have now committed, in the wake of the Ukraine crisis, to this target. Most symbolically, this commitment includes Germany under new Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Moreover, while Trump supported Brexit, that dimension of the fracturing of the Western alliance owed more to long-standing U.K. political issues that he exacerbated, rather than created. Ironically, the Ukraine crisis may now help heal some of the schisms, as London and the continental European capitals work together closely in their response to Russia's revanchism. Nonetheless, a key medium-term threat to the alliance is the prospect of a new U.S. president in 2025 or after possibly even Trump himself coming into power with a NATO-skeptic agenda again. Despite the successes of 2022, there remain concerns about whether the alliance is fully fit for the purpose in its eighth decade, and this issue cannot simply be wished away. Andrew Hammond (andrewkorea@outlook.com) is an associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics. A 14-year-old schoolboy has been arrested and questioned by detectives after a woman says she was raped in the male toilets of a city's popular nightclub. But when the victim's friends raised the alarm and security found them in a toilet cubicle - they simply walked out and left her with her alleged attacker, a licencing hearing was told. Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirm the teenager was later held after the alleged sex attack at the Bloom nightclub, in Manchester's gay village, in the early hours of Wednesday, June 29. GMP stated that the female customer and her friends reported being approached by a teenager offering to sell them drugs at around 4.15 am and he entered the male toilets with her. One friend claimed security staff said 'have a good one mate' to the teenager as he entered the male toilets with the woman, according to a police report. A woman was allegedly raped by a teenage boy at Bloom nightclub in Manchester's gay village in the early hours of the morning It is then alleged when alone with the woman, the teenage boy pounced on her and raped inside one of the men's toilet cubicles. The woman is said to have texted her friends asking for help around twenty minutes later, who then alerted club staff. A Manchester City Council licencing hearing heard allegations a male bouncer entered the toilets, knocked on the cubicle and realising there were two people inside allowed them to remain, and simply left. A teenager was located and detained outside the club but was allowed to leave when they were told the victim did not want the police called. But a police report to the city council said at around 5am one of the victim's friends contacted GMP to report the incident and officers attended the premises. A 14-year-old boy was later arrested on suspicion of rape and taken into custody for questioning. He's now been bailed as investigations continue. PC Stuart Hammersley from GMP said he was 'shocked' the nightclub did not contact the police immediately the incident was first reported as 'any forensic opportunities were lost' as a result. Bloom nightclub is located in the heart of Manchester's popular gay village He remarked: 'That's one of the most surprising things of everything that's gone on. 'If it was a very minor incident, if somebody had been pushed or punched and it's not a serious injury, and they didn't want the police involved, I can understand why they would take that on board and not necessarily contact us. 'But given the grave nature of this, I'm shocked that they didn't contact us to say what had happened and to say they had this person detained and leave that for the victim's friend to contact us directly herself afterwards. 'The opportunity for the male to be detained at the scene and any forensic opportunities were lost. 'Despite the victim at that stage not wishing to get the police involved, I think really it's incumbent on the premises to contact us either way.' PC Hammersley told councillors that police believe the teenager got into the club using a fake ID. Commenting on the fact the security left the two in the toilet cubicle, PC Hammersley added: 'I don't think anything was said to him specifically about what was going on. 'But obviously, it wouldn't be good practice for security to allow two people to remain in a toilet cubicle together without carrying out checks.' The club's licence was suspended with immediate effect at the committee hearing, pending a full review which will be heard on July 25th. The panel said they were 'gravely concerned' at what had happened during last Wednesday's shocking incident. Speaking on behalf of the premises licence holder at the hearing, solicitor Stephanie Williams said the club 'understands the seriousness of what happened' and is conducting a 'full investigation' so could not comment further. The club said in a statement issued before the hearing they would be closed whilst the investigation took place and that that they were 'working with the police and giving every assistance possible.' Bloom said: 'Due to the severity of an incident which occurred in the club on Wednesday, Bloom Manchester will be closed to allow for a complete investigation to take place. 'We are working with the police and giving every assistance possible and ask for our customers' understanding and patience at this time.' GMP have urged anyone with information over the incident to contact them. The White House's hands are tied when it comes to opening abortion access in states that have banned the medical procedure after Roe v. Wade was overturned, Health Secretary Xavier Becerra admitted on Sunday. President Joe Biden and his administration have led Democrats nationwide in outrage over the Supreme Court's decision to do away with federal abortion protections. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, another member of Biden's Cabinet, warned Sunday that the increased tension over the ruling has 'heightened the threat environment' around the Supreme Court as well as its Justices and their families. It comes after his department sent out multiple warnings indicating an increased likelihood of violence from both the anti-abortion and pro-choice sides in the wake of Roe being overturned. But there is apparently little the White House can do to mitigate the fallout, Becerra suggested on NBC News' Meet The Press, as criticism mounts on the president's party for failing to act sooner to protect abortion rights. 'If you look at our laws and the way we administer them, when the Supreme Court speaks, unless we're all going to say that the word of the Supreme Court will no longer have value, we have to heed the word of the Supreme Court. And so we will,' Becerra said. 'But we will continue to find every avenue possible to make sure women have access to the care that they need, including abortion care.' Health Secretary Xavier Becerra suggested the White House's hands are tied when it comes to expanding abortion access in states that have already banned it It comes after Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas echoed his department's prior warnings of a heightened level of threats in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade WATCH: HHS Sec. Xavier Becerra says theres not a lot the Biden administration can do for abortion rights. #MTP@SecBecerra: Unless were all going to say the word of the Supreme Court will no longer have value, we have to heed the word of the Supreme Court. pic.twitter.com/HDlbxoZJ9C Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) July 3, 2022 Asked whether the White House would heed progressive calls to open abortion clinics on federally owned land in states where it's already been banned, the health secretary suggested the idea was already passed over. 'The difficulty is that simply because it's an idea doesn't mean it can go out into practice. And so what we want to make sure is we can put things out into practice,' he said. Becerra's message to Congressional Democrats asking Biden to do more was pointedly, 'Give us some good ideas.' 'We're going to explore everything we can. And I also would ask them to please pass a law,' the former House Democrat from California said. 'They have it in their power, if they can find the votes to actually codify the Roe decision, which is what we need more than anything else.' Meanwhile the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appears to be proactively monitoring potential threats that arise from the late June Supreme Court decision. Speaking to CBS News' Face The Nation on Sunday, Mayorkas referenced a bulletin sent out by DHS in early June. DHS had issued a 'heightened threat advisory' on Tuesday, warning of an increased risk of 'mass casualty violence' nationwide fueled by extremist ideologies and personal beliefs. Late last month the Supreme Court instantly changed the landscape of women's reproductive health when it overturned the Constitutional right to an abortion The overturning of Roe v. Wade has heightened the threat environment, DHS Sec. Mayorkas tells @margbrennan while saying his department has deployed resources to ensure the safety and security of the Supreme Court and the justices. pic.twitter.com/pi9dVw889b Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) July 3, 2022 The bulletin cites 'individuals who advocate both for and against abortion' who publicly 'encouraged violence, including against government, religious, and reproductive healthcare personnel and facilities, as well as those with opposing ideologies.' Mayorkas said on Sunday, 'We have seen a heightened threat environment over the last several months over a number of different volatile issues that galvanize people on different sides of each issue.' He said his department becomes 'involved when there's a connectivity between the opposition to a particular view or an ideology of hate, a false narrative and violence.' 'We are very mindful that the Supreme Court's decision in reversing and overturning Roe v. Wade has really heightened the threat environment,' Mayorkas continued. 'We have deployed resources to ensure the safety and security of the Supreme Court and the Justices.' That includes personnel deployed for the security of the Justices and their families. 'We do not condone violence and law enforcement will, and has, responded to acts of violence when people do not honor their freedom to protest peacefully, but instead violate the laws of our country and the states within it,' Mayorkas said. Police have released body camera footage of the moment a black man from Ohio was shot by police at least 60 times - on the final deadline they had to turn over the video to the public. Jayland Walker, 25, was killed by Akron police after officers tried to stop him for a traffic violation while he was driving on June 27. The shocking footage, made public on Sunday, showed multiple officers approach Walker's vehicle and open fire as he fled on foot. The hail of bullets sounded like 'a whole brick of fireworks going off,' the family's attorney alleged. Video from the scene also showed a gun on the front seat of Walker's car, contradicting earlier reports that the 25-year-old had been unarmed. The cameras captured what appeared to be a flash of a gun coming from Walker's car during the chase. Akron police previously claimed Walker had fired a gun at officers who were pursuing him. The medical examiner determined Walker had suffered 60 gunshot wounds during the incident, Akron Police Chief Stephen Mylett confirmed Sunday. The exact number of shots fired remains under investigation, but initial estimates suggested a hail of 90 bullets. Police have released heartbreaking body camera footage of the moment Jayland Walker was shot 60 times in hail of 90 bullets on June 27 Akron police say the white light circled is a muzzle flash that came from Walker's car as he allegedly fired at them during a chase. They've used a red arrow to show his car The hail of bullets sounded like 'a whole brick of fireworks going off,' the family's attorney said Jayland Walker, 25, was shot dead by police in Akron, Ohio after officers tried to stop him for a traffic violation Mylett said officers rendered aid to Walker as soon as gunfire ceased, but he still died at the scene. Eight cops were directly involved in the shooting. Mylett said they have been placed administrative leave while the Bureau of Criminal Investigation probes the incident. The shooting was the latest in a spate of killings of black men by law enforcement in the United States that critics say are unjustified, including the 2020 murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis that ignited global protests against police brutality and racial injustice. Police released two police body-camera videos from the fatal shooting during Sunday's press conference. After the footage was released, the Akron NAACP held a rally and march in the downtown area. Sunday marks the fourth day of protests calling for accountability and transparency within the Akron Police Department. The Akron NAACP held a rally and march in downtown Sunday (pictured) after police released the body camera footage. Sunday marks the fourth day of protests calling for accountability and transparency within the Akron Police Department A demonstrator holds a sign that reads 'Jayland Walker was executed' as he protests against the Akron police shooting death of Black man Jayland Walker in Akron on Sunday One demonstrator wears a signs that reads 'I AM NOT A THREAT' as protests emerge on Sunday against the Akron police shooting of Jayland Walker The first video showed cops pursuing Walker's silver Buick on Route 8 around 12.30am in Akron's North Hill neighborhood. They attempted to pull him over for a traffic and equipment violation. The video showed Walker's car taking an onramp and a flash of light that Mylett said appeared to be a flash of a gun coming from the driver's side of Walker's car. A second camera recorded officers saying they heard at least one shot being fired from Walker's vehicle. The cops follow Walker off Route 8 and continue the pursuit on the city streets. Walker slowed down and jumped out of the car before it came to a full stop. Video then shows the 25-year-old exiting the passenger side door in a ski mask and running off. Multiple officers run after Walker, who seemingly looked over his shoulder, while cops opened fire at him. Mylett claims he watched the video at least 40 times and stated there are still photos showing Walker apparently reach for his waistband, turn towards cops and move his arm forward. DailyMail.com cannot verify Mylett's statements as Walker's face and body were blurred out in the video at the request of his family. Video from the scene showed a gun on the front seat of Walker's car, contradicting earlier reports that the 25-year-old had been unarmed Cops were pursuing Walker's silver Buick on Route 8 around 12.30am on June 27 in Akron's North Hill neighborhood The video showed Walker's car taking an onramp and a flash of light that Police Chief Stephen Mylett said appeared to be a flash of a gun coming from the driver's side of Walker's car Officers were recorded saying they heard at least one shot being fired from Walker's vehicle. The cops follow Walker off Route 8 and continue their pursuit on the city streets Reporters asked Mylett if officers overreacted when they open fire on Walker. 'It was difficult to watch, and shocking,' Mylett said Sunday, adding: 'I'm not going to pass judgment' until the investigation is completed. He called for patience as the investigation continue and reiterated that any time a cop opens fire, they must 'articulate what specific threats they were facing.' 'When an officer makes the most critical decision in his or her life as a police officer, it doesn't matter where in the country this happens, when they make that most critical decision to point their firearm at another human being and pull the trigger, they've got to be ready to explain why they did what they did,' the chief said. 'They need to be able to articulate what specific threats they were facing, and that goes for every round that goes down the barrel of their gun.' Akron Mayor Daniel Horrigan also commented on the footage, saying: 'The video is heartbreaking, it's hard to take in.' Attorney Bobby DiCello, who represents Walker's family, described the video as 'brutal' in comments published on Saturday by the Akron Beacon Journal. He said Walker's relatives worried that protests this weekend could turn violent. 'We're all bracing for the community's response, and the one message that we have is the family does not need any more violence,' DiCello said. Officials joined the family on Sunday, calling for peaceful demonstrations as furious residents take to the streets. Demonstrators embrace as they protest against the Akron police shooting death of Walker Demonstrators protest against the Akron police shooting death of Black man Jayland Walker in Akron on Sunday 'I praise and thank the Walker family for calling for peace,' Mylett said. He then addressed the 25-year-old's relatives directly: 'I cannot imagine the sense of loss, the pain you are going through right now. 'I want to personally thank you for the way in which you have been dealing with this situation. You have asked for peace in an environment that is rife for aggression and violence.' Officials have said the deadly confrontation began when officers tried to stop Walker for a traffic violation while he was driving early Monday morning. Officers are seen chasing Walker after he fled during a traffic stop on June 27 Walker fled, according to the Akron Police Department, which said officers reported a gun being fired from Walker's vehicle. After several minutes Walker exited his vehicle and ran, while officers chased him on foot and fired at him, saying he presented a 'deadly threat,' the police department said in a statement on Tuesday. Walker was pronounced dead in the parking lot where he fell. Police representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Saturday. Walker's fiancee, Jaymeisha Beasley, 27, had died in a hit-and-run car crash a month before Walker's killing. His family members insist he was of sound mind at the time of his death and claim Walker had no intention of harming himself or others when he was killed DiCello said Saturday his team has not seen any evidence Walker fired a weapon and that police body-camera footage showed him running with his back to officers when they gunned him down. 'He is just in a down sprint when he is dropped by I think the count is more than 90 shots,' DiCello told the Beacon Journal. 'Now how many of those land, according to our investigation right now, we're getting details that suggest 60 to 80 wounds.' A preliminary report from the medical examiner's office found Walker sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his head, torso and legs. Roderick Pounds Sr., pastor of the Second Baptist Church in Akron, spoke to the news outlet during a prayer rally on Saturday after he was permitted to see the video prior to its being made public. Pounds called the footage 'shocking' and said it showed Walker posed no threat when he was shot down in a manner the pastor likened to a 'massacre.' 'It's barbaric,' Pounds said in an interview with local television station WEWS-TV, noting that Walker 'did not have a weapon when he was shot. It was in his car.' Compounding the tragedy, Walker's fiancee, Jaymeisha Beasley, 27, had died in a hit-and-run car crash a month before Walker's killing. His family members insist he was of sound mind at the time of his death and claim Walker had no intention of harming himself or others when he was killed. The group began at Quaker Station and marched to Akron City Hall on Sunday, carrying posters and Black Lives Matter flags Gloria Beasley, the grandmother of Jayland's fiancee who died in May, stands with protesters on South High Street in front of the Stubbs Justice Center on Saturday in Akron, Ohio A chalk drawing depicting Jayland Walker is seen on the sidewalk in the street in front of the Akron City Justice Center in Akron, Ohio on Saturday Protests erupted after after police released the body camera footage of the shooting A girl holds a sign as she protests the Akron police shooting of Black man Jayland Walker The Akron NAACP held a rally and march in downtown Sunday after police released the body camera footage. The group began at Quaker Station and marched to Akron City Hall, carrying posters and Black Lives Matter flags. Akron NAACP President Judi Hill told WJW-TV: 'We are done dying. We will not rest until there is full accountability and prosecution for this senseless murder. 'This seething hatred, fear, and hunting down of Black men in our communities at the hands of police must end.' Sunday marks the fourth day of protests calling for accountability and transparency within the Akron Police Department. Attorney Bobby DiCello, right, holds up a photograph of Jayland Walker as attorney Paige White, left, comforts Jayland's mother Pamela Walker during a news conference Seven people have been arrested for running onto the track after the first lap crash at the British Grand Prix. The Alfa Romeo, driven by Zhou Guanyu, slid upside down across the track before slamming into the tyre barrier and being launched into the fencing at the start of the Silverstone race. Following this, protestors broke on to the circuit and sat down, while the contest was immediately red flagged and cars headed for the pits. The protestors were quickly dragged away by marshals as drivers sped by. Seven people have been arrested after they ran onto the track at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone today (Pictured: marshals dragging protestors as a car drives by) The protestors sat down on the track after the huge crash on the first lap but were quickly dragged to the side Climate activist group Just Stop Oil took to Twitter to claim responsibility for the dangerous protest The race was red flagged after Zhou Guanyu crashed on the first lap (pictured) Northamptonshire Police, who made an appeal before the race asking potential protestors to not put lives at risk with an on-track protest, later confirmed a string of arrests. Climate activist group Just Stop Oil have taken responsibility for the protest. On Twitter, the group wrote: 'A group of supporters of Just Stop Oil have stormed the track at #BritishGP2022 If you are more outraged about this disruption than our world being burnt before our eyes, then you need to get your priorities straight. 'We demand the government calls an immediate halt to new oil and gas projects in the UK and we will continue to disrupt sports, cultural events and oil until this demand is met. How many more young people have to step up before the government will listen?' Northamptonshire Police had offered 'to facilitate a peaceful event at the circuit' All seven who ran onto the track are currently in custody where their details are being ascertained Event commander chief inspector Tom Thompson, 'I'm really disappointed that this group of people ignored our warnings prior to race-day and made the incredibly dangerous decision to enter the track. 'We offered to facilitate a peaceful event at the circuit but they instead chose to put the lives of the drivers, marshals and volunteers at risk. It is incredibly disappointing that anyone would make the decision to do this. 'Thankfully we had plans in place for an eventuality such as this and the group were swiftly removed and arrested by our officers. 'All seven are currently in custody where their details are being ascertained. 'Finally, I would like to thank all of the officers and staff, as well as our partners, who have worked tirelessly on this policing operation. Generally we have had very low crime rates, today's incident was dealt with effectively and efficiently, and I could not have asked for more.' Zhou escaped serious injury in the crash and the race was resumed after a 53-minute delay. 'We confirm that after the red flag, several people attempted to enter the track,' said an FIA spokesperson. 'These people were immediately removed and the matter is now being dealt with by the local authorities.' Donald Trump suggested that January 6 witness Cassidy Hutchinson must be related to Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson because they have the same last name and are both 'real losers'. The criticism comes as pro-Trump factions of the GOP continue to try and discredit Cassidy Hutchinson after her explosive testimony on Tuesday claiming that the ex-president lunged at his security detail and frequently threw plates of food in the White House when he was frustrated. 'How did the Great State of Arkansas ever have a total RINO Stiff like Asa Hutchinson as their Governor. Any relationship to Lyin' Cassidy Hutchinson, another real loser?' Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Sunday. Governor Hutchinson has long been at the end of Trump's ire after the Arkansas GOP leader started breaking with the former president. In a separate post on Sunday, Trump said that 'proof' the former top aide to his then-chief of staff Mark Meadows knew he did nothing wrong was her desire to stay on the team when he was vacating the White House and moving his operation to his Mar-a-Lago Florida resort. 'So Cassidy Hutchinson was all set and ready to go to Florida with the Trump Team long after January 6th,' he wrote. 'She knew I did nothing wrong. She was a big Trump fan - but my people didn't want her.' 'What happened? Why did she so dramatically change? All lies. I guess even she didn't believe her own bull.!' Trump added. Former President Donald Trump suggested that January 6 witness Cassidy Hutchinson is related to Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson because they are both 'real losers' Trump has direct his anger at Governor Hutchinson (right) after he broke from MAGA world and recently on Cassidy Hutchinson (left) after the former top aide to Mark Meadows testified damning things about him to the January 6 select committee During her testimony in an impromptu hearing on Tuesday, Hutchinson said that Tony Ornato, the former Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations for Trump, briefed her on January 6, 2021 that the then-president lunged at his security detail driver when he would not take him to the Capitol that day. Hutchinson said that Bobby Engel, the top agent on Trump's Secret Service detail, was in the car at the time of the incident and was with Ornato when he relayed the events to her. She also relayed during the hearing her recollection of Trump's reactions when he was served bad news. She said she remembered 'hearing noise' on the heels of the Associated Press article being released in which former Attorney General Bill Barr confirmed that he did not see any evidence that Trump's widespread election fraud claims were valid. Meadows was summoned to Trump's office. When he returned, Hutchinson said she walked down toward the White House dining room. 'And I noticed that the door was propped open and the valet was inside the dining room changing the tablecloth off of the dining room table,' she said. 'He motioned for me to come in and then pointed toward the front of the room near the fireplace mantel and the TV.' Trump has tried to discredit Cassidy Hutchinson, claiming that she only turned against him when he wouldn't keep her on the payroll when he left office and moved his operation to Florida 'Where I first noticed there was ketchup dripping down the wall,' she continued. 'And there's a shattered porcelain plate on the floor.' 'The valet had articulated that the president was extremely angry at the attorney general's AP interview and had thrown his lunch against the wall,' she said, explaining that she then helped with the clean-up. GOP panel member Liz Cheney asked Hutchinson if this was typical Trump behavior. 'There were several times throughout my tenure with the chief of staff that I was aware of him either throwing dishes or flicking the table cloth to let all of the contents of the table go onto the floor and likely break or go everywhere,' she replied. Trump, as well as his allies, have said that Hutchinson's stories are not true and claim she did not have the sort of access to Trump, Meadows and others that she claims. In fact, Trump said that Hutchinson's testimony was revenge for him not keeping her on the payroll and taking her with him as part of his team relocating to Florida after leaving the White House in January 2021. 'I hardly know who this person, Cassidy Hutchinson, is, other than I heard very negative things about her (a total phony and 'leaker'), and when she requested to go with certain others of the team to Florida after my having served a full term in office, I personally turned her request down,' Trump wrote on Truth Social as the 25-year-old's testimony was ongoing Tuesday afternoon. Amber Heard's legal team filed a motion to have the verdict of her blockbuster defamation trial against ex-husband Johnny Depp thrown out and the case re-tried. Lawyers representing Heard, 36, filed the motion on Friday on the grounds that the verdict that she had defamed Depp, 59, was not supported by evidence. They also alleged that a juror had not been properly vetted, and questioned whether that juror was even supposed to be allowed on the jury. In a 43-page memorandum, Heard's lawyers argued that the verdict - and the $10million in damages she now owes Depp - should be tossed out on the grounds that during the trial, Depp 'proceeded solely on a defamation by implication theory, abandoning any claims that Ms. Heard's statements were actually false.' Depp's lead attorney, Ben Chew, responded to the motion in a statement to Courthouse News, saying 'What we expected, just longer, no more substantive.' Heard has said that she is unable to pay the $10.35million in damages she owes Depp. Though she has previously indicated that she wants to appeal the verdict, to do so she would need to post bond of the full damages. It is likely that this latest motion was an attempt part to circumvent those requirements and still take try for a new verdict. Lawyers representing Heard, 36, filed the motion on Friday on the grounds that the verdict that she had defamed Depp, 59, were not supported by evidence Depp's lead attorney, Ben Chew, responded to the motion in a statement to Courthouse News, saying 'What we expected, just longer, no more substantive' The motion cast doubt on the validity of the jury selection process, pointing out a juror - identified as Juror 15 - whose birth year was listed as 1945 in court records. The filing argued that Juror 15 'was clearly born later than 1945. Publicly available information demonstrates that he appears to have been born in 1970.' 'This discrepancy raises the question whether Juror 15 actually received a summons for jury duty and was properly vetted by the court to serve on the jury.' 'It appears his identity could not have been verified,' the filing reads. The filing argued that Juror 15 'was clearly born later than 1945. Publicly available information demonstrates that he appears to have been born in 1970' Both celebrities were found to have defamed each other in the June verdict, but the cards fell considerably in Depp's favor Heard also argued that the damages awarded Depp were excessive as the jurors granted them for parameters outside of what his lawsuit concerned. While Depp 'represented to the court he would limit his damages to the period Dec. 18, 2018 through November 2, 2020' - the period of time between when Heard's op-ed about Depp's alleged abuse was published in the Washington Post and when a UK court ruled that he had abused Heard - the motion argues that Depp did not attempt whatsoever to focus the scope of his alleged damages within that two year time frame. 'Mr. Depp made no such effort at any point in the trial to limit his claimed damages. Instead, even throughout the Closings, Mr. Depp continued to urge the jury to restore his reputation and legacy to his children as a result of Ms. Heard accusing Mr. Depp in May 2016 of domestic violence.' Judge Penney Azcarate has made it clear that she does not want to case to carry forward as it stands, dismissing requests from Heard's team for more hearings during the most recent hearing related to the case on June 24, in which the judge finalized the verdict in the court's records. Judge Azcarate told Heard's team that day that if they wanted an appeal, they could file for one with the court. Both celebrities were found to have defamed each other in the June verdict, but the cards fell considerably in Depp's favor. Amber Heard after the reading of the verdict on June 1, 2022. Depp was awarded $10.35million in damages from Heard, while she was awarded just $2million in damages from Depp. All told, Heard was left owing Depp a whopping $8.35million. He was awarded $10.35million in damages from Heard, while she was awarded just $2million in damages from Depp. All told, Heard was left owing Depp a whopping $8.35million. Heard later admitted through her lawyer that she couldn't afford those millions in damages, and a day after the verdict her representation said that she would appeal it. Her tune on the matter has been mixed since then, however, with reports swirling that she plans to write a 'tell-all' book to earn money to pay the damages. A source close to Heard claimed she was 'broke' and not 'in a position to turn down money.' They said she 'considers her career in Hollywood over' and 'has nothing to lose' following a disastrous few months. Heard later admitted through her lawyer that she couldn't afford those millions in damages, and a day after the verdict her representation said that she would appeal the verdict During an interview on Good Morning America earlier in June, Chew suggested that the star might be willing to forgo the millions of dollars in damages owed to him should Heard agree not to proceed with an appeal. However, Heard's lawyers lost that chance during the June 24 hearing when they declined to make such an agreement and Azcarate finalized the verdict, leaving Heard's only path forward in an appeal. In order to do that though, Heard would still need to come up with the cash to post a bond for the full amount of the $10.35million while the appeal is pending - a common practice. Liz Truss will today pledge that Britain is in it for the long haul with its support for Ukraine. The Foreign Secretary will tell a conference in Switzerland that the UK will do everything possible to ensure Ukraine wins the war and recovers. Her officials say president Volodymyr Zelensky has asked the UK to champion the recovery of the capital Kyiv and the surrounding region. But the job is being made more challenging by Russian missile strikes and the fighting in the east of the country. Liz Truss will today pledge that Britain is in it for the long haul with its support for Ukraine. Pictured: Truss gives a joint press conference with Turkey's Foreign Minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara Miss Truss will use the event in Lugano to set out plans both for immediate support and long-term commitments. She is expected to say: Ukraines recovery from Russias war of aggression will be a symbol of the power of democracy over autocracy. It will show Putin that his attempts to destroy Ukraine have only produced a stronger, more prosperous and more united nation. 'The UK is resolute in its support of Ukraines territorial integrity and will remain at Ukraines side as it emerges as a strong, thriving and cutting-edge democracy. The Foreign Secretary will tell a conference in Switzerland that the UK will do everything possible to ensure Ukraine wins the war and recovers. Pictured: A destroyed hotel after a rocket attack in Kramatorsk, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine Miss Truss will announce plans to host next years recovery conference as the Government commits to a Marshall Plan-style programme, echoing the one used to rebuild Europe after the Second World War. We need to be in this for the long haul, she will say. Russia has now established total control over half of Ukraines Donbas region, its defence minister said yesterday. Sergei Shoigu told Vladimir Putin that Moscows forces had taken control of the last major Ukrainian-held city in the Luhansk area, Lysychansk, marking the regions complete liberation. When an anti-tank mine blew up the car bringing Corporal Yuliia Rymarenko back from Ukraine's frontline, she was sure she had lost her legs. The mother-of-one's foot was hanging off and there was blood everywhere, but she remained calm: 'I was morally prepared for it it is war and it can happen.' She is lucky to be alive and even more so to still have her legs. 'At best, the recovery from my injuries will take four to six months,' Yuliia tells the Daily Mail from her hospital bed in Dnipro. 'After that, I will return to my unit. But I hope that by that time, we will have won the war.' The army signaller's steely determination is jarring: she was injured on June 2 and is already planning her return to combat. When an anti-tank mine blew up the car bringing Corporal Yuliia Rymarenko back from Ukraine's frontline, she was sure she had lost her legs 'I will undergo rehabilitation in Lviv. My six-year-old daughter Kira will stay here in Dnipro with her grandmothers because I want to recover as quickly as possible and she could distract me.' Ukraine will need her back: about 500 of its troops are being injured everyday, and up to 100 a day are dying. Yuliia, 33, admits it is tough on the frontline and wants the West to do more. Russia, she says, has more manpower and equipment. 'But they do not care about people they are cannon fodder for them. They'll throw them at us until there's none of them. But there are a lot of them.' The same is not true for Ukrainians, she says. 'We stand on our land. We fight for it.' Over five years of service and four rotations in the Donbas, Yuliia has seen the horrors Russian troops inflict on civilians. She explains her brigade evacuated a six-year-old girl from Trostianets, north west of Kharkiv, after Russian forces refused to let her go despite being heavily wounded. The mother-of-one's foot was hanging off and there was blood everywhere, but she remained calm: 'I was morally prepared for it it is war and it can happen' 'There are no good Russians,' she concludes. 'They are not humans they are animals. They received no orders to torture people or to loot they do it at their own initiative. Actually, animals are better than them.' Yuliia was a passenger in an SUV bringing a soldier back from the frontline in the Kharkiv region, where Ukrainian forces are pushing back the invaders, when she was wounded on June 2. 'The wheel from my side ran over the mine. I broke my legs in several places, as well as my foot,' she says. Her car door would not open because of the explosion, and her comrades dragged her out, tourniqueted her legs and injected her with antihaemorrhagic drugs. 'I could feel that my foot was hanging... I thought there would be an amputation. At first I couldn't feel my legs but then they started to burn... Yuliia was a passenger in an SUV bringing a soldier back from the frontline in the Kharkiv region, where Ukrainian forces are pushing back the invaders, when she was wounded on June 2 'I only realised there would be no amputation in the morning in the hospital. I thought that they would cut at least one leg. But everything above the knees is intact,' Yuliia says, relieved. She was evacuated to a civil hospital, and the following morning arrived in Dnipro the closest major city to the front line. Remarkably, her colleagues escaped with concussion but the car was a smouldering wreck. On the outskirts of Dnipro lie the graves of Ukrainian soldiers less fortunate than Yuliia killed over the past eight years of conflict. The cemetery has expanded rapidly since Russia's invasion on February 24. The war has cost the lives of around 10,000 Ukrainian troops, according to Kyiv. A young Tory activist who accuses Chris Pincher of groping him is planning to make a statement to police, the Daily Mail has learned. The new alleged victim, whose accusation adds to the six fresh claims made against the Tamworth MP over the weekend, has told friends that he was touched up by Mr Pincher in a car last year. The man a constituency member who was trying to get a job in politics at the time is said to have been so angered by the number of alleged victims that he plans to do something about it and go to the police, friends revealed. It comes as a second alleged victim from the constituency, also not previously known about, is said to have made claims against the former deputy chief whip. The Prime Minister eventually bowed to pressure to remove the whip from his ally after an investigation was launched, meaning Mr Pincher sits as an independent MP Yesterday, members of Mr Pinchers Conservative association and voters in Staffordshire called for the MP to stand down. Mr Pincher, 52, quit as Tory deputy chief whip last week after he was accused of drunkenly groping two men at a private members club in London. The Prime Minister eventually bowed to pressure to remove the whip from his ally after an investigation was launched, meaning Mr Pincher sits as an independent MP. After several accusations from other alleged victims over the weekend, the Mail has learned that there are further claims from activists in his constituency. STRING OF ALLEGATIONS THAT SPAN A DECADE 2012: A man said he received unwanted advances from Chris Pincher when he was 24, according to The Mail on Sunday. 2017: Mr Pincher quits the whips office after it was alleged he made an unwanted pass at Olympic rower and Tory candidate Alex Story. Mr Story said that in 2001, the MP untucked the back of his shirt and massaged his neck. It was also reported that Mr Pincher allegedly made a pass at former Labour MP Tom Blenkinsop, who was said to have told him to f*** off. 2017 and 2018: Mr Pincher allegedly made unwanted passes at two Conservative MPs after his first resignation as a whip, according to the Sunday Times. Unknown: The MP allegedly threatened to report a parliamentary researcher to her boss after she tried to stop his lecherous advances towards a young man at a Conservative Party conference, according to The Mail on Sunday. 2021: A young Tory activist connected to his constituency accused the MP of groping him. December 2021 and June 2022: A Tory MP told The Independent he was groped on two occasions by Mr Pincher. July 2022: Mr Pincher quits as Tory deputy chief whip after he is accused of drunkenly groping two men at a private members club in London. The whip is later removed. Advertisement As well as the man who claims he was groped in a car by the former senior Tory, a second alleged victim is said to have been groped by Mr Pincher some time ago. An association member said: One of the [alleged victims] is planning to go to the police. He was trying to get into politics and thats how they knew each other. He said last week that he was going to wait to see if anyone else reported similar incidents before going to the police. After seeing the multiple allegations this weekend, he said Im going to do something about it. He is very annoyed. He said he couldnt believe it was still happening. Mr Pincher stepped down on Thursday night after a drunken evening in Londons Carlton Club on Wednesday. Speaking for the first time, one of the alleged victims at the club told The Sunday Times: I had my drink in my hand and then he then went down and grabbed my arse and then slowly... moved his hand down the front of my groin. I froze a little bit and it ended after about two or three seconds. It was a very bizarre thing. The alleged victim excused himself and went to the bathroom. He added: I texted a friend to tell them what happened because I wanted a contemporaneous record. The man claimed he approached Sarah Dines, a junior whip, who had witnessed the alleged assault. The alleged victim added: My first reaction to what had happened was that I wasnt going to take it any further. I just thought this is something that happens in Westminster. It hasnt happened to me before. It can be quietly dealt with. But I am angered by the fact that I should feel like that, and even more angry by the way No 10 have dealt with it... I am furious. One local councillor in Tamworth said: These stories about Chriss behaviour werent particularly surprising to men within the constituency. Asked if a by-election should be held, the councillor, who did not want to be named, said: Its up to the electorate to voice their opinions. I have a view that he is not a fit and proper person to be an MP he has admitted to some of this after all. But David Salter, another Tory councillor in the constituency, defended Mr Pincher, saying: Hes a brilliant MP and Ive known him for a long time... I would like him to carry on. Mr Pincher was approached for comment. PMs allies turn on Theresa May By Claire Ellicott Political Correspondent and Jason Groves Political Editor for the Daily Mail A blame game erupted over the appointment of Chris Pincher and what Boris Johnson knew about him when he asked the disgraced MP to become deputy chief whip. A Cabinet minister claimed that the Prime Minister was not aware of specific claims when he gave Mr Pincher the role. A row has also erupted with allies of the Prime Minister blaming Theresa May for first bringing Mr Pincher back into the whips office However, a series of allegations have now emerged regarding the Tamworth MP. Sources said Mr Johnson told aides in 2020, long before appointing him to the post: Hes handsy, thats a problem. Pincher by name, pincher by nature. But a row has also erupted with allies of the Prime Minister blaming Theresa May for first bringing Mr Pincher back into the whips office after allegations emerged against him in 2017. The Mail on Sunday revealed in 2017 that the MP had, in 2001, made an unwanted pass at former Olympic rower and Conservative candidate Alex Story, who dubbed Mr Pincher a pound shop Harvey Weinstein. But he was allowed back into the fold following an investigation that found he had not breached the code of conduct. The PMs supporters said he had no reason to second guess Mrs Mays decision at the time as no further specific allegations had been raised with him. During a round of interviews yesterday, Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey said: Thered been allegations made in the past. We went through a due process in 2017 and indeed Chris was reappointed by the then Prime Minister Theresa May, in fact promoted, at the time. Mr Pincher has denied the claims. A frantic search is underway for a missing six year-old girl whose mother was found dead of suicide on Saturday. Elle Ragin has not been seen in several days, with her mom Lisa Wade, 39, discovered to have killed herself at her home in Northfield, Minnesota on July 2. Cops fear Wade was involved in Ragin's disappearance prior to taking her own life, but haven't said what prompted this theory. They've yet to disclose further information on what led to Wade killing herself, and haven't said whether they believe Elle to be alive or dead. A police helicopter was filmed circling a cornfield close to the missing girl's home Sunday night, according WCCO reporter Kirsten Mitchell. Mitchell also quoted Northfield Police Chief Mark Elliot as saying: 'Our hopes and our prayers are that we will be able to find Elle safe somewhere and our deepest sympathies go out to the family for their loss of Lisa.' Authorities gave an update Sunday evening that saw them share a new photo of the mom and daughter - but which did not offer any further information on the hunt for Elle. Elle Ragin is six years old has brown curly hair and brown eyes. She is 3-feet-6 inches tall and weighs 45 pounds Investigators believe that prior to taking her own life, Lisa Wade had something to do with her daughter's disappearance A former neighbor of Lisa Wade's wrote on Facebook: 'She is the sweetest little girl, and she had a wonderful family' Multiple social media posts showed police helicopters and search teams circling around a cornfield close to the family's home Wade lived in the along the 600 block of Maple Brook Court in Northfield, which sits 40 miles south of Minneapolis. Police called to the home just before noon on 11:50 am where they found Wade's body. A former neighbor of Lisa Wade's wrote in a Facebook post promoting the search for Ragin: 'She is the sweetest little girl, and she had a wonderful family. We don't know what to think, but have been thinking and praying for her all day.' Ragin is a student a Prairie Creek Community School. Ragin has brown curly hair and brown eyes. She is 3-feet-6 inches tall and weighs 45 pounds. Authorities are asking anyone who has had contact with Wade in the last two weeks or who has any information about Ragin's whereabouts to contact the Northfield Police Department on 507-645-4477. Authorities are asking anyone who has had contact with Wade in the last two weeks to call the Northfield Police Department on 507-645-4477 One neighbor said that police have been going door-to-door seeking information about Wade's recent behavior Wade lived in the along the 600 block of Maple Brook Court. Police called to the home just before noon on 11:50 am where they found Wade's body The search for Elle Ragin is occurring less than 50 miles from where another Minnesota mom named Molly Cheng, killed herself and is believed to have killed her three children at Lake Vadnais, Minnesota on Friday. Their deaths came hours after Cheng's husband, named only as Kos, also took his own life with a gun shot wound in his bedroom. The family were members of Minnesota's Hmong community. The Twin Cities area is home to the largest concentration of Hmong people in the United States with more than 66,000 calling the area home. Cheng, a beautician and tattoo artist, was a native of Bangkok, Thailand. Further details on what sparked the horrific suicide and subsequent triple murder-suicide have not been shared. If you are having thoughts of suicide, you can text the Suicide Prevention Hotline at 741741 or call 1-800-273-8255. Molly Cheng, left, of Maplewood, Minnesota is believed to have killed herself and her three children following her husband's (right) suicide on Friday, not far from where Elle Ragin went missing Kwon Young-soo, vice chairman and CEO of LG Energy Solution / Courtesy of LG Energy Solution By Baek Byung-yeul Kwon Young-soo, vice chairman and CEO of LG Energy Solution, left for Europe to check the progress of establishing a smart factory system in its battery-manufacturing plant in Poland and to discuss ways to expand technological cooperation with clients there, the battery company said Sunday. The company said the vice chairman will visit the company's plant in Wroclaw, Poland and had a meeting with officials from German tech company Siemens to talk about establishing smart factory systems. "Vice Chairman Kwon plans to intensively check the progress of the smart factory system so that products that have the best quality and price competitiveness can be supplied to its customers during his business trip," a company spokesman said. This is the vice chairman's first visit to Europe since he took the position in 2021. Early in May, he visited the company's battery plants in Michigan and Ohio in the United States to check how the plants are adopting the smart factory systems and to meet major clients such as General Motors. In November 2021, LG Energy Solution signed a memorandum of understanding with Siemens to digitalize and consequently improve the production efficiency of its factories. The Wroclaw factory is the world's largest battery-manufacturing plant with an annual production capacity of 70 gigawatts (GW) and the company's core production base for electric car battery demand in the European market. To expand production capacity and improve production efficiency, LG Energy Solution has been establishing the smart factory system in the Polish plant. In line with Kwon's visit to Europe, the battery company announced the restructuring of its organization so as to accelerate the establishment of smart factory systems in its global production sites and stabilize production in its plants in North America. As part of the plan, the company established a production control department for the North American region under its automobile battery business division. The newly established department will be headed by Choi Suk-won, head of the company's Polish unit. The new department will also have an organization in charge of production support to establish smart factory systems and perform tasks for the early stabilization of the production quality. "We will further step up efforts to build a smart factory at global production sites and try to establish a system so that our units across the world can operate like one factory through a standardized production process," Kwon said in a statement. The LG Energy Solutions vice chairman said, "We will further step up efforts to build a smart factory at global production sites and try to establish a system in which corporations around the world operate like one factory through a standardized production process." "By doing so, we will provide customers with the highest level of QCD (quality, cost and delivery) and become the No. 1 profitable company that customers trust and love," the vice chairman added. Families could be offered up to 350 off their annual energy bills if they agree to a wind farm being built nearby. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng will this month consider plans to offer communities a direct financial incentive to host new wind turbines. Strict planning rules, which mean a single objection is enough to halt a wind farm proposal, could be relaxed if communities can show there is widespread support. Boris Johnson ruled out a nationwide change to the rules earlier this year following a backlash from Tory MPs. But ministers believe some supportive communities could be persuaded to host new onshore wind turbines. Homeowners could receive 350 off their annual energy bills if they agree to a wind farm being built nearby (Pictured: Teesside Wind Farm) Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng is looking for ways to speed up the number of wind farms being built Lethal risk of skipped gas checks By Andy Dolan Homeowners are skipping annual gas safety checks in a potentially fatal response to the cost of living squeeze, an expert warned yesterday. Failure to check cookers, boilers and fires could lead to an increased risk of fires and explosions that cost lives and shatter neighbourhoods, Bob Kerr, from the Gas Safe Register, told the Guardian. The warning comes after a catastrophic blast destroyed a property in Birmingham last week, killing one woman and critically injuring a man. Gas Safe Register, which operates under agreement with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), found almost one in three households will skip an annual gas safety check this year. A boiler service costs about 80, while a gas safety check for three appliances is around 60. After the Birmingham incident, the HSE puts the death toll from gas explosions and fires in Britain over the last five years at 13, with 180 injured. Advertisement A government source said ministers were looking at a scheme through which locals would receive up to 350 a year off their bill in return for supporting construction. They said: There is potential for more onshore wind but it has to be done with community consent. As part of that we do think it is right that communities should be offered a share of the financial rewards. By definition the amount of electricity generated depends on how much the wind blows, but there are some models that suggest you could be looking at average discounts of about 350 a year. Ministers are looking to replicate a pioneering scheme launched by Octopus Energy last year to encourage communities to embrace onshore wind. Under the Fan Club scheme, people who support a wind farm locally receive discounts of 20 per cent on electricity used when the turbines are spinning. If wind speeds rise to about 20mph the discount is 50 per cent. Planning hurdles mean the scheme has so far only resulted in two new turbines one in Market Weighton in Yorkshire and Caerphilly in Wales. But the firm has had interest from 8,000 communities across the country, with a huge surge in demand since energy prices soared this year. People living within five to ten miles can benefit. Zoisa North-Bond, chief executive of Octopus Energy Generation, said the energy crisis had brought a new perspective to the debate on onshore wind. She said: There is huge demand... We have been bowled over by the reaction. Any move to allow a major expansion of onshore wind is likely to meet stiff opposition from some influential Tory MPs. Former energy minister Sir John Hayes said there is very little to be said for onshore wind and warned of the impact on wildlife. But ex-minister Chris Skidmore welcomed the idea, saying a deal is crying out to be struck. Ministers were told to buck up and deliver on gambling reform after a Daily Mail audit revealed the devastating toll of betting addiction. An investigation has uncovered close to 100 suicides in which problem gambling was a significant factor in a decade. Campaigners said the tragic roll call of names 36 of whom are pictured here showed the stark reality of the harm caused by greedy and amoral companies. Senior Tories are angered that once-in-a-generation reform looks set to be watered down, and urged Boris Johnson to ignore lobbyists and Treasury penny-pinchers. Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said: People are dying. Ministers promised reform and now they need to deliver. A final announcement on the reforms was expected this week, but it looks likely to be delayed. Families whose loved ones have committed suicide due to gambling are calling on ministers to introduce reform. Vicitims pictured left to right: Aaron Armstrong, Aaron Sluman, Chris Bruney, Chris Dyson, Huseyin Yaman and Jack Ritchie Left to right: Jordan Feek, Joshua Hall, Lee Murphy, Lewis Keogh, Philip Tomlinson and Robert Shone Key measures to stem the gambling death toll have been diluted as a result of a rift at the top of the Conservative Party. Gambling minister Chris Philp and the Department of Health are pitted against the Treasury, which is concerned that reform could hit its tax take from gambling. Cabinet Office minister Jacob Rees-Mogg has delayed reform having rejected as un-Conservative a tax to fund NHS treatment for gambling addiction, insiders said. He is said to favour a version of the current system in which betting firms voluntarily pay 0.1 per cent of their revenue towards research and treatment. However, campaigners want a legal requirement for them to pay 1 per cent. Mr Rees-Mogg believes the rules should not stop gamblers who do not have an addiction or debts spending their cash as they wish. The Mail understands he is backed by Mr Johnsons deputy chief of staff David Canzini, formerly director of a firm that had Ladbrokes Coral as a client. But families want stark reforms. Julie Martin, whose husband Bill Troshupa killed himself in November in front of their 16-year-old son, said: The gambling companies are monsters. Gambling must be regulated securely so people are not losing their lives, and families are not losing loved ones. Left to right: Andrew David Nabb, Bill Troshupa, Daniel Clinkscales, David Armstrong, Jimmy Farrell and Joey Beauchamp Left to Right: Bradley Whitehall, Brandon Windeatt-Ball, Florin Batrincs, Fred Harper-McShane, John Anderson and Jordan Choudhury Public Health England estimates there are 409 gambling-related suicides a year more than one a day. The 94 gambling deaths uncovered by the Mail make up the largest list ever compiled. They included Brandon Windeatt-Ball, a 21-year-old who gambled away 10,000 saved towards a house deposit, and 28-year-old NHS worker Joshua Hall, who lost half his annual salary in days. Rebecca Hanks, who tried to help her son Mason Moore, 20, battle his addiction by controlling his bank account, said: The gambling companies are just greedy. People can try their hardest to get away from their addiction, but the bookmakers reel them back in. Jordan Choudhury, 25, took his life in February 2021 after playing on slot machine websites through the night and losing 11,000. He told his family: The next time you will see me I will be in my box. His sister, Michelle Bidder, said: I want the Government to stop making it so easy for people to run up huge debts on gambling sites. The Mail found 47 named suicides. Charities that help bereaved relatives said they were supporting another 47 families who did not wish to speak publicly. Left to Right: Kimberley Wadsworth, Lee Collins, Natsha White, Phil Stretton, Charleene Carlson and Ryan Myers Left to right: Joshua Jones, Jowen Evans, Luke Ashton, Mason Moore, Omair Abbas and Cameron McGowan A further 21, whose death certificates mentioned gambling, were recorded by the Office for National Statistics between 2001 to 2016, meaning the total number of known suicides could be as high as 115. Some suicide charities stress there is rarely a single factor that leads to a person taking their life, although in many of the cases listed, the deceased had no other known mental health issues or addictions. Last night, Mr Philp told fellow ministers: Gambling-related harm is a serious public health issue which can devastate lives. Ive heard too many cases of people being led down a path to a dark destination. Reform of our gambling laws is needed. Ministers are likely to let gambling ads and sponsorship in sport continue with few restrictions, and free bets will only be banned for heavy losers, sources said. But Sir Iain said: People are dying who should not have died. Opponents of reform need to get off their calculators and get out into the real world and see the damage this uncontrolled behaviour is having. Its going to get nasty unless ministers buck up and do something. The Treasury is fussing about taxation and were campaigning to save lives you tell me who has the moral high ground. Lord Chadlington, ex-chairman of Action On Addiction, said: Everything I hear is disappointing. This is a once-in-a-lifetime moment for the Government to save lives, protect the vulnerable yet allow those who can safely gamble to do so with the minimum of risk. The Mails Stop The Gambling Predators campaign aims to curb online gambling. There are thought to be 400,000 gambling addicts in the UK perhaps as many as 1.4million. Experts say 5 per cent of problem gamblers have attempted suicide in the previous year. For support, contact the Samaritans on freephone 116 123, or Gambling With Lives at support@gamblingwithlives.org or 07864 299 158. Manchester United are closing in on completing a move for Feyenoord defender Tyrell Malacia, with the Dutchman set to fly to England on Sunday to become Erik ten Hag's first signing at Old Trafford. It has been a frustrating start to the transfer window for United, who have watched a number of their rivals add to their squads in recent weeks. However, the Red Devils are on the verge of finally getting a deal across the line as Malacia is expected to undergo the first part of his medical on Sunday afternoon. Dutch left-back Tyrell Malacia is close to joining Manchester United from Feyenoord Malacia will be Erik ten Hag's first signing since he became Manchester United's new manager He will then complete the final stages of his medical on Monday morning, with an announcement on his arrival likely to come shortly afterwards. United have had to work hard to land Malacia, as the 22-year-old had looked set for a move to Lyon. The Ligue 1 club had agreed a deal with Feyenoord for the full-back, before United gazumped their offer. Malacia is now heading to the red side of Manchester, and will challenge England international Luke Shaw for his starting berth at left-back. Malacia will be in a direct battle with Luke Shaw for the left-back role at Old Trafford Despite his tender years, he has already made 136 senior appearances for Feyenoord, and helped the Eredivisie side make the Europa Conference League final last season. United will hope that the addition of Malacia can kickstart their summer spending as they look to recover from a dismal 2021-22 campaign. Former interim boss Ralf Rangnick claimed after the team's 4-0 loss against Liverpool in April that the club could look to sign as many as 10 players ahead of next term. United have had a tough start to the summer, with Cristiano Ronaldo wanting to leave the club However, it has been all about players departing Old Trafford thus far, with the likes of Paul Pogba, Edinson Cavani and Jesse Lingard leaving once their contracts expired last month. It also emerged on Saturday that Cristiano Ronaldo wants to leave the club again, and has told his employers to allow him to move on if they receive an appropriate offer from a potential suitor. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner only returned to United last August, but he has been unhappy for several months due to the team's poor form and regular turnover of managers. He wants to challenge for major honours in the final years of his career, and feels this is unlikely to happen if he stays at United. His agent, Jorge Mendes, has spoken to Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Napoli about Ronaldo's situation in recent weeks. With Ronaldo's future being uncertain, it has not been an ideal start to ten Hag's tenure, but by bringing in Malacia, he may now be optimistic that he can start to reshape the United squad to his liking this summer. Wantaway Cristiano Ronaldo has been told by Manchester United that he must attend the club's upcoming pre-season tour of Australia and Thailand, according to reports. The Portuguese star stunned Old Trafford on Saturday by telling the club he wants to leave, frustrated both by the lack of new signings and bewildered by the club's decision to appoint three managers in quick succession after the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The Red Devils, who returned to pre-season training at the start of the week following a disappointing sixth place finish last campaign, jet off on a two-and-a-half week tour on Friday. Cristiano Ronaldo 'has been told by Man United that he must travel on their pre-season tour' However, in the latest twist United have told Ronaldo that he must travel with the squad and complete pre-season even if he ends up leaving this summer, according to the Mirror. New boss Erik ten Hag will first lead his side in a friendly against rivals Liverpool in Bangkok before travelling to Melbourne to face Crystal Palace, and later Perth to play Aston Villa. Ronaldo, 37, has played 19 consecutive seasons in the Champions League, becoming the tournament's all-time top goal scorer with 141 goals. No player in history has featured in more Champions League matches than Ronaldo (183) as well. The 37-year-old forward's wish to leave is driven by his desire to play in the Champions League United's hitman is reportedly keen to take his tally of consecutive Champions League seasons to 20 and move to a fresh European giant in pursuit of silverware. It is believed a source close to Ronaldo said: 'Next season will be the first time he won't play in the Champions League. 'He needs to play in the competition - it's what drives him to produce his best, hence why he wants to move.' Ronaldo was staggered by United appointing three managers in quick succession after the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in November, growing frustrated by the club's demise and concerned at the lack of progress since Solskjaer's departure. His agent, Jorge Mendes, has been talking to clubs such as Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Napoli over recent weeks to test whether there is a market for his client but no agreement is in place as it stands. Erik ten Hag will lead the Red Devils in their pre-season tour of Australia and Thailand in July The difficulty for Ronaldo is who would be able to match his ambition and current wages, and as it stands, United are prepared to keep the unsettled striker, who has one year left on his 500,000-a-week deal. The club are meanwhile close to making their first signing, with Feyenoord defender Tyrell Malacia flying in for a medical. United have had to work hard to land Malacia, as the 22-year-old had looked set for a move to Lyon. The Ligue 1 club had agreed a deal with Feyenoord for the full back, before United gazumped their offer. Max Bowden and Shona McGarty reportedly put on a loved up display at a bowling alley on Saturday after his split from his pregnant girlfriend Roisin Buckle. The EastEnders stars, who play Ben Mitchell and Whitney Dean respectively, were said to have spent the evening at Hollywood Bowl in Stevenage before reportedly sharing a kiss. It is claimed that Max, 27, and Shona, 30, did not hide their love despite previously insisting they were 'just good friends'. 'They were kissing': Max Bowden and Shona McGarty have reportedly publicly put on a loved up display at a bowling alley on Saturday A source, who claimed to have witnessed the pair locking lips, told The Sun: 'They were kissing and touchy-feely not trying to cover up they're a couple.' The pair first became close in May after Shona split with fiance Ryan Harris, 38, in January and Max split from his pregnant girlfriend Roisin, it was previously reported. Max was later spotted leaving Shona's house in the early hours of the morning, causing a close friend to insist they were 'absolutely not in a relationship'. Loved up: The EastEnders stars, who play Ben Mitchell and Whitney Dean, enjoyed a romantic evening at Hollywood Bowl in Stevenage before sharing a kiss A week later, Max and Shona were spotted holding hands at a kebab shop together. At this year's British Soap Awards, which took place in June, Max and Shona sat next to one another but did not walk the red carpet together. Due to the pair being in the limelight for so many years, a source claimed Max and Shona are trying to handle their relationship 'sensitively' and keep it on the down low. Max, 27, and Shona, 30, did not hide their love despite previously insisting they were 'just good friends' (pictured in character) Max and Shona are allegedly 'mad for each other' and 'inseparable' on the EastEnders set after he split from his pregnant girlfriend Roisin Buckle. Despite not being together, the former couple vowed to raise the child together despite their breakup. But a friend of Roisin's revealed that she felt 'humiliated and disrespected' by her ex's closeness to his fellow cast member. Exciting: A source who witnessed the pair locking lips told The Sun : 'They were kissing and touchy-feely not trying to cover up they're a couple' (Shona pictured in-character) Max was later spotted leaving his co-stars house in the early hours of the morning causing a close friend to insist they were 'absolutely not in a relationship' (Max pictured in-character) A friend told The Sun: 'They broke up earlier this year. There was no one else involved, it just simply didn't work out. 'Max and Roisin remained good friends and were thrilled when she found out she was pregnant. 'They are determined to co-parent the tot and are supporting each other. It has been a tough year for Max so he was delighted when he found out he is going to be a dad. He's really excited about the future. Shona and Max's representatives have been contacted by MailOnline for comment. Ex: Max and Shona are allegedly 'mad for each other' and 'inseparable' on the EastEnders set after he split from his pregnant girlfriend Roisin Buckle (pictured) THE WANDERING HEARTS Wild Silence (Decca) Theres an appealing rawness to this debut. A male-female quartet with a folk-rock penchant, their harmonies will elicit comparisons with Fleetwood Mac, but the acoustic instrumentation looks more to country, with Fire And Water a lively hoedown and Burning Bridges a nostalgic ballad. Melbourne author Daniel Chidiac has taken the world by storm with his wildly successful novel The Modern Break-Up. Described as a 'self-help book disguised in a fiction novel', the Modern Break-Up contains useful tips and tricks for navigating the fraught contemporary world of dating, separation and love. The book has gone viral since its release in 2019, selling thousands of copies a week and earning celebrity endorsements by the likes Married At First Sight bride Elizabeth Sobinoff, Hollywood star Addison Rae and model Demi Rose. Melbourne author Daniel Chidiac has taken the world by storm with his wildly successful novel The Modern Break-Up. The book has gone viral since its release in 2019, selling thousands of copies a week and earning celebrity endorsements by the likes Married At First Sight bride Elizabeth Sobinoff (pictured) Speaking exclusively to Daily Mail Australia on Sunday, Chidiac shared his top tips for dealing with heartbreak. 1. No contact rule Chidiac believes that creating space between yourself and your ex is a vital part of a the healing process following a split. Speaking exclusively to Daily Mail Australia on Sunday, Chidiac (pictured) shared his top tips for dealing with heartbreak 'The more you are bombarded with someone, the more the memories or even hope linger around. With the no contact rule, you are able to start building a future without them in your mind,' he explains. This rule involves removing your ex from social media and telling your loved ones not to mention what your ex is up to. 'That's the hardest part of a break up - your whole 'perceived' future has been broken into a million pieces. When that person isn't in your consciousness as much, you start to become your best self again,' he advises. Chidiac believes that creating space between yourself and your ex is a vital part of a the healing process following a split. Pictured: Demi Rose reading The Modern Break-Up 2. Allow yourself the proper time Chidiac believes that the process of healing from a break up shouldn't be rushed, as it can be an important time to reflect on our lives and take stock of what we want for our futures. 'You will hear people tell you to get back to the gym and start your hobbies again, however go at your own pace. Feel the emotions you have to feel and dont try to fast-track the process,' he said. Chidiac believes that the process of healing from a break up shouldn't be rushed, as it can be an important time to reflect on our lives and take stock of what we want for our futures. Pictured: Addison Rae reading The Modern Break-Up Daniels Chidiac's tricks for getting over your ex 1. Don't make contact with your ex - delete them from social media and tell your friends and family not to discuss them. 2. Don't rush the healing process - take time to feel your emotions and let them pass in time 3. Take a trip - changing your surroundings will help to change your outlook on life 4. Don't keep your thoughts to yourself - vocalise how you are feeling to friends and family until you're sick of talking about them 5. Don't rush into a new relationship - let it happen when it feels natural Advertisement 3. Travel somewhere new Sometimes, all it takes to change your mindset is a change of scenery. According to Chidiac, travelling is a great way to keep yourself distracted during a tough break up and can help prevent you from falling into a pattern of rumination. 'Travelling somewhere new creates a lot of stimulation in the mind, and thats what you need. It will assist in preventing you from sitting on your couch all day and going over the same scenarios,' Chidiac says. 4. Talk to friends and family No matter how much you may think you're annoying them, always talk to your friends and family about your brea kup recovery. According to Chidiac: 'Even though you may sound like a broken record on repeat, especially soon after the break up, you're allowed to be like this. In your own time, you will eventually slow down the conversations about your ex because you will frankly just get sick of it.' 5. Don't date too soon Chidiac's final rule is to think twice about diving into the dating pool immediately after you become single. The danger of dating too soon, Chidiace says, is that 'all we do right after a break up is compare the new meeting with the connection we feel with our ex, and that's not always positive.' 'Also, it can make us pass the toxic energy our ex has made us feel onto someone else,' he adds. According to Chidiac, travelling is a great way to keep yourself distracted during a tough break up and can help prevent you from falling into a pattern of rumination Ricky Martin is speaking out and denying allegations of domestic abuse leveled against him in order to file a restraining order against the Latin pop star. Puerto Rican singer was hit with a restraining order from an alleged ex in Puerto Rico, according to law enforcement on Saturday. A representative for Martin, 50, called the abuse allegations 'completely false and fabricated' in a statement provided to People later in the day. The protective order was signed on Friday, after authorities visited Martin's neighborhood in the north coastal town of Dorado to try to serve him, police spokesman Axel Valencia told The Associated Press. Legal woes: Puerto Rican superstar Ricky Martin was hit with a restraining order after he was accused of domestic violence in Puerto Rico, according to law enforcement on Saturday; seen in March 2022 'Up until now, police haven't been able to find him,' Valencia said. Martin's team has subsequently denied the allegations made to received the protective order. 'The allegations against Ricky Martin that led to a protection order are completely false and fabricated,' a representative for the singer said in a statement on Saturday. 'We are very confident that when the true facts come out in this matter our client Ricky Martin will be fully vindicated.' It was not immediately known who requested the restraining order. Valencia said he could not provide further details because the order was filed under Puerto Rico's domestic violence law. El Vocero, a Puerto Rican newspaper, claimed the order states that Martin and the other party dated for seven months. The report quotes the order as saying they broke up two months ago, but the petitioner says Martin did not accept the separation and has been seen loitering near their house at least three times. Tracking him down: The order was signed on Friday, after authorities visited Martin's upscale neighborhood in the north coastal town of Dorado to try to serve the order, police spokesman Axel Valencia told The Associated Press (seen in December 2021) 'The petitioner fears for his safety,' El Vocero quoted the order as saying. The AP has not obtained a copy of the order. Valencia said that the order prohibits Martin from contacting or calling the person who filed it and that a judge will later determine at a hearing whether the order should remain in place or be lifted. He added that orders are usually implemented for at least a month. Complicated: While the petitioner's identity remains sealed under Puerto Rico's Law 54 statute, which prevent and fight domestic abuse, the alleged victim does not appear to be Martin's husband Jwan Yosef; seen in March 2022 Valencia noted that the person who filed for the restraining order did not contact police, which would have involved prosecutors determining if there was enough evidence to file charges. Rather the request went straight to the court. While the petitioner's identity remains sealed under Puerto Rico's Law 54 statute, which prevents and fights domestic abuse, the alleged victim does not appear to be Martin's husband Jwan Yosef. He and his spouse, who wed in 2017, share 13-year-old twins Valentino and Matteo, as well as Lucia, three and Renn, also three. Five years of marriage: He and his spouse, whom he wed in 2017, share 13-year-old twins Valentino and Matteo as well as Lucia, three and Renn, also three; seen in 2018 In June 2021, Martin talked about his family while shutting down rumors they were expecting another child. 'I don't hide anything nowadays. We are not pregnant,' Martin told People at the time. 'Right now, we're dealing with a pair of twins and a pair of Irish twins because Lucia and Renn are only nine months apart. And they're overwhelming, but we're strong and healthy.' Still, he said they wanted 'more' kids in the future, and they have 'embryos frozen.' Former Miss Universe Australia Maria Thattil has revealed how having an abortion in 2015 helped her get to where she is today. The 29-year-old said in her column for Nine Honey on Saturday that terminating her pregnancy gave her the chance to return to university and 'increased her prospects'. Maria explained how she worked in a minimum wage job, still lived at home with her parents and had been diagnosed with depression and anxiety when she discovered she was pregnant. Former Miss Universe Australia Maria Thattil, 29, (pictured) has revealed how having an abortion at 21 'increased her prospects' and helped her get to where she is today She said she couldn't imagine how her life would've turned out if she'd been forced to carry that pregnancy to term. 'Freedom to decide [my] own future not only increased prospects, but it gave [me] the ability to pivot,' she wrote. Maria continued: 'Pivoting that saw [me] win Miss Universe Australia, represent my country and launch a media career as a self-employed columnist, speaker and public figure reaching people globally to champion anti-racism, inclusion, LGBQTIA+ rights and reproductive justice.' Maria explained how she worked in a minimum wage job, still lived at home with her parents and had been diagnosed with depression and anxiety when she discovered she was pregnant She revealed how her success helped her become financially independent and also give back to her family. 'Legal access to abortion gave me choice in my own life. Like every first-rate citizen should have,' she said. Maria also wrote a moving appeal for women's reproductive rights in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. 'Freedom to decide [my] own future not only increased prospects, but it gave [me] the ability to pivot,' she wrote The original decision made in 1973 meant that States in the U.S. were unable to ban abortions outright. She said she's devastated for 'children, victims of rape or incest and people facing life-threatening conditions' who are being forced to carry a pregnancy to term. Vowing to fight for reproductive justice, Maria gave thanks for her own freedoms, and wrote how her heart was breaking for others not so fortunate. Holly Willoughby is reportedly set to earn 1million after secretly settling a legal battle with her former agents who were asking for 15 per cent of her future earnings. The presenter, 41, left the YMU group back in 2020 to set up her own management company, however a row escalated over a 'sunset clause' in which the agency could command a cut of a departing client's future salaries on contracts arranged before their exit. However, it's alleged that Holly has now settled out of court following a bitter 18-month fight, with a source telling The Sun that the settlement has 'paid off handsomely' for the star. Winner: Holly Willoughby is reportedly set to earn 1million after secretly settling a legal battle with her former agents who were demanding 15% of her future earnings They continued: 'She's now free to earn millions of pounds for years to come and become the most powerful woman in British TV. 'She is now very much her own boss and agent.' Holly previously called in her lawyers after YMU - which boasts high-profile clients including Holly's This Morning co-star Phillip Schofield, Ant and Dec and Graham Norton - asked for 15 per cent of her earnings after she had left. They would have bagged a tidy sum seeing as Holly is said to earn 730,000 a year from ITV, fronting shows including This Morning and Dancing On Ice. Solo: The presenter, 41, left the YMU group back in 2020 to set up her own management company, however a row escalated over a 'sunset clause' in which the agency could command a cut of a departing client's future salaries on contracts arranged before their exit She also has advertising deals with household store Dunelm and high street giant M&S, and she charges 25,000 for speaking engagements, plus has lucrative deals for ads on social media and a lifestyle brand called Wylde Moon. Holly - who was with YMU for 13 years - reportedly argued that she had negotiated her renewed contracts with the management company after setting up her own all-female firm, Roxy Management. Had the sunset clause stayed in place, The Sun reports that the YMU agency would have earned 1.25million from the blonde beauty over five years. However, as it now stands, with the clause now lifted, all earnings will now allegedly go straight to Holly, with her case thought to give hope to others who are in a 'similar predicament' but 'without the means to fight it'. Payday: However, it's alleged that Holly has has now settled out of court following a bitter 18-month fight, with a source telling The Sun that the settlement has 'paid off handsomely' for the star A insider added to the publication: 'Holly is thrilled and extremely relieved. She never wanted a big court showdown, but always insisted she wanted to fight for what she believed to be right and fair.' MailOnline have contacted representatives of Holly and the YMU Group for comment. It's said that both parties have signed non-disclosure agreements so are not allowed to discuss the details of the settlement. But it is understood the former Celebrity Juice star is 'completely free' from the firm taking a cut of her future earnings, while YMU will 'not have to pay any money' to her. Money talk: She's now free to earn millions of pounds for years to come and become the most powerful woman in British TV. 'She is now very much her own boss and agent' In September 2020, it emerged that Holly was preparing for a the legal battle, with a source saying: 'She won't be taken for a fool.' They added to The Sun: 'Holly is a strong, savvy, very successful woman working in a tough industry. 'It's a real shame how things have turned out, as she was incredibly loyal to YMU for many years, but now they are demanding commission on future earnings. It is madness.' The insider went on to add that after setting up her 'all-female team' Roxy, Holly is all about 'empowerment' and will not 'roll over on the matter' should the dispute go down the legal route. By Kim Jae-heun Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn recently sent a congratulatory message to some 80 staff who took part in the development of Nuri, the Korean Space Launch Vehicle, the company said, Sunday. "Congratulations on the successful launch of Nuri on June 21. Thank you for your hard work and dedication to the development of the space rocket," Kim said in the message. "Looking at the launch of the Nuri rocket, which shot up into the sky at the exact time planned, I instantly thought of how much effort you guys have put into this project in the last decade. You started from scratch and turned the impossible into the possible. Let's move forward to realize a bigger dream now," Kim added. Along with the letter, the chairman also reportedly paid bonuses to engineers and researchers. One of the researchers at Hanwha Aerospace replied to Kim on behalf of his colleagues: "We went through hard times developing the Nuri rocket with limited time, but after receiving a congratulatory message from Kim, we feel that our past efforts paid off." Kim has been showing his passion and interest in the space project for the past 10 years. He has been providing funds and support in the hope of making the launch of Nuri successful. About 500 Korea Aerospace Research Institute researchers and 300 domestic companies, including Hanwha Aerospace, contributed to building the engine of the three-stage rocket. Even in his New Year's address this year, Kim stressed the importance of Korea's space project. "For future business like the aerospace project, we have to work with confidence and a goal to build it as a core business in a short period of time," Kim said. Lisa Rinna and husband Harry Hamlin spent one-on-one time together as they shopped in Malibu on Saturday. Lisa, 58, wore a bright red shirt that read 'Happy and Gay' in light pink letters and a pair of black sunglasses. Harry, 70, joined her on the outing in a white short-sleeved t-shirt and white pants. Out and about: Lisa Rinna and husband Harry Hamlin spent one-on-one time together as they shopped in Malibu on Saturday The couple, who have been married since 1997, each carried a white paper bag. Rinna, who rose to fame on the soap opera Days of Our Lives, complemented her bright sweater with olive green pants. The loose-fitting trousers had cargo-style pockets and the reality TV star cuffed the bottoms. She carried a small black handbag with bamboo handles and a long black strap. Statement: Lisa, 58, wore a bright red shirt that read 'happy and gay' in light pink letters and a pair of black sunglasses The reality TV star's husband, fellow actor and Golden Globe nominee, added a pop of color with his footwear. He wore a pair of Nike sneakers with a multicolor print and turquoise accents in the laces and sole. Hamlin wore thick, black-rimmed eyeglasses, a shell necklace, and black beaded bracelets. Missing from the scene were their two daughters, models Delilah, 24, and Amelia, 21. Speaking up: The outing comes as Real Housewives of New York castmate Eboni K. Williams seemingly responded to recent comments of Rinna's The outing comes as Real Housewives of New York castmate Eboni K. Williams seemingly responded to recent comments of Rinna's. Eboni's 7-minute-long social media video indirectly addressed an incendiary statement shared to Instagram by Lisa. In a post shared to Instagram Stories Lisa defended herself against internet backlash that suggests she and her non-Black castmates are 'racist' whenever they argue with fellow housewife Garcelle Beauvais. Against a black screen Lisa wrote in white typewriter font: 'We fight on our show. If we fight with Garcelle we are all of a sudden called racist. 'That's bull****. I will not accept that. I will express myself when and how I want and I am not afraid of any of you h***.' She had more to say as she followed up in another post with, 'And if you are just so triggered by our show, and a lot of you p****** are, go watch [Real Housewives of] Dubai.' Fired up! Against a black screen Lisa wrote in white typewriter font: 'We fight on our show. If we fight with Garcelle we are all of a sudden called racist' Not done: She had more to say as she followed up in another post with, 'And if you are just so triggered by our show, and a lot of you p****** are, go watch [Real Housewives of] Dubai' Early on Saturday Eboni - lawyer, author, and TV personality - added her two scents to the conversation as she shared her clip. She called it a 'community service' post, taking a diplomatic approach to the situation. Williams accompanied the video upload with a caption that said, 'Yes, you too can show up in a fight or in conflict with Black womenand NOT be racist. Its AMAZING.' She offered 'three tips for how to be a white or non-Black woman and "fight" with Black women without having to feel or be perceived as racist.' Her advice included 'make space for Black women,' 'relax off of the suspicion that everyone's thinking you're racist,' and 'hold the space to show up with authenticity and trust Black women to meet you where you are.' Lastly Eboni said that 'all humans engage in conflict and it's more than okay.' Talking back: Cast members of the Dubai version of the franchise were swift to respond to the back-to-back statements by Lisa Cast members of the Dubai version of the franchise were swift to respond to the back-to-back statements by Lisa. Chanel Ayan tweeted: 'Rinna, Africa called and they want their lips back! Keep Dubai out of your mess and your mouth. Tune in next Wednesday 9pm for a brand new episode of #RHODUBAI @BravoTV.' Then Lesa Milan piggybacked off the tweet, adding: 'She does not want this heat, we're not BH... we will drag her from right up off that doctor's table to the desert!' Completing the thread, Ayan noted, 'The desert hit different,' before tagging the mother-of-two. Friction: Caroline Brooks also got in on the internet drama as she asked Rinna, 'Why did you mention our show in your post? What did you mean by "go watch Dubai"? Hmmm' Caroline Brooks also got in on the internet drama as she asked Rinna, 'Why did you mention our show in your post? What did you mean by "go watch Dubai"? Hmmm.' A fan joined in on Twitter to say, 'We love you @caroline_dubai! When you stated @LisaVanderpump was your favorite #RHOBH, I knew you were the one!' And Caroline responded, 'She's the only Lisa that matters to me in Beverly Hills.' John Travolta took to Instagram on Saturday night to show gratitude for a concert he thoroughly enjoyed. The 68-year-old actor shared a photo of himself embracing Tommy Lee backstage at Motley Crue's show in Jacksonville, Florida, as both grinned widely. He wrote in the caption: 'Tommy, thank you for greatest night in Rock n Roll. Motley Crue at its best. Love you tons. - JT' Great night: John Travolta took to Instagram to thank Tommy Lee for 'the greatest night in rock 'n' roll' Appreciative: The star was 68-year-old star was emphatic in his excitement The Grease star wore a faded denim jacket with a crewneck black shirt underneath, and black pants. He sported his usual shaved head with a full, neatly-groomed, salt-and-pepper beard as he hugged the drummer, 59. Tommy was dressed in belted jeans and a black tank top that showed off his sleeve of tattoos. His shaggy, brown, haircut was fashionably disheveled and had a few streaks of blonde highlights at the front. Happy guy: John added, 'Motley Crue at its best. Love you tons. - JT' The two legendary Hollywood figures both flashed toothy grins for the photo-op. Engaging his 3.9 million fans John also shared a video clip as he stood watching the performance backstage. In the clip the musicians put on a spirited, guitar and drum-driven performance to an appreciative crowd. Red stage lights shone on him as he wore a pair of black wired earphones and flashed a thumbs up at the camera. More content: Engaging his 3.9 million fans John also shared a video clip as he stood watching the performance backstage The post received almost 50,000 likes in the first couple of hours it was uploaded. Fans joined in the comments to say, 'So awesome,' 'My dudes!!' and 'I love this friendship!' It isn't the first time the two have posted together on social media - back in November Lee shared a text exchange with the actor on TikTok as they bonded over baking. And before that, Travolta shared a video from a night out as the two went to a Rolling Stones concert in Los Angeles. He played James Bond for an impressive 15 years. And Daniel Craig looked dashing in a pale blue ensemble as he signed autographs while arriving at his Broadway Play in New York City on Friday. The 53-year-old actor, who was last on stage in a 2013, showed off his toned physique in a tight blue shirt and matching trousers as he prepared for his performance in the Broadway adaptation of Macbeth. Fan favourite: Daniel Craig looked dashing in a pale blue ensemble as he signed autographs while arriving at his Broadway Play in New York City on Friday Daniel added a pair of grey Nike trainers to the look, while accessorising with a cap and stylish sunglasses. In the revival of William Shakespeare's tragedy, the James Bond frontman stars alongside Ruth Negga, who makes her Broadway debut playing Lady Macbeth. Preview performances began at Midtown Manhattan's Longacre Theatre on March 29 with an opening set for April 28. Tony Award-winner Sam Gold will direct. Barbara Broccoli, who produces the James Bond films with her brother, is a producer. Looking good: The 53-year-old actor showed off his toned physique in a tight blue shirt and matching trousers as he prepared for his performance in the Broadway adaptation of Macbeth Stylish: Daniel added a pair of grey Nike trainers to the look, while accessorising with a cap and stylish sunglasses Eager fans have been patiently waiting for news about the next James Bond movie after Daniel Craig's last hurrah as 007 arrived on screens in September. But Barbara has now told patient fans they could still be waiting some time for the 26th Eon film as shooting for the next epic is 'at least two years away'. The producer, 62, who creates the Bond franchise with her half-brother Michael G. Wilson, said they are still trying to cast Daniel's successor and are in no rush to do so. What next? Eager fans have been patiently waiting for news on the next James Bond movie after Daniel's last instalment as 007 arrived on screens in September Speaking at a dinner where she and screenwriter Michael, 80, were awarded BFI fellowships, Barbara also hinted at some major changes to the character as she said they are 'reinventing' the MI6 agent. According to the Daily Mail's Richard Eden, she teased: 'I'd say that filming is at least two years away. It's a reinvention of Bond.' Amid rumours of who will become the seventh actor to play Bond, Barbara insisted that they don't currently have anyone in the running for the famous party. She also said she and Michael have not started writing a script for the upcoming 007 film because they want to first make decisions on casting and how they will approach the next instalment. Long wait: But Barbara Broccoli has told patient fans that they could still be waiting some time for the 26th Eon film as shooting for the next epic is 'at least two years away' The news that fans could be left waiting years until the return of Bond comes after Daniel's last film No Time To Die was delayed for 18 months amid the ongoing Covid crisis before its September release. The film was originally scheduled for release in November 2019 but was postponed to February and then April 2020 following the departure of original director Danny Boyle due to creative differences. A China premiere and publicity tour was cancelled in April 2020 due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, originally pushing the release back to November 2020. In October 2020 it was delayed again to April 2021, with further delays happening in January and February of last year, with the much-anticipated film finally arriving on screen on September 30, 2021. Warwick Davis has revealed he stayed beside his wife's hospital bed alongside his family as she battled a life-threatening infection. The Tenable star, 52, tried to remain positive when his wife of 21 years Sam was rushed to the emergency room with a mystery illness, which was later diagnosed as sepsis. He told The Sun: 'The next few hours were the longest of my life as I waited on the ward with our children in the empty space left by Sam's hospital bed. I hoped it would not symbolise a future for us without her.' Scary: Warwick Davis has revealed he stayed beside his wife's hospital bed alongside his family as she battled a life-threatening infection The mother-of-two fell ill ahead of a 2019 family caravan holiday but convinced herself the symptoms were caused by stress from preparing for the trip. When her exhaustion led to her not being able to stand without support, Warwick called an out-of-hours doctor. He continued: 'Our family gathered by her bedside; although optimistic, we were sort of saying goodbye in case Sam didn't survive.' 'It's so hard to see someone you love more than anything in the world fighting to stay alive without the strength to even roll over in bed. Tragic: The Tenable star, 52, tried to remain positive when his wife of 21 years Sam was rushed to the emergency room with a mystery illness, which was later diagnosed as sepsis Family: The happy couple share son Harrison and daughter Samantha. Both have inherited their father's condition (pictured in 2019) The infection causes the body's immune system to go into overdrive and attack tissues and organs, which can be lethal and lead to amputations. WHAT IS SEPSIS? Sepsis occurs when the body reacts to an infection by attacking its own organs and tissues. 48,000 people die from sepsis every year in the UK. Worldwide, someone dies from the condition every 3.5 seconds. Sepsis symptoms include: S lurred speech or confusion lurred speech or confusion E xtreme shivering or muscle pain xtreme shivering or muscle pain P assing no urine in a day assing no urine in a day S evere breathlessness evere breathlessness I t feels like you are dying t feels like you are dying S kin mottled or discoloured Under fives may be vomiting repeatedly, not feeding or not urinating for 12 hours. Anyone can develop sepsis but it is most common in people who have recently had surgery, have a urinary catheter or have stayed in hospital for a long time. Other at-risk people include those with weak immune systems, chemotherapy patients, pregnant women, the elderly and the very young. Treatment varies depending on the site of the infection but involves antibiotics, IV fluids and oxygen, if necessary. Source: UK Sepsis Trust and NHS Choices Advertisement Nearly 250,000 Brits are diagnosed with sepsis every year, of which 48,000 die and 40 per cent are left with life-altering disabilities and symptoms. Doctors examined Sam and quickly became concerned about a scar on her back from a recent spinal surgery that was 'inflamed with fluid, red, and hot to touch'. Tests came back showing Sam had a deadly Streptococcus bacteria and meningitis infection, meaning she needed emergency surgery. Sam managed to pull through and once discharged from hospital, Warwick nursed her back to full health for three months. Sammy has a form of dwarfism called achondroplasia while Harry Potter star Warwick was born with an extremely rare condition called spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita (SED), where the bone endings fail to form. It meant he never grew taller than 3ft 6in. The happy couple share son Harrison and daughter Samantha. Both have inherited their father's condition and are aspiring actors, having appeared in Harry Potter. Warwick and Sammy lost two of their children when they were babies and the star opened up about the tragedy in 2018 when he appeared on Bear Grylls. Their first children Lloyd and George inherited two forms of dwarfism from their parents, which proved fatal to the babies. He said: 'Prior to Annabelle and Harrison we had a baby boy, Lloyd, who inherited both our conditions and that is something that proves fatal. 'It's something that a baby won't survive. But Lloyd he survived for nine days, but yeah he was beautiful but it was a tough time. And yeah, we had a stillborn too.' The star said he and his wife had made it through the painful time together, saying: 'That kind of stuff it just makes you stronger [as a couple].' They have been seen looking loved up several times together in public. And Robert De Niro and Tiffany Chen were enjoying the summer sunshine on a trip to the beach in Formentera, Spain on Saturday. The actor, 78, cut a casual figure for the outing as he sported a white polo shirt with a pair of green shorts. Holiday: Robert De Niro and Tiffany Chen were enjoying the summer sunshine on a trip to the beach in Formentera, Spain on Saturday Going barefoot as he strolled along the sand, the Hollywood legend also wore a black cap as he spent some quality time with Tiffany. Martial arts trainer Tiffany also opted for a laid back look, wearing a white shirt with a pair of pink knee-length shorts. Letting her locks fall loose down her shoulders, she completed her look for the day with a green cap. The pair enjoyed a walk along the beach before they were seen climbing into the back of a boat. Laid back: The actor, 78, cut a casual figure for the outing as he sported a white polo shirt with a pair of green shorts Robert and Tiffany are yet to confirm whether they are a couple, but have been seen looking loved up several times together in public. The Goodfellas actor and Tiffany were seen packing on the PDA in Cote d'Azur, on his birthday during a jaunt on his friend and business partner James Packer's $200million yacht. Robert's outing also comes in the midst of his torturous divorce battle with ex-wife Grace. The ex-spouses have been locked in a divorce battle since December 2018. In April, a judge ruled that his ex-wife, 66, should receive $1 million annually and that the couple will split the proceeds after selling their $20 million home. Casual: Martial arts trainer Tiffany also opted for a laid back look, wearing a white shirt with a pair of pink knee-length shorts Robert and Grace were married in 1997, split in 1999, then got back together, renewed their vows in 2004 before he filed for divorce in 2018. Initially the pair fought over custody of their nine-year-old child but now the arguments are over money and property. Hightower's average monthly spend was $215,000 a month on credit cards and $160,000 in cash. De Niro's attorney, Caroline Krauss, claims the financial strain means the actor is running out of money. She said the coronavirus pandemic led to a drying up of work projects for the Hollywood star. Months earlier, De Niro earned $5million for acting in Martin Scorsese's hit gangster flick, The Irishman. He also received 'tens of millions of dollars' through a federal coronavirus relief program. Hightower claims that De Niro is worth $500million, but his attorney Caroline Krauss says that his estranged wife's extravagant lifestyle is making things worse. Celebrities descended on Silverstone today, with Geri Horner and Rylan Clark among the stars to watch today's British Grand Prix. The close friends who struck up a bond after hosting This Morning slots together posed for photos with a fan in a VIP area. Other A-list guests to grace the paddocks on the day was Celebrity chef and known Formula 1 fan Gordon Ramsey, who brought his daughter Holly as his guest. Close pals: Geri Horner and Rylan Clark posed for photos with a fan ahead of Sunday's British Grand Prix at Silverstone Looking as stylish as ever, former Spice Girl Geri, 49, - who is married to team principal of Red Bull Racing, Christian Horner looked breathtaking in her signature white. Adding a splash of designer to the look, the author looked elegant in a crafted Gucci cardigan with red trim and stars embroidery. She coupled the look with a matching pair of trousers and white polo neck while framing her face with a pair of oversized sunglasses. Family affair: Other A-list guests to grace the paddocks on the day was Celebrity chef and known Formula 1 fan Gordon Ramsey, who brought his daughter Holly as his guest Her TV pal Rylan, 33, couldn't take the smile off his face on the day as the pair linked arms as they walked through the famous circuit. The BBC radio presenter got dressed up for the occasion, looking smart in a white shirt, coupled with a black pair of jeans and an Hermes gold plated belt. Meanwhile, Formula 1 fanatic Gordon, 55, looked race ready, looking cool in all navy. The Hell's Kitchen creator, rocked some designer shades as he strolled along with his digital creator daughter Holly. Race ready: Her TV pal Rylan couldn't take the smile off his face on the day as the pair linked arms as they walked through the famous circuit Cool dad: The Hell's Kitchen creator, rocked some designer shades as he strolled along with his digital creator daughter Holly The stunning blonde, 22, put on a leggy display wearing a pair of red shorts with she teamed with a white tank top. She stepped out in a pair of Prada Monolith brushed leather loafers which completed the stylish look. Hollywood hero Tom Cruise was also among the celebrities flocking to see Lewis Hamilton battle for the win. Buff: Hollywood hero Tom Cruise was also among the celebrities flocking to see Lewis Hamilton battle for the win The film star, 59, oozed confidence, showing off his buff physique in a grey polo-shirt. He was later seen catching up with TV personality Gordan as the pair embraced one another, enjoying a private moment before the drivers took took to the pole. Stranger Things star Amybeth McNulty also made an appearance, putting on a colourful display in a silky camisole top. Chic: Stranger Things star Amybeth McNulty also made an appearance, putting on a colourful display in a silky camisole top Retro: The 20-year-old actress topped her retro-print ensemble with a cosy beige cardigan and some flared tan jeans The 20-year-old actress topped her retro-print ensemble with a cosy beige cardigan and some flared tan jeans. The blonde beauty grinned as she posed next to a race car. A stunning Ashley Roberts was also pictured as she flaunted her toned, tanned legs in a glam blazer teamed which chic stiletto heels. Stunning: A stunning Ashley Roberts was also pictured as she flaunted her toned, tanned legs in a glam blazer teamed which chic stiletto heels Wow! The star, 40, sizzled in the elegant ensemble, which featured rhinestone detailing and cinched at the waist The star, 40, sizzled in the elegant ensemble, which featured rhinestone detailing and cinched at the waist. The former Pussycat doll rocked some dark shades and wore her platinum blonde tresses down in voluminous waves. Actor William Moseley looked dapper as he was spotted posing by a car in a navy button up and dark suit jacket. Smart: Actor William Moseley looked dapper as he was spotted posing by a car in a navy button up and dark suit jacket Dapper: The 35-year-old actor - best known for playing Peter Pevensie in The Chronicles of Narnia films - teamed his look with slim fit trousers and some smart leather shoes The 35-year-old actor - best known for playing Peter Pevensie in The Chronicles of Narnia films - teamed his look with slim fit trousers and some smart leather shoes. He looked youthful as ever, styling his blond curls in a tousled carefree do. Vogue and Spencer Matthews put on a cosy display as they posed together at the star-studded event. Model Vogue, 36, showed off her sculpted legs in white shorts paired with a striped blouse, which she wore with a classy Chanel purse. Loved up: Vogue and Spencer Matthews put on a cosy display as they posed together at the star-studded event She wore her blonde locks down, accentuating her silhouette with kitten-heeled slippers. Her husband Spencer, 33, rocked an all-white suit and some chic sunglasses as he sidled up to his wife. TikTok star Sam Ryder and Damien Lewis were also in attendance. Chit chat: Tom and Gordon enjoyed a private moment ahead of the big race Nice to see you! Tom was later seen catching up with TV personality Gordan as the pair embraced one another New friendship: TikTok star Sam Ryder and Damien Lewis were also in attendance The pair posed for a photo outside the Red Bull Racing garage prior to the start time. Beaming Sam, 33, was all smiles as he cut a casual figure for the outing, while Damien, 51, looked edgy in a leather jacket. Also strolling around the paddock was Philip Schofield, 60, who looked smart in a pink and white gingham shirt, breezing through in a pair of designer shades. Freddie Flintoff also had VIP access on the day. The Top Gear host, 44, looked suave in a bomber jacket and a pair of yellow-frame fashion glasses. Suave: Damien looked edgy in a leather jacket as he mingled with other race goers Delightful: Beaming Sam was all smiles as he cut a casual figure for the outing Looking good: Also strolling around the paddock was Philip Schofield looking smart in a pink and white gingham shirt, breezing through in a pair of designer shades Top gear star: Freddie Flintoff also had VIP access on the day looking smart in a bomber jacket Cheery: British rapper Stormzy made sure he wasn't going to miss out on world's most popular annual sporting series British rapper Stormzy, 28, made sure he wasn't going to miss out on world's most popular annual sporting series. Oozing charisma as always, the hitmaker was all smiles as he got an access all areas pass to soak the atmosphere up the on the day. Also making a stylish arrival was TV presenter Joel Dommett and his model wife Hannah Cooper. The pair dressed to impress on the day, with Joel, 37, stepping out in a black varsity jacket and Hannah, 31, catching the eye in a denim jumpsuit. Couple goals: Also making a stylish arrival was TV presenter Joel Dommett and his model wife Hannah Cooper Day off: Strictly Come Dancing stars Dancers Aljaz Skorjanec and his wife Janette Manrara also bagged some VIP tickets on the day Strictly Come Dancing stars Dancers Aljaz Skorjanec and his wife Janette Manrara also bagged some VIP tickets on the day. The dance pros looked smart complementing one another both wearing black, with Janet rocking a leather jacket. Enjoying their Premier League break and catching a glimpse of the world's most prestigious car-racing were Manchester City's Nathan Ake and Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk. Summer break: Enjoying their Premier League break and catching a glimpse of the world's most prestigious car-racing was Manchester City's Nathan Ake On Sunday morning, The Kardashians producer-star Kim Kardashian shared a sweet snap of her nine-year-old daughter North West and four-year-old daughter Chicago West sleeping nose to nose. The 41-year-old SKIMS CEO - who boasts 434.5M social media followers - captioned the candid moment: 'Woke up this morning to see my girls asleep in my bed like this! Nothing better!' Kim is also mother to three-year-old son Psalm West and six-year-old son Saint West from her six-year marriage to estranged third husband Kanye 'Ye' West. Doting: On Sunday morning, The Kardashians producer-star Kim Kardashian shared a sweet snap of her nine-year-old daughter North West and four-year-old daughter Chicago West sleeping nose to nose (pictured June 24) The 41-year-old SKIMS CEO - who boasts 434.5M social media followers - captioned the candid moment: 'Woke up this morning to see my girls asleep in my bed like this! Nothing better!' Kardashian and the 45-year-old rapper-designer were declared legally single on March 2, and their next status conference divorce hearing is scheduled for August 5. The platinum-blonde reality star has more time for family now that her boyfriend of eight months - SNL star Pete Davidson - is in Australia shooting his role as a hapless beach-bar operator in David Michod's comedy Wizards! Kim - who destroyed Marilyn Monroe's gown - is next scheduled to drop her early eighties-inspired 'Metallic' swim collection next Wednesday at 9am PST. Kardashian recently launched her skincare company SKKN, which was slapped with a trademark infringement lawsuit from Brooklyn black-owned company Beauty Concepts, which already owns the rights to 'SKKN+.' Mother-of-four: Kim is also mother to three-year-old son Psalm West (L, pictured June 22) and six-year-old son Saint West (R) from her six-year marriage to estranged third husband Kanye 'Ye' West 2020 family portrait: Kardashian and the 45-year-old rapper-designer (R) were declared legally single on March 2, and their next status conference divorce hearing is scheduled for August 5 Out of town: The platinum-blonde reality star has more time for family now that her boyfriend of eight months - SNL star Pete Davidson (L, pictured June 17) - is in Australia shooting his role as a hapless beach-bar operator in David Michod's comedy Wizards! The half-Armenian beauty's attorney Michael Rhodes told TMZ last Tuesday that the lawsuit was just a 'shakedown' saying: 'Ms. Lunsford filed this suit to try to leverage a settlement and score a big payday.' Speaking of which, Kim plans on passing the California State Bar in 2024 without attending college or law school, and she already passed the 'baby bar' exam on December 13 after four attempts. Kardashian wants to follow in the footsteps of her late father - OJ Simpson defense attorney Robert Kardashian Sr. - who died, age 59, from esophageal cancer in 2003 when she was only 22. 'Coming soon!' Kim - who destroyed Marilyn Monroe's gown - is next scheduled to drop her early eighties-inspired 'Metallic' swim collection next Wednesday at 9am PST Sylvester Stallone celebrated his 75th birthday a little early with his glamorous wife Jennifer Flavin and their three stunning daughters. The Hollywood legend was spotted arriving to Via Alloro in Beverly Hills on Saturday looking smart in a white button down shirt and jeans. His wife Jennifer, 53, exuded style in a chic black dress as their daughters Sistene, 24, Sophia, 25, and Scarlett, 20, turned heads in their own fashionable attire. Happy birthday! Sylvester Stallone celebrated his 75th birthday a little early with his glamorous wife Jennifer Flavin and their three stunning daughters The women carried several gift bags for the A-lister, whose official birthday is July 6. Sophia and Scarlett looked the height of style as they followed their mother towards the restaurant. Sistene put on a head-turning display in a glittering crop top and mini skirt as she arrived to the bash. The beauty posted a photo of her look as she posed before a full-length mirror in a snap posted to her Instagram Stories. Stunning! His wife Jennifer, 53, exuded style in a chic black dress as their daughters Sophia, 25, and Scarlett, 20, trailed along, looking oh-so stylish in their own fashionable attire She carried a dainty purse and wore her hair up in a chic bun. Sylvester's brother Frank Stallone was also among the guests. The birthday love comes just after Stallone discussed the unusual way he landed his role in the new series Tulsa King. Off they go! Stallone arrived in style to the restaurant The new series follows New York mafia capo Dwight "The General" Manfredi (Stallone), who is released from prison after 25 years. Much to his surprise, he is unceremoniously exiled by his boss to set up shop in Tulsa, Oklahoma, as he realizes the mob may not be looking out for him the way he had hoped. Manfredi starts assembling a crew to create his own criminal empire in the most unlikely of places. Brotherly love! Sylvester's brother Frank Stallone sported a yellow shirt to the bash Look who's here! Dolph Lundgren and his fiancee Emma Krokdal were also among the guests Series creator Taylor Sheridan has become a hot commodity at Paramount Plus, but years before his big break as a writer with 2015's Sicario, he was a working actor, who met Stallone at a horse ranch. 'My daughters and I were practicing -- I play polo a lot; a long time ago people would say, how can you afford it? I played with the worst horse on the planet, but I learned and eventually after I made money, I started to go into... barrel racing,' Stallone began. 'It's very, very delicate and I brought my daughters into it and Taylor Sheridan was at the same barn and he hadnt made it yet' Stallone said. Stallone also revealed, 'Ive always wanted to play a gangster since... I basically started off my career mugging everyone... but it never happened. I have my thoughts on why but better late than never.' 'Taylor Sheridan wrote an idea, a screenplay that was really good and Terence Winter, who wrote Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire, they put it all together and what you have is East meets West,' he added at the Londoner Hotel for Paramount+'s U.K. launch event. Alessandra Ambrosio took to her Instagram on Sunday to share some sizzling snaps from her Amalfi Coast getaway. The 41-year-old model looked sensational in a plunging bright yellow dress with side cut outs and a sizzling thigh-high slit. The runway phenomenon also posted a snap of her and boyfriend Richard Lee sharing a sweet kiss to her Instagram Stories. Sunny vacation: Alessandra Ambrosio took to her Instagram on Sunday to share some sizzling snaps from her Amalfi Coast getaway The former Victoria's Secret Angel accessorized her stylish vacation look with a pair of gold Giuseppe Zanotti sandal heels, for which she thanked the famous Italian fashion designer on her Stories. 'La dolce vita...' the star captioned her vacation snaps. The stunner wore her brunette tresses parted in the middle and cascading down her shoulders in loose waves. Stunner: The 41-year-old model looked sensational in a plunging bright yellow dress with side cut outs and a sizzling thigh-high slit From the back: The former Victoria's Secret Angel accessorized her stylish vacation look with a pair of gold Giuseppe Zanotti sandal heels The Brazilian beauty further accessorized her look with stylish gold hoop earrings and a bevy of gold rings on her fingers. Meanwhile Richard kept his look simple in a baby blue short-sleeve shirt with an open collar. Alessandra and Richard began dating last year in 2021. She was in a previous relationship with Jamie Mazur, and was also engaged to him. They share two children, daughter Anja, 13, and son Noah, 10. Kiss me: The runway phenomenon also posted a snap of her and boyfriend Richard Lee sharing a sweet kiss to her Instagram Stories Alessandra was dressed to the nines ahead of her friend Dominick's Italian wedding festivities, and posted a snap with the groom-to-be on her Stories. Later in the night, the beauty took the plunge ahead of the celebrations, jumping into a swimming pool in her stylish dress. 'Pool partyyyyyy... to start the wedding celebrations,' she wrote in a text overlay on the snap. Wedding celebrations: Alessandra was dressed to the nines ahead of her friend Dominick's Italian wedding festivities, and posted a snap with the groom-to-be on her Stories Living it up! Later in the night, the beauty took the plunge at a wedding ahead of the celebrations, jumping into a swimming pool in her stylish dress Having fun: Alessandra was seen having the time of her life, sipping on what appeared to be champagne, as she pulled her hair back into a bun in order not to get them wet Alessandra was seen having the time of her life, sipping on what appeared to be champagne, as she pulled her hair back into a bun in order not to get them wet. She flashed a bright smile while holding onto her shirtless friend, who was enjoying a drink while taking a break from swimming. She continued sharing more images from her fabulous getaway, and fully embraced the Italian aesthetic as she posed on a white Vespa. Bella: She continued sharing more images from her fabulous getaway, and fully embraced the Italian aesthetic as she posed on a white Vespa She also shared a snap posing alongside friend Rachel Dobriner while sporting a stylish striped beach coverup and a large sun hat. The supermodel covered up her flawless face with a pair of silver shades, and sported flip flops and a woven purse for the outing. The duo posed in front of a stunning lake scenery behind them. SK succeeds in developing COVID vaccine; Samsung on course to be top CDMO firm By Baek Byung-yeul SK Bioscience, Samsung Biologics and other Korean biotech companies are soaring to new heights as they succeed in locally developing vaccines, winning orders to manufacture the drugs and developing treatments for COVID-19, according industry officials, Thursday. "It is obvious that the pandemic raised the importance of securing proprietary vaccine development and manufacturing technologies, and the achievements of domestic companies were possible because they have realized the importance of the biotech business and have tried to secure their own technological capabilities," an official from a local biotech company said asking not to be named. One of the latest achievements of the local biotech industry can be seen in SK Bioscience, which succeeded in developing the country's first COVID-19 vaccine, SKYCovione. On June 29, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said it granted the company an approval to sell its recombinant protein-based COVID-19 vaccine in the Korean market. With the vaccine development, Korea became the third country to develop its own COVID-19 vaccine and treatment following the United States and the U.K. Korea already had a COVID-19 treatment developed by local biotech company Celltrion. SK Bioscience jointly developed the vaccine with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and the University of Washington's Institute for Protein Design (IPD). SK Bioscience has proven the vaccine, also known as GBP510, has a higher preventative effect than existing vaccines by conducting clinical trials in six countries: New Zealand, the Philippines, Thailand, Ukraine, Vietnam and South Korea. The company is conducting clinical trials on booster shots to increase the utilization of vaccines, in which two shots must be given four weeks apart, and is also preparing clinical trials for children and adolescents. It is currently allowed for use on adults. An SK Group spokesman said, "SK was able to grow into a major bio company in Korea thanks to Chey Jong-hyun, former chairman of the group, who drew up a plan to secure the country's sovereignty in biotechnology and Chey Tae-won, his son and the current chairman of the group who has actively invested in the sector." The former chairman established a laboratory in 1987 and conducted research activities in four areas synthetic drugs, natural drugs, medication and other biotechnologies. After receiving the baton, Chairman Chey Tae-won also led the development and production of new drugs and vaccines through SK Bioscience and SK Biopharmaceuticals. Samsung Biologics researchers work on drug development. Courtesy of Samsung Biologics Tributes poured in for Lauren Goodger's ex Jake McLean following the sad news he died in a car crash on Sunday . Jake, who was 33, is understood to have been driving in Bodrum, Turkey when his vehicle veered over a cliff before emergency services rushed to save him. His partner Yazmin Oukhellou, 28, famed for her appearances on reality series TOWIE, was also in the accident and is believed to be recovering in hospital. 'This is tragic, may he rest in peace': Tributes have poured in for Lauren Goodger's ex Jake McLean, 33, after he tragically died in a car crash leaving TOWIE star Yazmin Oukhellou seriously injured (Jake and Yazmin pictured together recently) A source told The Sun: 'Apparently Jake was driving when he lost control of the car and it went off a cliff.' Taking to Twitter one fan wrote: 'So sad to hear about Jake Mclean may he RIP'. While another added: 'This is tragic'. And a third commented: ' Prayers are with jakes family right now and praying for Yazmin to pull through'. And a fourth wrote: 'Praying for you at this sad time'. Exes: Pals close to Lauren (pictured) told MailOnline the pregnant mother-of-one has been left 'devastated' by Jake's untimely passing Shock: Taking to Twitter fans shared their shock at the news with one writing: 'So sad to hear about Jake Mclean may he RIP' While very little is known about Yazmin's condition her fellow TOWIE cast also took to their social media accounts in hopes she will make a full recovery. Her best friend on the show Junaid Ahmed shared a snap of himself and Yazmin to his Instagram Stories writing: 'Love you ...my beautiful girl'. While fellow TOWIE star Harry Derbridge also shared a recent snap of the pair commented: 'Thinking of you @YazminOulhellou'. RIP: Social media users shared their condolences at the untimely death of the businessman Sad: Bff Junaid Ahmed shared a snap of himself and Yazmin to his Instagram Stories writing: 'Love you ...my beautiful girl' One fan took to Twitter writing: @Thoughts and prayers are with you @YazminOukhellou' While another added: 'Speedy recovery, get well soon [Yazmin] so sorry to hear about Jake. And a third commented: 'Praying for you Yaz'. While another wrote: 'I hope you get out of this the other side'. Hope: While very little is known about Yazmin's conditions her fellow TOWIE cast also took to their social media accounts in hopes she will make a full recovery Friends: Harry Derbridge also took to Instagram to share a snap of himself with Yazmin He captioned the picture: 'Thinking of you @YazminOulhellou' Shock: A source told MailOnline: 'It's a complete tragedy and a total loss of life A source told MailOnline of the accident: 'It's a complete tragedy and a total loss of life. 'Everyone is in shock and hoping Yazmin makes a full recovery.' Pals close to Lauren Goodgear told MailOnline the pregnant mother-of-one has been left 'devastated' by Jake's untimely passing. Yazmin and Jake have been dating on and off since May 2021, after the TOWIE star called quits on her long-term relationship with James Lock, 35. MailOnline has contacted TOWIE and Yazmin's representatives for comment. Sad news: Yazmin, 28, famed for her appearances on TV series TOWIE, and relationship with ex-James Lock, 35, is believed to be recovering in intensive care Yazmin ended her romance with Jake in January after discovering he had been unfaithful with former Love Island contestant Ellie Jones. It is unknown when the pair reconciled and the reason for them being in Turkey, with Yazmin last sharing a photo of herself in London on Tuesday. This year, Yazmin was set to make her return to TOWIE after filming with the cast in the Dominican Republic. Exes: Yazmin and Jake have been dating on and off since May 2021, after the TOWIE star called quits on her long-term relationship with James Lock (pictured in August 2020) She had shared photos alongside co-star Harry from the Caribbean in June. According to her Instagram, Yazmin finished filming for TOWIE in the Dominican Republic, and headed on holiday to Ibiza, where she posed in her bikini at O Beach. MailOnline revealed in 2021 that Yazmin and her ex James Lock had split for good following a five-year on-off romance. James and Yazmin had relocated to Dubai together during the Covid-19 pandemic but their relationship hit the rocks following a series of explosive arguments. The Essex couple had experienced a tempestuous relationship, splitting up and reconciling on a number of occasions after they first started dating in 2017. Rosamund Pike put on a very animated display on Saturday evening as she attempted to hail a cab following the star studded nuptials of her step daughter Olive Uniacke in London . The actress, 43, who is the partner of Olive's father Robie Uniacke, 61, looked fantastic in the stylish fuchsia gown after enjoying the evening's celebrations. Pride and Prejudice star Rosamund held her arm in the air as she attempted to draw attention to herself before later resorting to running down the street. Taxi! A glamorous Rosmaund Pike, 43, put on a very animated display as she attempted to hail a cab following her daughter's star-studded London wedding on Saturday Hours earlier the bride, a literary agent and former Harry Potter production executive tied the knot with beau Dane Ensley at St Gabriels Church in nearby Pimlico. Rosaumund donned her bold gown for the special day, which included pleated and ribbon detailing as well as racy cut outs at her svelte waist. Forgoing her black velvet heels from earlier in the day the star slipped her aching feet into a pair of comfy sequinned moccasins for her taxi dash. Stylish: Rosaumund donned the gown which included pleated and ribbon detailing as well as racy cut outs at her svelte waits Wait! Pride and Prejudice star Rosamund held her toned arm in the air as she attempted to draw attention to herself before later resorting to running down the street Wearing her blonde tresses slicked back, having worn a fascinator for the ceremony, the beauty opted for a dewy make-up look as she accessorised with a pair of dangling earrings. The Hollywood actress chatted with guests outside the venue before taking to her phone in a bid to organise transport. Following pals leaving in the taxi the blonde beauty returned to the swanky party where a late night McDonald's was delivered. Big day: Wearing her blonde tresses slicked back the beauty opted for a dewy make-up look as she accessorised with a pair of dangling earrings Hungry: Following pals leaving in the taxi the blonde beauty returned to the swanky party where a late night McDonald's delivery was received Sorted? The actress gave a thumbs up once a taxi finally noticed her Many famous faces celebrated the nuptials including Nicholas Hoult, Bonnie Wright and Dua Lipa. Despite stars making up the congregation, the bride stood out, in her stunning brightly coloured gown. The floor-length hot pink frock featured a high neck, was sleeveless, and had a structured, boned bodice. Famous friends: Many famous faces celebrated the nuptials including Nicholas Hoult, Bonnie Wright and Dua Lipa The Hollywood actress chatted with guests outside the venue before taking to her phone in a bid to organise transport. Stylish family: Despite stars making up the congregation, the bride stood out, in her stunning brightly coloured gown Keeping in style with her non-traditional bridal look, she appeared to forgo a veil. Instead, the bride opted for an elegant, minimalist look when it came to her hair and make-up, appearing fresh faced, with her long brunette locks flowing down her back. For some time Olive was rumoured to be dating Daniel Radcliffe after being photographed at many events together, but eventually his publicist confirmed they were just friends. Advertisement Jordana Brewster rocked an orange string bikini while celebrating the Fourth of July weekend at the beach in Santa Monica, two days after her ex-husband Andrew Form tied the knot with Alexandra Daddario. Following the news that her former spouse exchanged vows with the 36-year-old White Lotus in New Orleans, the Fast and Furious star, 42, was seen going for a dip in the ocean and playing with her dog. In addition to flaunting her incredibly toned physique, the mother-of-two flashed her massive engagement ring on her left ring finger, which she received from fiance Mason Morfit last September after just over a year of dating. Looking good! Jordana Brewster rocked an orange sting bikini while celebrating the Fourth of July weekend at the beach in Santa Monica, less than 24 hours after her ex-husband Andrew Form tied the knot with Alexandra Daddario For her sun-soaked trip to the beach, Brewster rocked a pair of black shades, a gold watch and several layered necklaces included a blue crystal pendant. The actress appeared in high spirits as she shot a friend a thumbs up and could be seen smiling as she went for a swim in the glistening water. Her glossy raven tresses were styled in loose waves that cascaded past her trim shoulders. Beach chic: For her sun-soaked trip to the beach, Brewster rocked a pair of black shades, a gold watch and several layered necklaces included a blue crystal pendant Cheerful: The actress appeared in high spirits as she shot a friend a thumbs up and could be seen smiling as she went for a swim in the glistening water Beautiful: Her glossy raven tresses were styled in loose waves that cascaded past her trim shoulders She was joined by her beloved rescue pup, Endicott, who she adopted in May 2020 amid the early coronavirus lockdown. Despite her ex-husband getting remarried earlier this week, she looked happy and carefree while splashing around the sea. In June 2021, she reflected on what led to her separation from Andrew - and how she found love once again with her new man. Soaking up the sun: She was joined by her beloved rescue pup, Endicott, who she adopted in May 2020 amid the early coronavirus lockdown Having fun: Despite her ex-husband getting remarried earlier this week, she looked happy and carefree while splashing around the sea All moved on: In June 2021, she reflected on what led to her separation from Andrew - and how she found love once again with her new man Jordana said it was her and Andrew's vastly different schedules that ultimately drove her to divorce him last year and reconnect with Mason just days later. Jordana was 27 when she married Andrew, a film producer whom she met on the set of Texas Chainsaw Massacre just one year earlier. He was her first 'real boyfriend' and the 'the first person I spent more than the perfunctory weekend with'. Honest: Jordana said it was her and Andrew's vastly different schedules that ultimately drove her to divorce him last year and reconnect with Mason just days later Not the right fit: Jordana was 27 when she married Andrew, a film producer whom she met on the set of Texas Chainsaw Massacre just one year earlier Looking back: He was her first 'real boyfriend' and the 'the first person I spent more than the perfunctory weekend with' 'I guess I wasn't ready,' she added. Soon after the wedding, Jordana developed an eating disorder which first started off as binge eating before changing into calorie counting. 'I was so focused on the number on the scale and the number of calories I consumed in a day that I ignored all other problems. I didn't look closely at my career, my marriage.' The issues in her marriage started cracking open as well. 'Early in our marriage, my husband and I started leading parallel lives. We were both effective in managing our work (he was busier professionally and traveled much of the year) and home lives. Past struggles: Soon after the wedding, Jordana developed an eating disorder which first started off as binge eating before changing into calorie counting 'Most of why my marriage didn't work was not my ex-husband's fault,' she added. 'He loves work. He loves being on set, on location. I knew this from ages 27 to 32, but it became a problem for me once the kids were older. I wanted a partner' 'So, toward the beginning of the pandemic, Andrew and I decided to separate. The combination of being apart for most of the year for many years and growing apart emotionally took its toll' 'Once we stopped jumping the initial hurdles that a couple doesbaby, surrogacy, two house renovationsI realized something was missing for both of us. When there wasn't a project to invest in together, we didn't have much to say to each other.' Though she says he was gone most of the time, the actress did not blame her ex for their failed marriage. 'Most of why my marriage didn't work was not my ex-husband's fault,' she added. 'He loves work. He loves being on set, on location. I knew this from ages 27 to 32, but it became a problem for me once the kids were older. I wanted a partner.' 'So, toward the beginning of the pandemic, Andrew and I decided to separate. The combination of being apart for most of the year for many years and growing apart emotionally took its toll,' Brewster added 'So, toward the beginning of the pandemic, Andrew and I decided to separate. The combination of being apart for most of the year for many years and growing apart emotionally took its toll.' Just days after their separation, Jordana would reconnect with her current boyfriend Mason, whom she first met a few years earlier when they were both still married to other people. The future couple started following each other on Instagram not long after they first met, and Jordana found her heart fluttering with every interaction they had online. Though they had only met in person once, Jordana never forgot about Mason, and just days after splitting from Andrew was traveling to San Francisco to see him. 'Four days after I separated from Andrew, I was on a plane to San Francisco to visit this man I had met only once but who had stayed on my mind. I knew he'd been separated for two years. I wanted to see him, to confirm whether the image I'd built up in my mind matched reality. What I got was far more than I expected' Coparents: Jordana married Andrew in 2006 before filing for divorce in 2020. The couple share sons Julian, eight, and Rowan, six 'Four days after I separated from Andrew, I was on a plane to San Francisco to visit this man I had met only once but who had stayed on my mind. I knew he'd been separated for two years. I wanted to see him, to confirm whether the image I'd built up in my mind matched reality. What I got was far more than I expected.' 'During a time when the world avoided all contact, when it was mandated that everyone stay six feet apart, Mason and I blended into each other.' The couple shared a five-minute long embrace and a kiss when they reunited at the airport. The couple started seeing each other every other week, but Jordana encountered pushback from friends and therapists who were insistent they were moving too fast. Former couple: Brewster and her ex Andrew Form pictured back in 2019, a year before filing for divorce 'The problem was that they didn't know it was 13 years in the making. What seemed like a huge event was in fact a slow unraveling,' Jordana insisted. And the actress admits she has envisioned herself walking down the aisle once again with Mason - but it is a dream she can pump the brakes on. 'I still speed up sometimes. I'm already planning my second wedding in my head. But I stop myself when I get that rushed, buzzy feeling. I stop. I breathe. I write. Mason also calls me on it, which is helpful. I found it. I found him. I can slow down. And I do.' Jordana married Andrew in 2006 before filing for divorce in 2020. The couple share sons Julian, eight, and Rowan, six. Form has since moved on with his new wife, who he said 'I do' with during a romantic ceremony at the iconic Preservation Hall, less than one year after getting engaged. The couple shared their wedding photos with Vogue and on Instagram, with the actress revealing that they were 'trying to achieve a laid-back aesthetic.' 'We loved the look of Preservation Hallit was so old, so historic, it lets its age and "flaws" show,' she said, and added that they 'wanted it to be about music, drinking, and authentic New Orleans.' Russia claimed control on Sunday over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of its invasion. Ukraines general staff of the military reported that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk in Luhansk province, but the president said the fight for the city was ongoing. If confirmed, Russias complete seizure of Luhansk would provide its forces a stronger base from which to press their advance in neighbouring Donetsk province and bring them one step closer to achieving one of President Vladimir Putins major goals: capturing the entire Donbas. Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin that Russias troops, with members of a local separatist militia, have established full control over the city of Lysychansk and now hold all of Luhansk, according to a ministry statement published on Sunday. As is typical with such descriptions, the Russian statement characterised the victories as the liberation of the Luhansk Peoples Republic. Separatists in Luhansk and Donetsk, which have significant Russian-speaking populations, have declared independence from Kyiv. Russia recognised their independence earlier this year ahead of its February 24 invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian and Russian forces have fought fiercely for Lysychansk in recent days after neighbouring Sievierodoentsk fell last week. We cannot give you the final judgment. Lysychansk is still being fought for, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelensky told a news conference on Sunday alongside Australias visiting prime minister. He said Ukrainian forces were still battling Russias soldiers on the citys outskirts and that territory can move quickly from one side to the other. Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to Mr Zelensky, had predicted late on Saturday that Lysychansks fate could be determined within days. The capture of Lysychansk would give the Russians more territory from which to intensify attacks on Donetsk in the Donbas, a region of mines and factories where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Ukrainian forces since 2014. If Russia prevails in the Donbas, Ukraine would lose not only land but perhaps the bulk of its most capable military forces, opening the way for Moscow to grab more territory and strengthen its ability to dictate terms to Kyiv. Already, Russian forces have concentrated rocket attacks on the sizable Ukrainian-held city of Slovyansk in Donetsk. New attacks were reported in the city on Sunday. At least six people were killed, regional government spokeswoman Tatyana Ignatchenko told Ukrainian TV. Kramatorsk, another major city in the Donetsk region, also came under fire, the regional administration said. Far from the fighting in the east, Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese, on Sunday, visited a town near the capital that was severely damaged early in the war. Albanese called the destruction in Irpin devastating. These are homes and these are livelihoods and indeed lives that have been lost here in this town, he said. Elsewhere, the exiled mayor of the Russia-occupied city of Melitopol said on Sunday that Ukrainian rockets destroyed one of four Russian military bases in the city. Attacks were also reported inside Russia, in a revival of sporadic apparent Ukrainian strikes across the border. The governor of the Belgorod region in western Russia said fragments of an intercepted Ukrainian missile killed four people on Sunday. In the Russian city of Kursk, two Ukrainian drones were shot down, according to the Russian defence ministry. Kursk regional governor Roman Starovoit said the town of Tetkino, on the Ukraine border, came under mortar fire. This booking photo provided by Pike County, Kentucky, jail shows Lance Storz. Two officers were killed when Storz. opened fire on police attempting to serve a warrant at a home in eastern Kentucky, June 30, authorities said. Several officers were shot at the scene in Floyd County. Police took Storz into custody late Thursday night, according to media reports. AP-Yonhap Three law enforcement officers were killed and five wounded in eastern Kentucky when a man with a rifle opened fire on police attempting to serve a warrant, authorities said. Police took 49-year-old Lance Storz into custody late Thursday night after an hourslong standoff at a home in Allen, a small town in the hills of Appalachia. An emergency management official was also injured and a police dog was killed, according to the arrest citation. The responding officers encountered "pure hell" when they arrived on the scene, Floyd County Sheriff John Hunt told reporters Friday afternoon. "They had no chance," he said. Hunt said four deputies initially responded, then called for backup when they were shot at. The sheriff said Storz surrendered after negotiations that included his family members. Hunt had told local media the deputies were serving a court-issued warrant Thursday evening related to a domestic violence situation. Hunt said one of his deputies, William Petry, and Prestonsburg Police Capt. Ralph Frasure were killed in the shooting. Frasure worked for 39 years in law enforcement in Floyd County. Another Prestonsburg officer, Jacob Chaffins, died after being hospitalized, the police department said in a social media post Friday night. Storz was arraigned Friday morning by a judge in Pike County. He pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder of a police officer and was jailed on a $10 million bond. One of the charges was originally attempted murder of a police officer, but a judge said at the hearing that was upgraded to murder. He is also facing another attempted murder charge and assault on a service animal. Few details were available Friday. State police had said in a brief statement that they were investigating an officer-involved shooting. "This is a tough morning for our commonwealth," Gov. Andy Beshear said in a social media post Friday morning. "Floyd County and our brave first responders suffered a tragic loss last night. I want to ask all of Kentucky to join me in praying for this community." Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron posted on social media that he was heartbroken over news of the officers' deaths. "Our law enforcement exhibited unimaginable heroism and sacrifice last night in the face of evil," he said. (AP) Hyderabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday mooted a Sneha Yatra, a massive public outreach programme to reach out to minorities, especially Muslims and Christians, to win their confidence. In an apparent attempt to remove insecurity among the minorities, the Prime Minister, speaking on the concluding day of the partys National Executive Meeting, directed party leaders from North-Eastern states to showcase to the rest of the country how the BJP government there had not only safeguarded the Christian communitys interests, but also worked for their prosperity. The Prime Minister also asked BJP Chief Ministers to stay put in Kerala and Goa, and interact with Christian groups regularly. Sources told Deccan Chronicle that the Prime Minister wanted the party to take a cue from its recent victories in Rampur and Azamgarh Lok Sabha bypolls. The bypolls were won in Muslim-dominated regions. Modi reportedly highlighted misconceptions about the partys approach towards minorities, mainly due to Opposition propaganda, and is seeking to reach out to all communities to convey that the party was not against any religion. The Prime Minister, according to sources, said all states should emulate the UP Model in which most backward sections among the Muslim community were identified and brought into the partys fold. They extended full support to the party in the recent by-polls, he pointed out. Highlighting that the party had nominated a tribal woman for the Presidential election, Modi asked the party cadre to put up Droupadi Murmus photo in all the panchayat offices, especially in tribal hamlets. He suggested the party celebrate occasions like Mothers Day, Fathers Day, Police Commemoration Day and Army Day with the public. Explaining the spirit of the initiative, a former Union minister said the party would also acknowledge the contributions of officials and staff working in government offices. After all, if staff at a police station, or a primary health centre, or other government offices are delivering good services to citizens, what is wrong in acknowledging such work and letting them know that the party values their contributions to the country? the minister said. Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde along with rebel Shiv Sena MLAs flashes the victory sign as they arrive to attend a special session of Maharashtra Assembly, at Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai, Sunday, July 3, 2022. After the House proceedings begin, Sunday election for the post of Speaker of the House will be held. (PTI) The ongoing political drama in Maharashtra, with its interesting twists and turns, may not have really ended with the swearing-in of Eknath Shinde, the Shiv Sena leader who rebelled against former CM Uddhav Thackeray, as chief minister and former BJP CM Devendra Fadnavis as deputy chief minister. On Thursday, Mr Shinde thanked 50 of his Shiv Sena colleagues, while the number in Guwahati was stated to be 39. The BJP had 106 members, the single largest party, but it is now claimed that it has 120. So, the breakaway Shiv Sena and the BJP together have 170 members in a House of 287. The Shinde-Fadnavis team thus has a clear, winning majority. The vote of confidence, which is due to take place in the Assembly on Monday, is therefore a mere formality. And it can be expected that the BJP will not shake the boat and will guide the unequal coalition to survive till the next election. But the issue of political alliances and shifts in ideological emphasis still remains. It has been argued by some critics of the Shiva Sena chief and former CM Uddhav Thackeray that he broke the coalition dharma of not accepting the electoral verdict of 2019 gracefully and play the role of the junior partner as his party had done in 2014. In the 2014 Assembly polls, the BJP won 122 seats and the Shiv Sena got 63. In 2019, the BJP won 106 seats and the Shiv Sena 56. Both won fewer swats than before, but together they were in a majority. If Mr Thackeray was not happy with the BJP alliance after the 2019 verdict, he should have sat in the Opposition. The BJP and Devendra Fadnavis attempted to form a government with the help of the NCPs Ajit Pawar, but this had turned out to be a fiasco. NCP supremo Sharad Pawar had worked out a coalition with Mr Thackeray, and made it work for two and a half years. Losing 39 of his 56 legislators, including several Cabinet colleagues, was a vote of no-confidence against Mr Thackeray in the legislative party. Then there was the issue of 18 Shiv Sena members in the Lok Sabha and three in the Rajya Sabha. How many of these MPs might be ready to move over to the Shinde camp is uncertain as well. Mr Shinde is not yet the leader of Shiv Sena until he wins control of the organisation. Mr Shinde must be thinking hard on how to win over the party in the state. But it has not happened yet. So while Mr Shinde and the BJP have won the battle, they are yet to win the war. In some ways, the BJP central leaderships decision to let Mr Shinde be the chief minister and asking Mr Fadnavis to be his second in command is seen to be a masterstroke. But it looks like an uncertain gambit. At one level, the party seems to have penalised Mr Fadnavis for his abortive attempt to form a government with the help of Ajit Pawar by demoting him. Second, the BJP either hopes to win a majority on its own in the next Maharashtra Assembly election, due in October 2024, and it would reduce the number of seats for the Shinde group while keeping a formal alliance going. Its also more likely that Mr Shindes group will win fewer seats than the 39 it has now. So, the electoral uncertainties loom larger than ever. The BJP has not been able to win a majority on its own in the state. In 2014 it had 122 seats in the Assembly, falling 22 seats short of a simple majority. In 2019, it had even less, 106, and it was falling short by 36 seats. The BJP leaders may be calculating that if they dont have to share seats with the Sena, their electoral prospects in the state will be brighter. The alliance with the Shinde group could be a short-term one because it is unlikely Mr Shinde could bring in the whole weight of the Sena with him at a time when the Sena has half the numbers compared to the BJP in the Assembly. If Mr Thackeray is seen to have weakened the Sena by moving away from founder Bal Thackerays hard-Hindutva, and yielded the ground to the BJP, the BJP will have little use for Mr Shindes Sena even if he wants to reassert the Hindutva creed of the older Thackeray. The BJP can as well assimilate Bal Thackeray to the party pantheon. Uddhav Thackeray has indeed steered the Sena away from its past as he seems to have realised that the partys future lies in moderating its extreme stances that made it famous under his father. The Sena has also not been able to assert its hold in all parts of the culturally diverse state. That is why the BJP possibly has as much influence across Maharashtra, and maybe even more, than the Sena. But on its own it seems unable to command a majority. They needed each other. Uddhav Thackerays bid to work out a deal with the Congress and NCP was not as bizarre as it might seem because the three parties, as of now, are of roughly equal strength. In the Sena-BJP coalition, the Sena is reduced to a junior partner. So Mr Shindes deal with the BJP might prove to be counter-productive for the Sena. The inevitable question of the dominance of the Thackeray family in the Sena is of vital importance. The Thackerays hold over the Sena can be a liability like that of the Nehru-Gandhis in the Congress at the national level. The same problem haunts the NCP under Sharad Pawar. The Congress in Maharashtra has an independent structure, and a leader will emerge from among the rivals. The BJP of course does not have an independent democratic structure to allow leaders to emerge, either at the state or at the national level. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP has become a near-monolith at the national level, and it will remain so for some time to come. The merger of the BJP and Shiv Sena should be a logical development for, if both parties believe in Hindutva, theres no real need for the two to exist separately. Similarly, the merger of the Congress and NCP would be a logical outcome as well. Maharashtra will then have a two-party system, with the BJP and Congress as the main rivals. A soldier and a civilian were killed and four people wounded in two attacks by militants of the Islamic State (IS) terror group in northern and central Iraq, security sources said. In the northern province of Nineveh, a soldier was killed and two others wounded when a roadside bomb, believed to be planted by IS militants, exploded near an Iranian security unit outside a village near the town of Tal Afar, nearly 70-km west of the provincial capital Mosul, an army officer told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. The source said the attack took place on Saturday when the troops were hunting down IS militants in the area, Xinhua news agency reported. In a separate incident, a civilian was killed and two others wounded when a roadside bomb, reportedly planted by IS militants, exploded in a village in the Tarmiyah area, nearly 30 km north of the capital Baghdad, Ihsan al-Rubaie from the Baghdad police told Xinhua. Iraqi security forces have been fighting IS militants over the past months to crack down on their intensified activities. The security situation in Iraq has been improving since the defeat of the IS in 2017. However, its remnants have since spread into urban centres, deserts, and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against the security forces and civilians. DH Evening Brief: Even Kasab didn't have security like rebels, says Aaditya; Next 30-40 years to be BJP's, says Amit Shah Expressing concern over the current state of the judiciary, Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate Kapil Sibal on Sunday said some members of the institution have "let us down" and "I hang my head in shame" for what has happened in the recent past. In an interview with PTI, Sibal also said that in recent years, free speech, and how it has been interpreted by the Supreme Court, unfortunately, is not allowed the space that is constitutionally permissible to it. Attacking the BJP-led government at the Centre, he said there is a "de facto emergency" in place with "throttling" of institutions. The rule of law is "infringed'' on a daily basis, he alleged. Also Read | Her loose tongue set entire nation on fire: Supreme Court slams Nupur Sharma over Prophet Mohammed remarks Sibal also said the present dispensation wants an 'Opposition-mukt Bharat', not just a 'Congress-mukt Bharat'. Asked about the arrest of Alt News co-founder Mohammad Zubair, Sibal said that the more worrying larger issue was that some members of the judiciary have "let us down". "Some members of the institution (judiciary) of which I have been a part for 50 years, have let us down. I hang my head in shame that this has happened. When the judiciary turns a blind eye to ex facie violations of the rule of law one wonders why an institution designed to protect the rule of law allows the rule of law to be infringed with open eyes, Sibal told PTI over the phone from the UK. Talking about the arrest of Zubair and the denial of bail to him by a Delhi court, he said that for a tweet four years ago without any communal outcome, it is "unthinkable" for that person to have been arrested. "More than that, now having realised that the arrest cannot possibly be sustained, the investigating agency is looking for other matters which have nothing to do with the original arrest. Clearly what we are witnessing is a mala fide arrest and a subsequent fishing inquiry," Sibal said. What the investigating agencies now do is to arrest a person, then start investigating as to what he might have violated. For that they seek access to other records and then come back to court to allege commission of other offences in an attempt to deny bail to the accused, he charged. Asked about the criticism from certain quarters of the Supreme Court ruling in the Zakia Jafri case in which the top court upheld the SIT's clean chit to the then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi and 63 others in the 2002 communal riots, Sibal said since he was a lawyer for Jafri it was not proper for him to comment at this stage. "But I can say this to you that we have seen in the recent past, judges rendering findings on matters that were not argued before them, judges rendering findings in matters which are not appealed against and some judges disregarding patent illegalities and upholding executive actions that are indefensible," Sibal said. "I don't want to make a comment on any particular case but as I said having been a part of this institution, for what has happened in the recent past, I hang my head in shame," he said. On the UN Human Rights office expressing concern over the arrest of Zubair and activist-lawyer Teesta Setalvad, Sibal said "undoubtedly" India's image was being affected internationally but asserted that people must rely on courts in India to protect human rights. "Our people in the profession, people who are part of the institution, including judges who are wedded to the rule of law, it is time for all of us to speak frankly, openly and without fear about the state of affairs prevailing today," he said. Referring to Nupur Sharma's controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad, Sibal said this is the result of the culture of intolerance and hatred that has crept into our national discourse. "All this is happening, why, because hate has become an instrument for electoral gain. If hate becomes part of a political strategy to divide society to win elections then you will have many such instances including the one that just happened in Udaipur where a tailor was beheaded. These unacceptable inhuman and ghastly acts are the result of an agenda which targets communities; an agenda which divides rather than unites," he said. On the BJP's recent critical comments on the Emergency imposed in 1975 by the then Indira Gandhi government, Sibal said Emergency was declared by virtue of powers that were provided for in the Constitution. "That particular act of declaration of emergency was unfortunately held to be valid by the Supreme Court. This only shows that courts are not infallible. We would like to forget that 'black day' when that judgement was rendered," said the former Union minister, who recently quit the Congress. Sibal said today the situation is much worse because, without the authority of law, there is a "de facto emergency". "What we are witnessing is the de facto throttling of all institutions which are designed under the Constitution to protect it. With the executive capturing almost all such institutions what prevails is a de facto emergency wherein the rule of law is infringed on a daily basis," he said. Sibal, who is set to start a fresh term after being elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh as an Independent with the support of the Samajwadi Party, asserted that the opposition has no choice but to stand united. "You are seeing that playing out ever since a duly elected government was toppled in Uttarakhand. Thereafter, we saw it toppled in Arunachal Pradesh, absent majority was installed in Goa and Manipur, again governments toppled in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, and now Maharashtra," he said. Elected governments are being toppled by subverting electoral verdicts and by the misuse of the Tenth Schedule by means that are obviously foul, he said. This means that this present government doesn't just want a "Congress-mukt Bharat but an Opposition-mukt Bharat", Sibal asserted. India on Sunday gifted 75 ambulances and 17 school buses to Nepal as part of its ongoing efforts to build on the robust and longstanding partnership between the two countries and help the Himalayan nation bolster its infrastructure in healthcare and education sectors. Indias newly-appointed Ambassador Naveen Srivastava handed over the keys of the vehicles in the presence of Devendra Paudel, Nepals Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. The gifting of 75 ambulances also marks 75 years of India's Independence, the Indian Embassy here said. The gifting of ambulances and school buses is part of the very robust and strong development partnership between the two countries, Srivastava said. This initiative has been one of the long-standing traditions of the Indian government under the Nepal-India Development Partnership Programme to bolster efforts of the Nepal government to strengthen its infrastructure in health and education, he added. Also Read: Nepal imposes ban on sale of street food items in Kathmandu as Cholera cases rise to 12 Paudel appreciated India's various ongoing developmental projects in Nepal and said these initiatives will continue to strengthen people-to-people linkages and improve relations between the two countries. The 75 ambulances and 17 school buses will be handed over to various governmental departments and NGOs working in healthcare and education sectors in various districts in Nepal, the Indian mission said. In 2021, India had gifted 39 ambulances equipped with ventilators to Nepal as part of its efforts to help Kathmandu in its fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. Similarly, in 2020, India had gifted 41 ambulances and six school buses to Nepal on the occasion of the 151st birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Nepal is important for India in the context of its overall strategic interests in the region, and the leaders of the two countries have often noted the age-old Roti Beti relationship. The land-locked country relies heavily on India for the transportation of goods and services. Nepals access to the sea is through India, and it imports a predominant proportion of its requirements from and through India. The India-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1950 forms the bedrock of the special relations between the two countries. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi may meet in Indonesia this week to explore ways to end the stalemate over negotiations to end the stand-off between the Indian Army and the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) in eastern Ladakh. Jaishankar and Wang will attend the meeting of the G20 Foreign Ministers in Bali on July 7 and 8. The meeting is being hosted by Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi. It will set the stage for the G20 summit, which President Joko Widodo will host later this year. India and China are in touch to explore the possibility of scheduling a bilateral meeting between Jaishankar and Wang on the sideline of the G20 meet in Bali. If the meeting is scheduled, the External Affairs Minister is expected to convey to the Chinese Foreign Minister that the situation along the disputed boundary between India and China would continue to be reflected in the relations between the two nations and the stand-off must be fully resolved at the earliest, a source told DH. Read | Jaishankar to attend G20 meet ahead of summit Wang recently had a meeting with Indias new ambassador to China, Pradeep Rawat, in Beijing and stressed that the common interests between the two neighbouring nations far outweigh the differences. India and China should put the boundary dispute in a proper position in bilateral relations and seek solutions through dialogue and consultation he told Rawat, reiterating the position of President Xi Jinpings government that the two neighbouring nations should bring back ties on track without waiting for resolution of the stand-off along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh. Wangs proposal was rejected by Rawat, who emphasised the criticality of maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the border areas for realizing the full potential of India-China relations and its positive implications for the world, particularly Asia. Jaishankar himself had rejected Wangs proposal when the Chinese Foreign Minister visited New Delhi on March 25. The stand-off started in April-May 2020 with the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) amassing a large number of troops along the LAC between the two nations prompting counter-deployment by the Indian Army to resist aggressive moves by the neighbouring countrys soldiers across the disputed boundary. It reached a flashpoint on June 15, 2020, when the Indian Army lost 20 of its soldiers in a violent face-off with the Chinese PLA in Galwan Valley. The PLA much later admitted that it had also lost four of its soldiers in the clash. The negotiations between the two sides had resulted in mutual withdrawal of troops by both sides from some of the face-off points along the LAC from the Galwan Valley in June 2020, from both banks of Pangong Tso in February 2021 and from Gogra Post in August 2021. The 15th round of negotiations between the military commanders of the two nations on March 11, however, failed to yield the much-expected deal for mutual withdrawal of troops from Hot Springs or Patrol Point 15 in eastern Ladakh. The diplomats of the two nations had a video conference on May 31 last, but could not make much headway, except agreeing to hold the 16th round of negotiations between the military commanders at an early date. The impasse, however, still continues and the Indian Army and the Chinese PLA commanders are yet to hold the 16th round of negotiations. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, ideologically similar Bharatiya Janata Party and Shiv Sena were growing in Maharashtra, the rebel faction said urging party chief Uddhav Thackeray to renew ties with its old ally. Deepak Kesarkar, one of the rebel MLAs, wrote this in an open letter to Thackeray, in which he also blamed Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut for the saffron partys current crisis. The statement, also a collective plea from the Eknath Shinde camp that is currently holed up in Guwahati, is an indication of what is in store in the coming days. The breakaway faction wanted Thackeray to cut off all ties with the Nationalist Congress Party and the Indian National Congress. PM Modi and the BJPs central and state leadership has tremendous respect for Hindu Hrudaya Samrat Shiv Sena Pramukh Balasaheb Thackeray, Kesarkar said in a four-page note addressed to Thackeray. Also read | Maharashtra crisis: Sena rebels rejoice, hectic politicking in BJP The rebel camp accused Raut of distancing Thackeray from them. According to Kesarkar, Balasaheb Thackerays basic mantra of Hindutva was most important for them. Even if we die, we would like to die fighting to safeguard Hindutva, he said in the statement that he also posted on Twitter. Kesarkar said the MLAs moved themselves to Guwahati to strengthen Shiv Senas true voice. This is why we are telling that this is not a rebellion but a fight for Shiv Senas self-respect, he said, pointing out that the Shiv Sainiks spent their lives fighting NCP and Congress. He also referred to the Lok Sabha elections of 2014 and 2019and all that happened in between, before and afterbetween the decades-old saffron allies. Kesarkar said that Raut, even while Shiv Sena was in the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, as a Rajya Sabha member used to criticise BJP leadership. The leadership took no cognizance, and the criticism using indecent words continued every day. The kind of cheap and harsh language uttered by Raut every day was not even used by the Congress, the NCP or (any) other Opposition parties in the country, he said. Kesarkar alleged that the NCP-Congress was shaking the foundation of Shiv Sena by demolishing the work of ages. All in all, we were in the government, and we were only the opposition, he said. Also read: Sanjay Raut dubs ED summons as 'conspiracy', says won't be able to appear before agency on June 28 He noted that Balasaheb had not only taken a decisive stand, but also invited Kashmiri Pandits to Maharashtra. When Article 370 was abolished, our leaders were not able to speak openly, he said. Should we leave our self-esteem to go to please Sharad Pawar and Sonia Gandhi? All the important portfolios to be given away to NCP and Congress, (but) keeping (only) the CMs post, he said. According to Kesarkar, Raut, who hadnt been elected by the people, was all out to finish the party. Sanjay Raut is NCP's blue-eyed boy. You may succeed in distancing Shiv Sena from the BJP. But if you are trying to distance Shiv Sena from Hindutva, how do you expect it to be tolerated? NCP fires from Rauts shoulder. And who does the bullet hit? Not enemies of the party but loyalists like us, Kesarkar said, pointing out that the Shiv Sena was being run on Rauts advice. Ukrainian firefighters work to extinguish a fire at damaged residential building in Lysychansk, Luhansk region, Ukraine, early Sunday in this photo provided by the Luhansk region military administration. AP-Yonhap Russia said on Sunday its forces and their allies had taken control of Ukraine's eastern Luhansk region, after capturing the final Ukrainian holdout of Lysychansk, although Ukraine has yet to comment after reporting heavy fighting there. After fierce Ukrainian resistance prevented Russian seizing the capital Kyiv after its Feb. 24 invasion, Moscow turned its focus to taking full control of Luhansk and Donetsk provinces in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region. Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting in the area since Russia's first military intervention in Ukraine in 2014. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu informed President Vladimir Putin that Luhansk had been "liberated", the defence ministry said, after Russia earlier said its forces had captured villages around Lysychansk and encircled the city. The minister said Russian forces and their allies in the area had "gained full control over the city of Lysychansk." Ukraine's military did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Ukrainian officials, who say references to "liberating" Ukrainian territory are Russian war propaganda, had reported intense artillery barrages on residential areas. "Ukrainian forces likely conducted a deliberate withdrawal from Lysychansk, resulting in the Russian seizure of the city on July 2," analysts at the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, wrote in a briefing note. They based their assessment on footage showing Russia forces walking casually in northern and eastern neighborhoods of Lysychansk, saying it suggested few or no Ukrainian forces remained. It said the footage included images posted on social media and geolocated to confirm where it was filmed. "The Russians are strengthening their positions in the Lysychansk area, the city is on fire," Luhansk Governor Serhiy Gaidai had written on the Telegram app before Russia announced its advance. "They attacked the city with inexplicably brutal tactics." A group of activists of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi Vibhagam (TRSV), who planned to hold a protest at Parade Ground in the city where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to address a public meeting, were taken into preventive custody on Sunday, police said. Activists of TRSV, the student wing of the TRS, holding placards and raising slogans like "Go Back Modi" staged a protest against the BJP at the Arts College on the campus of Osmania University and took out a procession. As the protesters tried to go towards the Parade Ground to hold a protest, police intervened and foiled their attempts and 20 of them were taken into preventive custody, a police official said. Also Read | People of Telangana need 'double engine growth': PM Narendra Modi The activists also carried placards demanding the release and withdrawal of cases against those arrested during the protests against the 'Agnipath' recruitment system for the armed forces and also over the Centre's decision for shelving the Information Technology and Investment Region (ITIR) project in Hyderabad. Modi is in the city, attending the BJP's two-day National Executive Committee meeting that began on Saturday and will be addressing a public meeting titled as 'Vijay Sankalpa Sabha' at Parade Ground in Secunderabad on Sunday evening. The Hyderabad Police is also making massive arrangements for the public meeting, which is likely to witness the attendance of lakhs of people. Police earlier said there will be elaborate measures in place to deal with any spontaneous protests. About 3,000 police personnel from Hyderabad city and other districts, besides TSSP (Telangana state special police) would be on duty. The elite police personnel of Telangana, the Greyhounds and Octopus, would also be deployed. Deployment of snipers, anti-sabotage checks, roof-top watch, mufti parties, route map, trial runs and multi-layer security arrangements were being made in the city limits, police had said. In two separate man-animal conflicts involving a tiger and an elephant in old Mysuru region, an elderly man was killed while two farmers suffered grievous injuries on Saturday. A farmer sustained serious injuries in head and face caused by the tiger claws at a farm at Lakkipur on the fringes of Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Gundlupet taluk of Chamarajanagar taluk. A stray tiger attacked Gaviyappa when he tried to rescue a cow from its clutches. After he raised an alarm, farmers working in nearby fields rushed to the spot and managed to chase away the tiger. The big cat, however, ran into a banana plantation nearby. During an operation by Forest personnel to catch the tiger, a few onlookers provoked the feline by throwing stones. It attacked Rajashekar, also a farmer, with its claws and injured him. Rajashekar has sustained serious wounds in his knees. In another incident, a stray elephant trampled a 67-year-old man to death at Kelagalale village in Sakleshpur taluk, Hassan district, on Saturday. Krishnegowda is the deceased. The elephant attacked him, when he was heading towards his estate along with his son Sudeesh and grandson Pratham. Sudeesh and Pratham, however, survived the attack. Villagers protest The angered villagers staged a flash protest, by blocking Bengaluru-Mangaluru National Highway for 30 minutes. The villagers demanded the state government and the Forest department to take necessary measures to check the man-animal conflict. Joint Visit of Minister Byrne and Minister Tuppurainen to Western Balkans Press release The Minister of State for European Affairs, Thomas Byrne T.D., today begins a three-day joint visit to Kosovo, North Macedonia and Albania, together with his Finnish counterpart, Minister for European Affairs and Ownership Steering, Ms. Tytti Tuppurainen. The Ministers will meet with senior politicians in each country to discuss the European security situation, European integration of the Western Balkans countries, as well as economic and bilateral cooperation. In Kosovo, the visiting Ministers are scheduled to meet with Prime Minister, Mr. Albin Kurti and with Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Besmik Bislimi. In North Macedonia, the Ministers are scheduled to meet the President of the Republic of North Macedonia, H.E. Mr. Stevo Pendarovski, Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs, Mr. Bojan Marichikj and Foreign Minister, H.E. Mr. Bujar Osmani. In Albania, Ministers Byrne and Tuppurainen are scheduled to meet with Ms. Olta Xhacka, Minister for Europe & Foreign Affairs and Mr. Ulsi Manja, Minister of Justice. Speaking ahead of the joint visit, Minister Byrne said: I am delighted to be undertaking this important joint visit to the Western Balkans with my Finnish counterpart, Tytti Tuppurainen. The Western Balkans represents a key priority, both for Ireland and the EU, given its strategic significance which has only been heightened by Russias war of aggression against Ukraine. Ireland has always been a strong supporter of Enlargement and, in particular, of the European perspective and membership ambitions of the six Western Balkans countries. As Minister for European Affairs, I have been clear that more must be done to hasten the acceleration of the Western Balkans into the European Union. Our strong support for this will be one of the key messages I will bring when visiting Kosovo, North Macedonia and Albania. I will also be encouraging the political leaders I meet in all three countries to keep up their impressive reform efforts and strong alignment with EU values and positions. Such efforts are all the more commendable and deserving of praise, given the major pressures on energy and food prices occasioned by Russias unjust actions against Ukraine, which are being experienced across the Continent. ENDS Press Office 3 July 2022 | Next Item Where to Watch / Stream Street Outlaws: End Game Online Street Outlaws: End Game is not available on any OTT Platform right now. Advertisements About Street Outlaws: End Game Street Outlaws: End Game was released on Jul 04, 2022 . This show is available in English language. Kye Kelley, Larry Roach, Ryan Martin, Jonathan Day and Shawn Ellington are playing as the star cast in this show. Street Outlaws: End Game is available in Reality based genre. Street Outlaws: End Game Season and Episode Details Season 1 Release Date : Jul 03, 2022 Episode 1 The Endgame Begins Ryan, Murder Nova, JJ, Kye and Axman have been wanting to get back to their roots by building and racing old school cars. Episode 2 The Ryan Martin Project Ryan Martin is on the search for the perfect car for Endgame and eventually settles on a 1970 Chevelle, his dream car. Image Gallery Disclaimer: All content and media has been sourced from original content streaming platforms, such as Disney Hotstar, Amazon Prime, Netflix, etc. Digit Binge is an aggregator of content and does not claim any rights on the content. The copyrights of all the content belongs to their respective original owners and streaming service providers. All content has been linked to respective service provider platforms.This product uses the TMDb API but is not endorsed or certified by Advertisements The Grow Remote Dundalk chapter is hosting an in-person jobs fair, introducing local workers to the numerous Remote Employers that are currently recruiting in Ireland. Grow Remote is a non-profit community development organisation whose mission is to promote remote employment as a tool to bring about positive social change in hyperlocal communities across Ireland, including greater economic spend, a reduced carbon footprint, and increased social connection. Grow Remote does this through a nationwide network of local chapters. Volunteers in villages, towns and cities across the island raise awareness of the benefits of remote employment, delivering training, assisting job seekers to find remote jobs, and running offline events. On Saturday 16th July, the Grow Remote Dundalk chapter is inviting job seekers, or those interested in finding out more about remote work job opportunities, to join them from 10am 2pm at Creative Spark Downtown, Clanbrassil Street. The Jobs fair will combine various supports offered by Grow Remote, says Grow Remote Employers Lead, Joanne Mangan: We seek to make the local community aware of current jobs available here in Dundalk, running a number of bite-sized workshops and presentations covering everything from where to look for jobs, CV clinics to how to set yourself up as remote-ready. At Grow Remote, social connection is very important so there will be a bite to eat, a welcoming atmosphere, and some time to connect with our Dundalk chapter members and job seekers. Ciara Breen, Grow Remote Chapter Lead said: When the news broke at the end of May about the number of jobs at risk for local workers in Paypal, I immediately contacted friends to send them links to Grow Remote resources. It was an emotional time for people so I got in contact with the Grow Remote team and suggested we hold an in-person event on remote working for the local workers affected - but also to make people aware of their remote options at this time. I think it will be a very beneficial and fun event for people to pop into. The event will be attended by the Grow Remote Employers and Community teams, Register at Eventbrite (bit.ly/3OWAb0A) and receive the full running order for the day. Feel free to pop in to Downtown on Saturday the 16th July from 10am 2pm. All Welcome. If you are a remote employee and want to get involved, reach out to your local Grow Remote chapter through ciara@creativespark.ie. CORK Penny Dinners volunteers, delivering humanitarian aid to the Ukrainian border in Poland, had another busy day on Thursday, with temperatures again reaching the mid-thirties. The city of Tarnow, in south-eastern Poland, is home to 107,000 people and it dates back to at least the mid-ninth century. Tarnow has Polands highest long-term mean annual temperature, a statistic validated in this weeks sweltering heat. For all of that, though, it was cool enough in Tarnow Station on Thursday morning, with barely a few commuters to be seen in its beautifully tiled halls. Three months ago, when Penny Dinners made its first humanitarian mission to the Ukrainian border, Tarnow Station was thronged with refugees fleeing the Russian invasion. Tarnow is a major station on the Lviv to Krakow rail line, and, in March, thousands of refugees passed through the station every day. On Thursday morning, Tarnow Station had a ghostly atmosphere. Pastor Jan Skarbek, a friend of Penny Dinners, said patterns of migration have shifted, with few refugees stopping now at Tarnow on their way to Krakow and other, bigger cities. The numbers of people fleeing Ukraine have slowed too, although the border crossing at Medyka is still busy. REFUGEES According to the UN, some 12 million people have fled their homes, a quarter of Ukraines population. More than five million have gone to other countries, while seven million are displaced inside Ukraine. Poland is the main country of arrival for refugees, with more than 3.5 million entering the country since the invasion on February 24. While official numbers support anecdotal reports that fewer refugees are coming through now in comparison to March, when over 100,000 people were arriving every day, recent figures show over 20,000 daily arrivals in Poland. Whether renewed Russian shelling of Kyiv and other population centres will affect refugee numbers remains to be seen, but it seems likely. Penny Dinners volunteers travelled in rented vans from Tarnow to the Catholic charity Caritass warehouse in Lezajsk, unloading tonnes of humanitarian aid from a lorry and into vans in 34C heat. In the coming days they will distribute that aid to refugee centres along the Ukrainian border. Penny Dinners travel to Poland was arranged by Blackpool Travel, which waived all fees, and made a 200 donation. Isle of Man Aviation Conference celebrates 10th anniversary The 10th Isle of Man Aviation Conference has been held at the Villa Marina. With over 130 industry professionals attending from business aviation sectors in the Isle of Man, UK, Europe and USA, the event was an exciting opportunity to network in-person again for the first time since 2019. Delegates were treated to a packed programme of expert speakers and panel sessions, touching on everything from sustainability and transformative technology, aircraft values and supply, the charter market, European equation and whats new in terms of governance. Germanys Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt traffic regulator is calling on Tesla to recall more than 59,000 vehicles over a software issue. On June 29th, the KBA published a notice on its website notifying Model Y and 3 owners of a bug with the eCall safety system on those cars, according to Reuters . The glitch prevents the tool from automatically calling first responders in the event of a serious accident. The KBA said the problem affects 59,129 vehicles globally, including Model Y crossovers manufactured at the automakers recently opened Berlin Gigafactory . German media first reported on the notice on Saturday. The top courts in Texas and Ohio allowed the states to enforce restrictions and bans on abortions after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the nationwide constitutional right to abortion last week. Ukrainian soldiers returning from the frontlines in Ukraine's Donbas region - where Russia is waging a fierce offensive - have described the conditions there as 'hell on Earth.' This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The day after the May 24 school shooting in Uvalde, Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller met with Joe Garcia whose wife, Irma Garcia, was one of the two fourth-grade teachers killed in the massacre and their four children. On a drive back to Uvalde the next day, Garcia-Siller learned Joe Garcia had died of an apparent heart attack. On ExpressNews.com: How the Uvalde school massacre unfolded He asked to see their children, eventually gathering them to talk about their loss. Just before leaving to hold a memorial Mass for victims of the massacre, he asked one of the children to close the door of the room where they were talking. He needed to be honest with them about something about someone else who wanted his guidance. The mother of the one who killed your mother has asked for help, he confided to the children. I will help all. I do not know what we will talk about, or what will happen, but I need your help. I need your prayer. The children nodded. On ExpressNews.com: Remembering the live lost at Robb Elementary Garcia-Siller, 65, has been enveloped by grief since the massacre, when an 18-year-old gunman slaughtered the two teachers and 19 children at Robb Elementary School. The archbishop has spent many hours comforting survivors and families of the dead. The Archdiocese of San Antonio includes Uvalde. When another tragedy unfolded last week the deaths of 53 immigrants from Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and elsewhere in a human smuggling incident that ended on the Southwest Side he again consoled stunned survivors and grieving families. Switching between Spanish and English, Garcia-Siller said during an interview in his archdiocese office that prayer and periods of silence give him strength when dealing with shock and sorrow. Yet the experience of the two mass casualty episodes just six weeks apart has left him raw and angry, as well as mournful. And he has strong words for Texas political leaders. Personal gain Since what happened in Uvalde, there has not been one word from my leader in my state of compassion, of care, of pain, said Garcia-Siller, who was named archbishop of San Antonio in 2010. Gov. Greg Abbott is using the situations, including the deaths of these people, for personal gain. Last Monday night, less than three hours after San Antonio first responders discovered an abandoned tractor-trailer packed with the bodies of immigrants whod died from extreme heat, Abbott placed the blame squarely on President Joe Biden. These deaths are on Biden, Abbott said in a post from his personal Twitter account. They are a result of his deadly open border policies. They show the deadly consequences of his refusal to enforce the law. The Republican governor on Wednesday vowed to step up truck inspections along the border in the wake of the tragedy. The checkpoints will be mobile, he said, and will be overseen by troopers from the Texas Department of Public Safety. Garcia-Siller visited the 11 immigrants who survived the overwhelming heat of the tractor-trailer, which was abandoned by the driver identified as Homero Zamorano Jr., 45, of Palestine in East Texas on a narrow, nearly deserted section of Quintana near Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland. The survivors were being treated at several area hospitals. A new slavery Garcia-Siller lamented knowing only one name of the survivors he visited. He said comforting individuals whose names he didnt know, some of them clinging to life, was a powerful reminder of what he deems the abandonment many immigrants endure in the United States. Its a new slavery, he said. Human trafficking is connected with this. Organized crime starts in their country of origin, continues on the way and we have it in the U.S. Garcia-Siller believes apathy has gripped American society and its leaders, now numb to tragedies as they wait for the next one. In his view, the country is on a disastrous path. We have made money an idol in the U.S., along with other things, like firearms, Garcia-Siller said. People in leadership and nonleadership, they get away with murder. Theyre signs, from many places, of a culture of death. A lack of integral immigration reform is a long-festering symptom of that culture, he said. Here, with the resources we have, with the system we have, with a beautiful Constitution that inspires and calls to action, we cannot do anything to treat people like human beings? said Garcia-Siller, a native of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Its not acceptable. Humane immigration reform, he said, would value individuals and not view immigrants trekking to the U.S. as statistics or threats. Most undocumented immigrants are forced into the shadows, living in fear of being discovered, which makes them suspicious of most people, even those who might offer help. The archbishop said he was allowed to visit the survivors because hed pledged not to ask them about their experience in the trailer or attempt to extract information that was investigators job. I am the face of many people that would like to be here with you, Garcia-Siller recalled telling the survivors. I want to be the best I can for you. He encouraged Serenidad, a 16-year-old girl who was the only survivor with whom he was able to verbally communicate, to call home when she could to give peace and hope to her loved ones. The archbishop asked her to trust those who want to help her: medical staff, police officers and others dedicated to her well-being. Immigrants in the U.S. lose their sense of self for the sake of a better life for themselves and, most often, their families, Garcia-Siller said. Any attempt to reform immigration must account for the faces behind the statistics, and it must humanize all immigrants regardless of where they come from, he said. Haz el bien sin mirar a quien, Garcia-Siller said, quoting an adage that translates as: Do good without regard to whom. The archbishop questioned why immigrants from the south face many Americans fear and hatred, unlike immigrants and refugees from elsewhere. He recalled speaking to Ukrainian immigrants during a World Refugee Day event who said their experience entering the U.S. through Mexico was largely positive. He wondered: Why are there differences? Why is there a feeling and discourse in the U.S. that the south is bad they do us harm, they are invaders? He drew a direct line between the 53 dead and the dehumanization of immigrants. Those people were abandoned to die in that box, Garcia-Siller said, his unfocused stare seemingly picturing the conditions inside the tractor-trailer. Its hard for me even to say it, but (it is) like when we are cooking food and barbecue Burned, the archbishop uttered, his voice breaking. They couldnt breathe, and Im sure that reactions of survival (became) kind of inhuman in that box. It is because we dont care, he said, sighing deeply. Suffer together Garcia-Siller and other clergy leaders have been lobbying federal and state governments to reform immigration policies for decades. Theyve made little progress, but he believes the efforts havent been in vain. Nothing has been done about the law to make a radical change, but we with many people we have done good. Little good, but we have done good, Garcia-Siller said. Thursday night, Garcia-Siller held a memorial Mass for those found dead and dying in the tractor-trailer and for their loved ones as well as for any individual, regardless of faith, with a heart for the immigrant. Solidarity is different when you suffer alone than when you suffer together, Garcia-Siller said. Were going to suffer together and embrace as much and as close as we can those who have died, those who survived and their families. Ricardo.Delgado@express-news.net This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 1 of 2 Kershaw County Detention Center Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Gonzales County Sheriff's Office, Courtesy Show More Show Less Two men have been sentenced to about two decades in federal prison for their involvement with the terrorist organization ISIS, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release. Kristopher Sean Matthews, 36, of South Carolina, and Jaylyn Christopher Molina, 24, of Cost, in Gonzales County, both pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham/Syria, better known as ISIS. Molina also pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography. Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Home Regional News East National Weather Service Some much needed rain fell in western portions of South-Central Texas on Sunday Uvalde County getting up to three inches in some areas, the National Weather Service said Sunday night. That moisture will be a distant memory come later this week because the heat is returning. The many blessings of being an American are often wasted on Americans. This Fourth of July, our countrys critics liberals and conservatives alike need to give it a rest. After all, there are desperate people around the world who are quite literally dying to get here. In Texas, amid the scent of bluebonnets and the aroma of smoked brisket, there is, once again, the unmistakable stench of death. As long as the new national symbol is the Help Wanted sign, there will always be unscrupulous human smugglers who try to turn a profit by supplying workers to do jobs that Americans arent doing. Last week, in San Antonio, about 150 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, authorities discovered an abandoned tractor-trailer packed with dozens of migrants who had died of heat exhaustion. Another 16 people were alive but suffering from heat stroke to the point where their bodies were according to San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood hot to the touch. The survivors were taken to local hospitals, where some of them died. So far, at least 53 people have died in this tragedy. According to media reports, the deceased included migrants from Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. Neither Republicans nor Democrats had the guts to tell Americans the truth that more people will come, and more will die, until we humble ourselves and do something that we consider beneath us: our own chores. Instead, politicians in both parties ghoulishly tried to use what were no doubt the agonizing deaths of desperate people to attack either their current opponent or someone who might, someday, be their opponent. These deaths are on (President Joe) Biden, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a likely 2024 GOP presidential candidate, tweeted within hours of the bodies being discovered. They are the result of his deadly open border policies. They show the deadly consequences of his refusal to enforce the law. In a statement the next day, Biden seemed to fire back at Abbott by condemning those who engage in political grandstanding around tragedy something that he called shameful. Vice President Kamala Harris who just might run against Abbott if Biden doesnt seek re-election got in a shot of her own during an interview on National Public Radio. Mentioning the tragedy in Texas, Harris said that how the governor of that state responded really highlights part of the problem, because his response when there are 50 dead bodies in his state is to go straight to politics instead of dealing with the realities of the issue. Lets deal with this reality: Both parties are responsible for these ghoulish moments. Theyve made a mess of the border, crippled the immigration system and poisoned the national debate. Proposing simple answers to a complicated issue, they mislead constituents by saying one thing to get elected and doing another once in office. Afraid to deal with the fallout, Democrats dont really want to legalize the undocumented any more than Republicans want to deport them. And, as with other issues on which theyve abdicated their duty, the consequences of failure can be deadly. And this reality: Between Abbott, Biden and Harris, not one of them has told the truth about immigration. In April, Abbott made a big spectacle of ordering state police to inspect every commercial vehicle entering Texas through a port of entry; he abandoned the program after about 10 days because stalling trade with Mexico cost Texas businesses millions of dollars. While running for president, Biden courted Latinos by promising to end the thuggish policies of former President Donald Trump but kept many of them in place and expanded others because he didnt want to be weak on the border. And Harris was supposed to be the White Houses point person on immigration, but she hasnt shown up for work since her ill-fated trip to Guatemala and Mexico in June 2021 when the daughter of immigrants coldly told would-be refugees to the United States: Do not come. And, finally, this reality: Whether theyre storming the U.S. Capitol on the right or threatening Supreme Court justices over abortion on the left, many Americans seem to be forgetting how good they have it. They should be ashamed. Because, in Texas, authorities will soon be sending back to their home countries the bodies of 53 people who risked their lives for the chance to take our place and have our problems and lost. So this Independence Day, Americans can enjoy a cold beer or a glass of lemonade. But for heavens sake, they should skip the whine. After the building that is Robb Elementary School in Uvalde is removed, that location should be developed into a memorial park. Frank Sawyer, Seguin Grateful to H-E-B I am not a cheerleader in general, but I will make sure to continue to shop at H-E-B. H-E-B, and the Butt family, donated $10 million to the school district in Uvalde to help in its goal of building a new school to replace Robb Elementary, which will be leveled. I cant help but continue to think about what those innocent children went through and the horrific scene that first responders had to deal with and painstakingly deconstruct. There is no repairing that building; evil has left its mark, and it should be bulldozed. I am grateful to the Butt family for their generosity throughout the state. This is the type of corporation that sets the example of how a corporation should act. Randy Whitworth Migrant deaths No facts, just tweets Re: Biden has kept some policies of Trump, Front Page, Wednesday: Gov. Greg Abbott and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy immediately blamed the deaths of 53 immigrants found in a tractor-trailer on President Joe Bidens so-called open borders policy. This doesnt even begin to make sense, because if the border were easy to cross, why would immigrants risk their lives in this way? An expert on border crossings states in another article that truck-crossing attempts increase when immigration laws are stricter. But facts dont matter when theres an opportunity for an inflammatory tweet. Susan Hull, Bandera So, Abbotts plan failed? Here we go again. Gov. Greg Abbott sure knows how to play the blame game. Isnt Abbott the one who has amassed Texas National Guard troops to protect our border? Why then is he blaming President Joe Biden? When is he ever going to accept responsibility for his actions? Its time to vote him out because were sick and tired of his blame game. Ezekiel Enriquez Sr., San Marcos Legal pathways needed Why must immigrants hoping for work suffocate in a hot truck when so many U.S. businesses need workers? We must stop treating immigrants as a threat to our country. They are precious human beings and a valuable resource. U.S. laws must be changed to get immigrants legally and safely to the employers who need them. Joseph B. De Mott Roe v. Wade High court not infallible Our U.S. Supreme Court may be supreme, but it is not immune from error. The recent decision to reverse Roe v. Wade is an error. No court decision will stop abortion. Medical abortions will continue illegally. Eliminating Roe v. Wade will do two things: drive abortion procedures underground, and make criminals of normal, law-abiding citizens. The removal of a womans basic right to control her own health is immoral. Underground clandestine abortions are unsanitary and dangerous. Hopefully, time and compassion for women will bring the national abortion law back to reason and reality. Donald Lee Hildebrand, New Braunfels Texas, rethink the law I would hope when Texas rewrites its abortion law that it takes into consideration the victims of rape and incest. The state should not punish or force survivors of rape and incest to deliver an unwanted baby. Something else I hope legislators consider is anything pertaining to the health of the woman carrying the fetus. Would delivery of a child be detrimental to her health? Would/can she survive the delivery? During the pandemic, the state had Child Protective Services workers babysit children in their offices because there are not enough foster homes. Are they going to create an even bigger problem by forcing unwanted pregnancies, knowing there are no resources available? Lets hope they actually think about the consequences of their decision before making it. William Charest, Schertz Then truly protect life Gov. Greg Abbotts words keep ringing in my head. After the decision of the Supreme Court to remove the constitutional right for abortion, he said, Texas is a pro-life state, and we have taken significant action to protect the sanctity of life. Abbott, does that mean you are going to allow Medicaid to expand? Does this mean that assault rifles and body armor will no longer be sold to anyone older than 18 who wants them? Will our streets and schools be safer as a result? When will you start protecting the sanctity of life? Sue Snyder Cost of abortion ban I doubt Texas can afford the no-abortion stance it is advocating. Currently 1 out of 5 Texas children will face food uncertainty at least once during this year a Texas disgrace, yet Texas wants to add additional unplanned children. Women die carrying fetuses to full term. How will families of dead Texas women be compensated? These sweet babies will be adopted. Really? More than 3,000 eligible children are languishing on the adoption rolls in Texas. Some babies will be raised by the state. I shudder. A child is more than an entry on a financial ledger, but Texas needs to calculate the cost of half a million special needs children over the next 10 years and tell each Texan how much of their tax money is going to support the anti-abortion cause. Gayle Turner UPDATE, JUNE 30 AT 7:48 PM: Lewistown Police Department Assistant Chief of Police Jon Polich has shared more information on Wednesday's shooting. Several agencies reportedly responded to the 1200 block of 6th Ave. North in Lewistown for a report of a man that had been shot at a residence. The reporting party stated a man involved in the shooting left the area on foot and had a firearm in his possession. When first responders arrived, they found Tyler Green, 46, lying on the ground with life-threatening injuries. He was taken to the Central Montana Medical Center Emergency Room, where he was later pronounced dead. Law enforcement searched the area for persons of interest in the shooting, and a 24-year-old man believed to be involved was recognized by a probation officer on Main Street near 6th Ave. North. According to Polich, the man was detained without incident and was taken to the Fergus County Sheriffs Department where he was later booked into the jail for felony Assault with a Weapon. Following a further investigation, an arrest warrant for Deliberate Homicide, Attempted Deliberate Homicide, and other charges, was issued for his arrest and he was booked into the jail for the warrant. Polich said the department is not releasing the mans name at this time. Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Lewistown Police Department at 406-535-1800 or Central Montana Crime Stoppers at 406-535-2746. The Lewistown Police Department would like to thank the numerous agencies that assisted us to help bring this incident to a safe resolution. We would also like to thank the community for their assistance and cooperation in this matter. The Police Department would also like to extend our deepest condolences to Greens family for their tragic loss, Polich said. LEWISTOWN, MT- Overnight police responded to a shooting in Lewistown at the 1200 block of 6th Ave., North. People in the area that spoke with ABC FOX Montana say this is a quiet neighborhood across the street from a park. Police tell us theres no threat to the public but that the area will be closed for sometime as an investigation is conducted. We will keep you posted. The African Development Bank on 14 June 2022 launched a 19-billion Ugandan shilling (UGX) ($5.07 million) 2-year theme bond, the first-ever African frontier currency-denominated environmental, social and governance (ESG) issuance by a multilateral development institution. The bond, due June 2024, will be settled in dollars at a fixed coupon of 10.5%. It was issued under the African Development Bank Groups Feed Africa (https://bit.ly/3HZgao5) strategic High 5 and marks the Banks first offshore UGX bond issuance in 2022. Standard Chartered Bank arranged the transaction under the Banks Global Debt Issuance Facility. Capitulum Asset Management was the investor. The Bank will direct funds equal to the net proceeds of the issue to lending projects that advance the Feed Africa strategic priority, in accordance with its lending standards. Keith Werner, African Development Bank Division Manager for Capital Markets and Financial Operations, said: The African Development Bank is very pleased to collaborate with Standard Chartered Bank and Capitulum Asset Management to launch this inaugural African frontier currency ESG transaction, contributing to our High-5 development priorities while extending our investor reach in Europe. Under its Feed Africa strategy, the Bank is working to (i) contribute to reduce poverty; (ii) end hunger and malnutrition; (iii) make Africa a net food exporter; and (iv) move Africa to the top of export-orientated value chains where it has a comparative advantage. Feed Africas overall goal is to make Africa a net food exporter by 2025. Theodor Kirschner, Fund Manager at Capitulum Asset Management said: Our participation in the African Development Banks Ugandan shilling bond funding the Feed Africa program helps us to reach our goal to invest with a positive impact while providing an adequate yield in a frontier currency. Dain Sherborne, head of EM SSA Bond Trading and Annemarie Ganatra, head of MTNs at Standard Chartered Bank, said: We are delighted that our core strengths in African markets have enabled us to arrange this Feed Africa theme bond issuance for AfDB. We look forward to continuing to strengthen our partnership with multilateral development banks to help them achieve their common goals. Partager et informez vous aussi...... 0 shares Share Tweet LinkedIn Articles similaires Although Frenkie of Jong keeps firm his posture to remain in the FC Barcelona and the directive headed by Joan Laporta seems to have changed of plans regarding the future of the midfield player, other offers could arrive in brief by the neeerlandes. In this sense, the newspaper 'The Guardian' ensures that Chelsea has gone in of full in the 'career' by the one of Arkel and could advance to the Manchester United as better positioned to carry him to the Premier League. According to the English newspaper, the group 'blue' surpass deportivamente the offer of the 'Man Or' by two reasons of weight. The first is that the ones of Thomas Tuchel himself will play the next edition of the Champions League. Although the United guarantees him reencontrarse with Erik have Hag and to be the angular stone of the new midfield of the 'network devils', the true is that the club will play the Europe League in 2022-23 and this would represent a step backwards that Frenkie does not contemplate to give in this moment. Likewise, the British newspaper ensures that Chelsea wants to fichar to Matthijs of Ligt for suplir the drops of Andreas Christensen (Barca) and of Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid). This would allow him to Of Jong go back to play with his mate of selection, with the one who keeps a big friendship after the step of both by the Ajax. Of Ligt, by his part, has manifested to the directive of the Juventus his wish to go out and in Turin are had to sell him if it arrives the offer indicated. Thus, Stamford Bridge luce like a destination more apetecible for the '21' cule. Frenkie Has left clear his wish to be still in the Barca, but is clear that the one of Arkel is one of the few active with which the club can do box in front of his financial urgencies. Further that Laporta affirmed the Saturday that the directive will do the possible for retaining him, to these heights there is not at all sure with the Dutch. Xavi Hernandez, by his part, has fixed in Ruben Neves and Bernardo Silva like alternatives in front of his possible exit, conscious that his permanence in the staff depends on the economic. Laporta Trusts to avoid the sale of Frenkie with the television rights This week, the managerial cule expects to sell another 15% of the sale of his television rights of LaLiga by a mount near to the 300 million euros. After the agreement with the group American investor Sixth Street this week by 10% of these rights in return of 207 'kilos', Joan Laporta expects to gather the sufficient money for paliar the debts of the club and avoid the sale of other active, between them Frenkie of Jong. In this regard, the mandator cule explained that "the levels salariales of determinate players no adecuan to which the club has fixed. It is a decision that have to face, but by little that can, I would do all the possible so that Frenkie remain ". With this, Laporta matizo his initial statement that indicated that the Barca does not have intentions to sell to the midfield player, further of the interest of clubs like the United and Chelsea. In this way, the negotiations by Of Jong follow opened, with postures that can change in the next days, in full pre-season blaugrana. Category Select Category Apparel/Garments Textiles Fashion Technical Textiles Information Technology E-commerce Retail Corporate Association Press Release SubCategory Select Sub-Category Regulatory News: Following the appointment of Laurent Guillot as ORPEA's (Paris:ORP) new Chief Executive Officer as of 1 July 2022, the ORPEA Group is announcing major changes in its Board of Directors that will be proposed at the next Annual General Meeting. The Annual General Meeting will therefore be asked to appoint five new directors for a four-year term, four of which will be independent and whose varied skills will bring additional expertise to the Group. The four new independent directors to be voted on by the shareholders on 28 July 2022 are: Guillaume Pepy, Chairman of Initiative France and former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SNCF; and former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SNCF; Isabelle Calvez, Director of Human Resources at the Veolia Group; John Glen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BIC S.A. until May (proposed by CPPIB); David Hale, Chief Executive Officer of the Guerbet Group. Furthermore, as announced on 2 May 2022 on the occasion of his appointment, Laurent Guillot, ORPEA's Chief Executive Officer, will also be proposed as a new director at the Annual General Meeting. Finally, Bertrand Finet, Chief Executive Officer of Peugeot Invest Assets, will succeed Thierry de Poncheville as the permanent representative of Peugeot Invest Assets on ORPEA's Board of Directors at the end of the Annual General Meeting. Philippe Charrier, who chaired the Board of Directors and was ORPEA's provisional Chief Executive Officer from February to June 2022, has decided to step down as a director at the end of the next Annual General Meeting. Having left CPPIB, Moritz Krautkramer resigned his directorship on 17 June 2022. Jean-Patrick Fortlacroix will not seek to renew his term of office as director, which will expire at the end of the next Annual General Meeting. If elected, Guillaume Pepy will be proposed to chair the new Board of Directors. The new Board of Directors will therefore be composed as follows: Personal information Experience Position on the Board Age Gender Nationality Number of shares Number of offices held in listed companies Independence First date of appointment Term of office Length of service on the Board Mr Guillaume Pepy 64 M French Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 Mr Laurent Guillot 53 M French 2 No 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 Ms Laure Baume 46 F French 928 1 Yes 14/12/2016 AGM 2024 6 Ms Corine de Bilbao 55 F French 40 2 Yes 23/06/2020 AGM 2024 2 Ms Isabelle Calvez 57 F French 1 Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 Ms Bernadette Danet-Chevallier 63 F French 246 1 Yes 16/09/2014 AGM 2025 8 Peugeot Invest Assets, represented by Mr Bertrand Finet 56 M French 2 Yes 15/02/2012 AGM 2023 10 Mr John Glen1 62 M British and Irish 1 Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 Mr David Hale 54 M Franco-American 1 Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 Mr Olivier Lecomte 56 M French 230 2 Yes 16/11/2020 AGM 2025 2 Ms Pascale Richetta 62 F French 10 1 Yes 23/06/2020 AGM 2024 2 Ms Joy Verle1 42 F Franco-British 1 2 Yes 27/04/2017 AGM 2023 5 Ms Sophie Kalaidjian (director representing the employees) 44 F French 20 1 No 15/01/2015 AGM 2024 7 Mr Laurent Serris (director representing the employees) 51 M French 1 No 15/12/2020 AGM 2023 2 1 Candidates proposed by CPPIB The new Board of Directors will determine the new composition of its Committees. Following its endeavor for full transparency, the first remedial measures established, and the reflections initiated on the transformations to be undertaken, this new governance affirms ORPEA's desire for a transformation that will allow to best fulfil its mission and to meet the challenges of the healthcare and medical-social system. The Board of Directors wishes to thank sincerely its Chairman, Philippe Charrier, who agreed to take over as Chief Executive Officer on a temporary basis at the epitome of the crisis experienced by ORPEA, in order to restore confidence and enable the company to continue its mission under the best possible conditions. From February to June 2022, the desire for transparency was furthered through the external audits carried out by the Grant Thornton and Alvarez Marsal firms; the Group signed a refinancing plan securing its future; a new Chief Executive Officer-Laurent Guillot-was recruited; remediation measures were initiated; and a dialogue was originated with the Group's stakeholders to set in motion a long-term reflection process, with the holding of the Etats Generaux du Grand ge roundtable talks. The re-founding of the Group can thus begin on these new footings, thanks to the commitment and dedication of Philippe Charrier. In addition, two new independent directors are expected to join the new Board of Directors when they are released from their current obligations. A press release will be issued in due course. Bio of Guillaume Pepy Recognized for his extensive leadership experience, Guillaume Pepy is currently Chairman of Initiative France, the leading network of associations for financing and supporting new entrepreneurs, and of LYDEC, a subsidiary of Suez, charged with managing water and electricity in the Greater Casablanca region in Morocco. Guillaume Pepy is also a Senior Advisor to Salesforce and the Boston Consulting Group. He is a director of Chemours Inc in the United States. Guillaume Pepy began his career at the French Council of State and then at the Ministries of Finance and of Labor, Employment and Social Affairs. In 1996, he was made Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the SOFRES Group. He was then appointed Director of Main Lines at the Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer Francais (SNCF) in 1997. Following this, he went on to take up the position of Chief Operating Officer for Customers, Group Chief Operating Officer and then Chairman and Chief Operating Officer from 2008 to 2019. Guillaume Pepy is a member of the Board of Directors of the Shoah Memorial, Malandain Ballet Biarritz and the Heart and Research Foundation. He is a graduate of the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (Paris Political Studies Institute) and the Ecole Nationale d'Administration. Bio of Isabelle Calvez With a long career in the field of Human Resources, Isabelle Calvez has been Director of Human Resources of Veolia since April 2022, after having been Group Director of Human Resources of Suez from May 2017 to May 2022. Isabelle Calvez began her career in executive search before joining Thomson-CSF, now Thales, where she was appointed Business development director for Communications electronic warfare in 1996. In 2000, she joined the Canal+ Group as Director of Human Resources for Canal+ Technologies and HR Development VP for the group. She was appointed HR VP France Benelux Accenture in 2003, HR VP for the Groupama Group in 2007 and then for Carrefour France in 2012. Isabelle Calvez graduated from the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (Paris Political Studies Institute) in 1986. Bio of John Glen Particularly experienced in governance and leadership as well as finance and real estate, John Glen began his career at Unilever, before joining Air Liquide in 2000 as Group Finance Director and member of the Executive Committee. From 2008 to 2019, he was Chief Executive Officer of Buccleuch Estates Ltd, the holding company of a family group operating in the agricultural field of activity and industry sector in England and Scotland. In particular, he has helped to develop and market a portfolio of large energy projects in sustainable technologies. In addition, he became a director of The Borders Distillery Co. in 2016. From January 2020, he served as Group Chief Operating Officer of DC Thomson Publishing before being appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of BIC SA until May 2022. John Glen is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Certified Accountants and holds a master's degree in Accounting and Economics from the University of Edinburgh. Bio of David Hale A specialist in the healthcare sector, David Hale has been Chief Executive Officer of Guerbet since December 2019, following several months with the group as Chief Commercial Officer and member of the Executive Committee in charge of sales, marketing, development and engineering of diagnostic imaging medical devices. David Hale has worked for Ascom and Boston Consulting Group, among others. He then joined GE Healthcare in France and the United States, where for 15 years he held several management positions in the areas of quality, sales, marketing and product management in the services and information systems sectors. David Hale graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology (USA) with a degree in industrial and systems engineering and an MBA from the Institute of Management Development (Switzerland). About ORPEA (www.orpea-corp.com) Founded in 1989, ORPEA is one of the world leaders in Dependency care (nursing homes, assisted living, post-acute and rehabilitation hospitals, mental health hospitals, home care services) ORPEA is listed on Euronext Paris (ISIN code: FR0000184798) and is a member of the SBF 120, STOXX 600 Europe, MSCI Small Cap Europe and CAC Mid 60 indices. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220703005017/en/ Contacts: Investor Relations ORPEA Benoit Lesieur Investor Relations Director b.lesieur@orpea.net Investor Relations NewCap Dusan Oresansky Tel.: +331 44 71 94 94 ORPEA@newcap.eu Media Relations Image 7 Charlotte Le Barbier Tel.: +33 (0)6 78 37 27 60 clebarbier@image7.fr Laurence Heilbronn Tel.: +33 (0)6 89 87 61 35 lheilbronn@image7.fr ENHANCED STRATEGIC INVESTMENT BY RIAU CAPITAL INVESTMENTS PTE. LTD. IS A SHOW OF THEIR COMMITMENT TO THE COLLABORATION Riau Capital Group secured its first platform supply vessel for deployment in Qatar in collaboration with a ship chartering & offshore services group operating in Qatar . Jasper Investments Limited will be appointed as owner's representative and exclusive fleet manager for Riau Capital Group and projects introduced by Riau Capital Group. Riau Capital Group will invest (through Riau Capital Investments Pte. Ltd.) S$2,000,000 as a show of commitment to the strategic collaboration. Bambang Sugeng bin Kajairi will provide strategic leadership and direction for Jasper Investments Limited as the Executive Chairman driving growth and investment. Board independence and diversity will be enhanced by the appointment of top strategists and thought leaders as Independent Directors. The key areas of focus will be infrastructure, strategic resources and real estate. SINGAPORE, July 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Jasper Investments Limited ("JIL"), listed on the Singapore Exchange Main Board since 1993, has been appointed as owner's representative and exclusive fleet manager for the first platform supply vessel to be deployed to Qatar by Riau Capital Group. This deployment is in collaboration with a ship chartering and offshore services group with operations in the Gulf Cooperation Council ("GCC") region ("GCC Charterer"). This appointment is the beginning of a strategic collaboration between JIL and the Riau Capital Group previously announced on 6 June 2022; under this collaboration JIL has been named as the designated and preferred supplier of services and support for Riau Capital Group's projects in the GCC. Both Riau Capital Group and JIL are currently considering acquisitions of more vessels, including platform supply vessels and anchor handling tug supply vessels for deployment on projects in the GCC and elsewhere, including in collaboration with GCC Charterer. If any further vessels of this type are acquired by Riau Capital Group, JIL has been given the assurance that it will be offered the first preference to act as owner's representative and fleet manager of these vessels. JIL has today also announced an enhanced strategic investment by Riau Capital Investments Pte. Ltd. of a total of S$2,000,000 (increased from the previously announced S$500,000) by way of subscription of shares and warrants, demonstrating its commitment to grow and expand JIL. The shares are to be issued at S$0.0036 per share, at a premium to the most recent volume weighted average JIL share price prior to the announcement. In addition, Riau Capital CEO, Bambang Sugeng, has given his personal commitment to provide strategic leadership and direction for the expansion and growth of JIL as well as to assume greater operational responsibility. Accordingly, he has accepted the post of Executive Chairman following an invitation extended to him by the Board of Directors of JIL (the "Board"). As a demonstration of his faith in the future of JIL, Bambang has agreed to convert into shares of JIL an advance of approximately S$51,000 previously paid to JIL in 2021 in a personal capacity. Bambang said "I am delighted to have been appointed as Executive Chairman of JIL. The company has enormous potential in the region, and by working collaboratively with shareholders and other stakeholders, I am sure that we will be able to capitalise on the exciting opportunities available to further develop and expand the company's core businesses, as well as expand into new and exciting industries". In line with JIL's continuing commitment to have an independent majority on its board as well as its goal of ensuring board diversity and inclusiveness, three prominent members of the Singapore business community - Mr. Osith Ramanathan, Mr. Dennis Goh and Mr. Bernard Oh, each a strategic and thought leader in his own field, have accepted invitations to join JIL as Independent Directors. "One of the key pillars in ensuring good corporate governance in a company is to have a strong and independent board. Board diversity builds strong leadership and fosters an enduring organisation. The company is honoured and privileged to have Osith, Dennis and Bernard joining the company as Independent Directors. Each of the new Independent Director brings with him a unique set of skills, talents and experience that will enhance the effectiveness of the Board, ensuring good governance and better stewardship. This combination of skills, talent, experience and diversity at the board level, coupled with a highly competent and capable management team under the strategic direction of Bambang will bring better value and returns to the shareholders," said Mr. Rajan Ganapathy, Lead Independent Director and Chairman of the Audit Committee. JIL's current core business focus is on the marine and offshore sectors, in particular, the provision of marine logistics and transportation services to the infrastructure industry. The focus is on the reclamation, construction, and earthwork services sectors. JIL aims to offer world-class expertise in all aspects of chartering and operating a variety of vessels and vehicles. The company's ambition is to consolidate and expand its core maritime logistics and transportation businesses - capitalising on the recent uptick in activities in the oil & gas industry (especially, the upstream natural gas sector) and the increased demand for infrastructural support and strategic resources such as aggregates including sand, gravel and stones (particularly, in the North and Southeast Asia regions). As a corollary to this, JIL intends to explore and expand its commercial activities into the strategic resources sector. Given the company's intention to be deeply involved in the infrastructure, strategic resources sectors and the real estate sector (all of which have a high and ongoing need for construction materials, supporting infrastructure and logistical support) this is a natural extension of JIL's business operations. The company will, in due course, seek the views and approval of the shareholders to expand into these sectors. For media enquiries, please contact: Brands are finding it easier than ever to grow online, and with the fierce competition between social media platforms, its no wonder that brands are turning to Instagram. There are a number of reasons brands buy Instagram followers, but the main ones usually come down to increasing brand awareness and building social proof. Now is the best time to act and get ahead of your competitors. Here are 10 reasons brands choose to buy Instagram followers in 2022: 1. As of 2022, Instagram Has The Greatest Potential Yet To Grow Your Business Starting out this quarter with over 2 billion active users, Instagram is a fantastic place to grow your brand. By 2023, it is estimated that the number will only increase, which is good news for businesses. Having a vast user base is one thing, but whats even more important is that Instagram is continuing to grow in popularity. With the growth of Facebook into the company Meta, there is now a much bigger opportunity for growth in Instagram. This can be beneficial for your business in a number of ways. For one, it means that there is a good chance that your target audience is already using the platform. But it also means that Instagram is likely to continue growing, giving you even more opportunities to reach potential customers. 2. There Are Many Benefits To Having A Large Instagram Following Being popular on Instagram can do wonders for your business. Everyone who starts out finds it a little tricky to get those first few hundred followers. Once you start to break through that barrier, things become a lot easier. Having a large Instagram following can help your business in many ways. 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There is no time to waste. Buy Instagram followers today and see the results for yourself! Coding Dojo, a Bellevue, Wash.-based global education technology company, secured $10m in non-dilutive venture debt financing. Eastward Capital Partners provided the financing. This new credit facility will accelerate the growth of the company and support several initiatives, including key feature enhancements to its proprietary learning management system, accelerating the organizations international expansion, and continued improvements to its curricula and learning science. Led by Richard Wang, CEO, Coding Dojo is a education technology company that offers a three-full-stack computer programming bootcamp, as well as courses on Data Science, Cybersecurity, and other emerging technologies. The curriculum and Learning Management System are designed to train students to become self-sufficient developers, regardless of their technical background. The company has campuses in multiple US cities, as well as online programs. In addition to its B2C business, Coding Dojo provides Bootcamp as a Service solutions to its B2B partners through corporate training, franchisees, as well as licensing their platform to businesses, governments, colleges, and more. The company currently operates in 11 countries via these partnerships and will leverage this funding to continue expanding into more than 24 countries worldwide by the end of 2022. FinSMEs 03/04/2022 On June 1, Ambassador Qin Gang met with Austin Mayor Steve Adler in Austin, Texas. Mr. Adler welcomed Ambassador Qin for his first visit to the city, and said that he had visited China twice as mayor to promote a sound cooperative relationship between Austin and Chinese cities, including Beijing, Changsha and Chengdu. In the past few years, Austin has jumped from the 44th largest city in the United States to the 11th, becoming an ideal place for American and foreign companies to make investment and do business. Austin is committed to increasing economic, trade, cultural and people-to-people exchanges with cities in different countries, and continuously exploring the opportunities to make inter-city relations more substantial. Ambassador Qin spoke highly of Austin's development and said that Austin is a well-known high-tech center in the United States with thriving cultural and creative industries, which showcases the vigor of the American economy. He emphasized that his visit was aimed at renewing the bond between China and the United States at the subnational level and reinforcing local ties. He hoped that Austin would deepen its pragmatic exchanges and cooperation with Chinese cities in the fields of economy, trade, people-to-people exchanges, culture, aviation, and city governance, so as to inject more positive energy into China-US relations. X-plan question after purchase order without it Hi I ordered a new F-350 February 12th without knowing that my wife qualified for X-plan. Our price agreement currently is msrp minus a 500-dollar first responder discount. Truck is scheduled at the moment to be built week of August 1st. Can we still ask the dealer to honor? Can the dealer honor if he wants to? Does Ford reimburse or dealer eat it? In the end my fault for not knowing if we qualified for it in the first place. Binance has partnered with Khaby Lame, the Italian Senegalese creator who grew to fame through his viral TikTok videos, to join as a global brand ambassador. As the blockchain ecosystem behind the worlds largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance will partner with Khaby to increase Web3 awareness and adoption. Khaby became a sensation for his spin on life hack videos, navigating overly complicated scenarios without saying a word while doing the famous Khaby move. Hell use his signature style to tackle some of the misperceptions around Web3 in this multi-year partnership. Lame will also partner on exclusive NFT collections with Binance, further enhancing the experience for his fans. I consider my followers as my family, and I am always looking for new challenges and interesting content to share with them, said Khaby Lame, Ive been curious about Web3 for some time, and jumped at the chance to partner with a leader like Binance because it aligns perfectly with what I usually do: make complex stuff easy and fun for everyone! Khaby has become a cultural icon and one of the most entertaining creators globally. We love his charm and sense of humor, and think it will bring relevance and relatability as we scale Web3 adoption, said James Rothwell, Binance Global Vice President of Marketing. With so much nuance around Web3 and misinformation in the world, it was a perfect match to have Khaby on board to help debunk some of the myths around this space. Partager et informez vous aussi...... 0 shares Share Tweet LinkedIn Articles similaires Country United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe Energy Capital & Power (ECP) is proud to announce that this year, the South Sudan Oil & Power (SSOP) conference which takes place from September 13-14, 2022, at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Juba has more international confirmations than ever before. Now in its fifth edition, SSOP 2022 represents the primary international forum driving business and investment in east Africa, with delegations from the regional and international market participating in the two-day conference. Ambassadors from China, Turkey, Egypt, Canada, the Netherlands, South Africa, Somalia and India have been confirmed and delegations from each respective country are expected to attend the high-level event. In the coming weeks, more confirmations are expected to follow from destinations including Uganda, Sudan and the U.K. This years edition takes place in official partnership with the Ministry of Petroleum, the Ministry of Energy and Dams and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning of South Sudan, with additional ministerial confirmations from Ethiopia and Somalia and Norway attending via video link. Ministers from Kenya, Sudan and Egypt are also expected to be represented. The event expects seven more regional and global participants in the coming two months, with ten ministers planned to speak at the event alongside their respective national oil companies. As the organizer of the SSOP 2022 conference, ECP is engaging with the U.S. embassy in Juba as well as with experts on trade restrictions in order to ensure robust, solutions-oriented discussions around trade, business and investment at the event. South Sudan is the gateway to investing and doing business in east Africa. SSOPs international confirmations are not only a statement of support for the countrys burgeoning energy industry but a demonstration of the massive shift taking place across the country. Partager et informez vous aussi...... 0 shares Share Tweet LinkedIn Articles similaires New York, June 30, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Portugal Cutting Tools Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Country Analysis By Type, Material [High-Speed Steel, Carbides, Ceramics, and Others], and End User" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p06289928/?utm_source=GNW Cutting tools are used for milling, grinding, and broaching automotive car parts and have a large market share in the automotive industry. With their high precision, durability, and repeatability throughout manufacturing activities, the cutting tools market is an efficient and cost-effective way to boost total productivity.The latest techniques such as high-speed cutting, dry machining, hard machining, and new cutting technology have modified the traditional approach. The vehicle industry covers various professional tool applications. In the automotive industry, carbide cutters are now commonly employed. Portugals economy is completely integrated with the European Union (EU).The automotive industry is a major contributor to the Portuguese economy. The automotive sector in Portugal consists of 32,200 firms that manufacture automobiles and components, employ 152,000 people directly, and generates 33.7 billion in sales, accounting for 21% of the countrys total tax revenue. According to ACAP, the automotive industry accounts for 11% of Portugals overall exports and contributes 4.8% to the manufacturing sector. Over ~220 automotive suppliers and four major automobile manufacturersToyota/Salvador Caetano, PSA Peugeot Citroen, Mitsubishi Trucks, and Volkswagen AutoEuropaare all based in Portugal. Interface and Industry 4.0 are two public programs that provide incentives to encourage industry innovation. Due to this scenario, cutting tools and other production equipment are projected to be in high demand. Moreover, with 1,360 electric vehicles (BEVBattery Electric Vehicle) sold in June 2021the month set an absolute record for monthly sales of 100% electric vehicles, indicating a growing interest among buyers for electric vehicles, which offer greater autonomy, efficiency, and coverage across all market segments. Compared to May 2021, sales of 100% electric vehicles (BEV) increased by 53% and by 168% in May 2021. Thus, increasing usage of cutting tools in the automotive industry will drive the demand for cutting tools in Portugal. The market for cutting tools market in Portugal is predicted to develop during 2020-2028. The countrys industrial production is growing at 3.5%, and the industry accounts for ~22% of the national GDP. Portugal is located between the Atlantic Ocean and its land border with Spain, making it a great location for trade. Moreover, the World Bank Doing Business Dataset ranks Portugal first for ease of cross-border trading. Various cutting tools, including saw blades, taps, reamers, hobs, chasers, broaches, rolling dies, drills, end mills, cutters, burrs, gear cutting tools, tool bits, and tips/inserts, are produced in Portugal. Construction, automotive, railway network, engineering, and defense industries have bolstered cutting tools market. Further, the diamond cutting tools market is the one of the fastest growing consumer of cutting tools. In the machining sector, a cutting tool or cutter is a hardened metal tool used to cut, shape, and remove material from a workpiece using machining tools and abrasive tools via shear deformation.The majority of these instruments are made specifically for working with metals. Cutting tools are used in several industries, such as construction, carpentry, automotive, and manufacturing, to perform various material cutting operations.There is a wider range of cutting tools in the market with new and unique supplied standards. These tools are frequently packaged in improved formats that incorporate additional technical and application information, making tool selection simple and intuitive.Cutting tools and clamping devices are widely used in boring operations and manufacturing multiple pieces with geometrically complex surfaces, which requires expert explanation. The increased use of cutting tools in various industries has profoundly altered market dynamics. The automotive manufacturing industry is the primary user of cutting tools.With the changing market situation, cutting tool manufacturers have boosted their efforts to develop and manufacture more innovative designs to meet rising client needs. Technological advancements drive the cutting tools market with workpiece production technologies such as metal injection molding, 3D printing, investment casting, and close-tolerance forging.The Portugal cutting tools market appears to be quite promising, owing to the constantly developing manufacturing industries around the country. Cutting tool usage is predicted to increase tremendously as industrial sectors grow, meeting the changing needs of clients. As a result, the share of the Portugal cutting tools market is expected to grow during the forecast period. The overall Portugal cutting tools market size has been derived using both primary and secondary sources.Exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the Portugal cutting tools market. The process also serves the purpose of obtaining an overview and forecast for the Portugal cutting tools market with respect to all the segments.Also, multiple primary interviews have been conducted with industry participants and commentators to validate the data and gain more analytical insights into the topic. The participants of this process include industry experts such as VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, and national sales managersalong with external consultants such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leadersspecializing in the Portugal cutting tools market. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p06289928/?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. __________________________ All amounts expressed in US Dollars LOULO GOLD MINE, Mali, July 02, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) (TSX:ABX) continues to invest in creating value for all stakeholders and in supporting the communities that host its mines, president and chief executive Mark Bristow said here today. Speaking to media at the companys Loulo-Gounkoto complex, Bristow noted the commissioning of the Gounkoto underground mine and the Gara West open pit, the continuing replacement of reserves, the extension of the solar power plant and the further strengthening of local partnerships as instances of the companys long-term commitment to the country. In the first half of the year weve contributed $337 million to the Malian economy in the form of taxes, royalties, dividends, salaries and payments to local suppliers, taking the lifetime contribution of Barrick, previously Randgold, to $8.5 billion. Were particularly proud of the fact the Gara West pit is being mined for us by two Malian contractors we have mentored, he said. At the halfway mark of the year, the complex is on track to meet its production guidance for 2022, replace annual reserve depletion to further extend its mine life, and maintain its exemplary safety record, with no lost time injuries or major environmental events during the past quarter. It continues to invest in sustainable economic community projects, establishing a motel, a farm for Kenieba women and three water supply systems during the quarter. The Loulo agricultural college, designed as the foundation of a sustainable regional agribusiness, has already trained 21 women and 143 men and created 30 farms. Since the opening of the mine, Loulo-Gounkoto has built 20 schools in its neighbouring villages, taking student enrolment from 500 to more than 5,000. Seventy-eight of them are currently benefitting from the complexs bursary program and Loulo-Gounkoto is also supporting teachers salaries. First as Randgold and now as Barrick, weve been operating in Mali for 25 years and we plan to be here for at least as long again. The strong and mutually rewarding partnerships we have forged with the government, local business partners and our host communities are the key to our success and an example to Africas other mining countries, Bristow said. Enquiries President and CEO Mark Bristow +1 647 205 7694 +44 788 071 1386 Group Regional Manager, West Africa Mahamadou Samake +223 66 75 61 36 Investor and Media Relations Kathy du Plessis +44 20 7557 7738 Email: barrick@dpapr.com Website: www.barrick.com Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information Certain information contained or incorporated by reference in this press release, including any information as to our strategy, projects, plans, or future financial or operating performance, constitutes forward-looking statements. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. The words continue, on track, maintain, commitment, value, guidance, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking statements including, without limitation, with respect to: Loulo-Gounkotos production guidance and performance; Loulo-Gounkotos ability to continue to replace mineral reserves net of depletion and extend the mine life; Loulo-Gounkotos safety performance; Barricks commitment to Mali and investment in the development of local communities, including to support local employment, education and development programs. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions including material estimates and assumptions related to the factors set forth below that, while considered reasonable by the Company as at the date of this press release in light of managements experience and perception of current conditions and expected developments, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. Known and unknown factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements and information. Such factors include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold, copper, or certain other commodities (such as silver, diesel fuel, natural gas, and electricity); the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development; changes in mineral production performance, exploitation, and exploration successes; the possibility that future exploration results will not be consistent with the Companys expectations; risks that exploration data may be incomplete and considerable additional work may be required to complete further evaluation, including but not limited to drilling, engineering and socioeconomic studies and investment; risk of loss due to acts of war, terrorism, sabotage and civil disturbances; risks associated with projects in the early stages of evaluation, and for which additional engineering and other analysis is required; failure to comply with environmental and health and safety laws and regulations; timing of receipt of, or failure to comply with, necessary permits and approvals; changes in national and local government legislation, taxation, controls or regulations and/ or changes in the administration of laws, policies and practices, expropriation or nationalization of property and political or economic developments in the Mali and other jurisdictions in which the Company or its affiliates do or may carry on business in the future; damage to the Companys reputation due to the actual or perceived occurrence of any number of events, including negative publicity with respect to the Companys handling of environmental matters or dealings with community groups, whether true or not; risks associated with new diseases, epidemics and pandemics, including the effects and potential effects of the global Covid-19 pandemic; litigation and legal and administrative proceedings; employee relations including loss of key employees; increased costs and physical risks, including extreme weather events and resource shortages, related to climate change; and availability and increased costs associated with mining inputs and labor. Barrick also cautions that its guidance may be impacted by the unprecedented business and social disruption caused by the spread of Covid-19. In addition, there are risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining, including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins, flooding and gold bullion, copper cathode or gold or copper concentrate losses (and the risk of inadequate insurance, or inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks). Many of these uncertainties and contingencies can affect our actual results and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf of, us. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. All of the forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements. Specific reference is made to the most recent Form 40-F/Annual Information Form on file with the SEC and Canadian provincial securities regulatory authorities for a more detailed discussion of some of the factors underlying forward-looking statements and the risks that may affect Barricks ability to achieve the expectations set forth in the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Barrick disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. Washington, DC, July 03, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Press Advisory For Immediate Release Contact: Larry Moffitt sanviejo@gmail.com 202-669-0387 Bidens strategic patience 2.0 policy toward North Korea not working Says U.S. Senator Todd Young Senate Foreign Relations Committee member says DPRK missile tests warrant a more firm response from the U.S. U.S. Senator Todd Young, speaking as member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee said that President Bidens continuation of Obamas Strategic Patience 2.0 policy toward North Korea is not working. He argues that Biden come down harder in response to recent missile tests by Pyongyang and what looks like active preparations for a seventh nuclear weapons test. The link to watch the hour-long webcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZsBFW_YuFk&t=7s Senator Young, the senior senator of Indiana said, I dont believe the Biden administration has prioritized the threat of a nuclear North Korea. American leadership is essential at this period of time, in his comments on The Washington Times Foundations monthly public affairs forum The Washington Brief. When asked during the panel discussion if he thought President Bidens policy toward North Korea, often called Strategic Patience 2.0, is working, Senator Young responded, No, its not working. The senator added, We should judge policies based on their outcomes. I know there are a lot of distractions around the world which contribute to missile launches and other things, so there are exogenous factors. I recognize that the worlds a complicated place. But goodness gracious, 18? Eighteen launches so far this year? I think thats demonstrative of the fact that this (President Bidens) current policy is not working. He stressed the need for Washington to confront the North Korean threat to reinforce its presence in the region, including maintaining a credible counter to Chinas growth. A stable peninsula increases the ability of the South Korean government to better deter the Chinese Communist Partys growing desire to dominate all of East Asia, he said. Senator Young was supportive of President Bidens recent visit to South Korea and Japan, while cautioning that U.S. policy in recent years has not been clear on what the goals of U.S. policy are or how we will attain them, and I believe this needs to change. The American people rightfully demand not just competency, but also coherence in our foreign policy. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, recently inaugurated, has signaled his hopes for a stronger united front of Washington and Seoul to counter North Korean intimations that it may go ahead with a nuclear test explosion, ending five years of no tests. There has also been a steady ratcheting up of tensions with China throughout the region. Senator Young commented on the accelerated pace of North Koreas missile tests, saying The 18th test of this year (June 5), must be a wake-up call for the administration about the threat facing us from the North. Going forward, we need to balance a coherent strategy of engagement with one of restraint in this vital region of the world. Senator Young considered the holistic perspective of threats posed by North Korea and China. He cited South Koreas strong position in manufacturing, saying they have a major role to play in this generational challenge. He added, Similarly to how discussions about Americas role in securing Taiwan must include Taiwans role in the global economy, so too must these realities be reflected in our commitments to South Korea, the senator said. Senator Young said South Koreas Samsung is a key player in the global supply of semiconductors. If theyre threatened, every U.S. industry will be implicated and affected, as were seeing today with the chip shortage. Said the U.S. reliance on foreign manufacturers to supply semiconductors is regrettable. He called semiconductors the feedstock and arguably more important than oil to maintaining a modern economy. All of the advanced semiconductors, the chips, the microprocessors that are used in our missile systems, that are used for our most advanced technologies, all of them are developed overseas, he said. Senator Young was a guest panelist on the monthly webcast, The Washington Brief with regular participants Amb. Joseph DeTrani, a former CIA official and longtime diplomatic adviser on U.S. policy in Asia, and Dr. Alexandre Mansourov, a professor at Georgetown Universitys Center for Security Studies. Former congressman Dan Burton of Indiana who served on the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee for many years, was also a panelist. Attachment NEW YORK, July 03, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of the securities of Enservco Corporation (NYSE American: ENSV) between May 13, 2021 and April 18, 2022, both dates inclusive (the Class Period), of the important July 19, 2022 lead plaintiff deadline. SO WHAT: If you purchased Enservco securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the Enservco class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=6371 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than July 19, 2022. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually handle securities class actions, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs Bar. Many of the firms attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers. DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Enservco had defective disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting; (2) as a result, there were errors in Enservcos financial statements relating to, inter alia, its transactions with Cross River Partners and accounting for Employee Retention Credits (ERCs); (3) accordingly, Enservco would need to restate certain of its financial statements and delay the filing of its 2021 annual report with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); (4) Enservco downplayed the true scope and severity of its financial reporting issues; (5) accordingly, Enservco could not file its delayed 2021 annual report with the SEC within its initially represented timeline; and (6) as a result, defendants public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages. To join the Enservco class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=6371 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investors ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. ------------------------------- Contact Information: Laurence Rosen, Esq. Phillip Kim, Esq. The Rosen Law Firm, P.A. 275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor New York, NY 10016 Tel: (212) 686-1060 Toll Free: (866) 767-3653 Fax: (212) 202-3827 lrosen@rosenlegal.com pkim@rosenlegal.com cases@rosenlegal.com www.rosenlegal.com NEW YORK, July 03, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of the securities of HUMBL, LLC (OTC: HMBL) and/or the Companys unregistered digital asset (sold as BLOCKS Exchange Traded Index (ETXs) on various cryptocurrency exchanges) between November 1, 2020 and May 19, 2022, both dates inclusive (the Class Period) of the important July 19, 2022 lead plaintiff deadline. SO WHAT: If you purchased Humbl securities and/or the Companys ETXs during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the Humbl class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=6398 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than July 19, 2022. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually handle securities class actions, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs Bar. Many of the firms attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers. DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants violated provisions of the Exchange Act by making false and misleading statements concerning the Companys growth prospects, technological advancements, international partnerships, and financial benefits for Humbl common stock and digital asset investors, as well as using selectively timed announcements to keep Humbl stock price high so that Company insiders could sell off their holdings into artificially created volume. The complaint also alleges that defendants violated provisions of the Securities Act by selling its unregistered securities (BLOCK ETX digital assets) to investors. To join the Humbl class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=6398 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investors ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. ------------------------------- Contact Information: Laurence Rosen, Esq. Phillip Kim, Esq. The Rosen Law Firm, P.A. 275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor New York, NY 10016 Tel: (212) 686-1060 Toll Free: (866) 767-3653 Fax: (212) 202-3827 lrosen@rosenlegal.com pkim@rosenlegal.com cases@rosenlegal.com www.rosenlegal.com Jonathan Rea has spent his entire career hoping for the MotoGP. He also replaced Dani Pedrosa in two races, but he missed the boat and had to settle, so to speak, for a slew of SBK records that will be extremely difficult for anyone to beat in the future. However, even if he didnt race against MotoGP riders, Jonathan has always carefully observed his colleagues riding prototypes and, during an interview with Motorsport-Total colleagues, he addressed several very interesting issues. Rea especially reflected on why it seems that the golden age of the MotoGP is over, as we can see by the images of a really empty Mugello in the first edition of the Italian Grand Prix, without Valentino Rossi on track. But Jonathan is convinced that the lack of spectators, at least in Italy, its exclusively due to Rossi's retirement. I wouldn't be so dramatic about it. Valentino Rossi was a huge attraction. Even without him, yellow dominates the stands. Hes Mr. MotoGP. But I'm a fan of that old era. The era of Nicky Hayden, Casey Stoner, Dani Pedrosa, Jorge Lorenzo, Valentino Rossi, and Marc Marquez. We cant say that the new generation is slower or has worse performance. These guys are really fast. They're even faster. The era of Quartararo, Rins, Mir, and Bagnaia will leave its legacy. The point, according to Rea, is the lack of strong rivals. "With Rossi, but also with Marquez, Schwantz, Lorenz,o and Casey, there were problems and rivalries. Now, in the MotoGP, it seems like everything is very harmonious. This means that theres less drama, less contrast than in the past. I don't think Suzuki leaving will have an impact on racing. The most influential factor is the end of Valentino Rossi's career." There are three riders in the SBK to fight for the podium every time. In the MotoGP, the scenario is very different, with riders who win on a Sunday but, in the next race, they struggle to reach a sixth place. A difficult situation to understand, even for Rea. Its crazy. I can't explain it. I suspect that the rider doesn't make a difference and that the bike is more important. The performance window is so small. In some races, Quartararo is ten seconds ahead. In the race after that, he has to fight hard to be sixth. It's the same for the KTM. They win, and then suddenly end up at the back of the group. It's not easy to explain. I dont understand it either. I like it as a fan. WORCESTER, Mass. In the industrial kitchen at Major Bloom, staff are assembling joints using a gadget that turns out nearly 200 so-called pre-rolls in one go. A large bag of multi-colored fruit cereal sits ready to be baked into marijuana-infused treats. And owner Ulysses Youngblood is explaining the business philosophy he subscribes to, a blue ocean strategy. Blue ocean is basically like saying that theres enough space for everybody to have their own lane, essentially, he says. Theres enough water in the sea for us to kind of sail and do our own thing. The concept comes from Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, best-selling authors of several books on red ocean and blue ocean theory. Red oceans are existing markets, where competition is cutthroat, or bloody; Blue oceans are niches in the market, where innovative businesses can carve out new demand. In the fledgling cannabis industry, large companies have quickly risen to dominate the market in states where pot is now legal. But Youngblood says he believes theres room for everyone, if they think about cannabis as a blue ocean, like he does. Thats whats important, you know. You dont look at anyone as direct competition. Retail sales of recreational weed got going in Massachusetts in 2018. Here in Connecticut, theyre slated to begin by the end of this year. But as state regulators begin awarding licenses to select adult-use operators and businesses scramble to build out capacity, cannabis entrepreneurs, customers and communities around the state are increasingly concerned about equity whether there really is room for everyone. Some are already raising questions about the licensing process in Connecticut. The application to enter a lottery for the limited number of available licenses was cumbersome and the paperwork requirements extensive. Fees to enter the lottery varied by business type, but some applicants argued the process favored those who could afford to apply more than once. Already to some, the odds seem stacked against those without significant financial resources. And thats only the first step. Those lucky enough to win the lottery have to formally apply for a license. Then the real work begins: raising capital to start a business and trying to turn a profit in a highly regulated and complex industry. Massachusetts adult-use operators like Youngblood offer a case study for upstarts here in Connecticut, and a theme emerges when they talk about the experience thus far: Its wicked expensive. Setting sail In Connecticut, as in Massachusetts and several other states that have legalized recreational pot, lawmakers designed social equity programs to create opportunities in cannabis for those whod experienced the negative effects of its prohibition. Connecticut intends to award half of the few dozen newly available licenses to entrepreneurs with lower incomes, who have resided in areas with high unemployment or a high historical conviction rate for drug-related offenses. The state has also been offering workshops for applicants, and it plans to provide technical assistance for recipients of social equity licenses. Massachusetts also has a social equity program, providing technical assistance and waiving some fees for applicants that meet similar criteria. So far, only a few of the programs participants have gotten cannabis businesses off the ground. A lot of the people who qualify for social equity and who are from these communities do not have the background and the resources that it takes to get into this industry, said Julia Agron, project coordinator for the Cannabis Education Center at Holyoke Community College in Massachusetts. So when they, in good faith, come to these classes or participate, the gap between what they think is being offered them and what it really means to enter this industry can be huge. As of June, the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission had approved 1,399 applications for licenses. Of those, 235 were social equity program participants and 94 qualified for economic empowerment priority status; fewer than three dozen of those have commenced operations. All licensees in Massachusetts have to include plans for how their businesses will have a positive impact on the community and promote diversity in the industry. Aside from the social equity program, the state cannabis commission also gives priority status to businesses owned by women, minorities and veterans. But equitable licensing programs alone likely wont fix decades of social disparities and injustice. Agron said shes seen many people looking to start up a cannabis business get discouraged or, worse, lose everything. Since few traditional banks will lend to marijuana entrepreneurs as long as pot remains illegal at the federal level, business startups have to find financing elsewhere. That makes them vulnerable to predatory lenders. Part of the problem is that people dont see what their other options are, Agron said. They see that something may not be the best deal, but theyre not sure what else to do. Frank Dailey, co-owner of Boston Bud Factory in Holyoke, recalls being turned away by at least eight different financial institutions when the business was starting out. A handful of locally based banks in Massachusetts do provide depository services to cannabis businesses, Dailey said, but the fees are high, and its difficult to get loans or lines of credit at affordable rates. Dailey sought out a lender when Boston Bud Factory wanted to purchase an extractor to make cannabis concentrates (used in vapes and a range of other products), but the only rates available were over 50 percent, he said. Another financial institution offered Dailey similar terms on a $30,000 line of credit, which the businesses had planned to put toward purchasing inventory and materials. Dailey decided against it. The rates are just ridiculous, Dailey said. Were just two small guys trying to survive. Ultimately, Dailey and his partner Carlo Sarno resigned themselves to self-funding most of the business. But he knows thats not an option for many budding entrepreneurs. Youngblood said he met with angel investors, venture capital and private equity firms and banks, you name it, most of those fell through. Major Bloom is a certified economic empowerment business within the states social equity program, but Youngblood and his business partner Valentin Faybushevich ended up raising the capital they needed primarily through friends and family. That included $50,000 of Youngbloods own money. Bruce Stebbins, a commissioner with the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, said in light of the financial issues social equity applicants have faced, state lawmakers are considering legislation that would establish a Social Equity Trust Fund to provide funding support for those entrepreneurs. Were hoping that if that gets signed into law, and the fund is created, that well be able to see more social equity applicants get to the finish line, Stebbins said. The deadline for the legislature is July 31. The red ocean As small businesses struggle to find a toehold, cannabis conglomerates known as multi-state operators appear to be clearing many of the same obstacles with ease. There are now several large publicly traded cannabis companies that, relative to small startups, have access to far more capital they can use to grow. Multi-state operators, or MSOs as theyre known, also have lawyers and accountants to gather and file the intricate paperwork many states require. Deeper pockets means its less burdensome to endure the inevitable delays in license processing and zoning common issues in this new industry. Once theyre up and running, MSOs scale can allow them to purchase larger quantities of raw product, often at discounted prices, and to occupy more expensive retail locations in upscale areas. Their brands are recognizable to many cannabis users, another advantage in new markets. With each new state that legalizes recreational marijuana, those advantages could multiply, exacerbating inequality rather than alleviating it as many legalization policies have attempted to do. In the coming year, retail sales of adult-use cannabis are slated to begin in Vermont, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, expanding the regions market beyond Massachusetts and Maine and raising the prospect of fierce competition. Still, the CCCs Stebbins says he gets the sense Massachusetts microbusiness operators are confident they can take on the industrys heavyweights. They dont seem to shy away from the competition, Stebbins said. I think they really are focused on, I want to establish my brand, I want to build my customer base.' Dave Cichocki, co-founder of Pioneer Valley Extracts in Northampton, believes in carving out a niche. By establishing a name, building trust and making good products, he says its possible for plenty of smaller operators to turn a profit. Its like every other business, and it takes a while, he said. Just dont think youre going to make a million dollars tomorrow. Pioneer Valley Extracts manufactures vapes and pre-rolled joints, and it holds a local license to produce California-based Kanha brands edible gummies. Cichocki and his sister self-funded the business they were not participants in the states social equity programs and today they distribute their products to about 60 dispensaries around Massachusetts. Cichocki expects the company will do about $7 million in sales this year nowhere close to a multi-state operation, but a steady and successful endeavor. Both Dailey and Youngblood are borrowing a page from the conglomerates: vertical integration. Major Blooms operations include manufacturing, retail, wholesale and home delivery. Youngblood and his team also record and produce a radio show and a podcast at Major Blooms Worcester shop. The state has established limits on the number of licenses that each business can own and made some license types for delivery and social consumption available only to Massachusetts residents. The goal of those policies is to even the playing field, Stebbins said, by not allowing the larger operators to fully vertically integrate. Boston Bud Factory is licensed as both a product manufacturer and a retailer. Dailey said profit margins on the manufacturing side are higher than they are for retail, which helps the overall business stay afloat. He also saves money by doing a lot of the administrative work himself. Before entering the cannabis field, Dailey worked in chemical engineering and manufacturing operations, and he has tapped that expertise in setting up the manufacturing side of Boston Bud Factorys business and in handling all of the companys license filings and legal documentation. We havent yet utilized a lawyer or a consultant, Dailey said. Ive done our special permits, Ive done our compliance, Ive done all of that. And thats basically just learning the regs inside and out. Anybody can do that. Toward equity Inside Boston Bud Factorys three-story brick building on a quiet street in industrial South Holyoke, Dailey has set up an alcove where he offers educational demonstrations, teaching anyone whos interested how to make rosin a cannabis concentrate from the plants they grow at home. Behind the retail counter, and through a set of security doors, a staff member monitors the extractor. A vast factory floor beyond will soon house more processing and packaging operations, but for the moment its the site of a food truck refurbishing project. Dailey plans to periodically park the truck out front, inviting local restaurants to take turns serving up their fare to the shops patrons and the community. As a social equity program participant, Dailey says its important to him to be a presence in the community and to teach and support cannabis customers and growers. Boston Bud Factory is working to open a second location in Springfields East Forest Park neighborhood, where Dailey lives. Its supposed to be community businesses isnt that what everybody says? But if you look at this, all of the money, everything is being sent out of state, Dailey said. The profits arent going to equity, the profits arent going to residents those corporations are taking their money and sending it back to Chicago or Colorado or wherever theyre based out of. On their websites, top MSOs such as Curaleaf, Trulieve and Green Thumb highlight a range of corporate social responsibility and diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Youngblood finds much of it inauthentic. He stresses how critical it is for Major Bloom to maintain the trust and respect of its customers and the cannabis community, which is why he lends his own voice to the weekly radio show and uses original artwork on the companys packaging. Youngbloods focus on the legacy market, long-time cannabis lovers still adjusting to buying pot from a legal dispensary, means hes attuned to their skepticism toward the standardized image marketed by multi-state conglomerates. This is Youngbloods blue ocean niche. On Major Blooms website, they avoid using stock photos, favoring images of real cannabis users. Youd be surprised how much people catch on to that shit, he said. Major Blooms stone-and-frosted-glass storefront sits nestled between a spa and a package store, just down the street from a handful of Polish delis and markets. A smiling attendant with a calm demeanor buzzes patrons through a door from the sunny lobby to the main room, where the retail counter sits. Customers, for the most part, pay with debit cards, not cash. Years ago, before Major Bloom moved in, the property was vacant and often hosted illicit drug pushers and users. The neighborhood still has its challenges, but Youngblood believes the presence of the shop the foot traffic it generates, the cameras and security has made the block safer. Stebbins says thats happening across the state: Were seeing buildings that might have been delinquent or underutilized or even an eyesore in the local community that are now being brought back to life. Cannabis businesses are now becoming part of the economic development of each small community, he said. Every licensed business has to track its progress on the community and diversity plans they submitted, providing an annual update when they apply to renew their licenses. HCCs Agron says legalization has had many positive effects in Massachusetts communities. Older customers and many women, who previously werent able to access cannabis legally in a way that felt safe to them, no longer have to worry. And the social equity programs, for all their challenges, have helped create a number of businesses that are fiercely dedicated to helping their neighborhoods recover from the war on drugs. Ive seen people get discouraged. Ive seen people get angry, Agron said. Ive also seen people push through and, with more determination and raw willpower than any other resource available to them, pull it together and make it happen. The mythical green rush is over, if there ever was such a thing, and its a real industry now, she said. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate GREENWICH The town of Greenwich is looking for a new harbormaster after the sudden resignation of Sean Jordan from the position. The town said Jordan, who had been in the position for a little less than two years, was leaving for personal reasons. The town announced his departure Friday after he sent a letter to the Harbor Management Commission on June 26. The governor appoints the harbormaster, but the town will collect the applications and make a recommendation to Gov. Ned Lamont, a town resident, on Jordans successor. The harbormaster reports to the governor, not the town, and is tasked with overseeing the safe and efficient operation of harbors and navigable waterways in the town. A harbormasters term lasts for three years. Jordans term was scheduled to expire on June 30, 2023. Bernard Armstrong, chair of the towns Harbor Management Commission, told Greenwich Time on Friday he hoped to have a list of candidates soon. Ideally the candidate would be an experienced boater, know how to operate a boat, know how to deal with people and understand whats involved, Armstrong said. This is going to take a certain amount of time commitment, too. A harbormaster is paid $525 a year by the state for what Armstrong said is largely an honorary position. Applications will be accepted through July 18. In an email to members of the town Harbor Management Commission, Armstrong said he hopes to identify and meet three qualified candidates before the commissions July 20 meeting so they can decide on a recommended candidate. Armstrong said he had not spoken to Jordan in months before receiving his resignation last week. He said Jordan cited the demands of his full-time job and family in stepping down. He said he did not have the time to properly devote to this position, Armstrong said. The first year on the job he was great in it. He was on top of things and on the boat regularly. But the past year, he hasnt been doing much of anything on the job. He hasnt been attending our meetings and he hasnt been providing written reports. Jordan did not return requests for comment Ultimately, the commission will submit a list of three candidates and its recommendation to First Selectman Fred Camillo to send to the governor. We will get this done ASAP, Camillo said Friday. We want to make sure we do our due diligence and that its somebody that we will have around for a while. In announcing the opening, the town said the position will involve working with various members of the community to ensure initiatives of the Harbor Management Commission are carried out, and all state statutes are followed. Serving as harbormaster requires a knowledge of marine vessel operation. In the towns announcement, Armstrong pitched the job to potential candidates. Greenwich Harbor is an exciting place to work, he said. It is 28 miles of the wealthiest coastline in the world, not only economically but in personalities as well. To apply, contact Laura Estevez of the Greenwich Harbor Management Commission at Town Hall, 101 Field Point Road, Greenwich, CT 06830 or via email at moorings@greenwichct.org. One of three finalists, Jordan was hired in 2019 even though he lived in Stamford. At the time, then-commission chair Mike Van Oss said residency was not an issue. I thought it was most important to find the right candidate, Van Oss said. He is close enough to do his duties, and he has the right skill set to get the job done. Jordan was preceded by town resident Ian Macmillan, who had an often stormy nine-year tenure in the position with repeated clashes with the Harbor Management Commission over policy. In 2019, Macmillan did not put his name forward for a fourth term but confirmed Friday he was considering applying for the open position. kborsuk@greenwichtime.com Week 26 in review: Xiaomi 12S Ultra is bringing a 1-inch sensor on July 4 The Xiaomi 12 Ultra is finally coming. It will be called the Xiaomi 12S Ultra and may not leave China, but it's so exciting we can't wait to see it. In fact Xiaomi will unveil multiple 12S series phones on Monday and the Ultra will premiere a 1-inch type Sony IMX989 image sensor. The Nothing phone (1) was once again making rounds this week. Nothing confirmed that it would pack a Snapdragon 778G+ chipset, while a leaked listing revealed that it could start at 470 in Europe. The Indian price will reportedly be INR 31,000 for the 8/128GB and INR 32,000 for 8/256GB. Two names we've kind of forgotten in mobile tech revealed new phones - Nokia and HTC. Nokia's G11 Plus brings a 50MP main camera, 6.51-inch HD+ 90Hz display and 3-day battery life, courtesy of a 5,050mAh battery. Still, the pricing and availability of the Nokia G11 Plus are unknown at this point. HTC's Desire 22 Pro debuted with a Snapdragon 695 chipset, 4,520mAh battery, and a 6.6-inch 120Hz LCD. HTC Desire 22 Pro comes in gold and black colors and will retail for TWD 11,990 ($404) in Taiwan and 459/399 in Europe. Open sales in Taiwan start on July 1 via online and offline channels while EU buyers can place their pre-orders today and receive the phone from August 1. Have a week and see you next time! HTC Desire 22 Pro announced with Snapdragon 695 and Viverse compatibility It can connect to HTCs' Vive Flow headset and lets you manage digital assets like cryptocurrencies and NFTs directly from the phone. Samsung Galaxy XCover6 Pro official with 5G connectivity and replaceable battery The latest rugged phone from Samsung offers modern specs and the signature easily replaceable battery. Qualcomm accidentally reveals Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 launch date The unveiling will happen on November 14-17, during the annual Snapdragon Summit. Potential Huawei Mate 50 Pro design leaks in case renders The Mate 50 series missed its usual launch window last year, but a company VP said that a successor to the Mate 40 is still in the works. vivo 50W Wireless Flash Charger test We test a pair of vivo X-series flagships and an iQOO 9 Pro with the speedy wireless charger. Nothing ear (1) TWS earbuds are getting a refresh The almost identical pair might be announced alongside the Nothing phone (1). Xiaomi Black Shark 5S series specs tipped Expect the very latest Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and a 108MP main cam on the Pro model. OnePlus Nord N300 5G certified on FCC A successor to last year's North America exclusive Nord N200 5G. Infinix teases 180W Thunder Charge system Last year the company built a concept phone with 160W charging, this year it released a consumer-ready phone with 120W charging. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close News featured Arriola: Mobile Crisis Response Team 'long overdue' A mental health Mobile Crisis Response Team, which government officials said will help law enforcement and firefighters with de-escalating tense situations, is long overdue, Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center Director Theresa Arriola said. PDN File Photo The Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center in Tamuning on Jan. 2, 2020. This is a new program that is not a new topic, Arriola said. Mobile Crisis Response Team has been a topic since the 60s. According to a news release sent from the governors office, the Mobile Crisis Response Team consists of a crisis specialist and certified peer support specialist who will work with the Guam Police Department and Guam Fire Department to deal with mental health crisis calls. Calls After police secure the scene, the Mobile Crisis Response Team will help deal with mental health situations. When somebody calls us in we get notified, whether its through GPD, 911, first responder GFD, or the Guam Behavioral Health crisis hotline, and they say theyre going to, for example, theyre going to hurt themselves and theyre ready take action. Of course, immediately the Guam Behavioral Health crisis hotline staff who is trained to de-escalate at the moment will do that, Arriola explained. Simultaneously the Mobile Crisis Response Team will be dispatched to the site, at which time therell be somebody at the site who will try do de-escalate and bring that person for safe services. Arriola explained the team could have been used in recent situations, particularly when a mother had her infant daughter strapped to her chest while threatening to jump off of Two Lovers Point. The situation with the mother and the child at Two Lovers Point would be an example of how this Mobile Crisis Response Team will be onsite helping GPD, because its recognized as more of our realm of expertise rather than GPD, Arriola said. The mother in the case, Iehsa Nichelle Copeland, is accused of drowning her 1-year-old daughter before bringing her to Two Lovers Point. After hours of negotiations, Copeland turned over her child, and she was talked down from the cliff. She was subsequently arrested and charged with aggravated murder, according to court documents. In her first court hearing, Copeland was ordered by the court to be held in the Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center annex at the Department of Corrections. Court Despite the Judiciary of Guam technically not being in collaboration with Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center for the Mobile Crisis Response Team, Arriola said the courts are just as important. The judiciary has been waiting for this for a long time, so that clients in the judicial system can be better responded to in the community, and in doing so preventing them from adding another charge to their record, Arriola explained. Nobody wants more charges on their record. Mental health is an illness. It is not punitive, so we want to make sure people get the right services. In the event the Mobile Crisis Response Team is dispatched and the individual with mental health issues is the subject of the call, Arriola said Guam Behavioral will confirm if the individual had previously received treatment. Somebody who has an addiction problem, nothing happens with that addiction, they dont get better in prison. They have to get the proper services, so were all about making sure our people who need help get the right help in the right venue. Phases The Mobile Crisis Response Team has already launched its first phase, starting in June, by responding to calls from Behavioral Health clients who are over the age of 18. By starting in phases, the team can work out some of the kinks Arriola said. The second phase will begin in September and will include services for adults who are not Behavioral Health clients. There are plans to provide servicing to everyone before the end of the year. Something to be said is what happens to the children? We are talking 18 and below, because teenagers can get pretty radical too right? Arriola said. Once we get the adult Mobile Crisis Response Team well-oiled, we will be adding a youth component, because there are different issues and laws for dealing with children, said Arriola. She mentioned issues such as talking to kids without a parent or guardian present. In addition, the Mobile Crisis Response Team will partner with the nonprofit organization TOGHE to provide peer support to individuals who may be needing services. Peers are people in recovery, people who are struggling with addiction and have had the proper training and certification to help others. So part of the Mobile Response Team is having a peer, Arriola said. Top three The newly launched team is one of Arriolas top three accomplishments since she was appointed the director of Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center in 2019. We are elated. We cannot even begin to express how overdue this program has been for the community, Arriola said. Its something this administration is very very proud of. A lot of good work comes out of agencies but this is definitely top three for me, as well as the opening of the detox unit and the New Beginnings Drug and Alcohol Building that were going to be groundbreaking before the end of the year, Arriola said. Circus performers during opening night of the Super American Circus on July 1, 2022, at the Pacific Islands Club Guam. Two men with prior felony charges escaped the Department of Corrections, but were captured according to a magistrates complaint filed in the Superior Court of Guam. The Guam Police Department received a report regarding two detainees, Iverson Chewek and Donavan Gil Mondia, who had escaped on Friday from DOC. Chewek was in custody for burglary as a second-degree felony and theft of a motor vehicle as a second-degree felony while Mondia was in custody for two counts of aggravated assault as a third-degree felony, two counts of criminal mischief as a third-degree felony, theft of services as a misdemeanor and criminal trespass as a misdemeanor, according to PDN files. The two men were discovered missing when a head count was conducted by DOC personnel. Cheweks and Mondias orange DOC shirts were found in the immediate vicinity on the barbed wire directly behind the dome where there appeared to be an opening at the bottom of the fence line, the complaint stated. Chewek was spotted by DOCs Special Operations Response Team on the Route 10 roadway outside of the facility and Leyang Road in Barrigada. Meanwhile, Mondia was captured by patrol officers by the First Church of God in Barrigada just before midnight, according to PDN files. When captured, Mondia said the only reason he escaped with Chewek was that his mother was sick and he needed to see her, the complaint stated. Both men were arrested and are now charged with felony escape as a third-degree felony. Negotiators from the United States and the Federated States of Micronesia met in San Francisco recently to discuss economic assistance, federal programs and other matters related to the Compact of Free Association and other agreements between the two countries, according to a news release from the FSM. Among other things, the Compact of Free Association allows citizens from the Federated States of Micronesia to enter, work, attend school and establish residence as nonimmigrants in the United States and their territories and possessions. Under the agreement, the United States is responsible for defending the FSM, and the United States has exclusive military use rights in the country. Similar agreements exist between the Republic of Palau and the Marshall Islands. The United States also provides economic assistance and access to certain federal services and programs. These include development programs, mail transportation and other benefits. The candid and quality discussions that we have shared with the Federated States of Micronesia team assures me that the special and unique ties between our two nations are indeed enduring, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Compact Negotiations Ambassador Joseph Yun said in the release. The United States priority remains to complete our negotiations that are mutually beneficial and satisfactory, and in as timely a manner as possible. This was the third meeting between the two countries under the Biden-Harris administration to discuss the Compact of Free Association, as amended, and related subsidiary agreements between the United States and the FSM. The team from the U.S. is led by Yun, and the FSM team is led by Chief Negotiator Leo A. Falcam Jr. Our FSM team remains grateful for our continuing collaborative work with our U.S. partners, and I am encouraged by the open and frank nature of our discussions. Although a significant amount of work remains in our deliberations, I am confident that our common interests and goals will enable us to complete an agreement that is mutually beneficial and reflective of our unique and special relationship, Falcam stated in the release. Department of the Interior Deputy Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs Keone Nakoa said talks are progressing on both the official and technical levels. We remain optimistic and hopeful that we can complete significant portions of the negotiations by this fall, Nakoa said. The FSM team, led by Falcam, included Chairman of the Joint Committee on Compact Review and Planning Asterio R. Takesy and FSM Congress Vice Speaker Esmond B. Moses, FSM Senator Aren B. Palik, FSM Ambassador to the United States Akillino H. Susaia and Gerson Jackson. FSM Secretary of Finance and Administration Eugene Amor and joint committee advisers and staff were also in attendance. The United States team, led by Yun, included U.S. Ambassador to the FSM Carmen G. Cantor, Ambassador Karen B. Stewart, State Department staff, Department of Defense staff, and a team from the Department of the Interior led by Nakoa. Both sides plan to continue technical work and discussions in advance of the next formal round of negotiations scheduled to begin no later than August, at a location to be determined. Haiti - Baccalaureate : Visit of an inclusive examination center receiving disabled candidates As part of a series of visits to some examination centers for the first day of the baccalaureate exams (Friday, July 1st https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-36852-haiti-flash-baccalaureate-exams-2022-change-of-date-official.html ) 3 executives from the Ministry of National Education : Dr. Jacques Abraham, Chief of Staff to the Minister of Education, Joseph Job Maurice, General Coordinator of the Education and Quality Department and Miguel Fleurijean, Director of Secondary Education, went to observe how the exms took place at the examination center "Adventist Institute Bible Auditorium" at Espace Lavo (Lalue zone). This inclusive Examination Center which eliminates barriers between candidates, for which Jean Henry Charles Juste and Gyslaine Guerrier are in charge, receives visually impaired candidates, hard of hearing candidates, candidates with reduced mobility (wheelchair), but also candidates in full physical and mental capacity. For Miguel Fleurijean, it is a good signal that the Ministry is sending to the rest of society by setting an example for several years with this examination center which has advanced the idea that the school grants all students the same consideration whatever their physical or mental problems. It is good to remind candidates with special needs that they benefit from the support of certain Ministry technicians made available. See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-36852-haiti-flash-baccalaureate-exams-2022-change-of-date-official.html HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - Politic : The new Deputy Special Representative of the UN in Haiti met with PM Henry Thursday, June 30, the Swedish Ulrika Richardson, the new Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations, for the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Haiti (replaces French Bruno Lemarquis who has just completed his mission) met with the Prime Minister a.i. Ariel Henry, for the first time since her arrival in Haiti the previous week. During their conversation Ms. Richardson outlined her vision to strengthen UN support by working "hand in hand with national authorities and civil society to address the structural and systemic causes of development deficits in Haiti." It should be recalled that the United Nations is currently working with the Haitian authorities on the drafting of a new cooperation framework for sustainable development, which will define the way in which the United Nations, the Haitian Government and partners will work together over the next five years in development, humanitarian and political fields. Richardson quoting a Creole expression "Piti piti zwazo fe nich li" (little by little the bird makes its nest) said she wanted to spend time learning about the challenges facing the country, but also its rich and beautiful culture. Learn more about Ulrika Richardson : Mrs. Ulrika Richardson, has devoted more than 30 years to international cooperation. Most of her professional life has been devoted to international civilian service in the field through the United Nations, primarily in West and Central Africa, the Caribbean as well as in the Western Balkans and South Eastern Europe. Ms. Richardson has extensive development, conflict, post-conflict and humanitarian experience in a wide range of complex political, socio-economic, fragility and human rights contexts, with a strong track record defending the rights of women and children. She is also known for her in-depth knowledge of the multi-dimensional challenges facing small island developing states. Richardson has extensive experience in international affairs and development cooperation, having served as Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Gabon (2012-2013), Deputy Resident Representative in Turkey (2007- 2012) and in Cuba (2004-2007), She holds a master's degree in development economics from the University of Gothenburg and a bachelor's degree in social sciences from Lund University, both in Sweden. She is fluent in English, French, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish. S/ HaitiLibre : stella2284 (), : NorthEast : Fake bankruptcy boots fall, the hourglass of time is about to bottom out, Guo Wengui suffers by hims : BBS (Sat Jul 2 23:49:16 2022, ) Changs hatred is that people are not as good as water, and it is easy to make waves. Repaying debts is a matter of course, but the billions of negative Weng Guo Wengui chose to interpret the image of a rogue into a heart-wrenching way, telling lies to make me dizzy. At the court meeting on the 18th of this month, the judge sternly warned Benggui to determine the 37 million bond plan as soon as possible, otherwise the execution of the motion for contempt of court judgment and the dismissal of the bankruptcy motion will be resumed. Time Shahu will bottom out sooner than he expected. This means that there will be no more hearings in this case before the 27th, when the judge will hear PAXs motion to resume execution of contempt of court judgment and dismiss Guo Lis bankruptcy motion. The judge and the Bankruptcy Bureau knew Guo Wenguis thoughts very well, and making a motion was nothing more than a stalker, going through the judicial process again to delay time, and waiting for Gods blessing to save the day. Obviously, Guo Jiaozhu was in a dream again. The judge said that the hourglass bottomed out faster and completely extinguished his small flame of survival. In the PAX case that has been entangled for many years, Guo Wengui can be said to be conspiratorial, transferring assets to play with PAX, and trampling on American laws. His shameless, ignorant, and fearless actions have made the judge and PAX angry. PAX is not short of money at all, so perseverance is just to maintain the rule of law and justice, but Guo Wengui only has money in his eyes, but there is no law. When he was cornered, he cried and filed for bankruptcy, while he showed off his wealth in the live broadcast room and fooled Ant to continue investing, intending to cross the sky and make PAX happy, so that the court would be helpless to him, and he could cut another leek. Although the judicial process in the United States is slow, it is by no means a decoration, allowing a red notice to do whatever he wants. Guo Wengui smelled the smell and knew that something was wrong. When he was in a panic, he proposed to give the yacht LadyMay to the creditors, take out the assets and settle with PAX. As expected, this is another scam directed and acted by the Guo family. Guo Mei filed a lawsuit against her father in court , and did not agree with Wengui to repay her debts. lie on. Tiger Poison still does not eat its children. Guo Wengui used his children as a shield to protect himself. In the face of his own children, how can comrades-in-arms kiss flesh and blood? In the big live broadcast on April 19, Guo Jiaozhu publicly announced that due to various incidents in the frontline rescue in Ukraine, David, one of the three standing committee members of Xiguo, had been kicked out of the iron-blooded group. The plot of the European version of Wei Lihong appeared again, and Brother Bullying turned his face in seconds, making ant fans tremble again. -- :WWW mitbbs.com [FROM: 2604:9cc0:0:39a] EXILED former Cabinet minister Jonathan Moyo has intensified attacks on the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) for allegedly not having structures. Moyo yesterday claimed that CCC was operating as a secret society due to the absence of structures and a constitution. It is a confirmed fact that CCC is a brand new party with no founding process, no constitution, no structures, and no elected leadership. This fact means CCC is operating illegally, like a secret society. Its not a dirty tactic to point this fact out, Moyo tweeted. In a long Twitter thread recently, Moyo claimed that CCCs refusal to be transparent on its structures had prompted the discussion to have the political parties registered. When NewsDay contacted CCC president Nelson Chamisa, he referred questions to party spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere and her deputy Gift Siziba. Efforts to get hold of Mahere were futile as her number was not reachable. Siziba promised to respond after speaking to Mahere, but had not replied by the time of going to print. Political analyst Rejoice Ngwenya wondered over Moyos obsession with CCC. Moyos obsession with CCC structures is curious. As long as there is no law that says political parties have to be registered or should have structures, there is nothing to debate on. Anybody, according to the law, can contest for political office as long as they are on the voters roll. Its not the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) or CCC that changes laws. Its Parliament, Ngwenya said. CCC is not a non-governmental organisation governed by the Private Voluntary Organisations Act or Deeds Act. Its legitimacy is based on acceptability to Zec as an electoral contestant. The Constitution permits association and assembly, so as long as CCC presents itself as an electoral body and gets accepted by Zec, its legitimacy is cast in rock-solid stone, he added. The utterances point to a person who is prepared to be readmitted into Zanu PF and return home, at any cost. In this instance, by demonstrating hatred for Zanu PFs rivals in order to please the party, another analyst Kudakwashe Munemo said. Section 3 of the Constitution, which declares Zimbabwe as a multi-party democratic system, does not define the nature, functions, and rights of political parties. Newsday In a case pregnant with intrigue, bizarre episodes and curious developments involving what appears to be a sophisticated criminal Chinese cartel, the Registrar Generals office was forced to cancel a burial order, death certificate and identity documents for a deceased Chinese national following the detection of identity fraud. The developments followed the death of the suspected Chinese cartel member Zhaoxi Wu who was using forged identity documents while living in Zimbabwe. His wife Yan Yu was now allegedly seeking to fraudulently register the estate of a living person whom her husband had been impersonating. The late Zhaoxi arrived in Zimbabwe in the late 1990s and fraudulently obtained identity and travel documents in the name of Zhaosheng Wu who happens to be his brother and with whom he was involved in reportedly shady business deals. The identity scam, according to victims of their alleged con-artistry, was designed to facilitate and conceal their crimes. The brothers are said to be on the wanted list of many countries around the globe. Most of the cartels assets including mines, swathes of prime land in Harare and elsewhere across the country, huge interests in tourism and hospitality, among other properties are registered in Zhaoshengs name. This is the estate that Yan is seeking to register as her late husbands estate. The protracted legal battle pitting Yan and a group of Zimbabwean businessmen led by Washington Frera and Vincent Tom Baris, who claim to be victims of the Chinese cartel and which battle has become a common feature at the courts, has opened a can of worms. Information that has been presented to the courts in this battle exposed the many fraudulent activities, dirty schemes and involvement of government officials which, among other shocking criminal acts, led to the secretive burial of the late Zhaoxi at some farm in Chegutu where the grave has been marked under a different name. It took the involvement of the Presidents Office to locate the grave and there are reportedly ongoing efforts to have the body in that grave exhumed for further identity verification. Latest in the legal battle is a June 22, 2022 Supreme Court application for leave to appeal against a High Court judgment that was passed on June 6 2022, which overturned an earlier magistrates court ruling acquitting the Zimbabwean businessmen of fraud and forgery charges pressed against them by Yan. Yan is the appellant in the High Court case, which has found the Zimbabwean businessmen guilty of fraud and forging signatures to documents that seek to change ownership of some prime land in Waterfalls, Harare from Yan through inheritance of her husband Zhaoshengs estate. The basis of the businessmens appeal to the Supreme Court, however, is Yans alleged fraudulent claim to the estate. While she claims in various court hearings and through sworn affidavits that she is Zhaoshengs wife and that her husband is dead, it has been proven that in fact Yans husband is actually Zhaoxi. The Chinese embassy and Zimbabwean authorities have confirmed that Yans claims are false and that in fact, Zhaosheng is alive in China and that Yans husband, Zhaoxi is the one who died in Zimbabwe in 2017. Details of the various court proceedings in which Yan purports to be the wife of Zhaosheng whom she also claims is dead is a story for another day. Several months investigations by The Standard revealed how the RGs office was duped into issuing a passport and national identity document to Zhaoxi in the name of Zhaosheng and also how, after his death, Zhaoxis wife Yan managed to fraudulently obtain a death certificate and burial order for her husband Zhaoxi in the name of Zhaosheng, who is alive. The mystery deepened as our investigations took us to a lone grave in the middle of a remote farm in Chegutu where Zhaoxi aka Zhaosheng W was buried under another different name. According to documents in our possession, a communication between the RGs Office and the Presidents Office dated January 18 2022, the Foreign Affairs ministry and the Chinese embassy were involved in the issuance of the burial order for Zhaoxis body under the false identity Zhaosheng. Upon unearthing the identity scam when issues of the deceaseds estate arose with Yan claiming that she was the late Zhaoshengs widow the Presidents Office immediately wrote to the RGs requesting the cancellation of the burial order and identity documents for Zhaosheng as they were products of fraud. Part of the response by the RG to this request reads: He (Zhaoxi Wu) used this identity document and name Zhaosheng Wu until his death on 04 June 2017. On 07 July 2017 the permanent secretary of Foreign Affairs wrote to the chief director of Immigration on behalf of the Chinese embassy requesting for the burial order for Zhaosheng Wu. However, the identity of the deceased was queried and on June 8 2017, the secretary for Foreign Affairs again wrote to the chief director of Immigration requesting for assistance to have DNA samples extracted from the deceased for identity verification and assistance with the burial order or repatriation, depending on the outcome of the identity verification. Meanwhile, correspondence from the Chinese embassy and the chief director of Immigration both requested the issuance of the burial order under the identities previously given, ie Zhaosheng Wu. This paved way for the issuance of the burial order by the Registrar General on 08 August 2017. The burial order was issued at Parirenyatwa Hospital Sub-Office. As a result Zhaoxi Wu was buried as Zhaosheng Wu at Tiverton Farm in Chegutu which is registered under the laters name. The registrar general further wrote: On 31 January 2018 the Chinese embassy wrote to Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirming that the so-called Zhaosheng Wu who had died in Harare was actually Zhaoxi Wu and the two were actually brothers. Zhaosheng Wu was in China at the time of his brothers death. The Chinese embassy further requested through the Minsitry of Foreign Affairs that the death certificate of the deceased be produced in the name of Zhaoxi Wu. This explains why the burial order bears the name Zhaosheng and the death certificate is in the name Zhaoxi. The burial order however should have been returned to the issuing office soon after burial. This was not done. At the time of his death Zhaoxi was married to Yan and she was the one who was issued with the burial order as the closest relative to the deceased. In an interview recently, one of the Zimbabwean businessmen Tom-Baris told The Standard that they believed there was deliberate and criminal intent by Yan to misrepresent her dead husband as Zhaosheng. The plan, he said, was to fraudulently claim the many assets owned by Zhaosheng whom she falsely claimed was her deceased husband. The Waterfalls property in Harare which is at the centre of the court battle is one of the target assets which Tom-Baris and his partners say was bought by their company in a transaction involving a gold mine in Bindura. Tom-Baris cited the false claims by Yan that her husband was Zhaosheng and her fraudulent attempts to register Zhaoshengs estate as the bona fide widow, as evidence of her deceptive and unreliable character. Instead of dragging us to the courts, Yan should be arrested on sight for the many criminal actions that she stands guilty of, he said. On her apparent admission, she connived with her late husband to obtain false identity documents for him, then she proceeded to apply for a burial order for her husband Zhaoxi Wu under a false identity,before illegally keeping the burial order and using it to dupe the Master of the High Court into registering Zhaoshengs estate and making her the executor. That alone warrants her immediate arrest and deportation, Tom-Baris fumed. She even registered her own two children with Zhaoxi Wu as Zhaosheng Wus children as a way to fraudulently make them heirs to the estate of a person who is still alive, said Tom-Baris adding that the courts would eventually vindicate him. Contacted for comment last week, Yan dismissed claims by Tom-Baris and his colleagues saying she was being victimised because she was a vulnerable widow who did not have protection. She insisted she was innocent and that the June 4 High Court order overturning the lower court ruling vindicated her. She refused to respond to allegations of her colluding in the fraudulent registration of a Zimbabwean identity document by her husband as Zhaosheng and her providing this false information in the death notice following the demise of her husband Zhaoxi. If you perused the court records then it means you already know my side of the story, Yan said. You have the full story already. I have nothing to add or subtract from what is already on record. If you are a professional reporter who is there to report facts as they are you already know and you need not ask for my side of the story. Evidence at hand, however, further confirms that Yan registered Zhaoshengs estate under DR 1561/17 proclaiming herself as the widow of the deceased and thereby fraudulently obtaining letters of administration of the deceased person under her name when in fact Zhaosheng is alive. She also registered her own two children with her husband Zhaoxi as heirs to Zhaoshengs estate. The master of the High Court has, however, since cancelled the estate after realising the fraudulent nature of documents deposited with them. The deputy master of the High Court, K.F Chigomararwa wrote to Tom-Baris confirming they had since received confirmation from the RGs office indicating that the death certificate and other documents issued in respect of Zhaosheng had been cancelled on August 3 2018 after it was discovered that the so-called Zhaosheng was an imposter and the Zimbabwean identity documents had been fraudulently acquired. The letter written on April 2022, copy of which is with The Standard reads: It is, therefore, against this background that we have taken a position to cancel the registration of the deceased estate from our register. Accordingly, it follows that all proceedings to do with the administration of the estate have been set aside and letters of appointment issued in favour of Yan Yu as the executrix dative have been revoked. The whole process has been rendered invalid and the record is recorded as closed. Standard Welcome Guest! You Are Here: THE Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) has altered the voters roll for various constituencies and wards in a move meant to correct errors. This comes after a number of civic society groups and opposition political parties complained about anomalies on the voters roll. In a Government Gazette dated July 1, Zec chief elections officer, Utoile Silaigwana said the alteration was meant to fix errors. It is hereby notified in terms of section 35(2) of the Electoral Act [Chapter 2:13], that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has altered the voters roll for the constituencies and wards listed to correct errors contained therein Silaigwana said. By the means of this notice, notification is made to any voter whose name appears in the first schedule who may have an objection to the alteration/correction to lodge an objection at the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission Mahachi Quantum or at respective commission provincial and district offices to the inclusion of his or her name not later than seven days from the date of publication of this notice. Election Resource Centre (ERC) programmes manager Solomon Bobosibunu said they had been calling on Zec to update the voters roll regularly. The ERC has for long called on the voters roll to be updated regularly as one of the means to restore voters and stakeholders confidence in Zimbabwean elections, he said. The intention must be to achieve an almost up-to-date/current voters roll in line with the principle of currency of the roll. We welcome the development and would further call on Zec to share data. Meanwhile, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has proclaimed a by-election in the Gokwe-Kabuyuni constituency which became vacant following the death of Leonard Chikomba. The nomination court will sit on July 22, while the election will be held on August 27, 2022. Newsday This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate When award-winning childrens author Jerry Craft learned that his books had been branded critical race theory by some Katy ISD parents last year, the first thing he did was Google critical race theory. Hed never heard the term before, and he was nonplussed at the notion that his critically acclaimed young adult graphic novels could be deemed controversial. Despite having once been banned by the Katy school district, Craft made a grand gesture of no hard feelings when he made a special appearance at Katy bookstore Brown Sugar Cafe and Books on Friday. The decorated author and cartoonists books New Kid and Class Act were pulled from Katy ISD libraries and his scheduled speaking engagement was initially canceled in the 2021-22 school year after about 400 parents alleged that the books promoted critical race theory. They were later reinstated after thousands of parents countered the dissenters and demanded that the books be returned, but the controversy continues in Katy ISD board meetings each month. The books focus on the life of a young Black student who attends a predominately white private school. They are largely based on Crafts own experiences growing up, he said. Craft stated that he was inspired to write the books because growing up, he struggled to find literature that represented him. Black authors were scarce, and books that focused on Black experience were overwhelmingly negative. When I did find books about Black people, it was always a struggle. It was, I would say, history or misery, he said. It was like, 300 years ago it was a struggle, or in the Civil Rights era it was a struggle, or if it was now it was the police, and its a struggle. None of the literature spoke to him as a child with a loving home and generally positive childhood, Craft said. I'm like, Can the kid just go and get some ice cream and have a dad and mom that loves him and make some goofy dad jokes? The graphic novels quickly became international best sellers and have been translated into 12 different languages. New Kid is the only book in history to win the John Newbery Medal for the Most Outstanding Contribution to Children's Literature, the The Kirkus Prize for Young Readers Literature and the Coretta Scott King author award for the Most Outstanding Work by an African American Writer, said Tonya Ellis, a childrens book author from Missouri City who moderated the speaking engagement. It wasnt Crafts distinguished awards that made international news, however. It was the news that a small group of parents in Katy tried to ban his books. After the Houston Chronicle first reported the ban, Craft was launched into a global discussion on book banning. All of a sudden, I'm talking to CNN and NPR. I'm getting calls from the BBC from London, Craft recalled. (I was) drawing cartoons, minding my own business and making happy books, and now Im talking to Don Lemon. Craft believes that his books were branded controversial because the parents calling for the ban didnt actually read his books. The parents calling for the books removal claimed that it made white children feel bad for being white. While the books do feature some tension between races, Craft said, its not the point of the story. Its not a Black versus white book, which is what a lot of people thought I was trying to portray, Craft said. Because if you actually read the book, which I don't think they ever read the book, some of the meanest things happen between African American kids. When the books were reinstated in Katy ISD libraries, the district contacted his publisher and asked if Craft would be willing to reschedule the speaking engagement that had been canceled. (My publisher) said, We understand if you dont want to. We understand if youre salty because of how they treated you, Craft recalled. But the truth is, the only ones that miss out are the kids. It was in the same spirit that Craft traveled from his home in New York to meet with the children in Katy, where his books were banned. Brown Sugar Books and Cafe was packed to standing room only as Crafts fans, who fought back against the ban, congregated to hear him speak and sign their books. That some of his strongest supporters had come to the bookstore was not lost on Craft. When my first book was published and I got to hold it for the first time, it really was a dream come true, Craft said. I have to say this crowd here kind of rivals that because of whats happened here in Katy. Some parents, like Farah Cardnell, hadnt heard of Crafts works until the ban but purchased the books for their children when they heard about the controversy. Cardnell brought her 8-year-old daughter, Isla, and 11-year-old niece, Victoria to the event. I wanted to make sure that if school districts like this and a state like this is going to try to prevent our children from reading something, then thats absolutely what they need to read. Isla said the books are among her favorites. I read them again and again, she said. I like at the end where everyone has learned to be nice, and theyre all best friends. I really liked the books because they show problems that people face with diversity and inequality that not everyone sees, Victoria added. These books are really popular because they tell people who might not know about the problems. Twins Camary White and Cambri White, age 8, were among the young fans eager to meet Craft and get their books signed. I think the most important thing you learn from the books is not to make fun of people, Camary said. When I read the books it really made me think about being nice to everyone, Cambri added. Craft had other big news for fans. He just inked a deal with LeBron James film production company SpringHill Company to create a live action film adaptation of New Kid. Craft will be the executive producer, and he promises to keep the film true to the source material. claire.goodman@chron.com AKRON, Ohio (AP) A Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again, authorities said Sunday at a news conference. Akron police released video of the shooting of Jayland Walker, 25, who was killed June 27 in a pursuit that had started with an attempted traffic stop. The mayor called the shooting heartbreaking while asking for patience from the community. It's not clear how many shots were fired by the eight officers involved, but Walker sustained more than 60 wounds. An attorney for Walker's family said officers kept firing even after he was on the ground. Officers attempted to stop Walker's car around 12:30 a.m. for unspecified traffic and equipment violations, but less than a minute into a pursuit, the sound of a shot was heard from the car, and a transportation department camera captured what appeared to be a muzzle flash coming from the vehicle, Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said. That changed the nature of the case from a routine traffic stop to now a public safety issue," he said. Police body camera videos show what unfolded after the roughly six-minute pursuit. Several shouting officers with guns drawn approach the slowing car on foot, as it rolls up over a curb and onto a sidewalk. A person wearing a ski mask exits the passenger door and runs toward a parking lot. Police chase him for about 10 seconds before officers fire from multiple directions, in a burst of shots that lasts 6 or 7 seconds. At least one officer had tried first to use a stun gun, but that was unsuccessful, police said. Mylett said Walkers actions are hard to distinguish on the video in real time, but a still photo seems to show him going down to his waist area and another appears to show him turning toward an officer. He said a third picture captures a forward motion of his arm. In a statement shared Sunday with reporters, the local police union said the officers thought there was an immediate threat of serious harm, and that it believes their actions and the number of shots will be found justified in line with their training and protocols. The union said the officers are cooperating with the investigation. Police said more than 60 wounds were found on Walkers body but further investigation is needed to determine exactly how many rounds the officers fired and how many times Walker was hit. The footage released by police ends with the officers' gunfire and doesn't show what happened next. Officers provided aid, and one can be heard saying Walker still had a pulse, but he was later pronounced dead, Mylett said. The chief said an officer firing at someone has to be ready to explain why they did what they did, they need to be able to articulate what specific threats they were facing ... and they need to be held to account. But he said he is withholding judgment on their actions until they give their statements. A handgun, a loaded magazine and an apparent wedding ring were found on the seat of the car. A casing consistent with the weapon was later found in the area where officers believed a shot had come from the vehicle. State Attorney General Dave Yost vowed a complete, fair and expert investigation" by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and cautioned that body-worn camera footage is just one view of the whole picture." Akron police are conducting a separate internal investigation about whether the officers violated department rules or policies. The officers involved in the shooting are on paid administrative leave, which is standard practice in such cases. Seven of them are white, and one is Black, according to the department. Their length of service with Akron police ranges from one-and-a-half to six years, and none of them has a record of discipline, substantiated complaints or fatal shootings, it said. Demonstrators marched peacefully through the city and gathered in front of the Akron justice center after the video was released. NAACP President Derrick Johnson said in a statement that Walkers death wasn't self-defense, but was murder. Point blank. Late Sunday, police in full riot gear fired a dozen tear gas cannisters to disperse a handful of protesters outside the justice center, WKYC-TV reported. Walkers family is calling for accountability but also for peace, their lawyers said. One of the attorneys, Bobby DiCello, called the burst of police gunfire excessive and unreasonable, and said police handcuffed Walker before trying to provide first aid. How it got to this with a pursuit is beyond me, DiCello said. He said Walkers family doesnt know why he fled from police. Walker was grieving the recent death of his fiancee, but his family had no indication of concern beyond that, and he wasn't a criminal, DiCello said. I hope we remember that as Jayland ran across that parking lot, he was unarmed, DiCello said. He said he doesnt know whether the gold ring found near the gun in the car belonged to Walker. OnScene TV A 5-year-old child was killed and an 8-year-old injured Sunday morning in a drive-by shooting in Greenspoint in north Houston. The children were in a vehicle with their mother about 1 a.m. when someone in another car opened fire on them in the 13300 block of Northborough Drive, according to Houston Assistant Chief Chandra Hatcher. A Bexar County sheriffs deputy is accused of driving while intoxicated and evading arrest. Deputy Ernesto Garza, 32, was arrested about 2:30 a.m. Friday by San Antonio police, the Sheriffs Office said. Garza, who has been with the department for at least eight years, is assigned to the law enforcement bureau as an investigator. CRIME: Harris County deputy under investigation after video shows constable 'brake-checking' a cyclist This is a seasoned law enforcement investigator who undoubtedly knows his actions were wrong, Sheriff Javier Salazar said in a statement. Its my belief he knowingly gambled with his career and is well on his way to losing that bet. Putting the lives of the public and the first responders who arrested him at risk is inexcusable. The consequences will be swift and severe. Garza has been served a notice of proposed dismissal for the arrest in accordance with Sheriffs Office policies and procedures and with Bexar County Civil Service rules, officials said. A request for additional details regarding Garzas arrest has been submitted to police. Garza has posted bonds totaling $11,000 and was set to be released from the Bexar County Jail, according to court records. JBeltran@express-news.net This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 1 of 2 Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Elizabeth Conley, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer Show More Show Less Houston police officers responded to a call for service to assist with a family disturbance at the home of Police Chief Troy Finner Saturday afternoon. The call came in at around 3:45 p.m. when a supervisor was dispatched to visit the residence, according to a Houston Police Department statement on Twitter. A man was found fatally shot Sunday in west Houston after a possibly drug-related robbery. Officers found the man dead with "an obvious gunshot wound" in the driver's seat of his vehicle about 12:40 a.m. in the parking lot of a dry cleaners in the 1800 block of Kieth Harrow Boulevard, according to the Harris County sheriff's office. CRIME: 5-year-old is fatally shot and 8-year-old is injured in a drive-by Greenspoint shooting, police say They also found illegal drugs inside the car and on the ground outside, the sheriff's office said. Investigators believe the man was killed during a robbery. The sheriff's office is conducting an investigation. In the wake of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision, Texas medical professionals worry about retaining well-trained OB-GYNs as opportunities to learn about abortion fade a problem that medical schools are grappling with nationwide. Nearly half of all OB-GYN residency programs are located in the 26 states certain or likely to outlaw abortions following the court decision, according to an article in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology. A recent report from the American Association of Medical Colleges details how those laws could make it harder for the next generation of OB-GYNs to learn about the fundamental procedure, which is often necessary to complete a miscarriage or save a pregnant patients life. Dr. Paul Klotman, CEO and president of Baylor College of Medicine, acknowledged the potential disruptions in an email to faculty on Tuesday. Baylor is one of four major medical schools in the Houston area, including McGovern Medical School, the largest in Texas. We will work with the AAMC and other groups to fully understand the implications and determine how we continue to train our future healthcare providers in reproductive care following this ruling, he said in the email. We are committed to assuring that all of our students and trainees continue to receive an outstanding medical education. Now, with fewer options for clinical experience in Texas, students might favor residency programs in less restrictive states, and doctors currently training here may be forced to complete temporary rotations elsewhere. On HoustonChronicle.com: After Roe v. Wade ruling, Houston women are deleting period tracking apps, citing privacy concerns Texas OB-GYN residency programs already feel the pressure, said Dr. Kimberly Pilkinton, a former OB-GYN residency program director and president-elect of the Texas Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Some students are already considering plans for their futures with this in mind, and residency program directors have already seen those student applicants asking about their adequacy of training, said Pilkinton, who asked not to include her institutional affiliation in this story. I sure hope that our current Texas residents feel they are still getting great training and will remain in Texas to finish their residencies and that many choose to help us care for patients in our state thereafter. The legal landscape around abortions has changed dramatically in Texas since Senate Bill 8, also known as the Heartbeat Act, went into effect last September. Traditionally, doctors used abortion techniques, either with surgical interventions or medications, to manage pregnancy complications. It also was an option when pregnancy scans revealed severe fetal anomalies, which can result in chronic illnesses, serious disabilities or a stillbirth. Now, these previously routine interventions are subject to intense legal scrutiny. Even when OB-GYNs recommend termination to save a pregnant patients life, some Texas hospitals hesitate to do it because of the narrow exemptions in state laws. And Planned Parenthood clinics a common training ground for OB-GYN residents have dramatically scaled back abortion services. The AAMC report notes every resident at an accredited OB-GYN program must have access to abortion training, according to requirements established by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Residents with religious or ethical objections can opt out of abortion training, but they still must learn how to discuss the procedure with patients and treat complications from it, the report says. Some current Texas OB-GYN residents are looking to less restrictive states to bolster their abortion education. Dr. Lauren Thaxton, an assistant professor of womens health at The University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, said in the AAMC report that two OB-GYN residents at Dell recently completed a month-long rotation in California. Some residents said they didnt feel comfortable managing a second-trimester pregnancy loss, so she resorted to using a small watermelon to stand in as a uterus when teaching dilation and evacuation, a procedure used to either empty the uterus following a miscarriage or to end a pregnancy. Some residency programs have obtained outside funding for residents interested in out-of-state abortion training, Pilkinton said. In addition to added costs, those arrangements also require coordination to create travel schedules and work through complex licensing and insurance requirements. The question will be if less restrictive states can continue to accommodate those needs with potentially more states becoming far more restrictive, said Pilkinton. The full impact of the decision is still unraveling. In Texas, the frustration and confusion among the most experienced healthcare professionals has trickled down to residents. One board-certified OB-GYN in Houston, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to concerns about backlash , said the restrictions create an environment rife with ethical dilemmas, limiting what she can recommend for medically complex pregnancies. As a result, residents are not exposed to proper counseling techniques or the full slate of reproductive healthcare options. I see residents are confused about (abortion) because theyve trained in this dystopian universe, even though this procedure is the basic standard of care in obstetrics, she said, adding, Its severely impacting their ability to learn how to be confident OB-GYNs, which is horrifying. She said she will soon be interviewing incoming residents and fellows who want to train at a Houston-area medical school. I dont know how I can in good faith tell people to come to our program, she said. julian.gill@chron.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The day after the May 24 school shooting in Uvalde, Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller met with Joe Garcia whose wife, Irma Garcia, was one of the two fourth-grade teachers killed that day and their four children. On the drive back to Uvalde the next day, Garcia-Siller learned Joe Garcia had died of an apparent heart attack. He asked to see their children, eventually gathering them to talk about their loss. Just before leaving to hold a memorial Mass for victims of the massacre, he asked one of the children to close the door of the room where they were talking. He needed to be honest with them about something about someone else who wanted his guidance. The mother of the one who killed your mother has asked for help, he confided to the children. I will help all. I do not know what we will talk about, or what will happen, but I need your help. I need your prayer. The children nodded. Ronald Cortes Garcia-Siller, 65, has been enveloped by grief since the massacre, when a 18-year-old gunman slaughtered the two teachers and 19 children at Robb Elementary School. Hes spent many hours comforting survivors and families of the dead. THE LATEST: Embattled Uvalde CISD Police Chief Pete Arredondo steps down from city council after mass shooting The Archdiocese of San Antonio includes Uvalde. When another tragedy unfolded early last week with the deaths of 53 immigrants from Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and elsewhere in a human-smuggling incident on San Antonios Southwest Side he again consoled stunned survivors and grieving families. REPORT: Record number of migrants died in the Americas in 2021 The archbishop said prayer and periods of silence give him strength when dealing with shock and sorrow. Yet, the experience of both mass-casualty episodes just six weeks apart has left him raw and angry, as well as mournful. And he has strong words for Texas political leaders. He knew only one of their names Since what happened in Uvalde, there has not been one word from my leader in my state of compassion, of care, of pain, said Garcia-Siller, who was named archbishop of San Antonio in 2010. Gov. Greg Abbott is using the situations, including the deaths of these people, for personal gain. On Monday night, less than three hours after San Antonio first-responders discovered an abandoned tractor-trailer packed with the bodies of immigrants whod died from extreme heat on a narrow, nearly deserted road, Abbott placed the blame squarely on President Joe Biden. These deaths are on Biden, Abbott said in a post from his personal Twitter account. They are a result of his deadly open border policies. They show the deadly consequences of his refusal to enforce the law. AT THE BORDER: Abbott announces new truck checkpoints on border in wake of migrant deaths The Republican governor on Wednesday vowed to step up truck inspections along the border in the wake of Mondays tragedy. The checkpoints will be mobile, he said, and will be overseen by troopers from the Texas Department of Public Safety. Last week, Garcia-Siller visited the 11 immigrants who survived the overwhelming heat of the tractor-trailer that the driver allegedly Homero Zamorano Jr., 45, of Palestine in East Texas abandoned on a narrow, nearly deserted section of Quintana Road near Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland. Ronald Cortes The survivors were receiving treatment at several area hospitals. Garcia-Siller lamented knowing only one name of the survivors he visited. He said comforting individuals whose names he didnt know, some of them clinging to life, was a powerful reminder of what he deems the abandonment many immigrants endure in the U.S. Its a new slavery, he said. Human trafficking is connected with this. Organized crime starts in their country of origin, continues on the way and we have it in the U.S. SMUGGLING: After 53 migrants found dead, experts say strict border policies only fuel desperation Garcia-Siller believes apathy has gripped American society and its leaders, now numb to tragedies as they wait for the next one. In his view, the country is on a disastrous path. We have made money an idol in the U.S., along with other things, like firearms, Garcia-Siller said. People in leadership and non-leadership, they get away with murder. Theyre signs, from many places, of a culture of death. A lack of integral immigration reform is a long-festering symptom of that culture, he said. Ronald Cortes Here, with the resources we have, with the system we have, with a beautiful constitution that inspires and calls to action, we cannot do anything to treat people like human beings? said Garcia-Siller, a native of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Its not acceptable. Humane immigration reform, he said, would value individuals, not seeing immigrants trekking to the United States as statistics or threats. Most undocumented immigrants are forced into the shadows, living in fear of being discovered, which makes them suspicious of most people, even those who might offer help. The archbishop said he was allowed to visit the survivors because hed pledged not to ask them about their experience in the trailer or attempt to extract information that was investigators job. I am the face of many people that would like to be here with you, Garcia-Siller recalled telling the survivors. I want to be the best I can for you. THE SURVIVORS: 4 hospitalized migrants in San Antonio reported to be kids among a growing number of migrating minors He encouraged Serenidad, a 16-year-old girl who was the only survivor with whom he was able to verbally communicate, to call home when she could to give peace and hope to her loved ones. He asked her to trust those who want to help her: medical staff, police officers and others dedicated to her well-being. Immigrants in the U.S. lose their sense of self for the sake of a better life for themselves and, most often, their families, Garcia-Siller said. Any attempt to reform immigration must account for the faces behind the statistics, and it must humanize all immigrants regardless of where they come from. Ronald Cortes Haz el bien sin mirar a quien, Garcia-Siller said, quoting an adage that translates to: Do good without regard to whom. The archbishop questioned why immigrants from the south face many Americans fear and hatred unlike immigrants and refugees from elsewhere. He recalled speaking to Ukrainian immigrants during a World Refugee Day event who claimed their experience entering the U.S. through Mexico was largely positive. He wondered: Why are there differences? Why is there a feeling and discourse in the U.S. that the south is bad they do us harm, they are invaders? He drew a direct line between the 53 dead and the dehumanization of immigrants. Those people were abandoned to die in that box, Garcia-Siller said, his unfocused stare seemingly picturing the conditions inside the tractor-trailer. Its hard for me even to say it, but (it is) like when we are cooking food and barbecue Burned, the archbishop uttered, his voice breaking. They couldnt breathe, and Im sure that reactions of survival (became) kind of inhuman in that box. Ronald Cortes It is because we dont care, he said, sighing deeply. Garcia-Siller and other clergy leaders have been lobbying federal and state governments to reform their immigration policies, to make them more humane, for decades. Theyve made little progress, but he believes the efforts havent been in vain. Nothing has been done about the law to make a radical change, but we with many people we have done good. Little good, but we have done good, Garcia-Siller said. Thursday night, Garcia-Siller held a memorial Mass for those found dead and dying in the tractor-trailer and for their loved ones as well as for any individual, regardless of faith, with a heart for the immigrant. Solidarity is different when you suffer alone than when you suffer together, Garcia-Siller said. Were going to suffer together and embrace as much and as close as we can those who have died, those who survived and their families. Ricardo.Delgado@express-news.net This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The young married couple frequently wrote gushing comments to one another on social media. There is no smile or eyes more beautiful than yours, Alejandro Miguel Andino Caballero, 22, wrote in Spanish to his wife, Margie Tamara Paz Grajera, 20, on Facebook on May 23. About a week and a half later, they left their home in Honduras for the United States, along with Caballeros brother, Fernando Jose Redondo Caballero, 18. The trio were likely among the 53 immigrants who died in one of the nations deadliest human smuggling incidents. It unfolded on a desolate road on the Southwest Side late Monday. The immigrants, who were crowded into a tractor-trailer that turned suffocating in the South Texas heat, came from Mexico and across Central America. On Wednesday, the Honduran Foreign Ministry said it couldnt positively identify the three family members yet. The ministry was working with Bexar County officials to confirm their identities. On ExpressNews.com: The semitrailer migrants traveled in could have reached 150 degrees, experts say Also among the dead were two sisters who dreamed of a better life Carla and Griselda Carac-Tambriz, of Guatemala and 28-year-old Adela Betulia Ramirez Quezada, of Honduras. Quezada's mother and sister live in Los Angeles, according to a Honduran newspaper. County officials on Wednesday continued the grinding work of identifying victims 40 of whom were male and 13 of whom were female. So far, they had potentially IDd 37. Some of the immigrants packed into the trailer of the red Volvo truck carried fake official documents, slowing authorities efforts to learn their names, ages and where they were from. Working with the consulates of Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador adds an additional layer of complications for local officials. The sheer number of victims is straining the Bexar County Medical Examiners Office, prompting its staff to turn to counterparts in Travis and Dallas counties for help with autopsies. They hope to complete the grim work in the next few days. The survivors As county officials tended to the dead, survivors of the human smuggling disaster continued to receive treatment at local hospitals Wednesday. Initially, sixteen people were transported to area hospitals 12 adults and four pediatric patients. Five have since died. At University Hospital, a 23-year-old woman remained in fair condition, and an adolescent boy was in critical condition Wednesday. One male was in critical condition, and another male and a female were in serious condition at Methodist Hospital Metropolitan downtown. A patient at Texas Vista, formerly Southwest General Hospital, remained in critical but stable condition. Two survivors were still being treated at CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Hospital in Westover Hills, along with one patient at The Childrens Hospital of San Antonio. Their ages and health statuses were unknown. Baptist Medical Center downtown took in two patients, who were in critical condition late Tuesday. On Monday, San Antonio temperatures hovered close to 100 degrees. The back of the rig was refrigerated, but no air-conditioning unit was visible when emergency personnel entered. Many of the survivors suffered from heat stroke and heat exhaustion. Authorities said there appeared to be no drinking water in the trailer. Federal authorities later arrested four people in connection with the deaths, including the alleged driver, Homero Zamorano, 45. He was arrested after officials say he abandoned the tractor-trailer and fled the scene while high on meth. Zamorano, who grew up in Brownsville and lives in Palestine, is facing federal human smuggling charges. All four suspects remain in federal custody. Offering solace Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller had visited 11 survivors in six hospitals in the first two days after the incident. He said most appeared to be young, between the ages of 16 and 20. Garcia-Siller prayed over those unable to respond. Some were in no condition to communicate because they were intubated. Still, he talked to them, advising them to trust people who were trying to help them medical staff, police and security personnel. The archbishop said he held a coherent conversation with one intubated woman who communicated with her eyes and hands. Another survivor was well enough to talk with him, though they avoided discussing conditions in the packed tractor-trailer, Garcia-Siller said. Garcia-Siller visited 11 people but knew only one name Serenidad, a 16-year-old girl who was in better condition than most of the other survivors. I never have heard of someone with that name, Garcia-Siller said. Her name translates to serenity in English. Beautiful name, beautiful name. It was a very beautiful moment. I asked her to repeat (her name), and she smiled. She was OK. The archbishop will preside over a special memorial Mass for the deceased, survivors and their families at 7 tonight at San Fernando Cathedral for all those interested in working with migrants. On ExpressNews.com: 3 arrested in connection with human-smuggling tragedy on San Antonios Southwest Side that left 53 dead Helping survivors, victims Several local legal aid and humanitarian groups worked Wednesday to support the survivors and their families, as well as families of the dead. Many relatives have struggled to get updates on loved ones who were either hospitalized in San Antonio or missing. Felicitos Garcia, who owns a grocery store in the remote community of San Miguel Huautla in Mexicos southern state of Oaxaca, said the mother of Jose Luis Vasquez Guzman, who was hospitalized in Texas, had gone to the state capital to learn more about her sons condition and the whereabouts of his cousin. Life is tough here, Garcia said. People survive by growing their own crops like corn, beans and wheat. Sometimes the land gives, and sometimes it doesnt when the rains arrive late. There is nothing in place for people to have other resources. People live one day to the next. Natalia Trotter, the managing attorney at RAICES, said the San Antonio immigrants rights organization was one of the first at the scene on Quintana Road near Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland on Monday. But the next day, the group had no access to any of the migrants whod been taken to area hospitals. The unfortunate part is that we were unable to provide representation at the scene, and we havent been able to meet with the migrants yet, said Trotter, whos based in Corpus Christi. But as soon as we are able to contact them, as soon as they are out of critical condition, we are ready to be able to step in and provide any sort of legal representation. For now, RAICES officials are monitoring the patients progress. Trotter said the organization is looking to ensure that survivors are given due process under U.S. law. The migrants have strong cases to remain in the U.S., she said, despite the possibility that immigration officials could try to expedite their deportation. In 2020, government officials enacted Title 42, an emergency public health order that allows the federal government to turn away migrants seeking asylum in the event of a pandemic. Trotter said she worries that survivors could be deported under that order. We have seen the Department of Homeland Security kind of very close by, so that always makes us nervous because we dont want anyone deported without being able to receive information or representation, Trotter said. The Associated Press contributed to this report. eeaton@express-news.net | danya.perez@express-news.net | ricardo.delgado@express-news.net This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Hundreds of singing voices echoed in downtowns San Fernando Cathedral on Thursday evening as the community prayed for the more than 60 migrants who were involved in a human-smuggling tragedy this week. Some attendees held back tears as loved ones comforted them with hugs, while others tightly clasped their hands together and squeezed their eyes shut as they prayed. Leaders from various faiths and officials from consulates were alongside San Antonians at the memorial mass. Archbishop of San Antonio Gustavo Garcia-Siller presided, delivering an impassioned homily in Spanish, then in English that called for immigration reform and action from those in the church and beyond. We all have a role to play, he said, adding that everyone should search for opportunities for development. On ExpressNews.com: What we know about victims, survivors of human-smuggling tragedy that left 53 dead in San Antonio He said that people of faith and others should create political incentives for our elected representatives to fulfill their duty to pass comprehensive immigration reform. This tragedy must prevent others, Garcia-Siller said to the congregation. May the Lord open our hearts so these misfortunes never happen again. Federal authorities say the tractor-trailer that was found on San Antonios Southwest Side was holding 64 immigrants. Forty-eight of them died on the scene, and another five at area hospitals. As of Wednesday, the death toll was 53. Included among the identified dead were 22 Mexican nationals, seven people from Guatemala, two from Honduras and 17 others from unknown origin. Some of those who died may have come from El Salvador, consulate officials have said. The trailer was found in the area that District 4 Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia represents. Garcia was one of several candle bearers at the Mass. She said she believes in the power of prayer and hopes that Thursdays Mass brings healing to those affected. Unfortunately, a lot of times it takes a mass tragedy to move the needle or to act or to come together, which I think we need to do as a country, really, she said. We need to work together and find solutions together. On ExpressNews.com: I have too many bodies here: Details from the scene of deadly human-smuggling incident in San Antonio Garcia said another Mass is planned for 2 p.m. Sunday at St. Vincent de Paul. Ruben Minutti Zanatta, consul general of Mexico in San Antonio, attended Thursdays Mass. We are here to join our community no matter what religion you belong to, Zanatta said. I see most religions represented, most sectors of society. We are here to ask for relief for our community, our victims and the families, of course, that have the hardest part from now on, and, of course, our patients in the hospital. On ExpressNews.com: Smugglers exploited shift change at border checkpoint to evade detection Nancy Marrufo, a distant relative of one of the migrants who died, was one of the last to leave the Mass on Thursday. The 34-year-old said that her family is devastated following Mondays discovery, but Thursday night brought some comfort. It was nice, Marrufo said. It felt like peace. On ExpressNews.com: Fourth suspect arrested in deadly tractor-trailer case Sister Martha Ann Kirk, a leader in the Interfaith San Antonio Alliance who was a candle bearer at the Mass, said she completely agreed with the archbishops points regarding immigration reform. The University of Incarnate Word professor emerita said that we cant do everything, but we can do something. We can use our voices; we can speak up; we can influence our elected officials. All of us in the world are immigrants, she said. People are on the move throughout the history of civilization. Our country is a country of immigrants. Are we blind that we are not recognizing that these people are part of our family? megan.rodriguez@express-news.net This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 1 of 2 Houston Metropolitan Research Ct Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Yi-Chin Lee / Staff photographer Show More Show Less What could have been Regarding Plan to demolish apartments near Minute Maid Park sparks backlash from Sheila Jackson Lee, activists, (June 21): The Texas Department of Transportation is a perfect purveyor of Texas values. An unwieldy, out-of-control, cash-rich entity uninterested in the general welfare of its population, it revels in its prime directive of concreting the state. Made invulnerable by Bob Lanier who single-handedly set back public transit in the largest city in the state by defeating Kathy Whitmire and ending her futuristic monorail project which would have made mobility a reality for Houstons Space City ambitions. (As an aside, one day my uncle took me to Playland Park on South Main and showed me, on the side of the road, a long rusting hulk of steel which was to be Houstons first monorail in 1956.) When in the course of human events we find ourselves backsliding into somebodys fun-house version of progress, when our hard-fought equal station is less equal than the day before, when were governed by people who deprive us of rights without our consent, thanks to the political chicanery known as gerrymandering, we must, as the forefathers wrote, submit these truths to a candid world. Here are the truths, candid world. Women in 2022 are not paid equally for equal work. Were charged more for everything from disposable razors to mortgages. In states such as Texas, we are taxed each month for tampons and pads. We are underrepresented in Congress and on Wall Street. We are more likely to endure rape, domestic violence and workplace harassment. Even if we earn as much or more than our male spouses, were often still stuck with the majority of housework. And now, in roughly half the states in the nation, millions of women have lost control of their own bodies, their own reproductive health care, their own destinies after the Supreme Court overturned the case that ensured the constitutional right to abortion. Today, its abortion rights and if you listen to Justice Clarence Thomas, tomorrow it could be birth control and same-sex marriage. This Independence Day, Ill be thinking a little harder about what that word really means. Yes, there are a great many freedoms we enjoy in this country along with a standard of living thats the envy of most nations. This year, like many others, Ill travel with my family to my hometown of Seguin for a Fourth of July parade thats so popular, my brother-in-law started taping off space for our lawn chairs more than a week ago. As always, the kids will wave American flags, well stand for the veterans and for every fluttering approach of Old Glory. Well pay tribute to the worlds oldest democracy and breathe a sigh of relief that it survived another year. For a while there, as were learning in the January 6 hearings, it got dicey. Ill stand there watching the floats or oohing and ahhing at the fireworks, celebrating the privilege of self-governance and the promises enshrined in the Declaration of Independence of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness hoping some day soon theyll be realized equally by all of us, including people of color and Indigenous Americans, immigrants struggling for status and belonging, and those toiling long hours for something less than a living wage. This year, Ill add women to that list. Despite our strides and leaps of progress, we were reminded recently by the U.S. Supreme Court that our own privileges in this country are borrowed contingent on the kindness and enlightened thinking of the men who, two centuries later, mostly still call the shots. Last week, many of us felt our equal station suddenly move beneath our feet. One day we had a right. The next day it was gone. A decision as intimate, physically fraught as childbirth was handed over to a conservative Legislature dominated by men who have never so much as endured monthly menstrual cramps, let alone the life-altering, body-morphing journey of bearing a child. As a woman, an American and a Texan, I keep asking a question in my head: how can I be equal when my womb legally is subjugated to the whims of a governmental authority? My personal views on abortion are complex but best described by a variation on a well-worn phrase: safe, legal, rare and limited. Government clearly has a duty to protect the life of a fetus that is viable, a dotted line that moves with medical progress. In my own life, Ive watched those grainy sonogram images early in pregnancies with as much awe as any militant pro-lifer. That awe is mine, though, and my partners. So was the choice. Its not something to be assumed or imposed through legislation or Supreme Court edict, especially not on women whose pregnancies are not intended, not healthy, not viable, or not even the result of a consensual act. Those immortal words in Americas first founding document life, liberty, pursuit of happiness what do they mean now for a Texas woman who has been raped and finds herself legally required to carry a child born of violence or incest? The rarity of those instances does not give any politician cause to disregard them. Her life? It is forever changed and possibly at risk if she confronts complications or mental illness stemming from her trauma. Her liberty? It is ceded to a being smaller than a lentil at 6 weeks or a grape at 9 weeks the point by which 80 percent of abortions take place. Her happiness? Its clearly no ones pursuit or even consideration. Anyone wondering whether Texas legislators will approach the post-Roe world with an ounce of benevolence or compassion, or, God help us, enlightened thinking, need only review the arrogance and deceptiveness of their Roe-era schemes: Texas lawmakers tried everything to limit abortion rights until the Supreme Court handed it and other anti-abortion states a long-awaited victory. They required waiting periods and for pregnant women to submit to sonograms or transvaginal probes. They required doctors to disseminate medically inaccurate information to women before abortions. They diverted money away from experienced family planning providers to crisis pregnancy centers that misspent it or aimed it at talking women out of abortion. They regulated the size of clinic hallways and required unnecessary physician hospital privileges, and in so doing, claimed it was all for the good of womens health a lie that an earlier, fairer Supreme Court quickly saw through. Now, at least, theres no need for such pretense. No need to pretend that protecting women was ever the point. The pretense of protecting life, protecting unborn children is still on the bumper stickers and campaign platforms and still dubious if you watch how Texas treats the children who are already born. Texas has the highest uninsured rate for kids in the nation, with nearly 1 million without health insurance in recent years. Texas has relentlessly fought orders by a federal judge trying to clean up our foster care system, which is rife with reports of abuse, neglect and even death. Two decades ago I remember interviewing Sarah Weddington, the lawyer who as a very young woman had argued Roe v. Wade before the Supreme Court and won, her case establishing federal abortion rights that would endure for half a century. I remember her warnings that Republicans erosion of Roe through legislation and litigation had made it vulnerable and that, in my lifetime, the right to choose could become a casualty of party politics. I heard her but I dont know if I believed her. She died in December. Roe succumbed six months later. Even now, I have a hard time accepting that a nation I love, whose ideals inspire me, whose institutions I revere, could deprive millions of women of bodily autonomy. Our government has sanctioned cruelty and injustice before slavery, segregation, torture but over the long run, it generally seemed to bend, or lurch, or stumble, toward justice. Toward more freedom, not less. Toward more independence, not more oppression. This free fall backward does not become us. It does not affirm the aspirations of our founders. It does not inspire the future we want for our daughters and granddaughters. Women across the country know this. Theyre protesting, organizing and registering voters who can right this wrong. As a journalist, I will do my part by speaking candid truths in a country whose freedoms still allow me to do so. This Fourth, from the sidelines of the downtown Seguin parade route, Ill celebrate how far America has come even as Im painfully aware of how far she has to go. Ill watch the elaborate floats, and the stately American flags and the blaring fire trucks, each moving steadily, proudly, forward and I will conjure up the part of me that still believes that women will, too. Lisa Falkenberg is the editor of opinion and a member of the editorial board. Dear Republicans: Thats what a free woman looks like. Meaning, of course, Cassidy Hutchinson, a young former aide in Donald Trumps White House, who appeared before the House committee investigating the attempted coup of Jan. 6. Free of the need to defend the indefensible or rationalize the irrational free, in other words, of Trump she simply told what she saw and heard before and as rioters stormed the seat of the U.S government. Hutchinson was a poised and effective witness, and her testimony painted damning, indelible images. Like the ketchup dripping down the wall of the Oval Office dining room, the porcelain plate lying in shards on the floor, in the aftermath of a presidential temper tantrum. Like Trump angrily demanding removal of the effing magnetometers set up to keep people with weapons from entering his pre-riot rally on the Ellipse. (I dont care that they have weapons. Theyre not here to hurt me.) Like Trump physically assailing the head of his Secret Service detail there are reports that the agent disputes this when they refused to ferry him to the chaos at the Capitol. Like Hutchinsons boss, Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, passively scrolling through his cellphone as Hutchinson and others brought increasingly urgent bulletins of barricades breached and windows smashed. Does it even need to be said that Donald Trump issued statements on that jackleg social media site of his claiming none of it happened, saying that he hardly knows who Hutchinson is, dubbing her a whacko? Unfortunately for Trump, she didnt seem the least bit whacko. She just seemed free. Republicans, wouldnt you like to be free? How many years has it been since each of you was your own man or woman, unfettered by the burden of lies, alibis and pretending not to see? This is, of course, an apropos time to talk about freedom. Between cookouts and fireworks displays, we are celebrating our Founders, who declared themselves free of Britain 246 years ago. Which is not to suggest the men who signed our Declaration of Independence were perfect. Far from it. Most, after all, were traders in human flesh. But give them this much: They had the courage of their convictions. They had the courage to be free, though they knew the cost might be ruinous. In answering the call of conscience by signing their names to that revolutionary document, men like Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Richard Stockton put at risk their personal liberty, their livelihoods and their lives. Now conscience calls again. Indeed, conscience screams. Yet so many of you, even at this late date, answer with silence. Because to do otherwise to do the right thing is to make Trump mad, and heaven knows, you dont want that. But when you consider what the founding generation stood to lose in service to this country and what they did anyway, then compare it to what you stand to lose and what youve done, well, lets just say the portrait of you that emerges is not flattering. Wouldnt you like to be free? As Hutchinsons testimony made vividly, if redundantly, clear, you are led by a monstrous, unstable child. How can you have greater loyalty to him than to your country? Or to yourselves? In signing that revolutionary document, those men declared themselves independent free from the tyranny of a selfish and oppressive king. Why wont you do the same? Leonard Pitts Jr. is a columnist for the Miami Herald. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. Climate change challenges countries all over the world. Due to human activities, the climate is changing constantly and intensely. Climate holds an important place in many aspects of our lives- such as food production, transport, economy, water, air, wildlife and health. Due to rising temperatures, serious changes are occurring in our climate, which in turn causes severe consequences for future food security, water resources, health as well as biodiversity. World becoming warmer and warmer BCCL/Representational Image Since the industrial revolution, the temperature has risen by 1 degree Celsius making the world warmer and warmer, which is known as global warming which causes our climate to change. Our oceans have also absorbed around 30% of the carbon dioxide released since the industrial revolution, causing the water to turn more acidic. Reuters/Representational Image Extreme weather is becoming more frequent and more intense. Flooding, droughts and forest over the last few decades. Flooding and droughts often damage farmlands and infrastructure, while forest fires carry severe risks to our health. Scarcity of proper food and water will make most of the land uninhabitable and can affect thousands of lives as people need to leave their own houses and move to some other place to live. What are carbon bombs? According to the definition given by the Guardian: carbon bombs is an oil or gas project that will result in at least a billion tonnes of CO2 emissions over its lifetime. Unsplash/Representational Image There are over 195 projects in a similar line are identified across the world. Some of the countries include the US, Russia, West Asia, Australia and India. The report states that as per the Paris Agreement of 2015, these countries will collectively overshoot the limits of emissions. The Guardian used the term carbon bombs in an investigation project. Under this project, the plans of countries and private companies across the globe to engage in 195 carbon bombs. Unsplash/Representational Image Some of the Indian projects are Carmichael Coal Project owned by the Adani Group, Gevra Coal Mines in Chhattisgarh owned by Coal India, and Rajmahal Coal Mines in eastern Jharkhand owned by Eastern Coalfields. What does the research reveal? The investigation to identify and defuse carbon bombs was conducted by a group of lawyers, environmentalists and activists. Simply put, it was identified that projects of countries and private companies have the possible potential to contribute to global warming. BCCL Carbon bombs are coal, oil or gas which produce pollution during the process of extraction and also emit carbon when burnt in large quantities. The report revealed that more than 60% of these carbon bomb projects are already undergoing. Further, the threat of methane was flagged other than coal, oil and gas. The investigation report mentions that it routinely leaks from gas operations and is a powerful greenhouse gas, trapping 86 times more heat than CO2 over 20 years. The dependency on fuel from conventional sources and not utilising emerging green sources of energy is also criticised by the report. Diffuse carbon bombs The aim of the network is called Leave It In the Ground Initiative (LINGO) and the mission is to leave fossil fuels in the ground and learn to live without them. It further focuses on organising ground support against such projects and challenges through litigation and conducting research-analysis. Pixabay/Representatioal Image It considers the burning of fossil fuels the prime reason for climate change and it can be tackled by the 100% use of renewable energy. The methods like increased forest cover and decreased man-made emissions will help to attain Net-zero emissions into the atmosphere. What is the Paris Agreement of 2015? Paris Agreement is an international agreement to fight the global issue of climate change. In 2015, the governments of 195 nations came together in Paris, France to discuss a possible new global agreement on climate change with the objective to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change. Britannica During this meeting, a landmark agreement was signed, popularly known as a 32-page Paris agreement, it has 29 articles. In the agreement, the global rise in average temperature to 2 C and strive for the target of 1.5 C as compared to pre-industrial levels. Inputs from Th Indian Express, The Guardian A video has surfaced from Punjab in which a man is seen chained to a cot. His parents say that they are forced to stop him in such a way so as to stop him from going out and taking drugs. His mother said, He used to take drug shots worth Rs 800 a day. He has been doing this for the last five-six years. NDTV The 23-year-old, who is from a humble family of labourers in Moga district, used to work as a daily wage worker. "He would waste all his money on drugs," the mother lamented. After spending all his money, he turned to stealing items at his house. Sometimes he would steal household items and sell them for drugs. He would also physically assault us if he couldn't get the money, she added. Unsplash It's been eight days in chains for the young man who is also being treated for his addiction. The family, frustrated of his addiction, keeps everything under lock and key. He troubles us a lot. We have to keep everything under lock and key. Sometimes I unfasten his chains to help me in fetching fodder," said the mother. Highlighting that drug were easily available in her village, she urged the government to take strict action against the menace. Unsplash Drugs are sold in our village itself, I want the government to take strict action and stop the menace of drugs, she said. Punjab, where seizure of drugs worth crores of rupees is very common, is dealing with the bane of narcotics for years now. Adobe Stock The Police and other agencies are working strongly to curb the drug menace in Punjab. A number of songs and films have also been made on the drug use especially how youth was involved in drugs and creating the awareness on the use of drugs. Bhutan is all set to reopen its borders to the international tourists in September, government says. The place which is hailed as the Land of the Thunder Dragon is reopening their doors for the first time in more than two years - since the Covid-19 pandemic began. The Himalayan kingdom is located between India and China. Unsplash The neighbouring country is looking to revive its economy, and will begin to welcome international travellers back from September this year. Renewed focus on the sustainability According to the Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB), tourists will be able to visit the country from September 23. In fact, there will be a renewed focus on the sustainability of the sector. iStock The press statement says that the tourism sector will be undergoing a revamp and will focus on three key areas: infrastructure and services, travel experiences of tourists, and the sectors environmental impact. Create good experience for visitors Dr Tandi Dorji, the foreign minister of Bhutan and chairperson of the Tourism Council of Bhutan, said, Covid-19 has allowed us to reset to rethink how the sector can be best structured and operated, so that it not only benefits Bhutan economically, but socially as well, while keeping carbon footprints low. In the long run, our goal is to create high-value experiences for visitors, and well-paying and professional jobs for our citizens. Bhutan Tourism The official press release also states that the country will be raising its Sustainable Development Fee (SDF) of USD 65 (INR 5,128) per person per night for tourists to USD 200 (INR 15,778), which will go towards activities that promote carbon-neutral tourism, so they can build a more sustainable tourism sector. As per the release, Indian tourists will pay a previously stipulated fee, which will be revised at a later date. Revamp tourism sector Dorji Dhradhul, the director general of Tourism Council of Bhutan said that their strategy for the revamp of the tourism sector brings them back to our roots of High Value, Low Volume tourism. Bhutan Tourism Where we meet the needs of tourists while protecting our people, culture, values, and environment. Tourism is a strategic and valuable national asset, one that does not only impact those working in the sector, but all Bhutanese. Ensuring its sustainability is vital to safeguarding future generations, he said. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has considerably increased the level of danger to Ireland, a judge supervising our spying laws has said. Mr Justice Charles Meenan said there were very serious threats to the State and that these threats had increased in the last year. He repeated calls for up-to-date legislation to allow State agencies to access encrypted communications to combat organised crime and to protect the State. He warned that failure to modernise the laws will "inevitably have serious consequences". Mr Justice Meenan is the designated, or oversight, judge, for two key spy powers interception of phone calls and post and access to traffic data on private communications and is tasked with ensuring that the legal provisions are complied with. These powers are detailed in the Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunication Messages (Regulation) Act 1993 and the Communications (Retention of Data) Act 2011 respectively. In his annual report, covering the year ending June 27 this year, the judge said he visited Garda HQ in Phoenix Park and the Defence Forces McKee Barracks on June 24. He also visited the offices of the Department of Justice. 'There are very serious threats to the security of the State from persons or groups organised within and outside the State,' said Mr Justice Charles Meenan. Picture: Courtpix He said GSOC, Revenue, and the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission all said they had not availed of the powers in the last year. In his report to the Taoiseach, Mr Justice Meenan said it was essential there were legal provisions for telecommunications to be intercepted for both the prevention and investigation of crime and protecting the security of the State. He said the dangers to the State come from both within and without, before adding: The Russian invasion of Ukraine has considerably increased the level of danger and threat to the security of the State. He did not outline the basis of this assessment, but points out that he was given all files regarding interception applications during his visits and chose files randomly for close examination. He pointed out that all the documentation was in order. There are very serious threats to the security of the State from persons or groups organised within and outside the State, he said. These threats have increased in the past year. The judge said the 1993 provisions were seriously out of date as the definition of telecommunication message was based on meaning given in legislation dated 1983, close to 40 years old. Though these interceptions still have use, it is necessary, in order to deal with crime and protect the security of the State, that provision is made by statute for there to be access to the transfer of data in encrypted form, he said. A number of investigations by European police agencies, and statements by senior garda officers, have shown the extent to which organised crime gangs use encrypted phones to order shootings, drug trafficking and firearms shipments. The Kinahan crime cartel has long used encrypted phones, including in planned hits, as revealed in prosecutions in the courts. Civil rights groups have argued tapping of encrypted communications breached EU rights to privacy and question the technical feasibility of intercepting encrypted communications. In addition, they point out that warrants to intercept are granted by the justice minister and not by an independent authority. In his report, Mr Justice Meenan said: Updated legislation to provide for such is urgently required and long overdue. A failure to enact such legislation will inevitably had serious consequences for the security of the State and its ability to detect and prevent crime. The judge also said the legal impasse around the retention and accessing of communication data under the 2011 will have to be addressed in new legislation. The Department of Justice is currently rushing through a bill on retention, following the European Court of Justice ruling in the Graham Dwyer case, subsequently endorsed by the Supreme Court, that general retention and accessing of data for the investigation of serious crime breached EU laws. Mr Justice Meenan said that the legal issues on both areas should be addressed as a matter of urgency. He said there was a reduction in interception applications in the last year, but said he was satisfied by the explanation of this. In line with all previous reports, all of which are a few pages long, the four-page report does not provide any statistical information on applications and warrants or any breakdown by agency or nature of threat. The Government is due to set up a new independent examiner of security legislation as part of its massive reform on An Garda Siochana. The Department of Justice published a policy paper on proposed amendments to the 1993 act in December 2016, but the amendments have not yet occurred. Read More Garda HQ wants powers to run undercover garda corruption probes A spokesperson said "Work is progressing to develop proposals to provide for a modern legislative framework for interception having regard to developments in technology since the 1993 Act came into force." Meanwhile, the Oireachtas Justice Committee has published recommendations based on an unscheduled pre-legislative scrutiny on Thursday of the General Scheme of the Communications (Retention of Data) Amendment Bill 2022, published on 21 June. Committee chair, Fine Fail TD James Lawless said the committee was of the view the draft bill should have been brought before it at a much earlier stage. The committee heard on Thursday from legal and digital rights experts, as well as senior gardai and department officials and the Data Protection Commission. The committee made a number of recommendations to the department and said wider consultation was needed, including with telecom companies. The latest oversight report on Ireland's spying laws has sounded the alarm on the scale of the threat posed by Russian intelligence services to Ireland. Professor Edward Burke made the comment following the report of High Court judge Charles Meenan, who supervises the interception of phone calls and post, and access to traffic data on private communications. Digital rights expert TJ McIntyre said the report highlighted the "inadequate" nature of surveillance oversight in Ireland. Mr Justice Meenans report said the Russian invasion of Ukraine has considerably increased the level of danger and threat to the security of the State. His four-page report did not provide details, but the judge said he conducted a close examination of files on interceptions of communications by Gardai and the Defence Forces during visits he conducted on one day last month. In line with previous reports, all of which are only a few pages long, the report does not provide any statistical information on applications and warrants for interception or any breakdown by agency or nature of threat. The report covers the year ending the 27 June 2022 and is submitted to the Taoiseach. The judge said there are very serious threats to the State from people and groups both based inside the country and outside. These threats have increased in the past year, he said. Mr Justice Meenan said there was an urgent need to update legislation to allow Gardai and the Defence Forces to access encrypted communications to combat organised crime gangs and to protect State security. He said failure to modernise these laws which date to 1993 will inevitably have serious consequences for the security of the State and the prevention and investigation of serious crime. In addition, he said legal issues arising out of the European Court of Justice ruling in the Graham Dwyer case that general retention and accessing of communication data for the investigation of serious crime breached EU laws had to be addressed. Associate Professor in International Relations at Nottingham University, Edward Burke, said Mr Justice Meenan was given access to sensitive intelligence that clearly indicates an escalating threat to Irish national security, especially from Russian intelligence. He said: We have seen what Russia is capable of, including murdering EU citizens and residents, launching large scale cyber attacks to cripple public infrastructure and stealing sensitive intellectual property and private data. He said Ireland was an EU and global technology and communications hub and added: Russia is attempting to take advantage of our weak legislation and paucity of counter-intelligence resources to target the EU and NATO. Ireland too has made it known that it is not neutral when it comes to Russias illegal invasion of Ukraine. He said: Mr Justice Meenan has usefully given legislators and the public an indication of the scale of the threat. He has sounded the alarm. It is now up to the government to act and to act quickly. Associate Professor at UCD Law School TJ McIntyre, who is also chair of Digital Rights Ireland, said the report showed why Irish oversight of surveillance was inadequate. The European Court of Justice has found mass storage of everyone's telephone and internet records to be illegal, but the judge completely fails to acknowledge that, let alone say that this should stop," he said. Instead, the judge is making recommendations for even more surveillance, despite having no technical expertise, without speaking to experts in the area." Donncha OConnell, Professor of Law at NUI Galway and former member of Policing Commission, said problems with the current oversight system should be noted by the Government as it prepares its proposals on the establishment of the office of Independent Examiner of Security Legislation. As well as revamping and resourcing Garda intelligence structures, and the establishment of a national intelligence analysis centre in the Department of the Taoiseach, the Policing Commission also recommended the creation of an Independent Examiner, to conduct comprehensive and robust review of terrorist and serious crime laws. The Palestinian Authority said it has given the bullet that killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh to American forensic experts. It marks a step toward resolving a standoff with Israel over the investigation into her death. Ms Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent who was well known throughout the Arab world, was shot while covering an Israeli military raid on May 11 in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinians, along with Ms Abu Aklehs colleagues who were with her at the time, say she was killed by Israeli fire. We are confident and certain of our investigations and the results we have reached The Israeli army says she was caught in the crossfire of a battle with Palestinian gunmen, and that it is impossible to determine which side killed her without analysing the bullet. The Palestinians have refused to turn over the bullet, saying they do not trust Israel. The Palestinian attorney general, Akram al-Khatib, said the bullet was given to US experts for technical work. He reiterated the Palestinian refusal to share the bullet with the Israelis. Mr al-Khatib said the Palestinians welcome the participation of any international bodies to help us confirm the truth. We are confident and certain of our investigations and the results we have reached, he said. It was not immediately clear what the American experts could discover without also studying the Israeli weapon that Israel says might have fired the shot. There was no immediate word from Israel on whether it would share the rifle. The Palestinian announcement comes just over a week before US President Joe Biden is to visit the region. A Palestinian official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was discussing a diplomatic matter, said the issue was raised in a phone call between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and US secretary of state Antony Blinken and that both sides hope to resolve the issue before Mr Bidens visit. After a delicious Sunday meal at one of our participating #tasteofkeybiscayne restaurants, enjoy some of the best and most creative desserts on the island on this July 3. Gran Inka Open for Outdoor Dining, Takeout or Delivery. El Gran Inka brings to every dish authentic Peruvian gastronomy featuring a unique creation and a touch of gourmet. Go traditional Peruvian this Sunday After a delicious meal, enjoy the lustful & sweet suspiro limeno Offering Delivery or Take out directly from El Gran Inka. Order directly from us by calling (305) 365-7883 Open 7-days Noon to 10 p.m. 606 Crandon Blvd. Suite 4 / Key Biscayne (across from Winn Dixie) UberEats Available D'Lite Bistro & Bakery Who says eating healthy means sacrificing taste and flavor? Not at DLite! Come enjoy our terrazita to this Pre-4th Sunday - you will not regret making your Sunday a bit more special with our famous cappuccinos, golden milk and matcha latte. What a delicious threesome combination! We are a unique and healthy restaurant that serves salads, wraps, sandwiches, bowls, protein smoothies and cold press juices made fresh every morning including gluten-free, vegetarian and keto options. We open at 8 a.m. daily and close at 8 p.m. everyday except Sat and Sun when we close at 6 p.m. DLite is located in the Arcade Mall, 180 Crandon Blvd. To place an order, call (305) 882-9284 or visit us online by clicking here. Sake Room Complete your Sake meal with any of our delicious desserts, we guarantee the plate will be empty! This Sunday, how about Nutella Sushi? Yes! A Sake exclusive Free Crunchy Crab Salad with $50 purchase Special only good for orders called in to (305) 456-0488 We are open for Indoor & Outdoor Dining, Takeout or delivery daily from Noon to 10 p.m. Call (305) 456-0488 to place a takeout or delivery order directly Following all CDC safety protocols 328 Crandon Blvd Ste 108, Galleria Shopping Center Grub hub UberEats also available. Please if you can call us first Randazzo by Yesenia Open for Indoor & Outdoor dining, Takeout or delivery. Reservations recommended Throw your table a Tiramisu Party!!! Fall in love with our homemade Tiramisu dessert, we dare you resists it Please call (305) 456-0480 to place an order or make a reservation Open Monday, Wednesday to Sunday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., open until 11 p.m. Friday. Closed Tuesdays 328 Crandon Blvd Ste 112, Galleria Shopping Center Delivery service with Postmates or UberEats Tacopolis In the mood for Chocolate? Or try any of our authentic Mexican desserts will complete your delicious Tacopolis meal Our creative treatments to traditional desserts are like none on the island Tacopolis, where every day is Taco-Day!! Only eat tacos on days that end in a Y Tacopolis strives to serve Authentic Mexican food in a casual and relaxed family atmosphere Open 7-days a week from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Open for Outdoor dining, Takeout or delivery but our own service of find us on UberEats Located in the Square Shopping Center at 260 Crandon Blvd, Key Biscayne. To place a phone order, call (786) 703-5523. To order online, click here Boaters Grill & Lighthouse Cafe / Bill Baggs The restaurants inside Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park the popular Boaters Grill, located at No Name Harbor and accessible by boat, and the beachside Lighthouse Cafe. All you need to make Sunday special is a little love and a whole-lot-of-flan! Boaters Grill is open Sunday through Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Lighthouse Cafe is open 7-days a week, from 9 a.m. to Sunset The restaurants are located inside Bill Baggs State Park, at 1200 Crandon Blvd., Key Biscayne. You can reach them at (305) 361-0080 32 Degrees by MG You deserve gourmet meal options that are fast and convenient. Sunday is a great day to meal plan for the week. How about Snapper with mango and pineapple salsa this week? Fresh, fully cooked meals from 32 Degrees are a great mealtime option. We provide frozen, ready-prepared meals that are great for the busiest of lifestyles! We shop, prep, cook, and deliver to your doorstep, so you can experience the benefits of gourmet eating without the fuss or hassle. Our fully cooked meals are created with passion by our chefs using only the freshest ingredients. We never use additives or preservatives. Our meals are ready to eat in the microwave in 5 minutes. Place your order today by visiting 32-degrees.com Use code 32ISLANDER at checkout and receive 15% off* your first order. *Offer good on orders of $40 or more. Costa Med Bistro Enjoy Costa Med this evening either with it or at home this evening.. If our desserts look homemade, is because they are! This Sunday, indulge in something Costa sweet Order online for take out, click here! Costa Med, a TripAdvisor Traverlers Choice nominated restaurant, is located in the Square Shopping Center. 260 Crandon Blvd. Reservations suggested. Call (305) 361-7575 to make a reservation Hours. Lunch Mon to Sat: Noon a.m. to 4 p.m. Dinner Mon to Sat: 6 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. / Sun 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. The Golden Hog Your local independent grocer can deliver freshly prepared meals or all the groceries you need. Email us your order here. This weekend, visit our new Poke Bowl Station Weekend Special! Check it out in our juice bar section! How is this for Sunday? Dark Belgian chocolate ganache, dulce de leche, butter tartlet. A unique & delicious combination of flavors. This is our Dark chocolate dulce de leche tart. Call (305) 361-1300 for Sunday Chef's Choice special menu. The Golden-Hog has a complete line of specialty groceries for delivery. Golden Hog puts safety first, shop with confidence. To place an order online, click here Brasas KB This Sunday, share our 100% natural Peruvian Chicken Rotisserie with family and friends Weekend vibes! Pollo a la brasa con papas fritas, camote frito y salsas de aji caseras Have you tried our Peruvian Chicken Rotisserie for lunch or dinner that includes 2 sides and sauce of your choice: huancaina, aji amarillo, huacatay and olivas negras peruanas. We are open for Indoor & Outdoor Dining, Takeout or free delivery. Call (786) 615-2399 to place a takeout order. Open Noon to 8 p.m. for Dine-In, Takeout or delivery. 328 Crandon Blvd, Galleria Shopping Center La Scala Closed on Sundays The popular Italian Bistro now offers their delicious meals to enjoy at home and thanks your support during the last year To place a Monday takeout order call (786) 773-3633 or visit us online by clicking here. Open 5 to 9 p.m. 180 Crandon Blvd Arcade Shopping Center. Kazumi Closed Sunday. Our modern Japanese fusion restaurant offers creative treatments & creativity in our dishes To see our menu, click here Call us tomorrow at (305) 361-2675. Check back tomorrow for more specials as we add more restaurants to #tasteofkeybiscayne-To-Go And please remember to order from the restaurant directly before using one of the apps this way we support the local restaurants by saving them the commission they are charged, which at times is as much as 30% According to reports, China's Mars orbiter has surveyed the whole red planet. Large craters, canyons, and a volcano are all shown in the spacecraft's images of Mars. China's Tianwen-1 Orbiter Spacecraft The entire planet of Mars has been photographed by the Tianwen-1 orbiter spacecraft, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation announced on Weibo on Wednesday. With the announcement, China also made a few of the orbiter's pictures of the entire Martian surface public, as per Business Insider. Beautiful photographs of the most interesting features of the red planet have been taken by China's Mars orbiting spacecraft, and they are just a small sampling of its latest image collection. Space.com reported that in addition to completing the science goals given to the six other scientific instruments on board, the Tianwen 1 orbiter successfully completed the medium-resolution camera's mission to photograph the surface of Mars. The spacecraft has returned 1,040 gigabytes of raw data to Earth, which China National Space Administration (CNSA) will eventually make available to the general public, according to state media. As of June 29, Chinese state media stated that the spacecraft had completed more than 1,344 orbits around Mars since entering the planet's orbit in February 2021. A rover was also sent by the orbiter to Mars, where it landed in Utopia Planitia, a massive area of ancient volcanic rock that may have large amounts of water frozen beneath its surface, as per Space.com. Read More: SpaceX Postpones ISS Cargo Mission Again-When is the New Launch Date? Zhurong Rover Business Insider mentioned that for the first time on a single trip to Mars that a spacecraft was launched into its orbit, a landing platform was delivered to the planet's surface, and a rover was deployed. The Zhurong rover and the orbiter, which traveled to Mars with Tianwen 1, have finally finished their intended scientific exploration objectives, according to the CNSA. Business Insider reported that the rover, called Zhurong after the fire god of Chinese mythology, was designed to investigate the area and use ground-penetrating radar to look for water ice. According to state media, the Zhurong rover went over 2 kilometers before entering hibernation to conserve energy during Mars' extremely cold winter. When Martian spring arrives in December, the rover is anticipated to start up again. Images Captured By Tianwen 1 Orbiter More Missions for Tianwen 1 Orbiter and Zhurong Rover Duo Despite achieving their major goals, Space.com reported that according to CNSA officials, the duo will carry on with their work. Later this year, Tianwen 1 will be employed for an aerobraking test, which involves slowing the spacecraft down using friction from the Martian atmosphere, in order to prepare for Tianwen 3, a complex Mars sample return mission anticipated to begin in 2028. Related Article: Moon's Double Crater Left by Unknown Rocket, Says NASA - Has Any Country Claimed Responsibility? People are being cut off from services like unemployment benefits and job-seeking programs as a result of a cyberattack on software company Geographic Solutions (GSI) that began almost a week ago, The Register reported. The Louisiana Workforce Commission said in a statement this week that GSI had to shut down state labor exchanges and unemployment claims systems, potentially having an impact on up to 40 states and Washington, DC. GSI provides services to these states. According to the company's LinkedIn page, GSI provides online services for state and local governments in more than 35 states and creates software for things like workforce development, labor market data, and unemployment insurance. The vendor also maintains websites for government organizations in states including Indiana, Florida, North Carolina, and California. GSI President Paul Toomey said that the company is collaborating with third-party specialists to look into the cyber-incident and make sure it doesn't happen again. Toomey stated that the company planned to resume the services before the July 4 holiday. GSI allegedly informed agencies in a number of states about the issue on June 26, as per The Register. Read More: Carnival Cruises Fined $5 Million for Cybersecurity Failures Which States Are Affected? Louisiana's unemployment claims and labor exchange services had to be taken down after GSI discovered an attempt at a malware attack. According to GSI, there was no data breach and the personal information of Louisiana Workforce Commission's HiRE users was not affected. This interruption has an effect on the state's almost 11,000 residents who are currently filing continuing unemployment claims. CalJOBS' website went unavailable as a result of the GSI service stoppage, according to a notice from California's Employment Development Department. In addition, the Jobs4TN website in Tennessee also went offline. According to the state's Department of Labor and Workforce Development, 12,000 Tennessee residents depend on the state's unemployment program and workforce development initiatives. The GSI outage also had an effect on states from Texas to New Hampshire. What Are Experts' Opinions About the Incident? It's probable that the attack is being carried out by a nation state or threat actor that is supported by a state, according to Mike Parkin, senior technical engineer at Vulcan Cyber. He continued by saying that a threat actor might easily stop operations with a distributed denial-of-service attack or destructive malware. However, a ransomware attack is more likely because of the profit motive, especially when sensitive information may be at stake. The most crucial question, according to John Bambenek, principal threat hunter at cybersecurity company Netenrich, is what data is at risk for users of such websites and what precautions they should take. "Too often, we focus on the corporate parts of incident response but forget the impact to those whose private information is stolen." The incident is the most recent in a growing pattern of software supply chain attacks, in which cybercriminals target one company with the intention of infecting its partners and clients later on, basically widening the malware's system vulnerabilities. Related Article: Google's Threat Analysis Group Blocks Domains, Websites Used by Hack-For-Hire Groups Get unlimited access to all content and features at ivpressonline.com with our Full Online Access Subscription. Read our E-Edition, the digital replica of the print newspaper online, access content in exclusive sections including Family, Teen, Business, Databases, Farm and more. This option does not include daily home delivery of the Imperial Valley Press newspaper. For home delivery service, please select Premium or Premium Plus. This Week in Review A weekly review of the best and most popular stories published in the Imperial Valley Press. Also, featured upcoming events, new movies at local theaters, the week in photos and much more. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday pledged further military support to Ukraine, including armoured vehicles and drones, while meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv. Making the first ever visit to Ukraine by an Australian premier, Albanese said at a news conference in Kyiv that his country would give Ukraine "a hundred million dollars of military support", without specifying if he meant Australian dollars. This figure in Australian dollars would amount to US$68 million. The prime minister specified that Australia would provide extra military equipment requested by Ukraine including 14 armoured personnel carriers, 20 Bushmaster armoured vehicles and a number of drones. Zelensky said that Australia was giving Ukraine "considerable aid, in particular defence support" and that Ukrainian forces "highly valued" the Bushmaster vehicle. Albanese toured the towns of Bucha and Irpin where Russian forces are alleged to have committed war crimes, as well as the airport at Gostomel northwest of Kyiv. "It is my great honour to be the first Australian prime minister to visit Ukraine," he said, adding that his trip "would show very clearly to the world the solidarity that exists between the Australian people and the people of Ukraine". He paid tribute to the "courage, resilience, bravery and determination" of Ukraine's president, defence forces and people, saying they were "determined to stand up to a bully which is breaching international law without any provocation or any excuse". The Australian politician also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin would get the "reception he deserves" if he attends a G20 summit in Bali in November, as the Kremlin has suggested he will. "If it is the case that Mr Putin attends that meeting... he will get the reception that he deserves, which is not one of a friend, of someone who respects the international rule of law," the Australian premier said. At the same time, he said he could not imagine Australia would boycott the event, while "we believe in isolating Russia as much as possible". Albanese came to Ukraine after meeting French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Friday. Ukraine last month announced that an Australian man had died while fighting for the International Legion of Defence of Ukraine, an official volunteer brigade. Jung Jaehyun of NCT is now making a huge leap on his career. With his continuous successful journey in the music industry, the soon-to-debut actor is now preparing to steal the viewers' hearts as he is about to grace the small screen with his first drama, "Dear. M." Before its long-awaited release, these are the things that you should anticipate in the new campus romance series. KBS' "Dear. M" follows the story of four Seoyeon University students searching for an anonymous person called M, whose confession has made a buzz on the university campus. The drama is penned by Lee Seul and directed by Park Jin Woo. New Campus Squad Fans and viewers are fond of watching K-series because of its humorous and realistic friendships. It makes the story more engaging to watch and the audience can easily relate to their experiences, may it be in school or workplace. "Dear. M" introduces fresh and brilliant stars that are expected to receive support from the public. Starting from Park Hye Soo as Ma Joo Ah, NCT's Jaehyun as Cha Min Ho, Roh Jeong Eui as Seo Ji Min, Woo Da Vi as Hwang Bo Young, Bae Hyun Sung as Park Ha Neul, and Lee Jin Hyuk as Gil Mok Jin. They are different types of university students who will spend and share some of the best and worst memories of their college years as they enter Seoyeon University. "Dear. M" squad is ready to meet the viewers and show their individual charms this June. Romance-Mystery Genre Romance series with a little spice of mystery, two genres combined to give viewers a whole new experience that will make them hooked on the drama's narratives. YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: NCT's Jaehyun Updates Fans Ahead of Acting Debut The story will start when an anonymous person confesses on Seoyeon University's student forum. Four college students, Ma Joo Ah, Cha Min Ho, Seo Ji Min, and Park Ha Neul, are searching for "M," who is behind the online post. In between their journey of finding "M," these students go through university life, establish new friendships, and experience having their first love. Actor Jung Jaehyun All eyes are on Jung Jaehyun since he is stepping into a new chapter of his career as an actor. The Korean heartthrob is receiving massive support from the local and international fans. Even though the drama has been postponed for release for almost a year, many are still excited to see actor Jaehyun on screen. Now that the perfect time has come, fans are overjoyed to finally watch the drama "Dear. M" as Jaehyun takes his first-ever lead role. Catch these bunch of stars as they meet the viewers starting this June 29. "Dear. M" is said to have 12 episodes in total. The series will first be broadcast on the Japanese platform U.NEXT. It will also be available through the streaming platform Viki. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: THIS NCT Member Will Make Acting Debut in Japanese Movie What are your thoughts about Jung Jaehyun's drama debut? Share your comments with us! For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at Kdramastars. Kdramastars owns this article. Shai Collins wrote this. Since the day of the announcement of Kim Sejeong's new drama, fans couldn't wait to see the actress' new transformation finally. On the first day of July, excitement is brought to a new level as SBS TV's upcoming office romance drama "Today's Webtoon" publishes new photos of Kim Sejeong, Choi Daniel, and Nam Yoon Su! Kim Sejeong Is Torn Between Choi Daniel and Nam Yoon Su in New Romance Drama SBS TV's "Today's Webtoon" released stills of Kim Sejeong, Choi Daniel, and Nam Yoon Su! "Today's Webtoon" follows the story of a former Judo athlete who becomes a webtoon writer amid the competitive webtoon industry in South Korea. Before the much-awaited premiere, the production of the drama teases fans with photos of Kim Sejeong, Choi Daniel, and Nam Yoon Su in their respective roles. Kim Sejeong transforms into On Ma Eum, a Judo athlete-turned-webtoon writer who struggles to create a name in the dog-eat-dog industry, while Choi Daniel takes on the role of Seok Ji Hyung, the handsome deputy editor and mentor of On Ma Eum. On the other hand, Nam Yoon Su portrays the role of On Ma Eum's intelligent and competent co-worker Goo Yoon Joon. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 'Today's Webtoon' First Look: Kim Sejeong Transforms Into Webtoon Writer The newly published stills depict On Ma Eum's dynamics with Seok Ji Hyung and Goo Joon Young. In the first photo, On Ma Eum and Seok Ji Hyung depict a refreshing mentor-and-mentee relationship. While he's harsh at work, he immensely supports his younger colleagues and helps On Ma Eum to thrive. Seok Ji Hyung's soft spot for On Ma Eum is greatly depicted in the photo as they sport bright smiles. In particular, the photo entices fans to tune in to what kind of teamwork the two will have in the drama. The next photo highlights On Ma Eum and Goo Joon Young's mysterious dynamics as it doesn't reveal what kind of relationship they have, whether it's negative or positive, due to their clashing personalities. While On Ma Eum sees the industry in a positive light, Goo Joon Young is greatly disappointed after ending up in the same department as her. The new stills pique fans' curiosity as to how their relationship changes as the story progresses. 'Today's Webtoon' Production Unit on What To Expect From the Drama The production unit aims to give fans and viewers a different perspective on webtoon editors, publishers and its whole department through the new drama. In addition, the drama hopes to highlight important things that many office workers experience at work, such as their day-to-day activities, interactions with colleagues, bosses, and more. Ma Eum's relationship, dynamics, and future conflicts with different people in the workplace are the key things to anticipate in the series, as they will influence her most as the story progresses. Don't miss "Today's Webtoon" this July 29 on SBS TV! It will premiere at exactly 10:00 p.m. KST! KDramaStars owns this article. Written by Elijah Mully. Following their beach date, Oh Soo Jae (Seo Hyun Jin) discovered Gong Chan's (Hwang In Yeop) story and realized his past identity in "Why Her?" Episode 10. 'Why Her' Episode 10: Oh Soo Jae Reinvestigates Hansu Group In "Why Her?" Episode 10 Choi Yoon Sang (Bae In Hyuk) returned home and told his father, Choi Tae Guk (Heo Jun Ho), not to bother Oh Soo Jae, Gong Chan, and the Legal Clinic team anymore. Meanwhile, Han Sung Beom (Lee Kyung Young) made a secret move not to be caught by the public for his recent negotiation regarding the Hansu Bio Group. He was still impressed by how Oh Soo Jae handled his situation. Yoon Se Pil (Choi Young Joon) and Soo Jae continued their alliance and discussed what they their next move would be against the trio. He plans of buying Han Sung Beom's house and consulted the female lawyer first if he should go for it. He said he wanted to buy for no reason and then Yoon Se Pil told Baek Jin Ki (Kim Chang Wan) that he wanted Kang Eun Seo (Han Sun Hwa) to stay in that house and become her safe place. YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: 'Insider' Episode 8: Kang Young Seok Betrays Kang Ha Neul Meanwhile, Yoon Se Pil is still determined to find the culprit who molested Eun Seo and promised to make that person suffer for the trauma he caused. Oh Soo Jae Discovers Gong Chan's Tragic Past Yoon Sang came to see Oh Soo Jae and told him what he found out. He handed him a photo of Gong Chan and warned her to be careful with him. Choi Yoon Sang already knew Gong Chan's past as the male law student was an ex-convict who killed his sister years ago. Yoon Sang did not mention it to Oh Soo Jae and just warned her to be careful of him. The following day, Oh Soo Jae came across a case that reminded her of the first one she handled. She remembered Kim Dong Gu, the first client she failed to protect. She said that Dong Gu was the son of her colleague. She researched more about Kim Dong Gu and how his case was solved. The lawyer was shocked by the revelation regarding Gong Chan. Oh Soo Jae, on the other hand, felt lost at first for not having recognized Dong Gu. Oh Soo Jae planned for her next move to clean Gong Chan's name for real this time. Hence, check out SBS' "Why Her?" every Friday and Saturday at 10:40 p.m. (KST). IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 'Why Her?' Episode 9: Seo Hyun Jin Shows Affection To Hwang In Yeop Have you watched "Why Her"? Episode 10? How's the story so far? Share your comments with us! For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity updates, follow and subscribe to KDramastars. KDramastars owns this article. Shai Collins wrote this. Gateway Technical College has officially opened the application and nomination process for its next president. Direct nominations, inquiries and application materials will be handled by Greenwood/Asher & Associates, the firm assisting the college in selecting the new president, which is listed in the profile. Gateway defines the role of the president as the chief executive officer for the college, reporting to the board of trustees. The president is responsible for the day-to-day administration, management, and oversight of all college operations. The president leads strategically and works with a wide range of internal and external constituents to execute the colleges mission, vision and educational philosophy. The president develops business partnerships to increase philanthropy and private funds for programming in support of the Gateway Technical College Foundation. The president must also advocate locally, regionally and nationally for the distinctive technical college mission aligning the needs of students, employers and the regional economic conditions of southeast Wisconsin. An extended presidential profile, and guidelines to apply or nominate a candidate, can be found at the colleges presidential search page of www.gtc.edu/presidential-search. Current Gateway President and CEO Bryan Albrecht announced earlier this year he would be retiring this fall. Albrecht has served as president and CEO since 2006. Under his leadership, Gateway has grown its national standing as an innovative college for student success, learning strategies and workforce development. A total of 200 students, staff and community members participated in a series of listening sessions held in May and June to gain information on the qualities they would like to see in the new president. That feedback was used to produce an outline of the sought-after characteristics for the colleges new leader, which then became the profile. Gateway Technical College is a two-year publicly funded technical college and is one of the largest members of the state supported Wisconsin Technical College System, serving Racine, Kenosha and Walworth counties. Gateway has three main campuses, one in each county and six centers throughout the region. It provides an academic and occupational education pathway in more than 70 career programs of study. Combined with robust online and hybrid options, Gateway serves approximately 21,000 students annually to enter new careers or advance in their current ones. Gateway provides educational pathways that lead to associate degrees, technical diplomas, industry-aligned certificates, continuing education and training, pre-college diplomas, state-recognized apprenticeships and customized training contracts. Are you ready to cheer on floats, marching bands, local pageant queens and a city bus? If you answered yes, youre all set for todays Kenosha Civic Veterans Parade. The biggest news about this years parade? The bands are back! While the 2021 parade had a few bands the Kenosha Pops Concert Band and the Lutheran Vanguard of Wisconsin marching band this year, the local KUSD summer marching bands are back in action. The most exciting news, however, involves a band from south of the border. We got the Navy Band Great Lakes, said parade organizer Kris Kochman. They are difficult to get because they are in such high demand, and they like to spread the joy. This will be the bands first visit to our parade in about six years. Downtown route Another huge change in 2021 was a new parade route which will be used again today. Instead of starting on 22nd Avenue and 60th Street in Uptown, the parade now steps off from Washington Road and Seventh Avenue. The parade route takes Seventh Avenue south into the Downtown area, heading toward Library Park. We like having the parade go through the heart of Downtown, Kochman said. Her advice: Dont watch the parade from Library Park the parade ends there, on the west side of the park if you enjoy hearing bands play. People might be disappointed if theyre sitting there, Kochman explained. Its at the end of the parade, and the groups are getting ready to disband there. Two city parks are along the route Union Park, 4500 Seventh Ave., and Veterans Memorial Park, 625 52nd St. offering great viewing options. Also, the parade will only take up the southbound lane of Seventh Avenue, so parade watchers can set up chairs and blankets on the avenues median, too. There are a lot of good spots for watching the parade, Kochman said. People gather in the parks and at the harbor and in Downtown. Candy! Parade participants are allowed to hand out but not toss candy to spectators along the parade route. The City Council approved this change to a city ordinance in 2021, Kochman said. People have asked about this for years, she said, and other parades hand out candy. Bikes! The community bike parade is back for more fun on two wheels. All ages are welcome to participate, but you must be able to ride two miles without stopping. To join the fun, simply show up by 12:30 p.m. Sunday (on a bicycle) at Washington Road and Seventh Avenue. Note: No walking/jogging is allowed in the bike parade. The nice thing is, people can decide at the last minute to participate, Kochman said. Theres no signup required; you just show up on Sunday. Parade highlights Pre-parade group: VFW Post 1865 riders, the Community Bike Parade, American Legion Post 21 Color Guard and those fire and police department vehicles. Also in the pre-parade which is actually the start of the parade are classic cars from local car clubs and the Kenosha History Center. First Division: The Navy Band Great Lakes leads this division, followed by our own Navy Club Ship 40s float. Youre in the Navy now! There are plenty of local politicians in this division, too, along with a Snap-on float and the Kenosha Kingfish. KUSDs Band of the Blackwatch marching band wraps up the First Division. Second Division: You can sing along with The Greasers on their float, clap for KUSDs Rambler Band, cheer with the Bullen Middle School Cheerleading Team and wonder how the heck those Jesse White Tumbling Team members fly into the air. Seriously, have you seen their stunts? Amazing. Third Division: This is the division you want to watch for. Im not just saying that because this is where youll find me in the parade, riding with the rest of the Kenosha Pops Concert Band and playing polkas and marches (though that is a good reason). This is also the division featuring the Indian Trail High School Cheerleading Teams float, Miss Kenosha Jenna Zeihen and the Carthage College Firebirds. Fourth Division: The Lutheran Vanguard of Wisconsin marching band returns to Kenosha to lead off this division. Also here: Kenosha County Fairest of the Fair Royalty Katelyn Hannah and Shannon Diedrich, Dr. Destruction and something called Slingshots of Kenosha. Fifth Division: Two bands are in this final division: the River City Rhythm drum and bugle corps from Anoka, Minn., and the Route 66 Belle City Band. The Festival Foods Big Cart is also here, along with water-based entries from the Kenosha Community Sailing Center and the Kenosha Yacht Club. And bringing up the rear: a city bus! Dont rain on our parade Of course, the most important thing on any parade day is the weather. Todays forecast calls for sunny skies, a high of 81 degrees and a scant 11% chance of rain. Translation: Perfect parade conditions. As the citys community relations liaison person, Kochman has worked on the parade since 2011, and shes learned to be zen about forecasts. I never worry about rain, Kochman said, because theres nothing we can do about the weather. Weve cut it close a few times and got drenched in 2019, but the parade still continued that year. People were still watching, too; they probably figured were wet anyway, so we may as well stay. Im hoping for perfect parade weather, she added. Moderate temperatures and no rain. 13 Shares Share Every year, I celebrate and mourn when I officially left my primary care pediatric practice full of patients and parents that I loved to launch my non-profit, Teach a Kid to Fish. May 31, 2008, was the last day of my practice. Had I known what I was in for, my future self may have stopped me. But Im so delighted that possibility didnt exist. Im a vision-oriented person and wanted to name the organization Teach a Kid to Fish, and You Can Change the World. Our mission was to reduce and prevent childhood obesity by empowering children and families to eat healthily and be active. I set it up to focus on four key areas: Health care. Early Childhood. School Systems. Community. As the founder, it was just me, Google and the $15,000 my husband and I invested as seed money. What I didnt give myself credit for was my in-kind investment into the organization, which was priceless. I still have the notebook I started with. I would meet with a person at the health department who would then tell me to meet with ten other people whom I would then meet. Over the course of the first year, Teach a Kid to Fish had community and state and national grants (I became an excellent grant writer), an amazing and active board of directors, partnerships and launched a community strategic plan to prevent childhood obesity with community stakeholders. I still have the plan and its epic. Some people got the name Teach a Kid to Fish as the metaphor that it is. Others would ask, Why fishing? Its not that active of a sport? Other people would go on and on about how much they love fishing, and I would listen and nod my head in agreement. Others would tell me that I was going to cause harm and eating disorders. That was noted as a legitimate concern. My focus has always been on positive messaging such as 54321 Go!, created by CLOCC. Just smile, move on and dont over-explain when people dont get what youre doing. People who find relevance through cynicism are not your people. So, what have I learned after all these years, and would I do it again? Visionary physician tip #1: Never explain or convince people. You will find your fellow visionaries, and when you do, you know right away. Its magic. Visionary physician tip #2: Community partnerships are key to the successful manifestation of your vision and are 100 percent based on trust. If you are not a trustworthy human being especially when it comes to partnering you have nothing. Teach a Kid to Fish partnerships, in the beginning, included our local health department, Lancaster County medical society, Lincoln Public Schools, Nebraska DHHS, Nebraska Medical Association, Malone Community Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Department of Psychology and pediatric practices, and Community Health Endowment of Lincoln. Visionary physician tip #3: Love the problem, not your solution. Physicians tend to be pretty ego-driven and think we know best. Sometimes we do. Sometimes we do not. Ill use BMI or body mass index as a good example. In 2007, the Expert Committee Recommendations for how a community pediatrician can assess, prevent and treat childhood obesity were published. I operationalized each of the bullet points throughout the Expert Committee Recommendations and found them to be helpful but incredibly solution- and BMI-focused. In other words, be agile and flexible and learn with a continuous QI lens. In health care systems, there is almost zero ingenuity, especially in corporate profit-driven health care. This can be very frustrating for the visionary physician who sees the needs of the patients and families but feels stuck slapping the same old profit-driven maintain C-suite executive salaries solution band-aids on gaping wounds. None of it is easy, but at least on a community level, the visionary physician can flex and change things up more easily. Visionary physician tip #4: Determine your own measures of success. Celebrate your wins and take breaks to restore your energy. It is very exhausting at times to take on all the roles you need to take on to carry out a non-profit mission. You will feel the total weight of the burden of sustainability on your shoulders. Community funders are good at this power play. Be willing to walk away. Visionary physician tip #5: Get ready for other physicians to duplicate your work and peripheralize you. Never worry. Stay with your vision and speak up when you need to. Visionary physician tip #6: Community funders will keep moving the goal line on you. Stay with your vision and do not jump through their hoops or chase their carrots. You will have to do some of this but try to strike a healthy balance by letting some opportunities for funding go. Visionary physician tip #7: Stay out of founders syndrome. Back to the ego part of being a physician and being so focused on our external achievements, I fell into the trap of carrying the weight of funding my staff positions at the cost of my own. However you decide to operationalize your vision, whether through a non-profit or another means, you need an out. Most non-profits have a half-life of 8 to 10 years because of the way the funding paradigms are set up and limited community resources and all the needs in a community. Health care non-profits are especially difficult to fund. Though I successfully created a strategic partnership with Childrens Hospital Omaha to launch the Center for the Child & Community, which I founded, led and funded with the assets of Teach a Kid to Fish, I failed at creating a sustainable community model that could be replicated. Or did I? I dissolved Teach a Kid to Fish as a non-profit in 2016 when I launched the Center for the Child & Community at Childrens and served as Medical Director for the Center until Sunday, September 29, 2019. Thats when I resigned, effective immediately, per my attorneys directive at 10:30 p.m, leaving nearly $500,000 of grant assets, community donations and my husband and Is donations. I created all of it from scratch, from my vision, Creating Community Solutions for Childrens Health. Karla Lester is a pediatrician. Image credit: Shutterstock.com A multi-million euro project that will see up to 50,000 tonnes of cheese manufactured in South Kilkenny every year, is officially underway. Tanaiste Leo Varadkar and Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue were on hand to help partners Glanbia Co-Op and Dutch firm Royal A-Ware to turn the first sod at the Belview Port site. There was a sense of relief and celebration at the event, following two years of legal challenges to the developments planning permission. The sod-turning ceremony was described as a pivotal moment in the project by the Tanaiste and a huge day in the history of the South East and rural Ireland by Glanbia Co-Op C.EO Jim Bergin. ABOVE: Deputy John McGuinness, Cllr Pat Fitzpatrick Cathaoirleach Kilkenny County Council, Frank Ronan from Waterford Port and Sean McKeown CEO Kilkenny Council. Photograph: Mary Browne Mr Bergin and Royal A-Ware CEO Jan Anker hosted the event, which welcomed local representatives, farming industry figures, Enterprise Ireland staff and Dutch Ambassador to Ireland, Adriaan Palm. Chairman of Glanbia Co-Op, John Murphy, said that it was a wonderful day finally, at long last! The new cheese processing facility is going to be a huge boost to the economy of the South East, and the whole rural Irish economy, Mr Murphy said. Dairy is something we are really good at. We have the resources, we have the climate and we have the people. He also reassured those gathered that Glanbia Co-Op are focused on reaching the 2030 environmental targets. Farmers, he said, are the original environmentalists. They have a passion for the land, are adaptable and wont be found wanting in the climate change agenda. Tanaiste Varadkar thanked Enterprise Ireland and the IDA for their work on the project, as well as thanking local TDs who advocated for the project. In the early days of the Covid pandemic there were worries about food supplies, but that never happened and the Tanaiste thanked the people in the food sector for that. While the UK will always be an important market for Irish food, Deputy Varadkar said, we should not have all our eggs in one basket and we want to sell into Europe, as this factory will, and the US markets. ABOVE: Minister Martin Haydon, Cllr Fidelis Doherty and Tanaiste Leo Varadkar. Photograph: Mary Browne Overall, half a billion euro has been invested in the cheese factory project so far, the Tanaiste said, and the 80 permanent jobs being created in the completed factory will be fantastic for the area. Describing the South East as a catch up area that did not benefit from investment as much as it should have in the past, the Tanaiste said the cheese factory jobs along with recent job announcements at State Street in Kilkenny, job creation in Waterford and the creation of TUSE are contributing to the South East being one of the areas with the most growth in the last year. The project was the culmination of a lot of hard work by a lot of people, he said. Royal A-Ware CEO, Jan Anker, said it was a special day for his family business. This will be one of the most sustainable cheese factories in Europe, he said. Royal A-Ware invest in the entire chain, from consumer to cow, and they value long-term partnerships. Consumers all over the world will enjoy the cheese produced at this factory, from high quality milk, Mr Anker said. The new facility will be one of the most efficient and sustainable continental cheese production facilities in Europe. It is planned that the first continental cheese (Edam, Gouda and Emmental) will be produced for global markets in 2024. The facility will use about 450 million litres of milk from Glanbia suppliers each year. Bagana Volcano NASA Bougainville Island in Papua New Guinea hosts three large volcanoes along its mountainous middle: Mount Balbi, Mount Bagana, and the Mount Takuan volcanic complex. Of these, only Mount Bagana is currently active. Since Bagana was first viewed by scientists in the 1840s, it has been erupting nearly nonstop. The remote volcano extrudes thick, blocky, slow-moving andesitic lavas. These have built the stratovolcano to a height of 1,850 meters (6,000 feet) above sea level. The large, symmetrical cone formed in 300 to 500 years, making it one of the youngest and most active volcanoes in the South Pacific. Lava descends the flanks on all sides of the volcano, forming lobes up to 50 meters (165 feet) thick. A small lava dome is sometimes observed near the summit. Since February 2000, Bagana has been in an eruptive period, according to the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program. Recent lava flows are visible in this image acquired on May 28, 2022, by the Operational Land Imager-2 (OLI-2) on Landsat 9. The fresh lava is dark brown, while lighter brown areas were likely stripped of vegetation by volcanic debris or acidic gases. Older lava flows are covered in light green vegetation, and the surrounding forests are dark green. The volcanic plume, as well as some nearby clouds, are white. Bagana is also a remarkable emitter of sulfur dioxide, according to recent research. The volcano belches out several thousand tons of the air pollutant per day, the most of any volcano in the world without a lava lake. Such robust volcanic activity is due to the geologic setting. In the southwest Pacific, the Australian and Pacific plates are converging at a rate of about 11 centimeters per year. This slow-motion collision has big consequences. As one plate dives down below the other in a process called subduction, a deep-sea trench forms at the leading edge of the lower plate and volcanoes form on the overlying plate. But these forces are ever shifting. The island of Bougainville formed mainly in two geologic stages. About 45 million years ago, the Pacific Plate was subducting beneath the Australian Plate. Volcanoes began to build up on the seafloor. Then, around 10 million years ago, the direction of subduction changed and the Australian Plate began to subduct beneath the Pacific Plate. This activity produced the more recent volcanic rocks of Bougainville Island, and later led to the formation of Bagana Volcano. NASA Earth Observatory image by Joshua Stevens, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Story by Sara E. Pratt. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Ukrainian officers sit in a bus after they were evacuated from the besieged Mariupol Azovstal steel plant near a remand prison in Olyonivka, in the Donetsk People's Republic, a contested territory in eastern Ukraine, in this May 17 photo. AP-Yonhap By Kang Seung-woo Nearly seven out of 10 South Korean nationals are willing to fight for their country in the event of war, according to a recent poll. The World Values Survey polled 1,245 South Koreans, 67.4 percent of whom expressed their willingness to fight for their country, while 32.6 percent were unwilling to take up arms to defend their homeland. South Korea ranked 40th out of 79 countries polled between 2017 and 2021 when it comes to the percentage of the population willing to fight for their country in the event of a war, but the percentage of people who are unwilling to take up arms has been steadily increasing, compared to 6.5 percent in a 1981 survey. South Korea is technically still at war with North Korea, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. Populations of countries that were invaded in the past were more willing to fight for their homeland. Vietnam had the highest percentage of citizens willing to defend their country, at 96.4 percent, followed by Jordan at 93.8 percent, Kyrgyzstan at 92.7 percent and China at 88.6 percent. Japan had the lowest percentage of people willing to fight a war for their country at 13.2 percent, followed by Lithuania at 32.8 percent, Spain at 33.5 percent and Macedonia at 36.2 percent. The survey conducted in Japan showed that 48.6 percent of 1,353 respondents answered, "Don't know," which was up to 30 percentage points higher than other countries with greater proportions of their population who were unwilling to fight, raising speculation that the result was mainly due to Article 9 of the Japanese constitution, which outlaws war as a means to settle disputes and the retention of armed forces for war. US President Joe Biden gestures at the start of the first plenary session of the NATO summit at the Ifema congress centre in Madrid, on June 29. AFP-Yonhap President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced US reinforcements of NATO forces in Europe, saying the alliance is needed more today "than it ever has been." NATO will be "strengthened in all directions across every domain land, air and sea," he told a summit of the transatlantic alliance being held in Madrid. Biden, who was meeting NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, said the extra forces included: - Boosting the fleet of US naval destroyers from four to six in Rota, Spain. - A permanent headquarters in Poland of the 5th Army Corps. - An "additional rotational brigade" in Romania, consisting of "3,000 fighters and another 2,000-personnel combat team." - Enhanced rotational deployments in the Baltic countries. - Two additional squadrons of the F-35 stealth plane to Britain. - "Additional air defence and other capabilities in Germany and in Italy." "Together with our allies we're going to make sure that NATO is ready to meet the threats from all directions across every domain," Biden said. "In a moment where (Russian President Vladimir) Putin has shattered peace in Europe and attacked the very, very tenets of rule-based order, the United States and our allies, we're going to step up," he said. "We're stepping up, proving that NATO is more needed now than it ever has been and it's important as it ever has been." Referring to NATO unity on accepting the applications of previously neutral Finland and Sweden to join the alliance, Biden said Putin's strategy in invading Ukraine had backfired. "That's exactly what he didn't want but exactly what needs to be done to guarantee security for Europe," Biden said. Stoltenberg commented that the expansion of NATO was "the opposite" of what Putin hoped for. A White House statement detailing the reinforcements said that in the Baltics, "we will maintain persistent, heel-to-toe presence in the region and will intensify training." This will include "armored, aviation, air defense, and special operations forces, building further interoperability and intensified training with these allies, and enhancing our ability to quickly reinforce and provide combat-credible defenses." The additions to the US presence are part of a much wider expansion of NATO capabilities being announced in Madrid, as well as a new strategic blueprint which will highlight the threat from Russia but for the first time also name China as a challenge. White House spokesman John Kirby told reporters that the US military expansion in Europe comes on top of reinforcements already sent in the wake of Russia's Ukraine invasion. "Since the invasion itself, (Biden) ordered the deployment or extension of over 20,000 additional forces to Europe in response to the crisis, all across the domains... which brought our total to over 100,000 service members across Europe," Kirby said. (AFP) No Yes, a light case Yes, two or more light cases One serious case Two or more serious bouts Vote View Results Angolas July 4th parade last year not only celebrated the United States but also local essential workers. Police and fire departments led the parade around the Steuben County Soldiers Monument where spectators from all over the county and beyond gathered to cheer. This years parade is Monday, starting at 11 a.m. on West Maumee Street near Trine University. Kendallville, IN (46755) Today Areas of fog early, becoming mostly sunny this afternoon. High 83F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Clear skies. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. MUSKEGO A novel about a Japanese-American familys experience in a World War II internment camp in the American West, inspired by the authors own ancestors, will likely not be taught to Racine County and Waukesha County high school sophomores because of actions by a school board. Last month, the Muskego-Norway School Board Curriculum Educational Services Committee sent back When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka to the school district Curriculum Planning Committee, which had recommended the board buy 60 book copies for an accelerated 10th grade English class. Some board members said the novel is not appropriate for an English course. They also said the book is one-sided, diverse and was selected from a list of potential titles that was too short. The internment of more than 120,000 people of Japanese descent in the U.S., two-thirds of whom were U.S. citizens, marks one of the few times the U.S. government has paid reparations to those it has admitted to have wronged. An estimated $400 million worth of property was forcibly lost by those incarcerated for nothing more than their ethnicity. Community members opposed to the committees decision have written a petition with more than 200 signatures. They also sent a letter to the school board asking for the committee to explain its reasoning for not approving Emperor, listen to community concerns and learn from subject matter experts. The books editor wrote a letter asking the school board to reconsider its action, and so did the Japanese American Citizen League. A national museum that tells the story of one internment camp has invited board members to tour its site. The school board has made no indication that it will be shifting course. Otsuka was shocked that the school board didnt approve her novel and believes it is the first time that has happened in the two decades since its publication. Ive never encountered any opposition at all to teaching this book, Otsuka said in an interview with a reporter. Otsuka was disappointed with the committees decision but also encouraged by the local response. I was incredibly heartened by all the parents and students in Muskego who came out in opposition, Otsuka said. To see this community rally around the book because they believe that the truth should be told it gives me a lot of hope. Not banned, but not approved According to Ann Zielke, a school district parent, the three-person Curriculum Educational Services Committee sent back Emperor without comment during its June 13 meeting. Community members in attendance asked questions about why the book was not moved forward. The school district has not posted minutes from the June 13 meeting, and there does not appear to be a recording of the public meeting. According to Zielkes notes, committee member Laurie Kontney said during the meeting that the book was recommended because it was diverse. Zielke asked why that was an issue, and Kontney responded by saying it cant only be about oppression, according to Zielke. Kontney was elected to the school board in April. One of the tenets of her campaign was Critical thinking, not critical race theory. According to Zielke, committee member Tracy Blair said during the meeting that she read the book but didnt like it, in part because the characters didnt have names; it was a literary choice of the author to not name the characters, instead referring to them as the woman, the girl, the father, etc. In an email to The Journal Times, committee member Terri Boyer said the novel did not move forward due to concerns about following board policy, not because of the books material. The process was the issue, not the content of the book, Boyer wrote. There were many personal book opinions shared by several people, but that was not the reason the book was not selected. Our policy states selection of instructional materials shall not discriminate on the basis of any characteristics protected under state or federal law. Concerns were raised about whether this policy was followed. To ensure the policy is followed, staff pulled the book from being recommended and will start the process over to ensure a fair and non-discriminatory process will be used to select a book for this class. Boyer said Emperor can still be considered in the new process. No books were banned, Boyer wrote. In an email, Kontney declined to be interviewed and said she did not want to be misquoted and have what (she) said cut up and spun to meet a narrative. Kontney offered a brief explanation for why she did not support When the Emperor Was Divine. She believes more books should have been considered and that Otsukas novel is more suitable for a history course. I would like to see the pool of books opened up to assure that the book selected is the best fit to meet the literary needs and learning objectives of the English class, Kontney wrote. However, Zielke emphasized that the book is not intended to be an informational text. Rather, it was recommended by the planning committee because of its writing style. These kids are reading a piece of literature, Zielke said. You will always discuss what it contains, but it was chosen for its style. Otsuka did extensive research for the book but is not a historian. Im a literary writer, Otsuka said. Thats how I see myself, and I think thats how the book has been received. Jordan Pavlin, editor-in-chief of Alfred A. Knopf, which published Emperor, wrote a letter to the school board asking that it approve the book. Pavlin is Otsukas editor and believes the novels style and subject matter make it deserving of inclusion in a high school English course. Blair did not respond to a request for comment. Claims of balance concerns, one-sidedness Zielke said that in conversations she had with Boyer and Chris Buckmaster, the school board president, Boyer and Buckmaster expressed concerns about balance issues with the book, saying students should also hear the U.S. governments perspective about Japanese American incarceration. Boyer said she could not confirm expressing that opinion. Buckmaster did not respond to a request for comment; neither did Superintendent Kelly Thompson, who oversees the school district that served about 4,800 students in 2020-21. Board member Brett Hyde, who is not on the committee, told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that from what he heard at the June 13 meeting, committee members felt the book was too similar in terms of the viewpoint and the timeframe to an excerpt from Farewell to Manzanar, another book taught in the 10th grade English class. Hyde told the Journal-Sentinel there could be reading material from another angle that would provide some history as to why the citizens of Japanese descent were viewed as a threat and what was the reasoning to have them put into the internment camps. Otsuka does not believe that perspective is required, noting that the U.S. government formally apologized for incarcerating Japanese Americans. As far as Im concerned, there are no two sides, Otsuka said. I dont know what the other side is of innocent people being locked up without trial because they look like the enemy. President Ronald Reagan signed the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 that apologized and paid $20,000 each to surviving Japanese Americans incarcerated at internment camps. A Congressional commission that investigated the impact of the camps called them a grave injustice motivated by racial prejudice, war hysteria and the failure of political leadership. David Inoue, executive director of the Japanese American Citizens League, concurred with Otsuka. The call for a balanced viewpoint in the context of the incarceration of Japanese Americans is deeply problematic and racist, and plays into the same fallacies the United States Army used to justify the incarceration, Inoue wrote in a letter to the school board. While not every book and story can be told, to deny the use of one such as this under the pretenses youve given is wrong. The story of what happened to the Japanese American community is an American story, one that balances the challenges of injustice, but also the patriotic stories of service and resistance. If anything, these are stories that need to be told more in our schools. Aura Sunada Newlin, Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation interim executive director, invited the school board to visit the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center in northwest Wyoming. The interpretive center tells the story of 14,000 Japanese Americans who were incarcerated at the Heart Mountain Relocation Center during WWII. We are confident in our mutual desire to sincerely educate the American public about the incarceration of Japanese Americans in order to prevent a similar injustice occurring in our shared present or future, Newlin, a descendant of Heart Mountain incarcerees, wrote in a letter to Buckmaster. Members of the Lake Geneva Jaycees plan to make a big bang for Venetian Fests 60th anniversary. This years Venetian Fest will be held Aug. 17 through Aug. 21 in areas of Flat Iron Park, Seminary Park and Library Park in Downtown Lake Geneva. The event, which is hosted by the Lake Geneva Jaycees, will feature live music, carnival rides, beer tent, boat parade and fireworks display. Members of the Lake Geneva Tourism Commission unanimously awarded a $40,000 grant to the Jaycees June 13 to help them pay for costs related to the festival. About $25,000 of the grant funding will be used to help pay for the fireworks display, and about $15,000 will be used to help market and advertise the event. Ryan Lasch, Venetian Fest chairman, said the Jaycees plan to conduct a more impressive fireworks display this year than in the past to celebrate the festivals 60th anniversary. Lasch said the Jaycees and the fireworks company also will provide funding for the display. The City of Lake Geneva usually contributes about $10,000 for the Venetian Fest fireworks, but Lasch said the Jaycees are requesting more funding this year to host a bigger display and because of the increase cost of fireworks. The fireworks display is set to be held Aug. 21 at dusk and will last between 18 to 22 minutes. Peoples attention span after about 20 minutes, they will lose interest, Lasch said. So when talking to the fireworks company, no matter how big the show, whether its a $25,000 show, a $50,000 show or a $100,000 show, its still 18 to 22 minutes. Its how much you pack into that 22 minutes. Zakia Pirzada, tourism commission member, said she was in favor of awarding the Jaycees the $40,000 grant to help them put on an impressive fireworks display this year. She said Venetian Fest attracts many visitors to Lake Geneva, and the fireworks display is one of the main highlights of the event. I think this will be the best fireworks display in Lake Geneva, because that is a very busy weekend and a lot of people come to see the fireworks, Pirzada said. This is the only time we do fireworks in Lake Geneva. Im hoping for the best fireworks in Lake Geneva in 60 years. Alderman Richard Hedlund, who also is a member of the tourism commission, said even though $40,000 is a lot of money, the funding would help the Jaycees host a large fireworks display for the festivals 60th anniversary. Its a big anniversary. Its a lot of years, Hedlund said. The goal is to have the biggest fireworks show in Lake Geneva. The rest of the grant money will be used to advertise and promote the event. Lasch said the Jaycees plan to advertise the festival in the Milwaukee and Madison areas and McHenry County, Illinois to help attract more out-of-town visitors. The reason for that is to try to bring people to spend the night, Lasch said. Were going to focus our advertising on Sunday night. Thats a night that doesnt get a lot of stays, so were going to focus our advertising on that night and obviously the rest of Venetian Fest, as well. Lasch said the Jaycees also plan to work with the Lake Geneva hotels to offer discounts and specials to encourage more overnight stays. Pirzada told Lasch to contact all the hotels in Lake Geneva to help them become a part of the event. We want to promote all the hotels in town, not just one or two, Pirzada said. A local furniture store has expanded into a neighboring location that has sat vacant for almost 10 years. Paper Dolls Home Furnishings & Interior Design, 138 E. Geneva Square in Lake Geneva, recently expanded into a 2,000 square-foot neighboring storefront. Kristi Hugunin, owner of Paper Dolls Home Furnishings, which is located in the Geneva Square shopping center, said she decided to expand the business to display more furniture items and to provide more space in the warehouse to allow more items to be stocked. Expanded area The expanded area includes bedroom sets, sofas, lamps and dressers I outgrew my warehouse, so here is this new addition that I have all bedroom sets, set up, Hugunin said. If somebody comes in and says, I want a new bedroom set, we can bring them in here and they get to see the matching dressers. The expanded area also includes a row of recliner chairs. So now when people come in and say Im looking for a recliner, we can bring them over here and theyre all here instead of just trying to go all through the store and see where the different ones are, Hugunin said. The new area will also feature printed artwork in the future that will be available for purchase. I do a big business in selling artwork. So this will also have artwork on the walls, Hugunin said. We just havent had the chance to get to it yet. This is exciting for us, because now we can show everything on how it would go in your home. The 2,000 square-foot area previously was the location for a womens clothing store, which closed about 10 years ago. Grown to 7 storefronts It has sat empty for 10 years, Hugunin said. I always thought, I dont want to expand again, but nowadays with people wanting things immediately instead of waiting, I felt the need that I had to expand to be able to provide them with their furniture right away for delivery. The buildings landlords remodeled the space for about two weeks, then Hugunin was ready to expand her business into the location in early June. The landlords did the remodeling for us, and it was ready for us to move into, Hugunin said. Its freshly new. Paper Dolls Home Furnishings has been expanded several times since it opened for business about 36 years ago. We started out with one storefront, now we have seven storefronts, Hugunin said. We have a little bit for everybody. The store has different themed rooms with different colors and styles of furniture. Theres blue rooms. Theres pink, floral rooms. Theres the nautical room, and we have a masculine room, Hugunin said. Interior design Paper Dolls Home Furnishings also offers an interior design service, where customers can help design the look of their furniture. This is where the interior designer sits, and they do the creating here for their customers, Hugunin said. We have all the fabrics in here. When you special order, we have all the fabrics in here for special ordering. We have thousands of fabrics to choose from. Hugunin said the store attracts customers from throughout the area. She said customers can pick their purchased items up at the store or have them delivered. We live in a wonderful bubble because not only do we service Walworth County, but we also go into the Chicago suburbs, Milwaukee, Kenosha and Janesville, Hugunin said. Well deliver, pretty much, everywhere. Hugunin said she has enjoyed operating the furniture store during the last 36 years. I love what I do. It has been a wonderful business, Hugunin said. I get to be creative. I get to meet wonderful customers. Everybody is excited because were not your typical furniture store. We set up the whole room to look like it should in your house. People love that, because it gives them ideas. Hugunin said she does not plan to expand the business again in the future. Believe me, this is enough, she said. Paper Dolls Home Furnishings & Interior Design is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Saturday. For more information, call 262-248-6268. Friends creator Marta Kauffman has recently revealed to LA Times that she was so embarrassed and guilty about the lack of diversity on her classic NBC sitcom that she is donating USD 4 million to help Marta F. Kauffman 78 Chair in African and African American Studies at Brandeis University. Friends Co-Creator Marta Kauffman Is Upset About Show's Lack of Diversity, Says 'I'm Embarrassed'. Kauffman said it was originally difficult and frustrating to have the show criticized for its lack of diverse characters, but she became critical herself after the 2020 murder of George Floyd, as per Variety. "It was after what happened to George Floyd that I began to wrestle with my having bought into systemic racism in ways I was never aware of. That was really the moment that I began to examine the ways I had participated. I knew then I needed to course-correct," Kauffman said. All of the six main characters on Friends were white, and the show rarely featured black actors in prominent roles throughout 10 seasons and 236 episodes. Lauren Tom, Gabrielle Union, Mark Consuelos, and Craig Robinson appeared in small supporting roles on the show, while Aisha Tyler, the show's most prominent black actress, starred in only nine episodes. Tyler played a paleontology professor who dated both Joey and Ross. According to the LA Times, Kauffman's USD 4 million for the African and African American studies program will support a distinguished scholar with a concentration in the study of the peoples and cultures of Africa and the African diaspora. The gift will also assist the department to recruit more expert scholars and teachers, map long-term academic and research priorities and provide new opportunities for students to engage in interdisciplinary scholarship. "I've learned a lot in the last 20 years. Admitting and accepting guilt is not easy. It's painful looking at yourself in the mirror. I'm embarrassed that I didn't know better 25 years ago," Kauffman said. Mumbai Police Get Friends Into the Scene; Shares Clip From the Famous American Sitcom To Raise Awareness Against Stalking! She mentioned on getting nothing but love since making the announcement, adding, "It's been amazing. It surprised me to some extent, because I didn't expect the news to go this wide. I've gotten a flood of emails and texts and posts that have been nothing but supportive. I've gotten a lot of It's about time. Not in a mean way. It's just people acknowledging it was long overdue." Sitapur (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 3 (ANI): As many as three people died and nine were injured due to lightning in some villages of the Sitapur district in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday. According to Sitapur District Magistrate Anuj Singh, all the injured were rushed to a hospital and all of them are currently out of danger. Also Read | Eknath Shinde-Led Maharashtra Govt to Face Floor Test Tomorrow. "Incident of lightning was reported in some villages of Sitapur district where three people lost their lives and nine were injured. Officials reached the spot and rushed the injured people to a hospital and are out of danger," Singh said. He also informed that an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh will be given to the deceased's kin. Also Read | Eid al-Adha 2022: 'Don't Kill Cows on Eid', Lok Sabha MP and AIUDF Chief Badruddin Ajmal Appeals to Assam Muslims. More details are awaited. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Kaushambi, Jul 3 (PTI) A body 20-year-old man was exhumed here after a Hindu family said that he has been wrongly buried, officials said on Sunday. The body was buried again after collecting samples from it, SHO Saini police station Tej Bahadur Singh said. Also Read | NATA Phase 2 Admit Card Releasing on July 4 at nata.in; Check Details. According to the officials, on June 21, body of a youth was found in Banpukra village on the Delhi-Howrah rail route in Saini police station area. One Shabbir had identified the body as that of his son Ramzan, and buried him in his village. Almost a week later, Santraj, a resident of Dhata village of Fatehpur district wrote a letter to the District Magistrate of Kaushambi Sujeet Kumar drawing his attention, claiming that the body buried is that of his son Suraj, and urged him to probe the matter, they said citing the letter of Santraj. Also Read | Diarrhoeal Outbreak in Puducherry: Public Health Emergency Declared in Karaikal Region. Subsequently, DM Sujeet Kumar directed Sub-Divisional Magistrate and Circle Officer of Sirathu to exhume the body, and get it examined by a panel of three doctors. The body was exhumed in the presence of both the officials on Sunday. The doctors collected the sample from the body for DNA testing, and blood samples of Santraj and Shabbir were also collected, CO KG Singh said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Jul 3 (PTI) Civic authorities in Delhi have taken strict action against firms, including imposing a fine of Rs 1 lakh against a company, after finding breeding of mosquitoes at construction sites, officials said on Sunday. Over 130 dengue cases have been reported in the national capital so far this year. Cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between July and November, but the period may stretch till mid-December. Also Read | Eknath Shinde-Led Maharashtra Govt to Face Floor Test Tomorrow. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has issued notices, imposing heavy fines to firms after mosquito-breeding was found at their construction, and for not making appropriate efforts to prevent it, the MCD said in a statement. A construction company that operated site at IIT-Delhi has been issued a fine of Rs 1 lakh, it said. Also Read | Eid al-Adha 2022: 'Don't Kill Cows on Eid', Lok Sabha MP and AIUDF Chief Badruddin Ajmal Appeals to Assam Muslims. A team of officials of the public health department of MCD carried out anti- larval measures and destroyed all the mosquito breeding sites. The MCD has organised a "massive anti-larval campaign" against mosquito-breeding at construction sites, the civic body said. The Municipal corporation of Delhi has also carried out investigation and surveillance campaign at various construction sites of Delhi and fined SAM Buildwell carrying out construction at Karkardooma, with a sum of Rs 50,000 after mosquito-breeding was found at its site. Abhilasha Enterprises carrying out construction at LBS Hospital Khichdipur was fined Rs 10,000 for mosquito-breeding. Another one, carrying out construction at Karkardooma, was slapped with a fine of Rs 10,000. WG Construction was fined Rs 5,000 after mosquito-breeding was found at its site situated in Venkateshwar Hospital Dwarka Sec-18A, it said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Jul 3 (PTI) In a hit-and-run case, a 31-year-old driver was arrested for allegedly running his car over a man who was sleeping on the footpath in Outer Delhi's Mangolpuri, police said on Sunday. Accused Ashok, a Mangolpuri resident, has been arrested, they said, adding that the victim was a vagabond. Also Read | NATA Phase 2 Admit Card Releasing on July 4 at nata.in; Check Details. The accident occurred on Friday. A PCR call was received on Friday regarding a fatal accident near the Ramlila Ground in Outer district. When police personnel reached the spot, they found a man lying in a pool of blood after allegedly being hit by a vehicle. His head was crushed, police said. Also Read | Diarrhoeal Outbreak in Puducherry: Public Health Emergency Declared in Karaikal Region. The victim was rushed to the Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital, where he was declared brought dead. The unidentified body was then sent to the mortuary, police said. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer) Sameer Sharma said the site of the accident was inspected and tyre skid marks were observed. A Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team inspected the crime scene, while a mobile crime team took photographs of the site, the officer added. A case was registered under sections 279 (rash driving) and 304A (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), he said. The vehicle involved in the incident was identified after going through the CCTV footage collected from the nearby areas. The address of the owner, a Mangolpuri resident, was obtained and a notice was issued to him under the Motor Vehicle Acts, the DCP said. The owner told the police that he had rented out the car to Ashok, who was subsequently detained from his residence, he added. "The accused said a generator was attached to his car. Due to the negligent driving of the accused, a tyre of the generator allegedly ran over the man sleeping on the footpath, severely injuring him. The accused was frightened and fled the spot," the officer said. The accused was arrested and the car involved in the offence was recovered, he added. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Mumbai, July 3: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned former Mumbai police commissioner Sanjay Pandey on July 5 in connection with a money laundering case, an official from the Central agency said on Sunday. The summons were sent on Saturday to Pandey, who retired from the police force on June 30, the ED official added. Sanjay Pandey, Ex-Mumbai Police Commissioner, Summoned By ED on July 5 in Money Laundering Case. While Pandey was unavailable for comment, the official said the former police commissioner may appear before the anti-money laundering agency in Delhi. The official, however, refused to divulge for which money laundering case the summons had been issued to the retired IPS officer. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Mumbai, July 3: The new Maharashtra government, which came to power after Shiv Sena MLA Eknath Shinde's 10-day rebellion brought the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, will face the floor test on Monday, the second day of the special session of the state Legislative Assembly. Earlier on Sunday evening, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde along with his faction of Shiv Sena MLAs held a meeting with Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, BJP MLAs, and other party leaders at a hotel in Mumbai to chalk out a strategy for the floor test. "The Shiv Sena-BJP alliance government is set to face a majority test on Monday, the second day of the special session of the legislature. What exactly will be the strategy of the government was discussed in the meeting held in the presence of all the MLAs today," sources said. Eknath Shinde, who has been claiming the support of 40 rebel Shiv Sena legislators said that he expects the government to be successful in the floor test to be held tomorrow like the Speaker's election held today, sources added. Fadnavis claimed that the Shinde government will prove its majority with 166 votes. Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis Pose for a Photo With State Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar. "The youngest speaker candidate won the speaker election with 164 votes today as 2 MLAs couldn't come due to health issues. We would prove our majority with 166 votes in the vote of confidence," he said. At present, the BJP has 106 MLAs in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly and Shinde is leading 39 rebel Shiv Sena legislators and some Independents. After the death of a Shiv Sena MLA recently, the current strength of the Assembly is reduced to 287, thus the majority mark is 144. Shinde-led camp and the BJP scored a big win on Sunday as BJP's Rahul Narwekar was elected as the Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly defeating Shiv Sena candidate Rajan Salvi. Interestingly, amid the ongoing battle between two Shiv Sena factions led by Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray, both sides issued separate whips to the party MLAs to vote in favour of their respective candidates during the speaker's election on Sunday and later accused each other of violating them. Shiv Sena MP Arvind Sawant, who is in the Uddhav Thackeray camp, said that 39 party MLAs did not obey their whip adding that they have sought their disqualification from the state Assembly. "39 of our MLAs did not obey our whip, and didn't follow party order, so we have sought their disqualification from new Assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar. Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has chosen Ajay Choudhari as the leader of the group," Sawant said. Maharashtra Assembly Floor Test on Monday: CM Shinde-camp MLAs, Dy CM Fadnavis Hold Meeting. However, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar has taken on record the letter sent by Bharat Gogawale, who is Chief Whip of the Eknath Shinde-led faction. Gogawale said that 16 MLAs Shiv Sena violated the whip. Narwekar received a total of 164 votes in support and 107 went to the Shiv Sena candidate's account. During the Speaker elections, 12 members were absent and 3 legislators abstained from the voting. In the latest development, the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Sena has also started the legal process to disqualify 16 MLAs, including Shinde. Newly appointed Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar said in the House today that he has received a letter from Bharatshet Gogawale, a whip of the Shinde faction of Shiv Sena that "16 MLAs have violated their whip and he has sought action". I have noted this, Narwekar said. Shinde, in his first address on the floor of the Maharashtra Assembly as a Chief Minister on Sunday, said that the decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to let him lead the government despite having more members than his side has "opened the eyes of many". He also said that after the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state, a "BJP-Shiv Sena government" has taken charge which is based on the beliefs of the party founder Balasaheb Thackeray. Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray termed Monday's floor test as a "morality test" for MLAs. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Mumbai, Jul 3 (PTI) Environmental activists and some political parties, including the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena and the AAP, on Sunday staged a protest at the Aarey Colony, a green belt in suburban Goregaon, against the Maharashtra government's proposal to build a Metro-3 car shed at the site. Also Read | Gujarat: Police Party Attacked by Armed Group, Two Cops Injured; Three Arrested. Holding placards, the protesters raised slogans against the new government's proposal to shift the Metro-3 car shed project back to Mumbai's Aarey forest, an 1,800-acre area that is often termed as the megalopolis's 'green lung'. Also Read | Presidential Election 2022: NDA Presidential Nominee Droupadi Murmu to Visit Tripura on July 5. In their first cabinet meeting held soon after their swearing-in ceremony on Thursday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP had directed the state administration to submit a proposal to build the Metro-3 car shed in Aarey Colony instead of Kanjurmarg. The previous Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government had shifted the proposed car shed site to Kanjurmarg from Aarey Colony on the ground of environment protection, but the issue got embroiled in a legal dispute. The Thackeray government had also declared Aarey as a reserved forest. Some leaders and workers of the Shiv Sena as well as its youth wing Yuva Sena, which is headed by former environment minister Aaditya Thackeray, participated in the protest. Thackeray, who represents Worli Assembly constituency in Mumbai, tweeted that he was not able to join the protest due to the crucial session of the state Legislative Assembly on Sunday, but urged the government to reconsider its decision. Party MP Priyanka Chaturvedi, who participated in the protest, accused the Eknath Shinde-led government of politicising the issue. "What harm have Mumbaikars done to indulge in such politics? Why are you seeking revenge from Mumbai for your politics? If you have anything against us, fight us, why fight Mumbaikars, Chaturvedi said. According to environment activists, the forest not only provides fresh air to people of the city, but it also a key habitat for the wildlife, including some endemic species. The forest has some five lakh trees, and also has a couple of rivers and some lakes flowing through it, they say. Ruben Mascarenhas, the working president of Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) Mumbai unit ,said Aarey is the only urban forest ecosystem in the world and must be saved at all costs. He said as a minister in the Uddhav Thackery-led government, Shinde was in favour of the Metro-3 yard being shifted to Kanjurmarg and was part of the decision. "His U-turn right now is astounding," he said. Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray's son Amit also came out against the proposed construction of the car shed in Aarey. He said the government's decision has shocked many nature lovers like him and added that he hoped that the Shinde-led dispensation will reconsider its decision. On Friday, addressing a press conference at Shiv Sena Bhavan, the party headquarters at Dadar in central Mumbai, Uddhav Thackeray had made a fervent appeal to the new government not to go ahead with the Metro-3 car shed project at Aarey Colony. "I am very upset. If you are angry with me, then vent out your anger, but don't stab Mumbai in the heart. I am very upset that the Aarey decision has been overturned. This is not a personal property," he had said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Hyderabad, July 3: Amid demands by several BJP leaders to rename Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to Telangana's capital as Bhagyanagar during his address to the party workers at BJP National Executive meeting on Sunday, Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Sunday. The BJP leader was addressing a press conference after the BJP's National Executive Committee meeting in Hyderabad. "PM Modi said that Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar which is a significance for all of us. Sardar Patel kept the foundation of a unified India and now it's BJP's responsibility to carry it further," said Ravi Shankar Prasad. He also highlighted that now the party's thought process will be from appeasement to fulfilment. "In states where they (party workers) are suffering enormous hardship and yet remain firm to ideology... PM Modi stated that our aim should be to make it clear that our thought process should be from appeasement to fulfilment," he added. PM Narendra Modi Hyderabad Visit: Metro Shuts Three Stations in View of BJP Public Meeting at Parade Grounds in Secunderabad. The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national executive meeting moved to its second day on Sunday, the key focus remained on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech and the party's political resolution that is expected to be passed unanimously. The political resolution moved by Home Minister Amit Shah at the Hyderabad National Executive meeting also affirmed that in the next two- three decades India will emerge as " world leader". Shah, who made several moves to resolve the long-pending issues of the Northeastern states, on Sunday said that the BJP has found a "permanent address" in the region. He also said that the region will have no more problems in the coming times and that all its issues will be solved by 2024. The Home Minister made the remarks while speaking at the BJP national executive meeting during his address on the political resolution. Notably, in a major step in March, the Centre had removed AFPSA from 15 police station areas in seven districts of Nagaland, 15 police station areas in six districts of Manipur and 23 districts entirely and one district partially in Assam. Assam and Meghalaya governments, in March this year, signed a historic agreement here in the national capital to resolve their 50-year-old pending border dispute. The agreement was signed between Assam and Meghalaya two months after a draft resolution was submitted by the chief ministers of the two states to Amit Shah on January 31 for examination and consideration by the MHA. Speaking on the speech of Shah, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma briefed the media and said, "It has been a journey for us in the north-east and the Home Minister told us that he was delighted that we now have a permanent address in the Northeast and that we are going nowhere." When asked what Amit Shah said about the reason that the Citizenship Amendment Act has not been implemented, the Assam CM said that the objection by the Opposition to the reforms brought in by the government has led to the delay, however, the government is committed to implementing the CAA. "You know that the Opposition has been objecting to a number of things on a number of reforms by the Modi government including the CAA. There has been a delay but we are committed to implementing CAA and the rules will be formed," Sarma said. Agnipath Scheme: AAP Sends Rs 420 to PM Narendra Modi in Protest Against Recruitment Scheme. Detailing how the BJP plans to solve the problems of the Northeast region, Sarma said, "Amit Shah spoke about how the journey of the BJP has been in the north-east and development post-arrival of the Modi government in 2014. We also discussed how the AFSPA has been removed from the northeast region in about 60 per cent of the areas... He also said that by 2024, there will be no more fault lines in the north-east and all the issues will be solved." (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Namakkal (TN), Jul 3 (PTI) "I will become a dictator and take action if indiscipline and irregularity rear their heads," Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M K Stalin asserted here on Sunday, addressing a party meet of representatives of urban local bodies. Also Read | NATA Phase 2 Admit Card Releasing on July 4 at nata.in; Check Details. Underscoring that local bodies are the lifeline of democracy, Stalin said the icons of social justice - Periyar E V Ramasamy and Rajaji - who held lofty positions began their public life as heads of local bodies in Erode and Salem respectively. Pointing to many newly elected women representatives, he advised them to act independently and not surrender to their spouses the responsibility bestowed on them. He said the elected representatives of local bodies should abide by law, the principles of fairness and justice and serve the people. Also Read | Goa Starts Monsoon Trekking To Boost Hinterland Tourism. "I warn that those who violate this will face action. Legal action will be taken and not just action from the party," he said. Several of his close friends have been telling him that he has become 'excessively' democratic, Stalin said and added, "if indiscipline and irregularity rear their heads, I will become a dictator and take action." The DMK top leader said the party did not capture power so easily and it is the result of the selfless work of crores of party workers and similarly, he became the Chief Minister following his hard work for the people for the past 5 decades. Recalling his incarceration during the infamous Emergency during 1975-77 and him becoming a legislator only in 1989, he said cadres should work hard for the people and wait for responsibilities to come their way. Earning the people's goodwill is difficult, he said and added that he has been working among the people for the past 50 years. When the representatives of local bodies worked by understanding the people's needs, public would be rallying behind them, he said. "At the same time, if you commit mistakes, they will move away from you. Don't forget that they will boycott you." The basic objective of the conference is to drive home the message that there should be no allegations against elected representatives, be it a mayor or councillor, the DMK chief said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], July 3 (ANI): As BJP holds its National Executive meet in Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao's turf Telangana ahead of Assembly elections next year, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has exuded confidence in coming to power in the upcoming polls. The two-day BJP National Executive meeting began on Saturday in the presence of the party's top brass and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Also Read | #WATCH | Bihar: Fire Broke out in the Engine of a DMU Train Near Bhelwa Railway Station Latest Tweet by ANI. Speaking to the media on Saturday, Maurya said, "Today I took blessing of Mata Bhagyalaxmi here at Charminar. I request Telangana people to visit devotional places in Uttar Pradesh. We will come to power in the next Assembly elections in Telangana." Meanwhile, BJP president JP Nadda on Saturday lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership in his opening remarks at the party's national executive here and said the government had deftly dealt with various challenges including COVID-19 and the evacuation of Indian students from Ukraine, sources said. Also Read | Uttar Pradesh Shocker: Man Walks Into SSP Office With His New-Born Child's Body To Get FIR Lodged in Agra. In an apparent swipe at the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi, the BJP chief said "parivarvad is being defeated by vikasvad" under the Modi government. He said dynastic politics is getting rejected by people due to politics of development. Earlier, Union Minister Smriti Irani on Saturday slammed Telangana chief minister KCR for not being present at Hyderabad airport to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his arrival in the city to attend the Bharatiya Janata Party's National Executive meeting. KCR did not receive Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the airport yesterday on his arrival in the city. While KCR received the Opposition's presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha at the Begumpet Airport just a couple of hours before PM Modi landed at the same airport. Notably, this is for the third time in six months that CM KCR is skipping the protocol of receiving a visiting Prime Minister. Earlier, he had flown to Bengaluru in May when PM Modi visited the state to attend the 20th annual celebrations at the Indian School of Business (ISB). In February this year, KCR had remained absent during the Prime Minister's visit to Hyderabad. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a public meeting at Parade Grounds in Secunderabad today. In the public meeting titled 'Vijay Sankalpa Sabha', Prime Minister is likely to set the tone for the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) preparedness for the upcoming Assembly polls in Telangana. In the public rally, more than 35,000 people are expected to be present. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Hyderabad, July 3: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a public meeting at Parade Grounds in Secunderabad today. In the public meeting titled 'Vijay Sankalpa Sabha', Prime Minister is likely to set the tone for the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) preparedness for the upcoming Assembly polls in Telangana. In the public rally, more than 35,000 people are expected to be present. PM Modi arrived in Hyderabad on Saturday to attend the BJP's two-day national executive committee meeting. The biggest highlight of the entire BJP national executive committee meeting will be the speech of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his party cadre. The Prime Minister is expected to give a roadmap for the party in the coming times especially when they look at Assembly elections in the big states like Gujarat. Narendra Modi Govt Spent Rs 3,960 Crore Per Year on Rail Works in Gujarat, Six Times More Than UPA's Rs 590 Crore, Says Amit Shah. During his speech, He is likely to give suggestions on how to work towards strengthening the organisation as well as keep connected to the grassroots. He is also expected to throw light on the outreach of some government schemes. PM Modi is expected to take potshots at the Opposition. This is the first time that a meeting is taking place with complete participation by the BJP national executive members since the COVID-19 pandemic. The last meeting which took place in November 2021 happened in a hybrid manner in which leaders were present physically as well as joined virtually. The entire city of Hyderabad has donned a saffron hue with the BJP flags and banners for the party's mega show. The posters showcase the achievement of the central government. Every nook and cranny of the city is decked up with big cutouts and banners of top BJP leaders. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi [India], July 3 (ANI): Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury on Sunday slammed the Central Government for dismissing the US panel's report on religious freedom in India and said that the policy of the BJP government is "Gandhi in abroad and Godse in the country". Speaking to ANI, Yechury said, "The Policy of BJP government is Gandhi in abroad and Godse in the country. This government on one hand wants to tell everyone that we have a democracy in our country and on the other they are crushing the democratic rights inside the country." Also Read | Income Tax Raids Seven Premises in Chhattisgarh, Including CM Bhupesh Baghel's Deputy Secretary Saumya Chaurasiya. The CPI (M) General Secretary further told that the Central government rejects all foreign reports that are based on the country. "This government is crushing the human rights, democratic rights and rights of guarantee provided by Constitution within the country," said Yechury while speaking on India dismissing United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) report. India on Saturday hit out at the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) for its "biased" and "inaccurate" comments, stating that such reactions reflect a "severe lack of understanding" of India and its constitutional framework, the country's plurality and its democratic ethos. Also Read | Facebook Actioned 17.5 Million Content Pieces in India During May 2022: Meta Report. The response from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) came a day after USCIRF alleged "repression" of critical voices, especially religious minorities and those reporting on and advocating for them in India. The Ministry of External Affairs said that the USCIRF continues to "misrepresent" facts time and again in its statements and reports in pursuance of its motivated agenda. In response to media queries over comments on India by USCIRF, MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, "We have seen the biased and inaccurate comments on India by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). These comments reflect a severe lack of understanding of India and its constitutional framework, its plurality and its democratic ethos." Bagchi said that this "agenda" just further raises questions about the credibility of the organization."Regrettably, USCIRF continues to misrepresent facts time and again in its statements and reports in pursuance of its motivated agenda. Such actions only serve to strengthen concerns about the credibility and objectivity of the organization," he added. The USCIRF, in its report released in April 2022, had recommended designating India as a "country of particular concern," or CPC claiming religious intolerance in the country. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Wayanad (Kerala) [India], July 3 (ANI): The Students Federation of India (SFI) on Sunday decided to dissolve its Wayanad district committee in connection with the vandalism of Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's office allegedly by some of its activists. In a Facebook post, the state committee said that in a meeting held in Thrissur during the day a decision was taken to dissolve the Wayanad district committee and form a seven-member ad-hoc committee as an interim measure. Also Read | Disha Patani Exudes Fitness Goals in Latest Video Read @ANI Story | Latest Tweet by ANI Digital. The Facebook post further said the action was taken as the Wayanad district committee on June 24 organised a march to the Congress MP's office without the knowledge of the state committee and the protest had turned aggressive in a manner which brought shame upon the entire organisation before the public. Eldos Mathai, presently the district joint secretary of SFI, would be the convener of the seven-member ad-hoc committee, the post said. Also Read | Eid al-Adha 2022: 'Don't Kill Cows on Eid', Lok Sabha MP and AIUDF Chief Badruddin Ajmal Appeals to Assam Muslims. After visiting his MP office in Kerala's Wayanad, which was vandalised by CPI(M)'s student wing SFI last week, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Friday said the incident was unfortunate but he does not have any hostility or anger over it. Rahul, who reached Wayanad Friday for a three-day tour in the constituency, visited the vandalised office at Kalpetta, headquarters of Wayanad district. "This is my office. But before being my office, this is the office of the people of Wayanad. It is quite unfortunate that the office has been attacked. Violence will never resolve problems. It is not good that they have acted in an irresponsible manner. I don't have any anger or hostility towards them. They are kids and they don't understand the consequences of their act," he said without referring to either SFI or CPI(M). On Friday, visuals emerged of protestors allegedly belonging to the Students' Federation of India (SFI) activists, the student's wing of the ruling CPI(M) entering the office of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Wayanad and vandalising it. Several videos went viral on social media which showed those angry SFI protesters entering the office, in a brawl which later turned violent. The Kerala police have said that the protest march contained around 100 Students' Federation of India (SFI) activists and they barged into the office. They also confirmed that eight of the violent protesters have been taken into custody. The Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also issued a statement wherein he condemned the violence and promised strict action against the accused. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Hyderabad, Jul 3 (PTI) Underlining the BJP's motto of "sabka saath, sabka vikas", Prime Minister Narendra Modi suggested at the party's national executive meeting here on Sunday that party workers should reach out to deprived and downtrodden sections among the minorities too. He made the suggestion in his intervention during reporting on activities by the party unit in Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP recently won Lok Sabha bypolls in Rampur and Azamgarh, the two bastions of the Samajwadi Party having substantial Muslim populations. Also Read | All the Arrangements Have Been Made for the Prime Minister @narendramodis Visit to Latest Tweet by Prasar Bharati News Services. There have been several experiments in Indian politics with social equations among Hindus and attempts should be made to reach out to socially backwards minorities such as Pasmanda Muslims, sources quoted Modi as having told the meeting. Leaders of Pasmanda Muslims have often lamented that despite they being the numerical majority, a tiny elite section of the minority community remained in the leadership position and cornered most political benefits. Also Read | Jagannath Puri Yatra 2022: Arvind Kejriwal Govt Adds Puri Yatra Under Its Free Pilgrimage Scheme. Modi emphasised that BJP workers should reach out to not only weaker sections among Hindus but among minorities as well and help them reap benefits of various schemes of his government meant for welfare of all sections of society. At a meeting of BJP office-bearers last year, Modi had made a similar suggestion. He had then said the party should try to reach out to Christians in Kerala to further strengthen its base there. Party insiders say that the BJP is working on expanding its base and therefore efforts are being made to reach out to backward communities among the minorities. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Hyderabad, July 3 (PTI) Asserting the BJP will form the government in Telangana after the Assembly elections, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said the state under Chief Minister K Also Read | Umesh Kolhe Murder Case: Amravati Killing Prime Accused Sent to Police Custody Till July 7. Chandrashekar Rao's rule is trailing in all fronts while the nation is progressing. Also Read | Jagannath Rath Yatra 2022: Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari Sweeps Path of Yatra with A Broom in Mumbai. Addressing a public meeting titled as 'Vijay Sankalp Sabha' at Parade Grounds here, Shah said the BJP government after coming to power in the state will celebrate Telangana Liberation day officially which the Rao- led government failed to do. Assembly polls in the southern state are due next year. "Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, all BJP-ruled states are progressing. There are no jobs for youth in Telangana. Industries are not coming. There is no development. Entire country is marching forward but Telangana is trailing. This situation is not good for Telangana," Shah charged. He appealed to the people of the state to give one opportunity to the saffron party to form its government and overthrow the TRS. "I assure youwhat TRS has not doneall promises will be fulfilled by the BJP government," Shah assured. He alleged that KCR, as Rao as is popularly known, never celebrated the Telangana Liberation Day as he is afraid of AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi. The erstwhile Hyderabad state of the Nizam was merged with the Indian Union on September 17, 1948 and the BJP has been demanding that the day be officially celebrated as Liberation Day. Shah said the steering of the car, the symbol of the TRS party, is in the hands of Owaisi. KCR has been in power for the past eight years. He never visited the Secretariat as he was told by a tantric that his government would collapse if he went to the Secretariat. You don't have to go to the Secretariat. Because BJP will get a chance to go to the Secretariat as it is going to form the government, Shah said. "I have seen Telangana's mood. KCR, whenever you want to hold the elections hold it. The BJP is set to form (next) government in the state," Shah said. Instead of taking care of unemployed youth in the state, KCR is more worried about making his son the chief minister, Shah claimed. He further accused the TRS government of failing to fulfill the major planks of separate Telangana agitation of "water, funds and jobs." UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who also spoke in the meeting exuded confidence that BJP will come to power in Telangana. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Faridabad, Jul 3 (PTI) Two youths died and another three were injured on Sunday when a car mowed down them on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KGP) road while they were running as part of their training to join the Indian Army, police said. The car, bearing a UP registration number, fled the spot after hitting the five from behind. Also Read | Maharashtra Speaker Rahul Narvekar Removes Shiv Senas Ajay Chaudhary As Legislative Party Leader Ahead of Trust Vote, Reinstates Eknath Shinde. The police have started investigation by registering a case against the unidentified car driver based on the complaint of the brother of one of the deceased. DSP Yashpal Khatana said that Totaram, a resident of Pelak village, has lodged a complaint stating that the incident took place on Sunday morning when he was walking along the KGP road near Sujwadi village. Also Read | Eknath Shinde-Led Maharashtra Govt to Face Floor Test Tomorrow. On the KGP road, his brother Lokesh, his partners Vivek, Saurabh, Sunny and Harish, residents of Pelak village, were running to prepare for the Army. Meanwhile, a speeding Alto car (UP-31, AT-1095) coming from Palwal side knocked them. The five were seriously injured in the accident. They were taken to the civil hospital for treatment, where doctors declared Lokesh and Vivek brought dead. While the injured Saurabh, Sunny and Harish were sent to another hospital after first aid. The bodies have been handed over to the relatives after post-mortem, police said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Udaipur (Rajasthan) [India], July 3 (ANI): Udaipur district administration gave a curfew relaxation for 10 hours today--from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. However, mobile internet services remain suspended. The curfew was imposed across the state in the wake of the killing of a tailor Kanhaiya Lal on June 28 over a social media post supporting suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma. It also triggered communal tension in the city. Also Read | PM Narendra Modi Delivers 'Strong Message' at G7 Summit in Germany. National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday took custody of the two men, who beheaded a tailor in Udaipur, from Ajmer's high-security jail to bring them to Jaipur to produce before NIA court. Both accused Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad were brought to Ajmer high-security jail amid tight security on Friday. Also Read | Weather Forecast: Heavy to Very Heavy Rainfall Very Likely Over Chhattisgarh, Odisha; IMD Predicts Wet Spell Over North, Northeast India. After the order issued by the Udaipur Court on Saturday, both the accused are being taken to the Jaipur High Court for production. The assailants identified themselves in the video as Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad. In the video, Riyaz was seen attacking 47-year-old Kanhaiya Lal with a sharp-edged weapon while the other, Ghouse, recorded the crime on his mobile phone. The victim reportedly had recently shared a social media post in support of Nupur Sharma-- former BJP leader who had made controversial remarks against Prophet Mohammad. Riyaz and Ghouse were arrested from Bhim in the Rajsamand district. Kanhaiya Lal was cremated on Wednesday in Udaipur in the presence of a large number of people who raised slogans demanding capital punishment for the accused. His last rites were performed amidst heavy police security. Rajasthan Police on Wednesday said that the main accused involved in the killing of the tailor in Udaipur were in touch with Pakistan-based organisation Dawat-e-Islami and one of them also went to Karachi in Pakistan in 2014 to meet the organisation. Rajasthan Director General of Police (DGP) ML Lather said that besides the main accused police have also taken three other people into our custody, with whom they were in contact. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday took over the investigation of the brutal murder of a tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Rajasthan's Udaipur who was hacked to death inside his shop by two men in broad daylight. The incident took place in Udaipur's Maldas area. Soon after committing the crime, the two accused posted a video on social media boasting about the "beheading" and threatened Prime Minister Narendra Modi's life as well, police said. The two accused were arrested within hours of the incident. NIA on Thursday said it suspects the role of a "terror gang and not a terror outfit".The anti-terror agency, however, made it clear that there is a role of a bigger gang behind the brutal killing and that it was not just an act done by only two persons, who were arrested by state police after the incident. As per the agency, the accused, both residents of Udaipur, will be questioned at NIA's Jaipur office and not be brought to Delhi. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Indore, Jul 3 (PTI) Expressing outrage over the killing of a tailor in Udaipur allegedly for supporting former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, senior BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya on Sunday said some forces want to humiliate India as its global reputation has gone up under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Also Read | Rahul Narwekar Elected Maharashtra Assembly Speaker; Heres All About the Colaba BJP MLA Who Is Indias Youngest To Hold the August Constitutional Post. Also Read | Gujarat: 13-Year-Old Stole Rs 1.70 Lakh Worth Liquor From Jamnagar Police Storeroom. He also targeted Congress saying the grand old party is dismissing the Udaipur incident as a normal murder and not a terrorist act which has exposed its "real face". "India's reputation has increased globally under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership but some forces want to humiliate the country and they should not get political patronage," Vijayvargiya told reporters when asked about the brutal killing of Kanhaiya Lal by some persons. Nupur Sharma was suspended by the BJP for making controversial comments about Prophet Mohammad. He said Congress is considering the gruesome incident as a normal murder, which is a terrorist act. "Making a video of the incident and circulating it means that the killers wanted to spread terror in society. I ask you had this incident happened in Uttar Pradesh (which is ruled by BJP) what would have happened? It is a question of the policy and intention of the government and a political party. After this incident, the real face of Congress has been exposed," the BJP leader said. Queried on Congress' claim that one of the accused in the murder case, Riyaz Akhtari, is linked to the BJP, Vijayvargiya said, "Now it is understood that there was a conspiracy behind this murder. If a person has to commit any (criminal) act in this office (BJP's Indore office), he will first take online membership of BJP and then visit the party office by posing as a BJP member. A day earlier, the BJP had dismissed the Congress' allegation that Akhtari was a member of the saffron party. Vijayvargiya also proposed imparting computer training in madrasas along with the Quran to help students of the Islamic seminaries to become doctors and engineers. We have no objection to the Quran being taught in madrasas. But computer training should also be imparted so that students get modern education, he said. Vijayvargiya said a person studying in a madrasa doesn't become a doctor or an engineer. We want students of madrasas to become doctors or engineers as well, so education other than the Quran should also be imparted to them, he added. Vijayvargiya also said the experiment of providing modern education in madrasas has been started in Assam and Uttar Pradesh. He, however, termed the issue of madrasa education as a "broader subject" and said the government, as well as society, will have to ponder over it. "The society may allege that there is a need to control the education being imparted in madrasas, but we do not want to control it, he said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Hyderabad, July 3: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath offered prayers at BhagyaLaxmi Mandir, Charminar in Hyderabad on Sunday. Yogi Adityanath is in Hyderabad for the party national executive meet. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a public meeting at Parade Grounds in Secunderabad today. In the public meeting titled 'Vijay Sankalpa Sabha', Prime Minister is likely to set the tone for the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) preparedness for the upcoming Assembly polls in Telangana. In the public rally, more than 35,000 people are expected to be present. UP CM Yogi Adityanath Offers Prayers at Shri Bhagyalaxmi Mandir in Hyderabad (Watch Video). Yogi Adityanath Offers Prayer at BhagyaLaxmi Mandir - , ! pic.twitter.com/Nn7N5gBknb Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) July 3, 2022 PM Modi arrived in Hyderabad on Saturday to attend the BJP's two-day national executive committee meeting. According to top sources in the BJP, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will propose a political resolution for the party. This resolution will be seconded by Chief Ministers from the BJP-ruled states. The biggest highlight of the entire BJP national executive committee meeting will be the speech of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his party cadre. The Prime Minister is expected to give a roadmap for the party in the coming times especially when they look at Assembly elections in the big states like GujaratDuring his speech. He is likely to give suggestions on how to work towards strengthening the organisation as well as keep connected to the grassroots. Sources told ANI that Assam Chief Minister and North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) Himanta Biswa Sarma and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai will speak on the political resolution. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur is also expected to make a presentation on the situation and the political scenario in the poll-bound state. The political resolution is a vision document that will be passed today where the BJP is expected to highlight its electoral successes in the recent, especially in states like Uttar Pradesh, Goa Uttarakhand and Manipur. The party is also expected to laud PM Modi and his leadership for navigating its success in the states which were once alien spots to the BJP political map. This is the first time that a meeting is taking place with complete participation by the BJP national executive members since the COVID-19 pandemic. The last meeting which took place in November 2021 happened in a hybrid manner in which leaders were present physically as well as joined virtually. The entire city of Hyderabad has donned a saffron hue with the BJP flags and banners for the party's mega show. The posters showcase the achievement of the central government. Every nook and cranny of the city is decked up with big cutouts and banners of top BJP leaders. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Jul 3 (PTI) The commerce ministry is working to release the new five-year foreign trade policy (FTP) before September this year and Districts as Export Hubs scheme would be part of that document, which aims at promoting exports and job creation, an official said. The directorate general of foreign trade (DGFT), the commerce ministry's arm which is formulating the policy, will soon send the proposal to the finance ministry for seeking funds for the scheme. Also Read | Weather Forecast: Heavy to Very Heavy Rainfall Very Likely Over Chhattisgarh, Odisha; IMD Predicts Wet Spell Over North, Northeast India. Under the scheme, the aim is to initially focus on 50 districts which have products that are scalable and hold huge export potential, the official said. The DGFT would follow a "challenge route" method to select these districts, the official said adding states and districts that want to avail the financial incentives under the scheme should compete for that. Also Read | Shyam Saran Negi, Independent Indias 1st Voter Since 1951, Popularly Known As Masterjee Turns 105. There are 750 districts in the country. "It will be a kind of competition among states and districts. We will come out with detailed guidelines for that. The scheme will find a place in the FTP. It will be a centrally-sponsored scheme, where 60 per cent of the total cost will be borne by the Centre, and the remaining by states. We are trying to release the new FTP before September," the official added. According to a document of the commerce ministry, states need to be engaged actively in the export promotion activities as exports cannot be exponentially increased without their active involvement. Districts as Export Hubs scheme aims to target export promotion, manufacturing and employment generation at grassroot level. The current foreign trade policy (2015-20) is in force till September 2022. On March 31, 2020, the government had extended this policy for one year till March 31, 2021 due to the COVID-19 outbreak and the lockdown. It was again extended till September this year. In the policy, the government announces support measures for both goods and services exporters. In 2021-22, the country's merchandise exports touched USD 420 billion and services exports aggregated at USD 254.4 billion. The government is looking at USD one trillion exports of goods and services each by 2030. To push the outbound shipments, India is aggressively negotiating free trade agreements with several countries and regions including Canada, the UK, European Union and Israel. India has implemented a trade pact with the UAE in May and has signed one with Australia. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad [Pakistan], July 3 (ANI): A new alleged audio clip of former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan's wife Bushra Bibi has emerged in which she is instructing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI's) social media head, Dr Arsalan Khalid, to run trends declaring people who oppose PTI as traitors. Bushra Bibi could be heard telling Dr Khalid that Imran Khan asked him to run traitor hashtag on social media, reported Geo News. Also Read | Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif Orders Investigation Into Illegal Collection of Federal Excise Duty at Airports. "Imran Khan asked you to (run) the traitor hashtag, so many people called, your social media was active and it has not been active for a week. Why is it (like this), beta?" asked Bushra. Dr Khalid tells former first lady that PTI's social media team would run campaigns labelling those against PTI as traitors. Also Read | US President Joe Biden Holds Virtual Meet with Democratic Governors on Abortion Rights. Bushra Bibi asks Dr Khalid to label people maligning her, Imran Khan and friend Farah Khan as traitors, reported Geo News. As per the audio, initially, the former first lady had expressed her disappointment with Dr Khalid for the PTI's social media team not being active these days. Before Dr Khalid could explain himself, Bushra told him to let go of what happened, she then shared with him that Aleem Khan and others would speak up against Imran Khan, her, and her friend Farah Khan. "They will create so many stories and will share people's statements as well, you do not need to create an issue out of this (but) call them traitors on (social media)," directed the former first lady, to which Dr Khalid responded in the affirmative. "Aleem Khan and others will (be) speaking out as per a plan, so you have to link them with traitor (hashtag). You have to raise the (threat) letter on social media and say that we know the letter is authentic. We know that they gathered to betray [the country] and to save themselves they have joined the traitors," Bushra instructed Dr Khalid. After issuing the instructions, the former first lady asked Dr Khalid to instruct his team to take up the issue of the government not buying oil from Russia and link it with how Imran Khan was being betrayed, reported Geo News. "Now you have to ensure that (this issue) does not die down," said Bushra. She instructed the former focal person of the prime minister on digital media to make a trend so people know that the country and Imran Khan are being betrayed. "The other thing that I wanted to say to you, Arsalan, is that they will say a lot of things about Farah and me. You have to link that with traitor (hashtag)," said Bushra. To this, Dr Khalid said, "Yes, all right we will do it by (saying) that they are doing all this because they are traitors." The former first lady said then told Dr Khalid that people were worried about how Imran Khan had knowledge about everything even before they come out in the open, reported Geo News. "You understand, but I am only telling you these things, however, you do not need to share this issue with anyone. They are after him because of this. (But) what you have to do is that you have to link with this with the traitor (hashtag)," said Bushra. Ever since Imran Khan came to power rumours were rife about the former first lady's involvement in politics. Reports had claimed that Bushra had played a crucial role in Usman Buzdar's appointment as Punjab chief minister to the removal of cabinet members, reported Geo News. However, the PTI had constantly maintained that Bushra is a private person and has no involvement in politics. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Los Angeles, Jul 3 (AP) Nate Looney is a Black man who grew up in Los Angeles, a descendant of enslaved people from generations ago. He's also an observant, kippah-wearing Jew. But he doesn't always feel welcome in Jewish spaces his skin color sometimes elicits questioning glances, suspicions and hurtful assumptions. Once, he walked into a synagogue dressed for Shabbat services in slacks and a buttoned-down shirt and was told to go to the kitchen. Also Read | Hong Kong to Distribute 290,000 Rapid Antigen Test Kits Following COVID-19 Detection in Sewage. The last thing you want to happen when you go to a synagogue to attend a service, Looney said, is to be treated like you don't belong. Now Looney is in a position to do something about that, after being named to the new role of director of community, safety and belonging for the Jewish Equity Diversity and Inclusion team at the Jewish Federations of North America, or JFNA, in April. He believes he can channel his painful personal experiences into healing divisions and changing perceptions, and help make a trip to the synagogue a spiritual rather than a scarring encounter for Jews of color. Also Read | Shanghai Disneyland in China Re-Opens Amid Potential COVID-19 Outbreak. In this new role, Looney has been tackling the delicate task of producing guidelines on how to be more welcoming of Jews of color, even as synagogues and community centers strengthen security in the wake of recent attacks including mass shootings in Pittsburgh and Poway, California. The concern is that such boosted security increases the likelihood of racial profiling incidents affecting congregants of color. It's a relatively small but growing demographic. A Pew Center survey in 2021 showed just 8% of U.S. Jews identify as Hispanic, Black or Asian, but that nearly doubled to 15% among respondents aged 18 to 29. The poll also found that 17% reported living in a nonwhite or multiracial household. Looney, 37, has led a life that has taken several turns. He served in the military police as part of the Louisiana National Guard and spent nine months overseas training Iraqi police forces. He has worked in real estate and has even done urban farming, selling microgreens in local markets. His spiritual journey began at 13 when a friend asked Looney, whose father was Baptist and mother was Episcopalian, about his own religion. Despite his family's Christian faith, Looney said he never felt connected to it. I was obstinate that (Christianity) wasn't for me, he said. When I think about African enslavement in America and how religion was something that was forced, I believed that the religion I was practicing was not true to who my ancestors were. Looney embraced Judaism while still a teen because he viewed it as a faith that gives believers permission to ask difficult, uncomfortable questions, though he didn't formally convert until age 26. It was after the police killing of George Floyd and the racial reckoning of summer 2020 that Looney began working with organizations to raise awareness about Jews of color. It was also during that time that JFNA launched its diversity, equity and inclusion initiative. Looney said Jews of color are often subjected to questions about their Jewish origins. Even when well intentioned, those queries can be painful because they cast doubt on their identity right away and imply they don't belong, he said. Add to that the increased security at synagogues, and there's even greater potential for people to feel othered or unwelcome. How do you strike a balance? You don't want to exclude anyone, and yet you want to be discerning of who is coming in the door, Looney said. Cultural competency is important. Just the fact that someone who is Black is walking in shouldn't raise alarms. He knows from personal experience. The morning of the Tree of Life synagogue mass shooting in Pittsburgh on Oct. 27, 2018, Looney was unaware it had taken place because he was not using his phone in observance of Shabbat. When he entered a synagogue, he got more questions and experienced deeper scrutiny from security guards, and it was painful. If that were my first time entering that community, he said, I would've never come back. The guidelines he is working on will be shared with Jewish federations across North America and, Looney hopes, implemented at the local level by synagogues and community centers. Just two months into his job, he says they are a work in progress but will continue to evolve over time. One goal is to inculcate in security guards a deeper understanding of the diversity of the Jewish community, he said: We're starting to have these types of conversations and that's a great beginning. Rabbi Isaiah Rothstein, who founded the diversity, equity and inclusion initiative and serves as JFNA's public affairs advisor, said Looney's professional experience as a military policeman and his lived experience as a Jewish person of color make him uniquely qualified to boost inclusivity while being cognizant of the sensitive relationship between law enforcement and people of color. Security and belonging don't have to be mutually exclusive, said Rothstein, who is the son of a white father and a Black mother and has seen his darker-skinned relatives being treated differently in synagogues. Nate is helping us bring an equity lens to make sure all our institutions are safe and secure while creating a culture of belonging for all Jews and our loved ones. Sabrina Sojourner, an African American Jewish chaplain at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington who met Looney at a leadership seminar five years ago, said people of color are profiled consciously and unconsciously by white people and Looney's role at the JFNA is crucial to help transform assumptions about who is the threat and who is not. If you look at attacks against Jewish people and synagogues, they are not perpetrated by people of color, Sojourner said. Nate's work is so important because it tells me JFNA gets that if the most vulnerable people in our communities are not safe, our communities are not safe. Looney said another challenge is that antisemitism and racism tend to be compartmentalized. It's a tough job to make people understand that many of us have multiple identities and fit into both categories and that we are all fighting against white supremacy, he said. Placing Jews of color in decision-making roles in Jewish spaces can help forge solidarity and bring the realization that marginalized communities are stronger when they come together, he added. Rothstein believes Looney will make a big difference because he is also a healer. As an example, he cited a virtual JFNA event commemorating Martin Luther King Day in 2021 when Looney recited a prayer and sang Lift Every Voice and Sing, a hymn written by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900 and often referred to as the Black national anthem. Those three minutes felt like three hours and they felt like three seconds, Rothstein said. It's how Nate holds himself. He is so accessible to people because of his heart. That comes through the life he has lived. (AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New York [US], July 3 (ANI): The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf will hold its fifty-fifth session from 5 July to 19 August in New York, US. The purpose of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) is to facilitate the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in respect of the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles (M) from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured. Also Read | Hong Kong to Distribute 290,000 Rapid Antigen Test Kits Following COVID-19 Detection in Sewage. Under the Convention, the coastal State shall establish the outer limits of its continental shelf where it extends beyond 200 M on the basis of the recommendation of the Commission. The Commission shall make recommendations to coastal States on matters related to the establishment of those limits; its recommendations and actions shall not prejudice matters relating to the delimitation of boundaries between States with opposite or adjacent coasts. The session will be held in person at United Nations Headquarters where the plenary parts of the session will be held from July 25-29 and from August 8-12, said a UN Press release citing Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea. Also Read | Shanghai Disneyland in China Re-Opens Amid Potential COVID-19 Outbreak. The remaining five weeks will be devoted to the technical examination of submissions by established subcommissions in the Division's premises, including geographic information systems laboratories and other technical facilities. During the session, 10 subcommissions will continue to consider submissions made by the Russian Federation in respect of the Arctic Ocean (partial revised submission); Brazil in respect of the Brazilian Equatorial Margin (partial revised submission); France and South Africa jointly in respect of the area of the Crozet Archipelago and the Prince Edward Islands; Kenya; Nigeria; Palau in respect of the North Area (partial amended submission); Sri Lanka; Portugal; Spain in respect of the area of Galicia (partial submission); and India. Coastal States that had not yet presented their submissions to the Commission were invited to present them at the plenary part of the session. Till June 30, the following submitting States accepted the invitation: Malaysia (partial submission in the South China Sea); Chile (partial submissions in respect of the Eastern Continental Shelf of Easter Island Province and in respect of the Western Continental Shelf of the Chilean Antarctic Territory, respectively); Indonesia (partial submission in the area Southwest of Sumatera); and Ecuador (partial submission in the Southern Region of the Carnegie Ridge). Furthermore, the Chair will inform the Commission about relevant deliberations that took place at the thirty-second Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. These recommendations made by the Commission are based on the scientific and technical data and other material provided by States in relation to the implementation of article 76 of the Convention. The recommendations do not prejudice matters relating to the delimitation of boundaries between States with opposite or adjacent coasts, or prejudice the position of States that are parties to a land or maritime dispute, or application of other parts of the Convention or any other treaties. The limits of the continental shelf established by a coastal State on the basis of these recommendations shall be final and binding. In the case of disagreement by the coastal State with the recommendations of the Commission, the coastal State shall, within a reasonable time, make a revised or new submission to the Commission. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Tunis, Tunisia (PANA) - Units of the Tunisian Navy have rescued 100 migrants and recovered three bodies following the sinking of their boat, the spokesperson of the Tunisian Gendarmerie announced on Friday London, Jul 4 (AP) Germany and Ireland have condemned the UK government's move towards unilaterally rewriting parts of the post-Brexit deal with the European Union. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Irish counterpart Simon Coveney said there was no legal or political justification for overriding the agreed trade rules in Northern Ireland. Also Read | WATCH: Microsoft Investors Asked the Tech Company to Publish More Transparent Tax and Latest Tweet by Reuters. Writing in British newspaper The Observer on Sunday, the ministers say Britain will be breaking an international agreement just two years old which it hadn't engaged in with good faith. The so-called Northern Ireland Protocol within the deal maintains an open border with EU member Ireland and free of customs posts. Also Read | Denmark Shooting Updates: Multiple People Shot at Field's Shopping Mall in Copenhagen, One Arrested; Police Urge People To Stay Put and Wait for Assistance. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's administration wants to remove the checks on goods such as meat and eggs arriving in Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK, which protect the European Union's single market. Lawmakers in London passed legislation which permits the move last week. Johnson's critics, opponents and some members of his own party, along with European observers, have said the plan breaks international law. The government argues it is justified because of the genuinely exceptional situation. Baerbock and Coveney said the bill wouldn't fix the challenges around the protocol. Instead, it will create a new set of uncertainties and make it more challenging to find durable solutions, they wrote. The foreign ministers also argued the move jeopardises peace in Northern Ireland under the Good Friday Agreement, which helped end decades of sectarian violence and has stood since 1998. Johnson's government has hoped to pass the legislation, which will be debated again in Parliament on July 13 by the time its summer break begins later in the month. This could see it become law by the end of 2022. The EU has threatened to retaliate against the UK if it goes ahead, raising the prospect of a trade war between the two major economic partners. Separately, Irish Deputy Prime Minister Leo Varadkar told the BBC on Sunday it wasn't appropriate or right time for a poll on Irish reunification. Varadkar said such a referendum, permitted under the Good Friday Agreement when a majority in Northern Ireland in favour of a united Ireland is considered likely, would be divisive and defeated at the moment. The Northern Ireland Assembly, its devolved legislature, has been paralysed for months over the implementation of the protocol, leaving it without a regional government. (AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Lahore [Pakistan], July 3 (ANI): Former Pakistan Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI's) Chairman Imran Khan defended his wife Bushra Bibi, who is accused of running the affairs of the PTI from the back. Imran Khan and other PTI leaders in the past had said, "Bushra Bibi is a housewife and a spiritual guide." Also Read | Australia Rains: Thousands Told To Evacuate Sydney, As Heavy Rains Bring 'Life-Threatening Emergency'. Imran Khan, while talking to his social media teams, had said that he had never seen anyone stooping this low the way they had attacked Bushra Bibi. She was not a public figure or a politician and she had never come before anyone, reported The News International. Imran Khan had also said that Bushra Bibi had no bank account, so they were targeting her friend because they didn't find anything about her. Also Read | Fourth of July 2022 Date and Significance: Why Do We Celebrate the 4th of July? Know About the History of US Independence Day. Shibli Faraz and Farukh Habib had also defended Bushra Bibi in the media as purely a housewife and claimed that she had nothing to do with politics. Shehbaz Gill had also defended her on various occasions, saying these people had attacked the first lady during the last three and a half years. He said that she was not into politics nor had she ever given any statement or reaction to any political news. The defence of Bushra Bibi comes amid a leaked video which reveals her giving instruction to PTI's social media head, Dr Arsalan Khalid, to run trends declaring people who oppose PTI as traitors. Bushra Bibi could be heard telling Dr Khalid that Imran Khan asked him to run traitor hashtag on social media, reported Geo News. "Imran Khan asked you to (run) the traitor hashtag, so many people called, your social media was active and it has not been active for a week. Why is it (like this), beta?" asked Bushra. Dr Khalid tells former first lady that PTI's social media team would runs campaigns labelling those against PTI as traitors. Bushra Bibi asks Dr Khalid to label people maligning her, Imran Khan and friend Farah Khan as traitors, reported Geo News. As per the audio, initially, the former first lady had expressed her disappointment with Dr Khalid for the PTI's social media team not being active these days. "The other thing that I wanted to say to you, Arsalan, is that they will say a lot of things about Farah and me. You have to link that with traitor (hashtag)," said Bushra. To this, Dr Khalid said, "Yes, all right we will do it by (saying) that they are doing all this because they are traitors." The former first lady said then told Dr Khalid that people were worried about how Imran Khan had knowledge about everything even before they come out in the open, reported Geo News. "You understand, but I am only telling you these things, however, you do not need to share this issue with anyone. They are after him because of this. (But)what you have to do is that you have to link with this with the traitor (hashtag)," said Bushra. Ever since Imran Khan came to power rumours were rife about the former first lady's involvement in politics. Reports had claimed that Bushra had played a crucial role in Usman Buzdar's appointment as Punjab chief minister to the removal of cabinet members, reported Geo News. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Singapore [Singapore], July 3 (ANI): As part of the deployment to South East Asia, Indian Naval Ships Sahyadri and Kadmatt under the Command of Rear Admiral Sanjay Bhalla, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet, visited Singapore from July 1-3, 2022. Indian Navy crew participated in professional interactions with Republic of Singapore Navy towards enhancing mutual cooperation and interoperability Also Read | Shanghai Disneyland in China Re-Opens Amid Potential COVID-19 Outbreak. INS Sahyadri is an indigenously built multi-role stealth Frigate and INS Kadmatt is an indigenously built Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Corvette. During the visit, the Indian crew participated in professional interactions with the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) towards enhancing mutual cooperation and interoperability. Social and informal exchanges, aimed at consolidation of ties and mutual understanding between the Navies were also undertaken. Also Read | Pakistan Accident: 19 Killed, 12 Injured As Bus Plunges Into Ravine in Balochistan. The visit of Indian ships helped enhance maritime co-operation and bolster India's strong bonds of friendship with Singapore that would further contribute towards security and stability in the region. The ships' visit also coincided with Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Day, July 1. Taking to Twitter, Indian Navy wrote, "IndianNavy's South East Asia deployment INS Sahyadri and INS Kadmatt under Command of Rear Admiral Sanjay Bhalla, FOCEF in Singapore 01 - 03 Jul 22 Professional and social interactions with Singapore Navy to enhance mutual cooperation and understanding and consolidate interoperability." "Coinciding with Singapore Armed Forces SAF Day, 01 Jul 22, the ships' visit strengthens maritime cooperation, bolstering India-Singapore bonds of friendship - contributing towards security and stability in the region," the Navy added. India's engagement in the region continued to be directed by the Indo-Pacific vision of a free, open, inclusive and rules-based region as articulated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore in 2018 based on the policy of SAGAR - "Security and Growth for All in the Region". On February 4, 2021, Singapore Minister of Defense Ng Eng Hen participated in the inaugural India Ocean Region Defence Ministers' Conclave (DMC). He conveyed Singapore's support to India's leadership to foster a rules-based maritime order in the Indian Ocean region. On September 2-4, 2021, Singapore Navy and Indian Navy conducted the annual Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX). SIMBEX 2021 involved a virtual planning phase followed by a 'contactless' sea phase in the southern reaches of the South China Sea within international waters. During the second wave of the COVID pandemic, Singapore's position as a logistic hub enabled both the public and private sector to source emergency relief supplies such as oxygen- tanks, cylinders, concentrators, ventilators etc. from Singapore to India. Till the end of June 2021, 26 Indian Air Force sorties and 4 Indian Navy Ships transported substantial quantities of these items from Singapore to India. The 5th India-Singapore Defence Minister's Dialogue was held via virtual conference on January 20, 2021. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh discussed furthering cooperation and engagement with Singapore Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen. The Implementing Agreement on Submarine Rescue Support and Cooperation between the two navies was signed to extend rescue facilities 67 South East Asia and Oceania to each other's submarines. Issues of regional security developments and progress made in cooperation between the Services on defence technology and in multilateral engagements were also reviewed. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Jerusalem [Israel], July 3 (ANI): Israel's interim Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Sunday pledged to run a functional government despite another round of political instability that triggered new elections. After taking the office as interim prime minister, Lapid held the first cabinet meeting on Sunday where he sat next to his predecessor Naftali Bennett, who handed over the power to Lapid, leader of the centrist Yesh Atid party, under the power-sharing deal they agreed upon following inconclusive elections in 2021. Also Read | Hong Kong to Distribute 290,000 Rapid Antigen Test Kits Following COVID-19 Detection in Sewage. "Our goal in the coming months will be to manage the government as if there were no elections...This is what I expect from my fellow ministers," Lapid told the ministers at the beginning of the meeting, reported Xinhua News Agency. "This government will continue to act for the good of the citizens," he said, adding "We will make decisions, we will take actions, and we will continue to increase the economic, diplomatic and security strength of Israel." Also Read | Shanghai Disneyland in China Re-Opens Amid Potential COVID-19 Outbreak. Lapid encountered his first security challenge as prime minister on Saturday. Three drones, identified by the Israeli military as belonging to the Lebanon-based armed group Hezbollah, approached the airspace over Israel's territorial waters, near the recently built Karish natural gas platform. An Israeli fighter jet and a Navy missile cruiser intercepted the drones, the Israeli military said in a statement. Lapid said Israel would take the necessary measures to thwart threats and defend itself, its people and its assets, Xinhua reported. Lapid also noted that Hezbollah is still pursuing terrorism, which makes it more difficult for Lebanon to settle an agreement on a maritime border (with Israel). Lapid became the caretaker prime minister on Friday after Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's coalition government lost its majority in the parliament, triggering an unprecedented fifth election in less than four years. He will hold the position until the next government is formed after the elections scheduled on November 1. Last week, Israel's parliament passed the bill to dissolve itself in a preliminary reading after the ruling coalition lost its majority in the parliament, sending Israelis to the ballots for the fifth time in less than four years. Bennett on Wednesday informed the members of his party that he has no plans to participate in the next parliamentary elections. Lapid will embark on his first diplomatic journey as prime minister on Tuesday, travelling to Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron. His ascent to the top office comes ahead of US President Joe Biden's visit to Israel, the West Bank and Saudi Arabia in mid-July. Analysts have predicted that Biden's visit may accompany an announcement about the warming of ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia, two countries that have never had a formal diplomatic relationship, The New York Times (NYT) reported. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Karachi [Pakistan], July 3 (ANI): Pakistan's petrol outlet owners announced a complete strike from July 18, 2022, in protest against the runaway cost of doing business as the energy crisis continues to grip the country. Pakistan's monthly fuel oil imports are set to hit a four-year high in June, The News International reported citing Refinitiv data as the country struggles to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) for power generation amid massive heatwaves. Also Read | Australia Rains: Thousands Told To Evacuate Sydney, As Heavy Rains Bring 'Life-Threatening Emergency'. Pakistan decreased oil imports in the second half of 2018 as LNG prices were low, but it had to switch back to oil in July 2021 because of the excessive increase in LNG prices that clasped the nation. Imports last peaked at 680,000 tonnes in May 2018 and 741,000 tonnes in June 2017, reported The News International. Also Read | Fourth of July 2022 Date and Significance: Why Do We Celebrate the 4th of July? Know About the History of US Independence Day. At present, the dealers are receiving margins after the deduction of tax at the rate of Rs 3.20/litre on diesel and Rs 3.90/litre on petrol although they were promised by the previous PTI government that margins would be increased to 4.5 per cent. According to Dawn, Chairman of Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA), Abdul Sami Khan said "The low margins are forcing them to shut down their businesses and should be raised to 6 per cent." Due to the increasing energy crisis and high cost of electricity, their profit margins witnessed a sharp decline, he added, saying that "The petrol pumps will remain shut till their demands are accepted." Besides, a massive hike in the prices of petroleum products also proved blow to their businesses. The PPDA Chairman also slammed the Shehbaz Sharif-led Pakistan government for the economic instability and rising demand for energy and fuel, as he pointed out that dealers get nothing from a hike in fuel prices and vowed to continue the protest as long as their problems were unresolved. The per litre cost of dealers had gone up to Rs 5, while the cost of electricity had doubled compared to the previous year, he said. Pakistan's energy crisis is set to worsen more as the country struggles to procure LNG at an affordable rate when little is available in an international market that has been sorely affected by the political fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war. Moreover, Pakistan's cost of energy production has also increased following an increase in fuel prices. Almost two-thirds of the country's electricity generation is based on fossil fuels. The rise in crude oil prices has hit the highest in the last three years - USD 86 per barrel as almost two-thirds of the country's electricity generation is based on fossil fuels. The energy crisis is worsening due to the rising cost of the LNG and Pakistan is set to face its third successive winter energy crisis due to a lack of energy resources. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad [Pakistan], July 3 (ANI): Finance Minister Miftah Ismail has been facing criticism from within the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) amid speculations of ex-financial czar Ishaq Dar's return to Pakistan to replace him. The finance minister is under pressure since the government announced multiple hikes in petroleum products and the delay in the revival of the International Monetary Fund bailout programme, reported Geo News. Also Read | Fourth of July 2022 Date and Significance: Why Do We Celebrate the 4th of July? Know About the History of US Independence Day. "I have support from the federal cabinet and PML-N but there are few party members criticising and opposing me," Miftah said while talking to The Express Tribune, adding that he understands that party leaders were unable to go to their constituencies after the government took some tough decisions to fix economic issues. Expressing his gratitude to party stalwarts, Miftah revealed that he is under immense pressure because of being the face of the ruling alliance's "unpopular decisions", adding that he did not even want to hold the last press conference where he had to announce the increase in petroleum prices once again. Also Read | 4th of July 2022 Parades Near Me: Famous Fireworks, Concerts and Festivities To Enjoy This US Independence Day. "I did not want to go for the last press conference, and I had even refused before being persuaded by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif," Miftah revealed. "I swear it has never happened that I was unable to find suitable words; I kept thinking what words should I be using to start the press conference." Earlier, the finance minister said that he was "not supposed to" appear on national television the night before to announce a hike in the prices of petroleum products but he did so after being asked by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. His comments came after a clip of his appearance on a television show was shared on social media, reported Geo News. Along with this, the news of senior leader Ishaq Dar's return to Pakistan has also added fuel to the fire as many believe that Miftah may be shown the door and asked to hand over the reins of the finance ministry to the senator-elect. The possible changeover, just a few months after the coalition government took office, has left economists and commentators concerned over its possible impact on the economy and the ongoing talks with the IMF. Asked if he will be willing to leave the finance portfolio for Dar, Miftah said that it is not about his willingness or unwillingness as it is the prime minister's discretion to keep him or anyone else as the country's financial czar, reported The Express Tribune. "I know only one thing that I would comply with whatever decision the prime minister takes within the next 15 minutes of becoming aware of it," Miftah said, adding that 15-minute time would be enough even if PM's Principal Secretary Dr Tauqir Shah conveys the decision of his removal. He, however, emphasised that he will stay with the party and do whatever task he is given even if he is replaced or moved somewhere. "This has to be PM's decision; it is his discretion," he reiterated. However, Ismail found unequivocal support from party stalwart - Defence Minister Khwaja Asif on Saturday spoke in support of him, reported Geo News. The defence minister appreciated his colleague for executing his duties "under difficult circumstances" and called him one of the "hardest working" member of PM Shehbaz's team. "FM Miftah is among the hardest working members of PM's team, accessible to all stakeholders. He is performing very well under difficult circumstances, with immense criticism from vested interests -- including, and unfortunately, from within PML-N. Time to show solidarity with Miftah," tweeted the defence minister. Hours after Asif's tweet, senior PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi also came out in Miftah's support. "Miftah Ismail's knowledge of economics and the Pakistan economy is without parallel in Pakistan politics today. He is one of the most effective members of PM's cabinet," said the former prime minister. The PML-N leader said that the finance minister "played a crucial role in saving Pakistan from default and in implementing PML-N's economic reform agenda". (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad, July 3: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered an investigation into the illegal collection of federal excise duty from passengers at the airports, local media reported. In a statement, Pakistan's PM ordered an investigation into the collection of federal excise duty. He said it should be investigated as to how the excise duty was collected from the passengers without the approval of the cabinet, ARY News reported. He expressed his disappointment with the collection of federal excise duty from passengers at the airports. Sharif said that the practice of causing trouble to the passengers should be discontinued immediately. Also Read | 'Pakistan Will Not Accept Imported Government', Says Former PM Imran Khan at Islamabad Rally. Shehbaz Sharif instructed the finance minister that after an immediate inquiry, strict action under the law should be taken against those responsible for the illegal act. "Those who inflicted suffering on the passengers had no right to hold their posts," he added. The premier asked the finance minister to return the money to the passengers from whom federal excise duty was collected. He called for immediate implementation of his orders and submission of a report after action against the persons responsible, reported ARY News. Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-N President Maryam Nawaz on Saturday claimed that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had told the coalition government that they don't trust the country because of "fitna" referred to Imran Khan. Addressing the party workers in the PP-167 constituency, Maryam referred to the agreement, which is signed between the Fund and "fitna" Khan, as a "bad deal" and also said that the former Prime Minister took a U-turn by breaching the clauses that Pakistan agreed with the global lender. During her speech, PML-N President claimed that the party supporters from the constituency present in Green Town are more as compared to the number of people attending Khan's "historic rally" on the Parade ground in Islamabad. Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and Maryam Nawaz were addressing their supporters in Islamabad and Lahore simultaneously. Maryam said that the coalition government had to make some decisions with a heavy heart, including increasing the prices of petroleum products, because of the wrongdoings of the former Prime Minister Khan. She further added that if Khan had left something in the reserves, the coalition government would have provided relief to the people. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) London, Jul 1 (The Conversation) We recently learned that poliovirus had been detected in sewage in north and east London between February and May 2022. Poliomyelitis (polio) is an infectious disease that can cause paralysis and death, mainly in children. But polio is also a triumph of vaccination. The last known case of polio in the UK was in 1984, and the country was declared polio free in 2003. Also Read | China President Xi Jinping Officiates Swearing-In Ceremony of Hong Kong's New Leader John Lee. While the UK Health Security Agency has said that the risk to the public is very low, the detection of the virus in London's wastewater has naturally led to a strong public health response. Experts are investigating the possibility of community transmission, and have urged the public to ensure their vaccinations are up to date. Polio was detected in sewage as early as 1939 in the US, and today, wastewater is regularly tested for the virus in many parts of the world. Wastewater surveillance for polio was trialled in Scandinavia starting in the late 1960s, paving the way for the World Health Organisation to recommend it as part of routine polio surveillance in 2003. Also Read | Taliban Hikes Coal Prices After Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif Approves Imports From Afghanistan. In 2013, a silent outbreak was identified in Israel in this way. Early detection meant that supplementary vaccination campaigns ended the outbreak swiftly in 2014 with no cases of paralysis. Without wastewater monitoring, the first indication that polio is circulating in a population could be the paralysis or death of a child. But polio isn't the only disease we can look for in our wastewater. Wastewater epidemiology involves testing sewage for biological markers of disease that people shed during normal daily activities, such as going to the toilet. These markers could be fragments of genetic materials of a virus or bacteria, for example. Other pathogens that can be detected in sewage include typhoid and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), though monitoring for signs of these infections doesn't happen routinely. During the pandemic, many countries have employed wastewater epidemiology to track SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and to locate emerging variants. Wastewater surveillance is particularly useful for pathogens where the proportion of asymptomatic infections is high and in countries where clinical surveillance such as testing may be poor. It has been effectively used in low- and middle-income countries to detect diseases like typhoid. It's also possible to test sewage for the broken down products of drugs. In this way, wastewater surveillance has been used to track illicit drug use, prescription medication like antidepressants, and even antimicrobial resistance. The uses for wastewater-based epidemiology can be grouped into two categories. The first is where just the presence of a pathogen requires a response. This is the case for pathogens that have low rates, like emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 or diseases nearing elimination like polio or measles. The second is to quantify the burden of a specific disease. In England, 45 sites were sampled frequently for SARS-CoV-2. Our own work on wastewater surveillance for COVID showed it can be used to estimate how common the disease is that is, the concentration of viral fragments in the sewage reflected the number of cases in the community. There are some challenges in interpreting concentrations because they can be affected by environmental factors such as the volume of rainfall diluting the samples. But when we know about these effects, we can account for them. Wastewater epidemiology captures the contributions of almost all the people within a sewage catchment, which can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, biases that often affect traditional surveillance, such as localised testing shortages or variability in access to healthcare, are reduced. On the other hand, samples collected from large sewage works serve such a large population (over 4 million people in the case of Beckton where the poliovirus was detected) that pinpointing the origins of infection is difficult. Collection of sewage samples closer to the source can help, but is more difficult, harder to analyse and more expensive. The uses for wastewater-based epidemiology can be grouped into two categories. The first is where just the presence of a pathogen requires a response. This is the case for pathogens that have low rates, like emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 or diseases nearing elimination like polio or measles. The second is to quantify the burden of a specific disease. In England, 45 sites were sampled frequently for SARS-CoV-2. Our own work on wastewater surveillance for COVID showed it can be used to estimate how common the disease is that is, the concentration of viral fragments in the sewage reflected the number of cases in the community. There are some challenges in interpreting concentrations because they can be affected by environmental factors such as the volume of rainfall diluting the samples. But when we know about these effects, we can account for them. Wastewater epidemiology captures the contributions of almost all the people within a sewage catchment, which can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, biases that often affect traditional surveillance, such as localised testing shortages or variability in access to healthcare, are reduced. On the other hand, samples collected from large sewage works serve such a large population (over 4 million people in the case of Beckton where the poliovirus was detected) that pinpointing the origins of infection is difficult. Collection of sewage samples closer to the source can help, but is more difficult, harder to analyse and more expensive. Budgetary pressure Overall, wastewater epidemiology can provide unobtrusive, ongoing surveillance for diseases that is relatively cheap and convenient. Sewage testing complements clinical surveillance, especially when infections spread silently or when early detection gives public health officials a useful early warning. It's a good thing that poliovirus has been identified in sewage before any children showed serious disease, as there is an opportunity to intervene. But this type of surveillance is at risk without support and investment. The UK COVID-19 wastewater monitoring programme was wound down earlier this year bowing to budgetary pressures, rather than continuing and pivoting to improve our understanding of other diseases. The potential of wastewater surveillance has been shown time and again. To realise that potential fully, closer collaboration between researchers, the water industry and policy should be fostered and supported by appropriate funding. (The Conversation) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Sofia, Jul 3 (AP) Two Russian airplanes were set to depart Bulgaria on Sunday with scores of Russian diplomatic staff and their families amid a mass expulsion that has sent tensions soaring between the historically close nations, a Russian diplomat said. Filip Voskresenski, a high-ranking Russian diplomat, told journalists at the airport in Bulgaria's capital Sofia he was among the 70 Russian diplomatic staff declared persona non grata last week and ordered to leave the country before Monday. Also Read | Hong Kong to Distribute 290,000 Rapid Antigen Test Kits Following COVID-19 Detection in Sewage. Bulgaria's expulsion decision was announced by acting Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who took a strong stance against Russia after it invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Petkov, who lost a no-confidence vote on June 22, has claimed Moscow used hybrid war tactics to bring down his government. Petkov has said that Russia will retain 43 of its employees after the expulsion and noted that Bulgaria has just 12 diplomatic staff in Moscow. Also Read | Shanghai Disneyland in China Re-Opens Amid Potential COVID-19 Outbreak. Anyone who works against the interests of Bulgaria will be called to go back to the country from which they came, he said. On Friday, Russian Ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova issued Bulgaria an ultimatum to reverse its decision and threatened that Moscow would fully sever diplomatic ties. I intend to urgently raise before the leadership of my country the issue of the closure of the Embassy of Russia in Bulgaria, which will inevitably lead to the closure of the Bulgarian diplomatic mission in Moscow, she said in a statement. The expulsion, which has severely strained diplomatic ties, is the greatest ever number of Russian diplomats expelled by Bulgaria, which has European Union and NATO membership. Bulgaria has strongly backed the West's sanctions against Moscow since it launched its war on Ukraine more than four months ago. The European Union, which Bulgaria has been a member of since 2007, responded to Russia's unjustified threat and said it stands in full support and solidarity with Bulgaria. In late April, Russia cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria after officials refused a Moscow demand to pay gas bills in rubles, Russia's currency. Bulgaria's defense minister was also ousted in early March for referring to Russia's war as a special military operation, the Kremlin-preferred description. (AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Washington [US], July 3 (ANI): Two people were killed and four others including three officers were injured in a shooting in Haltom City of Texas on Saturday, officials said. "One woman was found dead inside the home and a man was found fatally shot in the home's driveway. An elderly woman who called 911 was shot but expected to survive," said the Police Sgt. Rick Alexander during a press conference. Also Read | Hong Kong to Distribute 290,000 Rapid Antigen Test Kits Following COVID-19 Detection in Sewage. "The shooting in Haltom City also left three officers with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds. The officers were recovering in local hospitals on Saturday night," Alexander added. According to CNN, local police said that the gunman shot himself after committing the crime. Also Read | Shanghai Disneyland in China Re-Opens Amid Potential COVID-19 Outbreak. "The suspect was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at another location near the home. There was a military-style rifle and a handgun near his body," Alexander said. He further told that the Police were called to a residence in the 5700 block of Diamond Oaks Drive North on a report of shots fired, CNN reported. "It appears our officers did return fire during the incident," Alexander said, though the result of those shots was unknown. "The Texas Rangers will investigate the shooting and will release more details as they become available," he added. As of late Saturday, there had been 302 mass shootings across the US this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. With increasing incidents of gun violence in the United States, President Joe Biden had said that the US needs to ban assault weapons for the sake of protecting children and families or raise the age to purchase them from 18 to 21. On June 22, a group of US lawmakers reached a much-awaited deal on a bipartisan gun safety bill after recent mass shooting incidents in Uvalde, Buffalo and Texas, that struck a nerve in the country. The new bill aims to take firearms away from dangerous people and provide billions of dollars in new mental health funding. The bill does not ban assault-style rifles or significantly expand background-check requirements for gun purchases, but it gives states more resources to take guns away from dangerous individuals. On May 24, a mass shooting incident took place at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas in which several people including 19 children were killed. This was the deadliest attack since the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, where 17 people were killed, according to CNN. In the recent incidents, on June 20, a teenager was shot dead and three others including a police officer were injured in a shooting in the area of 14th and U Street Northwest in Washington, DC. On June 1, at least four people were killed in a shooting incident at a hospital campus in Oklahoma's Tulsa city, CNN reported citing police. The shootout incidents in the US have been increasing. On May 31, an elderly woman was killed and two other persons were injured when gunfire erupted at a high school graduation ceremony in New Orleans. The shooting occurred outside the Convocation Center on the campus of Xavier University where graduates of Morris Jeff High School were gathered, NBC News reported citing New Orleans police. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) 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 Tashkent [Uzbekistan], July 3 (ANI): Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev declared a month-long state of emergency on Saturday in the Republic of Karakalpakstan, an autonomous republic in northwestern Uzbekistan. Protests broke out earlier this week in the region over planned constitutional reform, reported Anadolu Agency. Also Read | Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif Orders Investigation Into Illegal Collection of Federal Excise Duty at Airports. However, President Mirziyoyev said that the legal status of autonomous Karakalpakstan will remain unchanged. "It is necessary to leave the draft norms of the legal status of the Republic of Karakalpakstan unchanged," he said, adding that "we will definitely build a new Uzbekistan and a new Karakalpakstan together." Also Read | US President Joe Biden Holds Virtual Meet with Democratic Governors on Abortion Rights. According to the official order, the state of emergency will run from July 3 to August 2. The decree limits entry and exit from the province and all public events are prohibited. It also introduces temporary restrictions for the protection of public order such as restricting entry of vehicles and searches on individuals, etc, reported Anadolu Agency. Mirziyoyev visited the region's capital of Nukus, where protesters tried to storm government buildings and announced that changes relating to Karakalpakstan will remain unchanged. Earlier, it was reported that public order was restored in Nukus. The media has reported that people gathered in the central outdoor market area and demanded the release of a local blogger who called for a protest against constitutional amendments. Protesters believe that Karakalpakstan may lose its right to secede from Uzbekistan via a referendum if amendments are adopted, reported Sputnik. "On July 1, starting at about 15.00 (10:00 GMT), some citizens of Karakalpakstan, as a result of a misinterpretation of the constitutional reforms being carried out in the republic, ... protested in Nukus, after which they gathered on the territory of the central Dekhkan market and organized an illegal demonstration," the ministry said in a statement for media. Law enforcement officers were deployed in the area to make sure that public order is not violated, the ministry added. "Currently, public order has been restored ... work is underway with citizens to clarify the inadmissibility of violations of the law, as well as to consider citizens' appeals in order," the statement read. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Kyiv, Jul 3 (AP) Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy denied Sunday that Russian forces have fully seized the last Ukrainian stronghold in Luhansk province. The city of Lysychansk is still being fought for, he told a news conference with Australia's visiting prime minister. Also Read | Aneel Mussarat Wins Defamation Case Against Republic Bharat for Calling Him ISI Stooge: Report. Russia claimed control of the city earlier Sunday. (AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Mumbai, July 3: Supreme Court Judge Justice JB Pardiwala on Sunday expressed concerns about personal attacks on judges and said that it can lead to a "dangerous scenario". Pardiwala also called for strict regulations of social media, thereby claiming that media trials are not healthy for rule of law. It must be noted that Justice Pardiwala was part of the Supreme Court bench that took slammed former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma for her remark on Prophet Muhammad. Justice JB Pardiwala said that social media is overrun by people "possessing half truth and information" and those who don't understand rule of law, evidence, judicial process, and limitations. Rahul Narwekar Elected Maharashtra Assembly Speaker; Here's All About the Colaba BJP MLA Who Is India's Youngest To Hold the August Constitutional Post. His remarks came while speaking at a virtual meet on Sunday. In strong words, Justice Pardiwala also stated that personal attacks on judges will not be tolerated. Check tweet: Personal attacks on judges for their judgements lead to a dangerous scenario where judges have to think about what the media thinks instead of what the law really thinks: Supreme Court judge Justice JB Pardiwala who heard Nupur Sharma's plea https://t.co/zdqgTxhcxa pic.twitter.com/W9f1z2Ngdu ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 "A trial is supposed to be carried out by the courts. Trials by digital media are undue interference for the judiciary. This crosses the Laxman Rekha and is all the more problematic when only half truth is pursued. Constitutional courts have always graciously accepted informed dissent and constructive criticism," he said, reports India Today. He further added, "Social and digital media is primarily resorted to expressing personalised opinions more against the judges, rather than a constructive critical appraisal of their judgments. This is what is harming the judicial institution and lowering its dignity." Check tweet: The Supreme Court judge also called for regulation of digital and social media throughout the country in order to preserve the rule of law under the constitution. He also said that 'immense power' of social media platforms is used to precipitate perception of guilt or innocence even before a trial is complete. "Even before the trial is over, society starts believing the outcome of judicial proceedings. Regulation of social media, especially in the context of sensitive trials which are sub-judice, must be considered by Parliament by introducing regulatory provisions," he added. Uterus Mailed to US Supreme Court in Protest Against Roe vs Wade Ruling? Here's a Fact Check of the Fake News Going Viral. Justice Pardiwala's remarks came while he was addressing the 2nd Justice HR Khanna Memorial National Symposium, which was hosted by RMNLU & NLUO with the CAN Foundation. Besides talking about regulating social media and personal attacks on judges, Justice Pardiwala also spoke about landmark verdicts delivered by the Supreme Court on issues such as Sabrimala, LGBTQ rights among others. A few days ago, Justice Pardiwala became a subject of social media outrage after the Supreme Court bench made strong comments against Nupur Sharma. Notably, Pardiwala was a part of the Supreme Court bench. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 03, 2022 07:04 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). The NCP leader Jayant Patil on Sunday, July 3 said party chief Sharad Pawar has called the meeting of the party leaders on Sunday to discuss topics on Trust Vote and the leader from the party who will be chosen as the Leader of Opposition. Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Rahul Narwekar was elected as the Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on Sunday as the special session began after the formation of the new CM Eknath Shinde govt in the state. NCP chief Sharad Pawar has called a meeting of the party later today. Two topics to be taken up for discussion - Trust Vote and the leader from the party who will be chosen as the Leader of Opposition: NCP leader Jayant Patil #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/MwIy5RzUsw ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 (SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.) Mumbai Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers celebrate on Sunday, July 3 after NDA candidate Rahul Narwekar was elected asthe new Maharashtra Assembly Speaker with the majority of 164 votes in support and 107 against him. Meanwhile, During the session, SP and AIMIM MLAs abstained from voting against the BJP candidate Narwekar. #WATCH | Mumbai: BJP workers celebrate after Rahul Narwekar was elected as the Speaker of Maharashtra Assembly, today pic.twitter.com/bpvWEkkOL7 ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 (SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.) We have closed the office of the Shiv Sena legislative party in the Assembly. We have to go to the House together, the keys to the office are with us. They had kept some of our MLAs locked up. What is the big deal if we've locked up the office: Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray pic.twitter.com/N6rZkT5Gjb ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 (SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.) According to reports, an unidentified person mailed their uterus to the US Supreme Court in order to protest the overturning of Roe v. Wade. However, it must be noted that the news is fake. The news broke out after a few TikTok users claimed that someone literally sent their uterus to the Supreme Court. However, theres no actual evidence that this happened. It must be noted that no credible news outlets have filed any such reports. Check tweet: According to this rumor, someone recently mailed their uterus to the U.S. Supreme Court to protest the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Our reporter Dan Evon looked into the matter and filed this story. https://t.co/KbtFyRAgta snopes.com (@snopes) July 1, 2022 (SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.) London, July 3: British-Pakistani businessman and property developer Aneel Mussarat has won a defamation case against Indian broadcaster Republic Bharat at the London High Court over allegations made by the channel's lead anchor Arnab Goswami, Geo News reported. Aneel Mussarat had taken legal action at the UK high court after Republic TV called him a "stooge" of the main Pakistani spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), and accused him of spreading terror in India during a show aired in the UK on July 22, 2020, the report said. US: 10-Year-Old Ohio Girl Denied Abortion After Supreme Court Overturned Roe vs Wade; Patient Now Travelling to Indiana The high court in London held that there was no evidence behind assertions that Aneel Mussarat was an "ISI stooge". The judgement was made by Deputy Master Toogood QC after hearing Aneel Mussarat's case against Republic's UK broadcaster Worldview Media Network. The Republic Bharat didn't take part in the court proceedings at any stage and the judgement has been issued in absence of the defendant, Geo News reported. The British Pakistani businessman took legal action after Arnab Goswami on July 22, 2020 referred to Aneel Mussarat as an "ISI stooge" and his picture was shown in the programme to coincide with an interviewee stating, "I don't think freedom of expression extends to fraternising with people who are clearly involved in sending terrorists across into India". Photographs of Aneel Mussarat were also displayed next to the captions stating: "Should Bollywood declare any links to pro-Pakistan, pro-terror, anti-India individuals and groups?" and "Should Bollywood renounce any links with Pakistanis who take a pro-terrorist line?" The judge noted that Arnab Goswami's programme contained no evidence whatsoever to support its assertions that Aneel Mussarat was engaged in anti-India activities including assisting in terrorism against India, Geo News reported. Aneel Mussarat had claimed that the allegations have caused serious harm to his reputation as he was not a stooge of the ISI and had no links with any terrorists group or anything illegal. The judge accepted that the publication of defamatory words "had caused or is likely to cause serious harm to the reputation of the claimant". The judge issued orders in favour of Aneel Mussarat, stressing there was no realistic prospect of the defendant providing an apology. The judge awarded legal costs of 37,500 to Mussarat and 10000 in damages as Aneel Mussarat had sought only token damages, Geo News reported. Aneel Mussarat has been pictured with several Bollywood stars and the Republic programme had questioned links of Bollywood stars linking him with terror acts. Aneel Musarrat is also known to be close to former prime minister Imran Khan and has raised funds for his party. He has also enjoyed close friendship with the Sharif family as well as with the family of Yousuf Raza Gilani and former Pak Punjab Governor Makhdoom Ahmed Mahmood. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 03, 2022 09:12 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). Andres Filomeno Mendoza Celis, also known as "El Chino" and "Cannibal of Atizapan," is among the most notorious serial killers in Mexico. The 74-year-old former resident of Atizapan de Zaragoza in the state of Mexico passed off as an elderly gentleman to his neighbors. However, El Chino harbored a dark secret, as he murdered more than 30 people, mostly women, and ate their flesh. Mendoza, a former butcher, made a living by renting out rooms in his house. A man who rented a room in Mendoza's home remarked in the latest episode of the documentary series called "Canibal, indignacion total" that the serial killer shared the flesh of his victims with his neighbors and local police officers. The man noted that on several occasions, El Chino would pass human flesh off as "carnitas" (braised pork) or "carne enchilada" (meat seasoned with chile), which was what he said he made. The serial killer also sells the victims' flesh, passing it off as pork or wild boar meat. El Chino's Neighbors in Mexico Had No Idea He Was a Serial Killer and Cannibal According to Mexico Daily News, Andres Filomeno Mendoza Celis originally came from San Sebastian Rio Dulce, Oaxaca, and only moved to the Las Lomas de San Miguel neighborhood of Atizapan de Zaragoza. There, he got along well with his neighbors. At one time, he even became a local association leader. According to El Pais, neighbors told the media that he would often visit his last victim, former girlfriend Reyna Gonzalez, in her small cellphone store near his house. The two would often talk, and El Chino would also bring her food every now and then. The new documentary about El Chino aired on Mexican TV last June 27. There, it was revealed that he would often go home to San Sebastian Rio Dulce and bring some meat and clothes. Mendoza often came home with a cooler. Being a former butcher, many of his neighbors did not question where he got the meat. But his neighbors reportedly spent time with him and ate the meat he brought. Journalist and academic Gabriela Warkentin said in the documentary that El Chino used to tell his neighbors in Atizapan de Zaragoza that he had wild boar from Oaxaca, and when he was in Oaxaca, he would say he had pork from Mexico state to cover up the fact that he was handing out human flesh. READ NEXT: San Antonio Semi-Truck Tragedy: Migrant Death Toll Reaches 53, Identifying Victims Difficult Missing Girlfriend Led to Mexico Police Investigating Serial Killer 'Cannibal of Atizapan' Police discovered El Chino's criminal activities in May last year after some people reported that his last victim had gone to his home before she disappeared. According to Daily Mail, Reyna Gonzalez tried to end her relationship with Mendoza. However, El Chino would not take the break-up lightly and drove a knife into her chest before cutting off her limbs and stuffing her body parts into bags. Police raided his Atizapan home, including the rooms he was renting out. There, they discovered evidence surrounding Mendoza's horrifying activities in the basement, where the serial killed, tortured, and butchered his victims. These include knives, cooking utensils, and books of anatomy. Police also found pieces of skin and a plate of tortillas with a piece of human meat. Police also found the bags containing Gonzalez's body, which had been placed on top of a table. Following his arrest, Mendoza confessed to as many as 30 murders over the course of two decades and ate some of the remains of his victims. He kept detailed notes about his killings, which showed that he murdered between 30 and 40 women and also admitted to eating parts of them. Daily Mail reported that he allegedly videotaped his killings as well. As they raided Mendoza's home, police not only found the body of Gonzalez but his other victims as well. Police reportedly discovered more than 4,000 bones in El Chino's home, many of which were buried under the concrete in the basement. The human remains are believed to have belonged to 19 victims, 17 of whom were women, one man, and a child. The "Cannibal of Atizapan" is now serving a life sentence behind bars. According to National Autonomous University psychology academic Feggy Ostrosky, who was interviewed for the documentary, Andres Filomeno Mendoza Celis' case is "one of the most atrocious" that has been documented. Ostrosky noted that women were "animals" for the "Cannibal of Atizapan." READ MORE: Mexican Murderers 'El Chino,' 'Monsters of Ecatepec' Among Most Notorious Serial Killers in Mexico This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Canibal, indignacion total - Trailer oficial - From FilmAffinity Official Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad is facing accusations of fraud and threatening Christian churches, including a Christian university, in "collusion" with Newsweek Editor Naveed Jamali and others. According to an exclusive HNGN report, the allegations from the source--who requested anonymity for protection against retaliation from Dev Pragad, Jamali, and the publication--came after weeks of silence from the Newsweek CEO. This Monday, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) declared that it would not be renewing Olivet University's extension site's Permission to Operate (PTO). Olivet University has been operating an extension site in New York for almost 10 years, with permission granted by the NYSED on November 5, 2012, and multiple renewals since then. However, the NYSED opted not to renew the PTO when the current one expired on June 30. The source said: "I am certain that Newsweek had played some role or influence, fully or partially, in the NYSED's decision not to renew the PTO." In an email response, NYSED confirmed that Newsweek had contacted them several times concerning the Olivet University issue. The Department stated in the email that it "has gotten multiple inquiries from Newsweek, most recently today [June 30]." The HNGN report noted that it has verified the information. READ MORE: Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy Talks to Argentina and Chile Presidents Amid Russia's Invasion Dev Pragad Allegedly Wants To Take Over Newsweek Newsweek seemed to be aggressive in contacting government agencies in its efforts against Olivet University. The source claimed that the publication's actions were due to Dev Pragad's ambition to take full control of the company. It added that the Newsweek CEO even went to the media to accuse Olivet University of "human trafficking" in the pursuit of his goal because he does not have legal standing. The source further said that Dev Pragad proclaimed himself as the "savior of the news," which drove him to take over Newsweek in early 2022. Since then, the Newsweek CEO launched a series of threats in an attempt to remove the company's founder and shareholder, Johnathan Davis, his church, and a Christian university, where his wife had served as president. A verified message the source received from Pragad dated March 2, 2022, stated: "If Olivet (the bible school), JD (the Newsweek shareholder) ... or others attack me then I'll go to media about Olivet raid by DHS for human trafficking, etc to protect myself ... [and show] ... that they are trying to undermine Newsweek." When asked if Davis or other individuals would have provoked Dev Pragad to such a response, the source said, "nothing was done at all. Pragad escalated it all unilaterally." "Subsequently, in no uncertain terms, he told me his demand - he said loud and clear that he wanted the 50 percent shares of Newsweek that is owned by the husband of the former president of the Christian university. If he got what he wanted, he said he would remain an 'ally' of Olivet. If not, the attacks would be launched." Newsweek CEO Weaponizing Newsroom To Pursue Business Agenda On April 22, Newsweek published an article alleging Olivet University is under investigation for human trafficking, among other issues. However, the allegations were not officially confirmed by any other government agency, including the DHS. The source stated that it was "shocked" that Newsweek published the article in the main headlines though the story "could not be further from the truth." It also asserted that the article implies Pragad is "weaponizing" the Newsweek newsroom "to attack the university" in the impression of "protecting himself." "It is interesting to note that all the Newsweek articles were published soon after he (Pragad) had issued the threats and more interestingly, all the inflammatory articles related to Olivet University or related entities, were published as the main headlines of the Newsweek site," the source said. The source is certain that Newsweek influenced the NYSED decision to deny Olivet University permission to continue operating in New York. "It is as if Newsweek, a national newspaper that should be focusing on more important and newsworthy pieces, desperately wanted the Olivet-related articles to gain attention. I am utterly disappointed to see how Newsweek has degraded into a tabloid, just as I am certain Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad has weaponized the newsroom to kill Olivet University in New York," the source noted, per HNGN. READ MORE: Inside Terrifying Mexico's 'Cannibal Serial Killer' Murder Spree: 'El Chino' Butchered Victims to Sell Their Meat, Give Them Away Land set aside for the decentralisation of the Department of Agriculture could be used for a base by Laois Civil Defence, a council meeting was told. Cllr Willie Aird said the Civil Defence are looking for a base for the headquarters in Portlaoise. He said a yard on the Mountrath Road is being investigated but he described the site as very tight. Cllr Aird said there is an area of land up there that Charlie McCreavy was going to build the Department of Agriculture on. He said a 110kv line was moved which probably cost millions at the time, to facilitate the site. That land is up there now and has lain idle for all that length of time, Cllr Aird told the meeting. He asked the council to pursue to the matter. Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley said there was a clear response from the council in relation to a site for the Civil Defence. The last thing we need from here is mixed messages, she commented. "> Director of Services Simon Walton said at the moment he was of the opinion that the preferred location was on the Mountrath Road. However, he pointed out that the project was still at the preliminary stages. We are looking. Thats not to say that if a suitable property came on the market that we wont change tack, he explained. When asked by Cllr Dwane Stanley if the Mountrath Road site was too small, Mr Walton said, we wouldnt be looking at it if we didnt think it could be accommodated out there. A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind. Demonstrators gather with Georgian national and EU flags during a pro-EU and anti-Government Rally rally against in front of the Georgian Parliament in Tbilisi, Georgia, Sunday, July 3, 2022. SHAKH AIVAZOV / AP Georgians staged a new mass rally on Sunday demanding that the government resign over its failure to formally secure candidacy for membership of the European Union. The Black Sea nation has been in the grip of mass protests since EU leaders decided in late June to defer Tbilisi's application for membership, pending sweeping political reforms. Read more Subscribers only Georgia's European future is on hold The biggest demonstrations in decades, which saw at least 120,000 take to the streets on June 20, are being organised by leading pro-democracy groups and supported by opposition parties. On Sunday evening, more than 35,000 demonstrators gathered outside Georgian parliament, blocking traffic at the main thoroughfare of the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, according to an AFP correspondent at the scene. Waving Georgian and EU flags, demonstrators sang the national anthem as many held placards that read "We are Europe." "Our demonstration is focused on the historic goal of Georgia's European integration," one of the rally organisers, prominent writer and civil activist Lasha Bugadze told the crowd. "The government's reaction to our constructive, peaceful, non-violent protests has been totally inadequate," he said. The ruling party has accused the opposition of "plans to overthrow the authorities by organising anti-government rallies." 'Destructive role' On Facebook, the rally's organizers earlier called on Bidznia Ivanishvili, founder of the country's ruling party, to "relinquish executive power and transfer it, in a constitutional manner, to a government of national accord." A new cabinet "will carry out the reforms required by the EU, which will automatically bring us the status of an EU membership candidate," the statement said. Ivanishvili, a former prime minister and Georgia's richest man, is widely believed to call the shots in the country despite having no official political role. Last month, the European Parliament passed a non-binding resolution to impose personal sanctions on Ivanishvili for his "destructive role" in Georgia's political and economic life. He insists he has retired from politics. Read more EU leaders agree to candidate status for Ukraine and Moldova One of the demonstrators, surgeon Nika Gorgaslidze, 45, said: "Ivanishvili controls, from behind the scenes, the government, parliament, courts, media. Such a political system is undemocratic, it's incompatible with Georgia's goal of becoming an EU member." Another demonstrator, 19-year-old student Marina Sanodze, said: "Our protests will not stop until we have a new government which will carry out the necessary reforms and will bring us closer to the EU membership." 'Clear path' Georgia applied for EU membership together with Ukraine and Moldova, days after Russia on February 24 invaded Ukraine. On June 23, EU leaders granted formal candidate status to Kyiv and Chisinau but said Tbilisi could only become an official candidate once outstanding issues were addressed. EU leaders nonetheless "recognised Georgia's European perspective," a move that President Salome Zurabishvili hailed as "historic." Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has said his government is "mobilised" to meet EU requirements on time "so that we get candidate status as soon as possible". The deferral of Georgia's candidacy became a foregone conclusion after the European Commission the EU's executive arm said on June 20 that Tbilisi must implement a number of reforms by the end of 2022 before it was put on a formal membership path. The EU conditions include ending political polarisation, improving freedom of the press and the courts, electoral reforms and "de-oligarchization." We are interested in your experience using the site. Send feedback Read more Subscribers only 'EU application = 40 Russian missiles launched against Ukraine': The diary of two sisters separated by the war in Ukraine "They (Georgians) have a clear path.... When these criteria are met, the candidate status will be granted automatically," the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on June 23. The ruling Georgian Dream party's government has faced mounting international criticism over perceived backsliding on democracy, seriously damaging Tbilisi's ties with Brussels. Plans to join NATO and the EU are enshrined in Georgia's constitution and, according to opinion polls, are supported by at least 80% of the population. Le Monde with AFP A woman and her 10-month-old son in Tecoman (west-central Mexico) in November 2017. PEDRO PARDO / AFP Did food giant Nestle try to block an anti-junk food label in Mexico? The Swiss non-governmental organization Public Eye says so. In a report published Friday July 1, the NGO lifted the veil, with copies of email exchanges as supporting evidence, on the lobbying conducted in late 2019 by the Swiss flagship in a country where seven out of 10 Mexicans are overweight or obese. Public Eye assures that the Swiss government was "instrumentalized" by Nestle to put pressure on the Mexican authorities. The operation failed, and the standard is applied. The warning is everywhere on Mexican food packaging. For almost two years, large black octagonal labels have been informing consumers about ingredients that are harmful to health: "excess saturated fat," "sugar," "calories," etc. The warning is commensurate with the urgency of the situation: The country has risen to second place among the nations most affected by overweight and obesity among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, after the United States. Mexico takes first place when it comes to overweight children: 38% of Mexicans between the ages of 5 and 11 are overweight, according to the Mexican Institute of Statistics. The new regulations also prohibit junk food advertising to minors. Letter from Argentina Subscribers only A new food labeling system in Argentina takes on unhealthy foods This is a major challenge for Nestle. "The company had a turnover, in 2019 in Mexico, of almost 3 billion euros," explained Laurent Gaberell, author of the Public Eye investigation. "More than a billion in sales of Nestle products was threatened by this new labeling." The draft standard was published in October 2019, then adopted in March 2020. "It was during this period that Nestle tried to change the content of the new regulation with the support of the Swiss authorities," Mr. Gaberell points out. Mexicans stand firm We are interested in your experience using the site. Send feedback On November 15, 2019, a Nestle employee sent an email to a interlocutor at the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), asking for "help" and "recommendations." Names were redacted in emails obtained by Public Eye, after a request made in the name of a Swiss law on transparency and access to information. That day, the email was accompanied by a memorandum from Nestle that was supposed to guide SECO in its diplomatic exchanges with the Mexican authorities. The memorandum deplored a standard that was too "restrictive," causing "unnecessary fears" among consumers. Seventeen minutes later, his SECO contact replied favorably. The official even asked him "to whom in Mexico this memo should be addressed." At the same time, Nestle mobilized its suppliers. A letter, made public on November 20, 2019, by a consumer association, invited them to inform the Mexican government of their "concerns," brandishing the threat of "job cuts." You have 53.76% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only. A LIMERICK entrepreneur who set up a company linking tenants and landlords has seen his company take a major step forward after partnering with a Limerick estate agents. Colm Moore set up StandOutRenters after posting an advert for a spare room in his home off the Ennis Road which garnered almost 1,000 queries. Now the company - which trades as OurHomeHosts.com for hosts - and the businessman has partnered with Eoin Hogan of Hogan Durkan. The pair are hoping to reduce pressure on the housing market in Limerick and its surrounds. With the backing of businesses with large workforces in Limerick, the firm connect new hires struggling to find accommodation with local homeowners who have empty bedrooms. It links homeowners with empty bedrooms with up to five renter candidates who fit their ideal criteria. The decision for which candidate to choose and whether or not to rent out a room always remains with the homeowner. Since the start of May, the company has placed 20 tenants. Colm said: The aim is to make it as easy as possible for homeowners to find great people to rent their empty bedrooms. There were over one million unused bedrooms in homes last night in Ireland. There are 60,000 empty bedrooms in Limerick city if you include Castletroy and Monaleen. New supply from new housing developments cannot catch up to demand for accommodation in the next four years. There is no other option on the table if we want to make progress on the issue. Commenting on the announcement Mr Hogan stated: We have supported businesses to find accommodation for their executives for years. Unfortunately, new hires in large companies are struggling to find accommodation which can negatively impact the recruitment ability of these businesses. Without new housing being built, there really are no other accommodation options left. Colm is already connecting homeowners who have empty bedrooms with workers in these companies so it makes sense to formalise and scale this together. Colm and Eoin intend to meet the large employers in the region and offer an end-to-end service for them and their new hires. Interested parties can reach out via email. One of Irelands most exciting young fashion stars, 27-year-old Limerick designer Aoife McNamara is celebrating three years in business from her landmark cottage in Adare. To mark the occasion, Aoife has launched a new 100% Irish linen collection. Officially launched in 2020, the fashion designer has doubled sales of her eponymous fashion label every year since, producing seven sustainability driven clothing collections in that time. Last year, mid-pandemic, she opened her flagship store in one of Adares quaint thatched cottage - there you can browse McNamara dream-like designs, items from other local Irish artists or take part in Aoife McNamara community events. Commenting having reached the three-years in business milestone, Aoife McNamara said: Looking back over the past three years I am so proud of all thats been achieved in a relatively short space of time. It seems like only yesterday I was doing an apprenticeship in New York, and now I have a label of my own. I see every day as an opportunity to work towards my vision of creating a completely sustainable Irish fashion brand. Were continuing to work towards circularity, using alternative materials and cutting-edge technologies to decrease our environmental impact. Its such an exciting time to be working in fashion. A graduate of Limerick School of Art & Design and a former intern at Marc Jacobs, Aoife possesses an intuitive skill for marrying modern tailoring with traditional and innovative sustainable materials. In addition to her innate talent for design, the 27-year-old has proven to be a phenomenal young female entrepreneur. In addition to opening her flagship store, she has launched several sell-out collections, amassed a cult fan following and run two successful pop-up stores in Kildare Village. Shes also scooped numerous awards, secured several global brand partnerships and established herself as a trailblazer in the sustainable fashion industry. Constantly innovating and pushing boundaries, Aoife's designs are inspired by nature, with a vision to protect it. Many garments are manufactured in Ireland using traditional fabrics such as Irish tweeds, sourced from a local woollen mill John Hanlys, and biodegradable Irish linens. Aoife also incorporates modern sustainable materials, such as Secell - made from seaweed- and Cupro - a fabric made of regenerated cellulose fibres from recycled cotton linter via a closed-loop manufacturing process. Her brand also follows a made-to-order model, a more ethical and sustainable approach that eliminates overproduction and reduces the risk of excess stock. As a society, we are often so disconnected from our natural world. As a designer, I see it as my responsibility to help educate a wave of conscious consumers and to create clothes that inspire a reconnection with nature. Without our planet, we literally can't survive. Through my designs, I hope to spark 'that' connection to nature once again. I truly believe fashion as an art form has the power to reignite that spark deep inside a person," said Aoife. THE UKRAINIAN ambassador to Ireland Larysa Gerasko has thanked the people of Limerick for their generosity and welcome to refugees fleeing the war in her home country. Ambassador Gerasko made her comments on a visit to Limerick during which she met with the Mayor of the City and County of Limerick Daniel Butler and members of the displaced Ukrainian community now living locally. Around 1,150 Ukrainian people are currently staying in Limerick in a variety of accommodation centres, tourist accommodation, student accommodation and with host families. Mayor Butler informed the ambassador that Limerick City and County Council is working closely with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and the International Organisation for Migration to identify suitable accommodation for those who require it. The council is also acting as co-ordinator for all of the agencies and community groups who are responding to the needs of the Ukrainians refugees. These agencies and groups are providing medical support, education, social welfare, transport, protection, and information supports. The ambassador expressed her thanks and appreciation to the mayor, the staff of Limerick City and County Council and all agencies involved in supporting the new arrivals to Limerick. Ambassador Gerasko was then invited to lunch by the residents of St Lelias, a rest centre accommodating displaced Ukrainians and operated by St Munchins Community Centre on behalf of Limerick City and County Council. The residents led the ambassador on a tour of their accommodation where she took time to speak to each family about their journey to Limerick. The children waved flags, spoke to the ambassador, presented her with art and were delighted to show her their new surroundings. The residents prepared a traditional meal with borscht, holubtsi and deruni for the ambassador. Ambassador Gerasko then met with some of the community groups and agencies - Limerick Childcare Committee, Local Link, Paul Partnership, Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board, Civil Defence, An Garda Siochana, HSE, Mid-West Simon, Doras, Department of Social Protection, Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, Ballyhoura Development, Limerick Volunteer Centre, Public Participation Network, West Limerick Resources, TUSLA, Zero Cost Shop volunteers, St Munchins Community Centre and the Citizens Information Service - who are responding to the needs of the Ukrainians while in Limerick. Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann has established three scholarships to recognise and remember the talent and legacy of the late Ashling Murphy, who had graduated from Mary Immaculate College in 2021. The 23-year-old former Limerick student was murdered by the Grand Canal in Tullamore whilst she was out for a run on January 12. Each of the scholarships are worth 2,000. The first is to support individual artists working to develop participation and practice in traditional arts, including collaborative, community and socially engaged arts practices, while the second will focus on young people, children, and their music education. The third scholarship will be research based and should focus on Irish traditional arts and also music education. Majella Bartley, National registrar of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann, commented. These scholarships were built around the work and dedication Ashling had for her love of music. The scholarships are based on developing the traditional arts and music education in the community, as well as engaging with our youth who will carry our culture into the future. They are practical and research based and help to support individual artists working to develop participation and practice in traditional arts." Ashling was a primary school teacher, comhaltas music teacher and performer and with her work in education and performance and CCE find it fitting to create these scholarships in her memory. Following Ashlings death a national outpouring of grief led to numerous vigils being held across Limerick and nationwide. Submissions for the sponsorship programme can be emailed to majella@comhaltas.ie before 5pm on July 15, 2022. Gardai have highlighted the importance of having good neighbours after they were alerted to a recent break-in. Divisional crime prevention officer, Sergeant Ber Leetch, says having a good neighbour can be as important as ensuring your home is properly secured if you are away. "It is always a good idea to have a neighbour walk around your house from time to time," she said highlighting an incident which happened in the city a week ago today. "Last Sunday, June 26, at 3.45pm, a man was walking home on the Ballinacurra Road. He knew that his neighbours house was unoccupied and he was immediately suspicious when he saw a male walk out of the house carrying a bag. He rang gardai who discovered that a rear window had been smashed and the house entered," she said. Investigating gardai say CCTV footage is being collected from the area but the description from the observant neighbour has been crucial to the investigation. "Let your neighbours know that you will be away and ask them to keep an eye on your home," said Sgt Leetch. Gardai at Roxboro Road can be contacted at (061) 214340. The Limerick Writers Centre recently celebrated their 129th book launch under their community publishing programme since 2003 with a new collection of short stories from local Dooradoyle writer Tom McElligott called The Leaking Pen. The launch took place in the Dooradoyle Library at the Crescent Shopping Centre. Speaking at the launch director of the centre Dominic Taylor said: The demise of the paper book in favour of the e-book has long been predicted but publishers are still publishing paper books, booksellers are still selling paper books and libraries are still stocked with printed paper books. It goes to show that even though the technology of the book is old it still is, in many cases, cutting edge. The book was officially launched by creative writing tutor Madge OCallaghan who praised this marvellous achievement by Tom McElligott with his wonderful descriptions and turn of phrase in his work. She described him as a true writer and not someone who just thinks about writing or talks about writing but who actually writes, something which may seem obvious but a lot of people will think and talk about writing but never actually get down to doing it. The launch was attended by over fifty people with many old colleagues of Toms from his Post Office days. The book is available to purchase from OMahonys Bookshop in Limerick and online. GARDAI are appealing to the owners of e-scooters to be vigilant following a recent spike in thefts in Limerick. In one case that has been highlighted, one e-scooter was stolen from outside a bank at O'Connell Street while in a second case, another e-scooter was take from outside a fast food premises in Raheen. "In both of these cases, the owner was within a few feet of the scooters but the thief saw their chance and took it, escaping on the scooter," said divisional crime prevention officer Sergeant Ber Leetch. "Consider your bicycle and e-scooter very valuable and never leave it unlocked when unattended. Keep a photo of them, record the serial number and expect to pay between 10% and 20% of the value of the scooter on two different types of good quality locks and lock up in a busy area," she added. Gardai say there have also been a number of recent thefts of bicycles - some of which were take from the front of side of private homes. Cyclists are being urged to secure their bikes when leaving them unattended - even if at home. A FEMALE motorist arrested following a hit and run incident in County Limerick on Thursday remains in garda custody this Sunday. A prominent and popular member of An Garda Siochana in Limerick was seriously injured during a collision which occurred on the R522, between Dromcollogher and Feohanagh, on Thursday evening. The off-duty member was on his bike at the time. "Shortly after 7.15pm, garda and emergency services were alerted after a cyclist was discovered with serious injuries. The cyclist, a man in his 50s, was treated at the scene and airlifted to Cork University Hospital. His injures are described as serious," said a garda spokesperson. Gardai confirmed the woman, aged in her 20s, is still being detained Henry Street garda station this Sunday under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984. A car was also seized for forensic examination. The scene of the collision has been examined by Garda Forensic Collision investigators. Gardai are appealing to any person who may have witnessed this collision to contact them. Any road users who were travelling on the R522 between Dromcollogher and Feohanagh at the time of the incident with camera footage is asked to make this available to investigating gardai. Henry Street garda station can be contacted at 061 212400. TBone Study University of Calgary Ever wondered if you have anything in common with an astronaut? Turns out there are 206 things your bones. Its these parts of our body that are the focus of a research study on bone loss in astronauts, and the important question of whether bone can be re-gained after returning to Earth. The TBone study was started in 2015 by Dr. Steven Boyd, PhD, director of the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health and professor in the Cumming School of Medicine. The study has followed 17 astronauts before and after spaceflight over the last seven years to understand whether bone recovers after long-duration spaceflight. Findings are published in Scientific Reports, and while it might not seem like it matters to you here on Earth, the research is important to better understand bone health generally. Bone loss happens in humansas we age, get injured, or any scenario where we cant move the body, we lose bone, says Dr. Leigh Gabel, PhD, assistant professor in Kinesiology, and lead author of the study. Understanding what happens to astronauts and how they recover is incredibly rare. It lets us look at the processes happening in the body in such a short time frame. We would have to follow someone for decades on Earth to see the same amount of bone loss, Gabel says. The researchers travelled to Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas to scan the wrists and ankles of the astronauts before they left for space, on their return to Earth, and then at six- and 12-months. We found that weight-bearing bones only partially recovered in most astronauts one year after spaceflight, she says. This suggests the permanent bone loss due to spaceflight is about the same as a decade worth of age-related bone loss on Earth. This loss happens because bones that would normally be weight-bearing on Earth, like your legs, dont have to carry weight in microgravityyou just float. Weve seen astronauts who had trouble walking due to weakness and lack of balance after returning from spaceflight, to others who cheerfully road their bike on Johnson Space Center campus to meet us for a study visit. There is quite a variety of response among astronauts when they return to Earth, says Boyd. Former UCalgary Chancellor and astronaut, Dr. Robert Thirsk, BSc (Eng)76, Hon. LLD09, MD, knows firsthand how bizarre the return to Earth can be. Just as the body must adapt to spaceflight at the start of a mission, it must also readapt back to Earths gravity field at the end, says Thirsk. Fatigue, light-headedness, and imbalance were immediate challenges for me on my return. Bones and muscles take the longest to recover following spaceflight. But within a day of landing, I felt comfortable again as an Earthling. Some astronauts who flew on shorter missions, under six months, recovered bone strength and density in the lower body, compared to those who flew for longer durations. Access to astronauts is rarethe study team includes two members from the European Space Agency (ESA), Dr. Anna-Maria Liphardt, PhD, and Martina Heer, PhD, as well as two from NASA, Dr. Scott Smith, PhD, and Dr. Jean Sibonga, PhD. The study was funded by the Canadian Space Agency and conducted in partnership with ESA, NASA and astronauts from North America, Europe, and Asia. As future space missions are exploring travel to more distant locations, the studys next iteration will explore the effects of even longer trips, to support astronauts who may one day travel beyond the International Space Station. As Thirsk says, Astronauts will venture to deep space this decade and, in the coming centuries, humanity will populate other star systems. Lets push back the frontiers of space exploration now to make this vision possible. Dr. Leigh Gabel, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology, a member at the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health in Cumming School of Medicine and a member of the Alberta Childrens Hospital Researcher Institute. The Faculty of Kinesiology is the No. 1 ranked sport science school in North America and No. 10 globally. Dr. Steven Boyd, PhD, is a professor at the Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) in the Department of Radiology and holds a joint position at the Schulich School of Engineering and the Faculty of Kinesiology. He is the director of the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health at the CSM, and the Bob and Nola Rintoul Chair in Bone and Joint Research, as well as the McCaig Chair in Bone and Joint Health. Former Cabinet Minister Aaditya Thackeray has humbly" urged the new Maharashtra government to consider not moving the Metro-3 car shed project back to Mumbai's Aarey forest. In one of the first decisions after forming the government, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde overturned former CM Uddhav Thackerays decision and moved the project back to the 1,800 acre area, often termed as Mumbai's 'green lung'. On July 3, environmentalists will engage in a new round of protest over the Metro-3 car shed project. In addition to leopards, the Aarey forest, which is near the Sanjay Gandhi National Park in suburban Goregaon, is home to some 300 different species of plants and animals. Environmental groups claim that the forest is an important habitat for wildlife, including some indigenous species, as well as a source of clean air for city dwellers. Since I have to attend the sitting of the State Legislative Assembly today, I will be missing out on the protest for Aarey Forest and the MMRCL land," Aaditya Thackeray tweeted. I humbly urge new Govt to reconsider its decision. Dont cast the hate for us, on to our beloved Mumbai(sic)." This is about sustainable development and better planning. This is about Mumbais development and we staying here instead of being handed over a badly planned project that destroys our Mumbais Aarey Forest (sic)," he added. Five lakh trees are said to be present in the forest, which also has a few rivers and lakes flowing through it. Devendra Fadnavis, the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra, recently ordered the administration and the state attorney general to submit a proposal for building the car shed in Aarey Colony rather than Kanjurmarg, which was the preferred location by the previous Uddhav Thackeray-led state government. When then-chief minister Prithviraj Chavan first proposed the Metro-3 car shed at Aarey, local NGO Vanashakti contested it in the Bombay High Court with the argument that cutting down trees in the region should not be allowed. After Chavan's death, Fadnavis continued to use the same location. However, environmentalists had strenuously objected to the removal of trees from Aarey for the vehicle garage. The Metro-3 vehicle shed was moved to a location in the eastern suburb of Kanjurmarg after the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress coalition took office in 2019, although it was mired in legal wrangling at the time. Aarey had also been designated a restricted forest by the Thackeray administration. (With agency inputs) The greatest eruption in recorded history occurred in January 2022 when the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano erupted. A plume of ash was thrown into the upper atmosphere, and the eruption produced shockwaves all across the planet. The eruption was the most explosive volcanic event in the modern age, according to a new study. Aside from that, the volcano generated the fastest atmospheric waves ever recorded, travelling through our atmosphere at 320 metres per second and reverberating at least six times across the earth. The edge of space was also reached by these waves. The authors of the report claim that there has never been a single event that has dominated such a sizable area in observational history. Scientists will use the event's observations to enhance atmospheric weather and climate models in the future. Hunga Tonga erupted on January 15 after a string of minor incidents that started in December 2021, sending a vertical plume of ash rising more than 50 kilometres above the earth's surface. The largest source of gravity waves on Earth for the following 12 hours was the heat released from the hot ash and water in the plume. Satellite observations also revealed that it generated gravitational waves that spanned the Pacific basin. The new research shows that the eruption was exceptional in terms of its size, speed, and the range of the swiftly moving gravitational and atmospheric waves it produced. It does this by combining vast satellite data with ground-level observations. The volcano's caldera, or the centre depression created when a volcano erupts, was floated over by a team of researchers in May under the direction of volcanologist Shane Cronin of the University of Auckland in New Zealand. They mapped the caldera's structure using sonar and discovered that the 4-km-wide depression's depth had decreased from less than 200 metres to more than 850 metres. According to Cronin, the massive amount of magma and water interacting when the eruption started was likely the cause of this significant explosion. Since the water's temperature was just 20 degrees Celsius while the magma's temperature was 1,100 degrees Celsius, an explosion resulted when the two substances were forced into contact. In this way, each collision would have forced water farther into the magma's margins, increasing the surface area of contact and sparking a series of other explosions. Click here to read the full article. With Better Call Saul set to begin airing its final six episodes in just nine days, AMC has begun a round of promotions for the send-off to the series. As the shows chronology begins to approach the events of Breaking Bad, viewers are preparing to see some familiar faces, including the return of Bryan Cranstons Walter White and Aaron Pauls Jesse Pinkman. Beyond that iconic pair though, Better Call Saul is almost certainly returning to the unglamorous existence of Bob Odenkirks Gene Takavic, formerly known as Saul Goodman, formerly known as Jimmy McGill, who now resides in Omaha, Neb. under a new identity after the collapse of Walter Whites criminal empire. Bob Odenkirk shared new teasers for the shows final episodes on Saturday, promising a return to chilly Nebraska for the series. The entirety of Better Call Saul has featured flash-forward sequences to Takavics anonymous life as a Cinnabon employee, though he has since been recognized as Saul Goodman in more recent interstitials. I got made. Im going to fix it myself, Odenkirks character promises in a phone call. Another teaser features dialogue spoken by Jeff, a cab driver who recognizes Takavic as Goodman in a previous episode. Actor Don Harvey played Jeff in the original sequence, though the trailer appears to feature a new actor in a rear-view mirror shot as well as voice over. Some fans have hypothesized that the role has been recast, as Harvey was featured in a role of HBOs We Own This City. Better Call Saul returns July 11. Watch the brief teasers below: Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Click here to read the full article. The market for international shoots in the Czech Republic is on the edge of a precipice, says Vratislav Slajer, the head of the countrys main industry group, the Assn. of Audiovisual Producers. Speaking to industry colleagues on Sunday at the Karlovy Vary Intl. Film Festival, Czech producers warned that they are witnessing the impending loss of more than a decade of progress in bringing in foreign shoots and the prospect of witnessing billions going to other countries. The Czech government suspended film production incentives this year, citing a spending crisis brought on by the need to rescue businesses hit by COVID losses and to accommodate over 300,000 war refugees from Ukraine. But, says, Slajer, Its a false argument. Booming film productions would offer lots of jobs to Ukrainians, for one thing, he posits. We can help solve the crisis we can bring in more money. What the government has lost sight of, he adds, is how incentives bring in rich returns: This is an investment. Its not like grant money or a donation. If you put in more, you get back more. Czech Film Commission director Pavlina Zipkova has echoed the sentiment, urging a boost to the sweeteners system. Production incentives are essential part of the eco filming system, without which we lose competitiveness within Central Europe, she says. Its as easy as that. Despite the hard times we still hope this fight will lead to opening the production incentives program at the soonest. In the past year, incentives have driven record profits, with local production companies having seen an incredible revenue of some $505 million and prestigious shoots included Netflix spy action franchise The Gray Man, Amazon fantasy Wheel of Time, actioner Extraction 2 and season two of Carnival Row all running major Czech shoots. With its outsize budget for car chases, explosions and gun battles filmed on the streets of Prague, The Gray Man alone spent some $105 million on its 91-day shoot, the producers association estimates, while Wheel of Time spent $185 million and Carnival Row some $164 million. These shoots employed hundreds and gave the Czech economy a major shot in the arm at a time when it was just opening up again to international business. When those projects opted for the Czech Republic, the kitty for 20% rebates on foreign spends there was roughly $33 million per year, although production companies have been able to lobby for significant bumps to the fund when theres heavy demand. In fact, $54 million would be a more realistic annual investment in rebates, Slajer says and codifying the fund into law so that it cant be suddenly suspended overnight. Its a broken system that really doesnt work, Slajer says. Now, with zero incentives available for the foreseeable future, major shoots are cancelling plans to come to the Czech Republic in droves. With the rest of Europe eagerly competing for productions, the Czech Republic is losing major ones every month, say producers, citing The Devil in the White City, exec produced by Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio, Amazons Patriot season 3, HBO Max sci-fi series Dune: The Sisterhood, the Hunger Games prequel with Jennifer Lawrence, Lionsgate actioner Shadow Force with Kerry Washington, and HBO intrigue Londongrad, starring Benedict Cumberbatch. All were looking at the Czech Republic but have now passed it over, says the Czech producers association. With neighboring countries like Poland offering 30% rebates for foreign productions and Slovakia 33%, its clear that unless the Czech government can restore competitive incentives, business will keep moving on to greener pastures, say local industry leaders. Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Click here to read the full article. The stars of Netflixs Heartstopper were determined to keep the party going at the Pride in London March Saturday afternoon, joining in the celebration and giving the finger to anti-LGBTQ+ protesters standing on the sidelines of the parade. Series leads Kit Connor and Joe Locke were joined by their co-stars Kizzy Edgell, Corinna Brown, Tobie Donovan and Sebastian Croft at the march, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The group was determined to keep the proceedings festive, at one point moving in front of a group of protesters gathered against a police barrier to dance in front of them as Whitney Houstons I Wanna Dance With Somebody played on parade speakers. Following a small altercation in which a parade participant appears to break free from a protesters grasp, some of the cast members raised their middle fingers at the group. Connor shared footage of the incident through his official Twitter, praising Locke and Croft for moving right in front of the protesters. I was videoing and screaming at them but please dont be mistaken, it wasnt Kit Connor and the rest of the cast, it was [Joe Locke] and [Sebastian Croft] front and center, Connor wrote. Please give them credit for doing something so powerful. uhhh I was videoing and screaming at them but please dont be mistaken, it wasnt Kit Connor and the rest of the cast, it was @joelocke03 and @SebastianCroft front and centre. Please give them the credit for doing something so powerful. https://t.co/SjvJFCHwKD Kit Connor (@kit_connor) July 2, 2022 Locke also shared footage of the incident, writing that he had to do [his] job properly. According to Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), former Mark Meadows aide Cassidy Hutchinsons devastating testimony to the Jan. 6 committee this week where she revealed the inner workings of the Trump White House in the lead up to and during the Capitol attack has inspired other witnesses to come forward. Host Dana Bash interviewed Kinzinger on CNNs State of the Union and asked: Since Cassidy Hutchinsons testimony, have new witnesses come forward to want to speak up? Yes. I dont want to get into who or any of those details Shes been inspiring for a lot of people, Kinzinger said. This happens every day. Every day, we get new people that come forward and say, Hey, I didnt think maybe this piece of the story that I knew was important, but now that you guys are talking like, I do see [how] this plays in here.' "Every day we get new people that come forward" @RepKinzinger says the January 6 committee expects to hear from new witnesses after Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony and to "stay tuned." @CNNSotu #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/2XLJ9iVa5I CNN (@CNN) July 3, 2022 Earlier in the interview, Kinzinger discussed Hutchinsons testimony that she heard Trump reached for the steering wheel of the presidential limo nicknamed The Beast when Secret Service refused to take him to the Capitol. The congressman said he found Hutchinsons testimony credible, despite anonymous sources claiming it was untrue. Some Secret Service sources are disputing the account, Bash said. Others say, though, it tracks with what they heard. So the question is, Trump allies are trying to use this to discredit all of her testimony. Why did the committee put this out there, ask her about this, that she heard secondhand, without first obtaining corroborating evidence? Well, Im not going to say what we do or dont have in terms of corroboration, Kinzinger replied. But let me say this. What she said is, this is what she heard. At no point [does she say] she was in the Beast with the president and saw this happen. Now, you guys [at CNN] have done a good job of reporting Secret Service sources saying they heard the same story. What youre seeing now and this is typical for Trump world that nobody has argued that the president didnt want to go to the Capitol. Nobody has argued that he didnt know there were guns. Theyre trying to argue, did he really grab for the Beast? And thats where Tony Ornato will have to come in and tell us more about his position on that. Ornato, Trumps former deputy chief of staff for operations who previously led Trumps Secret Service detail, is the person Hutchinson said told her about the then-president lunging at his lead Secret Service agent, Robert Engel. Secret Service officials have said Ornato and Engel will testify the incident did not happen, but CNN has reported that rumors of Trumps angry demands to go to the Capitol on Jan. 6 have been circulating in the Secret Service for a year. He had sort of lunged forward it was unclear from the conversations I had that he actually made physical contact, but he might have. I dont know, a source told CNN. Nobody said Trump assaulted him; they said he tried to lunge over the seat for what reason, nobody had any idea. Cassidy Hutchinson has testified under oath, Kinzinger said. We find her credible. And anybody that wants to cast disparagements on that was firsthand present should come and also testify under oath, and not through anonymous sources and not potentially being an anonymous source. Kinzingers fellow committee member, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), speaking with ABCs Jonathan Karl on This Week, said she is absolutely confident in Hutchinsons testimony. Shes an incredibly brave young woman, Cheney said. When Karl asked if the committee had evidence aside from Hutchinsons testimony to corroborate what happened in the presidential motorcade, Cheney responded, The committee has significant evidence about a whole range of issues, including the presidents intense anger. The Jan. 6 Committee has "significant evidence about a whole range of issues," including former Pres. Trump's "intense anger" about being blocked by Secret Service from going to the Capitol that day, Vice Chair Liz Cheney tells @JonKarl. https://t.co/rPywuRPwPH pic.twitter.com/JUcEBLX3Qr This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 3, 2022 I think you will continue to see in the coming days and weeks additional detail about the presidents activities and behavior on that day, she added. Click here to read the full article. The Fugees (partially) reunited once again as Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean made a surprise appearance to perform four songs together Friday night at the Essence Festival in New Orleans. Midway through Wyclefs unannounced set at the citys Caesars Superdome, Hill emerged onstage to first perform Killing Me Softly solo before being joined by her Fugees band mate on The Scores How Many Mics, Fu-Gee-La, and Ready or Not. Click here to read the full article. When the cast of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds was first announced, much attention was paid to all the legacy Trek characters who were getting a new life on the Paramount+ series, from Capt. Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and Lt. Spock (Ethan Peck) to Cadet Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) and Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush). Then there was Lt. Erica Ortegas, one of the only wholly original characters on the series, which takes place on the U.S.S. Enterprise roughly a decade before the events of the original Star Trek series from the 1960s. As the helmsman on the Enterprise under Capt. Pike, Lt. Ortegas pardon the pun flew under the radar for Trek fans at first. But as the series nears its Season 1 finale on July 7, Ortegas flirtatious wit and nerves of steel have made her a standout on the show, even as other characters have earned more of a spotlight this season. Talking with the actor who plays her, Melissa Navia, its easy to understand why. A working actor for over a decade, the 37-year-old has never been afforded a role nearly as prominent as Ortegas. Shes been relishing both the experience of making the show and watching Trek fans embrace it with more unabashed enthusiasm than just about any other iteration of the franchise in decades. Its been a beautiful ride so far, she said. Im just still in awe. Navias own exuberance for Strange New Worlds, but, really, for just about anything is also readily apparent from talking with her for even a few minutes. When the actors interview with Variety shifted to questions about Ortegas gender and sexual identity (more on that shortly), Navia was asked in passing for her own preferred pronouns. Her answer couldve taken just a second. Instead, Navia smiled, and leaned forward a bit into her Zoom camera. She/her, Navia said. But, I mean, Im from New York, and in a lot of our wonderful queer spaces in New York City, everyone is they/them, because its just easier. So Im also always open to that as well. All my life has been, like, from behind, with my short hair, people say, Excuse me, sir. So Ive always been, you know, whatever pronouns work for you, work for me. She chuckled. But my preferred pronouns are she/her. Navia also talked about trying to avoid Star Trek while auditioning for Strange New Worlds, why she became such a stickler for knowing how the controls of the Enterprise bridge actually worked, how long she trained to become a medieval knight for Episode 8 and what fans can expect for Ortegas in Season 2. The Universe Is Punking Me Because Ortegas wasnt already a part of Trek history like Uhura or Nurse Chapel, Navia was clued into everything about the character for her first audition. The name was right there in the breakdown, she said. Shes a pilot. Combat veteran. Latina. Navia watched Star Trek: The Next Generation as a kid that opening with Patrick Stewart and his wonderful voice will never get old, she said but she purposefully tried to avoid exposure to anything even related to Star Trek during her audition process. Resistance, alas, was futile. No matter what I watched, there was a Star Trek reference in everything, she said. It was absolutely wild. Im like, The universe is punking me. Whats happening?!' Navias late partner, Brian Bannon, took a different approach, binging the 1990s series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine while she waited to hear whether shed landed the role. (Bannon died in December, just days after receiving a leukemia diagnosis.) The funny thing is, I wouldnt have known him as a Trekkie, she said. Brian was so intelligent. He just knew everything about everything. I remember we were doing a Star Trek trivia game after I booked everything and Brian knew everything. We were like, What is going on?! He knew that this was huge, and Strange New Worlds was going to be the hit that it now is. How Do You Fly a Starship? When Navia stepped onto the eye-popping set of the Enterprise bridge with her castmates, she remembered everyone else standing agape at the polish and detail of the production design. And I was just like, How does this all work?' she said. I still remember heading back to our chairs after like our first setup, and googling, How do you fly a starship?' While it has been a longstanding Star Trek tradition for starship control panels to be made up of an intentionally baffling array of undifferentiated buttons and dials, for Navia, it was imperative that she actually understand how her character would actually go about piloting the Enterprise. She just had no idea how. That first night, she went back to her hotel room she was sharing with Bannon feeling overwhelmed. I told him, I dont know how all of this works,' she said. Hes just like, Ask everybody. Figure it out.' So she did, coordinating with everyone from Star Trek vice president of brand development John Van Citters to the visual effects team in charge of the on-screen graphics on Lt. Ortegas control panel. Its all touchscreen, but it isnt interactive, Navia said with a wry smile. I pointed out it should be, and everyone was just like, We dont have the money yet for that.' Still, with the Strange New Worlds crew, Navia painstakingly constructed a thorough understanding of how to use the controls to satisfy her need to feel like shes really guiding the Enterprise through all manner of treacherous cosmic territory. It informs what youre doing, she said. So much of what we do is all, you know, techno jargon. Were making believe, but its real to so many people. It has to be real to us. She laughed at herself. I dont consider myself a method actor, she said. But truly, the more Ive described how Ive been approaching this role, Im like, Star Trek finally made me a method actor. She Doesnt Have to Put a Label on It Navia is fully aware that Ortegas androgynous appearance not to mention her chemistry with male and female crewmates alike has suggested to many LGBTQ+ Trek fans that Ortegas is queer. Its a perception shes played into happily. Ive been playing Ortegas to be very much, like, shes super loyal to her crew and she also has a crush on probably all of them, she said. Since the launch of Star Trek: Discovery in 2017, the franchise has incorporated many explicitly LGBTQ+ characters into its storylines, part of a wider effort to bring the Star Trek prime directive of infinite diversity in infinite combinations into 21st century storytelling. Most recently on Strange New Worlds, trans actor Jesse James Keitel played a nonbinary space pirate who befriends (and then betrays) Lt. Spock. But Navia is comfortable with leaving Ortegas identity more ambiguous. To her, thats the point. I dont want to sound like its a flippant thing, but she doesnt have to put label on it, she said of Ortegas. I like that were approaching it in a way that nobody bats an eye. Like, they shouldnt, right? Everybody should be a bit queer. Everybody is a bit queer, I feel, you know? She paused. And in that way, me too, she said. This has been my whole life and Im so happy about it, but I know I give off this wonderful queer energy. Its just been a part of who I am. So now that Navia has wrapped Season 2 in Toronto, will audiences get to see Ortegas direct that queer energy towards another person? I think were gonna see I mean, I cant say anything but I think were gonna see that for Ortegas, if she relates to somebody, if she likes somebody, it doesnt matter who they are, where they come from, she said. If theres a connection, shes going to go for that. Like, perhaps, the connection between Ortegas and Nurse Chapel in Spock Amok, Episode 5 of Season 1? When I read the script, you know, I saw that, Navia said with a smile. Theyve been friends for a long time, but there is definitely something where romance could be a thing. Has it been a thing? We will see. It Was the Most Talked About Episode All Season One day early into shooting Season 1 of Strange New Worlds, Navia visited the costume department for a fitting and someone there asked her if she knew how to sword fight. And I was just like, Well, I have a martial arts background and Ive done sword fighting stunt work for a film before,' Navia recalled. And they were like, The writers have to have known this. Im like, Why? And theyre like, We cant really say too much.' At some point later, Navia saw a concept sketch wearing the dashing costume of a medieval knight, hinting that some kind of fanciful episode was looming on the horizon. She wasnt alone in getting a heads up, either. It was the most talked about episode all season, Navia said. Everybody was like, and youre gonna be playing a princess and youre gonna be a wizard. Like, whats happening?! The episode in question was Episode 8, The Elysian Kingdom, in which a semi-omnipotent alien being transforms the nighttime story read by Dr. Joseph MBenga (Babs Olusanmokun) to his terminally ill daughter into a flesh-and-blood fantasy that takes over the Enterprise. Naturally. Its such a beautiful script, but we didnt get it until, like, the day before, Navia said. She and the stunt team got the heads up that something was coming months earlier; however, the actor was able to being training months in advance. Wed basically choreograph this fight scene that kept changing as stunts kind of got more of the story, she said. When they finally did get the script, We discovered we were doing it in a corridor versus, you know, in our heads, this beautiful battlefield where we had so much space. Still, Navia has zero complaints. I appreciate that I got the chance to play a knight because I dont know what other show would allow me to do that, she said. She was especially struck that Ortegas was taking on the role of a male knight from MBengas storybook; one produced described the character to her as part Aragorn, part Indiana Jones. It all felt so much of a piece with what she had been doing from the start with Ortegas identity and her own. Indiana Jones is both who I wanted to be growing up and also, I had a crush on Harrison Ford, she said. In my life, Ive always been kind of defying gender norms without even acknowledging that they were gender norms, if that makes sense. It has this queerness to it that is just so, so joyful, and also so real. The Payoff Will Be There Navia knows that while Ortegas has often had a big role to play throughout Season 1, shes never been given a showcase episode in the way that the rest of her castmates have. And shes fine with that. The biggest storylines in Season 1 are not me, she said. My thing is, like, Im flying a ship. I dont have time to have all these emotional conversations. While the actor is tight-lipped on whats to come for Season 2, she can barely contain her excitement for it. You are definitely going to see some big arcs, she said. The payoff will be there. I think were building up to something really beautiful and really compelling. Its a joy to play the part. Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Click here to read the full article. After being hospitalized Tuesday in a medical emergency, Travis Barker has shared that he is currently much better. The 46-year-old Blink-182 drummer and husband to Kourtney Kardashian shared a message regarding his health to fans through his official Instagram, explaining that he had a pancreatic drainage tube damaged during a routine endoscopy. He expressed his gratitude that he has begun to make a recovery. I went in for an endoscopy Monday feeling great, Barker wrote. I developed excruciating pain and have been hospitalized ever since. During the endoscopy, I had a very small polyp [a tissue growth] removed right in a very sensitive area, usually handled by specialists, which unfortunately damaged a critical pancreatic drainage tube. This resulted in severe life threatening pancreatitis. Pancreatitis refers to inflammation of the pancreas, which causes symptoms like nausea, intense stomach pain and vomiting. I am so very very grateful that with intensive treatment I am currently much better, Barkers messaged concludes. Kardashian also shared a statement about Barkers health through her own Instagram story. Oh what a scary and emotional week it has been. Our health is everything and sometimes we take for granted how quickly it can change, Kardashian wrote. I am so grateful to God for healing my husband, for all of us your prayers for him and and for us, for the overwhelming outpouring of love and support. I am so touched and appreciative. I am so so thankful to our specialists, doctors and nurses at Cedars Sinai for taking such wonderful care of my husband and me during our stay. After beginning his career in the music industry in the 1990s, Barker has reached a renewed level of visibility in the public eye in recent months. The drummers relationship with Kardashian was closely documented in episodes of Hulus The Kardashians last year. The pair officially married in Portofino, Italy in May. Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. For any business or city looking for investment, seeking and going to places to find potential investors is the way to go. Therefore, two of the citys main economic development corporations attended a summit in the nations capital to seek more investment in the area. The summit helped connect the City of Laredo with many potential investors from around the country and all around the world. The Laredo Economic Development Corporation, in collaboration with the Laredo Chamber of Commerce, recently attended the 2022 SelectUSA Investment Summit in Washington, D.C. to promote foreign investment in our Laredo/Webb County Community, said President and CEO of Laredo Economic Development Corporation Gene Lindgren. The SelectUSA Investment Summit is the highest-profile event in the United States dedicated to promoting foreign direct investment. The event is known to draw over 3,000 attendees and has directly impacted more than $57.9 billion in new U.S. investment projects, supporting over 47,000 jobs across the United States and its territories. Historically, the Investment Summit attracts more than 1,200 business investors from approximately 80 international markets who join economic developers from almost all U.S. states and territories, according to the events website. Lindgren states that from the LEDC, he and Yvette Sanchez the vice president of international recruitment attended. From the Laredo Chamber of Commerce, president and CEO Gabriela Morales was also present. Lindgren said that their event space was one of the most visited, as Laredo sits in an international and strategic important gateway to the Americas. Our exhibit space was part of the most important FDI event in the world, attended by representatives from over 80 international markets and every U.S. state and territory, Lindgren said. The president of the LEDC felt their exhibit was so successful that they did not just provide information about the city but actually held meetings with several of the attendees. They also scheduled follow-up meetings with them to learn more about investing in Laredo. We hosted several business-to-business meetings at our space from company representatives from every continent, and we will be following up with them to continue to promote our community for business ventures that will provide significant investment and more jobs, Lindgren said. In addition to being blessed to be in Texas, we continue to promote our global trade expertise, competitive and efficient supply chain industry, young and talented workforce, and thousands of acres of land under development. He implored that mentioning the fact that there is a growing young, educated and talented workforce in the city, this is espousing many investors to consider coming to the area for investment opportunities. At the event, evening receptions hosted by country delegations, state representatives and private sector sponsors allowed for additional networking opportunities for all those in attendance including the delegation from Laredo. Lindgren states that while the Washington trip was a relative success, there are more events planned that hope to bring more investment into the community. The president of the LEDC states that there are a number of events over the next several months where the LEDC will continue to collaborate with the Laredo Chamber of Commerce, the City of Laredo Economic Development Department and its counterparts, such as the sister city of Nuevo Laredo. Lindgren said that one of these events that investors and the city should look forward to is the annual symposium, which is one of the main headlining events hosted by the LEDC and which has been done virtually for the past two years because of the pandemic. The LEDC will be hosting its largest event of the year on September 21-22, the 29th annual Pathways for Trade Symposium in Laredo, Lindgren said. This yearly event effectively puts Laredo on the map, and more details about our top-notch keynote speakers will be announced later in the month of July. Lindgren also states that these will include other representatives from Mexico as well and the interior of the United States like Mexicos Auto Industry Summit in Leon, Guanajuato, Foro de Competitividad Municipio de Nuevo Laredo, 2022 Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference in Big Spring, NASCO 2022 Continental Reunion in Kansas City, MO and the YTexas Summit 2022 in Dallas. jorge.vela@lmtonline.com 956-728-2538 This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) Tens of thousands massed outside government offices late Saturday to protest a French proposal for solving North Macedonia's dispute with Bulgaria that is blocking the country's membership talks with the European Union. North Macedonias government has said the proposal is a solid base. But the main opposition center-right VMRO-DPMNE party rejects the proposition, arguing it favors Bulgarian demands that dispute Macedonian history, language, identity, culture and inheritance. We do not need Europe if we have to be assimilated," opposition leader Hristijan Mickoski told reporters before the start of the protest. The answer is no for the latest French proposal. "If Europe is not ready to accept us civilized Macedonians where we belong, then we will wait until there are people who will understand that Macedonia and Macedonian identity is above and before all, he added. Bulgaria, a member of the EU, has insisted that North Macedonia formally recognize that its language has Bulgarian roots, acknowledge in its constitution a Bulgarian minority and quash hate speech against Bulgaria. French President Emmanuel Macron announced earlier this week at the NATO summit in Madrid that he believed a compromise solution had been achieved, without giving details. Im convinced we have found a compromise solution, he said. North Macedonias foreign minister, Bujar Osmani, said that Macedonian language and identity are protected by the French proposal and it should be accepted as soon as possible for the country to start the accession talks with the EU. North Macedonia has been a candidate for EU membership for 17 years. The country received a green light in 2020 to begin accession talks, but no date for the start of the negotiations has been set. Bulgaria has used its power as an EU member to block North Macedonias membership, since all enlargement decisions require unanimous approval from the 27-nation bloc. The dispuate has also stalled Albanias progress toward EU membership because the bloc is treating the pair as a political package. All three countries are NATO members. The protest ended peacefully. Another one was planned for Sunday. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate VATICAN CITY (AP) Pope Francis greeted members of the Congolese community in Rome, borrowing words from their native languages Sunday to wish them peace and joy during an especially vibrant ceremony at St. Peters Basilica. Francis, 85, was supposed to make a July 2-7 pilgrimage to Congo and South Sudan. But the trip was called off last month due to persistent knee pain that has caused the pope to use a wheelchair or a cane in recent weeks. His itinerary for the since-postponed trip would have had him in Congo on Sunday, celebrating Mass at the airport in the capital, Kinshasa. Instead, some 2,000 Congolese or descendants of people from Congo joined the pope in Mass at the Vatican. They clapped when Francis began his homily by speaking a few words in Congo's languages. Prayers by the faithful were recited in Swahili, Lingala, Tshiluba and Kikongo, the countrys four official languages. A Christian always brings peace, Francis said, reflecting the theme of reconciliation he planned to thread through his Africa pilgrimage. The colorful clothes and vibrant singing of the congregants made for a sharp contrast with the often somber attire and chants of clergy, nuns and rank-and-file faithful at many basilica ceremonies. A day earlier, Francis sent a video message to the people and leaders of Congo and South Sudan that exhorted them to forge new paths of reconciliation, peace and development. He expressed disappointment that he couldn't travel this month but promised to visit as soon as possible. In his Sunday homily, the pontiff renewed his encouragement. "Today, dear brothers and sisters, let us pray for peace and reconciliation in Congo, Francis said. He described he country, which is one of the world's poorest despite a wealth of natural resources, as so wounded and exploited. The Catholic Church played a role in the establishment of democracy in Congo and has advocated for human rights there. The church deployed about 40,000 election observers to monitor the 2019 vote that brought Felix Tshisekedi to the presidency in what was Congos first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since independence from Belgium in 1960. At the end of Mass, a nun, Rita Mboshu Kongo, addressed the pontiff in Italian, thanking him for his concern for Africa, wishing him good health and saying that Congo's people were waiting for him to visit with open arms. Francis, leaning on his cane, hobbled a few steps to his wheelchair, and an aide wheeled him out of the basilica as the faithful waved and sang joyfully. ___ This version has been updated to correct the spelling of Congo's capital to Kinshasa. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) In a city boasting champagne brunches with views of the sea, Michelin star restaurants, and endless high-end Asian food options, a small hole-in-the-wall restaurant with plastic chairs and metal tables is one of Dubais go-to spots. Ravi restaurant, a small, family-owned Pakistani place, is rooted in the community of South Asian workers who helped build Dubai. Yet over the decades, it has become a staple of the food culture in a city that usually gravitates to everything glitzy and over-the-top. The restaurant opened its doors in the United Arab Emirates in 1978 in the Dubai neighborhood of Satwa, at a time when it was a sandy area full of big lorries and small construction shops. The emirate was mostly a desert land in the 1970s with a meager, low-built skyline overlooking the Gulf. Ravi served home-style dishes, mainly to South Asian construction workers. Its founder, Chaudary Abdul Hameed, wanted to find a way to serve better food to the working class, said his son Waseem Abdul Hameed, who is also the restaurants operations manager. That meant keeping prices affordable, with meals costing an average of $7. Over the years as Dubai boomed, it became a hit among Emiratis and the Western and Asian expats who flooded the emirate. Famed food critic Anthony Bourdain helped put Ravi on the map when he visited it for one of his TV series in 2010. A few years later, rapper Snoop Dogg dropped in as well, and Ravi was elevated to a must-see attraction. Besides its portions, prices and flavors, its ironically Ravis lack of pretentiousness that gives it cache. Customers wearing everything from business suits to traditional saris or sneakers crowd the restaurant for big meals or late-night snacks. Its common to see lines of people at the door, or people taking their food and eating it at the curb. Inside, customers sit at tables with plastic covers underneath flickering neon lights. Chatter downs out the sound of ceiling fans. Chicken biryani, chicken tikka, daal and naan are slung out of the kitchen over the service counter, and as waiters rush the plates to the table, the smell of curry and grilled meat wafts through the air. Last week, the low-key eatery was scene to a very Dubai-style splash: A gathering of social media influencers to promote the launch of shoemaker Adidas brand collaboration with Ravi. Adidas produced a specially designed limited-edition Superstar Ravi sneaker green and white, emblazoned with the restaurants name and the year it opened, and a list of the six most famous dishes from its menu on the inside of the shoes tongue. Both Ravi and Adidas declined to disclose the terms of the deal to The Associated Press, or to answer questions about whether the restaurant will be making any money from the sale of the shoes. Waseem Abdul Hameed said it reflects how the restaurant is part of Dubais cultural fabric. You have to go to Ravi restaurant for a meal, so thats why they chose us. Its a stark contrast with other recent lines released by Adidas, like one with Gucci that includes sneakers selling for $899 in Dubai and other cities. But the collaboration speaks to how brands like Adidas are looking for new ways to connect to consumers searching for uniqueness. On a recent hot summer day after the shoe launch, customers lined up outside Ravi. Its authentic, thats what it is, thats why I like it, said 32-year-old Dubai resident Dana, whos been coming to Ravi for years with her friends. Unauthorized road work done on Mines Road on Saturday created congestion which forced a city councilmember to step in and shut it down, it was announced this afternoon. According to a Facebook post from District 7 Councilmember Vanessa Perez, who lives in the community herself, road work was being done on the north side of Mines Road on Saturday afternoon which was not approved by the Texas Department of Transportation. Said work was being done in violation of state policy, and Perez said the project was shut down and the road was cleared. Today there was a lot of traffic congestion on Mines Rd past La Bota Ranch, she wrote. I was messaged about the problem and told not to make excuses and to be transparent. Heres the issue, work was being done without permission. Texas Department of Transportation has a policy where they will not grant permission to work on holidays or holiday weekends. This work was not approved by TxDot and was being done in violation of state policy. Work is not typically done during the day on Mines Road past La Bota Ranch. Construction is mostly done late at night as a new lane is being put in on the side heading north. Future work is being investigated as the Metropolitan Planning Organization recently teamed up with the Regional Mobility Authority to conduct a feasibility survey on a relief route for the area. That project is expected to take 12 months, and after it has been done, a new route may be in the works. However, until then, residents will continue to drive on what is the 37th most congested road eighth with trucks in the state of Texas, according to a recent study done by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. Making sure incidents like what happened Saturday though will be an immediate priority for Perez. Going forward, I requested that work be done at night, she wrote. There will be a meeting to discuss the issue of unauthorized work and how we prevent this from happening again. For any project, we need to make sure the public is considered every step of the way. It is not fair to us to have to work around the needs of a project without consideration for our commute, safety, policies, rules, etc. Those who live north of the loop on Mines Rd suffer enough with the weekday traffic due to poor planning and rapid growth. We apologize for the inconvenience this unauthorized work caused today. UVALDE, Texas (AP) The Uvalde school districts police chief has stepped down from his position in the City Council just weeks after being sworn in following allegations that he erred in his response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 19 students and two teachers dead. Chief Pete Arredondo told the Uvalde Leader-News on Friday that he has decided to step down for the good of the city administration. He was elected to the District 3 council position on May 7 and was sworn in in a closed-door ceremony on May 31, just a week after the massacre. After much consideration, I regret to inform those who voted for me that I have decided to step down as a member of the city council for District 3. The mayor, the city council, and the city staff must continue to move forward without distractions. I feel this is the best decision for Uvalde, Arredondo said. Arredondo, who has been on administrative leave from his school district position since June 22, has declined repeated requests for comment from The Associated Press. His attorney, George Hyde, did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment Saturday. On June 21, the City Council voted unanimously to deny Arredondo a leave of absence from appearing at public meetings. Relatives of the shooting victims had pleaded with city leaders to fire him. Representatives of the Uvalde mayor, Don McLaughlin, have not responded to requests for comment Saturday. Col. Steven McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, told a state Senate hearing last month that Arredondo the on-site commander made terrible decisions as the massacre unfolded on May 24 , and that the police response was an abject failure. Three minutes after 18-year-old Salvador Ramos entered the school, sufficient armed law enforcement were on scene to stop the gunman, McCraw testified. Yet police officers armed with rifles stood and waited in a school hallway for more than an hour while the gunman carried out the massacre. The classroom door could not be locked from the inside, but there is no indication officers tried to open the door while the gunman was inside, McCraw said. McCraw has said parents begged police outside the school to move in and students inside the classroom repeatedly pleaded with 911 operators for help while more than a dozen officers waited in a hallway. Officers from other agencies urged Arredondo to let them move in because children were in danger. The only thing stopping a hallway of dedicated officers from entering room 111 and 112 was the on-scene commander who decided to place the lives of officers before the lives of children, McCraw said. Arredondo has tried to defend his actions, telling the Texas Tribune that he didnt consider himself the commander in charge of operations and that he assumed someone else had taken control of the law enforcement response. He said he didnt have his police and campus radios but that he used his cellphone to call for tactical gear, a sniper and the classroom keys. Its still not clear why it took so long for police to enter the classroom, how they communicated with each other during the attack, and what their body cameras show. Officials have declined to release more details, citing the investigation. Arredondo, 50, grew up in Uvalde and spent much of his nearly 30-year career in law enforcement in the city. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. On Monday the 13th of June, Lanesborough Primary School earned two prestigious awards. Namely the Digital Schools of Europe Award and the Pieta Amber Flag. Both initiatives have been running since September and the staff at Lanesborough Primary School have engaged tirelessly with each programme. The Digital schools of Europe award is the only award in Europe that contains the European Commission logo and consequently Ireland and Lanesborough Primary school are one of the first countries and schools anywhere in Europe to receive this award. Dublin West Education Centre is the only education centre in Europe with permission to use the European Commission logo this logo is associated with excellence and is only used for outstanding programmes of merit within the European Union. As the Digital Technology Coordinator, Rory Leonard has worked tirelessly since 2015 in upgrading the schools Digital Technology infrastructure in order to be eligible for admission to this esteemed programme. In recognition of this work, Lanesborough Primary School is in the esteemed position of being one of only fourteen schools in Europe to be awarded this honour. It has been given to Lanesborough in recognition of outstanding achievement in the integration of Digital Technology with learning in the school. Our schools infrastructure has been greatly improved since September as each classroom has a Clever Touch Interactive Screen. Each screen was installed by Toomey Audio visual services by their knowledgeable engineers. We also acquired a set of twenty-five Chromebooks from Compupac IT Solutions, who were very helpful in setting up our Google admin service within the school and provided training to the Digital schools coordinator. Examples of this include the use of green screen technology to supplement our learning in the classroom. The Infant classroom utilised this technology when they were performing their Skeleton Dance during our Halloween Assembly. 1st and 2nd also enjoyed using green screen to visit Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry we had several Harry Potters on that day. 5th and 6th class used this innovative technology to tell stories and poems over the Christmas term. The Pieta Amber Flag Niamh Rohan entered the school into the Amber Flag program this year. The Pieta Amber Flag Initiative recognises the individual efforts of primary and secondary schools, youth reach, third level institutions, community groups and clubs to create healthy, inclusive environments that support mental well-being. Since September, there have been several new initiatives in the school because of this. For the first time ever, each class took part in Yoga classes which were held in the community hall. Bewell yoga brought us on a six-week yoga journey. During the 6 weeks, each class embarked on a Yoga journey around the world. The pupils really enjoyed this activity and found it to be beneficial for their mindfulness and mental health. Not only did our school take part in this initiative but the pupils brought the Amber flag into their homes also. They were given a well being Homework grid which contained activities such as meditation, eating their favourite meal, going on a walk and even visiting a friend. On the 6th of May, our school community arrived into school dressed in yellow. Each child donated towards our Pieta House fundraiser. The school organised a Wellbeing Week on the 13th of May which focused on the different aspects of wellbeing and friendship each day of the week. Each day was given a positive nickname which was: Marvellous Monday, Terrific Tuesday, Wonderful Wednesday, Tremendous Thursday and Fabulous Friday. All classes participated in positive mental health activities each day. These ranged from positive affirmations to self-esteem games, mindfulness breathing and colouring, discussing the importance of a healthy diet and being active. The final project undertaken by the school was a Design a Poster competition within the school to raise awareness of positive mental health strategies. The presentation ceremony was attended by Dr Daithi O Murchu of Dublin West Education Centre and Deputy Joe Flaherty. Dr O Murchu spoke about the digital schools of Europe award Lanesboro NS has consistently proven that its a vision for 21st century emerging technologies is deeply embedded in the daily lives of their whole school community. This digital schools of Europe award recognises the most incredible work being undertaken by the school to ensure that the #nextgenerationeu students in rural Ireland are top class! Cohghairdeas o croi do gach duine Deputy Flaherty spoke about the impact about mental health in Ireland today. He recognised the work that was undertaken by Mrs Rohan and the school. It is a very exciting project for Lanesboro school and I was very impressed with the students and it is remarkable to think that it is only 1 pf 14 schools in Europe to have attained this award. It is really heartening to see how well the pupils engaged with it and it really brought home the value and importance of technology in modern education. It was a busy day at the school, as they also raised their Amber flag and this was a follow on for their get active initiative and an important focus on well being and mental health awareness. It is great to see the school being so proactive in two key areas for development of our youngest people. These awards were an excellent end to what was a very productive year at Lanesborough Primary School. A man has been arrested following two stabbing incidents in Belfast city centre. The 27-year-old was detained by police in the early hours of Saturday. The injuries received by both victims are not believed to be life-threatening, police said. Inspector Donna McGrady said police were alerted at about 1.15am by a member of the public on Bedford Street to a fight going on in the area. Police attended and found a male with several stab wounds to his head and chest. He was brought to hospital by colleagues from Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, she said. Arrest of man aged 27 after two stabbing incidents in Belfast City Centre in the early hours of today pic.twitter.com/iXJKJOkURT Police Belfast City Centre (@PSNIBelfast) July 2, 2022 It was then reported that the man with the knife made off in the direction of Amelia Street where he stabbed a second man. Police attended and the injured party received treatment from ambulance crew for a wound to his upper chest. The injuries of both men are not considered to be life-threatening at this stage. We have made an arrest in connection with this and enquiries to establish the circumstances are ongoing. We are appealing to anyone who may have witnessed anything, or has any information which could assist, to contact police on 101, quoting reference number 162 of 02/07/22. Arts & Culture By Ls Cohen Published: July 03 2022 Anna Jurinich had two pieces chosen for the Lunar Codex time capsule. One Wading River artists paintings are out of this world - literally. According to a story in Dans Papers, artist Anna Jurinich had her work chosen to be a part of the Lunar Codex, a program that will send works of art, including visual art, books, stories, poetry, essays, music, films, and more to the moon once NASA resumes missions to our natural satellite. The U.S.'s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has a plan, the Artemis Program, to land humans back on the Moon in 2025, for the first time in over 50 years, the Lunar Codex website explains. Before humans return unmanned space flights will bring scientific instruments and other payloads first in preparation. These missions will include the time capsules that will make up The Lunar Codex. The Codex will be the first significant placement of contemporary arts on the Moon in 50+ years, the website goes on to explain. Two of Jurinichs pieces were selected to go to the moon. One, The Delusion and Persistence of Peace, depicts a woman holding a dove with torn black ribbon all around her. The other is called The Yellow Vase, and shows a woman lying underneath a yellow vase with flowers. (Alliance News) - Germany and Ireland's top diplomats have strongly condemned Britain's planned law to tear up Brexit rules for Northern Ireland, in a joint opinion piece published on Sunday. "There is no legal or political justification for unilaterally breaking an international agreement entered into only two years ago," German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and her Irish counterpart Simon Coveney wrote in the Observer newspaper. "The tabling of legislation will not fix the challenges around the protocol. Instead, it will create a new set of uncertainties and make it more challenging to find durable solutions," they wrote. With the law, the UK government wants to repeal parts of the Northern Ireland protocol, which it had agreed with the EU during the course of Brexit negotiations. The settlement is intended to prevent a hard border between Northern Ireland - part of the UK - and EU member Ireland, and thus to avoid new conflicts in the former civil war region. However, it has created a customs border between Northern Ireland and the rest of Britain - this is a thorn in the side of the UK government. The EU has threatened London with countermeasures. Residents and businesses in Northern Ireland benefited from the protocol, and the Northern Ireland economy recovered more quickly from the pandemic than in most other regions of Britain. EU ministers have acknowledged problems due to the arrangement. But they said the EU had responded to people's concerns by putting forward proposals for easier movement of goods between Northern Ireland and Britain. "Unfortunately, the British government chose not to engage in good faith with these proposals. Instead of the path of partnership and dialogue, it has chosen unilateralism," the ministers wrote. source: dpa Copyright 2022 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate MANISTEE COUNTY Voters in Manistee County will be asked to decide on three countywide ballot initiatives that, if approved, could continue funding things like conservation work and central dispatch. The following ballot initiatives will appear on the Aug. 2 primary election ballot: Manistee Conservation District Manistee County voters will be asked for the continued support of their conservation district in the Aug. 2 primary election, through a proposed millage renewal that had previously been approved in 2018, as well as an increase to help fund its continued operations in the county. The proposed language requests an addition of 0.125 mill for two years to coincide with the current millage and then to renew the current millage and the addition for nine years totaling 0.225 mill. The millage increase will be applied to leverage funds including grant matching, infrastructure improvements for the district property and to retain and support its full-time staff, according to the ballot proposal. The millage is estimated to raise $274,195 for Manistee Conservation District programs in its first year, if levied in full. If approved, the 0.125 mill increase will be levied for two years, and the 0.225 mill renewal will be levied for nine years. Conservation district staff provide forestry and wildlife habitat management; surface water and groundwater resources; invasive species management; federal cost-share program implementation; and educational programming on natural resources topics, according to county documents. The ballot language for the renewal is as follows: For the purpose of funding the operation of the Manistee Conservation District programs that assist Manistee County residents and landowners in the protection, enhancement and restoration of natural resources. The increased revenue will be applied to leverage funds, including grant match, infrastructure improvements for the District property, and to retain and support full-time staff to continue to provide forestry and wildlife habitat management; surface water and groundwater resources; invasive species management; federal cost-share program implementation; and educational programming on natural resources topics. Shall the tax rate limitation on general ad valorem taxes within the County of Manistee, imposed under Article IX Sec. 6 of the Michigan Constitution, and shall the County be authorized to: a.) Addition of 0.125 of one (1) mill ($0.125 per $1,000 of Taxable Value) to the current .1 of one (1) mill ($0.10 per $1,000 of Taxable Value) levy to total .225 of one (1) mill ($0.225 per $1,000 of Taxable Value) for a period of two (2) years, 2022 through 2023 inclusive, and b.) Renew .225 of one (1) mill ($0.225 per $1,000 of Taxable Value) for a period of nine (9) years, 2024 through 2032 inclusive. If approved and levied in full, it is estimated that the addition of .125 mill, for a total of .225 mill, will raise $274,195 for Manistee Conservation District programs in the first calendar year of the levy, based on the 2021 County taxable value. A portion of the millage may be subject to capture by tax increment financing authorities. 911 Manistee County Central Dispatch A 911 Manistee County Central Dispatch millage renewal request is also headed to the August ballot for Manistee County voters. If approved, it will bring an estimated $1,286,61 in operating funds in its first year. It will be levied for four years. The cost of the millage renewal on a home with a taxable value of $100,000 is about $100 a year. In the past two years, the Manistee County Board of Commissioners has opted to allocate 0.8 of the full 1 mill levy. The ballot language for the renewal reads as follows: Shall the County of Manistee renew a previous voted increase in the tax limitation imposed under Article IX, Section 6 of the Michigan Constitution on General ad valorem taxes within the County of Manistee at 1.000 mill ($1.00 per $1,000.00 of taxable value) for the period of 2024 through 2028, inclusive, to operate, maintain, and upgrade the 911 emergency response telecommunication system and Central Dispatch system in Manistee County, and shall the County of Manistee levy such renewal in millage for said purpose, thereby raising in the first year an estimated $1,286,616. Manistee County Separate Tax Limitation Residents will also be asked to approve a ballot proposal establishing mill distribution for two years. Manistee County Treasurer Rachel Nelson explained in an email to the News Advocate that a limitation of 15 mills is allocated between the county, townships, Manistee Intermediate School District and other schools. In 1993, Proposal A set the schools at 7.7 mills, so this leaves 7.3 mills for the county, townships and ISD. The Tax Allocation Board determines the ballot language regarding how much of the 7.3 mills the county, townships and ISD should receive. Nelson stated in the email. The allocation board has set this at 5.5 mills for the county, 1.5 mills for the townships and 0.3 mills for the ISD since it was first approved in 1993. This millage distribution was last approved by voters in 2016. This property tax revenue allows the county, townships and ISD to provide vital services to the community, Nelson said. If approved, the mill distribution will remain as-is through 2024, which as Nelson points out, is an election year and therefore avoids the expense of holding a special election. Whenever a new vote is taken, it also resets any Headlee rollback that has occurred since the last election. The ballot language for this proposition reads as follows: Shall separate tax limitations be established for a period of two (2) years (2023 through 2024, inclusive) or until altered by the voters of Manistee County for the County of Manistee and the Townships and Intermediate School Districts within the County, the aggregate of which shall not exceed 7.3 mills as follows? County of Manistee 5.5 mills Townships 1.5 mills Intermediate School Districts 0.3 mills Alec Baldwin responded to a Twitter user who made a joke about the shooting on the set of Rustand promised to find the man. "I will find you Mike," Baldwin wrote in his now-deleted tweet. The written confrontation came after Twitter user @mwreyes responded to Baldwin with a joke about the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Although Baldwin deleted his comment, the tweet was widely shared and distributed on social media. The incident occurred Wednesday when Baldwin tweeted criticisms of former President Donald Trump. "Trump tried to strangle a Secret Service agent. I mean...what more do you need?" Baldwin tweeted. This was a reference to recent testimony provided by Cassidy Hutchinson, a top aide to former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows, before the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. @mwreyes, who goes by the name Mike Williams, responded to Baldwin with a lurid comment. "Better than shoot you director of photography," Williams wrote. Upon seeing the comment, Baldwin responded, "When I'm finally not charged with any crime, I'll come find you so you can apologize." Baldwin added, "I'll find you, Mike." Baldwin deleted the tweet, but Williams' response is still available. "This is the best day ever. Come find me. I'm waiting for Alex," he wrote, seemingly unfazed by Baldwin's message. He went on to respond to comments in the same thread as Baldwin's original post. A smartphone insert is shown showing Alec Baldwin's deleted tweet where he told a user that he would "find him" to apologize. Baldwin's original message to @mwreyes was later shared on Reddit, where the conversation and banter continued. Some people on the thread also expressed sympathy for Baldwin and commented that it was a "measured response" from the actor. The incident in question occurred at Bonanza Creek Ranch in New Mexico on October 21, 2021 on the set of the Western film. Rust. A prop gun held by Baldwin went off, killing cinematographer Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza. Hutchins' family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the production crew behind Rust that names, among others, producer Baldwin and prop master Sarah Zachry. In April, the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office issued a statement obtained by newsweekwhich suggests Baldwin may still be under investigation. "Several components of the investigation are still pending, including FBI forensic ballistics and firearms analysis along with latent DNA and fingerprint analysis, the New Mexico Medical Examiner's Office findings report and analysis of data from Mr. Alec Baldwin's phone extracted by Suffolk County Sheriff's investigators." Said Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza. "Once these investigative components are provided to the sheriff's office, we will be able to complete the investigation to forward to the Santa Fe District Attorney for review," he added. Since the incident, Baldwin has returned to work on a different project, and recently generated controversy by interviewing filmmaker Woody Allen. The Army has been sending out a clear message to all those who matter that they would not afford any criticism in any form, and from any quarter. However, the political dynamics in the country is so intricate that the possibility of vested interests pushing journalists to criticise the Army and then being attacked by their own cronies to show the attack as being carried out by the Army cannot be ruled out. On July 1, some unidentified persons attacked senior journalist and analyst Ayaz Amir of Dunya News programme "Think Tank". Pak Premier Shehbaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz have taken notice of the attack and sought a report. The attack on Amir intriguingly was carried out only a day after his speech at a seminar on regime change organised by lawyers of Islamabad High Court Bar Association who have been supporting the PTI of Imran Khan. In his speech, Amir had indirectly accused the General Headquarters (GHQ) of toppling Imran government and not the US. He also criticised Imran for giving extension to the present Army Chief and stressed that now onwards all successive army chiefs would aspire for a tenure of six years and more as long as they don't attain 64 years of age. Amir also lashed out at Imran Khan for relying on a single person (Faiz Hameed) for carrying out all tasks whether related to Balochistan, security issues or political matters. He came down hard on the former Prime Minister for handing over large swathes of land to the property mafia and Defence Housing Association. In all possibility, thrashing of Amir can be attributed to the military establishment. However, in the prevailing situation, the possibility of the PTI itself or the anti-Bajwa lobby being involved in the attack to further tarnish the image of Gen Bajwa and DG ISI Naveed Anjum cannot be ruled out. The "cowardly" attack has evoked strong reaction from the PTI Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan, President Arif Alvi and other PTI leaders as well as condemnation by media fraternity. Imran Khan's tweet indirectly held the military establishment and ISI responsible for the "dastardly" attack. Condemning the incident, the former Prime Minister said, "I condemn in strongest terms the violence against senior journalist Ayaz Amir today. Pakistan is descending into the worst kind of fascism with violence & fake FIRs against journalists, opposition politicians, citizens etc. When the state loses all moral authority it resorts to violence". Imran's chief of staff Shahbaz Gill tweeted that the incident is clear indication of the same tactics of traditional fascism. The media fraternity held the view that such incidents against journalists are "constantly occurring, and was absolutely deplorable and unacceptable". Investigative reporter Umar Cheema tweeted that Amir became the target of all elements in Pakistani politics as he criticised the incumbent government seeking a change in the government while at the same time he attacked the Army and Imran Khan as well. Another Pakistani media personality, Gharida Farooqi said that the attack on the senior columnist was the most condemnable act. She questioned whether it was an act by some affected persons or part of tactics against the govt? Najam Sethi tweeted that the physical attack on Ayaz Amir is shocking and reprehensible. It was meant to teach a lesson that some subjects are still taboo. Vlogger Murtaza Solangi wrote that the "dastardly assault on senior journalist Ayaz Amir is despicable and disgusting". "Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz must order to punish the culprits," he said. It is the duty of the security agencies and the police to find, prosecute and punish the thugs who had committed this horrible act. Journalist Talat Hussain tweeted that "Ayaz Amir was beaten up today. Shameful. Absolutely condemnable." Columnist and author Hamid Mir, condemning the incident recalled that last year unidentified people had harassed journalist Asad Toor after barging into his house in Islamabad. "The assailants could not be arrested till date. If Asad Toor had got justice, unidentified men would have not dared to attack Amir." Journalist Azaz Syed tweeted that he spoke to Amir in the morning regarding his "domineering speech". He said that "in the evening, this tragic incident took place. It is very important to expose the culprits by conducting an immediate investigation into the incident with Amir Sahib". India last week sent the 15th consignment of 2,500 MT (metric tonnes) of wheat to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan as humanitarian assistance via the Attari-Wagah border. Balbir Mangat, Joint Commissioner, Customs on Saturday, said that a total of 36,000 MTs of wheat has been sent so far. Out of 50,000 MT which was promised by India, only 14,000 MT is left to be dispatched. The aid is part of the commitment made by New Delhi to supply 50,000 MT of wheat for the people of Afghanistan. Earlier, in a humanitarian effort to aid Afghanistan, India had sent the next shipment of 3000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan, said Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi in an official statement on last Saturday. Taking to Twitter, Bagchi said, "India sent the next shipment of 3000 MTs of wheat today to Afghanistan. Our commitment to providing humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people remains steadfast."In partnership with World Food Programme, India has successfully completed the shipment of 33,500 MTs of wheat to Afghanistan, he had further added.In May, another consignment of 2,000 metric tons of wheat as humanitarian assistance from the government of India was dispatched for Afghanistan via the Attari-Wagah border.The Indian government has promised to provide 50,000 metric tons of wheat to Afghanistan, under which 10,000 metric tons of wheat have been sent already. Furthering our commitment to assist people of Afghanistan. India delivered 6 tons of essential medicines to Afghanistan today. Press Release https://t.co/eDUeQOCOld pic.twitter.com/oSdyqqnus7 Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) June 30, 2022 Moreover, in the wake of the recent tragic earthquake, India, as the first responder, supplied almost 28 tons of earthquake relief assistance in two relief flights. These relief consignments were handed over to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), the UN World Food Programme (WFP), and the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS). Furthermore, India is in the process to ship more medical and wheat assistance to Afghanistan in coordination with the UN agencies on the ground. There has been a significant increase in the number of extrajudicial killings in Balochistan, stated the monthly newsletter of the Baloch Human Rights Council (BHRC) today. The security forces have abducted 21 people from various districts of Balochistan, the report mentioned, adding that a disturbing number of confirmed and unconfirmed mutilated bodies were recovered from Balochistan and Lahore. Details are as follows: The names of the missing students abducted by the security forces on June 4, 2022, from Quetta have been revealed as Shahzad, Atiq, and Ahmad who belong to Balochistan's Kalat, Kharan and Khuzdar districts, respectively. Recently, security forces picked up Kalimullah Noor, a postgraduate student in the sociology department of Karachi University, from the Joharabad area of Karachi and subsequently picked up two Baloch students at Karachi University as well whose names were Doda Ilahi and Ghamshad Ghani. They were kept incommunicado for a week, assaulted and released on June 13 after violent protests broke out. Security forces also picked up Hafiz, son of Bashir Ahmad, from his home in Absar, Kech district. His whereabouts are still unknown, the report said. On top of that, a local death squad picked up two brothers, Irshad and Sharafat, from their home in Issai village of Panjgur. According to the media report, they are still missing. Several relatives of the Baloch missing persons are examining the reports of unidentified dead bodies found in various areas of Lahore, however, Pakistani media underlined that 55 bodies appear to be from outside Punjab which raises the fear that these bodies might be of the Baloch missing persons. Enforced disappearances of political activists, students and other intellectuals are now common in Balochistan as Pakistani security forces have launched a campaign to silence the dissidents. They are used as a tool by Pakistani authorities to terrorize people who question the all-powerful army establishment of the country or seek individual or social rights. Cases of enforced disappearances have been majorly recorded in the Balochistan and the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provinces of the country. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russia claimed control Sunday over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of Moscow's grinding war. The General Staff of Ukraine's military reported that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk in Luhansk province. President Volodymr Zelenskyy acknowledged the withdrawal but said the fight for the city was still raging on its outskirts. If confirmed, Russia's complete seizure of Luhansk would provide its troops with a stronger base from which to press their advance in the Donbas, a region of mines and factories that President Vladimir Putin is bent on capturing in a campaign that could determine the course of the entire war. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin that Russias troops, with a local separatist militia, have established full control over the city of Lysychansk and now hold all of Luhansk, according to a ministry statement published Sunday. As is typical with such descriptions, the Russian statement characterized the victories as the liberation of the Luhansk Peoples Republic. Separatists in Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk, which make up the Donbas and are home to significant Russian-speaking populations, declared independence from Kyiv in 2014 and their forces have battled Ukrainian troops there ever since. Russia formally recognized the self-proclaimed republics days before its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian and Russian forces fought fiercely for Lysychansk in recent days after the neighboring city fell last week. On Sunday evening, the General Staff of Ukraine's military confirmed on social media that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk to preserve the lives of Ukrainian defenders. In his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy noted the withdrawal. But he added that Ukraine does not give anything back and vowed to return with more modern weapons. Citing his forces' success in recapturing other territory, he promised, There will be a day when we will say the same about Donbas. Earlier, Zelenskyy said Kyiv's forces were still battling Russian soldiers on Lysychansks outskirts in a very difficult and dangerous situation. We cannot give you the final judgment. Lysychansk is still being fought for, Zelenskyy told a news conference in Kyiv given alongside Australia's visiting prime minister. He noted that territory can move quickly from one side to the other. Russian forces maintain an advantage in the area, he acknowledged, calling it a Ukrainian military weak spot. The capture of Lysychansk would give the Russians more territory from which to intensify attacks on Donetsk. In recent weeks, Russian forces were thought to hold about half of Donetsk, but it's not clear where things stand now. If Russia prevails in the Donbas, Ukraine would lose not only land but perhaps the bulk of its most capable military forces, opening the way for Moscow to grab more territory and strengthen its ability to dictate terms to Kyiv. Since failing to take Kyiv and other areas in northern and central Ukraine early in the war, Russia has focused on the Donbas, unleashing fierce shelling and engaging in house-to-house combat that devastated Lysychansk, neighboring Sievierodonetsk and nearby villages. Few details emerged from either city during the battles, which decimated their populations as people were killed or fled. Already Russian forces appeared to be pushing their advance in Donetsk, concentrating rocket attacks on the sizable Ukrainian-held city of Slovyansk, where at least six people were killed, regional government spokeswoman Tatyana Ignatchenko told Ukrainian TV. Kramatorsk, another major city in the Donetsk region, also came under fire, the regional administration said. Far from the fighting in the east, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday visited a town near the capital that was severely damaged early in the war. Albanese called the destruction in Irpin devastating." "These are homes and these are livelihoods and indeed lives that have been lost here in this town, he said. Meanwhile, the exiled mayor of the Russia-occupied city of Melitopol said Sunday that Ukrainian rockets destroyed one of four Russian military bases in the city. Attacks were also reported inside Russia, in a revival of sporadic apparent Ukrainian strikes across the border. The governor of the Belgorod region in Western Russia said fragments of an intercepted Ukrainian missile killed four people Sunday. In the Russian city of Kursk, two Ukrainian drones were shot down, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Kursk regional governor Roman Starovoit said the town of Tetkino, on the Ukraine border, came under mortar fire. ___ Ebel reported from Prokovsk, Ukraine. Associated Press journalist Maria Grazia Murru contributed from Kyiv. ___ Follow AP's coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate DEEP RIVER An independent used bookseller along the Connecticut River has created a free bicycle repair station for cyclists that the owner hopes will encourage more people to use alternate transportation. Bennetts Books owner Colin Bennett said his philosophy is neighbors helping neighbors. Its about creating community: How can we support each other? The simple structure has a rack to hold a bicycle, attached tools for common repairs and air pump. Accessible during daylight hours outside of the bookstore at 171 Main St., Bennett believes its one of the few in the state. The service is available to those who live or visit the Sylvantide Valley, also known as the Lower Connecticut Valley. It includes a number of other lower Middlesex County towns, including Westbrook, Old Saybrook, East Hampton, East Haddam, Lyme and Old Lyme. Past projects at the shop have included a seed-sharing station, plant swap, the distribution of free books to low-income households and a community Freedge stocked with free food. If theres any money left after paying our bills, whats left goes into the community helping people by encouraging and fostering bicycle culture here; making sure no kid goes to bed hungry, and kids have access to books, Bennett said. Hes in the process of applying for nonprofit status. The project came to fruition through community support. Tools were donated by companies such as Airline Cycles in Colchester, and help from Wayward Woods in Haddam, as well as advice from Essex Hardware. Bicycle repair stations are now available commercially, the owner said. Unfortunately, they cost in the neighborhood of $1,000 each. With the help of just a few people in Sylvantide, we were able to create this for less than $200 that makes me happy. Bennett is a big proponent of traveling on two wheels. Bicycles are almost perfect machines: Theyre fun, theyre good for our bodies, theyre extremely affordable, and, most important, theyre great for the environment, he said. Hopefully (and with work), well see our streets get safer, and see more and more people on bicycles. These need to be an important part of any future we create. Theyre not practical all the time for all people, but ,every time someone chooses to take their bike to work, the store, or for a leisurely drive instead of their car, thats a step in a positive direction, Bennett said. To encourage more people to choose alternate transportation, there will have to be an overhaul of infrastructure in the state, he said. Courtesy stations are a part of that. Another big thing that some communities take seriously and others dont is making the road safe for pedestrians, bicyclists and cars. In the future, the bookseller is hoping to create a bicycle collective to teach riders how to make simple fixes and other useful skills. It would include a nominal membership fee, such as $10, to keep the lights on and the bills paid, he explained. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate MADISON It may seem like an unassuming little shop, but customers may discover that Savvy Tea Gourmets new Main Street location is like a tea mecca. Inside, a prolific menu of some 300 varieties is crammed onto a wide chalkboard, taking up an entire wall near the entrance. This is what I consider a curated collection, said tea master Philip Parda, who owns the shop with his wife, Judith Parda. Its the fourth move for the long-standing tea house since it opened in 2008, and a return to Main Street. Most recently it was located on Sampson Rock Road for several years. Now were back here were on the main drag again and I want to recreate the tea mecca concept, said Parda, who has big plans for making this a real destination for tea people. Since opening last month, new and returning customers have been welcoming, Judith Parda said. Were getting so many people that are just visiting Madison, which is fabulous because if they fall in love with our tea then they can order it online and go back home and enjoy it, she said. And were seeing people we havent seen since our first location, which we left in 2012, she added. On a recent weekday, Parda held court with customers, extolling the unique properties of exotic teas. He opened a canister of an unusual Chinese tea, its leaves curled up like snails, fittingly called Black Snail; and a green tea, Dragon Well with flat, spiky leaves that are toasted in a wok until fragrant. The shop also offers familiar, well-loved varieties, such as Earl Grey, a tea blend flavored with oil of bergamot, a citrus similar to a tangerine. According to Parda, the English favorite was created in 1830 to counteract unpleasant-tasting water at the estate of the real Earl Grey. Like fine wine Tea can be as varied and complex as food and wine. Philip Parda describes one special tea as having notes of caramel, burnt sugar. He talks about mouth feel, a term sommeliers use to describe wine. Interestingly, Parda is a tea sommelier, as well as a professional tea educator and master tea blender. He happily opened bags of tea and offered customers a sniff to take in the rich aromas of toasted chestnut and baked bread. On the chalkboard, customers will see a dizzying selection of black, white and green teas; teas from China, Japan, India and Sri Lanka; herbal infusions; tea smoothies; and specialty iced teas to order. At Savvy Tea, patrons may order a fresh-brewed pot to enjoy in the shop, as well as buy loose teas by the 25-, 50- and 250-gram bag in bulk (less than 10 ounces) to bring home. The shops profuse list of teas is ever-expanding, Parda said, because when he attempts to edit it, The problem I have is people fall in love with a tea and I try to get rid of it and they protest: What do you mean, I cant get it anymore? he said. Parda is passionate when he talks tea. Many people misunderstand the centuries-old beverage, he said, and he is eager to clear up misconceptions. Its a very difficult sell because people think they understand tea, he said. We think we know what tea is but the thing is, we really do not. You just know what you grew up with, what your mom or dad or grandmother did. Its this amazing powerful thing in your life that is not only healthful, but it embellishes your life, Parda added. As a tea master, he said, The challenge is to be able to engage with people have them pay attention and listen a little bit and have them embrace tea. And when they do its life changing. Virtual tea tastings The COVID pandemic was life-changing for the couple. When it hit in 2020, they quickly had to shift their business model. Before the shutdown, the Pardas sold 95 percent of their inventory in person and 5 percent online. That practically changed overnight, with people ordering via phone or buying online at their new site, drinkgreatteamarketplace.com. The Pardas closed their tea room and turned it into a shipping department to mail tea. They also put a pickup bin outside for local customers. Then, online orders jumped by tenfold, to 50 percent of their business, Parda said. Instead of hosting in-store tea tastings, Parda held them virtually on Zoom which was a life-saver for the business. A very big part of our revenue has been our tea tastings, Parda said. Because people will come and they will have a great time at a tea tasting and will buy inventory, theyll buy tea. We had to stop that, he said. I changed our tea tastings to virtual where we have our menu online; people can sign up for a tasting and we then send them the samples or they can pick them up if theyre nearby. We somehow got through the past two years, Parda said. Each week they hosted a tasting with a theme, such as the upcoming The 10 Famous Teas of China. Theyd ship the tea samples all over the U.S. and other countries. A day before the event, hed email the link. The virtual tastings took off; Parda taught tea courses online as far flung as Norway and held tastings for large corporate groups, with as many as 500 participants. Online, Parda is hands-on, demonstrating how to properly steep tea something many people dont know how to do, he said. They prepare their teas at home under my guidance, he said. He also gives them a mini-course on the selection. He talks about where the teas are grown, unique characteristics, in addition to their health benefits. While the couple has opened their tea room for in-person tastings, they will continue the online tastings. Thats going to be really exciting because, if you want to go to a tea tasting and invite your cousin from California, you can do that and they can come in virtually, Parda said. Drink to your health Every single tasting we get into the benefits of tea. Its really big theres a lot to talk about, Philip Parda said. The Pardas are mindful of that as well in their drinking habits. The couple faithfully starts their day with two to three cups each of their favorite green tea, Cloud Mist, according to Judith Parda. That helps us build our immunity, bring on the antioxidants, she said. Then we branch out from there. Each of us can easily drink six to eight cups of tea a day. A special amino acid found in the tea leaf, L-theanine, plus the caffeine, she said, helps focus and concentration and mental clarity. Scholars, artists in China thousands of years ago, knew that there was something in the tea that helps their work. Researchers now are telling us L-theanine does that, Judith Parda said. For her health, she swears by a wellness tonic called On the Mend, which boosts immunity, she said. I drink it all the time. Philip Parda said tea has health benefits that are wide-ranging, including increased immunity and neurological health and cognitive performance, and helping prevent autoimmune disease. Both green and black teas offer benefits from several antioxidants and important amino acids, he said. And it all starts with oxidation, he said. The difference between white tea and black tea is the level of oxidation, he explained. Green tea, he said, is a light tea that is unoxidized, while black tea is full oxidized. Green teas help fight inflammation because they are alkaline, according to Parda. We want to have a neutral pH in our body. And many things we consume are acidic, he said. Green tea counters that. I like to see people drink a variety of teas because as the tea molecule oxidizes, goes from green tea to black tea, the health benefits shift a little bit, Parda said. Black tea also has benefits for digestive health, artery health and brain health, and blood fat and cholesterol heart health, he added. Oolong teas, which are partially oxidized, are also loaded with antioxidants, he said. And then are the herbal teas, which are not made of tea leaves, but are herbal infusions, the Pardas own custom blends. We have a whole area, called Natures Apothecary, he said. The idea of them is to help you avoid reaching for a pill bottle. One of the most popular, he said, is a sleep-inducing herbal tea we make ... and I tell people you sleep like a teenager. Judy and I have it every night, its not that we need it, we just love it, he said. Its a beautiful herbal infusion, amazingly delicious. The tea master seems to love to share his passion and his knowledge with new tea drinkers. Now these people are these fabulous tea drinkers that are drinking fantastic teas and have embraced it and enjoy it tremendously as a valuable part of their life, he said. LOS ANGELES (AP) A Virgin Orbit rocket carrying seven U.S. Defense Department satellites was launched from a special Boeing 747 flying off the Southern California coast and streaked toward space Friday night. The modified jumbo jet took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in the Mojave Desert and released the rocket over the Pacific Ocean, northwest of Los Angeles. The launch was procured by the U.S. Space Force for a Defense Department test program. The seven payloads will conduct various experiments. And there we have it, folks! the company tweeted shortly before 1 a.m. local time, about an hour after the rocket separated from the 747. NewtonFour successfully reignited and deployed all customer spacecraft into their target orbit. It was Virgin Orbit's fourth commercial launch and first night launch. The launch was originally scheduled for Wednesday night, but that attempt was scrubbed due to a propellant temperature issue. Virgin Orbit named the mission Straight Up after the hit on Paula Abdul's debut studio album Forever Your Girl, which was released through Virgin Records in 1988. Virgin Orbit was founded in 2017 by British billionaire Richard Branson. It is headquartered in Long Beach, California, and currently conducts launches from the Mojave airport but is planning international missions. Later this year, the company will launch two satellites on a mission flying out of Newquay Airport in Cornwall, England. The satellites will conduct radio signal monitoring tests in a joint project of the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defense and the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. In the absence of scientific agreement on the viability of a fetus, the question remains whether abortion should be a matter of public morality or private morality. by Ruwantissa Abeyratne in Montreal I've noticed that everyone who is for abortion has already been born. Ronald Reagan Up until recently, the decision handed down by the United States Supreme Court nearly fifty years ago in Roe v. Wade stood - that State governments did not have the power to criminalize abortions. A few weeks ago, the same court decided that, whether to criminalize abortions or not should be the purview of individual States. Roe v. Wade was the result of an appeal lodged in 1969 and pleaded before the Supreme Court by 25-year and single woman, Norma McCorvey, who appeared before the Court as "Jane Roe", challenging abortion laws in Texas that prohibited abortions on the ground that abortions were unconstitutional, except in cases where the mother's life was in danger. Henry Wade, the district attorney for Dallas County defended the anti-abortion laws of Texas before the Supreme Court. Ms McCorvey who was pregnant with her third child alleged that she had been raped and the applicable laws in State effectively precluded her from procuring an abortion, forcing her to give birth. But the case was rejected and she was forced to give birth. The Supreme Court heard the appeal in 1973 where Ms. McCorvey and a 20-year-old woman from the State of Georgia argued that abortion laws in Texas and Georgia did not comport with the United States Constitution as they infringed a woman's right to privacy. In the recent decision overruling Roe, Justice Samuel Alito is reported to have conveyed the decision on behalf of the Majority : Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences. The right to an abortion has been polarized as a political issue in the United States unlike in other countries such as Australia and the United Kingdom, where the former has taken a similar pro-choice approach but under the overarching principle that decision making was left to individual State legislatures. The latest ruling by the Supreme Court, giving States the authority to prohibit abortions, has generated an outcry throughout the world in Europe, far away Australia and elsewhere in the world. In the United States pro-choice advocates are spread throughout States as the decision overruling Roe encouraged thirteen states which already had "trigger laws" that come into effect upon Roe v Wade being overturned. There are other States that have retained old laws which banned abortion prior to 1973 on their books and these laws could be revived and enter into force. Amnesty International is reported to have said : People will be forced to give birth. Theyll be forced to seek unsafe abortions. This is the outcome of a decades-long campaign to control the bodies of women, girls, and people who can become pregnant. Former President Barack Obama is reported to have reacted against the decision saying the Supreme Court: "relegated the most intensely personal decision someone can make to the whims of politicians and ideologuesattacking the essential freedoms of millions of Americans. The opposite view is reflected in former Vice President Mike Pences words : By overturning Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court of the United States has given the American people a new beginning for life and I commend the Justices in the majority for having the courage of their convictions." The Supreme Court has overruled its own decisions several times in history, one example being the striking down of segregation laws in the 1953 decision handed down in the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education which obviated segregation in schools. That having been said, when courts follow precedent at common law (judge made law) it gives governance and the Rule of Law a sense of predictability and infuses confidence and a sense of stability in the people. The complaint against the latest decision overruling Roe is that the Judiciary has taken the United States 50 years back, as one protester said: 50 years ago the right given to my mother has been taken away from me and from my children. Leaving philosophy and ethics aside, a basic look at the debate brings to bear two incontrovertible truths. On the pro-choice side of the argument, no one can deny that women have the right to decide what to do with their own bodies. On the pro-life side it is implicitly claimed that this is mere casuistry as another human life is involved which no one can tamper with or terminate. Any such interference and termination of pregnancy would be tantamount to murder. In both points of view, the debate boils down to two words fetal viability. In other words, the ability of a fetus to survive outside the uterus. In their article in Encyclopedia of Forensic and Legal Medicine (Second Edition), 2016 P. LefevreF. BeauthierJ.-P. Beauthier, say [I]t is generally accepted that a 28-week-old fetus that doesn't need resuscitation is viable. However, according to WHO, fetal viability is possible after 20 weeks of fetal life (22 weeks of amenorrhea). Anthropometrical characteristics as well as clinical parameters of fetal age estimation are of high importance. On the other hand, G H Breborowicz in his article Limits of fetal viability and its enhancement says: there is, at the present time, no worldwide, uniform gestational age that defines viability. Viability is not an intrinsic property of the fetus because viability should be understood in terms of both biological and technological factors. In another view published in The New York Times on 28 November 2021 Adam Liptak, in his article Fetal Viability, Long an Abortion Dividing Line, Faces a Supreme Court Test says: Fetal viability is generally considered to begin at 23 or 24 weeks gestational age: by 23 weeks, 55% of infants survive preterm birth, while approximately 6070% survive by 24 weeks. Admittedly, women face grave logistical problems in having to travel, at great expense, from a place which criminalizes abortion to a more liberal place which allows abortion often across states which are hundreds of miles apart, and from country to country. In many instances, abortion is only provided in private clinics where most cannot afford to procure an abortion. There is an interesting socio-economic theory formulated by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner in their book Freakonomics: So how did Roe v. Wade help trigger, a generation later, the greatest crime drop in history? As far as crime is concerned, it turns out that not all children are born equal. Not even close. Decades of studies have shown that a child born into an adverse family environment is far more likely than other children to become a criminal. And the millions of women most likely to have an abortion in the wake of Roe v. Wade poor, unmarried, and teenage mothers for whom illegal abortions had been too expensive or too hard to get - were often models of adversity. They were the very women whose children, if born would have been much more likely than average to become criminals. In the United States in particular, polarizing the abortion debate has largely been the purview of conservatives and liberals where the former is pro-life, and the latter is pro-choice. Professor Michael Sandel of Harvard University opines: Notwithstanding their claim to be neutral on the moral status of the fetus, liberals cannot defend the right to abortion without implicitly denying that the fetus is a person. The bottom line in this debate is whether the issue is one for public moral discourse or individual moral discourse: whether the decision of a majority of nine Justices of the Supreme can be imposed on an entire country. In other words, whether deciding on whether abortion should be allowed or not should be based on there being a public moral legal responsibility on the State or the judiciary. In the absence of scientific agreement on the viability of a fetus, the question remains whether abortion should be a matter of public morality or private morality. The military uses a lot of unique terminology, some of which bleeds into the civilian world. Words like "bikini," "sideburns" and "head honcho" all got their beginnings in military service. Even phrases like "face the music" and "cut and run" came from the military. For years and decades, service members have used common terms for gear and places that have just always been called what they're called. But even the names of these everyday aspects of military life had to evolve from some place in history. Here are a few of those word origins. 1. Barracks The word "barracks," used to describe where military personnel are housed, has two potential origins. The first dates back to the 1500s, when Spanish soldiers called their tents barraca, which is today the word for small shacks usually used by workers. Another likely candidate is from the French region of Brittany. Until the 1530s, Brittany was semi-autonomous inside France, and Breton troops used to ridicule foreign soldiers for their foreign customs. Breton soldiers ate dark bread, while others ate whiter loaves. Bretons ridiculed them with the name baragouin, or "white bread." It quickly spread to England and on to Australia, where the word barracking is another name for "shouted criticism." Barracks is also shouted criticism? Sounds about right. (U.S. Navy/Scott Sturkol) 2. Boot Camp "Boot camp" has always been a uniquely American term. It started its life in the 1890s for Navy and Marine Corps basic training facilities. This is also where the term "boot" to describe a new recruit originated, as new recruits wore new leather leggings during camp. "Boot camp" is simply a training camp for new "boots." 3. Camouflage From the Italian verb camuffare, the word for concealing something by blending it into its surrounding, camouflage comes from slang used by French thieves. A camouflet, or "puff of smoke," was used by pickpockets who distracted marks with female accomplices. The women, called camouflette, would blow smoke in the mark's face, which was a sexual advance in the late 1800s. By the 1910s, British military strategists began using the term "camouflage" to describe any means used to hide men and vehicles from enemy aircraft. 4. Canteen In the mid-1800s, Italian troops were using the word cantina ("cellar") to describe their dispensaries, which doled out basic needs, booze and cigarettes. Pretty soon, troops began socializing at the cantinas, which expanded to a more communal meeting area where they would drink their purchases. It wasn't long before the name was attached to the bottles they used to carry water, because the troops were filling the bottles with products purchased from the cantina. Filling canteens with something other than water is a proud military tradition. (U.S. Air Force/Senior Airman Nesha Stanton) 5. Carbine Someone has to remove the dead from the battlefields. On the Italian peninsula, the princes in power often hired people to do it. They were called scarabinni, after the Scarab Dung Beetle who performed a similar job in nature. The rifles they used were modified so they could fire their weapons in combat on horseback more effectively. These were known as carabiniere. In English, the word became "carbine" and is still used to describe any long rifle that has been made more compact. 6. Chevrons The shape of a chevron comes from the shapes of French rooftops, called "chevre," because they were in the shape of two goats ready to fight it out. Almost as if they were cloud formations, two different kinds of people saw two different things. When the British military adopted it for non-commissioned officer ranks, they saw a knight's lance broken in a duel. 7. Grenade Hand-thrown incendiaries date back for centuries, first being used by the Byzantines and carrying a payload of the mysterious Greek fire. Grenades as we call them first appeared in Europe in 1467,with payloads of black powder and cast iron stuffed into a projectile the size of a pomegranate. It turns out that these were fairly apt names for the weapon, as it was very similar to the size, shape and "seeds" inside the explosive devices. By 1590, the French word for "pomegranate," grenade, became the word for it. 8. Jeep The word "jeep" existed before World War II and was used to describe fresh recruits or new equipment during World War I. Anything that was unproven, goofy or foolish was often described as "jeepy." In 1936, E.C. Segar published his comic strip "Popeye," which featured the now-famous sailor man with an animal pet: Eugene the Jeep. The ultimate storytelling tool, Eugene the Jeep could do almost anything and solve almost any problem. The ability to go anywhere and do anything meant that U.S. troops were using "jeep" to describe almost any all-terrain vehicle. It stuck with the Willys MB Quarter-Ton Vehicle, what we know as a WWII Jeep today. The only jeepy thing about this is the actual Jeep. (National Archives) 9. Point Blank We use this term to describe a range of fire that is very close to its target. It's actually derived from Middle Ages France when archers used a target that featured a white bull's-eye, called point blanc. If the archer was close enough, all he had to do was point the arrow at the white and let fly. 10. Target Archers in England, centuries after the Middle Ages, called their shooting practice bull's-eye a "butt" (because the British have a different word for everything). Meanwhile, a targe was a round, wooden shield used by Scottish highlanders. When firearms were adopted by armies of the times, the wooden shields were abandoned and stacked in armories. With a new weapon to perfect and plenty of small, wooden objects to shoot at now taking up space, troops began using the shields as "targets. " -- Blake Stilwell can be reached at blake.stilwell@military.com. He can also be found on Twitter @blakestilwell or on Facebook. Want to Learn More About Military Life? Whether you're thinking of joining the military, looking for post-military careers or keeping up with military life and benefits, Military.com has you covered. Subscribe to Military.com to have military news, updates and resources delivered directly to your inbox. It's said that ghosts are the souls of those who died suddenly or tragically and are tied to the location of their demise for all eternity, unable to accept their death. If that's true, the battlefield of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, should be one of the most haunted places in America. Few things were more sudden or tragic than taking a 24-pounder howitzer to the face while slowly walking toward a line of people who were supposed to kill you with rifles or bayonets. The fighting at Gettysburg was so intense that Americans are still finding remains of the dead: The latest was found in 1996. The Confederacy lost 39% of its manpower due to the sheer volume of soldiers wounded there and was never again able to threaten the North. In fact, the loss at Gettysburg was so detrimental to the South that it may have cost the Confederates the entire war. That being said, if ghosts do exist, the battlefield at Gettysburg must be crawling with them. And if the video below is to be believed, two of them like to cross the street in the dark in front of moving vehicles. It's OK, they just don't know what a car looks like. Besides, what's it gonna do? Kill them? Tourist Greg Yuelling and his family were visiting Gettysburg and decided they would take a drive one night. Yuelling recorded the video on his phone as he and his uncle drove through the historic site. "We just went there as tourists, to learn more about the history of the Civil War and see the old battleground, where the Gettysburg Address was given and all that stuff," he told the Irish Sun. "We were driving along one night, and we started hearing noises. I heard things to the left, and my uncle heard things to the right. And there was a fog, but the fog was weird; it was only in one patch, not dispersed. Then, we saw these shapes moving in the darkness; they were the size of humans. One of them ran right through the cannon." The Irish Sun notes that between 46,000 and 51,000 people died in the three-day battle. Actual historians say that an estimated 7,000 men died during the fighting. The "ghosts" Yuelling captured on camera appear to jump out of nowhere, go right through an artillery piece and then run out into the road as the car approaches. While it may seem spooky at first glance, especially on such a foggy night, the windshield of the vehicle driven by the Yuellings doesn't provide the clearest view of the road. One of the "ghosts" could be just a drop from precipitation outside the vehicle. But since the visibility isn't the best, it's easy to see how the 46-year-old Yuelling could think he saw a ghost. If there's anywhere a person could get swept away by the gravity of a place, it would be the battlefield that turned the tide of the Civil War at the cost of thousands of lives -- and inspired President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. -- Blake Stilwell can be reached at blake.stilwell@military.com. He can also be found on Twitter @blakestilwell or on Facebook. Want to Learn More About Military Life? Whether you're thinking of joining the military, looking for post-military careers or keeping up with military life and benefits, Military.com has you covered. 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Controls - 3D Stereoscopic images If a stereoscopic 3D image is opened in the viewer, the 3D button appears in the bottom right corner giving access to "3D settings" menu. The 3D images can be viewed in several ways: - without any special equipment using cross-eyed or parallel-eyed method - with stereoscope - with anaglyph glasses. - on a suitable 3D TV or monitor (passive 3D system) For details about 3D refer to: Mindat manuals: Mindat Media Viewer: 3D To enable/disable 3D stereo display of a compatible stereo pair image press the 3 key. If the left/right images are reversed on your display (this often happens in full-screen mode) press the 4 key to reverse them. Controls - photo comparison mode If a photo with activated comparison mode is opened in the viewer, the button appears in the bottom right corner giving access to "Comparison mode settings" menu. Several layouts are supported: slider and side by-side comparison with up to 6 photos shown synchronously on the screen. On each of the compared photos a view selector is placed, e.g.: Longwave UV . It shows the name of currently selected view and allows to select a view for each placeholder. Summary of all keyboard shortcuts The Guardians have announced that they claimed outfielder Oscar Mercado off waivers from the Phillies, with right-hander Yohan Ramirez being designated for assignment in a corresponding move. Its a quick return to Cleveland for Mercado, as the Guardians just designated him for assignment on June 21. He was claimed by the Phillies on June 27 before being designated for assignment again on July 1 and now being claimed and becoming a Guardian yet again. Cleveland fans are likely familiar with the trajectory by now, with Mercado giving a tantalizing debut in 2019 but disappointing results since then. In that 2019 campaign, Mercado hit 15 homers and stole 15 bags, putting up a batting line of .269/.318/.443. Combined with his defensive contributions, he was worth 2.2 wins above replacement that year, according to FanGraphs. Given that he was just 24 years old at the time, it seemed reasonable to expect that might have just been the tip of the iceberg, with even better results to come as he matured. Unfortunately, the opposite has happened, with Mercado putting up a line of .198/.254/.330 in the 2 1/2 seasons since then, a line that amounts to a wRC+ of 60. After those tepid results, Cleveland seemingly gave up on him a couple weeks ago but has had a quick change of heart. It seemed possible that the Phillies would give him a real shot, given their troubles in the outfield. Though perhaps they were only interested in trying to pass him through waivers to be stashed as extra depth. Whatever their intentions, his stay in Philly has concluded after just a single plate appearance. As for Ramirez, 27, he was an Astros prospect until Seattle nabbed him in the 2019 Rule 5 draft. He stuck with the Mariners through the shortened 2020 season, throwing 20 2/3 innings with a 2.61 ERA despite walking 21.3% of the batters he faced. In 2021, he logged another 27 2/3 innings at the big league level with a 3.90 ERA, 30.7% strikeout rate, 10.5% walk rate and 34.4% ground ball rate. He couldnt sustain that this year, however, as his ERA shot up to 7.56 in 8 1/3 innings with the Mariners. He was designated for assignment and eventually traded to Cleveland for cash considerations. The Guardians gave him just a single appearance at the big league level but 10 1/3 innings in Triple-A. His 4.35 ERA with Columbus isnt awful, but thats come despite an alarming 22.7% walk rate. The 27-year-old still has options and intriguing strikeout numbers. He could garner interest from other clubs, especially if any of them think they can help him with his control issues. The Guardians will have a week to trade him or pass him through waivers. The Rays announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Cristofer Ogando and optioned fellow right-hander Ralph Garza Jr. in a corresponding move. The club already had a vacancy on their 40-man roster, though Brooks Raley and Ryan Thompson are currently on the restricted list due to their unvaccinated status preventing them from traveling to Toronto for this weekends series. Javy Guerra was selected to take one of the vacated spots and Ogando will now take the other. Once the team is in Boston for tomorrows game, they will have to remove two players from the roster. Ogando, 28, has taken a long road to the big leagues. He made his debut in affiliated ball back in 2013 as part of the Marlins organization. Just 19 years old at the time, he threw 6 1/3 innings in Rookie ball but then didnt appear in the affiliated ranks over the next few seasons. He was signed by the Diamondbacks in 2018 and pitched well enough that the Rays selected him in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft in December of that year. Hes been in the Rays organization ever since, climbing his way from A-ball to Triple-A. This year, hes thrown 32 2/3 innings for the Durham Bulls with a 3.03 ERA, 25.2% strikeout rate, 8.7% walk rate and 34.2% ground ball rate. He will make his MLB debut as soon as he gets into a game. Algeria marks 60 years of independence from France on Tuesday, but rival narratives over atrocities committed during more than a century of colonial rule still trigger bitter diplomatic tensions. The North African country won its independence following a gruelling eight-year war which ended with the signing in March 1962 of the Evian Accords. On July 5 of the same year, days after 99.72 percent voted for independence in a referendum, Algeria finally broke free from colonial rule -- but memories of the 132-year occupation continue to mar its ties with France. The country's authorities are planning to mark the anniversary with pomp and ceremony, capped by a vast military parade in Algiers, the first of its kind in 33 years. A show is also planned at the capital's opera house that "retraces the long history of Algeria", said the minister for independence fighters, Laid Rebiga. The government has even commissioned a logo -- a circle of 60 stars containing military figures and equipment -- to mark "a glorious history and a new era". Algeria's war of independence left hundreds of thousands of dead and, despite a string of gestures by French President Emmanuel Macron, a crisis late last year underlined how spiky the issue remains six decades on. Macron reportedly questioned whether Algeria had existed as a nation before the French invasion and accused its "political-military system" of rewriting history and fomenting "hatred towards France". Algeria withdrew its ambassador in response. "Relations between the power system in Algeria and 'official France' have been punctuated by crises and pseudo-reconciliations since independence," said Athmane Mazouz, head of Algeria's secularist opposition party RCD. "At this point, all bets are off on whether they can establish better ties." 'Take heat out of debate' France has ruled out any form of apology for the colonial period. But Macron has also made a number of gestures aimed at mending ties with the former colony. In this file picture taken on May 15, 1962, a French soldier looks at a store destroyed by a Molotov cocktail in Algiers. By - (AFP/File) Visiting Algiers during his first presidential campaign in February 2017, he described colonisation as a "crime against humanity". He has since acknowledged the French army was behind the death of Algerian nationalist lawyer Ali Boumendjel and anti-colonialist French mathematician Maurice Audin. France has returned the skulls of 19th century Algerian resistance fighters and opened state archives on the Algerian war. And the two sides appear to have moved on from the latest crisis. Macron and his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune confirmed in a June 18 phone call their desire to "deepen" relations. Tebboune even congratulated Macron on his "brilliant" re-election and invited him to visit Algeria. Historian Amar Mohand-Amer said it was time for "a quick return to a normal situation". "Sixty years after independence, isn't it time we took the heat out of this debate?" 'Unstable geopolitics' Mohand-Amer pointed out that the anniversary celebrations come at a time of raised tensions in the wider region around Algeria. In this file photo taken on July 2, 1962, young Algerians celebrate in Algiers a day after the self-determination referendum. By - (AFP/File) The country cut ties with regional arch-rival Morocco last August, accusing it of "hostile acts". In early June, Algiers suspended a two-decade-old cooperation pact with Madrid after Spain backed Morocco's stance in the long-running dispute over Western Sahara. To the east, in war-scarred Libya, the emergence of two rival governments has raised fears of a return to armed conflict after a two-year truce. And to the south, Mali is in crisis after army officers, disgruntled at the government's failure to roll back a jihadist uprising, ousted president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita in 2020. "The very unstable regional geopolitics demand strong positions in the mid to long term and the consolidation of political and economic relations" between Algeria and France, Mohand-Amer said. Algeria marks 60 years of independence from France as rival narratives over atrocities committed during colonial rule still trigger bitter diplomatic tensions. By Jean-Claude COMBRISSON (AFP/File) But the historian fears that Macron's move towards reconciliation could face a major test due to gains by extreme right leader Marine Le Pen's party the Rassemblement National in June elections. Le Pen said in March that colonialism had "contributed to Algeria's development" and accused Macron of "spending his life apologising without asking anything in return from an Algerian government that continues to insult France". Mohand-Amer warned that "the French far right will transform this mandate into a big battlefield of memories, where revisionism and the falsification of history will be omnipresent." Member of Parliament (MP) for the Nsawam Adoagyiri constituency Frank Annoh Dompreh has said the current economic crisis will soon be over following government's decision to seek an IMF bailout. In a Twitter post on Friday, July 1, 2022, spotted by Modernghana News, the legislator asserted that the current economic crisis warranted government decision to seek an IMF support. If it means Ghana must go to the IMF at this 'strange' times, so be it but, I am certainly confident we shall scale this wall too...I am a stubborn optimist! his tweet reads. In a similar tweet same day, Mr. Annoh Dompreh in a reply to the former President John Dramani Mahamas claim that Ghana left with no option than return to IMF on Thursday, June 30 keynote speech, the Nsawam Adoagyiri lawmaker stated that the former President and his administration sought the help of the IMF even when there was no COVID-19 pandemic or Russia-Ukraine war. According to him, the former President should have applauded the NPP government for the decision towards salvaging the economy but propaganda won't permit him. Fair observation but, sir under your watch, you even run to the IMF for policy credibility, even without this novel global economic challenge & Covid-19. "Clearly you cannot commend the NPP for political reasons but, within your heart, you know the TRUTH, he tweeted. Chairman of the Finance Committee of Parliament, Kweku Kwarteng has rubbished suggestions from a section of the public that Ghanas decision to go to the IMF for a bailout would lead to the scrapping of the unpopular E-levy tax. Despite previous contrary statements by the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, Mr. Kwarteng said the E-levy was never proposed as an alternative to the IMF. Speaking on Eyewitness News on Friday, he said the IMF will most likely call for the introduction of new taxes as it pushes for a reduction in government expenditure. Ive heard people make comments as though the pain of E-levy can be escaped if you go for an IMF programme. The IMF is going to come and start discussions. When they come to your country, they do not come and tell you to relax taxes. In fact, they will probably come and say E-levy is not enough. When IMF comes to your economy, the records show, they will say dont employ people, cut your expenditures and increase your revenue so you may have to take on more revenue measures, he said. The Ministry of Information on Friday, July 1, 2022, announced that President Akufo-Addo had given approval for Ghana to begin engagements with the IMF for a bailout. The ministry said the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta will be leading the negotiations with the IMF in the coming days. The news has been received with mixed feelings, as it comes as a major U-turn by the government after it vowed not to ever go under an IMF programme. Ken Ofori-Atta said the government was settling for a homegrown policy instead of an IMF programme. The homegrown programme included the introduction of the E-levy which has been reported to have fallen short of its projected revenue target so far. With the announcement that Ghana will soon begin talks for a program with the IMF, there are suggestions that the government may withdraw the E-levy, but Kwarteng suggests otherwise. The idea of either E-levy or IMF will only be projected by people who dont understand how the economy works and how the IMF operates. When they come, we will see the conditionality they put on the table and see whether it is E-levy or IMF, he stated. citinewsroom The government is unable to offer fresh ideas, or present an alternative course of action, as it struggles to survive politically, rather than reform economically. by Ram Manikkalingam The social and political uprising is currently stuck. President Gotabayas appointment of Ranil Wickremasinghe as Prime Minister (PM) has enabled the President to continue to stay in office, while shifting responsibility and pressure onto the new PM. Meanwhile, the economic crisis is intensifying, as Sri Lanka has run out of money to pay for food, fuel and medicines. This economic crisis can either lead to a petering out of the protests as day-to-day needs take precedence in peoples lives over protests or it can lead to the rallying of protesters and more pressure on the government. International financial institutions (IFI) and bilateral lenders have expressed willingness to help the government, but they are holding back. They believe the government is neither stable nor capable. Indeed, depending on how you count it, this is the third or fourth government we have had in the past couple of months. With only one seat in parliament his own it is hard to see how the current Prime Minister can be anything other than a stopgap measure by the party of the President to cling to power. Even if this government lasts, it would be too weak to carry out the stringent economic reforms that the IFIs are likely to impose on Sri Lanka. The government will also be unable to offer fresh ideas, or present an alternative course of action, as it struggles to survive politically, rather than reform economically. Caught between the economic pressure of IFIs and lenders, and the political pressure of the protesters, the government is likely to cave into the former rather than the latter. This is because the former will only demand economic changes, while the latter will also demand political ones. The President and his party have demonstrated that they would rather wield political power over a weak economy, than live without political power in a strong economy. This tactic will, however, only aggravate the crisis, as a government considered corrupt and illegitimate by the people begins to impose austerity measures that lead to hunger, a loss of livelihoods and an increase in inequality. This not only risks an economic catastrophe, but also a political one, if social unrest erupts and the government resorts to coercion to control it. There are currently piecemeal efforts at addressing these challenges scattered amongst the protesters, parliament and the president. Protests continue on a daily basis in Colombo and across the island. These protests call for Gotabaya Rajapaksa to go home. Most are independently organised involving students, professional associations and neighbourhoods. Some are linked to political parties like the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB), the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). Meanwhile, the parties in parliament are pursuing a watered down version of constitutional reform, with minimal changes to the current presidents powers. While the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) are pressing for more substantive changes, the Presidents party (the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna SLPP) is using its overwhelming majority in parliament to scupper these efforts. These political manoeuvres prove the very point of the protests, that the current institutional set-up is stacked against any kind of serious reform effort. Finally, the President is engaged in negotiations on debt restructuring with the IMF and seeking a moratorium on its payments to other lenders. He has hired legal and financial advisers to help the government deal with it. The challenge is to link these three disparate processes together, and use the social protests, the economic pressure and the political momentum to enact serious reform. As long as Sri Lanka has a weak and unstable government, no foreign government is going to assist Sri Lanka. And Sri Lanka will continue to have a weak and unstable government as long as there is no political reform. The challenges to political and economic reform There are three challenges to uniting the different efforts for change. First, the protesters are publicly refusing to talk to parliamentarians on the grounds that all politicians are corrupt. While this is a good rallying cry to generate opposition, the reality is more complex. Moreover, such a position makes it hard to create institutional change, since it is these institutions, whether we like it or not, that enjoy international legitimacy and official recognition. Privately some of the protesters have evinced interest in engaging with political leaders. It is important to find a way for the protesters to enter a dialogue with key parliamentarians. This is critical to bring pressure to bear over parliament to enact serious constitutional reform. Second, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa must resign from office. It is the only way he can salvage any legacy he may have. If he announces a deadline of six months, this will shift the political reform conversation in a positive direction. It will also enable him to fulfil his ambition of not leaving as a failure, but as someone who has put Sri Lanka on the path to reform. Most importantly, from his point of view, it will enable him to play a role in future reform, rather than simply act as an obstacle to such efforts. Finally, the IFIs the IMF in particular are caught in a bind. They are restricted to placing economic conditions on a country. But economic reform cannot be effective in Sri Lanka, without political reform. They can clearly see that Sri Lankas travails are directly linked to the political hold one family has had over the country. They will have to address this issue if economic reforms are to stick. To do this they must press for anti-corruption measures, taxation of illicit income, and a reduction of wasteful public expenditure. The challenge in the coming period will be to combine political pressure from the protesters, institutional pressure from parliament and financial pressure from IFIs to enact political reform. Next steps Form a Shadow Government that includes political parties, social movements and professional associations. This shadow government should have leaders from all sectors. It can build on the Westminister tradition of a shadow cabinet, but rather than limit this cabinet to parliament, those seeking substantive reform can broaden the base of the shadow government by including key social and professional leaders. The shadow government can put out practical programmes in key areas, such as finance, education, defence, agriculture and health, among others. These programmes should provide constructive criticisms of the governments plans and where there are no such plans, provide draft plans. The SJB, TNA and the JVP can initiate the formation of such a Shadow Government. Reach a Social and Political Agreement that includes social protesters, political leaders and members of parliament to pressure the government into real political and economic reform. This would include agreeing to work on economic restructuring, ethnic co-existence and political reform. While the social protests and the parliamentary opposition have expressed their views in multiple fora, they have yet to come together to do so in a coherent and cogent position that includes steps that the country as a whole must take. Leaders in the protest movement and key members of parliament who have the trust of the people, can work together to come with such a social and political agreement. Form joint committees of citizens groups, political groups and MPs to engage the international community, friendly governments, international lenders and the IMF in a discussion on debt restructuring and economic reform. These committees can also come together to form a Standing Committee on the Economic crisis (SCEC) to act as a crisis centre to present plans and ideas in the short, medium and longer to address the economic crisis and ensure humanitarian assistance to Sri Lankans struggling to survive. The above steps can take place in parallel and converge at a later point. They do not have to be sequential, but can re-enforce each other as they are taken. Membership in these different processes can overlap, but need not be identical. This would permit a broad coalition of activists, political leaders and professionals to come together to provide a more just and decent future for all Sri Lankans. (The author is a Visiting Professor of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam) Professor Ransford Gyampo, a senior political science lecturer at the University of Ghana (UG), has praised NPP's Nana Akomea for his sincerity in the country's economic situation. Our situation is actually a monumental embarrassment, he said. The former director of communications for the ruling New Patriotic Party, Nana Akomea, on the Accra-based Metro TVs Good Morning Ghana Show, intimated that he always becomes embarrassed whenever audio-visuals of himself or any of the key members of his party making promises about the economy are played to him. Nana Akomea, who is also the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the State Transport Corporation (STC), then asserted that questions about the mismanagement of the economy should be directed to those in charge of the various sectors of the economy. "When I come and sit here and you play pronouncements that were previously made (by the president and the vice president), I'm embarrassed because these are not propaganda, they are things that we said we will do. You have to ask those who are in charge (why the government has failed to attain its promises). Because the things we said we will do, there are sectors and there are people in charge... There have been people in charge of agriculture in the previous government that we said were not doing well anytime when food prices went up. There were people in charge of finance and anytime the cedi fell and we said they were not doing well. There are people still in charge of these sectors," Nana Akomea said. In response to a video of this statement on Prof. Gyampo's Facebook wall on Saturday, July 2, 2022, sighted by this portal, he stated that the sincerity of the NPP stalwart's statement has pushed him to speak even though he had decided to go for a break. According to Prof. Gyampo, the critical study of the economies of our neighbouring countries shows COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war cannot be blamed for our economic predicament. I have refrained from talking politics till all funeral rites for my dad are over. But I watched this and I am unable to keep quiet. "It confirms my own suspicion that there is something peculiarly wrong with Ghana. Our situation is actually a monumental embarrassment. But Nana Akomea, thanks for the political honesty. Such admissions are helpful in awakening some seriousness in addressing our economic woes. A scientific study of what is happening in neighbouring African countries including some very poor ones shows that we can no longer use the refrain of covid and the Russian invasion of Ukraine as excuses, his post reads. It is on record that the so far most farsighted Ghanaian politician-cum-President, the late ex-President Dr Kwame Nkrumah, had said, the black man is capable of managing their own affairs. As visionary as he was, seeing that with him everything was possible, he thought all black people are the same. He was honest, pragmatic and dreamed big dreams for not only Ghana but the entire continental Africa and the whole of the black race. He believed what the white man has done, a black man can also do, if not much better. However, the subsequent developments following his overthrown and demise, as regards the management of Ghana and her economy, markedly go to prove that the black man is actually incapable and unable to manage their own affairs. The development of Ghana, like many other African countries, goes in a repeated cycle of failure and mismanagement caused by the leaders absurd infatuation with corrupt practices, malfeasances and short-sightedness. The undeniable evidence out there goes to confirm how narrow-minded, naive and vulnerable the black man is, especially, the African and particularly, the Ghanaian. Most Ghanaians by their partisanship and the political polarisation of the country, have to relish in the evil mentality of pull him down (PhD); gloating over the downfall of the other. How on earth should a rational being with enough grey matter in their skull, wish the failure of a government of their country just to pave way for them, or the political party they support, to win power to govern the nation? Will anyone behaving in that manner not be a big fool? However, that is the mentality of most, if not all, Ghanaians. By so doing, the country and her citizens will never develop to any appreciable level to earn them the respect and admiration by our contemporary white people. We shall forever remain denigrated as a country and a people. The Ghanaian leadership with most Ghanaians is overwhelmingly corrupt, selfish, insatiably greedy and adore power for all myopic and vainglorious reasons. By this deplorable attitude of the Ghanaian, a black person of course, we can hardly make any inroads into actual development as human beings let alone, building our nation and developing the economy for the collective interests of the citizenry. When the Ghanaian, in which case the black man, gets power, they start to play the tribal card to cause division and animosity among the various tribes in the country, instead of uniting the people for the prosperous development of the country for the benefit of all. A clear case to prove how senseless and easily misled the Ghanaians are, is how the minority caucus in parliament and their party and supporters have intentionally resolutely determined, and gone on a tangent, to cause public disaffection for the government. This is meant to bring down the ruling government with the motive of getting the electorate to vote her out to bring their NDC party to power. By the policies and programmes so far firmly implemented by His Excellency the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the second most visionary leader of Ghana, any person with an iota of sense and brain in their head will agree with me that the president means good for the nation. He has been building a strong foundation for the Ghana economy to take off for the future benefit of all. Nevertheless, some people yearning for power for all silly reasons, have gone their way to sabotage the president and his programmes. It is only a Ghanaian exhibiting that level of evil-mindedness that often culminates in the downfall of their country and their very wellbeing as human beings that will embark on that path of action. If they were not stupid and without the capability to govern themselves as human beings endowed with wisdom, will they do that in the first place? Anyway, I will not go any further but to ask my fellow Ghanaians to read how correctly the black man was described by the late White President of South Africa, the champion of apartheid, Pieter Botha. All that he said about the black man in 1988, has since remained the absolute truth. It hurts to tell the truth but, in the end, it brings comfort. When the truth said does not go your way, you may think the person saying it is a racist, especially, when said by a white person to a black person, however, the person is even helping you. For it is said, if you are at the bottom rung of a stepladder but think you are on top of the ladder, you cannot climb any further but rather climb down. Nevertheless, if you are at the bottom rung of the stepladder and do acknowledge where you are, you will aspire to climb up. Ghana is failing because it is full of black people who behave stupidly devilishly as perfectly described by Pieter Botha. Why have such negativities, thus, selfishness, love of corruption, greediness, tribalism, partisanship, etc., as damaging as they are, become intrinsic to the black man? Until we change our bad attitudes to behave as rational human beings, the Ghanaian, in which case it is the black man, is doomed forever. Rockson Adofo Sunday, 3 July 2022 Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State told Nigerians only God could stop him from being the running mate to the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. Well, God has answered his prayers. There is a saying that says, "God Doesn't Like Ugly." Well, it is very true here because the same God, according to his Rivers State counterpart, Nyesom Wike, would tell Okowa, God does not like anyone who acts in an ugly manner and treats others in an ugly manner. The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential candidate, Atiku, apparently did not want someone like him, who once directly or indirectly challenged his master in another presidency, so the explosive, tenacious, and independent spirit of Wike internally concerned him. The disciplined, receptive, responsive, and manageable spirit of Okowa, a praying, shrewd physician, appealed to him. But Nigeria's type of politics fits Wikes extraordinary personality and might shape Atiku's possible presidency. Politically, Wike is a nasty attacker, a confidently fearless man, attractively stubborn, an untiring powerhouse, and a straight shooter, and commanding voice. Nigerians, especially those with membership in the PDP, are aware that in the PDP primaries, Atiku won by getting 371 votes, pulling ahead of Wike, who got 237 votes to clinch the party ticket. In fact, Wikes votes would have gotten much higher than the scores he got if not for the sudden and tactical decision of Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State, who stepped down just before the voting of the delegates at the presidential primary convention and supported Atiku, a fellow Muslim Northern kinsman. Wike, in his usual explosive, egotistic, gutsy, daring, brutal and resisting way, saw Tambuwal's actions as a sign of betrayal. While the zoning of the PDP presidency was not fully set, the spirit of zoning on principle was facing the south for the sake of equity, and if most PDP northern aspirants had said, okay, such spirit would have reinforced the agreement that was made amongst Southern governors, but one of their own, Okowa, especially, reportedly betrayed it for personal future interest. When Okowa, by his actions, apparently betrayed the trust rested on him by his colleagues, the southern governors, the entire people of southern Nigeria threw their support for Wike during the primaries. Okowa openly turned against an agreement that was made amongst Southern governors that he hosted in Asaba in May 2021, dubbed the Asaba accord, with the declaration that power must go to Southerners. Wike pointed this out over and over, especially when Okowa landed in the seat as a running mate. As part of his ambition to keep the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as a political force in Nigeria, Wike thought he would be the running mate of Atiku. He is known as a collective standard for PDP. He had been recommended by the selection committee, and they nominated him as the running mate. To Wike, Okowa who comes from a lower voting bloc in the nation is, indeed, a traitor. Wike, saw Atiku as an ingrate, a man of no gratitude. A thankless person. Wike, known for his self-centeredness, self-seeking ways, extreme self-esteem, imposing, and dogged mindset devoted to himself acts of positive revenge. He received support from the PDP south for the most part, middle belt leadership, and even some liberal Muslim bodies. Not for Atiku, not for Okowa. For this singular reason, politically, Wike stands out as an embodiment of the southern people, and for this reason alone, his rejection by Atiku is a rejection of them. Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue, is with him. Ayodele Fayose, former Governor of Ekiti State, is with him. Elder Godsday Orubebe, former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, supports him. A former Governor of Plateau State, Jonah Jang supports him. Chief Edwin Clark, who is also the leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), is with him. Chief Ayo Adebanjo, leader of Afenifere; Dr. Dru Bitrus, President-General, Middle Belt Forum, and Ambassador (Prof.) George Obiozor, President-General, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, are all with him. Okowa received a more damaging psychological rejection when PDP Delta State ex-governors James Ibori and Emmanuel Uduaghan were absent from a reception for being nominated as Atiku's vice presidential candidate for 2023 general education. Truth be told, Wike should not automatically be Atikus running mate, just because he wants to as that is a decision Atiku is privileged to take, but in Nigeria, fundamentally known to sometimes act inversely from known democracies; Atiku is now facing the dark truth about the man called Wike. The PDP will now confront the kind of existential crisis that has destroyed political parties for a long time. I'm not sure if Atiku has suffered a full self-inflicted wound. PDP members, under the now weak and uncertain leadership of Iyorcha Ayu, as its National Chairman, are not only divided, but baffled by what the future holds for the 2023 elections. Just two of the 13 governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were present at the inauguration of the partys campaign council for the Osun State governorship election. Wikes might is always a telling factor, and it is important to know that Wike apparently enabled the membership of Samuel Ortom, Aminu Tambuwal, and Godwin Obaseki into the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and some of the members turned out to be governors under the party. As such, he is one to be feared. As I write this article, tens of members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have defected to the All Progressives Party (APC) in Ikorodu, Lagos State. Ahead of the 2023 general elections, Atiku, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who reportedly stays between Dubai and Nigeria, will likely face a deeply opposing vision not just about Wike but about tense Nigeria. Atiku, once known for navigating different political parties in search of the presidency, is now a man whose hold on the PDP is getting weaker. And how his badly damaged relationship with Wike led him to become Nigerias president remains an open question. One reality is clear, Wike's divine-like control of PDP grows stronger daily, so I say to him and our physician-prayer politician, Okowa, good luck. I do not belong to either PDP or APC, nor do I know any of these men or side with any of them. I am only here to give a psychological picture of the trap that Atiku and Okowa find themselves in, currently designed by the political calculations of Wike. As Atiku and Wike sets off PDP civil war, risking party's possible loss; Bola Tinubu of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in particular is trying to shake off the political confusion over the vice-presidential candidacy; a sudden and historic victory Peter Obi of labour party, sought-after by Nigerians, could spring up like mushrooms. That could cause Nigerians not to ever look back to the Buhari administration where ethnic, religious, and regional underpinnings have greatly influenced national leadership. Hoping for a new thinking Nigeria. John Egbeazien Oshodi, who was born in Uromi, Edo State in Nigeria to a father who served in the Nigeria police for 37 years, is an American based Police/Prison Scientist and Forensic/Clinical/Legal Psychologist. A government consultant on matters of forensic-clinical adult and child psychological services in the USA; Chief Educator and Clinician at the Transatlantic Enrichment and Refresher Institute, an Online Lifelong Center for Personal, Professional, and Career Development. He is a former Interim Associate Dean/Assistant Professor at Broward College, Florida. The Founder of the Dr. John Egbeazien Oshodi Foundation, Center for Psychological Health and Behavioral Change in African Settings In 2011, he introduced State-of-the-Art Forensic Psychology into Nigeria through N.U.C and Nasarawa State University, where he served in the Department of Psychology as an Associate Professor. He is currently a Virtual Behavioral Leadership Professor at ISCOM University, Republic of Benin. Founder of the proposed Transatlantic Egbeazien Open University (TEU) of Values and Ethics, a digital project of Truth, Ethics, and Openness. Over forty academic publications and creations, at least 200 public opinion pieces on African issues, and various books have been written by him. He specializes in psycho-prescriptive writings regarding African institutional and governance issues. Prof. Oshodi wrote in via [email protected] 03.07.2022 LISTEN The National Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi has lashed out at the New Patriotic Party (NPP) over attempts to equalize and justify its decision to go for an IMF bailout. He described as pathetic and ridiculous NPP communicators use of NDCs IMF decision in 2015 to justify the recent Akufo-Addo decision to get the funds support to salvage Ghanas ailing economy. In a Facebook post, the NDC national executive said the conditions under which the John Mahama government went to the IMF were direr than the present factors that are driving the Akufo-Addo government to seek help. If the erstwhile NDC/Mahama administration had revenue inflows of over US$5 billion to manage Dumsor, (a crisis that was largely inherited) and the external shocks we suffered in 2015 like this NPP government had to manage COVID-19; If the erstwhile NDC/Mahama government had three (3) oil fields with an average daily production capacity of 170,000 barrels and an average international market price of $80 per barrel like the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government has had in the last five (5) years; I dare say, that there would not have been any need for Ghana to have joined an IMF program in the year 2015, he stated. He said the Akufo-Addo government is better resourced, enjoying more revenues from the countrys oil exploration activities and borrowed enough from the international market than the NDC government under Mahama hence must be held to higher expectations. According to him, the NPP wasted all the revenue resources on consumption, profligacy and corruption hence must not attempt to rationalize its decision to go to the IMF with the NDCs move seven years ago. They are left with no other choice than to seek an IMF bailout now because they have wasted all the unprecedented revenues that have accrued to them on consumption, profligacy and corruption. Today, posterity has exposed their hypocrisy, deceitfulness, recklessness and emptiness, he saiad. The Ministry of Information on Friday, July 1, 2022, announced that President Akufo-Addo had given approval for Ghana to begin engagements with the IMF for a bailout. The ministry said the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta will be leading the negotiations with the IMF in the coming days. The news has been received with mixed feelings. Sammy Gyamfi said, the least they can do under the circumstances is to bury their arrogance, swallow their pride, accept responsibility for the mess they have created, accept that they have been useless in the manner they have mismanaged the economy and apologize for the excruciating hardships they continue to impose on the Ghanaian people. Read the full statement below: SAMMY GYAMFI WRITES ON HIS FACEBOOK WALL: The attempt by NPP communicators to equalize and rationalize the decision of the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government to go for an IMF bailout is pathetic and ridiculous, to say the least. This is particularly so given the kind of negative commentary that President Akufo-Addo, his Vice, Alhaji Bawumia and other leading figures of the NPP have made about IMF programs in time past. If the erstwhile NDC/Mahama administration had revenue inflows of over US$5 billion to manage Dumsor, (a crises that was largely inherited) and the external shocks we suffered in 2015 like this NPP government had to manage COVID-19; If the erstwhile NDC/Mahama government had three (3) oil fields with an average daily production capacity of 170,000 barrels and an average international market price of $80 per barrel like the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government has had in the last five (5) years; I dare say, that there would not have been any need for Ghana to have joined an IMF program in the year 2015. It is indisputable that the current Akufo-Addo/Bawumia-NPP government is the most resourced government in Ghana's history. They have had access to more oil revenues, tax revenues and borrowed funds than any government in history. In all, they have had access to over GHS500 billion in total revenue, as compared to the about GHS200 billion that accrued to the NDC/Mahama government. They are left with no other choice than to seek an IMF bailout now because they have wasted all the unprecedented revenues that have accrued to them on consumption, profligacy and corruption. Today, posterity has exposed their hypocrisy, deceitfulness, recklessness and emptiness. The least they can do under the circumstances is to bury their arrogance, swallow their pride, accept responsibility for the mess they have created, accept that they have been useless in the manner they have mismanaged the economy and apologize for the excruciating hardships they continue to impose on the Ghanaian people. To continue in this vainglorious attempt to defend their new low will only expand the bottomless pit they have plunged themselves into. Leadership that accepts responsibility and shows sensitivity to the plight of the people is what Ghanaians yearn for in a time like this and not the puffed-up arrogance and intransigence this government continues to display. Sammy Gyamfi Esq. National Communications Officer, NDC citinewsroom The Police in Nigeria have rescued 77 people, including children, from a church where they were confined in the south-western state of Ondo. Some of them are believed to have been there for months. A police spokesperson said many of them had been told to expect the Second Coming of Jesus Christ in April and had abandoned school to witness the event. The raid came after a mother complained her children were missing, and she thought they were in the church. Police say they are investigating suspected mass abduction after the raid on the Whole Bible Believers Church in the Valentino area of Ondo Town. The pastor of the Pentecostal church, David Anifowoshe, and his deputy have been arrested, while the victims have been taken into the care of the authorities. Preliminary investigation revealed that one Pastor Josiah Peter Asumosa, an assistant pastor in the church, was the one who told the members that Rapture will take place in April, but later said it has been changed to September 2022 and told the young members to obey only their parents in the Lord, said police press officer Funmilayo Odunlami. In all, police rescued 26 children, eight teenagers and 43 adults, she added. The Second Coming is a Christian belief in the return of Jesus Christ after his Biblical ascension to Heaven. Rapture is the idea that Christian believers will be taken to Heaven at the Second Coming. Anxiety has been high among Christians in the state since a deadly attack on another church. At least 50 people were killed in a mass shooting and bomb attack at St Francis Catholic Church in the town of Owo on 6 June. Federal authorities suspect the Islamic State West Africa Province of carrying out the massacre. Source: BBC Former Finance Minister, Seth Terkper says Ghana is going to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) a little too late, especially when, from all indications, it was clear that the economy was headed for more difficult times. He said Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Attas adamancy must be blamed for Ghanas unnecessary delay to engage the IMF for a bailout. Speaking in a Citi News interview, Mr. Terkper said, if you read the MPC reports, it kept pointing to the fiscal deterioration using points of policy credibility. The last straw was our downgrade from B category to C. If this was not alarming enough to authorities, then what should be alarming? He argued that the current condition Ghana finds itself in is the worst it has been before seeking an IMF programme. The Ministry of Information on Friday, July 1, 2022, announced that President Akufo-Addo had given approval for Ghana to begin engagements with the IMF for a bailout. The Information Ministry said the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta will be leading the negotiations with the IMF in the coming days. The news has been received with mixed feelings. This will be the 17th time Ghana is going to the IMF for help. The 16th time was under the John Mahama administration in 2015 and ended in 2019. Terkper believes that had the government acted early enough, Ghana would have been at advanced stages in its talks with the fund. In the past, when we went to the fund, we didnt get to this level. What is surprising was the adamancy of the Minister of Finance [which] had to be corrected by the president because looking at the numbers, it wasnt good. The situation was getting dire and government was running out of options, and it was time to consider an IMF policy option as a credible one, he said. Citi Newsroom 03.07.2022 LISTEN The opposition National Democratic Congress(NDC)'s Deputy Constituency Communication Officer hopeful for Sagnerigu, Mr Adam Abdul-Fatawu Wunizoya said the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), refused to listen or take advice from people who had better knowledge of the economy. He noted that the decision of the Akufo-Addo government to seek an IMF bailout is an indication that they have failed. According to him, pride and arrogance by the ministers and appointees of the NPP government has caused all the good ideas suggested by well-meaning Ghanaians were ignored. He indicated that the posture of "I know it all" coupled with pride and arrogance in addition to corruption and poor economic management style by the government has caused serious damage to the economy. "Our problem as a country today is no other thing than the 'I know it all' posture by the ruling government. The NPP think they have it all, so they don't need anyone's advice, if only they have listened to us (NDC), Ghana wouldn't be where we are as a country," he said. The Sagnerigu Deputy Communications Officer hopeful noted that though it was late, the decision to call a "spade a spade" by the finance ministry, was laudable as it would help in addressing the economic crisis of the nation. "I think we are even late, if Nana Addo and Dr Bawumia had listened to our leaders and that of the well-meaning Ghanaians, we would have been to the IMF long ago, but better late than never as they say, so it is laudable," the Northern Governor said. He also called on the government led by the Finance Minister Mr Ken Ofori Atta, to scrap the Electronic Transaction Levy (E-levy) since the levy serve as an alternative to IMF. "We were told as Ghanaians that the reason for which the government was implementing the E-levy was to prevent us as a country from running to the IMF for support, and now that the government is opting for the IMF, it is only prudent that the E-Levy is cancelled," he added. He stressed going to the IMF is also an opportunity for the NDC to win power come 2024 as it meant the ruling party has failed Ghanaians entirely. "If going to the IMF means failure and poor economic management as the NPP described it when they were in opposition, then it means they (NPP) have also failed Ghanaians, even bigger than any government in history, and that is an opportunity for us (NDC) as a party to win the 2024 general elections" he stated. Religion affects people and society in both beneficial and negative ways. Some don't believe in God despite religion's tendency to make followers of God, Allah, or any other deity people may hold dear. Most Atheists, or individuals who don't believe in God, have one of two beliefs: either God doesn't exist or religions were created purposely to manipulate people's minds. No one has the power to persuade me that there is no God. My arguments are straightforward. First, if Christianity and Islam are made up of myths, then the Holy Bible and Koran would not exist as they do today. The fact that there are Christian and Islamic experts to explain the history of the Bible and the Koran to the public is much more essential. My second reason for believing in God is that most people can tell you exactly when they were born, others can't because birth dates weren't kept on record. However, one cruel fact that civilization has kept a secret: where do we go after we pass away? The spirit departs the body and goes where - to God or does it make a home somewherebefore the body returns to the earth? Some religions have various beliefs regarding life after death since many individuals are unsure of what happens after death. Others have proposed unfathomable answers for what happens to us when we pass away, while some even believe that the spirit will settle somewhere in the shape of a human being. But why does religion have such a strong influence on crime if so many people adhere to its doctrines? According to a Federal Prison Bureau poll from 1997, 75% of Americans identify as Christians are prisoners. By contrast, out of 10% of American atheists, only 0.2% identify as prisoners. This straightforward poll estimates, that there are 7.5 times as many Christians as atheists living in the United States; but, among convicts, this difference is already 375 times larger! Therefore, we must question ourselves why more Christians who believe in God are in prison than people who do not? Ghana is a unique nation because it can coexist peacefully with people from many faith movements. Despite negative global trends, an increase in crimes motivated by religion, an escalation of terrorist and extremist activity, and an unchecked takeover of corruption in our nation, the primary responsibility of the state are to uphold this peaceful existence and attempt to find solutions to serious issues affecting the vulnerable. Religiously motivated crimes are among the most complicated and obscure, which poses a severe issue with how they should be classified. What drives a certain person to falsify religious books, quote a theological authority, twist the doctrines of other religions, conduct particularly heinous crimes, and destroy anyone who practices a different faith? 1. Religious people frequently believe that God is guiding their conduct. These sentiments, which may arise during prayer or may simply be a natural emotional state, enable these people to conclude that their feelings and goals are approved by God. As a result, when they feel the impulse to harm others, they are more likely to persuade themselves that their actions are okay since their motivations come from God. 2. A religious person can claim that "the ways of the Lord are unfathomable" if there is something morally wrong with society or a particular person. This can result in someone losing the ability to tell the difference between good and evil and thinking that everything around them is a part of a grand plan. 3. Many religions assert that to be moral, a person must be inspired by ideas of paradise and hell. Therefore, without external motivation, humans lack a moral incentive to act morally. Religions frequently preach that having faith in God and praying is moral. The offender may therefore believe that by fervently praying, he may atone for his transgressions. 4. There is so much confusion in religion that it is frequently attempted to construct ethically dubious actions. For instance, homosexuality, masturbation, and blasphemy are all condemned by the holy writings, yet the same man of God who leads his congregation in prayer and talks from the pulpit also performs gay marriages. As a result, homosexuality is not considered sinful by some. Who cares to commit a crime, if the pastor is doing it improperly? 5. There is nothing stopping someone from doing anything they want to do if they already believe they will go to hell and that there is no longer a way for them to atone for their misdeeds. Therefore, the idea of religion compels many people to engage in unlawful activity. 6. People are taught to follow the church, the preacher, the holy books, etc. through religion. People may have an internal tendency to defer to others' judgment of what is right and wrong as a result of this, they become more vulnerable to peer pressure and misinformation as a result. 7. Religion fosters superiority, which fuels bigotry all across the world. Why is there so much bloodshed in the world against people of different races who are perceived as inferior if God made man in his image? "Don't look at me because I'm dark or because the sun has made me darker. The sons of my mother were furious with me and forced me to tend to the vines; I was forced to neglect my vineyard. 1:6 in Song of Solomon 8. Teaching individuals to entirely depend on God and submit to him can make them feel powerless to make their own decisions, which lowers their capacity to control criminal inclinations. One of the reasons crime has increased in many parts of the world is that people, especially in Africa, rely more on religious miracles than they do on working harder for their daily bread. 9. Since God can pardon, many people believe that if they commit a crime, God will also pardon them. For instance, a lot of serial killers have a faith in God because they are certain that God will pardon them even when they are about to be executed, they kill and keep killing without feeling any regret. 10. A person may talk to someone or even seek professional assistance while they are going through feelings that could motivate them to commit a crime. A religious individual is more likely to discuss religion with those who lack it. That is a benefit of religion, but some people can't help but commit crimes. 11. It is clear that crime and violence are of interest to individuals in our culture. That's why the movies are violent and that negative news gets more broadcast than neutral news. People are fascinated by and interested in violence, which is the cause. The bible forbids immoral behavior, but everyone is aware of how sex news is profitable, thus; people will skip over vital, helpful content in favor of reading foolish, widely circulated sex news. 12. If you don't have a girlfriend, you can be driven to commit a crime by kidnapping and raping someone. Many Christians watch sex videos or pornographic movies. You might even be astonished to learn that many rapists are either married or have girlfriends, but because they became porno slaves, they were unable to control their sexual urges, which drove them to commit a crime. Money is good, my brothers and sisters, but you have to work hard for it since there are wealthy individuals who don't have peace because they either killed people or obtained their fortune illegally, whereas the impoverished, abused person who endures daily, has peace. Let your yes be yes and your no is nothese are the best aspects of human life. Don't generate suffering for common folks because you can when the outcome won't be good for you. Don't forget to include the truth in your everyday battle for justice because without it, you won't achieve peace. 03.07.2022 LISTEN Making the right choices keeps us moving forward in life. We all had dreams as kids, and some of them are still sealed and waiting to be discovered. When we were young, we all had dreams of the finest things in life. Today's youth are most likely to respond that they want to become Doctors, Nurses, or Attorneys when asked what they want to accomplish with their lives in the near future. Many of these children eventually grew and gave up on their ambitions. Most likely because of unanticipated bad leadership and corruption. The ambitions changed along the way and parents couldn't afford to support them in their respective careers. As such, they had to give up on school. These are kids who were brilliant way back. The system is such that it is only good at frustrating people. Some people, however, decided to go back to school for a long time. This is to say that the Primary Education which lasts for six years, followed by three years in Junior High and three more in the Senior High Level. Approximately, 4 to 7 year period, depending on the Tertiary Programme you choose after Completing the SHS. The aforementioned is a picture of our educational cycle so to speak. Imagine being out of work for God knows how long and you live in a state of penury. You travel from one place to another in search of job but all to no avail. Graduates continue to hunt for work at various entities but some ladies allegedly get offers after paying in kind. A time will come, when some of these kind payment wouldnt go through owing to IMF and E-Levy. You dont subject the citizenry to this fate and expect them to endure. Interesting time ahead in deed. You serve the government for a year and cant even boast of a ceiling fan. Besides, the usual alawa doesnt even come and it comes as though a bar man pouring local wine in tots. Government continues to frustrate young graduates after finishing their national service. The Unemployed Association wouldn't exist if things were cosy. We claim that Ghana isnt poor yet drivers cant buy fuel. We claim that times are good yet we cant even buy kenkey and fish to our satisfaction. We claim that corruption is a thing of the past yet our monies are going down the drain owing to corruption. We claim that we will protect the public purse yet the purse has been left opened. We claim that we have a solid Economic Management Team yet plans are far advanced for Ghana to go to IMF. You guys are bunch of shameless people. Our country has suffered enough in the hands of politicians. You can be NDC or NPP but truth is you have all failed Ghanaians. Besides, with the requisite knowledge and abilities to boost the economy, various Universities churned out competent graduates but it will interest you to know that, they dont get employed. At what point in time did we arrive here? It has never seemed like unemployment is worst owing to wicked politicians who only think of themselves and families. No wonder nature has a nice way of punishing you after your looting expedition. When we assumed NABCO personnel would eventually secure permanent employment it turned out as a mere fallacy. Does that mean our politicians have water stuck in their big skulls? It is sad to note that some employees went without pay for a whole year while they were actively working and we intend to build a Cathedral. This is misplaced priority and gross insensitivity to say the least. Even monkeys understand the value in sharing and I implore our politicians to get to the zoo and learn. We are quick to make promises that we cannot honour and expect workers and students to survive anyway.This compels individuals to take out loans from friends and families in order to survive. As Former President Kufuor hinted in the local direct some time back, he said Besea a yde y mpuntu ndwuma de y nanso ebi bbi de we nam no na ny Such a wise President who spoke truth to power not these current crop of politicians who only think of their stomach even at old age. Another point worth mentioning is that some Graduate make only GHC700 and live in places where their yearly house rent is GHC48,000. Some landlords also take undue advantage of the system to exploit tenants by way of taking two years advance or even more. So the newly-employed is seen working but the money is taken away the very moment it hits the account yet the government does nothing to improve living conditions. I for one wouldnt demonstrate because I am a wise person. How should I go fight for a politician? Who said tweaa? Moreover, the youths intend to get married and wean themselves off parents assistance and support in order to start families of their own after graduating from University. However, majority continues to live in a state of delusion. The usual response is no longer Friday we are outside, but rather "men dey hustle". If you ask someone on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, you will get different difficulty perspectives. Other graduates are looking for low-paying jobs to make ends meet to at least be able to afford gb but their efforts had proved futile owing to mismanagement on the part of government. When will they understand the reality and work towards putting in mechanisms that will assuage suffering of flood victims, graduates, teachers, nurses and the ordinary Ghanaian? The hard truth is they only eat with us during the build up to the Parliamentary and Presidential Elections. One of their political gimmicks you know? We need honest politicians who can resign when they fail to honour their promises and avail themselves to face the firing squad. That way, it will deter corrupt politicians from engaging in this menace. Until such a time like that, many will follow politicians to demonstrate and will end up losing an eye or two and eventually die. Wise up. Dont fight for the politicians. If they want you demonstrate ask them to bring their children to lead the protest. B gyimi bre no twam. The current Ghana's National Employment Motto (GNEM) is "Who knows you?" Who is familiar enough with you to recruit you? Even then, there would be a price. Some ladies are allegedly being slept with and their male counterparts on the other hand, are made to pay money before getting a job. In some cases, it is alleged that some women at the helm of affairs also enjoy the hydraulic oil of young male graduates before landing them job opportunities. Building a nation with scandal, vindictiveness and promiscuity. So I say again, Hmmm!! When did we arrive here? Amanda Atunah, is the 2022 CSA Student Online Journalist of the Year and a Student of the Ghana Institute of Journalism(GIJ) A member of the governing New Patriotic Party, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko has dismissed calls for the removal of the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta from office. He says the minister has demonstrated creativity and innovation in the management of the economy, hence needs all the support to succeed, first by the New Patriotic Party and the populace. His view comes on the back of calls for resignation or dismissal of the minister amidst the many challenges confronting the Ghanaian economy. Following Ghanas decision to seek an IMF bailout, calls for Ofori-Attas resignation have intensified. Former President, John Dramani Mahama last week called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to reshuffle his ministers to maximise their output and specifically remove the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, from office. A deputy ranking member of Parliaments finance committee, Isaac Adongo also reiterated the call, adding that the minister must also not be allowed to lead Ghanas negotiations with the IMF for a bailout. But Gabby does not support that view. He insists that amidst the challenges facing the countrys economy which is largely due to the Covid pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, the minister has demonstrated capacity and creativity in working around the problems. I think that the Finance Minister has shown that he has creativity and innovation. He needs support from his own party, parliament and Ghanaians because it is clear that this is not a party that does not come up with solutions, he said. He said the government in its entirety must be supported to weather the current economic challenges. If those solutions are going to work, I think they need the support of the country If you look at he history of the NPP in office, they will face challenges but they will always come up with solutions, he said. citinewsroom The National Hajj Board has given assurances that it will refund the monies of Muslim pilgrims who have paid but have not been airlifted to Saudi Arabia for this year's hajj. According to the board, it is unable to fly out all the pilgrims who have paid for the expected amounts due to a limited quota Ghana was assigned by the Saudi authorities. The Communications Director for the Hajj Board, Abdul Rahman Gomda in a Citi News interview said the board is aware of the discontent of many of the pilgrims who have been left disappointed at the hajj village because they expected to have left the country for Saudi Arabia for the 2022 hajj however, it is not able to do much for them due to the cap placed on the number of Ghanaian pilgrims Saudi Authorities will allow into the country. Every country is given a quota. Two years ago we had 6,000 pilgrims who were scheduled to travel. Unfortunately, Covid came. We thought it was going to be possible, but that was not possible. The Saudi authorities have a special ministry for Hajj, and they decided that Ghana should be given a quota of 3,069. Under the circumstances, not everybody will be able to go, and as a result of which you are seeing these agitations and discontentment, he said. They said the board is working to ensure that the disappointed pilgrims get back their monies in due time. They will have their monies back. Nobody will take their monies and spend it, he said. Some of the pilgrims in an earlier interview said after paying for the trip in 2019 and topping up with the extra funds requested by the board this year, they expected that they will be prioritised, but they have been left out of the flight to Mecca for this years hajj. citinewsroom British-born, Paris resident for more than 50 years, dramatist Peter Brook died on Saturday, aged 97, according to the director's entourage, who was cited by Le Monde. Peter Brook gave us the most beautiful silences in the theatre, but this last silence is infinitely sad, tweeted Rima Abdul Malak, France's culture minister. Considered one of the most influential theatre directors of the 20th century, Brook's work was showcased at the Bouffes du Nord theatre in Paris where he was based. With him, the stage was stripped back to its most vivid intensity. He bequeathed so much to us, added Abdul Malak. The Mahabharata, a nine-hour version of the Hindu epic, originally produced in 1985, is considered his greatest work. Early brilliance Brook was born in London on 21 March,1925, to a family of Jewish scientists who had emigrated from Latvia. He began directing at age 17, and was considered gifted in the theatrical arts from the very start of his career, becoming an acclaimed director in London's West End by his mid-20s, directing hits on Broadway before he turned 30. He later became known for his experimental theatre, after he exhausted the possibilities of conventional theatre. Brook's work as a director of Marat/Sade in 1964 garnered a Tony award. His work was not honed on solely directing theatre, however. Lord of the Flies (1963), his first movie, based on the William Golding novel about schoolboys marooned on an island who turn on each other, became an instant classic. He also wrote the groundbreaking The Empty Space in 1967, considered one of theatre's most influential texts. I can take any empty space and call it a bare stage, he wrote. A man walks across an empty space whilst someone else is watching him, and this is all that is needed for an act of theatre... Paris days Moving to Paris permanently in 1971, Brook set up the International Centre for Theatre Research at the Bouffes du Nord, an old music hall. He became interested in working with actors from different cultures, in different cultures. In 1972, he brought a group of actors, including British actress Helen Mirren and Japanese actor Yoshi Oida on a 13,600-kilometre voyage across the African continent to test his ideas in theatre. In Conference of the Birds: The Story of Peter Brook in Africa, drama critic John Heilpern tells of their journey in a book that became a bestseller. Every day they would lay out a carpet in a remote village and would improvise a show using shoes or a box, said Heilpern, speaking to the BBC. When someone entered the carpet the show began. There was no script or no shared language. However, the trip had its downsides; most of the company caught dysentery or other tropical diseases, including actor Mirren, who left soon afterwards. Returning to Paris, Brook returned to his experimental theatre at the Bouffes du Nord, occasionally carrying out touring productions globally. In 1993, he came out with the hit, L'Homme Qui, based on Oliver Sacks' bestseller about neurological dysfunction, The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat. He was a hit back in the UK in 1997, directing Samuel Beckett's Happy Days. His wife, Natasha Parry, an actress, played in the lead. He was touted as the best director London does not have. Accolades later in life, too He remained at the Bouffes du Nord, continuing to direct, but left its helm when he turned 85 in 2010. One of his most remarkable pieces came later in life, when he wrote and staged The Prisoner, aged 92, based on his own spiritual journey to Afghanistan in 1978. He had traveled just before the Soviet invasion to shoot the movie, Meetings with Remarkable Men. It was an adaption of a book by George Gurdjieff, a mystical philosopher whose sacred dances Brook performed daily for years. In 2015, his wife, Parry, died, which had a major impact in his life. One tries to bargain with fate and say, just bring her back for 30 seconds, he said. The NPP National Advocacy Association of Ghana, a group associated with the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), says the Government cannot be blamed for its decision to engage the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout. The Association said the move had become necessary in the wake of the seeming global economic crisis that had reversed the positive gains recorded by the Akufo-Addo Government in recent years. In a statement signed by the Association's National Secretary, Dr Michael Kojo Kyeremateng, and shared with the Ghana News Agency, it accused the National Democratic Congress (NDC) of frustrating the passage of the E-Levy, which was intended to shore up Government's revenue in a bid to revive the economy. It said the NDC lacked the moral right to criticise the Government's engagement with the IMF, saying that the Government's inability to realise the revenue targets from the E-Levy was as a result of the opposition's campaign against it. In the quest to get the economy back on its feet, the Government introduced the E- Levy, which was and is the only remedy to help Ghanaian economy bounce back. The Association urged the citizenry to support the Government's decision to seek IMF support as it was in the interest of the nation. We advise and encourage Ghanaians to think through this and see the works of the opposition against the E- Levy to its success, making the NDC to push for their agenda. Politics that affect good policies should not be accepted by Ghanaians, it said. The Ministry of Information on Friday, July 1, 2022, announced that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, had authorised the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, to commence formal engagements with the IMF, inviting the Fund to support an economic programme put together by the government of Ghana. A statement issued by the Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, said: this follows a telephone conversation between the President and the IMF Managing Director, Miss Kristalina Georgieva, conveying Ghana's decision to engage with the Fund. "At a meeting on June 30th, 2022, cabinet indicated its support for the decision," the statement said. "The engagement with the IMF will seek to provide balance of payment support as part of a broader effort to quicken Ghana's build back in the face of challenges induced by the Covid-19 pandemic and, recently, the Russia-Ukraine crises, it added. GNA West African leaders met on Sunday in Ghana's capital Accra to review sanctions they have imposed on three military-ruled countries in their volatile region. Heads of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) were gathering to assess efforts to secure timetables and other guarantees for restoring civilian rule in Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso. Mali underwent coups in August 2020 and May 2021, followed by Guinea in September 2021 and Burkina Faso this January. Fearing contagion in a region notorious for military takeovers, ECOWAS has imposed tough trade and economic sanctions against Mali, but lesser punishments against Guinea and Burkina. Dominating the summit will be the review of a month-long bid to push the juntas to set an early timetable for returning to barracks. ECOWAS in January imposed a trade and financial embargo on Mali after its military government unveiled a scheme to rule for five years. At a June 4 summit, no decision was made for the three countries. Opening Sunday's summit, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo said the 15-member bloc was committed to supporting the three countries' return to democratic order and would take appropriate decisions after hearing reports on their progress. The sanctions have badly hit poor and landlocked Mali, whose economy is already under severe strain from a decade-long jihadist insurgency. After months of bitter talks, the Malian authorities on Wednesday approved a plan to hold presidential elections in February 2024. The vote will be preceded by a referendum on a revised constitution in March 2023 and legislative elections in late 2023. The ECOWAS mediator in Mali, former Nigerian leader Goodluck Jonathan, visited the country last week. A member of his entourage told AFP Mali had made "enormous progress". Mali's top diplomat Abdoulaye Diop on Friday said the recent political developments were moving the country towards a lifting of the sanctions. But a new electoral law, adopted on June 17, could be a stumbling block in the talks as it allows a military figure to contest the presidential elections. Guinea transition 'unthinkable' Burkina Faso -- another Sahel country caught up in jihadist turmoil -- and Guinea have so far only been suspended from the bodies of the 15-nation bloc but could face harsher sanctions. An ECOWAS mediator praised Burkina Faso junta leader Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba for his 'openness to dialogue'. By OLYMPIA DE MAISMONT (AFP/File) Burkina's junta has proposed a constitutional referendum in December 2024 and legislative and presidential elections in February 2025. Visiting Ouagadougou for the second time in a month on Saturday, ECOWAS mediator Mahamadou Issoufou praised junta leader Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba and his government for their "openness to dialogue". The timetable to enable a return to civilian rule and the situation of deposed leader Roch Marc Christian Kabore were also discussed, said the former president of Niger. Political parties allied to Kabore denounced the junta's plans on Friday, saying they were not consulted in advance. The situation appears more complex in Guinea, whose junta has refused an ECOWAS mediator and announced a 36-month transition -- a period that African Union chairman and Senegalese President Macky Sall has described as "unthinkable". ECOWAS avoided ruling on sanctions at a June 4 meeting and instead gave itself another month to negotiate. Guinea this week has led a diplomatic offensive to assuage the concerns of regional leaders. The country's post-coup prime minister Mohamed Beavogui on Saturday met the United Nations' special representative for West Africa and the Sahel, Mahamat Saleh Annadif. The government said it wanted to reassure its ECOWAS "brothers" of its commitment to undertaking a peaceful and inclusive democratic transition. Guinea's military regime met the main political parties on Monday, but they have made their participation in the dialogue conditional on the nomination of an ECOWAS mediator. Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg Global oil prices could reach a stratospheric $380 a barrel if US and European penalties prompt Russia to inflict retaliatory crude-output cuts, JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts warned. The Group of Seven nations are hammering out a complicated mechanism to cap the price fetched by Russian oil in a bid to tighten the screws on Vladimir Putins war machine in Ukraine. But given Moscows robust fiscal position, the nation can afford to slash daily crude production by 5 million barrels without excessively damaging the economy, JPMorgan analysts including Natasha Kaneva wrote in a note to clients. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate RICHMOND, Va. (AP) The marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court has asked Maryland and Virginia officials to enforce laws she says prohibit picketing outside the homes of the justices who live in the two states. For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have picketed Justices' homes, Marshal Gail Curley wrote in the Friday letters to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and two local elected officials. Curley wrote that Virginia and Maryland laws and a Montgomery County, Maryland, ordinance prohibit picketing at justices' homes, and she asked the officials to direct police to enforce those provisions. Justices' homes have been the target of abortion rights protests since May, when a leaked draft opinion suggested the court was poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. The protests and threatening activities have increased since May," Curley wrote in a letter, and have continued since the court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was issued last week. Earlier this week, for example, 75 protesters loudly picketed at one Justice's home in Montgomery County for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket at another Justice's home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first Justice's home to picket for another 20 minutes," Curley wrote in her letter to Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich. This is exactly the kind of conduct that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit. In her letter to Jeffrey McKay, chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, she said one recent protest outside an unspecified justice's home involved dozens of people chanting, no privacy for us, no peace for you! The letters from Curley were dated Friday and shared with reporters by a spokesperson for the Supreme Court on Saturday. Curley's request came about a month after a California man was found with a gun, knife and pepper spray near the Maryland home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh after telling police he was planning to kill the justice. The man, Nicholas John Roske, 26, of Simi Valley, Calif., has been charged with attempting to murder a justice of the United States and has pleaded not guilty. Youngkin and Hogan, both Republicans, have both previously expressed concerns about the protests. In May, they sent a joint letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland asking for federal law enforcement resources to keep the justices safe and enforce a federal law they said prohibits picketing with the intent to influence a judge. The direct request by the court puts it at odds with the Justice Department, which, while providing U.S. marshals, has not taken steps to limit the protests as long as they are peaceful. Hogan spokesman Michael Ricci said in a statement Saturday that the governor had directed state police to further review enforcement options that respect the First Amendment and the Constitution. He also said that had the marshal taken time to explore the matter, she would have learned that the constitutionality of the Maryland statute she cited has been questioned by the state Attorney General's Office. Elrich said he had no recording of having received the letter addressed to him and questioned why it was released to the press. He said he would review it and was willing to discuss it with Curley, but defended the job Montgomery County Police have done so far. In Montgomery County we are following the law that provides security and respects the First Amendment rights of protestors. That is what we do, regardless of the subject of the protests, he said. Youngkin spokesman Christian Martinez said the Virginia governor welcomed the marshal's request and said Youngkin had made the same request of McKay in recent weeks. The Governor remains in regular contact with the justices themselves and holds their safety as an utmost priority. He is in contact with state and local officials on the Marshals request for assistance and will continue to engage on the issue of the Justices safety, Martinez said. Youngkin in May pushed for a security perimeter around the homes of justices living in Fairfax County, but McKay rebuffed that request, saying it would infringe on First Amendment protest rights. McKay said Saturday that the county's position on the issue was unchanged. The law cited in the letter is a likely violation of the First Amendment, and a previous court case refused to enforce it. As long as individuals are assembling on public property and not blocking access to private residences, they are permitted to be there," he said. BCs Tales of the Pacific | This generations legacy to the world SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) A judge has issued a restraining order against Puerto Rican superstar Ricky Martin, police said Saturday. The order was signed Friday, and authorities visited an upscale neighborhood in the north coastal town of Dorado where the singer lives to try to serve the order, police spokesman Axel Valencia told The Associated Press. Up until now, police havent been able to find him, Valencia said. Martins publicist did not immediately return a message asking for comment. It was not immediately known who requested the restraining order. Valencia said he could not provide further details because the order was filed under Puerto Ricos domestic violence law. El Vocero, a Puerto Rico newspaper, said the order states that Martin and the other party dated for seven months. The report quotes the order as sying they broke up two months ago, but the petitioner says Martin did not accept the separation and has been seen loitering near the petitioner's house at least three times. The petitioner fears for his safety, El Vocero quoted the order as saying. AP has not obtained a copy of the order. Valencia said that the order prohibits Martin from contacting or calling the person who filed it and that a judge will later determine at a hearing whether the order should remain in place or be lifted. He added that usually orders are implemented for at least a month. Valencia noted that the person who filed for the restraining order did not contact police, which would have involved prosecutors determining if there was enough evidence to file charges. Rather the request went straight to the court. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BANGKOK (AP) Chinas top diplomat on Saturday arrived on his first visit to Myanmar since the military seized power last year to attend a regional meeting that the government said was a recognition of its legitimacy and opponents protested as a violation of peace efforts. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will join counterparts from Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam in a meeting of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation group in the central city of Bagan, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The grouping is a Chinese-led initiative that includes the countries of the Mekong Delta, a potential source of regional tensions due to an increasing number of hydroelectric projects that are altering the flow and raising concerns of ecological damage. China has built 10 dams along the upper stretch of the Mekong, the part it calls the Langcang. Military government spokesman Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun told a news conference in the capital Naypyitaw on Friday that the attendance of the foreign ministers at the meeting was a recognition of Myanmar's sovereignty and its government. He said the ministers will sign memorandums of understanding and contracts. He did not elaborate. It's unclear whether Wang would meet Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the military government. Myanmars military seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1, 2021. It was quickly met by nonviolent nationwide demonstrations and triggered armed resistance that some U.N. experts now characterize as civil war. According to a detailed list compiled by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, 2,053 civilians have died in the crackdown on the resistance movement. Wang last visited Myanmar to meet with Suu Kyi just three weeks before the military ousted her. China is Myanmars biggest trading partner and an old ally. Beijing has invested billions of dollars in Myanmar's mines, oil and gas pipelines and other infrastructure and is its major arms supplier, together like Russia. Many in Myanmar suspect China of supporting the military takeover, and Beijing has refused to condemn the army's power grab. China says it follows a policy of non-interference in other countries' affairs. The foreign minister of Myanmars shadow government, which opposes the ruling military council, protested the Bagan meeting, saying any such efforts in partnership with Myanmars military violate the will of the people and undermine community building. The statement said that holding the foreign ministers' meeting in Myanmar is in direct opposition to a peace plan by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Myanmar, although a member of ASEAN, has done little to implement the plan and its stonewalling led fellow ASEAN members to block government leaders from attending major ASEAN meetings. Since the military seized power, Chinese special envoy Sun Guoxiang has visited Myanmar twice, and Wang has met his Myanmar counterpart, Wunna Maung Lwin, twice in China. By Trend The State Customs Committee (SCC) of Azerbaijan will launch a Web Transit digital service in the near future, the State Customs Committee told Trend. According to the committee, this platform will improve the efficiency of the declaration process at customs points, and will also contribute to the expansion of Azerbaijan's transit opportunities. "The simplification of multimodal transportation is an important part of the measures taken by the state committee to develop the country's transit potential. In this regard, the processing of customs documents was simplified," the committee said. "When transporting container cargo along the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route in the Baku and Hovsan ports, rapid passage of customs procedures were ensured during transportation of cargo from/to Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan." The Web Transit service is based on modern technologies and electronic information systems, the committee noted. "Its launch will allow providing the customs authorities with the necessary information in advance about goods and vehicles intended for transit through the customs territory and transit customs declaration, as well as speed up transit customs procedures by making payments through the electronic system," added the committee. President Cathy Jo Littleton-Wahl called the in-person meeting at Hamiltons to order at noon June 24. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited, followed by the first verse of "America." Volunteers included greeters Joey Henry and Jan Ryan; Bertie Robinson and Jean Hembrough, 50-50; David Fisher and Linda Grojean, sergeants-at-arms; Cathy Jo Littleton-Wahl, Reflections; Craig Albers, Rotations and tech set-up; song leader Lynne Sheaff; Stanley Wahl, food delivery; and note taker Maryjane Bradbury. Announcements: Cathy Jo noted that Polio Plus Jars are on the table. Lisa and Rick Kluge have opened their home for a social tonight. Par-Tay! Positive Impact is canceled for tomorrow. Next week is the Independence Day parade. Thanks to all who have signed up. The foundation board meeting will be July 8. Jenna Tucker reported that our new youth exchange student is Anna from Denmark. She, who has two older sister and likes sports, cooking, painting, drawing and writing short stories. Jenna also announced that Cass Comm is the wheel sponsor this week. Joey Henry attended conference and presented the 2022-2023 IMAGINE scarf to new President Lisa Kluge. Samantha Boston shared that Todd Evans will present a foundation update/overview at next weeks meeting. Visitors were welcomed with the Song of Welcome, including Rotarian Betty Richardson of Austin, Texas; Zuzana Killam, the guest of David Fisher; Rick Kluge, the guest of Lisa Kluge; and Robert Seufert and Rebecca Houston, the guests of Diane Seufert. June Birthdays were acknowledged with a hearty round of the Happy Birthday song. Lori Hartz was presented with a Paul Harris plus 3 pin and Joey Henry was presented with a Paul Harris plus 4 pin. Congratulations! New Rotary member inductions included Rebecca Houston, sponsored by Diane Seufert; and Zuzana Killam, sponsored by David Fisher. Welcome! Rotations: Tiffany Warmowski announced that she, Steve, and Nicholas are taking a gap year and traveling the world. She plans to visit all the Rotary clubs she can during their travels. She is not certain where they will land at the end of the year (writer's comment hope, hope, hope the destination is Jacksonville). Samantha Boston shared that her daughter (well, and Scotts, too) soon will be going to Edinburg very exciting! Gina Hayes thanked Noel Beard and Dave Fisher for working the Ferris wheel on Fathers Day, when the scheduled operator was unable to report because of illness. District Gov. Ryan Byers reported that the new district governor will be installed Saturday and Ryan invited all the join the 6460 Facebook page if they have not already. Cathy Jo thanked all outgoing board members and welcomed all incoming board members. Cathy Jo gifted our new Rotary president, Lisa Kluge, with keys to the garage. Stanley Wahl drew unsuccessfully for the 50-50 drawing. The meeting was closed with the Four-Way Test. Submitted by Maryjane Bradbury Jacksonville Sunrise Rotary Club On a cool June morning that foretold the pleasant day ahead, nine Rotarians and two guests gathered in the Holiday Inn Express meeting room. Those in attendance were President Jane Becker, Don Pigg, Sonie Smith, Sarah Edmiston, Linda Meece, Sarah Robinson with daughter Ellie Robinson, Pat Pennell, Jay Jamison, Cindy Boehkle, and visiting Rotarian and Asst. Gov. Dan O'Brien. The new Polio Plus jar was passed as everyone caught up since last we met. All visiting and jokes ceased when President Jane Becker rang the June 28 meeting to order it was her last meeting as president, but who is counting followed by Sonie leading the Pledge of Allegiance, Don leading the recitation of the Four-Way Test and Pat giving the morning prayer. Rotations were made by Sarah Robinson, Jane, Don and Jay. Since it still was June, Jay did an excellent job of handing out the Recogitions that Brittany Nickel had clipped from the newspaper, even making sure that her dues made it to the treasurer. Next, Don presented Sarah Robinson with a Paul Harris Fellow award, in recognition of her service above self, as well as her willingness to join Sunrise Rotary. Don pinned on Sarah's Paul Harris pin and presented her with a certificate (suitable for framing). Pictures were taken. The Passing of the Gavel dinner was reviewed for those who could not attend. Jane announced that Sunrise Rotary had collected more than $500,000 in savings for military personnel through the Troopon coupon project. Sonie suggested planning a potluck so members could look over the photo albums that she, as club archivist, has carefully preserved, and reminisce, passing memories and history of this more than 25-year-old club on to the newer members. Then Jane reminded members of the upcoming Fourth of July parade on July 2. There was discussion on where to meet and when, until it was settled that Rotarians would meet at Jane's home, then arrive en mass at the starting point at the nearby fairgrounds. Once that was settled, the club moved on to another fairground-related topic working the gates during the upcoming Morgan County Fair. Sarah Edmiston, Sarah Robinson, Cindy and Linda agreed to sell tickets on either Friday evening or Saturday. Ellie took the podium to thank the club for her scholarship and tell us about her continuing plans for college at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and her future career as a teacher. She hopes to get a job teaching elementary school. For now, she will be student teaching in the Edwardsville area, first in the third grade and then fifth grade. Ellie is happy to be taking classes in person again after taking classes over the internet. She is working at a daycare during the summer, gaining valuable skills as she works with the younger set. Since Ellie had already received her scholarship check, Brittany's dues envelope was pressed into service for the scholarship pictures that followed, proving that Rotarians are nothing if not resourceful. Dan took the podium to give a few appropriate remarks, doing his best to persuade Ellie to include Rotaract or Rotary in her future plans. We learned that women in Rotary (not as an auxiliary club) is a relatively new enterprise. Dan even attended the oral arguments at the Supreme Court over the subject in 1988. And now, Rotary had just sworn in its first female international president during the International Convention earlier this month in Houston. Sonie gave us insight into how it was before ladies joined Rotary. Finally, President Jane rang her last meeting to a close at 7:55 a.m. The next Sunrise Rotary meeting is at 7 a.m. July 5 in the Holiday Inn Express meeting room. Incoming President Linda Meece will preside. All guests and visiting Rotarians are welcome. Submitted by Sarah Edmiston FARMINGTON, N.M. (AP) The Navajo Nation Veterans Administration was formally recognized by the head of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for being the first tribal nation program to receive accreditation to help veterans submit federal benefits claims directly to the VA. VA Secretary Denis McDonough recognized the tribal government programs status during a visit to Gallup on June 28, t he Farmington Daily Times reported. Weve been negotiating this with President Nez and his team. They are the first tribe to take up this new authority, McDonough said. Im thrilled that we can announce that today and as importantly, put it into action. He added that this is part of the VAs work to make sure tribal nations have a seat at the table, this includes having veteran service officers on tribal lands who can submit veterans benefits claims to the VA. McDonoughs visit came a day after it was announced that a group of bipartisan senators ended the review process on recommendations by the VA to close outpatient clinics in several states, including those in Gallup, Espanola, Las Vegas and Raton. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez noted that the accreditation achieved by the tribal governments VA will greatly help Navajo veterans, many who face difficulties in traveling to VA centers outside the tribal land. Today marks a milestone with our partnership with the VA also our Navajo Nation VA, Nez said. Last month, Nezs office announced that the Navajo Nation VA met the criteria and standards to be accredited through the federal VAs Tribal Representation Expansion Project. There are now five Navajo Nation VA staff members accredited under the project and can process federal benefits claims for veterans, according to a release from Nezs office. Navajo Nation VA Director James Zwierlein told the Daily Times that the employees work in the tribes VA offices in Shiprock, Crownpoint, Tse Bonito, Chinle and Tuba City. A sixth person is being trained to work in the Fort Defiance office, he added. The news release stated the staff members have taken in and submitted 83 claims into the federal VA system since May 2. In remarks at the June 28 event, Zwierlein said these claims were filed on behalf of Navajo veterans but there are more veterans, including non-Navajo and non-Native American, in line for claims assistance. McDonough also participated in a town hall with Nez, U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M. at the University of New Mexico campus in Gallup. According to Nezs office, the group heard from veterans, members of the Navajo Nation Veterans Advisory Council and state and tribal leaders about health care, benefits claims and the need for expansive care for traditional healing and mental health services. Overnight reports from Jacksonville-area police: Officer bitten: A Jacksonville woman was arrested Saturday after police said she bit an officer trying to arrest her after an attack on a convenience store clerk. Alana M. Jackson, 36, of 448 S. Mauvaisterre St. was arrested on an aggravated battery charge at 12:36 a.m. Saturday after she was accused of assaulting an employee at Circle K, 602 N. Main St. While being arrested, she resisted officers' efforts to place her in a police car and bit an officer on the arm, according to a police report. Resisting arrest and aggravated battery to a peace officer were added to her charges. The officer suffered minimal injury, police said. Accidents: William G. Duffy, 73, of Jacksonville was cited on a charge of failing to reduce speed to avoid an accident after the car he was driving rear-ended one being driven by John P. Elliott, 53, of Jacksonville at 6:25 p.m. Friday at Main Street and Morton Avenue. William L. Adams, 61, of Jacksonville was cited on a charge of improper overtaking a vehicle on the right after a small trailer he was pulling with his bicycle struck a vehicle stopped at Main Street and College Avenue at 7:01 p.m. Friday. Arrests: Brandy N. Wilson, 38, of 105 Wyatt St., Franklin, was arrested at 10:50 p.m. Friday on a domestic battery charge. She was accused of hitting someone during an altercation in the 400 block of Sherman Street. She was also arrested on a Calhoun County warrant accusing her of failing to appear in court on an insurance-related traffic offense. Brandon L. Hazel, 30, of 2408 N. Lasalle Drive, Alton, was arrested at 10:30 p.m. Friday on a charge of resisting or obstructing a peace officer after police said he refused to obey commands while police were investigating a disturbance in the 400 block of Sherman Street. He was also arrested on a domestic battery charge after being accused of hitting a family member. Richard A. Brown, 38, of 60 Evergreen Drive, Beardstown, was arrested at 9:08 p.m. Friday on a charge of retail theft with a prior conviction after being accused of trying to take merchandise from Walmart, 1941 W. Morton Ave. RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Butterflies and waxbills flit through the Enchanted Valley just outside Rio de Janeiros Tijuca Forest National Park. There are fruit trees, a nearby waterfall and a commanding view out over the Atlantic Ocean. But for decades something was spoiling the idyll: the stench of raw sewage. Electricity arrived in the late 20th century to the low-income Enchanted Valley community which drew its name from a nearby residential project but the utility never connected it to the citys sewage network. Waste was contaminating the local environment and putting residents health at risk. So the community set out to solve the problem on its own by building a biodigester and artificial wetland to process all sewage generated by all of its 40 families. It started full operations in June, and is the first independently built biosystem for an entire Brazilian favela, according to Theresa Williamson, executive director at Catalytic Communities, a nonprofit that supports the underserviced communities. And it could serve as an example for rural hamlets across Brazil. According to official data, 45% of Brazilians' sewage isnt collected. The Enchanted Valley project is years in the making. The president of the local residents association, Otavio Barros, brought a group of tourists to a waterfall downhill in 2007 and, when they wanted to bathe in its waters, he told them they couldnt; all the communitys sewage flowed through that cascade. The seed of an idea was planted, though, and he started drumming up support. It was harder back then to make people aware, show that everyone would benefit, he told The Associated Press as he walked through the community. He found allies among researchers of Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, where he had been working as an administrative assistant. They secured money from Rio states foundation for the support of research to complete a first phase in 2015, and more recently German and Brazilian nonprofits Viva Con Agua and Instituto Clima e Sociedade to connect every home, with additional funding from Catalytic Communities. Barros labored alongside five other residents from the neighborhood for months, including some three weeks during which time they were just breaking through rocks to create a pathway for new pipes. They lead to the domed biodigester, where sewage is ingested by anaerobic microorganisms. Remaining fluids then proceed to snake beneath the constructed wetland, getting cleansed by fertilizing the plants above. The full price of the system was about 220,000 reais ($42,300). That's one quarter what it would have cost to run pipes through the forest down to the existing sewage network at sea level, according to Leonardo Adler, founding partner of of Taboa Engenharia, which oversaw the technical side of works. The federal government has a plan to improve sewage treatment throughout Brazil, which it is pursuing through private concessions of large urban areas. But that approach doesnt help small, isolated communities like Enchanted Valley, where the smell of sewage is now gone and its nearby waterfall is clean for bathing. Im very happy because it was a very arduous stage to manage to bring in partners, involve the community to capture the sewage and return it to the environment clean, Barros said. Its part of a dream becoming reality. We have others for the Valley. Jacksonville welcomed the long Fourth of July holiday weekend with the Independence Day parade sponsored by Jacksonville Rotary. Hundreds of people lined the streets between the Morgan County Fairgrounds and the downtown square for the hour-long parade celebrating the red, white and blue. Europ Assistance (EA), a subsidiary of the Italian global insurer, Generali Group, has announced that it has reached an agreement with Mapfre Asistencia to acquire nearly 75% of the stake in Bahrain-based Gulf Assist. Founded in 1963, Europ Assistance, the inventor of assistance, supports customers in over 200 countries and territories thanks to our network of 750.000 approved providers and 43 assistance centres. Gulf Assist also owns Arab Assist in Jordan - where most of its operations and support functions are located -and also has a commercial branch in Dubai. Gulf Assist is a part of Mapfre Asistencia, a global insurance, reinsurance and services company founded in Madrid (Spain) in 1989. Operating worldwide, it has 33 offices across the globe and is a leader in providing solutions for the insurance sector, including specific solutions for brokers, as well as the financial, automotive industry, travel and tourism sectors. With this transaction, Europ Assistance has emerged as a new leader in assistance in the Middle East, with a B2B2C operating model that is diversified both in terms of offerings (roadside assistance, travel assistance and insurance, mobile phone insurance) and geographically with income generated in 10 countries in the region including UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, and Jordan. Enrique Ballesteros, previously general manager of Gulf Assist, will be incharge for Europ Assistances activities in the Middle East. The assistance market in the Middle East has a high growth potential especially in the insurance, travel assistance, and automotive assistance sectors, as the region is a growing travel hub as well as home to the 13th largest automobile assistance market in the world. Additionally, there is a large underserved market for personal assistance services that can be bundled with insurance offerings - providing opportunities for additional growth in the Middle East market. Europ Assistance Group CEO Antoine Parisi said: "We are delighted to enter the Middle East market in order to support our global partners and further strengthen our global, multiline and multichannel positioning, aiming at making us the most reliable care company in the world." Pascal Baumgarten, CEO Northern, Central, and Eastern Europe, Asia and South Africa at Europ Assistance Group, said: "After recent openings in Thailand, Malaysia and Australia, Europ Assistance continues geographical footprint extension, showing the resilience of our group." "We look forward to building on the strong local partnerships and product expertise Gulf Assist has built over the past 30 years," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Pope, unable to go to Congo, embraces Congolese in Rome Pope, unable to go to Congo, embraces Congolese in Rome View Photo VATICAN CITY (AP) Pope Francis greeted members of the Congolese community in Rome, borrowing words from their native languages Sunday to wish them peace and joy during an especially vibrant ceremony at St. Peters Basilica. Francis, 85, was supposed to make a July 2-7 pilgrimage to Congo and South Sudan. But the trip was called off last month due to persistent knee pain that has caused the pope to use a wheelchair or a cane in recent weeks. His itinerary for the since-postponed trip would have had him in Congo on Sunday, celebrating Mass at the airport in the capital, Kinshasa. Instead, some 2,000 Congolese or descendants of people from Congo joined the pope in Mass at the Vatican. They clapped when Francis began his homily by speaking a few words in Congos languages. Prayers by the faithful were recited in Swahili, Lingala, Tshiluba and Kikongo, the countrys four official languages. A Christian always brings peace, Francis said, reflecting the theme of reconciliation he planned to thread through his Africa pilgrimage. The colorful clothes and vibrant singing of the congregants made for a sharp contrast with the often somber attire and chants of clergy, nuns and rank-and-file faithful at many basilica ceremonies. A day earlier, Francis sent a video message to the people and leaders of Congo and South Sudan that exhorted them to forge new paths of reconciliation, peace and development. He expressed disappointment that he couldnt travel this month but promised to visit as soon as possible. In his Sunday homily, the pontiff renewed his encouragement. Today, dear brothers and sisters, let us pray for peace and reconciliation in Congo, Francis said. He described he country, which is one of the worlds poorest despite a wealth of natural resources, as so wounded and exploited. The Catholic Church played a role in the establishment of democracy in Congo and has advocated for human rights there. The church deployed about 40,000 election observers to monitor the 2019 vote that brought Felix Tshisekedi to the presidency in what was Congos first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since independence from Belgium in 1960. At the end of Mass, a nun, Rita Mboshu Kongo, addressed the pontiff in Italian, thanking him for his concern for Africa, wishing him good health and saying that Congos people were waiting for him to visit with open arms. Francis, leaning on his cane, hobbled a few steps to his wheelchair, and an aide wheeled him out of the basilica as the faithful waved and sang joyfully. ___ This version has been updated to correct the spelling of Congos capital to Kinshasa. By FRANCES DEMILIO Associated Press Palestinian dies from shot by Israeli troops in West Bank View Photo JERUSALEM (AP) A Palestinian man who was shot by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank died of his wounds on Sunday, Palestinian officials said. The Israeli military said soldiers came under attack during routine security activity near the town of Jaba in the northern West Bank on Saturday. It said Israeli forces fired at a man suspected of throwing a firebomb, and that the incident was under review. The Palestinian Foreign Ministry identified the man as 19-year-old Kamel Abdallah Alwaneh from near the city of Jenin and condemned his killing. Alwanehs death was the latest in a surge of deadly violence in the West Bank in recent months. The Israeli military has conducted daily raids in Palestinian towns and villages in the wake of a series of deadly attacks by Palestinians that killed 19 Israelis, with several of the attackers coming from the Jenin area. Dozens of Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli military raids. Most of the dead were alleged to have opened fire on Israeli forces or hurled stones or firebombs at them. The dead also include at least two apparent passersby. Nearly 500,000 Israeli settlers live in more than 130 settlements scattered across the West Bank, alongside nearly 3 million Palestinians who live under Israeli military rule. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war and the Palestinians seek it as the heartland of a future state. Israel views the West Bank as the biblical and historical heartland of the Jewish people. The Palestinians and much of the international community consider Israels West Bank settlements a violation of international law and an obstacle to a peaceful resolution of the decades-long conflict. By EMILY ROSE Associated Press After abortion ruling, clinic staff grapple with trauma View Photo CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) Danielle Maness has squeezed the hands of hundreds of anxious patients lying on tables in the procedure room, now empty. Shes recorded countless vital signs and delivered scores of snacks to the recovery area, now silent. Peering into each darkened room at West Virginia s only abortion clinic, the chief nurse wondered whether shed ever treat patients here for abortion care again. It literally just sickens me, and we dont know what their futures hold for them, Maness said of the residents who rely on the Womens Health Center of West Virginia. Its the kind of heartbreak thats difficult to put into words. There are all these what- ifs. The waiting room should have been filling up with patients on two days last week, when the clinic reserves all slots for abortion appointments. But since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade days earlier and ruled that states can ban abortion, the clinic was forced to suspend the procedures because of an 1800s-era state law banning them. The ACLU of West Virginia filed a lawsuit on behalf of the clinic, asking that the law be declared unenforceable so staff can immediately resume abortions. Other states are in various stages of legal limbo. Nationwide, workers at clinics that shuttered abortion services are feeling fear and stress as they try to pick up the pieces and chart a path forward. At the West Virginia center, the days following the historic court ruling brought on a different kind of grief for staff as their new reality set in, one Maness said will linger long after the initial trauma of the decision. The conversations with frantic patients that first day play on an inescapable loop in her head. I dont think any of us can block it out, she said. Its constantly on our minds. Like many clinics that perform abortions, the facility did not offer the procedure daily. Several days of the week are dedicated to routine gynecological care cervical exams, cancer screenings mostly for low-income patients on Medicaid with nowhere else to go. The resolve to continue that work has buoyed employees. Immediately after the decisions release, Maness was one of a few staff members tasked with calling patients to cancel abortion appointments. On the other end of the line, shed never before heard people speak with such fear. The entire staff found themselves in crisis mode for days, though they and others across the country expected the ruling for months. You think you think youre prepared for the moment, but youre never really prepared until its a reality, executive director Katie Quinonez said. She watched her staff break down and sob. Some called patients or answered phones. Workers who had the day off showed up, some still in pajamas, to relieve colleagues and offer support. Quinonez encouraged all to take breaks, often managing the phones herself. Shell forever remember that Friday as one of the worst days of her life. Over the weekend, she shut off her phone, lay under a weighted blanket on her couch, ate junk food and watched television. It was the only way she could escape and cope. When she and her staff returned to work, she held off on filling the vacant slots from canceled abortion appointments. Some patients still needed other services, but she wanted to let workers catch their breath. She told them to come in late if needed. Clinic rooms remained largely empty, dark and quiet. But still, the phones rang. Beth Fiddler sat at her desk behind the clinics glass reception window in the waiting room. She had no patients to check in, no Medicaid data to scan into charts, no informative packets to hand out. Instead, she found herself answering the same questions again and again, referring callers to a hotline or website to help them find the nearest out-of-state abortion provider. You guys are going to close up soon, right? No, the clinic will be open to provide other services. Can I get Plan B the morning after pill? What about an IUD, or other birth control? Ill help you make an appointment. Youre sure I cant make an abortion appointment? Isnt there a loophole, an exception? There are no abortion services at this clinic. Some callers were in denial. Some remained stoic, others cried. A few responded with hostility, insisting Fiddler was wrong. She tried to be polite, empathetic but the conversations take a toll. It frustrates me, she said. Im already stressed out and upset. I understand wanting to find a way, but theres no way. As one of the first workers patients see, Fiddler takes pride in making people feel welcome and safe. Having to turn them away and simply refer them to a website is gutting, she said. As helpless as I feel about it, I cant imagine how they must be feeling, she said. Outside the clinic, its quiet, too. Theres no buzz of patients arriving in the parking lot to be escorted by volunteers in pink vests. The only cars belong to staffers and a security guard. Across the street, a lot owned by an anti-abortion organization is vacant except for a large white cross. A regular protestor, a pastor with a Jesus Loves You sign, prayed outside a few early mornings, but the usual crowd pleading with patients to reconsider is gone. Some cars slow as they pass. Workers recognize some as protestors vehicles, and they imagine the clinic is being watched to make sure patients arent arriving for abortions. Director Quinonez said she knows the next steps will be challenging, with a long road for workers to recover from pain. Our staff need space and time to process this very traumatic loss, she said. And all of the secondary trauma that were experiencing from all of the patients. Simply being at work is hard, but the employees are dedicated to helping patients. We came in Monday and I was kind of like, OK, what do I do now? said Kaylen Barker, who handles the clinics public messaging. Its somber to come back here and realize were not going to be able to do the lifesaving care that people need and that were going to have to refer them to websites. Thats the best thing we can do right now. Barker came to the clinic as a patient during a breast cancer scare 12 years ago. She got care when she had no other options. She knew she wanted to work at this place that helped save her, so she applied until she was finally hired. Knowing she can help others like her keeps her going, whether abortions are scheduled or not: People deserve to receive healthcare in a welcoming space, without bias or judgement. So Quinonez and her staff focus on keeping the clinic open. Abortion services account for 40% of clinic revenue, leaving a gap that could mean layoffs but Quinonez is determined to avoid that. Shes encouraging residents to transfer their gynecological care to the clinic, and she plans to offer new services. The clinic recently added gender-affirming hormone therapy services, along with HIV prevention and treatment. She hopes more programs will follow. And donations are flooding into the clinics abortion fund. Before this year, the funds balance never exceeded $50,000. In one weekend after the ruling, they raised $75,000. Staff will use the money to help send people out of state for abortions. Yes, we are tired, we are devastated, we are angry, Quinonez said. But this is far from over. I want to reassure people that regardless of how hopeless and dark it feels right now, this isnt the end. By LEAH WILLINGHAM Associated Press $2M bail set for man charged in ambush of Chicago officer View Photo CHICAGO (AP) Bail has been set at $2 million for a man who prosecutors say shot a Chicago police officer multiple times as the officer stepped off an elevator while responding to a domestic disturbance call. Jalen Vales, 27, of Chicago was charged Saturday with attempted murder and aggravated battery of a police officer in the Friday morning shooting, police said. Chicago Police Supt. David Brown said the officer, a 49-year-old man, underwent surgery and was in serious but stable condition as of Friday. Chicago police said Sunday that no update on the officers condition was available. Prosecutors said Saturday that prior to the shooting, Vales and his girlfriend had been arguing and the girlfriend was afraid he was going to hurt her, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. She texted her mother and asked her to call the police, then came up with a ruse to get Vales to leave the apartment and locked the door behind him. The girlfriend has filed six police reports against Vales for domestic violence since the couple began dating in March, prosecutors said. When two Chicago officers responding to the call exited the elevator, Vales began shooting at them, hitting one officer. The other officer was not injured. Vales was arrested at the scene after running to another apartment and cutting himself, authorities said. He was hospitalized for his injuries as of Saturday and did not appear in court for his bond hearing. It was unclear if Vales has an attorney who could comment on his behalf. Anadolu Agency/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Parents and loved ones of the victims of the shooting at Robb Elementary School pressed Uvalde City Council members Thursday for details on the official investigation into the tragedy but their requests for more information were, once again, denied. Their pleas come as police and Uvalde government officials have routinely denied access to details of the shooting requested by media, elected officials and family members of the 19 children and two teachers killed May 24 inside the small school about 100 miles west of San Antonio. At Thursday's scheduled council meeting in Uvalde, Mayor Don McLaughlin said the Texas Department of Public Safety and Uvalde County District Attorney's Office said releasing such information would jeopardize the investigation. Bail has been set at $3.5 million for Kaitlin Armstrong, the Texas yoga teacher accused of killing professional cyclist Anna Moriah Wilson in a fit of jealousy. Wilson, who also went by Mo, was found suffering from several gunshot wounds inside an Austin, Texas, apartment on May 11, days before she was set to compete in Gravel Locos, a 150-mile gravel bike race she was favored to win. She was pronounced dead on the scene. Just less than a week later authorities issued an arrest warrant for Armstrong, who managed to avoid capture until earlier this week. On Wednesday, she was arrested in a hostel on Santa Teresa Beach in Provincia de Puntarenas, Costa Rica. Armstrong remained in Costa Rica on Saturday but is expected to return to the United States, where she will face a murder charge in connection with Wilsons slaying. Authorities believe she became jealous over Wilsons connection with her boyfriend, cyclist Colin Strickland, who has cooperated with investigators. According to an arrest affidavit in the case, Wilson mentioned going for a swim with Strickland just prior to her death. Armstrong had been in a relationship with Strickland for roughly three years, but he admitted to sparking a romance with Wilson while they were on a recent break. A search of Wilsons phone following her death turned up evidence suggesting that she believed she was still involved with Strickland despite his reunion with Armstrong. Police said Strickland dropped off the cyclist at her friends house, where she was later found dead. Armstrongs SUV was also captured on surveillance footage at the residence. She later sold the vehicle for $12,200 and then used that money to fund her escape attempt. According to authorities, she flew from Texas to LaGuardia Airport, and then using a fake passport, made her way to Newark and fled the country. Pete Arredondo, the embattled Uvalde CISD police chief and recently elected councilman, told the city's local newspaper that he is resigning from the City Council after repeated calls for him to quit. Arredondo told the Uvalde Leader News on Saturday that he is stepping down from the District 3 seat so that the city council could move on without distractions. He was one meeting away from abdicating his seat due to lack of attendance. As I think about my life, from growing up as a child and to adulthood, Uvalde has held an attraction that is very unique, he said in a statement to the Uvalde Leader News. At the center of that attraction, is our community members. Together, we will keep Uvalde strong. The city initially said its officials were aware of Arredondos intentions but had not received a call or letter confirming his resignation, according to a statement issued at 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 2. A second news release sent an hour later confirmed the resignation. City policy says that City Council vacancies are filled through special elections. His resignation comes after repeated calls from Uvalde residents for him to step down from both his City Council post and as police chief for UCISD. Arredondo has received mounting criticism for the way he handled the May 24 massacre at Robb Elementary where 19 students and two teachers were killed. Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw told a Texas Senate committee weeks ago that law enforcement response under Arredondo's direction as incident commander that day was an abject failure. Uvalde Leader News reports that Arredondo continues to deny that he was incident commander. The family of the victims showed up to a special City Council meeting on June 30 to call on Arredondo to resign and for the city to release records and body cam footage from the shooting. Multiple officers waited outside of the classroom they knew the gunman was in for more than an hour before confronting and killing him. Mayor Don McLaughlin has refused to release public records to journalists and families, shifting the blame to District Attorney Christina Busbee and DPS. UCISD placed Arredondo on administrative leave on June 22. (Natural News) A Fox News poll released earlier this month found that 60% of American voters (n=1,002) support the U.S. supplying money and weapons to Ukraine indefinitely. The New York Times reported that total U.S. taxpayer-funded Ukraine aid reached $54 billion by May 20. Another $450 million was authorized last week. (Article republished from TheCOVIDBlog.com) Americans are getting their wish. But Kyiv is nearly 5,000 miles away from Washington, D.C. Its easy to become out-of-sight, out-of-mind for most Americans, despite perpetual mainstream media coverage. Liberals love Volodymyr Zelenskyys drag queen acts and thus, love Ukraine in general. The powers-that-be, however, understand that domestic tribal wars are far more effective at keeping the masses distracted, angry and fighting with one another. The January 6 Distraction The U.S. House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, aka January 6th Committee, has been front-and-center news for most of June. Democrats refer to the happenings on January 6, 2021 as an insurrection and an attempted coup detat. Republicans call it a protest. Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon is potentially the biggest fish who may serve a few months in jail. But the bottom line is that these hearings are for political division, distraction and fueling tribal wars. A total of 185 of the 840 people arrested in connection to January 6 have gone through their court proceedings as of last week. Only 80 received actual prison time, with the median sentence being 45 days, according to Time magazine. The longest sentence thus far is five years for a guy who assaulted a cop. The most infamous defendant, seen below, received only 41 months in prison. It stands to reason, particularly with a Democrat-controlled Justice Department, that the January 6 rioters would be receiving decades in prisons for an insurrection and attempted violent overthrow of government. But with many of them receiving only fines and community service, critical thinkers are left to deduce that January 6 is not as serious as mainstream media are portraying it. The entire episode strikes this blogger as contrived political theater, just in time to deflect attention away from the newly-authorized vaccines in 2021. But well leave the tin-foil kufi in the closet on that one. Gun rights expanded What a week for the U.S. Supreme Court. The June 23 New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, 597 U.S. ___ (2022) decision struck down the proper cause provision in the 111-year-old New York state Sullivan Act. The 6-3 decision essentially means that New York and all other gun-shy states, if you will, cannot force anyone who passes a background check to jump through any additional hoops to conceal-carry handguns. Justice Samuel Alito, in a concurring opinion, noted the following: And how does the dissent account for the fact that one of the mass shootings near the top of its list took place in Buffalo? The New York law at issue in this case obviously did not stop that perpetrator. Democrat governors and their voters were loudly upset about the decision. But the reaction therein was nothing compared to the Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, 597 U.S. ___ (2022) decision released the very next day. Roe v. Wade overturned This case could have been prevented altogether had the lone abortion clinic in the entire state of Mississippi agreed to lower its threshold for abortions from 16 weeks to 15 weeks. Instead Jackson Womens Health sued the state over its 2018 Gestational Age Act. It banned all abortions after 15 weeks except for cases of medical emergency or severe abnormalities in the fetus. The 1992 Supreme Court decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, 505 U.S. 833 (1992), among other things, established the fetal viability standard and struck down the trimester analysis from the 1973 Roe v. Wade case. Thus since 1992, a viable fetus is one that is 24 weeks old, versus the Roe 28-week standard. A Mississippi federal judge enjoined the state from enforcing its 15-week gestation law in 2018. Appellate courts had upheld the injunction for four years. But the Supreme Court reversed both Roe and Casey, reasoning that there is no mention of abortion as a civil right in the U.S. Constitution. The states have the power to regulate abortion as they please, according to the Court. Roe was decided on the legal philosophy of substantive due process, meaning rights not specifically enumerated in the Constitution. Privacy is a substantive due process civil right affirmed in the 1965 decision Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479 (1965). That case established that married couples can buy contraception without police and other state interference. Roe was decided on similar substantive due process grounds. But the Supreme Court, in the Dobbs decision wrote: The Court must not fall prey to such an unprincipled approach. Instead, guided by the history and tradition that map the essential components of our Nations concept of ordered liberty, we must ask what the Fourteenth Amendment means by the term liberty. When we engage in that inquiry in the present case, the clear answer is that the Fourteenth Amendment does not protect the right to an abortion. Abortion mayhem Hypocrisy and manufactured anger have engulfed the United States and world since the Dobbs decision. The most egregious example of hypocrisy came from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Its well established at this point that my body, my choice only refers to abortions in liberal politics. Their prize demographic is now LGBTV for vaccines and all liberal politicians must promote mandatory injections for all, including children. That said, the aftermath brought exactly what was expected. Shortly after the decision was released, protests erupted across the country. A pickup truck ran through a group of pro-abortion protesters in front of the U.S. District Court of Northern Iowa in Cedar Rapids that evening. Two people were injured as a result. No arrest have been announced as of publishing. There were also major disturbances in Los Angeles and Phoenix that night. Of course the race element always enters these types of distract and divide campaigns. Representative Mary Miller, R-Oakland (Illinois), is a freshman member of the U.S. House of Representatives. She appeared at a Trump rally in Mendon, Illinois on Saturday. Ms. Miller thanked the former president for the historic victory for white life in the Supreme Court yesterday. Note that 38% of U.S. abortions are Black babies, 33% White and 21% Latino. Of course later that night, Ms. Millers campaign said she misspoke. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-Bronx, then continued the Democrats deliberate confusion as to what is a woman. She declared the Dobbs decision was an attack on birthing people. Abortion outlawed in half the country Abortion was immediately outlawed in 13 states after the decision was released due to so-called trigger laws. At least 13 more states are likely to ban abortion or severely restrict it in the coming months. The banned and soon-to-be banned states are orange. California declared itself the national abortion sanctuary state. Several corporations, including Dicks Sporting Goods, issued statements saying that they will pay up to $4,000 in travel expenses for female employees wanting abortions but living in banned states. So what does all this mean? We know for certain that the news cycle will be centered around abortion, guns, January 6, and Ukraine for the foreseeable future. No mainstream media outlet will mention any of the following 10 young and relatively-young people dying suddenly and/or unexpectedly, continuing what is now an unwritten rule. Some of these deaths are from back in March, as were still trying to catch up on reporting all of them. Read more at: TheCOVIDBlog.com (Natural News) The administration of President Joe Biden is preventing Americas second-largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant from restarting operations after it was forced to shut down due to a fire in June over alleged risks to public safety. On June 8, an unexplained explosion knocked out Freeport LNGs plant in Quintana, Texas, after the blast caused a fire that spread through a large part of the plant. This facility is responsible for bringing America over two billion cubic feet of LNG per day and 16.5 million tons of LNG per year. (Related: Freeport Liquefied Natural Gas terminal down for the ENTIRE YEAR due to pipe explosion.) Continued operation of Freeports LNG export facility without corrective measures may pose an integrity risk to public safety, property or the environment, wrote the Department of Transportations Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) in its preliminary report. The report stated that the explosion was caused by a safety valve that led an 18-inch pipe with inner and outer stainless steel layers to overpressurize. A 300-foot section of pipe burst due to the pressure, releasing about 120,000 cubic feet of LNG and methane into the facility and causing the explosion and the fire. The PHMSA claimed a more thorough investigation into what caused the disaster is needed. This root cause analysis will delay a planned partial restart of the plant for 90 to 120 days and could also significantly delay a full restart. Freeport LNG plant likely to miss restart target In a statement, Freeport said it would work to obtain the necessary approvals from regulators. PHMSA has ordered Freeport LNG to submit a plan for an independent investigator to provide a report on the extent of the damage to the facility. Freeport is also ordered to hire a third party to review the state of the companys LNG storage tanks. After all of the reviews of Freeports facilities are completed, the company can submit a plan to repair the damage to the PHMSA. The company is hoping to partially restart operations by September to early October and full operation by the end of the year. The governments demands on the company will likely make the company miss its goals. The actual process [of reviews, repairs and approvals] will take longer than three months, and potentially take six to 12 months, said Alex Munton, director of global gas and LNG at the consulting firm Rapidan Energy Group. The explosion affecting Freeport LNG came as the world is experiencing a shortage of LNG. The forced closure of the Quintana plant has already affected an estimated 14 percent of American LNG exports. The monthlong outage has also sent natural gas prices in the country to tumble by 33 percent in June the biggest monthlong price drop since 2018 adding even more unwanted pressure on global gas prices at a time of already limited supply. Learn more about Americas fuel production at FuelSupply.news. Watch this episode of the Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, warns that Americas diesel supply could be entirely wiped out by 2023. This video is from oithe Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com. More related articles: Collapse continues: Environmentalists sue Biden regime to block 3,500 oil and gas permit applications for drilling on federal lands. Biden threatens oil companies to produce more even as they are already at full capacity amid skyrocketing gas, diesel prices. US cities banning natural gas connections to new buildings in an all-electric shift, increasing burdens on the power grid. FACT: Biden has sanctioned more American oil than Russian oil American consumers are PUNISHED while Putin gets REWARDED with extra revenues. Sources include: ZeroHedge.com Reuters.com WashingtonExaminer.com Brighteon.com Issues such as Arab food security, fertiliser supply for Brazilian agribusiness and the adoption of new business practices in a post-pandemic market will be discussed at the fourth Economic Forum Brazil & Arab Countries. To be organised by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on July 4, 2022, the forum will focus on core topics including bilateral relations between the two sides. Themed Legacy & Innovation, the hybrid event will be held at the Hotel Renaissance in Alameda Santos, starting at 8.30 am. Interested parties can also join the live stream on an interactive platform that offers instant translation. Strategic partnership Tamer Mansour, Secretary General of Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, said: The Forum will serve as a platform for high-level discussions between top-ranking Brazilian and Arab authorities on strengthening strategic partnership between the two sides. The forum also coincides with the 70th anniversary of ABCC, marking an important milestone for the Arab community in their historic relations with Brazil. According to Mansour, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will address the participants virtually at the forum. Dignitaries from the Brazilian government such as Joaquim Leite, Minister of Environment, and Carlos Franca, Minister of Foreign Affairs, are also expected to join virtually. The UAE Climate Change and Environment minister Mariam Al Mehairi will be delivering her speech on behalf of the Arab countries. Other dignitaries participating in the forum are Flavio Augusto Viana Rocha, Special secretary for Strategic Affairs; Augusto Pestana, President of Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil); Osmar Chohfi, President of Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce; and Abdullah Al Mazrouei, President of Union of Arab Chambers. Hamilton Mourao, Vice-President of Brazil, will give the closing remarks at the event. In addition, representatives of Arab embassies in Brazil, businesspeople and other authorities will also participate in the event. Four panel discussions The forum will feature four panel discussions on cooperation between Brazil and the Arab league and will seek ways to expand relations within a strategic framework. The first session will focus on the impact of the pandemic on bilateral trade and delve deeper into finding solutions to address existing challenges. Ambassador Rubens Barbosa, Chairman of the Institute of International Relations and Foreign Trade will be speaking in this panel. New Development Bank President Marcos Troyjo and Angela Martins, CEO for Latin America at First Abu Dhabi Bank, will participate in the second panel, where discussions will be held on adding value to the current trade relations and promoting bilateral investments between Brazil and Arab countries. Furthermore, the panel will also assess the impact of Brazils plan to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). ESG challenges Discussions on challenges in environmental, social and corporate governance will be the focus of the third panel. Initiatives taken by global companies in Arab countries will be highlighted along with an assessment of the leading trends in international governance. Lorival Luz, CEO of BRF, Ricardo Santin, President of Brazilian Association of Animal Protein and Ali Hussein El Zoghbi, Vice President of FAMBRAS Halal vice president will the members of the panel. The final panel will feature Roberta Junqueira, Director of Operations of Biobots Tec and Ahmed Elmurtada, partner of @249Startups, who will elaborate on the influence of digitisation on trade practices in the Arab region, where e-commerce is showing a high growth as compared to the rest of the world. The role of technologies like metaverse and blockchain in e-commerce will be discussed as well. Business delegations from Lebanon, the UAE, Egypt, Kuwait, Jordan, and other countries, with at least 120 businesspeople will be participating in the Economic Forum Brazil & Arab Countries to foster bilateral relations between the two regions. They will take part in B2B interactions with potential partners in Brazil. The forum will be sponsored by Apex-Brasil, BRF and Sadia. The event is sponsored by Apex-Brasil, BRF and Sadia Halal. In addition to the Chamber, the initiative is also held by the Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD), certifier FAMBRAS Halal, Pantanal Trading, and Embratur.-- TradeArabia News Service (Natural News) During a press conference held on June 30, after the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Madrid, President Joe Biden said that American drivers should expect to deal with the soaring gasoline prices until the war in Ukraine is over. When asked by a New York Times reporter how long American drivers should pay for the high cost of fuel, the president answered, as long as it takes, so Russia cannot in fact defeat Ukraine and move beyond Ukraine. This is a critical, critical position for the world, he added and blamed the elevated gas prices on the current conflict. Biden claimed that Russia is to blame for the high prices. The reason why gas prices are high is because of Russia. Russia, Russia, Russia. The reason the food crisis exists is because of Russia, he stated. Analysts are saying that the president seems to have rarely mentioned the Western sanctions that were given to Moscow. Biden also has policy efforts restricting oil and gas production inside the U.S. In March, his administration announced a ban on imports of Russian oil as part of an effort to punish the Kremlin. It can be observed that gas prices started shooting up after the Biden administration took over in January 2021. During the Spain conference, Biden said he will not ask Saudi Arabia to raise its oil production when he visits there in July. This should be contradicting earlier reports indicating that he would ask the kingdom and other top oil-producing nations to increase their production to deal with supply issues. Blame game: Biden says that oil price is sky-high because of US oil companies Apart from blaming the oil price hike on the Ukraine invasion, Biden also accused the gas companies of the continuous price spike. Earlier this month, Biden publicly blamed U.S. gasoline companies, including ExxonMobil and Chevron, for the high prices of this commodity. Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you are paying for the product. Do it now. Do it today. Your customers, the American people, they need relief now, Biden at a labor union event last June 22 at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Alex Jones, the InfoWars founder and host commented, that its still at $5 a gallon on average because Biden shut off thousands of pipelines, including the big Keystone Pipeline when it was already completed. Jones added that the present government cut all of the drilling permits, which just means Venezuela and China and everybody else just comes and drills it. And then we buy it from other countries. Furthermore, the president threatened to use emergency authorities against the industry in a letter that was sent to the CEOs of major petroleum firms. (Related: Biden threatens oil firms: Do something about rising gas prices or face consequences.) Your companies and others have an opportunity to take immediate actions to increase the supply of gasoline, diesel, and other refined products you are producing, he said in the letter. Biden stated that his administration is prepared to use all reasonable and appropriate federal government tools and emergency authorities to increase refinery capacity and output in the near term and to ensure that every region of this country is appropriately supplied. The letter was met with an indignant response. Your administration has largely sought to criticize, and at times vilify, our industry, Chevron CEO Michael Wirth wrote in an open letter to Biden released in June. Frank Macchiarola, a senior policy executive at the American Petroleum Institute trade body, said the outreach from the administration is lacking. Meanwhile, Biden reacted to Chevron CEOs missive and said I didnt know theyd get their feelings hurt that easily. Visit BigGovernment.news for more news related to the tyrannical measures the current administration is imposing. Watch the below video where Biden blames gas stations for his price hikes. This video is from the InfoWars channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: As economy reels from gas price hikes, Biden proposes gas tax holiday. Biden asks Congress to suspend federal gas tax for 90 days WHY NOT PERMANENTLY? Price of gas has more than doubled since Bidens first day in office. Americans blame Democrats, Bidens leadership as gas prices hit record highs. Sources include: TheEpochtimes.com News.Yahoo.com WhiteHouse.gov Brighteon.com Reuters.com (Natural News) Ever since Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccines were first introduced, birth rates all around the world have been plummeting. One of the hardest-hit nations so far is Taiwan, which compared to a year ago has seen a more than 23 percent decrease in birth rate. (Related: Covid injections are linked to the destruction of mens sperm.) There is not yet data available for 2022 since the year is only halfway through, but if current trends continue, Taiwan will see a 26-sigma event. This is can be described as unimaginable in terms of the likelihood of happening due to random chance, reports Great Game India about what a 26-sigma event is. The Wolfram-Alpha illustration of likelihood by sigma only goes to ten-sigma. They thought that it would be pointless to show more sigmas. Except a 26-sigma drop in birth rate just happened in Taiwan. A 1-sigma event means the likelihood of it happening every three days is 31.73 percent. It goes up exponentially from there, with the likelihood of an 8-sigma event happening every 803 trillion days being 0.00000000000012 percent. The destruction of Taiwans birth rate is a 26-sigma event, meaning the probability of it happening at random is zero. Clearly the jabs are to blame. After most of Taiwan got vaccinated, less than 77 percent of the babies expected were actually delivered Going back roughly nine months from May, we land at last September. This is right around the time when Chinese Virus shots were going into arms at breakneck speed. By Oct. 1, 2021, more than half of Taiwan was fully vaccinated. Not long after that, more than 91 percent of the countrys population had rolled up its sleeves. People of Taiwan got their shots, felt assured that Covid-19 stops with every vaccinated person, and moved on with their lives, Great Game India explains. I doubt that the people of Taiwan noticed anything at the end of September. They knew for sure that their vaccines were safe and effective and would not affect their sperm or pregnancies. So they proceeded with family plans just as before, trying to make babies on purpose, or partying and having fun and getting pregnant accidentally, just as people do elsewhere. Except for 9 months later, they only gave birth to 77% of the number of babies expected I hope that the people of Taiwan will start asking their authorities: what is happening to us? There is a possibility that the drop in birth rate is only temporary. The claim among some is that Fauci Flu jabs only inhibit reproduction, and cause other side effects, for a short time. Others, however, say the damage is more than likely permanent, and that everyone who got jabbed is now, or on the verge of becoming, sterile. Covid vaccines are known to disrupt the menstrual cycle and lower sperm counts, Great Game India further reveals. It is possible that some women, for a period of several months, could not conceive and become pregnant due to these disruptions. Because all Taiwanese women were vaccinated at almost the same time, those disruptions created a precipitous drop in birth rates. The reality is that crimes against humanity such as forced injection for the Chinese Virus are not typically just a few-months thing. The intent is to cause damage that never goes away, or, in many cases, immediate death. It really does seem as though Fauci Flu injections were specifically designed to destroy the reproductive systems of both men and women, the goal being to massively depopulate the planet and usher in a new world order. More Fauci Flu shot news can be found at Depopulation.news. Sources for this article include: GreatGameIndia.com NaturalNews.com (Natural News) Retired firefighter Chad Caton blasted former First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for her remarks against Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Her comments came amid the June 24 overturn of the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling on abortion. Clinton, apparently, has an enormous issue with Thomas all the way back from university, Caton said during the June 30 episode of his show Im Fired Up on Brighteon.TV. According to the New York Post, both Clinton and Thomas attended Yale Law School in Connecticut. The failed Democratic presidential candidate graduated in 1973, while the magistrate received his law degree a year later in 1974. Hes been a person of grievance for as long as Ive known him, Clinton told CBS Mornings host Gayle King during a recent interview. According to Clinton, Thomas concurring with Justice Samuel Alitos decision to overturn the 1973 ruling served as a subtle way of signaling other conservatives to reconsider other issues including contraception and same-sex marriages. (Related: Justice Clarence Thomas says same-sex marriage ruling issued under Obama has unleashed torrent of anti-Christian bigotry.) He may be on his own, but hes signaling as he often did, she said. The former First Lady also recounted the magistrate as saying back then: I may not win the first, the second or [the] third time, but were going to keep at it. The people he is speaking to are right-wing, very conservative judges, justices and state legislatures. Clinton ultimately warned King: Theres so many things about it that are deeply distressing. Women are going to die, Gayle. Women will die. Caton dubbed Clintons remarks as the pot [calling the] kettle black, adding that she had no right to denounce Thomas given that the former Secretary of State lost her right to litigate because of her nefarious actions. You have Hillary Clinton here who is going after a Supreme Court justice and basically trying to paint him as some kind of evil, angry person, [when hes] just out there litigating from the bench. Caton: Dems like Clinton love using the race card According to Caton, the usual norm for African-Americans in politics would be to join the Democratic Party. Thomas, however, went against the grain by joining the Republican Party. What you heard from Hillary Clinton [was that] she was calling Justice Thomas an Uncle Tom because hes angry with the wrong things. If he was angry about the right things, then Hillary [would] be like He is such a treasure.' Caton said Thomas has some common sense and understands the rule of law, which apparently irked Hillary. According to the Brighteon.TV host, Democrats such as Clinton seem to like to use race as a basis for their arguments. He commented: On our side, we have an African American man, whos a Supreme Court justice, saying that this stuff isnt right. But here you have the lily-white Karen, who cannot shut her moth and is as evil as they come. The retired firefighter also debunked any possibilities of Thomas going after contraceptives, something Hillary brought up during her interview with King. Could we really believe that Thomas will single-handedly say Thats it, no more rubbers, no more contraceptive for anybody? You know, were outlawing all contraceptive concepts? That wont happen. It will happen, though, when the socialist government or communism takes completely over our republic and they tell you what to eat and what to wear. Go ask the North Koreans; they [only] have five different hairstyles that are allowed. Caton ultimately concluded: Lets just call a spade a spade. The Clintons are gross, straight up gross. Watch the full June 30 episode of Im Fired Up below. Tune in to Im Fired Up with Chad Caton every Thursday at 10-11 a.m. on Brighteon.TV. This video is from the BrighteonTV channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Bishop Leon Benjamin: SCOTUS overturn of Roe v. Wade returns power to We The People Brighteon.TV. Normally moderate Roberts savages Roe v Wade, becomes hero for saying what everyone else is thinking. Chelsea Clinton claims abortions added trillions to the U.S. economy huh? Sources include: Brighteon.com NYPost.com (Natural News) In one of his last public appearances, Dr. Vladimir Zev Zelenko warned people against taking the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines. During an appearance on the ReAwaken America tour at the Elevate Life Church in Dallas, Texas, back in December 2021, Zelenko said the experimental vaccines are keeping people in a state of mass psychosis. Zelenko said this back in Dec. 2021, during an appearance on the ReAwaken America tour of the Elevate Life Church in Dallas, Texas, in front of thousands of people. Mass psychosis, or mass formation psychosis, happens when a significant portion of society is placed under a state of constant fear because its attention has been hyper-focused on a large vent or a series of small, connected events. People under this state can be hypnotized and led to believe anything, regardless of actual data proving otherwise. Vaccines keep people in chronic anxiety and isolation According to Zelenko, the COVID-19 vaccines are keeping people under two specific mental states necessary for continuing mass psychosis. These are chronic anxiety and human isolation, through which a persons social bonds and societal connections are severed, possibly permanently. Theres a global mass psychosis, where these depraved animals, what theyve done is use by the media and created a false narrative that has led us to be living in chronic anxiety and fear and human isolation, said Zelenko. If anyones studied psychological warfare, youll know that those two points anxiety and human isolation will cause most people to compensate psychologically, and become very vulnerable and gullible and easy to manipulate. To keep people in this very vulnerable state, release valves are often needed for their anxiety as a way to provide them with short-term relief. This is where the COVID-19 vaccines come in. According to Zelenko, the vaccines were offered up as a false golden calf as a false promise and people immediately gravitated toward them out of a desire for emotional release. Its not intellectual, its purely emotional, said Zelenko. And if you challenge someone, even the most intellectual people who fall into this trap you become belligerent, because what youre really doing is bringing them back into that anxiety state that they so desperately dont want to be in. Zelenko passes away following battle with rare cancer On June 30, Zelenko passed away at the age of 49 following a four-year-long battle with a rare form of cancer. (Related: CLAIM: Pfizer is planning to ASSASSINATE doctors like Bryan Ardis and Zev Zelenko.) Zelenko Labs, an organization the late doctor founded, released a statement on his passing: Dr. Zelenko was a physician, scientist and activist for medical rights who touched the lives of millions of people. Some were saved as his role as a doctor, and even more were inspired by his words. His Zelenko Protocol saved millions and earned him a Nobel Prize nomination and the admiration of a U.S. president, among other prominent world leaders. According to his organization, Zelenko, being the child of poor immigrants who picked himself up by his bootstraps, became the embodiment of the American dream. His family and the organization he founded have promised to keep fighting for the causes he believed in the most. Watch Dr. Zelenkos speech in the ReAwaken America tour as he talks about mass formation psychosis and the COVID-19 vaccines. This video is from the ThriveTime Show channel on Brighteon.com. More related articles: Dr. Zelenko shares how the MSM smeared him for revealing the cure to COVID Brighteon.TV. Dr. Zev Zelenko tells Dr. Peter Breggin: Humanity is on the verge of global enslavement Brighteon.TV. Dr. Vladimir Zelenko tells Pastor David Scarlett: COVID vaccines are changing people into transhumans Brighteon.TV. The Stew Peters Show: Vladimir Zelenkos life-saving, effective COVID-19 protocols demonized in favor of vaccines Brighteon.TV. Sources include: Brighteon.com StrangeSounds.org AmericasFrontlineNews.com (Natural News) Just recently, CNNs The View pundit Ana Navarro says multiple family members with autism, Downs syndrome and/or mental health challenges should have been aborted to save everyone the headaches of care and costs. Reacting to the recent Supreme Court decision overturning of Roe v. Wade, Navarro said: I am not anybody to tell you what you need to do with your life or with your uterus. She then mentioned special needs people in her family. I have a family with a lot of special needs kids. I have a brother whos 57 and has the mental and motor skills of a one-year-old. And I know what that means financially, emotionally, physically for a family. And I know not all families can do it. Adolf Hitler pushed for extermination of all mentally ill, handicapped and autistic humans due to financial burden on German economy and families Navarro said she has multiple family members with autism and/or Downs syndrome, and they are a financial burden on the family, so she makes the case that mothers could abort these children to save money (Hitler said the same exact thing about any humans with mental illness, Downs syndrome, or autism, whether child or adult). Hitler even had eugenics propaganda posters made to push the idea of murdering any human that is a drag on the family, society and the economy. Navarro pleaded with the listeners to abort these type of humans, or end up considering suicide over the financial and emotional burden of caring for them later, while the child also considers suicide because they cant get jobs and have financial issues. These talk show hosts make up to $350,000 per year and theyre crying the blues over their own children who have special needs being such a burden on them and society that they consider suicide. Its all an emotional propaganda push for pro-abortion extremists who love killing babies in the womb as part of the population reduction movement in America. This coincides with pushing COVID-19 vaccines for children, babies and pregnant women. These toxic spike protein injections also cause death by miscarriage, spontaneous abortion, blood clots, heart attacks and strokes. The irony of it all is that the Left is pushing so hard for vaccines, which are a known cause of autism, disabilities and central nervous system disorders. Go figure. Leftist talk show extremists want to convince America to exterminate babies in the womb they think MIGHT be born with special needs How many talk show host fans believe what they hear on these propaganda machines and actually change their lifestyles and actions accordingly? Navarro literally argued the case that American families will benefit from open access to abortion to PREVENT dealing with future (potential) special needs family members. This is the insane, woke mentality of these talk show hosts who wish their own family members with special needs had been aborted to save money. Got slow motor skills or missing a finger? Americas talk show hosts say you should have never been born, because youre a burden on the American financial system. Are you a slow learner? The Left wants your kind to be part of a new eugenics system that prevents this financial draw on society and the economy. What degree of unfit qualifies humans for extermination under this new leftist mentality? Is a human being who argues this stance on abortion fit for society themselves, or should they be locked up in an insane asylum for even suggesting these Nazi-style eugenics executions? Welcome to the Roe v. Wade overturn aftermath freak show on all the talk shows. Will we soon see Nazi-style eugenics posters like these in America, promoting abortion to avoid humans born with special needs and/or disabilities? Will these be the new commercials during the talk shows to promote abortion? Bookmark Vaccines.news to your favorite independent websites for updates on experimental vaccines that cause autism, miscarriages and spontaneous abortions. Sources for this article include: ZeroHedge.com NaturalNews.com (Natural News) The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has just added Ruja Ignatova, also known as the Cryptoqueen, to its 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list. Ignatova is known for her involvement in the Ponzi scheme known as OneCoin, which is estimated to have defrauded investors out of over $4 billion. The scam, which was active from late 2014 to March 2016, promoted OneCoin as a cryptocurrency project with its own native crypto asset that would kill off Bitcoin. In 2016, in front of a crowd of thousands, Ignatova falsely claimed that OneCoin was on track to become the worlds biggest cryptocurrency. In marketing the cryptocurrency, Ignatova also claimed that OneCoin had its own private blockchain. This contrasted OneCoin from other cryptocurrencies which have public and decentralized blockchains. There was no blockchain and the crypto asset behind the scam was not real. But OneCoins victims were not privy to this information, and continued to wire investment funds to their OneCoin accounts to purchase crypto packages that were essentially worthless. (Related: CRYPTO CON: LUNA founder siphoned off $80 million PER MONTH from the crypto Ponzi scheme before it collapsed, leaving investors wiped out.) FBI offering reward for information on Cryptoqueens whereabouts By 2017, OneCoins investors started to become suspicious. Some of OneCoins major investors wanted to meet with Ignatova at a scheduled gathering of OneCoin promoters in Lisbon, Portugal, in Oct. 2017. Ignatova never showed up, and she disappeared right around that time. According to FBI reports, Ignatova traveled from her native Bulgaria to Athens, Greece, on Oct. 25, 2017, and from there traveled elsewhere and went into hiding. The U.S. District Court of New York had already issued a federal warrant for her arrest by that time. By Feb. 2018, Ignatova was indicted in absentia for wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering. She was added to the FBIs 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list on June 30, becoming only the 11th woman to be placed on the list. In Nov. 2021, during a trial against Ignatovas German attorney Martin Breidenbach, information came out revealing how the Cryptoqueen lived a lavish lifestyle and purchased an $18.2 million penthouse in London before she disappeared. By mid-May 2022, the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) added Ignatova to Europes Most Wanted Fugitives list. Investigators say that, before she fled, she had black hair and brown eyes. The FBI warned that she could have altered her physical appearance. Ignatova speaks fluent Bulgarian, German and English, and the FBI noted she may be traveling on a fraudulent passport to stay with known associates in Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Russia or the United Arab Emirates. The FBI is offering up to $100,000 for information on her whereabouts. Europol is also offering a reward of up to 5,000 euros ($5,214) for information that can lead to Ignatovas capture. FBI special agent Ronald Shimko, one of the lead investigators attached to Ignatovas case, hopes the Cryptoqueens addition to the 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list will bring more attention to the case and lead to her arrest. There are so many victims all over the world who were financially devastated by this, said Shimko in a statement. We want to bring her to justice. Learn more about cryptocurrencies at CryptoCult.news. Watch this Brighteon Conversations episode of the Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, talks to John Perez, the Crypto Nostradamus, about the bigger crash coming to the crypto industry. This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com. More related articles: Hackers steal over $104 million worth of crypto assets from blockchain bridge. Hackers steal $196 million from crypto trading platform Bitmart. Brothers abscond with $4 billion in crypto stolen from South African exchange. Tamper-proof cryptocurrency wallet just backdoored by a 15-year-old self-taught programmer. $64M in Bitcoin was just stolen by hackers who targeted the NiceHash marketplace. Sources include: Vice.com News.Bitcoin.com Brighteon.com (Natural News) There will be nuclear war if we stay on this path. Almost every day, we get more news about how both sides are escalating the conflict in Ukraine. If the American people truly understood what was at stake, there would be giant protests in the streets of every major U.S. city right now. But they dont. Most of us are entirely convinced that our leaders can do whatever they want in Ukraine without sparking a nuclear war. But the Russians see things very differently. On Russian television there are endless discussions about how the war in Ukraine is really a proxy war between the United States and Russia, and pundits openly discuss the possibility that eventually nuclear weapons will be used. In fact, the destruction of specific U.S. cities has even been discussed on Russian television, but most Americans never hear anything about this. (Article by Michael Snyder republished from TheMostImportantNews.com) In a nuclear conflict, the side that uses their weapons first has the best chance of surviving, and the Russians understand this very well. If push comes to shove, the Russians wont hesitate to strike if they believe that nuclear war has become inevitable. So we need to stop this madness while we still can. Unfortunately, our leaders seem to have no interest in ending the conflict in Ukraine. Instead, they just keep doing things to raise tensions even higher. This week, Joe Biden announced that the U.S. will be sending thousands more troops to eastern Europe America will deploy thousands more troops to Europe along with fighters, air defences and ships, Joe Biden announced today, as NATO reinforces its eastern flank in a new Iron Curtain to protect the continent from Russia. Joe Biden, speaking at a NATO summit in Madrid today, announced the creation of a new base for the US Fifth Army Corps in Poland the first permanent American base in the country along with 3,000 extra soldiers to be sent to Romania and enhanced troop rotations for the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. This commitment from Biden is part of an overall NATO effort to increase the total number of high readiness forces in Europe to well over 300,000 NATO will enhance its battle groups in the eastern part of the alliance up to brigade levels, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced Monday. We will increase the number of high readiness forces to well over 300,000, he said at a news conference in Brussels. This includes more pre-positioned equipment and stockpiles of military supplies; more forward-deployed capabilities, like air defense; strengthened command and control, and upgraded defense plans with forces pre-assigned to defend specific allies, Stoltenberg added. To the Russians, this looks like a potential invasion force. Of course the Russians continue to do things to escalate the conflict as well. For example, Vladimir Putin just announced that the Russians will be putting nuclear-capable ballistic missiles in Belarus Russia plans to place nuclear-capable ballistic missiles in Belarus, a NATO-neighboring Russian ally that housed the forces that invaded Ukraine and attacked Kyiv. That missile placement would continue a trend of Russian President Vladimir Putin subordinating Belarus to his vision of a union-state led by the Kremlin while sending an ominous signal to NATO perhaps especially Poland and Lithuania, whose borders separate Belarus from Kaliningrad, the Russian exclave near the Baltic Sea. Our decision has been made: We will hand over a number of tactical missile systems Iskander-M to Belarus within the next few months, Putin said during a meeting with Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko. They can fire ballistic and cruise missiles with conventional and nuclear warheads. The Russians have also suggested that Cuba may be a good location for missiles as well. If you know your history, that should set off some alarm bells. So much is happening right now, but most Americans are not paying attention. At this point, the U.S. is providing more funding for the war in Ukraine than anyone else, more weapons for the war in Ukraine than anyone else, and more intelligence for the war in Ukraine than anyone else. The Ukrainians are providing the dead bodies, but it is the U.S. that is really running the show. And thanks to the New York Times, we have learned that CIA operatives have been secretly operating on the ground in Ukraine all throughout the war As Russian troops press ahead with a grinding campaign to seize eastern Ukraine, the nations ability to resist the onslaught depends more than ever on help from the United States and its allies including a stealthy network of commandos and spies rushing to provide weapons, intelligence and training, according to U.S. and European officials. Much of this work happens outside Ukraine, at bases in Germany, France and Britain, for example. But even as the Biden administration has declared it will not deploy American troops to Ukraine, some C.I.A. personnel have continued to operate in the country secretly, mostly in the capital, Kyiv, directing much of the massive amounts of intelligence the United States is sharing with Ukrainian forces, according to current and former officials. But despite all the help that Ukraine has been getting from the United States, the Russians continue to take more ground just about every single day. Instead of admitting that the Ukrainians are in a fight that they cant possibly win and looking for a peaceful way out, our leaders just keep upping the ante instead. And at this point, Congress is going to give the Pentagon and the CIA literally everything that they want for the war in Ukraine I dont think people realize that right now the spigot from Congress is fully open. Money, weps, intel, whatever they need, tweeted Jack Murphy, journalist and Iraq/Afghanistan vet. The American public is not being appropriately informed about what our government is up to as basically every single op DOD/CIA proposes is getting the green light. The only way that an overwhelming Russian victory can be prevented at this point would be for the United States to get far more involved in the war. But if we keep getting deeper and deeper into this conflict, at some point the United States and Russia will start shooting at one another. And once we reach that juncture, things could go nuclear very rapidly. You may be thinking that there is no point in being concerned about a nuclear war because if one happens we will all be dead anyway. If that is what you think, you are dead wrong. Studies have determined that only about 20 percent of all Americans would be immediately killed by a full-blown nuclear exchange. Here is one example This full-scale nuclear war was estimated to cause 770 million direct deaths and generate 180 Tg of soot from burning cities and forests. In the US, about half the population would be within 5km of a ground zero, and a fifth of the countrys citizens would be killed outright. But that doesnt mean that most of us would survive. Ultimately, the vast majority of the population would slowly starve to death. A full-blown nuclear exchange would cause a nuclear winter and very little food would be able to be grown for an extended period of time A subsequent study, published in 2019, looked at a comparable but slightly lower 150 Tg atmospheric soot injection following an equivalent scale nuclear war. The devastation causes so much smoke that only 30-40 percent of sunlight reaches the Earths surface for the subsequent six months. A massive drop in temperature follows, with the weather staying below freezing throughout the subsequent Northern Hemisphere summer. In Iowa, for example, the model shows temperatures staying below 0C for 730 days straight. There is no growing season. This is a true nuclear winter. So it could be argued that those that are wiped out during a future nuclear exchange will actually be the lucky ones. Could you imagine the horror of watching your family slowly starve to death in a world that has gone completely mad? We must not let things get to that point. We need to try to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Ukraine while we still can. Unfortunately, Joe Biden has surrounded himself with the worst foreign policy team in U.S. history, and they seem to have ruled out trying to find a way to have peace with the Russians. So we continue to steamroll toward a nuclear cataclysm, and very few of us even seem interested in changing course. Read more at: TheMostImportantNews.com (Natural News) Jacinda Ardern, who has escaped the continuing restrictions in New Zealand to visit Europe and speak at NATO, has met with her counterparts in France and Spain to suggest a global alliance to combat disinformation. (Article by Guy Hatchard republished from HatchardReport.com) Ardern spoke to them about the New Zealand capital grounds riot and played to her gullible audience by suggesting the threat to social cohesion and public health in New Zealand society was originating in Russia and might result in war. Ardern has had talks with President Macron which reportedly included disinformation. I am not sure that the events in Wellington would have qualified as a riot in France. There were no Molotov cocktails of the kind you see in the frequent French protests, mostly people were playing music, engaging in conversations, and enjoying camping out, whilst standing up for their rightssomething legally allowed in New Zealand. I suspect that Macron probably relied on Ardern as his one source of truth when it came to descriptions of New Zealand riots (??). How is it possible that our lame duck prime minister can swan about in the military circles of Europe making outrageous claims about New Zealand society without being challenged by our press? Quite the reverse, Stuff newspaper seemed to enjoy reporting Arderns sensational characterisations of NZ protests. Misinformation is a threat and affecting NZ, Jacinda Ardern says ahead of Nato speech. Glenn McConnell in Madrid stuff.co.nz It seems to me that many of the worlds current leaders are busy winding each other up with more and more outrageous exaggerations which only serve to up the fear factor among themselves. They are victims of disinformation, but it appears to be of their own makingacting like villagers rushing about in a panic when someone shouts out snake when they have only seen a rope. In such a panicked atmosphere, it is hard to strike up a rational conversation with our politicians. All parties have firmly closed the door to two-way communication with their constituents on pandemic policy. Public Information has Become Carefully-crafted, Government-Approved Sound Bites Public information has become limited to a succession of carefully-crafted, government-approved sound bites, which fade rapidly together into an aggregation of false interpretations and assumptions which inevitably take root in our social psyche. We are daily schooled to be afraid. We are in the middle of a pandemic (??), which is clearly now milder than flu, promoting a vaccine (??) that doesnt work and causes severe adverse effects. We are religiously trained to wear masks that studies show dont work, and whose constant use is proven to cause headaches and respiratory defects. Our every move is being tracked by Apps that collect our personal data that can and are being misused. For almost a year now I have been writing at the HatchardReport.com long format refutations of disinformation being promoted by our government. One Official Source of Disinformation I have consistently referenced my work to published scientific work in learned journals. Unfortunately, solid information in the modern age has become fleeting and quickly forgotten. No sooner have you shot down one canard such as the effectiveness of mRNA vaccines (they are not effective and dont deserve the name vaccine) through reference to many studies, than a government advertising campaign starts up, as it did this week, telling the public in 30 seconds that mRNA vaccination provides greater protection than anything (yes anything) natural immunity can provide. Clearly, the governments advertising copywriters did not read this British Medical Journal article and couldnt care less about the truth. An Organised Campaign to Deceive the Public It is a rather one sided battle if the government has paid the media to report their false story and exclude your referenced discussion. It becomes an organised campaign to deceive the public when the referenced work of scientists is labelled disinformation likely to start a war by our prime minister. The absurdity should make us laugh, but the depth of modern psychological propaganda is being exploited to the full. It is no longer a laughing matter. Public Record of The Deception and Lies The Hatchard Report is available as a record and referenced source of science reporting intended to alert the public to the risks of novel biotechnology. Our public health authorities have never informed us honestly about the long term risks. Despite the effective collapse of early evidence compiled and widely publicised by Pfizer PR campaigns, our government has doubled down on mRNA vaccine use. Apparently, our health czars have decided to follow the government and ignore the accumulating evidence of harm. It cant be ignored any longer. They have to stand up to the government disinformation storm. Last week I reported on a paper co-authored by Prof. Sander Greenland, perhaps one of the most experienced statisticians/epidemiologists in the world. He found a 50% increase in serious adverse events in the vaccinated compared to the unvaccinated group in the Pfizer trial. The authors point out that this finding is consistent with the findings of pharmacovigilance databases in Europe and the US. They also show that the risk of these adverse outcomes exceeds any possible benefit from reduced Covid-19 hospitalization. 8-fold Increase in Myocarditis Another article along the same lines is a case-control study from France, which found an 8-fold increase in myocarditis after the 2nd Pfizer injection, compared to millions of controls from the French population. This is consistent with findings in other areas of the world. For example, a recent study of myocarditis & pericarditis from Hong Kong found a rate of myopericarditis of 37 per 100,000. This is equivalent to 1 case per 2,700 male adolescents injected with dose 2 of Pfizer mRNA vaccine. There are always going to be many unknowns associated with evolving scientific assessment, but there is accumulating evidence of substantial harm from the Pfizer injection which is accruing from several independent sources. The long term risks should not and cannot be hidden from the public any longer. Nor should the government be allowed to continue making false assertions of safety and efficacy contrary to scientific fact. The misleading saturation advertising and the public posturing of our prime minister has become a scandal and an embarrassment to our nation. Read more at: HatchardReport.com (Natural News) Another day, another bloody siege against the alternative media. (Article by Daisy Luther republished from TheOrganicPrepper.com) Recently, The Organic Prepper website was targeted by an Orwellian judge-and-jury of the internet called NewsGuard. In a series of emails, the organization demanded that we make a variety of changes. While some changes seemed reasonable, others were completely out of line with our websites integrity. We arent the only ones so-targeted. Also found lacking by NewsGuard were LewRockwell.com, ZeroHedge.com, DailyKos.com, Alternet.org, MintPress News, Mercola.com, and MindBodyGreen, to name a few. What do we all have in common? Were all willing to question the official narrative. And in 2022, under the current administration, thats simply against the rules of the powers that be. Questioning the establishment is akin to treason, a crime that must be punished, and voices that must be silenced lest others be led into the dark, disturbing corners of thinking for themselves. Let me tell you what happened. Despite politely corresponding with the person who contacted us and updating some of the things requested, we were given a poor rating and a red warning flag in a move that could damage our credibility and our ability to do business. Why? Well, in part because we refused to cede to their demands, and we instead chose to offer both sides of the story. In a tale of audacity that reminds me of extortion schemes and enforced protection by the Mob, our unwillingness to get in line puts at risk our very existence. Waitboth sides of the story? It turns out that apparently, such open-mindedness is no longer acceptable in the United States of America. DISCLAIMER What follows is my OPINION AND PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE on what occurred. (Even if NewsGuard is mad about our opinionated language, at this point, we still live in a country in which opinions are protected speech. Well, sort of, as youll see.) In short, a self-appointed Ministry of Truth that publicly purports to help sites that support certain narratives make more money while downgrading sites that question the official line combed through ten years of articles on The Organic Prepper website and requested we make a number of changes and correct our errors. When the organization failed to prove to me that we had, in fact, published erroneous information, I posted additional links into the articles in question, providing readers with a variety of opinions on the topics at hand. This was insufficient, as youll see from screenshots I took from NewsGuards write-up on this website. My refusal to correct information that I still do not believe to be incorrect was deemed a deliberate and repeated publication of false information. NewsGuard, a corporate arm of censorship enforcement with ties to the United States government, doesnt think that the readers of this website are capable of reading information and ascertaining what they believe to be correct. They seem to feel that readers must be spoon-fed one narrative without any questions, or those same readers will be blithely led down the path of confusion and falsehoods. However, dear readers, I have more faith in you. I know that you can consume a plethora of information from a wide variety of sources and have the intelligence and good judgment to make up your own minds about what is true and what is false. Interestingly, other sites that were allegedly guilty of the same journalistic crimes scored far higher and received a green flag. Upcoming articles will address these conflicting ratings and will provide the timeline for our correspondence with NewsGuard. Weve been warning for ages that our website and any other site posting viewpoints that arent in lockstep with the mainstream narrative are being targeted and censored. Weve been telling you that its only a matter of time until alternative views are just a whisper in the darkness of a propagandized, government-controlled media. A quick history of modern alternative media censorship The first time I experienced blatant censorship firsthand was in 2016 when I posted an article that contained two videos. One was the edited clip shown on the news, and the other was the unedited clip. Of course, the unedited clip was promptly removed from YouTube, and my post about this was removed from Facebook for hate speech. You can see the article in question here and the follow-up about what happened here. About a year later, California proposed an absurd bill that would punish anyone sharing fake news. By 2018, the pace had picked up dramatically. First, in March, I shared a video by Ben Swann (ironically, its been removed by YouTube) that discussed the modern Newspeak, assuring we only hear one side of every story. Later, in September, I addressed the purge of alternative voices from social media, starting with Alex Jones. I warned that you didnt have to be a fan of Jones to be unhappy that hed been silenced. By October, that purge had spread to include the Twitter and Facebook accounts of the following outlets: The AntiMedia (2.1 million fans), The Free Thought Project (3.1 million fans), Press for Truth (350K fans), Police the Police (1.9 million fans), Cop Block (1.7 million fans), and Punk Rock Libertarians (125K fans). At that time, I wrote, The alternative media purge is just the beginning. And we should all be very concerned. Unfortunately, that prediction was correct. Between 2018 and 2022, we published more than 50 articles about continuing censorship, biased fact-checking, the 1st Amendment, and the double standard in social media and mainstream media. Some of those articles you may wish to look at are The Censorship of Alternative Media Is Virtual Book Burning, 51% of Americans Want to END Freedom of Speech (Many Even Want JAIL TIME for Hate Speech), SILENCED: We Live in a Time When Our Opinions Qualify as Crimes, and Big Tech Can Make Sure Billions of People NEVER See Dissenting Opinions. Businesses were destroyed, people were canceled, and any opposition was deemed hateful or false. We at The Organic Prepper got defunded in 2021 for being a disinformation website, and when I began to take legal action, threats ensued that could have ruined us all. (Were sure they were completely unrelated to the lawsuit.) We lost thousands of dollars in monthly income, and it has been a true financial struggle ever since that happened. The DHS started, then closed, a Ministry of Truth. This year, the Department of Homeland Security tapped Nina Jancowicz to run a newly created Government Disinformation Board to become the official government arbiters of truth. After the Attorneys General of 20 states threatened legal action over the dystopian unit, it was disbanded (or at least paused.) This is rather misleading, though. While the official DHS board is no more, censorship is still alive and well. NewsGuard wields a different weapon than the official Ministry, but its no less menacing and leaves no room for dissenting opinions. This direct attack on the Organic Prepper and many other sites is yet another piece of evidence upon the steaming pile. Its because of this, we established a monthly newsletter that contains all of the articles from the previous month that were published on The OP. We dont want our valuable information to be lost forever. If you havent yet subscribed yet (its just $7), you should do so now, because who knows where this will lead? What is NewsGuard? Who are these self-proclaimed beacons of journalistic integrity? Im glad you asked. First, lets talk about NewsGuard itself. First, they provide online safety for readers, brands, and democracies. Because we certainly cant let readers, brands, or democracies be exposed to dangerous opinions. Some of their partners are the US Department of Defense, the US Department of State, the US Department of Digital Culture, Media, and Sports, the World Health Organization, Microsoft, Bing, MSN, and many others. Their homepage explains their goal of increasing ad revenue on credible sites. Here are some screenshots of the partnerships of which they boast. My understanding of the First Amendment is that the government cannot be involved in censoring free speech, dissent, and personal opinions. And yet, here is NewsGuard, publicly announcing on their home page their ties to the Department of Defense and the Department of State. Their Social Impact Report describes how they have rated 7,466 news sites, cataloged 762 false narratives as misinformation fingerprints, and infiltrated the computers of more than 800 public libraries. They are also spreading their message of media literacy to the public school system. My personal opinion is that Newsguard is an organization using taxpayer-funded partnerships to disseminate approved narratives to taxpayer-funded outlets such as libraries and schools. One must note that the United States government appears to be sidestepping its constitutional limitations by crushing dissent through a corporate third party. (China, anyone?) The person with whom I was in contact was McKenzie Sadeghi, a misinformation monitor, as per her LinkedIn account. Previous to her job at Newsguard, she worked in several fact-checking positions at USA Today. It appears she received her Bachelors degree in Journalism just last year and that she is currently studying journalism for her Masters degree. Her self-named blog appears to have been removed. (Was there false information, perchance?) According to her Facebook account, she graduated from high school in 2017. So a young lady with a recent college degree is somehow deemed eligible to assess a website that helps to financially support a number of writers as well as administrative staff. Is there any regard for the fact that such attacks, completely unprovoked, could end up putting all of us in the breadlines? Does this young woman have any idea of the potential repercussions of this hit piece she helped to compose? Does she even care? These are certainly all questions that crossed my mind. But even more than that, are the people at NewsGuard so afraid of those who would think critically that its worth ruining the lives and livelihoods of people sharing their opinions in the United States of America? I know of a few other regimes that feel this way about the dangers of dissent. And those people are just doing their jobs, too. What did NewsGuard say about The Organic Prepper? Heres our Nutrition Label their term for a summary of the NewsGuard assessment. Lets look at these allegations. Covid-19 We have been reporting on Covid-19 since before it was called Covid-19. While the mainstream media was still pooh-pooing the possibility of a pandemic, we warned our readers to get prepared not so much for the illness itself but for the potential effects on our system. We covered a variety of treatments, including my own personal experience with Covid in Mexico and a look at treatments that were frowned upon by the establishment despite copious numbers of studies that supported their use. We clearly stated repeatedly that our opinions were not medical advice, but NewsGuard seems to believe that readers cannot figure out the difference between advice and opinions. Heres what they had to say. Please note that they themselves said we quoted directly from the study they touted to support our own opinions. As well, in the article with which they took umbrage about our opinion on masks, I added ten sources that supported their theory and ten sources that supported alternative views. All of these supporting studies were peer-reviewed. Why would we add a correction to something we do not believe was incorrect? Why cant we explore alternative information without being branded as liars? We never claimed to be medical experts. We just questioned the official narrative. (And need I remind you how many times that narrative has changed?) Darkening the sun In another offense our writers are made out to be some kind of Luddites when we pointed out that Bill Gates was funding research to potentially darken the sun in the hopes of slowing down global warming. Never did we state that the goal of that research was to black out the sun. The website we cited was Forbes, a green-flagged website with a 100/100 rating from NewsGuard. Interestingly, Forbes posted the following headline (with no correction.) Always happy to share both sides of the story, we added an update. Update: Please note that we arent saying that this experiment is an effort to block out the sun as the MSM has run with, making those who doubt the wisdom of this experiment sound like ignorant flat earthers. Were just citing precisely what the website says darkening. However, NewsGuard took umbrage at our update because it was not a correction. We eagerly await Forbes correction. NewsGuard repeatedly demanded that we issue corrections to anything with which they disagreed. In my reply, I wrote: I firmly stand behind our right to share both sides of a story without committing to an approved narrative. The right to question our government is the reason the First Amendment was written. Our perspective Another sticking point with the folks at NewsGuard was my unwillingness to state a perspective. Its simple. Our perspective is thinking critically. Our writers come from a variety of backgrounds: we have different politics, different religions, different nationalities, and different life experiences. It seems that they were urging me to state that we were right wing or conservative when in fact, we are neither as a group. Meanwhile, other green-flagged sites such as CNN and Huffington Post regularly use opinionated language. I suppose it just depends upon your point of view whether or not its an opinion or a lie? And its pretty sad that we are supposed to pigeonhole ourselves as either right or left. I opine that adamantly sticking to the narratives of right vs. left is a huge problem with our country. (Want uninterrupted access to The Organic Prepper? Check out our paid-subscription newsletter.) What can we do about this? It astounds me that weve reached a point in which encouraging readers to question a narrative and think for themselves is considered false. It horrifies me that those of us who do so are being targeted and labeled and that its done in partnership with various entities that are part of the United States government. It doesnt stop with simply undermining our credibility. Groups like this will not be happy until we are defunded, unable to bank, and no longer able to publish alternative points of view. This is part of the Great Silencing, and dont think for a moment that it will end with a little red flag icon. We urge you to support our website by subscribing to our monthly newsletter. Youll receive a downloadable PDF copy of everything we have posted during the previous month on the 15th. Its incredibly important to store this information now because we really dont know what comes next. Whatever it is, free speech isnt on the menu for NewsGuard and other referees of the internet. On our side, well continue to share both sides of the story and trust you to think for yourselves. Well work hard to help you stay prepared and point out the things you may wish to question. We will continue to cover the rise of the fact-checkers and will be adding a whole new category to do just that. In upcoming articles, I will continue to break down NewsGuards assessment of this website and Ill also compare our assessment with other sites that got the green light. We are in this fight together. Alternative media is the last bastion of free speech and were being vigorously attacked. By reading, sponsoring, and sharing our work with others, you can help us to stand strong. Wed love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Tell us whether or not you believe entities like NewsGuard have it right, or if you want to be able to read different points of view. Lets discuss it in the comments. Read more at: TheOrganicPrepper.com (Natural News) Following the unprecedented leak of a draft Supreme Court decision in early May indicating that a majority of justices wanted to overturn the disastrous Roe v. Wade ruling from 1973 legalizing abortion in all 50 states, several pro-abortion groups like Janes Revenge formed and began attacking churches and pro-life pregnancy centers. After the official decision was released on Friday, the group published a manifesto of sorts essentially pledging more violence and attacks. [T]he leash is off, the group announced in the manifesto, as noted by the Christian legal organization Liberty Counsel. We have demonstrated in the past month how easy and fun it is to attack. [W]e answer to no one but ourselves, continues the missive before issuing this threat: We promised to take increasingly drastic measures. Rest assured that we will, and those measures may not come in the form of something so easily cleaned up as fire and graffiti. The assassination attempt on Justice Brett Kavanaughs life was not enough for these pro-abortion terrorists, Liberty Counsel noted, adding that pro-life organizations are warned further to close their activities, or they will be next. But until you do, its open season, and we know where your operations are. The infrastructure of the enslavers will not survive. We will never stop, back down, slow down, or retreat, said the manifesto. Now, several congressional Republicans are pressing Joe Bidens AWOL administration to do its job and treat Janes Revenge and similar groups as domestic terrorists. Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), along with 28 other House Republicans, sent a letter calling the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI to classify those committing crimes through Janes Revenge as domestic terrorists. These violent acts violate U.S. and State law, and the group itself has claimed intent to intimidate civilians and government officials, the letter continued. You must use the full extent of your powers under the law to fully prosecute these criminals and prevent further crime. The letter quotes the groups June 14 manifesto. It is clear by their threats that the members of this group have no regard for human life and may be willing to kill those in the pro-life community to further their politically motivated agenda, the letter says. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-NC) has also sent a letter to House Oversight Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Chairman Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) in order to request a hearing on the attacks, the Washington Examiner reported, citing Fox News. Mace noted that the DHS issued a memo on June 7 that warned of a heightened threat environment in the coming months, but which did not make clear what the federal government is doing to prevent such attacks or respond to those that have already occurred. We must examine the disturbing trend of rising left-wing violence and conduct oversight over the federal governments response to this growing threat, Mace wrote. Naturally, Democrats havent said much of anything about these attacks because they are hypocrites and cowards facts that did not escape the attention of Mullin. Mullin called the Lefts unwillingness to speak out against these acts shameful. The violent attacks committed by Janes Revenge and other left-wing activist groups have no place in our Republic, Mullin said. And the members of this organization have made it clear they are not done. Its shameful the Left has proven, so far, unwilling to speak out against their own fringe narrative, especially if it means American lives are in danger, he said, according to the Examiner. Its past time the Biden Administration quits with the complacency and investigates these members for exactly what they are: domestic terrorists. We are demanding immediate action to prevent this violence from occurring ever again. Sources include: WashingtonExaminer.com FoxNews.com Qatar Airways has increased services to Berlin from daily flights to 10 weekly from August 12 and further rising to 11 weekly on September 6. German passengers from Berlin Brandenberg Airport can enjoy flights Qatar Airways Boeing 787 aircraft, to global business cities including Mumbai, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo plus leisure destinations including Bali, Maldives, Seychelles and South Africa. Qatar Airways operates flights from three airports in the country - Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich - as it maintained services to 2 cities and helped bring almost 25,000 passengers safely home to Germany in the early days of the pandemic. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Akbar Al Baker, said: We have continuously supported the German market to ensure stronger connectivity to our passengers, allowing them to have one stop services to so many global destinations. We have made huge efforts to provide options to our passengers in Germany and by increasing our Berlin schedule to 11 flights per week, we now operate 46 flights per week to Doha from our three gateways. Our passengers in Germany benefit enormously from having not just a world class product from the only Skytrax Five Star Airline in Europe and the Middle East, but a greater choice of destinations, all connected through Hamad International Airport, recently voted the Worlds Best Airport for the second time. We are proud to have maintained a constant presence throughout the pandemic, helping to repatriate thousands of Germans by providing them options to get them home in addition to many charter flights. Passengers can now travel to over 150 destinations in the Qatar Airways network, with an increasing presence in Africa, now featuring 30 destinations in 19 countries, five in Australia, 32 in the Middle East and 16 in Asia. TradeArabia News Service (Natural News) According to the State of Colorado and The Associated Press and the New York Times! the official results for the GOP primary race for Secretary of State have Pam Anderson winning with 43% of the total vote, and Tina Peters second with 28% but the real story was that Australian businessman Mike ODonnell had picked up 28% himself, and might actually beat Tina Peters too. (Article by Emerald Robinson republished from EmeraldDB3.Substack.com) I wanted to know more about Mike ODonnell because I had never heard of Mike ODonnell. In the most high-profile race in America for the office of Secretary of State, a candidate who had become a national political figure, who had the highest name recognition, who outraised both of her opponents by 3 to 1, who spoke at rallies with President Trump, who was the obvious frontrunner that person didnt just lose, but she tied with a guy who had none of those things in a GOP primary. I didnt even know that Mike ODonnell was running in the race until I saw the race results. How did an unknown candidate like Mike ODonnell manage to garner as many votes as a national political figure like Tina Peters? This question, ladies and gentlemen, is what leads you down the rabbit hole of Americas bogus election system. I went looking, in other words, for Mike ODonnells 170,000 supporters in Colorado. I didnt find them on Facebook only 193 people were following his campaign page. Mike ODonnells 170,000 supporters were not hiding on Twitter either just 560 of them were following his campaign at all. The day before the election, his last tweet managed to get 4 likes. Thats the most interaction that his campaign Twitter account got ever. Mike ODonnell sent out 1,306 tweets on his account and the vast majority of them got: 0 Likes and 0 Retweets and 0 Comments. There was no interaction on his Twitter account because nobody was voting for Mike ODonnell. How about fundraising? According to Colorado Public Radio News, Mike ODonnell had managed to raise $4,700 for his campaign three weeks before the primary. And yet on election day, Mike ODonnell got nearly a third of the total vote and over 600,000 people voted in that race. More than 170,000 Colorado voters suddenly appear out of nowhere for Mike ODonnell. So many people suddenly appear for Mike ODonnell that he actually wins 17 counties in Colorado. Mike ODonnell is the outright winner in Jackson County (43%) and Rio Blanco County (37%) and Conejos County (41%) and Fremont County (34%) and Las Animas County (36%) and Prowers County (37%) and Bent County (34%) and Otero County (40%) and Kiowa County (38%) and Lincoln County (39%) and Cheyenne County (40%) and Kit Carson County (42%) and Yuma County (43%) and Washington County (40%) and Morgan County (38%) and Phillips County (34%) and Sedgwick County (38%) according to the New York Times . Heres a screenshot of those wins county by county for Mike ODonnell (in yellow) from the New York Times today. Does this scenario seem remotely possible to you? Something stinks in Colorado. Read more at: EmeraldDB3.Substack.com As the epicenters of movies, fashion, and traffic congestion, Los Angeles and Mumbai, India, share many superlatives. Another parallel lurks in the shadows, most frequently spotted at night, wandering softly on four paws. According to The Guardian, these are the world's only megacities with populations of 10 million or more where huge felines - mountain lions in one and leopards in the other - flourish by reproducing, hunting, and defending territory within urban bounds. Intensive Research Long-term research in both cities has looked at how large cats move through their urban jungles, and how humans may coexist with them - lessons that may be applied to additional areas in the future decades. "There will be more cities like this in the future as urban areas encroach on natural ecosystems," said Audra Huffmeyer, a biologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who studies mountain lions. "We must learn to coexist with these enormous carnivores if we want to maintain them on the earth." Looking Back Twenty years ago, scientists in Los Angeles fitted a monitoring collar to P1, a giant male mountain lion that protected a broad stretch of the Santa Monica Mountains, a coastal range inside and next to the city. "P1 was probably 150 pounds, as large as they get in southern California," said Seth Riley via iNaturalist, a National Park Service biologist who helped in the attempt. "These dominating males reproduce - they will not accept other adult males in their region." For seven years, the scientists used GPS tracking and video traps to watch the rise and fall of P1's dynasty through many partners and kitten litters. "The last time we learned about P1 was in 2009," Riley explained. "There has to have been a brawl. We discovered his collar and blood on a rock. And he was never seen again. He was of a reasonable age." Riley has assisted in the collaring of approximately 100 mountain lions in Los Angeles, contributing to a vast database of lion behavior that has contributed to understanding how much territory the cats require, what they eat (mostly deer), and how frequently they cross paths with people, and what may endanger their future. Inbreeding proved to be the greatest menace to medieval European royalty. Living in limited regions split by roads has forced some males to mate with daughters and grandchildren who could not disperse naturally further afield. This has resulted in hereditary disorders, including infertility and kinked tails. Leopards are crammed into one of the world's most densely populated cities, Mumbai, where roughly 50 have adapted to an area designed for 20. Nonetheless, the nocturnal cats remain mainly hidden. "You don't know anything about these creatures since they are so secretive. You can't simply watch them," said Vidya Athreya, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society in India, and a study team member that recently fitted five leopards with tracking collars. The leopards' primary range is concentrated in Sanjay Gandhi National Park, a protected region surrounded on three sides by an urbanized environment, containing a neighborhood of 100,000 people and about a dozen leopards. To find out, they apprehended a large guy known as Maharaja. They discovered that it traveled largely at night and covered more than 60km (37 miles) in approximately a week, from a park in Mumbai to another nearby. The leopard crossed a major state highway three times, utilizing the same area to pass. It also went across a railway track. The road chosen by Maharaja is close to a newly constructed highway and freight corridor. According to the researchers, knowing the highway crossing behaviors of large cats might help authorities make educated judgments on where to install animal underpasses to decrease accidents. Also Read: Weeks After Saving Owner From Mountain Lion, Hero Dog Dies Studying Mountain Lions A long-term mountain lion study demonstrating the effects of fragmented habitat fueled a successful campaign in Los Angeles to create a wildlife crossing bridge over US Highway 101, one of the city's busiest highways. Construction began on April 22. The bridge will be covered in native plants and contain unique sound barriers to minimize light and noise problems for nocturnal creatures when it is completed in three years. It will link the Santa Monica Mountains and Simi Hills, expanding the dating pool for local mountain lions. Learning to coexist with cats involves not just infrastructural considerations but also human choices and education. When Athreya initially began pushing for leopard cohabitation in Mumbai, she was faced with skepticism and criticism from other scientists and officials. They believed it would be difficult for huge cats to coexist with humans without major friction, if not outright conflict. "The dominating narrative was conflict," she explained. However, she contributed to the discourse shifting to "negotiations, improving the situation for both animals and people." That isn't to argue that living beside a large predator is without danger. Purvi Lote spotted her first leopard on the veranda of a relative's house in Mumbai when she was five years old. She went back inside to her mother, terrified. But the nine-year-old claimed she is no longer terrified of huge cats. Leopards in Mumbai have adapted to mostly target wild dogs that frequent rubbish dumps outside the jungle, and they have primarily attacked people when trapped or assaulted. However, according to Jagannath Kamble, an administrator of Mumbai's protected forest, 20 people died in leopard attacks in 2010. The fact that the underfunded forest department couldn't keep responding to individual assaults by catching and sending leopards to forests since they returned was the tipping point. Instead, it opted to concentrate on convincing people to cohabit with predators. In 2011, officials enlisted the help of volunteers, non-governmental organizations, and the media to launch a public education campaign. Since then, the number of fatalities has significantly decreased, and no one has been killed in an incident since 2017. Muttu Veli's four-year-old daughter Darshini was the final known casualty. Darshini was playing outside their home in a slum on the outskirts of the forest, according to Veli, an office worker who moved to Mumbai in 1996, when she didn't return home. Her battered body was eventually found. There have been no human deaths in Los Angeles related to mountain lions, but one non-fatal attack on a toddler happened in 2021. Both cities have realized that capturing, killing, or relocating the cats is not the solution. Huge Cats "Relocation and slaughter exacerbate conflict," said Beth Pratt, National Wildlife Federation's California regional director. "A stable population is preferable to one in which hierarchies and territories are disrupted." She believes that avoiding is the best method. "These huge cats are timid and avoid human contact as much as possible. They're the animal kingdom's most extreme introverts." Related Article: How to Behave Around Wildlife: Important Tips for Travelers For more updates about the latest animal news, don't forget to follow Nature World News Colorado lawmakers, a former coal state, have approved more than 50 climate-related bills since 2019. The liquor shop in Morris, Minnesota, uses solar electricity to chill its beer. Athens, Ohio, voters placed a carbon tax on themselves. Citizens in Fairfax County, Virginia, collaborated for a year and a half to create a 214-page climate action plan. Local Government Action As national action slows, municipalities and states around the country are stepping up their efforts to combat climate change. This week, the Supreme Court limited the EPA's jurisdiction to control greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, one of the major drivers of global warming pollution - the latest example of how the Biden administration's climate tools are being eroded. Local efforts gained prominence during the Trump administration, which aggressively attacked environmental and climate laws. Local action is now even more crucial, according to scientists, for the United States - which ranks second only to China in terms of emissions - to have a hope of assisting the world in avoiding the worst impacts of global warming. This haphazard approach is no replacement for a comprehensive national plan. Local governments have limited power, jurisdiction, and resources. However, as legislative and regulatory choices in Washington, D.C. grow increasingly limited, "States are extremely crucial to helping the country as a whole accomplish our climate goals," said Kyle Clark-Sutton, manager of RMI's analysis team for the United States program. "They have a genuine chance to lead. They've been on top." According to RMI's new state scorecards, New York and Colorado, for example, are on target to cut electricity-related emissions by 80 percent or more by 2030, compared to 2005. "We've never concentrated on climate as the thing to talk about because you don't have to," said Blaine Hill, municipal manager, citing the benefits of cheaper energy costs and more local economic activity from locally generated electricity. "You can get around it by just getting started." Morris' community center, library, liquor store, and municipal hall have solar panels. It features a charging station for electric vehicles at the grocery store and is working on a composting program. The institution has solar panels on poles tall enough for cows to graze beneath and two wind turbines. The West Central Research and Outreach Center at the University of Minnesota uses wind energy to produce fertilizer for crops that grow underneath the turbines, avoiding the usual, emissions-intensive process of producing fertilizer, which is often obtained from petroleum. Mike Reese, the research center's director of renewable energy, said it didn't matter that he disagreed with Troy Goodnough, the sustainability director at the University of Minnesota Morris. "Troy is more liberal, while I'm more conservative," Mr. Reese explained. "However, we share the same principles regarding climate change, resilience, and, most importantly, producing money and making our society better for future generations." Mr. Goodnough stated that the campus frequently assisted in the demonstration of technologies that were ultimately accepted by the city. This has encouraged citizens to examine possibilities they would not have considered otherwise. Also Read: Amidst Growing Environmental Crisis, US Supreme Court Hobbles the Government's Power to Limit Harmful Emission Community Benefits One benefit of community plans is that they may be adjusted to the demands of the local economy - in Morris' case, farming. Phoenix, a large, hot, car-dependent metropolis, has prioritized electric vehicle adoption and reducing the consequences of potentially fatal heat waves. The city has set aside $6 million to plant trees in low-income districts. It has laid down 40 miles of cool pavement, which can help reduce overnight temperatures. It also intends to put 280,000 electric vehicles on municipal streets by 2030. City Council The city council committee responsible for developing the plan comprises elected officials and representatives from utilities, vehicle manufacturers, and environmental justice organizations. It held one discussion between housing developers who were hesitant to install charge stations for electric vehicles in new buildings and officials from Ford and General Motors. According to Councilwoman Yassamin Ansari, the seminar appeared to assist developers in recognizing that adding chargers was in accordance with market trends. Conversations tend to get more politicized as they progress from the municipal to the state level. Related Article: Experts are Saying that Renewable Sources are Not Enough to Solve Europe's Energy Crisis For more environmental news, don't forget to follow Nature World News! During the early morning hours of Saturday, the National Hurricane Center issued tropical storm warnings for parts of the South Carolina and North Carolina coastlines after a rapidly developing low-pressure system along the Southeast coast of the United States strengthened into Tropical Storm Colin. This will be the third named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. Colin Approaching Around 2:00 p.m., Colin was whirling approximately 10 miles southwest of Myrtle Beach on Saturday, heading northeast at a pace of only 7 miles per hour. Colin's sustained wind gusts were 40 mph, just above the 39-mph threshold required to classify a system as a tropical storm. The National Hurricane Center categorized Colin as "disorganized" as of Saturday afternoon, as it continued to deliver heavy rainfall and high gusts near the North Carolina coast. The National Weather Service's New River observation station reported 0.1 inch of rain due to Colin in the last three hours. Colin is expected to be a substantial rainmaker throughout the Fourth of July weekend, mainly for the northern coast of South Carolina and almost the whole North Carolina coast as it moves northeastward. AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Adam Douty stated, "Locally heavy rain and strong gusts are predicted along the storm's course through Sunday." Also Read: Particularly Intense Storms to Hit the Western US During the Independence Day Weekend Expected Strength According to AccuWeather analysts, many coastal locations should anticipate 2 to 4 inches of rain from Saturday through Monday. Colin has been rated less than one on the AccuWeather RealImpactTM Scale for Hurricanes due to the limited consequences forecast. Disrupting Vacation Plans The appearance of Colin will undoubtedly disrupt vacation plans along a popular beach vacation stretch of the beachfront. Many tourist attractions are in the path of a tropical storm warning in both South Carolina and North Carolina, while the weather in South Carolina may improve just in time for Independence Day. "There will be strong surf, severe rip currents, and coastline erosion in the storm's path this weekend," Douty added. North Carolina's famed Outer Banks are also under a tropical storm alert. This popular tourist destination has also been dealing with the ravages of coastal erosion caused by all sorts of hurricanes and the creeping effects of climate change. At least two homes in Rodanthe, which stands along a particularly narrow and endangered stretch of the Outer Banks, collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean in May this year, putting residents on edge. Another oceanfront mansion was destroyed by the Atlantic Ocean during a hurricane a few months ago. Increased Threat Local officials have been aware of the threat of coastal erosion and the expanding Atlantic and have taken steps in recent years to safeguard treasured waterfront areas. Danny Couch, a local commissioner in Dare County, North Carolina, which includes the majority of the Outer Banks settlements, told AccuWeather earlier this year that "the storms are getting a bit more violent" and that residents will "have to adapt" to a new normal. AccuWeather experts predict that Colin will take a right turn by mid-afternoon on Sunday and begin traveling out to sea, where it will lose wind intensity as it crosses open waters. Related Article: Exposure to Major Disasters Can Cause Long-Term Mental Health Problems For more climate and weather updates, don't forget to follow Nature World News! At least 10 million bees were released into the air after a truck flipped over during a crash along a Utah Highway earlier this week. The overturned semi-truck on Interstate 80 at around 10:40 a.m. on Monday, June 27, was carrying hundreds of boxes containing the bees, which were being transported from California to Dakota. The truck driver is said to be a beekeeper from an undisclosed commercial organization. Local authorities said that over speeding was the main cause of the crash, which did not cause any "human fatalities." However, the driver was sent to the hospital due to minor injuries from the crash, as well as multiple bee stings that also targeted responding state troopers. The authorities attempted to capture the bee swarm. But, the beekeeper reportedly claimed that capturing them is not necessary. The challenge also lies from the fact that it is almost impossible to re-collect the extremely large number of bees flying simultaneously into the air. Beekeeping officials treat the incident as a disaster and thus consider conducting a so-called "rescue mission." Still, it is unclear if such feat is possible, and as to how many bees have been rescued already at the time of writing of this article. Utah Highway Truck Crash Cameron Roden, a public information officer at the Utah Highway Patrol, told CNN that the truck crash happened since the driver was driving too fast while turning into a curve part of the I-80 Utah highway on Monday morning. Following the crash, the eastbound of I-80's right lane was temporarily closed for approximately four hours due to clean up at the crash site. The vehicle crash was not the only threat, as the released bee swarm from the truck also stung the driver and members of the Utah Highway Patrol. Julie Arthur, the president of Wasatch Beekeepers Association, also told CNN that the truck was transporting 416 boxes, which contains between 50,000 and 100,000 honeybees. The winged insects are being used to pollinate crops across the United States. It was Arthur who confirmed the current estimate of the huge bee swarm, describing the incident as a "gigantic mess" where both honey and honeycomb wax melting under the heat of the Sun. Some of the boxes were also covered with fire foam that the emergency personnel used to spray some of the bees. Also Read: 63 Endangered Penguins Stung to Death by Swarm of Bees in Cape Town Conflicting Estimates The CNN report confirmed that at least 10 million bees were involved in the semitrailer crash on Monday. The figure was also confirmed by Arthur based on the US media agency's article. However, a separate yet related piece from The Washington Post on Saturday evening, July 2, cited statements from law enforcement and beekeepers that more than 25 million bees escaped the truck after the crash. Additional details of the incident also indicated that the truck also had a co-driver, who also sustained minor injuries from the crash and numerous bee stings. The identities of both drivers were not publicly identified, according to The Washington Post. Related Article: Massive Bee Swarm Descends on a PA Toll Booth United Nations, July 3 (UNI/Sputnik) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over the protests held in Libya and has called for peaceful demonstrations, Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General said. Mass protests against deteriorating living conditions erupted in several major Libyan cities on Friday. The demonstrators stormed the building of the Libyan parliament in Tobruk. A protest was also held near the government building in Tripoli. "The Secretary-General is following with concern the demonstrations that were held in several cities in Libya, including Tripoli, Tobruk and Benghazi, on 1 July," Dujarric said in a Saturday statement, adding that Guterres "calls on all protestors to avoid acts of violence and on the security forces to exercise utmost restraint." Dujarric reiterated that the United Nations and the Secretary-Generals Special Adviser on Libya, Stephanie Williams, can act as mediators between rival political forces in Libya in order to find a way out of the political deadlock through the organization of elections. "The Secretary-General calls on all actors to refrain from any actions that could undermine stability. The Secretary-General urges Libyan actors to come together to overcome the continued political deadlock, which is deepening divisions and negatively impacting the countrys economy," the spokesperson said. The Libyan General Staff said on Saturday that the armed forces support the will of the people and the protesters' demands that are "legitimate" in light of the deepening Libyan crisis and declining living standards. Nonetheless, the general staff called on the demonstrators not to inflict damage on government and private buildings and infrastructure and to protest peacefully. The armed forces also pledged to take "necessary measures" to protect "an independent Libyan solution." On March 1, the Tobruk-based Libyan House of Representatives voted for a new cabinet headed by Prime Minister-designate Fathi Bashagha, who previously served as the interior minister of the Government of National Accord (GNA). The incumbent interim Government of National Unity headed by Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, who was appointed last year in a UN-backed process, refused to cede power. Dbeibeh has said that he does not intend to transfer power in the country before the presidential elections, thus the country currently has de-facto two prime ministers. Dbeibeh has expressed support for the ongoing demonstrations in Libya, saying that the only way out of the crisis is holding elections. UNI/SPUTNIK PRT Richard J. Leskosky taught media and cinema studies at the University of Illinois and has reviewed films for more than 30 years. He can be contacted at filmcritic@comcast.net. Follow him on Twitter @RichardLeskosky. Danville-born astronaut Joe Tanner on the 'eerie' experience of flying through the Aurora Australis on shuttle Atlantis: "I guess I had seen too many Star Trek episodes because I immediately called Houston to make sure they were still there and we hadnt been warped to some other time. Reporter Mary Schenk is a reporter covering police, courts and breaking news at The News-Gazette. Her email is mschenk@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@schenk). One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021 Washington, Jule 3 (UNI) Three police officers have been shot dead in the US state of Kentucky while they were trying to serve a warrant on a man accused of domestic violence, BBC reported on Sunday. The 49-year-old suspect has been taken into custody by the police. Floyd County Sheriff John Hunt said the officers had faced "pure hell" when they arrived at the man's home. Four other people were also injured in the incident in Allen, a small town in a mountainous part of eastern Kentucky with a population of just 166. The officers who died in the shooting late on Thursday have been identified as Capt Ralph Frasure, Deputy William Petry and dog handler Jacob Chaffins. K9 Drago, one of the dogs that Chaffins handled, also died. Capt Frasure had been with the Prestonsburg, Kentucky, Police Department for 39 years. The department said he had served "with honor and glory up until the last second". The men ran into a barrage of gunfire from a rifle when they went to the house on Main Street shortly before 19:00 local time (midnight GMT). The shooting continued for nearly three hours before suspect Lance Storz was taken into custody, after he surrendered following negotiations involving members of his family. He has been charged with two counts of murdering a police officer, five counts of attempted murder of a police officer, one count of attempted murder and one count of first-degree assault on a service animal. UNI ACL Sundiata Cha-Jua is a professor of African American studies and history at the University of Illinois and a member of the North End Breakfast Club. His email is schajua@gmail.com. P. Gregory Springer has been writing for any and all Champaign-Urbana publications since 1977. He can be reached at pgregory.springer@gmail.com. Americans were more likely than people living in the UK to feel threatened by China's growth as a world power, a new survey shows. The research suggests support in both countries for NATO and the UN to act diplomatically and militarily is high, with citizens in favor of nations working together to protect peace. Seven out of 10 Americans questioned agreed their country needed a strong military to be effective in international relations, as did 63 per cent of Britons. Both US and UK respondents thought a former Soviet state under threat from Russia should seek support from NATO (55 per cent in the UK compared to 41 per cent of Americans). The research, by Catarina Thomson, from the University of Exeter, is published in The RUSI Journal. Dr Thomson used the Gray Zone Security Survey, carried out in the US, the UK and Lithuania, with nationally representative samples of 4,000, 1,300 and 1,000 in March 2021 respectively. Citizens were asked about their perception of the threat from Russia's territorial ambitions and the development of China as a world power were. Their response was measured using a seven-point scale, varying from 1 (not a threat at all) to 7 (critical threat). People in Lithuania were more likely to see Russia's territorial ambitions as a critical threat, with a third labeling Russian territorial ambitions as belonging to the highest threat category (compared to just 2 in 10 US respondents, and 12 per cent in the UK). Half of Americans questioned ranked the development of China as a world power as being in the top two highest threat categories, with just over a third regarding it as the most critical threat level. Only 37 per cent of respondents in the UK and 32 per cent in Lithuania considered China's assent to world power as being at such high threat levels. Although the world is now a different place it is still important to analyze views taken before the Russian invasion of Ukraine so we have a clear idea of opinions about Russia's territorial incursions. The ongoing war in Ukraine has fundamentally changed the international system. A shared Russian threat has translated into NATO and other Western allies being more united than they have been in decades. It must not be forgotten that just months before this show of Western unity, fractured institutional bonds among NATO members culminated in the disorderly withdrawal of allied troops from Afghanistan. China's development as a world power and Russia's territorial ambitions were considered critical threats, but not equally for citizens in the three sample countries. Interestingly, citizens in the UK did not feel terribly threatened despite the UK military leadership's years-long messaging on the dangers of an assertive Russia. US citizens are also quite threatened by China's rise as a global power. Individuals in the UK and Lithuania, on the other hand, do not tend to consider China's development as a global power a critical threat. This discrepancy between threat perceptions in the US and the UK might be especially poignant in light of the new AUKUS alliance, which also includes Australia and has been lauded as an effort to counter China." Dr. Catarina Thomson, University of Exeter A total of 70 per cent of people in the UK agreed or strongly agreed the best way for their country to proceed in foreign affairs is to build international consensus compared to 59 per cent of people in the US and Lithuania. About 6 in 10 Britons, and half of Americans, agreed it is sometimes necessary for their countries to 'go at it' alone in international relations, this is the case for 45 per cent of Lithuanian respondents. Less than a third of respondents in each country (21 per cent in the UK, 29 per cent in the US and 31 per cent in Lithuania) considered their country's interests are best protected by avoiding involvement with other states. Summer has begun. So did TExTOUR and dRural joint social media campaign #MyRuralHoliday. Where are you going to spend your summer holidays this year? Some people prefer to visit cities, other to relax and sunbath at the sea. But there is also a variety of less known form of tourism. For example, have you considered spending your holydays in a rural place? Even though rural areas represent about half of the European territory, they are usually not considered in mainstream tourism planning. Those areas tend to be less valued and visited, despite being a wonderful option for those who want to discover new places during their holidays while having a few days of relax, far away from stress of cities, jobs, and everyday life. On July the 1st, TExTOUR and its sister project dRural are launching the campaign: #MyRuralHoliday. The aim of this campaign is to share the beauties of rural places and help people discovering less known localities, such as beautiful countryside, small towns that are not on the main touristic routes and other remote places. Choosing a rural place for your summer holiday is also a way to support sustainable tourism and local economies, creating benefits for all those who are involved in the process. Taking part in this campaign is very easy: just take a picture, or more than one, of the beautiful rural place you chose for your holiday and post it on your social media account (Twitter, LinkedIn of Facebook) using the hashtag #MyRuralHoliday. Let's help people discovering the beauty of sustainable tourism. And enjoy your rural holydays! Data from the world's largest prostate cancer screening study provides further evidence to support the introduction of a targeted screening program for the disease, say researchers. In 2009, the European Randomised Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer (ERSPC) showed that screening can reduce mortality from prostate cancer by between 20-35 percent. But the earlier and more frequent diagnoses which screening enables, also mean men spend longer living with their cancer - and concerns have persisted about the impact of this on their quality of life. The new analysis - presented today at the European Association of Urology annual congress (EAU22) - reveals that men who undergo screening spend longer in the earlier stage of the disease without signs of progression, where quality of life is known to be the least impaired. As the treatment the men receive is the same, however, men in whom the cancer was detected in normal clinical practice see their disease progress faster after diagnosis. However, if the disease metastasizes, the number of years men spend with metastatic disease is similar across both groups. The researchers, from the Erasmus MC Cancer Institute at University Medical Center Rotterdam, analysed data from just over 43,000 men in the Dutch cohort of the ERSPC. The ERSPC recruited over 180,000 men across eight countries in the 1990s, with half randomized to enter a prostate cancer screening programme of regular PSA tests. The new study looked at how long it took before men saw their prostate cancer progress to different stages of the disease following diagnosis. These stages were: Biochemical recurrence - when men whose prostate cancer has been treated with radiotherapy or surgery show a high level of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), indicating that the disease has returned. Metastatic disease - when the cancer has spread beyond the prostate to other organs of the body and so is untreatable. The results show that men in whom the disease is detected through a screening programme remain on average a year longer without progression. In men where the disease has progressed, if it becomes metastatic, then this is on average two and a half years later in men in screening, compared to those whose cancer was detected outside the screening programme. Sebastiaan Remmers, from the Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, who will present the research today [Saturday 2 July 2022] at EAU22, said: "No-one wants to be confronted with a cancer diagnosis, and screening means more men know they have prostate cancer and live longer with that knowledge. While screening can lead to overdiagnosis, our research shows it can also postpone - or even avoid - the harm that prostate cancer can bring. That tips the balance in favor of further developing organised individualized screening programs." Prostate cancer screening is standard in only a few European countries or regions, including Lithuania and parts of Sweden. Most other countries, including the UK, do not systematically screen men for the disease due to concerns about overdiagnosis and overtreatment. PSA tests tend instead to be carried out on an ad hoc basis when patients go to their doctors with concerns. Professor Monique Roobol, from the Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, said: "Advances in how prostate cancer is diagnosed and treated have changed the balance of risks and benefits associated with screening for the disease. We can reduce the detection of low-risk cancers considerably by adequate risk stratification. In addition, in the past, diagnosis automatically meant radical treatment, such as surgery or radiation, which all have side effects. Now we have other options for low-risk cancers, such as active surveillance including MRI scans, which have a more limited impact on men's quality of life. Given that screening reduces mortality and metastatic disease, and - as our - research shows - gives men more years in those stages of the disease that have less impact, then the arguments against screening are becoming outdated." The European Association of Urology, the leading authority within Europe on urological practice, research and education, is calling for prostate cancer screening to form part of the European Union's new 'Beating Cancer' plan. The EAU recommends a risk-based approach to prostate cancer screening, which would calculate the appropriate screening frequency and follow up for each patient based on factors such as PSA level, family history, ethnicity, gene mutation and prostate size. Professor Hendrik Van Poppel, from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium, who chairs the EAU Policy Office, said: "Prostate cancer is one of the leading causes of death in men in Europe: number one in Sweden, number two in Germany and number five in many other countries. In the UK, more men die of prostate cancer each year than women from breast cancer. Despite this, we still have no European-wide screening program for prostate cancer. "The systematic and personalized approach to screening advocated by the EAU will significantly reduce the likelihood of over-diagnosing or over-treating cancers that pose minimal threat. But, most importantly, it will preserve the best possible quality of life for prostate cancer patients, and it will save lives." (Newser) There are some verifiable, undeniable facts in this winding story about an alleged lost hoard of Civil War gold. First there's the document describing it, titled "The Lost Gold Ingot Treasure," in the archives at the Military History Institute in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. It tells of a Union caravan that vanished in 1863 while transporting 26 ingots (or bars) of gold. Treasure hunter Dennis Parada thinks he located it on land controlled by the state of Pennsylvania and met with the FBI to discuss it. He also thinks the FBIwho in 2018 staged a two-day excavation at Parada's spotmade off with the gold in the night and told Parada nothing was found. Parada has been telling his story ever since, and the Atlantics Chris Heath dug about as deep as anyone possibly can. Heath writes that Parada's research led him to a cave near Dents Run, in a state forest. For years, he dug with Pennsylvanias blessing, but eventually they banned him. He convinced some FBI agents to get involved, and their metal detectors pinged gold-level readings. Moreover, their geophysical scans suggested there was something with the density of gold and a mass of nine tons buried there. Parada wasn't permitted to observe the bulk of the dig (the FBI did show him the empty hole at the end), and the FBI has been extremely slow to release information about it. Then again, Heath turned up some fascinating holes in the story's historical record and reveals that Parada originally struck on the Dents Run location when a traveling psychic pointed to it on a map during a demonstration of "extrasensory perception" at a department store in the 1970s. (The wild story is absolutely worth a read in full.) (Newser) Update: The unfortunately expected outcome will come to pass. CBS News reports Addison Bethea, the 17-year-old Florida girl who was attacked by a shark Thursday near Tallahassee, will have her right leg amputated Tuesday. Mother Michele Murphy spoke about her daughter's miracle survival: "My daughter, by medical standards, should not be alive right now and I know that. ... If Rhett hadn't been the one that was with her when it happened we may be in a very different scenario right now." It remains unclear what kind of shark bit Addison, but witnesses estimate it was 9 feet long. Our original story from Friday follows: A 17-year-old in Florida fought off an attacking shark with the help of her brother, but Addison Bethea may lose her right leg. Bethea was gathering scallops in about 5 feet of water Thursday at Keaton Beach in Taylor County when a shark estimated to be 9 feet long bit onto her thigh, reports the Guardian. Bethea began "poking it in the eyes and punching it," but the shark would not let go, her father, Shane Bethea, wrote online. Brother Rhett Willingham, a firefighter, joined the fight, freed his sister, and got her onto the boat of a stranger who saw the commotion, per the Tallahassee Democrat. Bethea was airlifted to a hospital in Tallahassee, about 60 miles away, and after surgery, "the long term outlook for her leg is not good," wrote dad Shane in an update Saturday. Bethea herself spoke to Good Morning America about the attack. "Something latches onto my leg and I was like that's not rightand then I look and its a big old shark," she recalls. "Then I remember from watching the Animal Planet to like ... punch [it] in the nose or something like that. And I couldn't get around to his nose the way he bit me." That's when brother Rhett arrived and managed to kick the shark away while pulling his sister backward. It's believed to be the first shark attack recorded in Taylor County, per the Democrat. (Read more shark attack stories.) (Newser) The marshal of the US Supreme Court has asked Maryland and Virginia officials to enforce laws she says prohibit picketing outside the homes of the justices who live in the two states. For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have picketed Justices' homes, Marshal Gail Curley wrote in the letters to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, and two local elected officials. Curley wrote that Virginia and Maryland laws and a Montgomery County, Maryland, ordinance prohibit picketing at justices' homes, and she asked the officials to direct police to enforce those provisions. Justices' homes have been the target of abortion rights protests since May, when a leaked draft opinion suggested the court was poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. The protests and threatening activities have increased since May," Curley wrote, and have continued since the court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was issued. Earlier this week, for example, 75 protesters loudly picketed at one Justice's home in Montgomery County for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket at another Justice's home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first Justice's home to picket for another 20 minutes," Curley wrote in her letter to Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich. This is exactly the kind of conduct that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit. In her letter to Jeffrey McKay, chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, she said one recent protest outside an unspecified justice's home involved dozens of people chanting, no privacy for us, no peace for you! The direct request by the court puts it at odds with the Justice Department, which, while providing US marshals, has not taken steps to limit the protests as long as they are peaceful. Govs. Youngkin and Hogan, both Republicans, have both previously expressed concerns about the protests. (An armed man was arrested near Brett Kavanaugh's home after making threats.) (Read more US Supreme Court stories.) We use cookies. By Clicking "OK" or any content on this site, you agree to allow cookies to be placed. Read more in our privacy policy (Newser) Update: The gunshot that killed a journalist in the occupied West Bank probably came from an Israeli military position, the US State Department said Monday, but the bullet was so damaged that forensic experts can't be sure. Although they couldn't positively match the bullet to a gun, the statement said shots from the location of the Israel Defense Forces were "likely responsible for the death," the New York Times reports. US officials said they'd found no indications that the killing was intentional. Our story from Sunday follows: The Palestinian Authority on Saturday said it has given the bullet that killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh to American forensic experts, taking a step toward resolving a standoff with Israel over the investigation into her death. The announcement came just over a week before President Biden is to visit Israel and the occupied West Bank for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. It signaled that both sides may be working to find a solution to the deadlock, the AP reports. Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent known throughout the Arab world, was fatally shot while covering an Israeli military raid on May 11 in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinians, along with Abu Akleh's colleagues who were with her at the time, say she was killed by Israeli fire. The Israeli army says that she was caught in the crossfire of a battle with Palestinian gunmen, and that it is impossible to determine which side killed her without analyzing the bullet. Israel says that it has identified a rifle that may have shot her, but that it cannot draw any conclusions unless it is compared to the bullet. The Palestinians have refused to turn over the bullet, saying they don't trust Israel. Rights groups say Israel has a poor record investigating shootings of Palestinians by its troops, with probes languishing for months or years before they are quietly closed. The Palestinian attorney general, Akram al-Khateeb, said the bullet was given to US experts "for technical work." He reiterated the Palestinian refusal to share the bullet with the Israelis but said the Palestinians welcome the participation of international bodies to "help us confirm the truth," adding, "We are confident and certain of our investigations and the results we have reached." It was not immediately clear what the American experts could discover without also studying the Israeli weapon, or whether Israel would turn over the rifle to the Americans. An AP reconstruction supports eyewitnesses who say she was shot by Israeli troops. But a weapons expert it's impossible to reach a conclusive finding without further forensic analysis. Israeli leaders have repeatedly said that soldiers did not intentionally target her. (Read more Al Jazeera stories.) (Newser) Three crew members were saved in dramatic rescues, but 27 more are missing after a ship broke up in a typhoon in the South China Sea near Hong Kong. Rescuers from the Honk Kong Government Flying Service were dispatched Saturday morning to search for survivors, using helicopters and planes. The operation is being impeded by the weather conditions, including strong winds and downpours, CNN reports. The service said the crew abandoned ship after it was caught near the middle of Typhoon Chaba, about 185 miles southwest of Hong Kong. The ship later sank. State media in China called the vessel a floating crane and said a mooring chain had broken during the storm while the ship was anchored near the city of Yangjiang, per the Wall Street Journal. The storm made landfall Saturday afternoon, Chinese media reported, and as of Sunday morning was forecast to move north. Among the disruptions caused by the storm in the region was the postponement of a museum's grand opening. The new Hong Kong Palace Museum event marking the 25th anniversary of the city's change from British to Chinese rule was moved to Sunday. (Read more sinking stories.) (Newser) Russian forces took control Sunday of the last major Ukrainian-held city in Ukraine's Luhansk province, Russia's defense minister said, bringing Moscow closer to its stated goal of seizing all of Ukraine's Donbas region. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin that Russia's troops together with members of a local separatist militia "have established full control over the city of Lysychansk," a ministry statement said, per the AP. Taking Lysychansk constitutes "the liberation of the Luhansk People's Republic," one of two separatist regions in Ukraine that Russia recognizes as sovereign, the statement said. Ukrainian fighters spent weeks trying to defend Lysychansk and keep it from falling to Russia, as neighboring Sievierodonetsk did a week ago. Ukrainian officials did not immediately provide an update on its status. Earlier Sunday, Luhansk's governor said Russian forces were strengthening their positions in a grueling fight to capture the last stronghold of resistance in the province. "The occupiers threw all their forces on Lysychansk. They attacked the city with incomprehensibly cruel tactics," Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai said on the Telegram messaging app. "They suffer significant losses but stubbornly advance." An occupation of Lysychansk would open the way for the Russians to move west into Donetsk province, where the sizable Ukrainian-held city of Slovyansk has come under rocket attacks several times since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk are the two provinces that make up the Donbas, where Russia has focused its offensive since pulling back from northern Ukraine and the capital, Kyiv, in the spring. Pro-Russia separatists have held portions of both eastern provinces since 2014, and Moscow recognizes all of Luhansk and Donetsk as sovereign republics. Syria's government said Wednesday that it would also recognize the "independence and sovereignty" of the two areas. (Read more Russia-Ukraine conflict stories.) (Newser) Police on Sunday released what the mayor of Akron, Ohio, called "heartbreaking" body camera video of the fatal shooting of Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old Black motorist killed Monday. The graphic video shows the moment eight police officers began firing at Walker, NBC News reports, hitting him multiple times. "Actions by the suspect caused the officers to perceive he posed a deadly threat to them, police said at a press conference. "In response to this threat, officers discharged their firearms, striking the suspect." Walker was unarmed at the time of the shooting, per the AP, but police officials said a shot appeared to have come from his vehicle while he was being chased. Police Chief Steve Mylett said an autopsy found 60 wounds to Walker's body, but it's not clear which ones were entrance wounds and which were exit wounds. Bobby DiCello, an attorney for Walker's family, said he watched the footage three times and saw no indication that Walker shot at police. "They want to turn him into a masked monster with a gun, and we knew that," DiCello said. "But I want to thank the chief for one thing he said, at the time he was shot ... he was unarmed." WEWS posted video of the press conference, including the graphic footage, here. Mayor Dan Horrigan called off Akron's Fourth of July events, saying this "is not the time for a city-led celebration." He also urged calm in the city. "Youre going to have to do one of the most difficult things I can ever ask anyone to do," he told residents, "and that is to please be patient and let the attorney general do their work." DiCello said Walker's family also wants peace in the city. "If you can do anything for the family, please give peace," he said. "Give dignity and give justice a chance." (Read more police shooting stories.) Fairbanks, AK (99707) Today Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low around 50F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.. Tonight Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low around 50F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%. Fairbanks, AK (99707) Today Showers in the morning, then cloudy in the afternoon. High 61F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.. Tonight Cloudy with rain developing after midnight. Low 48F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Mosquito infestation is becoming a huge matter of concern across Bahrain with citizens and residents urging the authorities to take immediate action. It is learnt that many residents and citizens have alerted their local municipality authorities to take immediate action. We have a huge mosquito problem here, and we really dont know where it is breeding, a resident of Umm Al Hassam told The Daily Tribune. We are worried about our children. They are badly affected by stings and twice we took them to skin doctors after being worried about their health, he added. An expatriate in Gudaibiya said he has never seen this many mosquitoes in his 30-plus years of stay in the Kingdom. I came here thirty years before from the Indian city of Mumbai, which is notorious for mosquitoes. One of the greatest reliefs I felt here was the absence of mosquitoes humming, which was never harmonious with my ears. Now, I am seeing quite many mosquitoes here. Though it cant be compared to a Mumbai-like situation, I urge the authorities to nip the issue in the bud itself as many mosquito-borne diseases could pose a large threat to society. Studies reveal that many varieties of mosquitoes exist in the Bahrain and a prominent of them are Aedes Aegypti, a kind of mosquito that is adept at breeding indoors because it prefers to lay its eggs on the walls of containers, rather than in pools or other natural water sources. Lawmakers have many a time earlier called for action after receiving complaints of mosquito infestation outbreaks in many neighbourhoods across Bahrain. They have been asking the authorities to deploy pest control teams to address the menace in association with the Health Ministry. During the previous years, the Health Ministry dispatched pest control teams to control mosquito infestation in many areas including Galali, Tubli, Malkiya and Buhair Valley. Globally, mosquito-borne diseases affect nearly 700 million people and kill close to one million yearly, according to the World Health Organisation. Mosquitoes swallow viruses or parasites living in the blood, which can be transferred to another individual through their bites. While the mosquito may not be affected, these mosquito-borne diseases can cause immense suffering for humans. Common types of mosquito-borne diseases include Malaria, Dengue, West Nile virus, Chikungunya, Yellow Fever and Zika. These diseases are not a present cause to worry as they have not been reported in Bahrain in any recent times. Bahrain was declared Malaria-free following the successful elimination of all indigenous transmission, over four decades ago, in 1979. This success was attributed to vigorous control measures which included residual spraying, control of mosquito breeding sites and active case detection. According to various studies, imported Malaria cases have been reported once in a while since then, owing to a large immigrant population. Delayed a year due to a lack of interest, state and regional school officials are once again seeking participation in a program that would allow students in Danbury to enroll in surrounding school districts. Started 1966 in Hartford under the name Project Concern, with a mission to reduce racial, ethnic and economic isolation in the state, the program known today as Open Choice expanded by an act of the state legislature to school districts to New Haven, New London, and Bridgeport in 1997. While New London is no longer part of the program, the state approved funding last year for its expansion to school districts in Danbury and Norwalk. Cooperative Educational Services is the regional educational service provider designated to operate the expansion in both cities. On June 15, the groups executive director, Charles Dumais, and Eric Nyquist, manager of the Open Choice program based in Bridgeport, presented to the Brookfield Board of Education as part of a pitch to send up to 50 Danbury students to five neighboring school districts including Brookfields. Dumais noted success in expanding the Open Choice program to Norwalk, but earlier attempts to roll out the Open Choice program in the Danbury-area for the 2022-2023 school year were postponed due to a lack of interest. Aside from Brookfield, other towns that could receive Danbury students are Bethel, New Fairfield, Redding and Ridgefield. Statewide, roughly 50 school districts participate in the Open Choice program which services roughly 3,000 students in the state, Dumais said. The municipalities designated as receiving towns under the program are selected based on their proximity to the sending districts with transportation costs for students covered by the state. Program benefits If Brookfield chooses to participate for the 2023-24 school year, Dumais said enrolled students would be treated as residents of Brookfield, in terms of their education, access to programs and everything else. Any special education costs exceeding $3,000 would be covered by the sending district, he added. The other funding piece is [Education Cost Sharing] funding, so you get funding from the state for students, he said. Districts also receive a stipend ranging from $3,000 per student to $8,000 per student, he said. In general, a district would take on students in kindergarten or first grade, Dumais said. The recommendation is it wouldnt be a single student in any particular school, it just makes the whole situation a little complicated and difficult from a social perspective. The benefits go beyond financial, Nyquist said. While there is a financial piece where the state does give you an incentive to participate, the other real incentive is that you are bringing in cultural diversity, and diversity into a classroom, he said. Every study, and I could share study upon study with you, says that diverse classrooms are much better for students, and it prepares them for the real world and for college because they are getting to hear different perspectives and different backgrounds and different cultures, he added. White students represented 73.3 percent of the 2,600 students enrolled in Brookfield Public School in 2021-22, compared to Danbury where white students account for 24.7 percent of the 11,830 students, according to state data reflecting school demographics. In Brookfield, 14.3 percent of students identified as Hispanic or Latino, 7.6 percent were Asian, 2.7 percent identified as Black or African American, and 1.16 percent identified as two or more races. Nearly 60 percent of Danbury students were Hispanic or Latino, while Black or African American students made up 6.8 percent of the population, Asian students accounted for 5.36 percent, and students who identify as two or more races were 3.2 percent of the population. Still under review in Brookfield The pitch marked the first time the Brookfield Board of Education held public discussion around the program but the boards chair, Bob Belden, noted earlier engagement between the school district and the programs leaders in the past. Belden asked Nyquist about the feedback he has received from students and families involved in the Bridgeport-based Open Choice program. I could see it being both positive and challenging in some ways, he said. First of all, we have about 800 applicants in Bridgeport every year for about 20 seats, that doesnt change, that stays the same every year, Nyquist responded. As Nyquist explained, a lottery is part of the selection process for students who wish to enroll in the program, with an emphasis on making sure the students we are sending represent the basic demographics of the district. One of the big ways that I know that it works because every sibling of somebody who is already in the program, the parent wants their other sibling as they come through to be part of the program, he added. Calling the presentation from Nyquist and Dumais mostly informative and the Brookfield schools demographics reasonably diverse, Belden said the board would revisit in the fall whether to participate in the program. He added any future decision would rely on enrollment opportunities in the town, particularly at the younger age levels, and that school officials would need to be sure the program made sense financially. In a phone call on Wednesday, Dumais said he and others have been working to provide the information shared with the Brookfield board to the other districts designated under the Danbury Open Choice program. He said one of the biggest challenges for districts in navigating the decision to accept students through the program centers around enrollment predictions. Rather than focus on the financial impact, he said, Our recommendation is always that boards take a philosophical approach first, is this an idea that you support? And if it is, then take other steps to look at how that may impact, financially, the district. It is hard to quantify that financial impact because of all the variables of change, he added. BEIJING, July 2, 2022 /CNW/ -- Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, on Thursday visited the Xiqu Center in Hong Kong's West Kowloon Cultural District, a venue for the art of Chinese traditional theater. She watched rehearsals of Cantonese opera performances and a Hong Kong orchestra at the opera house and spoke highly of the performances, calling the show a display of the charm of Chinese culture. During her visit, Peng also talked with young volunteers who were making traditional paper artworks. She encouraged Hong Kong's younger generation to have an in-depth understanding of fine traditional Chinese culture and inherit and promote the culture. Peng together with Xi left Hong Kong Friday after a two-day trip there for a meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland and the inaugural ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Alt News co-founder Mohd Zubair was denied bail on Saturday by a Delhi court after being detained in connection with an allegedly offensive tweet. He was given a 14-day judicial hold by the court. After hearing the arguments made by the defence attorney and Delhis special public prosecutor (SPP), Atul Srivastava, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria denied the bail motion. The court said in the decision that there is no basis for bail because the investigation is in its early stages and given the circumstances and seriousness of the offence. Application denied; accused is held in jail by the court until July 16, 2022. The relevant portions of the FIR were added to reflect the polices allegations of conspiracy and evidence destruction in the case by the defendants. Mohd Zubair was sought into court custody by Delhi Police. After being held by the police for four days, he was brought before court. Indictment day was June 27, 2022. Three new provisions for evidence destruction, criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and breaking the Foreign Contribution (Regulations) Act have been added to the FIR, according to Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Atul Srivastava. Voting for the next Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly began after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and other MLAs came in the state Assembly in Mumbai today. Devendra Fadnavis, the deputy chief minister, and other BJP legislators also arrived at the state legislature. The Eknath Shinde-faction had earlier left the Mumbai Hotel Trident, from whence they had been taken to the Assembly. Following the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state, the new Eknath Shinde administration will elect the Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly on Sunday. The scenario is set for political changes in Maharashtra to happen over the weekend with the MLAs return from Goa, where they joined their leader Shinde in echoing the mutiny against Uddhav Thackeray. Shinde-Fadnavis administration will have to demonstrate its majority on the House Floor on Monday in a Vote of Confidence during the two-day extraordinary session of the Assembly, which begins on Sunday. Notably, former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who was viewed as the front-runner for the top position in the government, was sworn in as Shindes deputy. Shinde had spearheaded the mutiny against Shiv Sena leader and former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. Notably, the MVA has nominated BJP MLA Rahul Narwekar as a candidate for the position of Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, while the Shiv Sena has nominated Shiv Sena MLA Rajan Salvi. The Shiv Sena has ordered all of its lawmakers to appear in the Assembly today. After Nana Patole, the Speaker of the Congress, resigned from her position in February 2021 to assume leadership of the partys state unit, the position of Speaker in the Assembly became vacant. Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal was serving as the Speaker of the House in the absence of a Speaker. A day after Thackerays resignation as chief minister, Shinde and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis met with governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and asserted their right to form the states administration. At a joint news conference in Mumbai on Thursday, Fadnavis, who served as Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 2014 to 2019, said that he will leave the administration. Fadnavis later took the oath to serve as the Deputy CM, at the instruction of the BJPs top leadership. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate LOS ANGELES (AP) Nate Looney is a Black man who grew up in Los Angeles, a descendant of enslaved people from generations ago. Hes also an observant, kippah-wearing Jew. But he doesnt always feel welcome in Jewish spaces his skin color sometimes elicits questioning glances, suspicions and hurtful assumptions. Once, he walked into a synagogue dressed for Shabbat services in slacks and a buttoned-down shirt and was told to go to the kitchen. The last thing you want to happen when you go to a synagogue to attend a service, Looney said, is to be treated like you don't belong. Now Looney is in a position to do something about that, after being named to the new role of director of community, safety and belonging for the Jewish Equity Diversity and Inclusion team at the Jewish Federations of North America, or JFNA, in April. He believes he can channel his painful personal experiences into healing divisions and changing perceptions, and help make a trip to the synagogue a spiritual rather than a scarring encounter for Jews of color. In this new role, Looney has been tackling the delicate task of producing guidelines on how to be more welcoming of Jews of color, even as synagogues and community centers strengthen security in the wake of recent attacks including mass shootings in Pittsburgh and Poway, California. The concern is that such boosted security increases the likelihood of racial profiling incidents affecting congregants of color. Its a relatively small but growing demographic. A Pew Center survey in 2021 showed just 8% of U.S. Jews identify as Hispanic, Black or Asian, but that nearly doubled to 15% among respondents aged 18 to 29. The poll also found that 17% reported living in a nonwhite or multiracial household. Looney, 37, has led a life that has taken several turns. He served in the military police as part of the Louisiana National Guard and spent nine months overseas training Iraqi police forces. He has worked in real estate and has even done urban farming, selling microgreens in local markets. His spiritual journey began at 13 when a friend asked Looney, whose father was Baptist and mother was Episcopalian, about his own religion. Despite his family's Christian faith, Looney said he never felt connected to it. I was obstinate that (Christianity) wasnt for me, he said. When I think about African enslavement in America and how religion was something that was forced, I believed that the religion I was practicing was not true to who my ancestors were. Looney embraced Judaism while still a teen because he viewed it as a faith that gives believers permission to ask difficult, uncomfortable questions, though he didnt formally convert until age 26. It was after the police killing of George Floyd and the racial reckoning of summer 2020 that Looney began working with organizations to raise awareness about Jews of color. It was also during that time that JFNA launched its diversity, equity and inclusion initiative. Looney said Jews of color are often subjected to questions about their Jewish origins. Even when well intentioned, those queries can be painful because they cast doubt on their identity right away and imply they dont belong, he said. Add to that the increased security at synagogues, and theres even greater potential for people to feel othered or unwelcome. How do you strike a balance? You dont want to exclude anyone, and yet you want to be discerning of who is coming in the door, Looney said. Cultural competency is important. Just the fact that someone who is Black is walking in shouldnt raise alarms. He knows from personal experience. The morning of the Tree of Life synagogue mass shooting in Pittsburgh on Oct. 27, 2018, Looney was unaware it had taken place because he was not using his phone in observance of Shabbat. When he entered a synagogue, he got more questions and experienced deeper scrutiny from security guards, and it was painful. If that were my first time entering that community, he said, I wouldve never come back. The guidelines he is working on will be shared with Jewish federations across North America and, Looney hopes, implemented at the local level by synagogues and community centers. Just two months into his job, he says they are a work in progress but will continue to evolve over time. One goal is to inculcate in security guards a deeper understanding of the diversity of the Jewish community, he said: Were starting to have these types of conversations and thats a great beginning. Rabbi Isaiah Rothstein, who founded the diversity, equity and inclusion initiative and serves as JFNAs public affairs advisor, said Looneys professional experience as a military policeman and his lived experience as a Jewish person of color make him uniquely qualified to boost inclusivity while being cognizant of the sensitive relationship between law enforcement and people of color. Security and belonging dont have to be mutually exclusive, said Rothstein, who is the son of a white father and a Black mother and has seen his darker-skinned relatives being treated differently in synagogues. Nate is helping us bring an equity lens to make sure all our institutions are safe and secure while creating a culture of belonging for all Jews and our loved ones. Sabrina Sojourner, an African American Jewish chaplain at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington who met Looney at a leadership seminar five years ago, said people of color are profiled consciously and unconsciously by white people and Looney's role at the JFNA is crucial to help transform assumptions about who is the threat and who is not. If you look at attacks against Jewish people and synagogues, they are not perpetrated by people of color, Sojourner said. Nates work is so important because it tells me JFNA gets that if the most vulnerable people in our communities are not safe, our communities are not safe. Looney said another challenge is that antisemitism and racism tend to be compartmentalized. It's a tough job to make people understand that many of us have multiple identities and fit into both categories and that we are all fighting against white supremacy, he said. Placing Jews of color in decision-making roles in Jewish spaces can help forge solidarity and bring the realization that marginalized communities are stronger when they come together, he added. Rothstein believes Looney will make a big difference because he is also a healer. As an example, he cited a virtual JFNA event commemorating Martin Luther King Day in 2021 when Looney recited a prayer and sang Lift Every Voice and Sing, a hymn written by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900 and often referred to as the Black national anthem. Those three minutes felt like three hours and they felt like three seconds, Rothstein said. Its how Nate holds himself. He is so accessible to people because of his heart. That comes through the life he has lived. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate NEW HAVEN A familiar face in New Haven dining is about to take Peruvian food, which has sizzled around the edges in this part of Connecticut for many years, downtown where it can seen and appreciated by all at the soon-to-open Chacra Peruvian Cuisine & Pisco Bar. For years, Walter Vera, principal owner of Chacra, was general manager at Pacifico, the respected Latin American fusion restaurant a couple of blocks away at College and Crown. He previously worked at Barcelona in Stamford and a number of other Connecticut restaurants including, many years ago, Morys on York Street. Now Vera, a native of Cuenca, Ecuador who lives these days in East Haven, is a week or two away from opening Chacra, an upscale Peruvian restaurant and pisco bar, at 152 Temple St., the former site of the Temple Grill. Its directly across the street from the Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale, with frontage on the Temple Street courtyard. Why would a native of Ecuador seek to open a Peruvian restaurant and bar in downtown New Haven? I really like Peruvian food, which Elite Traveler.com has declared among the best cuisines in the world, said Vera, who came to the U.S. years ago at age 17. What I like about the Peruvian cuisine is that it has a fusion including Peruvian, Japanese and other world influences, Vera said. Other influences include Chinese and Italian. It seems like New Haven needs something like that, he said one recent day, sitting in the nearly complete dining area as a craftsman worked on the kitchen. Vera, still in the middle of various inspections, cant say exactly when Chacra will open. The only thing I can say is were really close, he said. Chacra will center around marinated Peruvian rotisserie chicken and a host of drinks made with different varieties of Peruvian pisco liqueur, well beyond the traditional Pisco Sour to include pisco drinks flavored with passionfruit, blackberry, hibiscus and prickly pear, among others, Vera said. Vera said he expects Chacra to stock the biggest selection of pisco in the state as well as an array of tequilas and mezcals, Peruvian beers such as Cristal and Cusquena. It also will offer refreshing nonalcoholic drinks such as chicha morada, made from Peruvian purple corn, fresh orange and lemon juices, coconut puree and a touch of vanilla, he said. It also will feature several varieties of ceviche and other Peruvian classics, including lomo saltado made in this case with beef filet chupe de camarones (shrimp chowder), anticuchos (Peruvian shish kebabs made from beef hearts), papa (potato) and yuca a la Huancaina (in a mildly-spicy, Huancayo-style cheese sauce), causa limenas, arroz chaufa (Peruvian-style fried rice), jalea and parihuela. Chacras chef, Angel Valderrama, is from Lima, Perus capital, although most of the restaurants hes worked in in Connecticut have not been Peruvian, Vera said. For me, its very important to have a pleasing mix of good food, drinks and atmosphere, Vera said and the drinks have to be good! All those little details make people feel welcome, he said. Chacra wont be the first Peruvian eatery in Greater New Haven, which already is home to La Molienda at 113 Grand Ave. in Fair Haven, Sabor Peru at 56 Main St. Annex near the East Haven line, and El Rincon Peruano at 469 Campbell Ave. in West Haven. But it will be the first in the heart of downtown (although another, CViche 181, gave it a try for a couple of years a little farther out on Orange Street.) He recognizes that as a downtown restaurant and watering hole, most of the clientele here are not going to be Peruvian. There will be Peruvians, too. But most of them will be Americans. At one point, the conversation was interrupted by a team of workers from a security company working to integrate Chacras fire and security alarms into the system of the larger residential building in which it is located. The conversation also was frequently interrupted by Veras daughter Valentina, 4, who came to work with her dad and didnt seem at all satisfied to sit and watch Clifford the Big Red Dog on one of the Chacra bar television sets. Chacras decor includes a big pillar in the center that was there when it was Temple Grill but has been resurfaced to look like a tree. It also features two large, painted wall scenes, one of a Peruvian village in the mountains outside Cusco and one of a campesina woman weaving textiles. Both were painted by Veras brother-in-law, Pablo Nugra, an Ecuadorian artist. mark.zaretsky@hearstmediact.com As a super PAC attacks Gov. Ned Lamont on television, the Democratic Governors Association registered its own PAC in Connecticut this week, a necessary first step if the DGA is to defend the Democratic incumbent. The DGA declined Thursday to discuss its plans or budget for Stronger CT, a super PAC registered Wednesday with no mention of its affiliation. But it is chaired by Andrew Whalen, who oversees independent expenditures for the DGA. The treasurer, Bernadette Hennessy, is the chief financial officer of Mission Control Inc., a Democratic consulting firm that specializes in direct mail. Past clients include Hillary Clintons presidential campaign in 2016. Four years ago, the DGA played only a modest role in Connecticut, where there was no incumbent to defend and the Democratic nominee was Lamont, a wealthy self-funder with a $15 million budget and little need of outside support. Now, Republican Bob Stefanowski has deposited $10 million into his own campaign account, and two independent-expenditure groups are assisting the GOP with digital and television ads opposing Lamont. One of those groups, CT Truth PAC, is airing a commercial that blames high gas prices on Lamont and closes with an off-color tag line: Tired of getting bleeped at the pump? Fire Ned Lamont. The ad suggests that the passage of a law legalizing recreational cannabis in 2021, which was supported by the public, was more of a priority than gas prices in 2022. CT Truth has spent nearly $1.3 million since April 1, including nearly $400,000 paid last week for television time in the last week of June. Another PAC opposed to Lamont, Parents Against Stupid Stuff, has pledged spending at least $1 million, though its output so far has been modest. The campaigns of Stefanowski and Lamont have been airing their own ads for months. Lamonts put up a new one Monday underlining his support for a womans right to abortion. State law prohibits direct contributions of more than $3,500 to a gubernatorial campaign and $10,000 to a state party in Connecticut, but there is no limit on contributions to independent groups known as super PACs. The Democratic Governors Association, the Republican Governors Association, their affiliated PACs and other super PACS provide conduits around contribution limits to donors who can afford to give more. In 2018, Reverge Anselmo, a donor who then lived in Greenwich, was able to contribute $2 million in support of Stefanowskis first campaign by writing checks to super PACs. This year, CT Truth is primarily funded by three businessmen. David Kelsey of Old Lyme and Thomas E. McInerney of Westport each gave $750,000; Raymond Debbane of Greenwich, an investor and chairman of Weight Watchers, gave $100,000. The DGA and RGA played major roles in 2014, when Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and his Republican opponent, Thomas Foley, each participated in the voluntary public financing program. In return for public funds, they pledged to abide by restrictions on spending. A committee established by the DGA in Connecticut spent $6 million on Malloys behalf $4 million raised by the DGA and $2 million by unions. The RGA spent $5.5 million to help Foley. Neither Lamont nor Stefanowski are participating in the public financing program, allowing them to spend as much of their personal funds as they wish. CT Truth PAC was formed to back Stefanowski. It is advised by Chris LaCivita, who was a consultant to Stefanowskis 2018 campaign. Super PACs cannot coordinate advertising with the campaigns they are supporting, and shared vendors or consultants constitute a presumption of illegal coordination under state law. But LaCivitas work for CT Truth PAC is well outside an 18-month cooling off period. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A gunman killed two people and wounded four others, including three police officers, before taking his own life at a home in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, police said Sunday. Wounds suffered by the four survivors were not life-threatening, police said. The incident happened about 6:45 p.m. Saturday when officers were answering a report of shots fired in a Haltom City neighborhood, Sgt. Rick Alexander said Sunday. Killed at the reported address were Collin Davis, 33, and Amber Tsai, 32, Alexander said. Tsai was found dead inside the house, while Davis was found dead outside, Alexander said. An older woman who called 911 but was not otherwise identified also suffered a non-life-threatening wound, he said. Security video shot from a neighboring house screened at a Sunday news conference showed three officers approaching the address when rapid gunfire erupted, wounding three officers. Officers returned fire as the gunman fled the house through a back door. Tracked by air, the gunman identified as 28-year-old Edward Freyman shot himself, Alexander said. Freyman was found with a military-style rifle and a handgun, he said. This was an ambush situation, Police Chief Cody Phillips said, adding that if officers were not prepared for the situation, it would have been a lot worse. The gunman and the two people he killed knew one another, but their relationships were not immediately clear, Phillips said. The wounded officers were Cpl. Zach Tabler and Officers Tim Barton and Jose Avila. Tabler was wounded in the arm, hand and leg; Barton was wounded in the leg; and Avila was wounded in both legs, Phillips said. Barton was treated at a hospital and released Sunday, Phillips said, while Tabler was recovering from surgery and Avila was awaiting surgery. The Texas Rangers, the state's elite investigative agency, has taken over the investigation. No motive for the shooting was immediately determined. The incident is one of several recent instances in which law enforcement officers were fired upon while responding to calls. Three officers were shot dead in eastern Kentucky while trying to serve a warrant. Police took a 49-year-old man into custody late Thursday night after an hours-long standoff at a house in Allen, a small town in the hills of Appalachia. He remains jailed on a $10 million bond charged with two counts of murder of a police officer. In Chicago, a police officer was hospitalized in serious condition after being shot repeatedly in a Friday morning ambush while answering a domestic disturbance report, police Superintendent David Brown said. A suspect was hospitalized awaiting a psychiatric evaluation and is held on a $2 million bond. Eighteen travellers have been killed, following an accident which occurred along the Lagos-Ibaban expressway. Bisi Kazeem, public ed... Eighteen travellers have been killed, following an accident which occurred along the Lagos-Ibaban expressway. Bisi Kazeem, public education officer of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), confirmed the incident in a statement on Sunday. According to Kazeem, 25 people were involved in the accident which occurred on Saturday around the Isara bridge area, but seven people survived. He said two Mazda buses and a Toyota Previa bus were involved in a collision, which resulted in a fire incident, adding that the other victims were burnt beyond recognition. The collision of the two Mazda buses with unidentified colours and registration numbers with the Previa bus, resulted in an explosion which involved all the three vehicles, NAN quoted him as saying. However, seven out of the two Mazda buses on the right lane survived while others were caught up in the inferno and got burnt beyond recognition. And those in the Previa bus which had assumedly committed the road traffic violation got burnt beyond recognition. Kazeem said the accident happened at about 10:20pm and was caused by overspeeding and road traffic violation. He said Boboye Oyeyemi, FRSC corps marshal, advised travellers to avoid night travel, adding that overspeeding and road traffic violations increase fatalities of road traffic crashes during night travels. Oyeyemi also urged road users to endeavour to drive safely and adhere to all traffic rules and regulations. A 14-year-old girl has allegedly jumped down from a four-storey building to avoid being flogged by her guardian. It was gathered tha... A 14-year-old girl has allegedly jumped down from a four-storey building to avoid being flogged by her guardian. It was gathered that the incident happened in Awada, a highly populated neighbourhood in Onitsha, Anambra State. A source said the girl, Ijeoma Nwafor, is a housemaid to a woman, whose name was given as Nnenna Onwanna, who was used to beating her at every slight opportunity. She, however, survived the jump and is currently said to be receiving treatment in an undisclosed hospital in Onitsha. They live on the fourth floor of a house in Awada, and she was beating her on Saturday when she ran out of the house, and in a bid to escape, she jumped down from the four-storey and landed on the fence, fitted with security wires. She, however, survived as she was pulled out by some residents of the area and was promptly rushed to the hospital for medical attention. Meanwhile, police authorities in the state have confirmed the incident, saying that the woman has been arrested. Contrary to confirmation from sources in the area, the state police commands spokesperson, DSP Toochukwu Ikenga who confirmed the incident said the girl was pushed down by her guardian and tagged it a case of attempted murder. Ikenga said: The Anambra State Police Operatives at about 4pm on 2/7/2022 have arrested one Mrs Onwanna Nnenna (F) aged 29yrs old from Nando, Anambra East in a case of attempted murder that happened at Otu street, Awada, Onitsha. Preliminary information shows that the victim, one miss Ijeoma Nwafor (F), 14year old, a native of Achalla was pushed down from a four-storey building by the suspect when she was beating her. Other details reveal that the victim is a house help to the suspect. Ikenga said Mrs Nnenna is currently in Police custody and the victim is receiving treatment in a hospital, and that further development on the matter will be communicated. Hamza Al-Mustapha, a former aide to the late Sani Abacha, has expressed determination to become Nigerias president in 2023. Al-Must... Hamza Al-Mustapha, a former aide to the late Sani Abacha, has expressed determination to become Nigerias president in 2023. Al-Mustapha, who is the presidential candidate of the Action Alliance, in the 2023 general election, said hes ready to die for the welfare of Nigeria and Nigerians. He spoke on Friday while appearing as a guest on Channels Televisions Politics Today. The presidential hopeful noted that some unnamed people wanted him dead because of his loyalty for Nigeria. He said, I decided this time around to answer to the calls of many Nigerians, elders and younger ones from North to the South and numerous organisations to contest. It came barely towards the end of the submission of forms to the Independent National Electoral Commission. We sat and looked at other parties. we picked the one that shared a common interest with our manifesto and realised that Action Alliance has what was required. We joined Action Alliance and we have been doing our underground work since the convention came and went. We are working hard. We have not come forward deliberately but we are working underground. This is more scientific than the razzmatazz before the official time to kick off the campaign. My passion is to become Nigerias president. My background speaks for itself. I have worked in numerous places before becoming a soldier. I have done what you cannot appreciate at a glance, especially the services rendered for Nigeria. Our records in the military speak for themselves. The passion we have for Nigeria is in the sense of the challenges we saw yesterday and the deep appreciation of where Nigeria is today. It is that element of care driven by patriotism that brought us to the fore to join politics. Whoever you see directly or indirectly coming into politics at this point and talking about money is wrong. For the last seven years that I came out of prison, I have been undergoing research. Our findings are extremely disturbing. While defending his boss, Al-Mustapha narrated how he was tortured and almost killed in prison. According to him, the torture and punishment he got wont stop his passion to lead Nigeria. He said, Abacha policies may be tough then but they are for the common good of Nigerians. He became an enemy to some people at home and outside. It is by the will of God that I am talking to you as a human being. They came to testify in court against us and spread false propaganda. We were tried in the court and the media. No sane society will accept the kind of torture I got. They always run away from discussing what they did to us. They are afraid. But I am not the kind of person that holds malice. I forgave them when I came out of prison, something extremely difficult to do. I was hanged in such a crucial manner. It was horrific; besides beating and punishing my parents I was only allowed to see my parents twice. I survived numerous orders to kill me. It is by the will of God. The large heart that accepted to go through forgiveness has forgiven. My greatest concern now is rendering service, and synergising all forces to make a difference. Yesterday is gone, my personal destiny was designed that I will go through that punishment. If there are people who hated me, it is simply because some of us believe in loyalty and patriotism to this country. Our loyalty to Nigerians is an uncompromised issue. I suffered a lot; but for the sake of the welfare of Nigeria and the well-being of Nigerians, I am ready to die. The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has revealed that he used to be a boxer. The res... The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has revealed that he used to be a boxer. The respected cleric revealed this on Sunday while delivering his message Meant for the top, in the churchs monthly thanksgiving service monitored by our correspondent. The cleric, who admonished the congregation to get closer to God and keep working hard to get to the top, said it took a lot to become a champion, judging from his experience as a boxer. The cleric said, I used to be a boxer. And, one of the things you learn as a boxer is that it takes a lot for you to learn before you become a champion. Adeboye also noted that after becoming a champion, the work was just starting, adding that there would be so many people who wanted to take the position away from the champion, hence, the need to work harder than even the challengers. The moment you become a champion, you discover that you have just started the work. The champion works harder than the challenger because there are many people who want to take your position, Adeboye said. The RCCG holds its Thanks Giving Service every first Sunday of the month where worshippers across the country and globe tune in to watch the G.Os sermon. By Azernews By Ayya Lmahamad A regular meeting of the Supervisory Board of Azerbaijan's State Oil Company (SOCAR) has been held, Azernews reports. Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov noted that the investment strategy in renewable energy production was discussed at the meeting. "During the meeting of the Supervisory Board of #SOCAR (@SOCARofficial), we discussed the improvement of management standards, increasing efficiency, activities of the Coordination Office of the Supervisory Board, as well as #investment strategy in #renewableenergy production," the minister wrote on his official Twitter page. The Azerbaijani Republic's State Oil Company is involved in the exploration of oil and gas fields, the production, processing, and transportation of oil, gas, and gas condensate, the marketing of petroleum and petrochemical products in domestic and international markets, and the supply of natural gas to industry and the general public in Azerbaijan. The company owns two refineries in Azerbaijan and one in Turkey, as well as petrol station networks in Azerbaijan, Turkey, Georgia, Romania, and Switzerland. The police in Ondo on Friday confirmed the rescue of 50 children locked in a church cell in Ondo town. The police in Ondo on Friday confirmed the rescue of 50 children locked in a church cell in Ondo town. They were reportedly found in an underground apartment of a church in the Valentino area of the town. The children were allegedly kidnapped and kept in the underground apartment of the church for trafficking. The police have arrested the pastor of the church, whose name is yet to be released, while the children have been taken into custody. The police also arrested some members of the church. Funmilayo Odunlami, the police spokesperson in the state, told newsmen, preliminary investigations were ongoing and details would be made available shortly. She said further work was ongoing to establish the details of the crime. Mrs Odunlami noted that the victims had been taken to the State CID in Akure headquarters of the command. The command is aware of a case of suspected abduction in Valentino area of Ondo Town, she said. We urge the good people of Ondo State to be calm as the State Criminal Investigation Department has taken over the case. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State has faulted the proposed increase in the fare for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) across various... The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State has faulted the proposed increase in the fare for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) across various routes in the state, calling for a reversal of the plan. The Lagos State Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr Hakeem Amode, in a statement on Saturday in Lagos, berated Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for approving such a hike, saying it would add to the plight of the masses. Amode said the APC-led government blaming the hike on the pump price of diesel from N187 to N830 and the unavailability of spare parts for the increase were not justifiable. According to him, with the crippling economic situation being experienced by Lagos residents daily, the government showed a lack of compassion and total disregard for the plight of the citizens of the state. Sanwo-Olu-led APC administration has completely abdicated its responsibility to the people of the state and turned a blind eye to their predicament. The few luxuries that the people benefit from the state are being taken away. Now is not the time for any form of increment, as the people of the state have suffered enough under this unsympathetic government, he said. Amode said the proposed increase should be shelved so as not to worsen the citizens situation in the face of dilapidated infrastructure, insecurity, hunger, rise in crime, among others being experienced by the people of the state. Sanwo-Olu had on Thursday approved a flat rate increase by N100 in bus fares for all Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Standard Routes with effect from July 13. With the increase, a bus ride from Ikorodu-TBS will now cost N600 from N500 while Berger to Ajah is now N700, up from N600. Also, Oshodi to Abule Egba will cost N450 from N350 and Abule-Egba-CMS-Obalende will attract a fare of N600. Kano State Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has said the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu ... Kano State Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has said the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu is not an experimental president given his dexterity and strong rooting in politics and administration in the Nigeria project. The governor made the assertion at Governors Lodge, Aminu Kano House, Abuja, when he received an award presented by the National Coalition of Tinubu Support Groups Worldwide, the national directorate, comprising Nigeria, USA, UK, Canada, Ireland, Germany, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Oman, UAE chapters. It was gathered the award is for Gandujes leading role in Tinubus victory at the partys presidential primary election. Ganduje said, given Tinubus outstanding performance as Lagos State governor where he formed a formidable team made up of people from different parts of the country that transformed the state to the strongest economy in the sub-region, Asiwajus presidency can best manage our diversity. Ganduje pointed out that Tinubus emergence at the primary election gives hope and encouragement that the party is set to win the 2023 general election. The Kano governor thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for creating the enabling environment for the conduct of the primary. He hailed APC and encouraged its governors as well as other aspirants who have expressed readiness to work with Asiwaju for the victory of the party. He expressed appreciation for the recognition by the coalition and promised to work harder for the success of Tinubus presidential candidature. A statement by the Kano State Commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba quoted the Convener and Global Director-General of the coalition Dr. Doyin Johnson as saying: the award is presented to Governor Ganduje as a way of saying thank you for the strategic role he played in the actualisation of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT) presidency. Doyin Johnson urged Ganduje to continue to use his intellectual capacity and strong mobilisation prowess to ensure the success of the APC presidential candidate at the poll next year. The Governor of Imo state, Hope Uzodinma, who was part of the delegation, described Ganduje as a man of honour and tasked him to map out strategies for winning the general election come 2023. Watertown, NY (13601) Today Rain this morning with thunderstorms developing for the afternoon. High 76F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 100%.. Tonight Showers early, then partly cloudy overnight. Low 66F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Some have called for his impeachment for failing to recuse himself in situations in which there appears to be a conflict of interest, and to disclose allegedly pertinent information. You voted: The bronze statue of a languid young woman seated on the edge of a small fountain near Decatur Street, carted off after being vandalized nine months ago, has been bolted back in place. The graffiti and random decoration that marred the artwork expertly stripped away, Michelle is as bright and unblemished as the day she made her debut in 1984, much to the relief of those who hold her dear. Last September, French Quarter habitues discovered that Michelle was missing. Some feared shed been stolen at some point during the harried days that followed Hurricane Ida, and maybe even sold for scrap metal. Thankfully, that wasnt the case. The truth was more mundane. Sometime in the sultry summer, red paint had been sprayed luridly across her throat, faux gems had been glued to her eyes and glitter added to her eyelids. Michelle had simply been removed by the city for refurbishing by a metal restorer. Her ten-month absence had, as they say, made the hearts of her fans grow fonder. For almost four decades, Michelle had been a minor landmark in her own right. Something about the reclining figure, dressed in summery shorts and a sheer blouse, captured the carefree spirit of the Vieux Carre. For reasons unknown, she was sometimes referred to as the mermaid, though there is no scaly tail involved. And she was never nude, though some remember her that way. The statue co-starred in innumerable tourist snapshots and more recently cellphone selfies. Shed been the silent, unassuming symbol of the Vieux Carre, happy to help set the mood for more than a few wedding proposals. The Bohemian Type Nobody regretted the absence of Michelle more than Gayle de la Houssaye, who modeled for the statue all those years ago. De la Houssaye, who is now 70, is a New Orleans-born, Mount Carmel Academy grad who studied sketching and painting at the bygone McCrady Art School on Bourbon Street. De la Houssaye was always by her own description a bohemian type. In the 1970s, she worked at an auction house restoring oriental rugs as she learned to play guitar. De la Hussaye lived in a time-worn antebellum mansion of Washington Avenue, until she fell in love with a hippie carpenter who spirited her away in an antique truck that had been converted into a sort of gypsy wagon. The plan was to head out west. Instead, the couple ended up in Eureka Springs Arkansas, where De la Houssaye lived ever since. On a visit to her old hometown in the early 1980s, a friend recommended her as a model to sculptor Paul Perret Jr., whod been commissioned to produce lifelike statues for a promenade on the riverside of the French Quarter. According to de la Houssaye, Perret made plaster casts of her body, using petroleum jelly to be sure the plaster didnt stick. It required that she stay very still as the plaster hardened. Once, she said, she ruined a days work when she sneezed before the plaster had finished setting, and another time her wrists went numb during the process. At the end of each session, she said, Id have Magic Marker on me and my hair would be hung with plaster and Vaseline." De la Houssaye was paid for her participation, but mostly, she said, she did it for the love of art. A Magic Time De la Houssaye, who became a professional musician back in her adopted home, said that she posed for the statue during a period of life that was so wonderful, she recalls it as a magic time. Who knows, maybe some of the magic rubbed off on the bronze. Once in place, the statue became a regular stop for de la Houssaye's family and friends during trips to New Orleans. Wed go eat at the Court of Two Sisters, and go see the statue, she said. It was a small claim to fame. So when de la Houssaye got word that the statue had vanished last year, she said it hit me in the pit of stomach. Later, when she read that the statue had just been removed for restoration, she was relieved. I was glad somebody didnt whack her head off, she said. As the months dragged on, with no reappearance, de la Houssay said, she wasnt worried. Well, she said, it was after the hurricane, and theyve got bigger fish to fry. And its the Big Easy; things move slow. The Magnetism of Michelle Retired sculptor Paul Perret said he recalls that de la Houssaye had been a good model. He cant exactly remember her causing damage to a mold, but he doesnt doubt it. Things happen. She was probably nervous during the process, he said. Perret, now 70, was happy to hear that the sculpture named after his daughter Michelle has returned. At this writing, he had not yet seen it, but and was particularly eager to see how the patina the subtle coloration of the bronze had been restored. Perret explained that after the statue was finished, he used various chemicals to stain the metal a lustrous brown color, with a pale blue-green hue on the blouse and darker green on the shorts. Years ago, he said, someone had zealously cleaned the statue with a power washer, removing the colors hed created. Luckily, over the years, the patina had more-or-less naturally reappeared. Based on social media photos of the sculpture, it appears that the restorer, hired by the French Market Corporation, renewed the original skin tone and the distinct colors of Michelles clothing. When the statue seemed to disappear last year, Perret said he became aware of the sentimental attachment the public has to the aged artwork, through messages he received from people who had personal relationships with bronze. The magnetism lingered, even when Michelle was absent. Popping the Question Amber Guevara, a 35-year-old software developer from Austin Texas, said that she and her girlfriend Rebekah Poyo had been seeing one another for six months and were taking their first vacation together in New Orleans when they encountered the statue. Guevara said that Poyo, a 29-year-old catering coordinator, is a slip of a girl, just like Michelle. So, as Poyo rolled her eyes, Guevara meticulously posed her beside her bronze doppelganger. That was in 2016. Last year, just before Thanksgiving, Guevara and Poyo revisited the French Quarter. Guevara planned to propose marriage to Poyo at the site of the statue. Before the big day, she became aware the statue was gone, but she went through with the plan anyway, and Poyo said yes. Romantics might imagine that the lingering spirit of the mermaid that is not a mermaid somehow helped seal the deal. As Close as Possible Michelle was restored by Zitos Plating and Polishing Works. Company spokesman Corey McCloskey said that the statue required a very extensive cleaning process that also reduced some of the oxidation that had taken place over the decades. Referring to old photos, McClosky said, his company applied colors meant to renew the original appearance as close as possible. We had her for five months, he said. It takes that much time, he said, when youre dealing with such a beautiful piece. Look for Michelle where Madison Street intersects the river wall, not far from Cafe du Monde. +16 Slave Trails high-tech art display marks where some slaves were sold in French Quarter Artist Marcus Browns Slavery Trails sculptures dont exist in the real world. But if you stand beneath the oaks on Esplanade Avenue on the +7 Black Power Afro pick sculpture is about as good as public art gets: Doug MacCash's review The gigantic steel sculpture of an Afro hair pick that appeared on St. Charles Avenue in the CBD last weekend is everything a public artwork o This week marks the 40th anniversary of the crash of Pan Am Flight 759 in a Kenner neighborhood one of the deadliest airline crashes in American history. On July 9, 1982, Flight 759, which originated in Miami, took off for Las Vegas after making a stop at New Orleans International Airport. The Boeing 727 was cleared for takeoff just after 4 p.m. despite heavy thunderstorms. A National Transportation Safety Board investigation showed that the plane encountered a microburst and wind shear, which caused it to quickly lose altitude and speed. It crashed in the Morningside Park subdivision near Roosevelt Boulevard and West Metairie Avenue. The crash killed all 145 passengers and crew on board, as well as eight people on the ground. A 16-month-old child was found alive under a mattress inside her home. Melissa Trahans mother and 4-year-old sister died, but she suffered only minor burns. According to filmmaker and author Royd Anderson, who produced a documentary about the disaster, the crash led to the development of Doppler radar to predict severe downdrafts. By the next decade, federal authorities also began requiring wind shear detection systems in all commercial aircraft. Facing lawsuits above $3 billion, the airline and federal government offered victims families an undisclosed settlement. A memorial to the victims was erected at nearby Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church. The governors of Virginia and Maryland responded to a letter from the Supreme Courts top security official calling on them to provide more police resources to prevent protests outside the homes of justices following the landmark ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade. Left-wing protesters have continued to appear outside their homes since the ruling. Over the July 4 weekend, more protesters were seen picketing outside the justices homes, located in suburban areas in Virginia and Maryland. The governor agrees with the Marshal that the threatening activity outside the Justices homes has increased, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin spokesperson Christian Martinez said in a statement after Supreme Court Marshal Gail Curley called on the governor to enforce state law that prohibits demonstrations outside the homes of justices. He welcomes the Marshal of the Supreme Courts request for Fairfax County to enforce state law as they are the primary enforcement authority for the state statute, the statement added, adding that Attorney General Merrick Garland needs to do his job by enforcing federal laws. Every resource of federal law enforcement, including the U.S. Marshals, should be involved while the Justices continue to be denied the right to live peacefully in their homes, according to the statement. However, from the statement, its not clear if Youngkins administration is going to take concrete steps to provide more law enforcement at their homes. Another Response After receiving Curleys letter on Friday night, a spokesman for Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan responded by saying that Garland needs to act. Two months ago, Governor Hogan and Governor Youngkin sent a letter calling on Attorney General Garland to enforce the clear and unambiguous federal statutes on the books that prohibit picketing at judges residences, Hogan spokesman Michael Ricci wrote on Twitter. A month later, hours after an assassination attempt on Justice Kavanaugh, the Department of Justice finally responded, declining to enforce the laws. The spokesman was referring to an incident involving 26-year-old Nicholas Roske, a California man who was arrested at Justice Brett Kavanaughs home last month and allegedly told officials that he was plotting to kill the justice because he would support overturning Roe v. Wade and support expanding Second Amendment protections. Now a different federal official is writing to us with conflicting information, his statement continued. Had the marshal taken time to explore the matter, she would have learned that the constitutionality of the statute cited in her letter has been questioned by the Maryland Attorney Generals office. Hogan has instructed Maryland State Police to further review law enforcement options after the letter was sent, Ricci said. Federal law stipulates that its illegal to attempt to influence a judges ruling or interfere with their duties. But the Department of Justice has, so far, failed to take action against the constant protests outside the homes of Republican-appointed justices including Clarence Thomas, Amy Coney Barrett, and Kavanaugh. The demonstrations, meanwhile, come amid rampant vandalism and arson attacks against churches, pregnancy centers, and pro-life groups. Some left-wing extremist groups have said they will carry out more attacks if their demands arent met. Last weekend, dozens of people were arrested across the U.S. following the Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe. From The Epoch Times We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Hoosier Net became the first Indatel statewide network backed by both telephone companies and electric cooperatives after landing an investment from Accord Telecommunications Collaborative. Accord, which consists of 21 Rural Electric Membership Cooperatives and telephone cooperatives, is investing in the consortium of internet service providers, which include Hebron-based NITCO and the Pulaski-White Rural Telephone Cooperative, which does business as LightStream. Hoosier Net aims to expand broadband to rural communities across Indiana and is now looking to secure broadband grants through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act's Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program. Closing the digital divide is vital to the future of rural America. Hundreds of electric cooperatives across the nation are working to bring quality broadband service to their members and the communities they serve. Were glad to see Hoosier Net and Indianas electric cooperatives collaborate to bring high-speed internet service to unserved and underserved families and businesses in Indiana, said Paul M. Breakman, a vice president for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. A total of 35 service providers own Hoosier Net and Accord. Accords investment in Hoosier Net is another step toward accomplishing our shared vision of making Indiana the most connected state. We and our Hoosier Net partners form an unprecedented mix of electric cooperatives and telephone companies. Together we are seeking win-win opportunities that will ultimately benefit all Hoosiers, and that is what makes us excited about this investment, said James Tanneberger, Accord chairman and president and CEO of South-Central Indiana REMC. Hoosier Net is looking to scale up broadband deployment to better serve rural areas across the Hoosier State. We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to achieve broadband access for all Americans, regardless of where they live and the leadership and creative partnership led by Hoosier Net and its member companies will be a key part of finding the scope and scale to provide connectivity to communities and businesses in Indiana. I am thrilled to see this crucial investment in Hoosier Net at this moment in time when robust broadband access and middle-mile transport has never been more critical to economic prosperity. Hoosier Nets users are already doing great work, and I cannot wait to see how this investment will further connect Hoosiers to high-speed broadband," said Shirley Bloomfield, CEO of NTCA. Hoosier Net provides middle-mile network connections to serve telecommunications providers and end-users like hospitals, schools and local governments. It helps develop high-speed fiber-optic broadband that brings faster internet service to underserved areas that are less densely populated. "We are pleased to have Accord be an owner of Hoosier Net on behalf of their Indiana REMC(s) and telephone cooperative owners," said Rob Shema, CEO of Hoosier Net and CNI. "For us, gaining access to fiber resources for our Indiana middle mile network is critical. Accord's investment and partnership will help make that possible." A prominent Indiana attorney for conservative causes, including the National Right to Life Committee, has prepared what he describes as a model law for states to enact if they want to ban nearly all abortions. Attorney Jim Bopp, of Terre Haute, said his proposal offers "the best opportunity to protect the unborn" following last month's U.S. Supreme Court ruling rescinding the constitutional right to abortion established by the high court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. "It is important that such states not only prohibit illegal abortions, but also employ a robust enforcement regime, so that these laws are sure to be enforced," Bopp said. "Our model law does just that. It builds on the substantial experience the right-to-life movement has had in developing pro-life legislation." Leaders of the Republican-controlled General Assembly so far have been mum following the Supreme Court ruling on exactly how far the House and Senate plan to go toward eliminating the approximately 7,000 abortions performed each year in Indiana, and whether any abortion ban will include exceptions for rape, incest or the life or health of the mother. Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb has called the Legislature into special session July 6 to tackle abortion and other state issues. But legislative leaders last week postponed the session's start until July 25 to have more time to develop preliminary abortion legislation. If history is any guide, the GOP abortion measure ultimately filed at the Statehouse is likely to look like Bopp's proposal, since Bopp repeatedly has guided Hoosier lawmakers in developing and defending abortion, immigration, campaign finance and anti-LGBTQ policies. Bopp's abortion plan would ban all abortion, including in cases of rape and incest. The only permissible abortion would be to prevent the immediate death of a pregnant woman, where delay would create serious risk of substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function, not including psychological or emotional conditions. A doctor or another person who successfully performs an abortion would be subject to prosecution for a level 2 felony, punishable by 10-30 years in prison. The perpetrator of an incomplete abortion that results in the birth of a live child could be charged with a level 3 felony, punishable by 3-16 years in prison. Bopp's proposal also would apply the same criminal penalties to any person who provides a pregnant woman, or someone acting on her behalf, any information about where to procure an abortion, including hosting or maintaining a website advising women about abortion availability elsewhere. Likewise, Bopp's legislation would make the sale, distribution or advertising of the two-dose abortion pill to a person likely to use it for an illegal abortion a level 3 felony, as well as taking a pregnant minor across state lines to obtain an abortion without the consent of her parents. In no case, however, would a pregnant woman who obtains an abortion be subject to criminal penalties, according to the plan. Bopp acknowledges such criminal laws are likely to be ineffective in "large urban centers and college towns" where most Indiana abortion clinics are located because "radical Democrat prosecutors" have indicated their reluctance to enforce stringent abortion bans. As a result, he's recommending the state's attorney general be authorized to either supplement or substitute for the county prosecutor if the locally elected prosecutor uses their discretion not to pursue alleged abortion crimes. In addition to criminal sanctions, Bopp also is urging state legislators to authorize civil lawsuits against abortion providers for "wrongful death of an unborn child." Potential litigants, including the pregnant woman, the father of an aborted fetus and the parents of a minor who obtains an abortion, could seek monetary penalties, punitive damages, attorney fees and court costs. Under the model law, an abortion-related civil action could not be filed by a person who impregnated a woman through rape, sexual assault, incest or other criminal conduct. It also would require the state medical licensing board to revoke the license of any physician who performs an illegal abortion. Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life, said states enacting the model law will take a big step toward continuing the efforts of anti-abortion advocates to drastically reduce the number of abortions in America. "With this model law, we are laying out a roadmap for the right-to-life movement so that, in a post-Roe society, we can protect many mothers and their children from the tragedy of abortion," Tobias said. Statehouse Democrats, who hold just 29 of 100 seats in the House and 11 of 50 Senate seats, generally oppose new abortion restrictions, in part because they say Indiana isn't doing nearly enough to support families and children already living in the state. "It's convenient for Republican lawmakers to advocate for the unborn when there are literally hundreds of thousands of children and families that are suffering right now. If I must take a side, I will take the side of a living, breathing human who is in need," said state Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary. CROWN POINT The Crown Point Police Department has launched an emergency hire process as it looks to bring on new officers. People can apply for police jobs from July 11 through 3 p.m. July 29. Eligible candidates must have graduated from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy or have gone to an accredited police academy from out of state. They also must have completed certification through the Indiana Law Enforcement Training Board and meet the minimum standards of membership in the 1977 Police Officers Pension and Disability Fund. Pay at the Crown Point Police Department starts at $59,033.52. New officers are eligible for a promotion after 90 days that will boost their annual salary to $67,466.88. In Crown Point, police officers work 12-hour shifts, doing two-month rotations from day to night. They get medical insurance, life insurance, holiday pay of double time and a half, a $1,200 clothing allowance a year and a take-home vehicle with off-duty driving privileges. They also get a PERF retirement rate of $79,000. In addition to normal patrol duty, officers could end up working in specialties like SWAT, the motorcycle division, the bicycle division, the drone team, the South County Crash and Reconstruction Team, the K-9 unit, the School Resource Officer program and the honor guard that's coming next year. Anyone interested should fill out the application form on the city's website and send a current resume. Any questions about the jobs or the hiring process should be directed to Assistant Chief Jim Janda at jjanda@crownpoint.in.gov. To apply, visit crownpoint.in.gov. HIGHLAND The Town Council has given the Cardinal Campus three extra years to complete the project. The complex, located west of Indianapolis Boulevard at the northeast corner of Main Street and Prairie Avenue, was originally scheduled to be finished this summer. By now, it was expected to have seven two-story, professional office buildings and a three-story boutique hotel. The first three buildings are already up and open for business, largely with medical firms. The developer of the $41.4 million project is Dr. Claude Gendreau, a veterinary surgeon from Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Shortly after the first building was completed prior to the pandemic Gendreau moved his animal surgical center into the premises. That was followed by other medical firms buying portions of the other buildings. But the project has been in a holding pattern for the past couple of years, mostly due to COVID-19, said Gendreau's attorney, Kymn Harp. "It had a major impact" on professional services, Harp said. "It's had a significant effect on this particular project." Supplies and nationwide material shortages have also contributed to the delay, he added. After a long discussion, the council voted 4-1 to grant Gendreau an extension to complete all of the buildings. Casting the lone negative vote was Councilman Mark Schocke, R-3rd. "I'd like to see a definite completion date," said Councilman Roger Sheeman, R-5th, as he expressed frustration with the delay. Harp assured the Campus should be completed by Oct. 31, 2025. Hotel construction next in line The final building originally slated for construction was the hotel. However, Gendreau now plans to construct this facility next and do the other buildings afterward. Harp said that decision was made because office space is not very strong at the moment. Once in operation, the hotel can bring more funding into the project, Gendreau noted. The town has committed $16.5 million in tax increment finance bonds to help Gendreau. The first bonds, for $5.8 million, were previously issued, and the council on Monday approved issuing the remaining $10.7 million. In voting against the extension, Schocke said a 142-page explanation of the construction delay had no mention of COVID as the reason and therefore didn't believe the Cardinal Campus was being honest with the council. Schocke also said a $16.5 million TIF deal is huge and compared it to the town budget, which is $16 million. Gendreau pointed out that Cardinal Campus and Highland are partners and that an incomplete project would be a black eye for the town. He also said his animal surgical center draws business from five different states, with most clients staying overnight and shopping at various Highland businesses. "We want to continue to grow the Campus," Gendreau said. "We want to carry it forward to a successful ending." Sheeman said that Highland has a reputation of being tough for new businesses to deal with and that he does not want to add to that perception. He added that Highland does not want an empty piece of property. "(So) let's get it done and go forward" even if we don't like the delay. INDIANAPOLIS Two days before the Indiana Republican Convention gathered, we heard conservative retired federal Judge J. Michael Luttig tell the U.S. House Jan. 6 Select Committee what would have happened if Vice President Mike Pence had done President Trumps bidding in overturning the 2020 election. It would have been a revolution within a constitutional crisis. Three days after Hoosier Republicans convened, we heard Republican Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers recall the pressure from Rudy Giuliani to throw out the peoples will and, instead, opt for illegal contingent electors to reinstall Trump despite losing the popular vote to Joe Biden by 7 million, as well as the Electoral College 306-232. Bowers said Giuliani told him, Weve got lots of theories; we just dont have the evidence. And Republican Georgia Sec. of State Brad Raffensperger described the soundbite of the century from Trump (I just want to find 11,780 votes and give me a break) and Trumps twisted description of non-existent fraud and 5,000 dead people voting. The actual number was four, Raffensperger said. Thats one, two, three, four people not 4,000. But just a total of four, not 10,000, not 5,000. On June 18, Hoosier Republicans voted on a second ballot to nominate Diego Morales over incumbent Sec. Holli Sullivan. There had been an Associated Press report in which he had referred to the 2020 presidential election as a scam. The Morales campaign texted this: I proudly voted for Trump twice, but Joe Biden was elected president in 2020 and legitimately occupies that office today. There were a number of irregularities in that election. Those kinds of actions are unacceptable." But in a March 8 article appearing on the website Hoosier State Today, Morales describes deep skepticism regarding the accuracy of the 2020 presidential election. Let me make my own position on 2020 crystal clear: The 2020 election was flawed and the outcome is questionable. Morales continues: America First patriots remain committed, because it is the wound that will not heal until it is honestly addressed. Electing the right secretaries of state in every state of our union now represents a more important task than ever, as the stewards of our elections. Morales' Democratic opponent, Destiny Wells, said on Tuesday, Hes saying he was misquoted in calling it a scam. I have the article printed where it was written by him. Diego wrote it. How is it that Diego misquoted himself? Wells added, He is a part of the America First coalition of secretaries of state who have other agendas. That means hes part of that pack, that hes beholden to the notion that the election was stolen. I know hes walking that back right now. Asked what his victory over Sullivan means, Morales answered, I will say one word: Praise the Lord. Morales, who accused Gov. Eric Holcomb of abusing his power during the COVID-19 pandemic, added, The vision today is to keep that American dream alive. We must secure our elections ... so we can increase voter confidence. Morales vowed to purge voter rolls, limit absentee ballots, and allow voting only on election day. No one in Indiana cemeteries will be allowed to vote, Morales told GOP delegates. The problem with that is, there is no evidence of dead Hoosiers voting. "On Sunday I was getting calls from Republicans," Wells said on Tuesday. "I mean, Im from Martinsville. I am the black sheep of the family. I do not like it when people vilify Republicans. Thats my family, thats my hometown, thats my best friend, who is treasurer on my campaign and is a Republican. I told her, If you dont have a party, come and hang out with us for the year and she obliged. I know Im going to have Republicans voting for me. While Indiana isn't a swing state and will almost certainly vote for a Republican presidential nominee in 2024, the notion of installing an election denier as the state's top elections official is a dicey proposition. Now, if youre a Hoosier Republican, this is probably the biggest takeaway from Tuesdays Jan. 6 hearing: Raffensperger was asked why Donald Trump lost Georgia. Ive been traveling through the state of Georgia for a year now, and simply put, in a nutshell, what happened in fall of 2020 is that 28,000 Georgians skipped the presidential race, and yet they voted down-ballot in other races, Raffensperger said. And the Republican congressman ended up getting 33,000 more votes than President Trump, and thats why President Trump came up short. Judge Luttig parted last Tuesday with this chilling warning: Donald Trump and his allies and supporters are a clear and present danger to American democracy. They would attempt to overturn that 2024 election in the same way that they attempted to overturn the 2020 election, but succeed in 2024 where they failed in 2020. I dont speak those words lightly. I would have never spoken those words ever in my life, except that thats what the former president and his allies are telling us. This is not a conspiracy cloaked in secret meetings in shadowy Washington alcoves. It was brazenly performed in plain sight, and it continues to this very day ... even here in Indiana. On a landlocked street corner at the entrance to the South Street Seaport stands a shabby, rust-streaked old lighthouse, its lantern dark, dwarfed by modern towers to its south and west. Passed with scarcely a glance by most people heading to the shops and bars on Fulton Street, this is the 109-year-old Titanic Memorial Lighthouse, which once presided over the East River waterfront from a far prouder height, shining its fixed green beacon miles out to Sandy Hook, at the southern entrance of Lower New York Bay. A fledgling preservation group, which includes descendants of Titanic passengers, has been urging the restoration of the lighthouse for more than two and a half years, while the South Street Seaport Museum, which owns the structure, has been focused on the more immediate, existential struggle of simply staying solvent. Travelers across the country faced the prospect of canceled or delayed flights on Saturday as airlines and airports dealt with a combination of high demand, bad weather and staffing shortages. As of Saturday night, nearly 650 flights in the United States had been canceled and more than 5,200 flights within, into or out of the country had been delayed, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. While the number of problem flights was higher than on a typical travel day, travel demand was also higher. According to the Transportation Security Administration, the number of travelers over the Fourth of July holiday weekend had reached prepandemic levels. Travel demand over the same holiday weekend last year had substantially recovered from pandemic lows but was still below this years levels. The driver of a truck that could top 350 miles per hour because it was powered by jet engines died after the vehicle crashed on Saturday while racing two airplanes at an air show in Michigan, officials said. The custom-built race truck, which was equipped with three jet engines and a combined 36,000 horsepower, crashed during the pyrotechnic portion of the Battle Creek Field of Flight Air Show and Balloon Festival in Battle Creek, Mich., about 50 miles southwest of Lansing. Chris Darnell, the driver of the truck and a member of a family that had been part of the air show business for many years, was killed, said Barbara Haluszka, the executive director of the festival. All six of the Republican-appointed justices live in wealthy enclaves in Fairfax County, Va., and Montgomery County, Md., which border Washington. Mr. Elrich, the Montgomery County official, said in a statement that he did not have any record of a letter from Ms. Curley, but he criticized her request, saying that the federal government was primarily responsible for ensuring the safety of justices and their families. It is very troubling that the court would take this approach, Mr. Elrich said. If the marshal is concerned about security, then she and her staff should communicate directly with our police chief, myself, and my staff rather than having a letter released to the press. In a statement, the Fairfax County Police Department said it was responsible for protecting the public, including three justices, and safeguarding the constitutional right of people to protest. It was well versed on the laws that govern protests, it said, adding that it had a unit specifically trained to help crowds that gather to express their views. Both Mr. Youngkin and Mr. Hogan have previously expressed concern about the protests. In statement posted to Twitter on Saturday, the communications director for Mr. Hogan said the governor has directed Maryland State Police to further review enforcement options that respect the First Amendment and the Constitution. He added that the Justice Department had declined a request from Mr. Hogan to enforce federal statutes prohibiting protesting at the justices residences. Sadie Kuhns, an organizer with Our Rights DC, a group created by protesters in May that has organized more than 30 protests outside the homes of the conservative justices, said the group has not seen a law enforcement response to its demonstrations and has no plans to stop. In a transfixing two-minute video called River (The Water Serpent) in the Metropolitan Museums American Wing we see a drone shot of a snow-flecked landscape where a crowd has gathered. Each of its members holds a vertical mirrored panel. Together, on cue, they place the panels horizontally over their heads, reflective side skyward, and begin a procession. At first, its loose and tidally pooling and eddying. Then it tightens into a stream of light, gains velocity, and spirals like a whirlpool. The landscape is a stretch of prairie on the Standing Rock Sioux reservation spanning the border between North and South Dakota. The time of the filming was December 2016. The procession, conceived by two Native American artists, Cannupa Hanska Luger and Rory Wakemup, was a combined act of protest and preservation. The trucks are mostly loaded at what Grucci calls undisclosed bunker locations on Long Island and Virginia, where firework inventories are covered with earth to keep them cool. (We dont advertise where our explosives are stored, he said.) The licensed technicians meet the trucks at their assigned locations, where they lay out the wiring according to a detailed script and load the fireworks into cylindrical fiberglass tubes. Each firework is marked with a number that is linked to an electronic firing system. Before sunset, the technicians communicate with local police and fire departments to make sure the area where the fireworks land is cleared of all revelers. An average-sized show will need a fallout zone of a 500-foot diameter, but larger programs might need up to a 2,000-foot diameter. About 50 of the pyrotechnicians are full-time Grucci employees, but most of the people orchestrating the shows are part-time workers with day jobs. For someone who may be an accountant or a mechanic or something like that, they become a performer for that 20 minutes, Grucci said. And when the show is over and that audience roars, theres nothing like it. One night in 1989, Hunter Reynolds, then a 30-year-old artist living in New York City, made himself up at home with the help of a friendly drag queen. He was intrigued with the results: his handsome face embellished and transformed, neither man nor woman, like an androgynous cabaret star in Berlin during the Weimar years. He tossed on a tweed coat and headed out to various art-world events. Friends didnt recognize him, so he pretended to be a performance artist visiting from Los Angeles. As a gay man and an artist, Mr. Reynolds was already interested in exploring the limits and the possibilities of gender. As a gay man recently diagnosed with H.I.V. and a member of ACT UP, the grass-roots protest group founded by Larry Kramer and others, he was on the front lines of the fight against the disease that would eventually kill him and against the homophobia in politics, health care and the art world that made the fight so much more urgent. Making art that focused on his body would become increasingly important to him. Before long he had developed an alter ego he called Patina du Prey. For Patina, Mr. Reynolds designed a wardrobe of gowns full-skirted antebellum numbers made of satin, organdy and taffeta, with stiff bodices shaped to Mr. Reynoldss very male torso, which showed off his hairy chest and muscular arms. The gowns grew more elaborate as Patinas performances did. With its earsplitting rounds of cannon fire and triumphal spirit, Tchaikovskys 1812 Overture has been a staple of Fourth of July festivities across the United States for decades, serving as a rousing prelude to glittering displays of fireworks. But this year many ensembles, concerned about the overtures history as a celebration of the Russian military Tchaikovsky wrote it to commemorate the rout of Napoleons army from Russia in the winter of 1812 are reconsidering the work because of the war in Ukraine. Some groups have decided to skip it, arguing that its bellicose themes would be offensive during wartime. Others, eager to show solidarity with Ukraine, have added renditions of the Ukrainian national anthem to their programs to counter the overtures exaltation of czarist Russia. Still others are reworking it, in one case by adding calls for peace. But even this proved unproblematic. We would tighten a piece sentence by sentence, word by word, and Richard welcomed suggestions. He eventually took the process as a challenge, a puzzle that we would solve together. His was the most nimble and retentive mind Ive ever worked with closely over time. It was almost scary to hear him quote from memory a paragraph of something he had read a decade or two before virtually verbatim. And he seemed to have read everything. It came as a particular jolt recently to hear that what Richard was dying of was cancer of the esophagus. With suddenly renewed force, I recalled the circumstances of our early work together, at Opus. That started while he was writing his first oversized book, Stravinsky and the Russian Traditions, which in 1996 ultimately weighed in at two volumes and 1,757 pages. Richard would work on Stravinsky for three or four weeks, then take a week off between chapters and write for Opus. In one of those breaks, he might produce six or seven 500-word CD reviews, a 1,000-word think piece, two 2,500-word essays and a 4,000- or 5,000-word blowout. They arrived in a fat manila envelope, which, when opened, reeked of cigar smoke. (Cigars are said to be a risk factor for esophageal cancer.) Cigars, it happens, were something of an odd leitmotif in Richards biography. The story was told vividly, by Peter Kang in Columbia College Today in 2005 that Richard, as a young pup at Columbia University in 1961, saw a distinguished-looking man enter the music library with a lighted cigar and informed him that smoking was not permitted there. When the man left, Kang wrote, the library staff quickly told Taruskin that the smoker he had just admonished was world-renowned musicologist and professor Paul Henry Lang. In remarks in May, not long after the leak, Justice Thomas reflected on how things had changed at the court since an 11-year stretch without changes in its membership before the arrival of Chief Justice Roberts in 2005. This is not the court of that era, Justice Thomas said, adding: We actually trusted each other. We may have been a dysfunctional family, but we were a family. A less collegial court seems like it could be especially problematic for the three liberal justices. There are now five Republican-appointed justices who are even more conservative than Roberts. If the court is a less collaborative place, I would imagine it gives the justices in the minority both the liberals and, in some cases, Roberts less ability to shape decisions. Yes, though its possible to overstate the power of collegiality. Justices cast votes based on the strength of the relevant arguments and the desired outcomes, not on how likable their colleagues are. The justices say there is no vote-trading across cases, and I believe them. On the other hand, there are certainly negotiations within cases. It seems tolerably clear, for instance, that Justices Breyer and Elena Kagan shifted positions in one part of the 2012 case that upheld a key portion of the Affordable Care Act to make certain they would secure Chief Justice Robertss vote on another part. Justices may well be prepared to narrow or reshape a draft opinion that seeks to speak for a five-justice majority in exchange for a vote. But once the author has gotten to five, the value of another potential vote plummets. It is that dynamic that must worry the courts liberals. Russia seizes Lysychansk Ukraines military said Sunday that it had withdrawn from the key eastern city of Lysychansk, the last city in Luhansk Province still held by Ukraine. Moscows victory means Russian forces are in control of large parts of the Donbas, a coal-rich region that has become Russias focal point since its defeat around Kyiv in the spring. Ukrainian forces are now bolstering defenses along the border line between Luhansk and the neighboring province of Donetsk, residents said. After Ukraine withdrew from Lysychansk, explosions hit the center of a Russian city just north of Ukraine, killing four, officials said. It is the deadliest known episode affecting civilians in Russia since the start of the war. Moscow blamed Ukraine for the attack in Belgorod; Ukraines military had no immediate comment. Its printers, VulcanForms said, now generate 100 times the laser energy of most 3-D printers, and can produce parts many times faster. That print technology is the companys core intellectual asset, protected by dozens of patents. But VulcanForms has decided not to sell its machines. Its strategy is to be a supplier to customers in need of custom-made parts. That approach allows VulcanForms to control the entire manufacturing process. But it is also a concession to the reality that the ecosystem of additive manufacturing is lacking. The company is building each stage of the manufacturing process itself, making its own printers, designing parts, doing final machining and testing. We absolutely have to do it ourselves build the full stack of digital manufacturing if we are to succeed, said Mr. Feldmann, who is the chief executive. The factory is the product. The Devens facility has six of the giant printers. By next year, there should be 20, the company said. VulcanForms has scouted four locations for a second factory. In five years, the company hopes to have several 3-D printing factories up and running. The do-it-yourself strategy also magnifies the risk and the cost for the start-up. But the company has convinced a roster of high-profile recruits that the risk is worth it. BUFFALO Buffalo was riding a decade-long economic turnaround when a racially motivated attack by a gunman killed 10 people in May, overshadowing the progress. While the city grieved, it also had to reckon with unflattering portrayals of the East Side, the impoverished neighborhood where the massacre took place. Those harsh takes tell only part of the story, say residents, business owners and city officials. Now, they are determined to put the focus back on the recovery. Major efforts to improve the East Side have been afoot for years, like new job-training facilities and the overhaul of a deserted train station. And citywide initiatives to pour billions into parks, public art projects and apartment complexes have made Buffalo a more desirable place to live, advocates say. Now that hospitals have resumed buying cheap, Chinese-made face coverings and the resurgent American mask industry has imploded, experts warn of the perils of the nations continued dependency on foreign-made protective equipment. Many of the U.S. companies calling it quits are start-ups whose founders jumped into the P.P.E. business out of a sense of civic duty. Its sad to see all of this manufacturing capacity come online during a crisis, only to be shut down because hospitals and even our own government would rather save a few pennies buying from China, said Lloyd Armbrust, president of the American Mask Manufacturers Association. Its membership includes just eight companies that are still producing masks, down from 51 a year ago. He said 17 of the companies have shut down. Some experts say the C.D.C.s hands-off approach to elastomeric respirators is unintentionally encouraging a return to the nations reliance on disposable masks made overseas. Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding, an epidemiologist who heads the Covid-19 task force at the World Health Network, criticized federal officials for inaction despite compelling evidence that elastomerics provide the highest level of protection against aerosolized viruses. At a certain point, you need to act on the existing science, and the failure to do otherwise is a dereliction of duty, he said. To be clear, federal health experts back the use of elastomerics but say they are awaiting additional study results before offering full-throated support for their widespread adoption by medical personnel. Emily Haas, a scientist at the C.D.C.s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, or NIOSH, said researchers were still grappling with the need to regularly disinfect them and complaints about muffled communication, though some newer models make it easier for wearers to be heard. The bigger challenge, she says, is convincing hospitals and group purchasing organizations to embrace the masks given the abundance of N95s, which offer comparable protection during routine medical care and can be thrown away after each use. On Tuesday, the department said it was proud of the progress it had made in complying with the settlement, from instructing shelter staff to use preferred pronouns and gender markers to create an affirming environment to developing an expedited intake process. Ms. Lopez has filed five more cases since the homeless shelter case, including one seeking reimbursement from the city for her surgery and another against the city of Albany for not letting her take Chica on a bus. Her most recent lawsuit seeks to block the creation of a beach along the piers in the West Village, a longtime center of transgender Black and Hispanic street life that includes the spot where Marsha P. Johnsons body was pulled from the Hudson River in 1992. Ms. Lopez argued that the projects effect on a historically significant area must first be assessed and said that, if the beach were built, transgender people of color would be replaced by white cis hetero sunbathers. Ms. Lopez does not seem to have any intention of slowing down. She recalled the first time she set foot in a law office, when she was 13 and visited Paul, Weiss, the prestigious firm working pro bono on her first lawsuit. We were in this enormous conference room, she said. The lawyers had their coats off and their sleeves rolled up with law books open. And I was like, Oh, I think this is what I want to do. And, as Schrad noted, The most frequent justification invoked by white lynch mobs in the American South was that Black men were raping white women while drunk. So Black people had one justification for Prohibition freedom from a white peoples poison but white people had another, racist one to protect white communities from imaginary drunken Black mobs, as Schrad phrased it. It is no surprise, then, that when Mississippi convened its 1890 constitutional convention to write white supremacy into the DNA of the state, one of the other orders of business was Prohibition. At the constitutional convention, delegates read a memorial on behalf of Mississippis prohibitionists and Christian women that included this passage: There are 75 counties in Mississippi, and 40 of them are dry. These dry counties are in the white section. The 35 wet counties are mostly in the Black belt and are kept wet by the Negro vote. It continued: A majority of the white people of Mississippi favor prohibition. What are you here for, if not to maintain white supremacy, especially when a majority of whites stand for a great principle of public morals and public safety? Now abortion is being restricted in much the same way alcohol once was. There are many reasons for whats happening; some of the most fervent proponents of the abortion bans can claim religious objections, and others are merely angling for a political advantage or catering to the basest instincts of the American electorate, hoping to force more white women to have children in order to prevent white people from losing their majority status. The reasons for Prohibition were just as numerous and complicated, a mess of interlocking moral and political allegiances. But there is one key difference between then and now: Black people seem to have quickly increased support for abortion rights. According to a Quinnipiac University poll released on June 22, 82 percent of Black people support Roe v. Wade, compared with 60 percent of white people and 62 percent of Hispanics. Aggregated Gallup polls from 2001 to 2007 found that just 24 percent of Black people thought abortion should be legal in all cases. That Gallup number rose to 32 percent for 2017 to 2020. This months Quinnipiac poll found that number to be 45 percent. James Bardeen, who helped elucidate the properties and behavior of black holes, setting the stage for what has been called the golden age of black hole astrophysics, died on June 20 in Seattle. He was 83. His son William said the cause was cancer. Dr. Bardeen, an emeritus professor of physics at the University of Washington, had been living in a retirement home in Seattle. Dr. Bardeen was a scion of a renowned family of physicists. His father, John, twice won the Nobel Prize in Physics, for the invention of the transistor and the theory of superconductivity; his brother, William, is an expert on quantum theory at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Illinois. Dom Juans reality is more complicated for Moliere and for Tata, too. Here is how Sganarelle describes her boss: The greatest scoundrel who ever walked the earth, a fury, a dog, a devil, a rat, a blasphemer who doesnt believe in heaven or hell or werewolves or anything. Which doesnt sound as great. Dom Juan asks questions perennial ones about what an individual owes the community and what she owes herself. As seductive as it is to see a woman resist subjugation, we are now years removed from #girlboss slogans, which is to say that the idea of freedom in the absence of ethics or solidarity has lost its shimmer. And a particular lesson of the pandemic has been how easily freedom can be weaponized, how it can make other people less free. Tatas busy, restless production introduces these complications, though it sometimes forgets them amid the commotion of the sock puppet, the rock band, the swordplay, the lace cuffs, the haze and some very cool visual and sonic effects. (Afsoon Pajoufar designed the set, with lighting by Cha See, video design by Lisa Renkel and sound design by Chad Raines.) I laughed out loud when the shows curtain a tapestry of a pastoral scene appeared to shrivel and burn. Because what fun! But for a long time in the middle, the play goes nowhere, breathlessly, and pleasure palls before Dom Juans comeuppance arrives. As Lester and Guyot have respected Molieres original text, the gender-swap rarely feels complete. A woman could never have behaved this way in Molieres day. She could barely behave this way now. Still, the swashbuckling role remains a showcase for Workman, an actress of both swagger and steel. Her Dom Juan is groovy, rowdy, but also adamantine, so unmoved by others that she is half-statue already. The supporting cast doesnt always equal her, but Jordan Bellow offers lovely physical comedy as Dom Juans deserted husband, Elver, and Szadkowskis Sganarelle has some fine unruly moments. Konstantin Malofeev, an influential oligarch indicted by the United States over alleged sanctions violations, said he had asked Mr. Bausman to appear on his television network because Mr. Bausman was one of the few Russian-speaking Americans willing to do it. Who else is there to invite? Mr. Malofeev asked. Mr. Bausman, 58, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. No charges have been brought against him related to the events of Jan. 6, though he appears inside the Capitol in video clips introduced in court cases against others. When a Russian TV host referred to him as a participant in storming the Capitol, Mr. Bausman interrupted to say that the description could get him into trouble, and that he was a journalist. But, on other occasions, he has described himself differently. Speaking on a white nationalist podcast in April, in which he attacked critics of Russia as evil pedophile globalists who control the enslaved West, he explained why he was back in Moscow: Im a political refugee here. Connecticut to Moscow President Vladimir V. Putin had just invaded Crimea in 2014 when Mr. Bausman said he had an idea. He would create an alternative news source to counter what he called Western medias inaccurate, incomplete and unrealistically negative picture of Russia. Either way, Americans are in Ukraine. An unknown number are fighting on the front lines. Others volunteer to be members of casualty evacuation teams, bomb disposal specialists, logistics experts and trainers. At least 21 Americans have been wounded in combat since the war started, according to a nonprofit organization that evacuates them. Two have been killed, two have been captured and one is missing in action. Mr. Blackburn and a small group of volunteers work directly with the Ukrainian military, teaching marksmanship, maneuvering, combat first aid and other basic skills while constantly shifting locations of training camps to avoid Russian rocket attacks. They say they do all of it without any input from the Pentagon. We have no communication with the U.S. military, period, he said in an interview from his home in Tampa, Fla., where he recently returned to resupply before returning to the war zone. Thats a line they dont want to cross. They are not going to take any responsibility for our well-being or our actions. Then he laughed and added, In fact, theyd probably do just the opposite. Not all volunteers looking to work with the Ukrainian military come with decades of experience. Mr. Blackburn and several other veterans in Ukraine said they had encountered would-be trainers with overinflated resumes and, in some cases, no military experience at all. In a statement, the Defense Department said it is not affiliated with any of these groups and recommends that U.S. citizens not travel to Ukraine or depart immediately if it is safe to do so. It feels a little like Scooby Doo, said Meghan Biss, a former I.R.S. lawyer who represented the American Cancer Society. It shouldnt have been that hard to figure out who the bad guy was. Using the exact same mailing address? I am the American Cancer Society of, like, 19 different cities? she said, adding, That didnt raise flags to anyone? American Cancer Society officials said they never heard back from the I.R.S. But then, in 2020, the agency approved four new groups connected to Mr. Hosang: The American Cancer Society of Michigan. And of Detroit. And of Green Bay. And of Cleveland. Same Staten Island mailbox. Sometimes you can get away with things, Ms. Biss said. Not because you were so smart but because the people who were supposed to be watching out were not. As it turned out, Mr. Hosang had switched to using a new I.R.S. process for smaller charities. The new program was established in 2014, in response to budget cuts and a scandal in which the agency was accused of targeting conservative groups for undue scrutiny. The new EZ application stripped 11 pages of questions down to three, nine boxes to check and a small blank for groups to describe their mission. There was little room for I.R.S. officials to mire suspected scammers in bureaucracy. The denial rate for new charities which had been as high as one in 53 applicants in the old system fell to one in 2,400 in this one. Ms. Purvey said she supported a legal ban on abortion from conception. But she is increasingly uncomfortable with using the term pro-life to describe herself, because it evokes an emphasis on preventing abortions at any cost, rather than on helping women. She prefers life-affirming, and she works at a pregnancy-resource clinic in Dallas that uses the same term to describe the free and low-cost prenatal care, postpartum doula services, lactation consulting and other services offered to its primarily Black, low-income clientele. Ms. Purvey was born in a Mexican community in South Texas. Her mother was poor and in an unstable marriage, she said, and received prenatal care from Planned Parenthood. The family later received financial and emotional support from their church, which inspired Ms. Purvey to provide help to women like her mother.At this point in my life, I hold the rights of pre-born children and women equally, but I consider myself a little more women-forward and women-centered, she said. Thats where a lot of the change happens. A clear majority of Americans say abortion should be legal with few or no exceptions, according to a Pew survey taken in March. Women ages 18 to 29 are significantly likelier than older women to say abortion should be generally legal, and that it is morally acceptable. Just 21 percent of young women say that abortion should be broadly illegal, Pew found. The movements minority status is part of its appeal, said the historian Daniel K. Williams, who has written about the history of anti-abortion advocacy. As the airmen tracked the C-17, a handful of soldiers and civilians in a small Army-run section of Transcom monitored a separate mission: four cargo trains moving across the United States as well as several cargo ships, some of which were owned by the Navy. One of the Navy vessels was heading from Norfolk, Va., to a military port in North Carolina, where it would be loaded with ammunition for M142 HIMARS rocket launchers long desired by the Ukrainian military. The rockets, packed in bundles of six and loaded into 20-foot shipping containers, were also en route to the port. Cranes would soon lift the metal boxes off tractor-trailers and rail cars, stack them aboard the ship and lock them into place for a journey at sea lasting about two weeks. Most of the Pentagons military aid sent to Ukraine on ships goes to two German ports one on the North Sea and the other on the Baltic. To keep potential adversaries from closing off routes for Ukraine military aid, Army planners can set up operations at any one of dozens of ports on the two seas. Russian warships have largely shut down the most direct routes for resupply missions Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea. At the 618th, where presidents and secretaries of defense can reassign planes in a heartbeat for emergencies around the world, a screen that usually displays a classified map of global threats to military air and sea shipments was blacked out for security reasons while a reporter was in the room. And three of the televisions were set to cable news because, as Colonel Buente explained, we usually end up reacting to breaking news. A total ban was eased in 1971 with the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, which made some abortions legal. But activists continued to seek further easing, to include abortion in cases of fetal anomaly or pregnancy caused by rape. In 2021, the federal government amended the law, expanding the criteria for legal abortions and adding a privacy clause to protect women who went to clinics. The law allows women to terminate pregnancies until 20 weeks. Between 20 and 24 weeks, a woman needs two doctors to approve an abortion, and after 24 weeks, abortions are allowed only when the womans health is at risk. Women can now terminate unwanted pregnancies caused by contraceptive failure regardless of marital status; before the amendment, only a married couple could do that. Still, abortions done in violation of the law are punishable by up to seven years in prison for the woman and medical personnel. Sameer Yasir China Abortion has been legal in some form since 1953. By the 1970s, as the ruling Chinese Communist Party grew increasingly worried about overpopulation, abortion became more widely accessible, and the one-child policy led to some forced abortions. Sex-selective abortions are illegal, meant to counter the widespread preference for boys over girls. In response to recent concerns over declining birthrates and an aging population, families may now have three children without penalty. Given the governments invasive family planning policies, some women fear it will restrict abortion access. The authorities last year said they intended to reduce medically unnecessary abortions, without explaining how. The new prime minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, promised more military aid and more sanctions against Russia during a visit to Ukraine on Sunday that signaled continued resolve by liberal democracies to support Ukraines effort to rebut the Russian invasion. In a news conference in Kyiv, the capital, President Volodymyr Zelensky described the visit as the first by an Australian prime minister to his country during their history of diplomatic relations. Mr. Albanese visited sites of Russian brutality during the war, including Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv, where Russian paratroopers executed at least eight Ukrainian men, and Hostomel, a town 10 miles outside Kyiv, where Russian forces held hundreds of civilians captive. The Marmolada had experienced record temperatures in recent days, he said, amid a heat wave that has scorched parts of Europe for several weeks. The high temperatures could have contributed to the collapse by accelerating the melting of the ice, Mr. Milan said, adding that it was a very complex phenomenon with many factors at play. At the news conference with Mr. Fugatti at a village at the foot of the mountain, Prime Minister Mario Draghi said while the event could be attributed to some unpredictable elements, it certainly depends on the deterioration of the environment and the climate situation. He added that the government must reflect on what happened and act so that it did not happen again. The effects of global warming on the glacier on the Marmolada, known as the Queen of the Dolomites, have been unfolding for years, and it has been shrinking at a fast pace. Between 2004 and 2015 the volume of the glacier shrank by 30 percent, according to a 2019 study by Italys National Research Council and international universities. If the trend continues, the glacier will disappear in the next 25 to 30 years, the research predicted. Explosions hit the center of a Russian city just north of Ukraine early Sunday, killing four, officials said, in the deadliest known episode affecting civilians in Russia since the start of the war. Russias Defense Ministry blamed Ukraine for the blasts in the city of Belgorod. While Ukraine has occasionally hit fuel and military targets in Russias border region, this is the first time that Russia has accused Ukraine of targeting a major city center on the Russian side of the border in a lethal attack. Russian officials said Ukraine had fired three Soviet-era missiles at Belgorod that were all shot down by Russian air-defense systems. One fell to the ground in central Belgorod, causing the destruction, they said. Kremlin-backed separatists have held territory in the Donbas since 2014, after Russia annexed Crimea, a move that Ukraine and its Western allies have termed illegal. The proxy forces seized more than a third of the Donbas at the time and proclaimed the formation of two breakaway republics; they have been waging a civil war against Ukraines government ever since. More than 14,000 people died in Donbas fighting between 2014 and last year. But the battle was effectively at a stalemate albeit one with sporadic and deadly shelling along the roughly 250-mile front line known as the line of contact until Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Now Russian forces and their separatist allies control about 80 to 90 percent of the Donbas, according to Ukrainian officials. To take complete control of Luhansk, Russia first devoted its full force at the city of Sievierodonetsk, just across the river from Lysychansk. After battering that city and eventually seizing control on June 24, Russian forces set their sights on neighboring Lysychansk. WARSAW, Poland Ukraine appeared to be pulling some troops and equipment out of Lysychansk as Russia-allied forces said Saturday that they had advanced to the center of the strategic city in eastern Ukraine after days of heavy fighting, according to Russian state media and interviews with Ukrainian troops. A spokesman for Ukraines National Guard told local television channels that fierce fighting was underway but that the city remained under Ukrainian control. However, a soldier who had been stationed in Lysychansk said a major military withdrawal from the area was taking place. In the last few days the people and the machines have pulled out to the maximum, Sergiy, a Ukrainian soldier who had been stationed inside Lysychansk, said Saturday. He asked that his last name not be used for security reasons. The last major city held by Ukraine in the heavily contested eastern province of Luhansk has fallen, military officials on both sides said Sunday, giving Moscow a milestone victory in its campaign to capture the Donbas, the mineral-rich region bordering Russia that has long been in President Vladimir V. Putins sights. The industrial city of Lysychansk, on a rise overlooking the Siversky Donets River, had held out for a week after Russia seized control of Sievierodonetsk, its twin city across the river. But as Russia inundated Lysychansk with artillery fire and strangled its supply lines, building on months of bombardment and weeks of ferocious street fighting that reduced both cities to grayed-out husks, Ukrainian defenders were forced to retreat. That left Russian soldiers posing for pictures outside Lysychansk City Hall, chanting, Lysychansk is ours and waving the flag of the Donetsk Peoples Republic the pro-Moscow separatist state that Mr. Putin claimed to be protecting when his forces invaded Ukraine, a video posted on Twitter on Sunday showed. KYIV, Ukraine Every day, Viktoriya has to walk past the house where she was raped by a Russian soldier the same age as her teenage son. Russian troops arrived in her two-street village, near the Kyiv suburb of Borodianka, in early March. Soon afterward, she said, two of them raped her and a neighbor, killed two men, including her neighbors husband, and destroyed several homes. If you do not think about it all, you can live, Viktoriya said in an interview in the village on a recent rainy day. But it is certainly not forgotten. A father of one has spoken of how he no longer feels safe walking the streets of a town in the Midlands after being kicked up to 20 times on the ground in front of his terrified 12-year-old son. Thirty-four-year-old Francis Gavin was set upon by a two women and a man shortly before 2pm on April 28 last while walking along the Ballymahon Street area of Longford town. The Longford man said the incident unfolded just as he had been in the process of attempting to purchase a number of items for his son ahead of a holiday to Spain a few days later. It was at that juncture, he said, the alleged suspects pulled up in a silver Ford Focus car before launching a violent and frenzied assault. Two of them were women and one had a Lucozade bottle in her hand, he said. The man came out (from the car) swinging boxes and I just told my son to run. He ran for his life into Eurogiant and the three of them started attacking me (on the street). "I was kicked around 15 to 20 times on the ground. I remember him (attacker) falling and I think his legs went dead from kicking me." I genuinely thought I would never see my sons face again. Francis sustained a number of cuts and bruises as a result of the incident, claiming many of those injuries came while falling to the ground as his alleged assailants unleashed their onslaught in full view of shocked bystanders. I went out to casualty and the doctor said to me he was disgusted (by the incident). He said he was sick of what is happening in Longford town. Francis, who, by his own admission has been before the courts in the past for shoplifting and driving offences, said he believed he was targeted by a faction who firmly believed they were above the law. This was about bullying and trying to take control, he said. This gang want to take control of Longford and want it to themselves. Now fully physically recovered, Francis conceded the episode was one which had left a deep and traumatic mark on his own self confidence, so much so that neither he or his son felt safe walking the streets of Longford town. My son has not come down to Longford since, he said. He is terrified and is in Dublin with his mother. I said to him: Are you coming down? All he said back to me was: No I wont daddy, I am too afraid to. I am very cowardly too. I have never had to watch my back anywhere and now I am going around the town watching my back. A garda spokesperson confirmed three people, two women aged in their fifties and 20s together with a man in his 30s had been arrested in connection to the incident but had since been released without charge. A file will now be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) as to whether any charges can be brought against the trio. A number of people appeared in Tullamore District Court last week on summons relating to driving with tinted windows. A Galway woman caught driving with tinted windows which did not meet the required legislation for visibility when driving, was fined at Tullamore District Court. Ruth McEvoy (32) was stopped by Garda Patrick McGee at Tulla and Crumlin, Kinnitty, Offaly on November 14, 2021. She said she didnt know about the legislation. She had no previous convictions. She works in the kitchen of a nursing home and has since removed the tints from the windows. Judge John Brennan fined her 200 and reduced the offence to a section 51A driving without consideration. A Limerick man appeared at Tullamore District Court accused of careless driving. Owen OConnell was stopped by Garda Patrick McGee at Tulla and Crumlin, Kinnitty, on November 14, 2021. He was driving with tinted windows which did not meet the required legislation for visibility while driving. Judge John Brennan reduced the offence to a Section 51A, driving without consideration, and fined him 100. A Roscommon man appeared on a summons of careless driving at Tullamore District Court. Colm Johnson, Ardkeenan, Drum, Athlone, Roscommon was stopped at Cloncollig, Tullamore, by Garda Patrick McGee on November 13, 2021. Mr Johnson was driving a car with tinted windows which did not meet the required safety standards for tinted windows. His solicitor Donal Farrelly said Mr Johnson didnt realise it could be a careless driving offence. He said the people who are selling these cars are not telling the buyers about the legislation. Mr Farrelly said the defendant was a 25 year old who was undertaking a college course and needs a car. Judge John Brennan said it was very unfortunate as otherwise the defendant was in ''good standing.'' He reduced the offence to a section 51A, driving without consideration, and fined the defendant 100 giving him three months to pay. An Offaly estate agent has scooped a major national award Tullamore estate agent DNG Kelly Duncan has been named the 2021 DNG Medium Branch of the Year at the DNG National Conference, which took place at The Curragh Racecourse last Friday. Established in Tullamore in 2007 by owner Philip Kelly, the agent received the award in recognition of its high standards of service, with the judging team praising its extensive knowledge of the local property market throughout the Midlands and continued delivery of results for clients. Speaking after receiving the award, Philip Kelly, Sales Manager DNG Kelly Duncan, said: We are thrilled to be named DNG Medium Branch of the Year. This award is a major acknowledgement of the tremendous work by our wonderful team who show dedication, hard work and a caring nature at all times, and a real depth of knowledge when guiding customers throughout buying or selling a property. The annual DNG National Conference and awards event was attended by more than 120 delegates from 80 offices from across the country. The awards celebrate and reward standards of service, business acumen, and professionalism across the DNG network. Delegates met to discuss the future of Irelands property market, technology innovations connected to the residential property market and DNGs role in the residential and commercial sector. Gardai in Naas are investigating a serious assault that occurred on the morning of Saturday, July 2, in Clane, County Kildare. At approximately 11:20am, a man in his 50s was seriously assaulted by two males at a residence in The Avenue area of Abbeylands, Clane. The two males later fled the scene on foot. The injured male was taken to Tallaght University Hospital where he is currently in a critical condition. The scene was preserved for technical examination and investigations into the incident are ongoing. Gardai are appealing for any witnesses to this incident or to any person with information to come forward. Gardai are also appealing for any road users who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) who were The Avenue area of Abbeylands between 11am and 11:30am to make this footage available to them. Anyone with information is asked to contact Naas Garda Station on 045 884300, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda Station. A newly reached trade agreement between the EU and New Zealand "sends a strong signal" of joint commitment to free-trade. That's according to the Tanaiste Leo Varadkar, who welcomed the news alongside the Minister for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, Robert Troy, on Friday (July 1). The agreement has been described as the most modern text the EU has agreed to date with strong environmental and sustainability commitments contained within. The Tanaiste said, "This Agreement reflects our joint ambition to offer new market opportunities to businesses and farmers on both sides, while reinforcing our joint commitment to sustainable trade. "The increase in New Zealands access to the EU market for agricultural products has been limited through the use of quotas and the most sensitive products have not been fully liberalised to protect the interests of EU producers. "I welcome the fact that Irish food and drink producers will have unfettered access to the NZ market with no tariffs, and that the special status of Irish products such as Irish Whiskey and Irish Cream liqueur are included in the final agreement. Tariffs will still apply to food imports to the EU above a certain quota." Tanaiste Varadkar called New Zealand "a like-minded country". He continued: "This agreement will not only secure economic gains for both sides but with also promote strong actions to protect the climate, the environment and workers rights. Im particularly happy to see the provisions on gender equality. This is the first time ever a trade agreement has had commitments on maximising the benefits of trade for women, by promoting opportunities for women and entrepreneurs and gender equal working conditions, and by increasing womens influence in the negotiation and implementation of trade agreements. "This is something I wrote to Commissioner Dombvroskis on as negotiations were underway and Im really happy to see it included. Its something PM Ardern and I spoke about when we met in New York several years ago." According to Minister Troy, the free-trade agreement will provide "important market diversification opportunities" for Irish exporters. He said, "As a small open economy, Irelands future success is predicated on its ability to trade goods and services with our partners across the globe. Last year we achieved our best year yet in trade and this has huge benefits for our economy and our society." Residents in Sydneys south and south-west have been told to leave their homes, while thousands more have been warned they might need to evacuate due to floods. Ukraine's army has denied claims by Moscow-backed separatists to have encircled the city. The capture of Lysychansk would allow the Russians to push deeper into the eastern Donbas. DW has the latest. 2008-2022 One News Page Ltd. All rights reserved. One News is a registered trademark of One News Page Ltd. By John W. Whitehead and Nisha Whitehead The Supreme Court has spoken: there will be no consequences for cops who.. Eurasia Review 05 Jul 2022 Contrary to Russias expectations, the Ukraine war and entailing crises not only did not damage EU-US relations but also improved them to the extent that France proposed strategic autonomy for Europe is now consigned to oblivion. As in the Cold War, Russia sought to exploit the rift in transatlantic relations under... This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate MANISTEE From young talent to seasoned bakers, there was plenty in store at Saturday's Manistee National Forest Festival. Rosie Solberg Memorial Bake Sale The late Rosie Solberg was known for her chocolate chip cookies. Now, a group that previously worked alongside Solberg for years doing bake sales during the festival has decided to rename the event in honor of their former fellow baker who died about two years ago. Near the corner of Fifth Avenue and Hastings Street, the Manistee United Methodist Women teamed up to host a bake sale, raising funds for local causes. Kathy Schoenberger, a participant and fellow baker, said the money is used for women and children ministries in Manistee County through the Armory Youth Project, Choices of Manistee County domestic violence services and the Lighthouse Pregnancy Center. Martha Day noted that Solberg "used to bake cookies like crazy." "She would hand them out, walk into a doctor's office, she'd come up to church with cookies, the dentist, different merchants downtown," Day said. "She was famous for her chocolate chip cookies and also she used to make cinnamon buns every year when we'd have the sale out here." The group hoped to sell out of all the baked goods set out for sale in their booth, but they said if they did not sell all the goods the plan was to take the treats to church. Little Big Shots The Little Big Shots talent show at the Lions Pavilion at Manistee's First Street Beach featured a list of young talent doing everything from stand up comedy to guitar playing and to singing. About 13 youth performed ranging in ages from 4-16, gaining awards from performances. 2. Rocky Mountain National Park Head about 1.5 hours west from Denver to Rocky Mountain National Park where classic Colorado scenes feature golden and red aspen leaves, snowcapped peaks, and abundant wildlife. Authors Note: Remember to get a timed entry permit for Rocky Mountain National Park along with a day pass to enter. The reservation system is implemented through October 11, 2021. Photo Credit: Craig Zerbe (iStock). Its now been 3 odd years since my last long-haul international flight, so why not start back with a bang? This week Im in Anadia, Portugal, judging at the Concours Mondial Bruxelles sparkling session. Its the first time that Concours has held a wine show focussed solely on fizz, and it makes judging at the show a very different experience. No black teeth! But its not the judging that has been the differentiator this time around it was the wild ride to get here. You can skip ahead to the wine part if you like, as the region where this was set, Bairrada, is nothing if not interesting. Firstly, Im going to vent about flight plans. On Wednesday morning Sydney time, just a few hours before I was due to take off, I got the dreaded text. Qantas, who was taking care of my first Sydney-Singapore leg of the journey, announced they were delaying my flight by 6 hours, which then meant I was missing all my other connections to Porto. Balls. What happened in the next 15 hours I never want to do again. Even though KLM had the booking, Qantas was the one then tasked with rebooking my journey. Except they came up with a nearly 50-hour, 4-flight epic that would see me spending 18 hours in Singapore and missing the first day of judging. Qantas didnt bother telling me this, of course, and it wasnt until I logged dont to KLM that I saw it and freaked out. You what? Im going to Frankfurt and Madrid and flying Iberia? I then spent a bewildering 2 hours on the phone to KLM, and snagged a flight to resume my original flight plan with BA (why couldnt Qantas have done this?) and went to the airport, only to discover halfway there that all my connections beyond Singapore were cancelled too, and Id now have 24 hours in a transit lounge. Fuck me. Still, I got on a plane and had people on the ground trying to sort out a new flight plan with KLM via Paris, but Qantas had already confirmed my flight plans so I couldnt get on that next flight. I still dont understand how that part didnt work? Why? How? Skip forward 2 hours, and there I am, pleading with anyone in Singapore to fly me to Europe. Please. Anywhere closer to Porto. Sometime soon. Then, in a nod to the reason why I should have flown via anyone-but-Qantas in the first place, a kindly woman in the transit office took pity on me and wriggled me onto a flight with Singapore Airlines to Porto via Munich. Ahhh, sweet relief. By the time I landed in Porto multiple hours later, I was actually 20 minutes earlier than my original flight plan. Boom! Except my bags werent there. Now, as I write this, four days later, I still dont have luggage. Will it come tomorrow? Maybe. Do my jeans stink? Yes. Ive spent the last four days washing my single pair of jocks, socks and the running shorts and shirt I thoughtfully placed in my go bag in the sink every night (see above). To make me even angrier, Qantas was still sending me wrong flight plans hours after I landed, just to remind me who caused all this in the first place Anyway, enough airing of grievances, lets talk Portuguese wine (Ill cover the wine show in a post tomorrow, as its worth a separate post). Anadia was chosen to host the show as it is a key town for the Bairrada DOC aka the beating heart of Portuguese sparkling wine. Its a funny region this one, sometimes feeling very unlikely, with vineyards interspersed with olives and corn in classic Portuguese crop diversity style, but also interrupted by industrial estates or massive eucalypt plantations. Close to the chilly Atlantic Ocean, its also reasonably wet and not exactly warm, which means backing the right grape to get things ripe. This week, in what is the hottest time of year, most days have struggled to get beyond 21C and the nights dip to 10C. Not warm. The local hero grape is a unique one too Baga. Thin-skinned, with loose bunches of little berries, this red variety ripens late (and sometimes not at all), and is either picked early to produce deadly serious sparkling wine or left to ripen and craft as formidably tannic, sometimes greenish and often acidic, full-bodied reds (I spotted some Baga going through veraison yesterday, pictured above). I came here having only experienced small handfuls of the best Baga, and sort of expected a more Nebbiolo-ish class. But the variability of the reds, and just how long they take to come around, make this a different beast altogether. Its more like Aglianico, but grown somewhere cold, and yet mid-weight too. The best wines are often formidable, dark, chunky and last forever some of the bottles opened are twenty years old, and only just coming around. You can buy aged wines back to the 70s at some estates I was very tempted to buy a birth year (81) from Caves Sao Joao, but given I may go home without luggage, that seemed like a risk. The sparkling wines have occasional sparks of brilliance too. The best are typically pinkish, dry, and given serious lees ageing, with wines like this Quinta de S. Lourenco from Caves Sao Domingos spending an astonishing 9 years on lees and still looking mighty fresh. The bubbles arent always just Baga, with Arinto, Sercial and the rest often part of the varietal mix. My only gripe with some of the Bairrada bubbles is that there is this particular tang that seems a bit inelegant. Almost like in the push to have character, they become tangy and nutty and chunky. There are some smart wines though, and the volumes produced blindsided me Sao Domingos are producing 600,000 bottles of sparkling per year (and mainly exported). Its big business, and the still red wines are more niche than money makers. Sadly, I only made it round to a few wineries, which means this feels more overview than deep dive. But there are interesting bits that are available in Australia. I was hoping to visit Filipa Pato & William Wouters while I was here (but the timing didnt work), as their old vine Baga reds are excellent. Dirk Niepoort also makes a handful of Bairrada wines, with his VV Vinhas Velhas Branco (a white based on the local Maria Gomes & Bical grapes) a textural, lemony wonder that had a palate weight that had me thinking about ripe Smaragd Gruner. Needless to say, some of these old plots (100yo vines), when given the respect in vineyards and winery, can make magical wines. Ultimately Bairrada is an intriguing place. There is definitely that emergant feel about it, woven in history and tradition, with the ancient cellars to match. Yet, as with all emergant regions, its frustrating too and Ive only just scratched the surface HELP KEEP THIS SITE FREE Rather than using a paywall or bombarding you with ads I simply ask for a small contribution via the Paypal link below. Any amount welcome, it all helps keep this site free. Ad: GET A $20 VOUCHER TO SPEND ON WINE Now at The Wine Collective Ad:Now at The Wine Collective Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Email WhatsApp Reddit Print Photo: (Photo : PATRICK T. FALLON) A 15-year-old girl was attacked Thursday afternoon by a shark at Keaton Beach in Northwestern Florida while scalloping in about 5-feet deep water near Grassy Island. Addison Bethea's family told CBS affiliate WCTV that she tried to fight off, but the shark would not let her go and bit her multiple times. "It's a tragedy, what's happened," Taylor County Sheriff Wayne Padgett told the news. Tyler Bowling, program manager for the Florida Museum's International Shark Attack File, confirmed that this is the first recorded shark attack in Taylor County. The type of the shark was still not identified, but it is said to be approximately nine feet in length. Saved By His Firefighter Brother Bethea tried to hit the shark so it would go away, and she even poked the shark in the eyes, but it refused to let her loose. Her brother, Rhett Willingham, a firefighter, jumped into the water and managed to beat the shark off Bethea. Willingham put a tourniquet on Bethea's leg to minimize blood loss because of the massive injury she incurred and ensured that she stayed awake until she was rushed to the nearest hospital. Robert Sudusky, a resident near Grassy Island, told WCTV that he witnessed some of the aftermaths of the horrific attack. He said that Bethea was severely injured and had to be airlifted to a hospital in Tallahassee, the state capital, approximately 60 miles northwest of Keaton Beach, per ABC News. Read Also: Pregnant Wife Risks Life to Save Husband From Shark Attack Bear in mind the risk upon entering the water "Boaters and swimmers are cautioned to be alert, vigilant, and practice shark safety," the sheriff's office said. "Some rules to follow are: never swim alone, do not enter the water near fishermen, avoid areas such as sandbars (where sharks like to congregate), do not swim near large schools of fish, and avoid erratic movements while in the water." Everyone is advised not to swim alone and to know the consequences of the action they are about to take. Although massively injured, Bethea is still in good spirits. According to Daily Mail, signages are placed along many Florida beaches warning swimmers, and surfers, to "know your risk when entering the water." Florida has topped the global charts for shark bites and accounts for nearly 40 percent of unprovoked shark bites worldwide, according to The International Shark File (ISAF). The record shows that shark attacks increased worldwide in 2021 following three consecutive years of decline, according to a report released in January. The U.S. was one of the countries with the most reported attacks, and Florida accounted for nearly 40 percent of unprovoked bites worldwide. As of July 1, there have been recorded 32 shark attack bites (three provoked) and four fatal attacks that were publicly reported and verified in 2022. Fifteen of the shark attacks took place in the United States (Hawaii 0, Florida 9, California 1), nine in Australia (1 fatal), according to Tracking Sharks. Tracking Sharks is a site that provides information on why shark attacks across the globe happen and also offers a way to prevent shark encounters in the future. Related Article: Two Teens Stable After Surgery, Injured in Separate Shark Attacks at North Carolina Beach Photo: (Photo : NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images) Data shows that American women in most trigger law states are less likely to have health insurance in the U.S. They are also more likely to be the ones below the poverty line. According to the U.S. Census Bureau data analysis by NBC News, nearly 1 of every 4 women who gave birth in 13 states with pending state-level abortion laws post-Roe v. Wade between 2015 and 2020 are below the poverty line. That is compared to 1 in 5 women in states where abortion is deemed legal. Wyoming and Utah, which are trigger law states, have the lowest maternal poverty rates in the country. But nine of the 13 trigger law states have rates above the national average of 21 percent, with Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and West Virginia accounting for four of the five highest maternal poverty levels in the United States. New Mexico, where abortion is legal, is at 33 percent. Oklahoma and Tennessee have the highest share of uninsured women in the U.S. According to federal guidelines, a family of four making less than $28,000 is considered under the poverty line. Other factors that make raising a kid more difficult, such as having access to health insurance, are also more pronounced in trigger law states. In most trigger law states, uninsured levels among American women exceed the national average. About 11 percent of women ages 19 to 64 in trigger law states do not have health insurance, compared with 8 percent in states with legal abortion. Oklahoma and Tennessee, both trigger law states, have the most significant share of uninsured women at about 20 percent. Data also showed that trigger law states saw a disproportionate share of uninsured people along certain racial lines. According to an analysis of Census Bureau data, Latinos and Black people are more likely to lack health insurance. The rate for uninsured Latino people in trigger law states is about 33 percent compared with the 21 percent in legal abortion states. On average, 18 percent of Black people in trigger law states are uninsured, compared with 11 percent of Blacks in states with legal abortion. Read Also: Heartbreak for Honduran Mom as She Lost Her Two Sons in the San Antonio Migrant Truck Tragedy What are the abortion trigger law states? Thirteen states in the country prepared trigger laws to ban abortions in the event that the Supreme Court rolled back federal abortion protections. These are Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Missouri, Mississippi, North Dakota, Wyoming, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, and Louisiana. In the aftermath of last week's decision to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion in the United States, the Supreme Court threw out lower court rulings that invalidated three abortion laws at the state level on Thursday, June 30, according to Reuters. All three laws - from Arkansas, Indiana, and Arizona - were blocked by lower courts based on Roe v. Wade and the subsequent 1992 ruling that reaffirmed it. Planned Parenthood v. Casey was also overturned as part of the Supreme Court's June 24 ruling that upheld a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks. Related Article: Daughter of Roe Vs. Wade Plaintiff Says Mom Would be Devastated by SCOTUS Ruling; Who Was Jane Roe? By Azernews By Ayya Lmahamad Russia's Pipeline Coating and Technologies LLC plant for the production of external concrete coating for pipelines, located in the countrys Volgograd region, plans to arrange supplies of magnetite ore from Azerbaijan, Azernews reports, citing TASS. The plants General Director Andrey Ryndovskiy stated that earlier the plant purchased this raw material in Sweden. "One of the raw materials for our company is heavy magnetite ore, which is necessary for the preparation of heavy concrete mixes applied to pipes. It used to be supplied in series from Sweden. But under current circumstances, Sweden restricts the supplies, that is why we plan to establish new channels with Azerbaijan, as a friendly country, and ensure the further viability of production," he said. Azerbaijan and Russia cooperate in different sectors, such as economy, agriculture, customs, communications, high technology, and others. Over 230 intergovernmental and intercompany documents have been signed between the two countries and six "road maps" are being implemented. Azerbaijani investments in the Russian economy have exceeded $1.2 billion, with the majority of these investments being in the non-oil sector. In addition, Russian investments in Azerbaijan's economy totaled $6.3 billion, with $5 billion invested in the oil sector and $1.3 billion in non-oil sectors. The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Russia amounted to $2.9 billion in 2021, making Russia Azerbaijans third-largest partner. Photo: (Photo : Anthony Devlin/Getty Images) A cargo plane carrying 55 tons of Nestle's infant formula, equivalent to 1.65 million 8-ounce baby bottles, landed at Newark Liberty International Airport on Friday, July 1. This is the latest flight in a federally arranged airlift to ease the months-long baby formula shortage that has left both the Biden administration and parents in the United States scrambling. The Kalitta Air flight from the Netherlands was the 37th since President Biden announced on May 18 the Operation Fly Formula program and several other steps to address the ongoing crisis. At the time of the commander-in-chief's announcement, shelves in many stores across the country were bare, and parents were stressed out and desperate. The unexpected scarcity of baby formula was fueling intense criticism in Congress. According to the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), enough formula to fill 4.3 million baby bottles has arrived in the U.S. from countries where manufacturing the said goods meets American health and safety standards. Baby formula shortage in the U.S. persists The nationwide formula shortage persists. Jessica Palaia, administrator of the Facebook page Bergen County Formula Exchange, with more than 1,300 members, told NorthJersey.com that powdered formulas are still in very limited supply in Bergen County. Palaia, a Pompton Lakes mom of two, added that liquid, ready-to-use formula is easier to find in stores. The hardest to find are specialized formulas for kids with metabolic issues. The Waldwick school district teacher added that she is still getting more and more people joining the group, with participants scanning the Facebook page for tips and posting screenshots when they find store shelves stocked with formula. Members also give away supplies they do not need. Palaia said that while the situation is better now than when she founded the group seven weeks ago, it is still not where it needs to be. The formula shortage is partly driven by the closure of one of the largest manufacturing plants in the U.S., owned by Abbott Nutrition in Sturgis, Michigan, after a voluntary recall of some of the company's products. Read Also: Major Boost for Families as House Passes Bill Extending Food Assistance Measures for American Kids Poor American families hit the hardest by the formula shortage Pre-existing supply chain issues brought upon by the COVID pandemic and the concentration of the formula market among three main companies, resulting in a lack of competition, also contributed to the nationwide shortage. The shortage has hit poor American families the hardest because Abbott Nutrition was the exclusive formula supplier for the U.S. government's supplemental nutrition program, known as WIC (Women Infants and Children), in more than half the states in the country. Babies with metabolic conditions requiring specialized formulas sometimes have to go to the hospital for feedings because of the shortage. Store shelves were stocked at lower levels in the middle of June than they had been back in May when the formula crisis sparked a Congressional hearing. According to a report by CNN that cited IRI Research, the out-of-stock rate was 23.5 percent during the week ending June 12 compared with 21 percent in May. Related Article: Uncommon Surgery Saves Chicago Dad's Life After Developing Rare Form of Brain Aneurysm Photo: (Photo : FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)) A famous urologist from Florida has observed that more men are rushing to get a vasectomy after the overturn of Roe vs. Wade on June 24. Dr. Doug Stein, who has earned his reputation as Florida's Vasectomy King, said his clinic had 18 requests per day since the overturn, compared to just five or fewer weeks ago. Speaking with The Washington Post, Stein said that he had not experienced this surge in vasectomy requests before, but he is aware that many men from Florida have been considering getting the procedure for some time. The decision on Roe vs. Wade was the deciding factor. The urologist said his clinic has bookings until August, but he is opening more slots to accommodate the demand. Stein's fellow urologist, Dr. John Curington, also said that his clinic is accommodating more vasectomy requests than normal, even for men under 30 years old. About 60 to 70 percent of his patients have told him that the Supreme Court's decision on the abortion ban factored into their choice, considering Florida's lawmakers are proposing to impose a 15-week limit on abortions. The decision has been stalled in the state court, but that could change in a matter of weeks because of the reversal. Read Also: Houston Doctor Gave 4-Year-Old 'Unintended' Vasectomy During Hernia Surgery Texas, Ohio, and Missouri also see vasectomy increases Dr. Koushik Shaw from the Austin Urology Institute said they received 70 vasectomy requests in just one hour after the Supreme Court's decision was released. Their bookings have been at record numbers in the past few days, so they had to open additional schedules. We've seen a significant increase in men contacting us to discuss vasectomies in the wake of recent state and national legislation. Check out Dr. Shaw's interview with @KXAN_News and learn more here: https://t.co/iokLp3cE3S pic.twitter.com/4hqGsgTfQ6 Koushik Shaw MD (@AUIShaw) June 27, 2022 A representative of the Cleveland Clinic told NBC News that their vasectomy requests after the overturn ballooned to 90 in a day. Their normal requests are three to four a day. Ohio University Hospitals also report an increase in inquiries and requests, but appointments remain the same so far. Dr. Christian Hettinger of Kansas City, Missouri, said that his clinic had handled 900 percent of calls about vasectomy. They usually receive less than three inquiries a day. According to the National Library of Medicine, about 500,000 vasectomies are performed annually on U.S. patients. These are mostly for married men above 35 years old who have at least two kids and do not want to have more children. However, vasectomy as a form of birth control applies to six percent of cases compared to 18 percent of women who undergo tubal ligation. The latter is a riskier and more invasive procedure than vasectomy. Vasectomy for the right reasons Meanwhile, urologist Dr. Ashley Winter said via Time that she loves that vasectomy is going viral but not for the reasons that have prompted it. She said that a vasectomy is a great option for married couples and even individuals who have resolved to be childless, but it should not be viewed as the answer to the abortion ban. The doctor said that she's wary of spreading misinformation that will encourage men to get the procedure for the wrong reasons. Her advice is to consider vasectomy like marriage in that the men have to carefully plan for it with the notion that it will be lifelong and permanent. Hettinger agreed that vasectomy is not right for every man, so they must screen patients carefully. He said that men who plan to get the procedure, especially if they are still young, must understand that it is generally not reversible. "It should be viewed as a permanent form of sterilization," Hettinger said. Related Article: Vasectomy Mandate: Pennsylvania Lawmaker Proposes Bill Requiring Men Over 40 to Get Snipped This service applies to you if your subscription has not yet expired on our old site. You will have continued access until your subscription expires; then you will need to purchase an ongoing subscription through our new system. Please contact the Parsons Sun office at (620) 421-2000 if you have any questions QNET is aware of some reports by adomfmonline and Class FM on the arrest of some 20 Togolese nationals for unlawful assembly at Hohoe in the Volta Region. Though the report suggests that 20 persons were involved in QNET business, the company is taking action to verify if wrongdoing occurred. Authorities are investigating the substance of the matter, and QNET will cooperate as usual to provide all information needed. 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QNET empowers its independent representatives with the correct and rightful information, values and best practices, to enable them to build a long-lasting business. In the past years, QNET has trained more than 25,000 people in more than 20 cities covering 11 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, focusing on leadership building, marketing, compliance, ethics, and mentorship. QNET has always been open and transparent in communicating with the media as well as the authorities to address any concerns. Please visit our website www.qnet.net to have a better understanding of the business and its products and services. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Two children and an adult have died of starvation in South Sudan as the suspension of food aid begin to hit, aid workers have told the BBC. The deaths occurred in a displacement camp in the northern Warrap state. It comes after the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) said it had suspended rationing programmes in parts of the country due to a lack of funding. In June, the body said it needed $426m (352m) to continue distributing food. But that aid has not been forthcoming as the international community has focussed on other overlapping crises, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Sami Al Subaihi, a Medecins Sans Frontieres worker at the camp, said that one of the children was just five years old. "I find the mother of one of the children sitting by her five-year-old son's small, freshly dug grave," he said. "Her three other children, all very thin and weak, sit at the entrance of the family's improvised shelter." He added that more than 20,000 people living at displacement camps were at risk of starvation. "In one camp I see people collapsing, physically exhausted. They clearly haven't had enough food for a while. I don't see anyone cooking or any food stored in any of the shelters." A WFP official told the BBC the body has "suspended assistance to 1.7 million people due to being underfunded, but we continue [to help] 4.5 million people". They said the suspension was spread out across different regions of the country and added that more than 60% of the population of 11 million now faced "food insecurity". On 14 June, the body said that it had "exhausted all options before suspending food assistance, including halving rations in 2021, leaving families in need with less food to eat". South Sudan has been wracked with violence since it achieved independence in 2011 and this has contributed to food insecurity, despite the formation of a unity government in 2020. The situation has also been worsened by four consecutive seasons of flooding that have destroyed homes and farmlands, and displaced tens of thousands. 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. Featured Video Mr Mohammed Bashiru, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Ga Central has debunked rumours that there was a dynamite explosion at Santa Maria, a rocky area in Accra. There were media reports that a dynamite blast occurred at Santa Maria on Tuesday at about 1500 hours. Mr Bashiru told the Ghana News Agency on Wednesday that preliminary investigations by an intelligence team from the Ministry of Defense and other security agencies showed that no blast had occurred in the area. He added that though the actual incident, leading to a victim Georgina Fiave suffering an injury on her toe was yet to be established, the team confirmed that there was no blast. Experts from the Ministry of Defense, the Intelligence Unit and other Security Agencies were on the ground this morning. We were looking up to see topsoil destroyed, damaged buildings, and evidence of explosionwe combed the entire area without finding any evidence, the MCE said. When we went to the scene, eyewitnesses kept telling us different sides of the story all together. Even the spot they claimed was the evidential spot of the explosion; three people who came pointed to three different places, and none of the locations has evidence of explosion as the experts observed, he said. He said they visited the victim, Georgina Fiave, a groundnut seller, at the Anyaa Polyclinic, and met her in a very calm situation, adding that she had a lengthy discussion with the team, narrating how the incident happened in less than two minutes. Her toe has been fixed, its not ripped off. Shes alright; she can walk, sit, talk, and if youre not told that shes the one that the whole story is revolving around, you wont know, he emphasized. She told us that she stepped on something, and there was a loud noise, and she didnt know she was injured until someone drew her attention, Mr Bashiru narrated. While urging people to be on the lookout, he cautioned against raising false alarm. Earlier, Nana Kofi Boandwoah, Assemblyman for the area also said that he was informed by some residents that there had been an explosion, which he reported to the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO). I had to rush to the scene, and I reported to NADMO and all the stakeholders involved. We went to the scene but unfortunately, we couldnt even locate where the blast came from but they [residents] just heard a blast from the ground, he said. In January this year, Ghana was thrown into a state of mourning after a truck conveying mining explosives on behalf of Maxam Ghana Limited from Tarkwa to Chirano Gold Mines in the Western North Region was involved in an accident at Appiatse. The accident resulted in an explosion, which claimed 13 lives, injured hundreds and displaced the whole town making it the worst explosion disaster ever recorded in the history of the country. The Government, after investigations, asked Maxam Ghana to pay a fine of one million dollars for regulatory breaches but the Company decided to pay an additional five million dollars as a goodwill gesture to the country. The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, directed that the additional US$5million be donated to the Appiatse Support Fund, established to help reconstruct the community. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Police Administration has admonished citizens to embark on peaceful demonstrations to deepen the country's democratic credentials. A press statement signed by the Superintendent of Police Ebenezer Tetteh, Public Relations Officer, Eastern Region, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, commended the people of Kroboland for undertaking a peaceful demonstration on July 1, 2022. The statement said the demonstration, which took place from the Somanya Lorry station to Kpong happened peacefully in the community without any incidence of violence. It said the demonstration started at about 0900 hours and ended at about 1400 hours. It is our hope that all future demonstrations will be done in a similar fashion to deepen our democratic credentials as a country and improve law and order. The Police reiterated its commitment to providing the necessary protection for citizens who sought to exercise their right to protest in accordance with the law. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Mr Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, the Minister of Health, has called for an immediate intervention to discharge the huge number of persons sent by the law courts to the various mental health facilities for treatment and care. He said, most of these people are fully cured of their ailment yet continue to live at the facilities. We feed them and they occupy the places and it seems the hospitals are being used as an extension of the prisons which should not be so. The Health Minister explained for instance that out of the about 150 patients currently on admission at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital Forensic ward, 100 were referred from the courts. The Ministry had no other option than to discharge these persons to go home, since the courts had failed to pursue their cases over the years, adding that their continuous stay in the facilities was a heavy burden on the already scarce resources of the health institutions. Mr Agyeman-Manu said the Ministry was going to write Memos to the Ministry of Interior, the Attorney-General, the Ghana Police and Prisons Services respectively, for the swift uptake of these persons in the next one month, and if not, the Ministry would be left with no choice than to release them to go home. Mr Agyeman-Manu made the call in Accra when he inaugurated an 11-Member Governing Board for Ghanas Mental Health Authority (MHA). The Board would be Chaired by Mrs Estelle Matilda Appiah, the Presidents nominee, with members including Prof. Akwesi Owusu Osei, the Chief Executive Officer of the Mental Health Authority, Mr Kwesi Assan-Brew, Ministry of Interior, Dr Anthony Adofo Ofosu, Ghana Health Service, and Mrs Evelyn Daawee-Keelson, Office of the Attorney-General. Mr Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah, Mrs Janet Naa Karley Amagatcher and Prof. Angela Ofori-Atta, were all nominees of the Minister, while a representative each from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Social Welfare, and Tertiary Medical Training Institution respectively, were also approved as members. Mr Agyeman-Manu led the Members to swear the Oaths of Office and that of Secrecy and thanked them for availing themselves for service to the nation. He charged the Board to work towards increasing advocacy and funding to improve the mental health status of Ghanaians. He, however, grieved over the fact that the separation of the institutions that used to be under the Ministry but were now independent had created a wide funding gap between those whose activities could generate revenue internally to support their operations, and those that do not, making orphans of the underprivileged ones such the Mental Health Authority. The Health Minister said the government was committed to improving mental health care through interventions such as Agenda 111, increasing funding into the area and enrolling mental health onto the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). The Ministry was also working to set up mental health facilities to serve the Northern, Southern and Middle zones of the country to complement the existing ones, he said. Mr Agyeman-Manu stated that Ghana could now boast of about 50 Psychiatrists compared to previous years when there were just about a few in the system and indicated that the Ministry hoped to post them evenly soon to advance mental healthcare in the country. Prof. Akwesi Osei, said it was very sad that 10 years after the passage of the Mental Health Act 846, of 2012, the Mental Health Levy was yet to be instituted, adding that the law runs on the establishment of the mental health levy and until we get that, we wont have the full benefit of it. He further explained that it was the levy that would provide the required funding for the full implementation and to effectively run the sector. Prof. Osei appealed to the corporate institutions and the public to support the Authority to achieve its mandate of promoting the rights of persons suffering from mental health challenges and providing them with the needed quality treatment and care. Mrs Appiah said the Board would evaluate the Mental Health Act and push for the necessary amendment to be made to it to enable it to achieve its objective. She said the review of the Act would also come out with policies to increase funding and other resources to prevent the brain-drain of mental health professionals, as well as ensure the protection of the fundamental human rights of persons with mental health challenges. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Founder and leader of Heavens Gate Ministries International, Prophet Nicholas Osei alias Kumchacha has described President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as the pioneer of demonstrations in Ghana. According to Kumchacha, President Akufo-Addos history as an activist goes back to the days of the Jerry John Rawlings administration in 1995. I am 50 years old and I know what I am talking about. The pioneer of demonstration in Ghana is Nana Akufo-Addo. Rawlings brought something called VAT, it was a tax on goods and the person who rose and led a demonstration against it was Nana Addo. So if we talk about the IGP of demonstrations it is Nana Addo, he is the Dampare of demonstrations, Kumchacha stated on Oman Channel. He was speaking about the Arise Ghana demonstration organized to raise governance and economic concerns under the current administration of President Akufo-Addo. According to Kumchacha, while he fully supports the exercise of civil rights including protesting, he is against the violence that characterized the first day of the protest held between June 28-29, 2022. It is not bad for people to hold demonstrations but what I am against is that knowing how bad things are in the country, you dont go on a demonstration and destroy public property. Also, I am against bearing of arms during a protest, that is bad, he said. The first day of the Arise Ghana demonstration was marred by violence as some protestors clashed with the police after a disagreement over the route for the protest. The violence led to the pelting of stones at the police by some protestors while the police retaliated with several rounds of teargas. More than 20 of the protestors were arrested by the police. In a viral video, a senior police officer is seen assaulting a man who had been arrested during the protest and according to Kumchacha who expressed disappointment in the officers action, he would have retaliated if he was in the position of the suspect. That was wrong and if I was the victim I would have bitten the balls of the officer and slapped him in return, he said. 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. Featured Video Special Envoy of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to Guinea, Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas has communicated his intention to withdraw as a mediator to the West African State. Guinea, whose junta has refused an ECOWAS mediator announced a 36-month transition period and has conditioned any dialogue towards a successful transfer of power to a constitutionally recognized head of state on the appointment of another ECOWAS mediator. Speaking to journalists on the side of the 61st Ordinary Session of the Authority of Ecowas Heads of State and Government on Sunday, July 3, 2022, in Accra, Dr Ibn Chambas said his decision to step down is to pave way for a successful dialogue to take place in order for Guinea to return to constitutional democratic rule. In Guinea, the transitional authorities continue to insist that there is no political crisis, yet it is evident that once a military has overthrown a civilian government, there is obviously a political crisis in the country. This reason is what the Guinean authorities have used to refuse to accept an ECOWAS envoy in the country in the person of myself. At this point, I believe that I should not be the stumbling block to dialogue between ECOWAS and Guinea. In order to facilitate forward movement on this issue, I have decided to withdraw myself as an envoy of ECOWAS to Guinea to allow the authority to come up with other names, Dr Ibn Chambas said. Dr Ibn Chambas was appointed in November last year as Special Envoy to Guinea to strengthen dialogue with the Guinean military authority towards the successful and short transitional process. Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.com/ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has commended all stakeholders for supporting the advancement of the Fourth Republican Constitution. In a statement to mark its 30th anniversary, which fell on June 29, 2022, it said the anniversary marked the longest period of democratic practice in the country since independence and called on Ghanaians to sustain it.. In the period, Ghana has earned an enviable reputation for political stability, which is a valuable brand to be cherished, protected and enhanced, it said in a statement signed by its General Secretary, John Boadu. It thanked the founding fathers and mothers of the party from the days of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) in the 1940s, to the days of the Ghana Congress Party (GCP), the National Liberation Movement (NLM), the Northern Peoples Party (NPP), the Togolese Congress Party, the Ga Shifomokpe, the United Party (UP), the Progress Party (PP) and the Popular Front Party (PFP). The statement said the fact that the party was the only political tradition in the country that had survived all Republics in pre and post-independence Ghana including the most cancerous dictatorial regimes and had stood the test of time, could only be a vindication of the richness and greatness of the partys political tradition. Reforms It said since 1992, the NPP had been the champion of electoral reforms as it spearheaded the transition from opaque ballot boxes to transparent boxes, the transition from black and white voter ID cards to coloured ID cards with pictures and the quantum leap from a manual voters register to a biometric register and photo ID Cards for all voters from limiting it to regional and district capital to National. In spite of the disruptive threat of COVID-19, Ghanas general elections of 2020 have been hailed as perhaps the cleanest, most peaceful, and free and fair, it said. Touching on the economy, it said every policy of the NPP in government had been designed to benefit as many Ghanaians as possible. We successfully rolled out some integrated initiatives towards agro-industry, which include One District One Factory (1D1F), One District One Warehouse (1D1W), One Village One Dam (1V1D) and Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ). Furthermore, we successfully rolled out the Mobile Money Interoperability, enabling digital payments across diverse platforms, roping in 70 per cent of the bankable population into the financial space, it said. That, it said, had changed the face of banking in Ghana and set to drive transactions in the African Continental Free Trade Area headquartered in Accra, which is another major plus for President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo leadership. Social interventions The statement said despite the NPP being a centre-right party, it had implemented more social intervention programmes than any other political party in the history of Ghana. It cited the establishment of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and provision of Free Maternal Health Care, the Livelihood Empowerment against Poverty (LEAP) for indigent families and provided the Capitation Grant and the Ghana School Feeding Programme under former President John Agyekum Kufuor. It said President Akufo-Addo continued with innovative social interventions such as the Free Senior High School, the One Constituency One Ambulance (1C1A), a drone service for delivery of medical supplies, restoration of Teacher and Nursing Training Allowances, introduction of allowances for Arabic and Islamic Instructors under the National Volunteer Service Programme and the absorption of examination registration fees for BECE and WASSCE candidates. 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. Featured Video 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. National Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Sammy Gyamfi has said that former President John Mahama sought an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout in 2014 because he did not have the kind of resources available to the Akufo-Addo administration. He contends that the Governments resort to an IMF bailout even after receiving record revenues is as a result of mismanagement and marks an indefensible new low in Ghanas Governance. The attempt by NPP communicators to equalize and rationalize the decision of the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government to go for an IMF bailout is pathetic and ridiculous to say the least. This is particularly so given the kind of negative commentary that President Akufo-Addo, his Vice, Alhaji Bawumia and other leading figures of the NPP have made about IMF programs in time past. If the erstwhile NDC/Mahama administration had revenue inflows of over US$5 billion to manage Dumsor, (a crisis that was largely inherited) and the external shocks we suffered in 2015 like this NPP government had to manage COVID-19; If the erstwhile NDC/Mahama government had three (3) oil fields with an average daily production capacity of 170,000 barrels and an average international market price of $80 per barrel like the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government has had in the last five (5) years; I dare say, that there would not have been any need for Ghana to have joined an IMF program in the year 2015, he argued. Government communicators have explained that the need for an IMF program is as a result of the impact of COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine Crisis. But Sammy Gyamfi says that COVID-19 and Russia-Ukraine Crisis cannot be blamed. It is indisputable that the current Akufo-Addo/Bawumia-NPP government is the most resourced government in Ghanas history. They have had access to more oil revenues, tax revenues and borrowed funds than any government in history. In all, they have had access to over GHS500 billion in total revenue as compared to the about GHS200 billion that accrued to the NDC/Mahama government. They are left with no other choice than to seek an IMF bailout now because they have wasted all the unprecedented revenues that have accrued to them on consumption, profligacy and corruption. Today, posterity has exposed their hypocrisy, deceitfulness, recklessness and emptiness. The least they can do under the circumstances is to burry their arrogance, swallow their pride, accept responsibility for the mess they have created, accept that they have been useless in the manner they have mismanaged the economy and apologize for the excruciating hardships they continue to impose on the Ghanaian people, he continued. The decision by Government to seek help from the International Monetary Fund has sparked debate in the media, especially on social media. While Government supporters have sought to justify the move, opponents have disagreed. 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. Featured Video Ghanaian dancehall artiste, Charles Nii Armah Mensah popularly known as Shatta Wale has been fined Ghc2,000 by the Accra Circuit Court for falsely claiming he was shot in October last year. The court presided over by Emmanuel Essandoh, slapped Shatta Wale with the fine after the artiste pleaded guilty to the publication of false news, graphiconline reported. Wale had earlier pleaded not guilty to the offence but changed his plea today with his lawyers urging the court to have mercy on him and give him a lenient sentence. Failure to pay the fine will result in Shatta Wale serving a term of three months in prison. On Monday, October 18, 2021, media reports suggested that Shatta Wale had been shot by some unidentified gunmen. His personal assistant, Nana Dhope, was reported to have confirmed the report to the media saying the incident occurred at East Legon. The report further said Nana Dhope claimed Shatta Wale was receiving treatment at an unnamed medical facility after he managed to escape from his attackers. The police subsequently launched an investigation into the matter including making contacts with some of his close friends and family members and all of them claim not to have knowledge of his whereabouts or the alleged incident. Hours afterwards, Shatta Wale in a social media post said he feigned the attack because of the death prophecy by the founder and leader of New Life Kingdom Chapel International, Stephen Akwasi, popularly known as Jesus Ahuofe. The statement made by this false prophet has gotten me in a mood of violence since no one in this country cares. So the police of this country want to tell me none of them saw those threatening statements online to take action? he asked. This pastor said 18th October Shatta Wale will be shot and you want to tell me you didnt see from your cyber-crime department nor did u hear or come across anything like that online? If my life can be threatened and there is no law to take action on that then I guess I will do what is right in the eyes of God, Shatta Wale noted. He apologised to his fans who were affected by his hoax but was arrested by the police after he turned himself in and spent two nights in police custody. Source: nydjlive.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form The last ever assembly to be held at Ecole George Pringle Elementary in West Kelowna was held Wednesday. The school, which dates back to 1949, will be demolished this fall with a new high school opening on the site in a few years. After three full days of play, David Jackson was crowned the winner of the 2022 World Series of Poker Event #65: $3,000 Freezeout No-Limit Hold'em inside Ballys and Paris Las Vegas. The now two-time WSOP bracelet winner beat Phil Hellmuth in heads-up play to secure the $598,173 first-place prize. Hellmuth, who was close to extending his bracelet collection to 17, walked away with a $369,698 payday. Jackson earned his first WSOP bracelet after taking down Event #25: $777 LUCKY SEVENS as part of the 2021 GGPoker WSOP Online Bracelet Events. Jackson made it through a field of 2,014 entries to win the bracelet and $194,178. The $3,000 Freezeout attracted 1,359 entries which generated a $3,628,530 prize pool. The likes of Daniel Negreanu, Maria Ho and Justin Bonomo all contributed to the prize kitty but found themselves on the wrong side of the rail after being dispatched on Day 1. Notables who fell on Day 2 included reigning WSOP Main Event champion Koray Aldemir and 2019 Main Event winner Hossein Ensan. The polarizing Martin Kabrhel also bowed out at this stage. Day 3 began with 26 players remaining, and that rapidly became ten. Julien Martini's aces were cracked by Hellmuth in the early going, which helped propel Hellmuth to a deeper run. Event #65: $3,000 Freezeout No-Limit Hold'em Final Table Results Place Player Country Prize 1 David Jackson United States $598,173 2 Phil Hellmuth United States $369,698 3 Jeffrey Lo Hong Kong $266,559 4 Justin Saliba United States $194,525 5 Timothy Sullivan United States $143,699 6 Renan Bruschi Brazil $107,472 7 Onur Unsal Turkey $81,390 8 Richard Scardina United States $62,423 9 Anton Wigg Sweden $48,494 Winners Reaction David Jackson "I was just in my zone, honestly. I felt like I was going to win. I knew I was going to win. I felt like it was meant for me," said the newly crowned champion minutes after his tremendous victory. "I'm just in awe. I'm just happy. I'm happy, but it's just hard to process right now," Jackson told PokerNews. "This one [second bracelet] the feeling, it definitely feels much better. The online one was like a 700 or 777 event. So there were a lot of people, but it was an easier field. This one was a tougher field," he added. Jackson started with a healthy chip lead but soon made it level, but Jackson wasn't concerned about any resurgence from the Poker Brat. "I just played my game. I stayed calm and just continued on." Final Table Recap David Jackson & Phil Hellmuth The unofficial final table of ten quickly became the official final table of nine. Day 2 chip leader Keiji Ito moved all in with Jackson and Anton Wigg calling. Jackson folded out Wigg and dispatched Ito with his rivered set of sevens. Wigg then followed Ito out the door soon after. He ended up being on the wrong end of a classic race against Justin Saliba. Wiggs ace-king could not leapfrog his opponents pocket queens, and he became the first official final table casualty. The next departure would come from Richard Scardina. His four-bet jam was snap-called by Jeffrey Los pocket aces, and they managed to hold to bring the tournament to seven-handed play. Onur Unsal finished the event in seventh place. He emptied the clip on the river, but ran into Jacksons flush. Unsal just had queen-high but netted $62,423. Renan Bruschi suffered the baddest beat of the final table. He called Jacksons four-bet shove with pocket aces while his opponent had pocket kings. Jackson found a king on the flop to sail into the lead, and the turn and river were kind to Jackson. The final five players moved onto the feature table inside Ballys Event Center and it didnt take long for Timothy Sullivan to leave it. Saliba had left Sullivan short the hand before with Lo finishing the job off with his superior ace. Hellmuth was the next player all in and at risk, he got it in with a pair of nines and held versus the suited ace-five of Jackson just before the break. When the players returned, Saliba got his stack into the middle on the flop after committing most of his chips preflop. He was called by Jackson, who secured another elimination after his top pair remained best. Three-handed play lasted for around 45 minutes. Lo moved all in on the turn and found himself up against the trip sevens held by Jackson. Heads-up play began with Jackson having a four-to-one chip lead against Hellmuth and they were level soon after with Hellmuth raking in a sizeable pot with pocket aces. Jackson widened the gap yet again and eventually sealed the victory after he rivered Broadway to beat Hellmuths ace-high. Congratulations to David Jackson on winning his second WSOP bracelet! Aiken, SC (29801) Today Mostly sunny. High 91F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Mostly clear. Low 73F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. The Hitchcock Parkway Corridor Improvement Project is continuing to move forward. All upgrades are expected to be finished late in the fall, a spokesman for the South Carolina Department of Transportation, or SCDOT, told the Aiken Standard recently in an email. SCDOT is working with the contractor to increase production, Robert Kudelka wrote. He also provided the following updates: Clearing and grubbing is 95% complete, with only a few remaining locations needing to be addressed. Full depth patching throughout the project corridor is complete. Approximately 25% of the drainage pipes and drainage structures have been installed. The reinforcement of soil slopes and retaining wall construction are ongoing throughout the project and are approximately 25% complete. Two-foot shoulder widening throughout the project is complete. The contractor is Reeves Construction Company. Its corporate office is in Duncan, a town in Spartanburg County. The current construction contract amount is $14,162,625. Hitchcock Parkway is a section of S.C. Highway 118. The scope of the project includes the resurfacing of Hitchcock Parkway from U.S. Highway 1 (Jefferson Davis Highway) to Silver Bluff Road. Also in the plans are the addition of a shared use path from Silver Bluff Road to Huntsman Drive and upgrades to five intersections. Those intersections are at Augusta Road (S.C. Highway 421), Dibble Road, Huntsman Drive, Hickory Ridge Road/Oriole Street and Silver Bluff Road. At the Augusta Road intersection, a right-turn lane on Hitchcock Parkway westbound onto Augusta Road will be added. The additions to the Dibble Road intersection will be a right-turn lane on Hitchcock Parkway westbound onto Dibble Road, left turn lanes on Dibble Road (in both directions) onto Hitchcock Parkway and a traffic signal. Added to the Huntsman Drive intersection will be a right-turn lane on Hitchcock Parkway eastbound onto Huntsman. Traffic signal optimization also is planned at that location. At the Hickory Ridge Road/Oriole Street intersection, left-turn lanes on Hickory Ridge Road and Oriole Street onto Hitchcock Parkway will be added along with a traffic signal. The additions at the Silver Bluff Road intersection will be double left turn lanes on Silver Bluff onto the section of S.C. Highway 118 known as Pine Log Road eastbound, a right-turn lane on Silver Bluff onto Hitchcock Parkway westbound, and a right-turn lane on Hitchcock Parkway eastbound onto Silver Bluff Road. Kudelka previously told the Aiken Standard that there would be intermittent traffic delays throughout the duration of the project. Please be safe and aware as you travel though the work zone, he said. Seek alternate routes if at all possible to reduce the delays in traffic when lane closures are present. For more information about the Department of Transportation, visit the SCDOT page on Facebook or scdot.org. Chants of "my body, my choice" rang out along Whiskey Road Sunday afternoon at a reproductive rights rally held at the Odell Weeks Activity Center. The rally organized by EmmaLee Wood and Katie Brown began shortly after 1 p.m. when around 50-75 people attending moved from the corner of the Odell Weeks parking lot to the roadway across from Hardees. Wood, a freshman at Aiken Technical College, and Brown, a sophomore at USC Aiken, said they were thrilled with the turnout. "I am more than excited that people are here to make their voices heard," Wood said. "I was kind of scared about how many people would show up given that we are in Aiken which is more conservative and Republican." Aiken County was one of the first Republican strongholds to grow in South Carolina in the 20th century because of the influx of northerners coming to work at the Savannah River Site. It is also one of the most reliably Republican counties in South Carolina. No Democrat has carried the county in a presidential election year since 1952. And even then, Republican Dwight Eisenhower only lost the county by 64 votes. Brown added she thought the rally was going be smaller. "I'm so happy that there's so many people," Brown said. "I didn't expect so many people in Aiken to support [reproductive rights]. It's just a little small Republican town. I didn't realize that there are that many of us." Both said it meant a lot to see so many people show up Sunday afternoon. "It means that we stand a chance against all of this," Wood said. "It's really important to me that we have Roe v. Wade and we can keep all these women safe." Roe was a 1973 decision by the Supreme Court that determined there was a federal right to an abortion and that the states couldn't outright ban that right. The Supreme Court recently issued a 5-4 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson that overturned Roe and sent abortion regulation back to the states. It is speculated and projected that conservative, Republican-controlled states, like South Carolina, will develop outright bans or severely restrict access to abortion. Brown said it meant a lot. "It kind of means everything just because over the past week I've spent so much of my own time working on this," she said. "It's something that I'm very passionate about. Especially when we go up to Columbia. It means a lot that people here in our own town have their voices heard." Gabi Watson, a 23-year old resident of North Augusta, was attending her first protest. She said she felt it was important to keep federal limits on how much states could restrict abortion access. "We've had this right for 50 years taken away from us," Watson said. "They can't just get away with it." Another attendee, Laura Richardson, added that it was ironic that the Supreme Court issued its opinion a few days before July 4, the day America declared that it didn't want its rights taken away by the British government. Before the rally began, Watson was making use of a sign making station. Her sign read, "abortions save lives." "I made this sign because there are instances where a woman needs to have an abortion because it is unsafe for her to have a pregnancy or something along those health reason lines," Wood said. "So abortions can save a mother's life." Most of the rally attendees carried signs and waved them at passing traffic, despite a small rain shower that began around 1:30 p.m. The signs were about evenly split between vulgar and non-vulgar signs. Some of the vulgar signs used drawings of the female reproductive anatomy, slang for both men's and women's reproductive organs and the occasional curse word. The non-vulgar signs included "bans of our bodies," "abortion is healthcare," "liberate abortion," "we will not comply," "trust women," "bodily autonomy," "protect choice freedom equality," and "South Carolina: where guns have more rights than women." One woman modified a sign used to encourage people to vote for someone other than former President Donald Trump ("Grab him by the ballot box") into a sign that read "Grab them by the ballot box." Another woman had a sign that said "My arms are tired from holding this sign since the 1960s! A woman's place is in the resistance. Resist!!" Janice Freeland brought along a sign and also her poodle, Pucci Mane, who was rainbow-colored for the rally. The rally also featured a cooling station and opportunities to become involved with the Aiken County Democratic Party and the local League of Women Voters chapter. One of the biggest questions leading into the aviation industry's biggest sales and marketing extravaganza is how many orders the world's two largest commercial airplane manufacturers will announce. Another is whether the roughly 120 newly assembled Boeing 787s will be released soon from their regulatory shackles after a long dry spell on the tarmac. The latest buzz in the air is that they could be freed to fly again unrestricted by the start of the 2022 Farnborough International Airshow later this month It's hardly a lock. First and foremost, the Federal Aviation Administration would have to determine in fairly short order that the shiny fleet of parked Dreamliners valued at more than $25 billion and spread from the South Carolina Lowcountry to the Pacific Northwest are ready to fly to their next destinations. If that isn't enough, Boeing must now wait and see whether an 11th-hour regulatory wrinkle will further extend the 787 delivery dearth. Should the stars somehow align by Farnborough, the FAA's blessing would be fortuitous, timing-wise, for the company and its troubled North Charleston-based Dreamliner program. Both could use a dash of upbeat news ahead of the big airshow, which kicks off July 18 near London. Delivery dilemma Boeing already was immersed in its crippling 737 Max crisis when the hot-shot 787 program ran into trouble. The pandemic crushed demand for the Dreamliner and other long-haul widebody airplanes. Then, multiple flaws discovered on newly built 787s required extensive repairs and nose-to-tail inspections. The fallout has been staggering. The FAA hasn't allowed the company to hand over newly built 787s to customers in nearly 14 months, cutting the production rate in North Charleston to a crawl. Some buyers have canceled orders, while some airlines have had to trim their flight schedules. Boeing, which has reduced its South Carolina payroll by 20 percent to about 5,500 workers since 2020, expects to incur about $2 billion in "abnormal costs" tied to the assembly-line mishaps and fixes. In April, the airframer said it had submitted a proposal to resume deliveries, but, as of late last week, the FAA had not approved the plan. The lengthy and costly waiting game hasn't gone unnoticed. The Wall Street Journal cast a fresh light on the manufacturing glitches last weekend under the headline, "What's Holding Back Boeing's 787 Dreamliner?" The idled plane was in the news again Tuesday, after Jefferies analyst Shelia Kahyaoglu reiterated a buy rating on Boeing, setting the price target on the stock at a bullish $225. At the time, the beaten-down shares were coming off their 52-week low and trading at around $138. Stock picker Jim Lebenthal said he'd be a buyer. This one has been troubling, but it think its ready to come out, the Cerity Partner portfolio manager said June 28 on CNBC. Lebenthal said Boeing is undervalued namely because "airlines need planes" and the pipeline of new passenger jets is constrained. "Beyond that, though, the immediate concern is when will the FAA allow deliveries of the 787 to resume. Theres talk that should be the middle of next month," he said, referring to July, "perhaps before the Farnborough air show. If that happens, that would be an unmitigated positive for the shares." 'Almost there' Not wanting to get ahead of the FAA, company executives have been tight-lipped when asked about when the delivery freeze will be lifted. Stan Deal, who runs the commercial aircraft business, said in mid-June that Boeing has made "steady progress" and is almost there. Theres a lot of paperwork you have to turn in so weve been focused on that and on the restoration of the airplane, Deal said at a U.K. aviation event, according to Bloomberg News. More recently, at the Qatar Economic Forum, Boeing top boss Dave Calhoun told Bloomberg TV on June 22 that the exact timing will be "determined by the FAA" and that the finished product will be "an improved version of the 787. Simple as that." The newest fly in the 787 ointment splashed down one week later. The U.S. Department of Transportation muddied the waters Wednesday by announcing its inspector general will audit the FAA's oversight of the Dreamliner program's manufacturing problems. The 737 Max also will be scrutinized. The agency didn't say how long the process will take, only that it will start this month. But it's more likely than not that a complex government review will push the long-awaited 787 delivery reboot down the runway, past Farnborough. "Its concerning on many levels," said aviation consultant and longtime Boeing watcher Richard Aboulafia, managing director at AeroDynamic Advisory. "If the FAA is under scrutiny, that increases the risk of further delays." A historic mid-century motel is getting ready to open its doors to travelers again in North Charleston. The Starlight Motor Inn a reimagined lodging at the site of the Host of America Motel on Rivers Avenue is now advertising a fall 2022 debut. The soon-to-open property will blend "vintage style" and "contemporary conveniences" like contactless check-in with affordable rates to provide what it's calling a "New Southern style of hospitality." It will feature 51 guest rooms and a collection of restored two-bedroom cottages, the "Starlight Village." Ham Morrison and Walker Lamond are partners in the project, and Charleston vacation home rental firm Stay Duvet will manage it. Morrison told The Post and Courier last year that he wanted to "restore the motel to its former glory." Like the original motel at the property, it will feature a restaurant, a cocktail lounge and a pool. Also previously known as the Star of America Motel, the site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2020. In a nomination form for its addition to the register, the motel is described as "one of the few surviving motels representative of North Charlestons mid-century commercial development." The "character-defining" elements called out in the nomination include decorative concrete block screen walls, a check-in carport and aluminum storefront windows. Built in 1961, the two-story motel was a prefabricated "instant motel" made of furnished units manufactured in Georgia. That method of construction earned it a description as "one of the most unusual hostelries in the United States" in a write-up about its grand opening in the Evening Post. Previously, the Rivers Avenue site had housed a popular used car lot, but owner Robert W. Rogers was encouraged to open a modern motel on the property and take advantage of growing traffic generated by the nearby Charleston Naval Base and Shipyard, the National Register nomination says. The nation was experiencing a motel boom at the time, and the Host of America's popularity peaked in its first decade. The lodging changed its name after Hurricane Hugo in 1989, according to its nomination, and it was shut down in 2007 due to fire and building code violations. More details about the Starlight Motor Inn's opening will be shared in the coming months on its website and Instagram. Art at Emeline Downtown hotel Emeline is rolling out a new artist residency program with the first big display later this month. Savannah-based artist Stephanie Forbes will bring her Divine Armor collection to the property near the historic City Market. Inspired by armor donned by Roman soldiers during the 3rd and 4th century and made using hand-collected oysters from the Lowcountry, Forbes' art collection will be available to view from July 30 to Aug. 30. Future art installations will be inspired by the "worldly travels" of the hotel's imagined namesake "muse." The Church Street hotel, which opened in mid-2020 in a renovated structure that previously operated under the DoubleTree flag, won't be the first in the city's tourist district to roll out a new artist residency program this year. In May, the nearby Charleston Place held its own artists-in-residence programming. Four female artists had weeklong residencies which included workshops, portrait sessions and time for guests to observe artists working on new pieces in an "arthouse" set up in the hotel's grand lobby. Biologist Charlotte Hope spent a large part of her career protecting bald eagles from extinction. For these symbols of America, her work in South Carolina was successful. Further good news: While she may be retiring, the volunteers she trained up and down the coast are carrying on with her other passion, to keep loggerhead turtles and their hatchlings out of harm's way. Hope, an energetic and lively 61-year-old, retired from the state Department of Natural Resources in May where she worked primarily with endangered species. It's the close of a life's work that spanned more than three decades. In her wake are firm figures that the number of turtles has gone from about 1,200 recorded nests counted on the South Carolina coast when she started at DNR in 1985 to about 3,000 now on the six beaches that have consistently recorded data. The eagle numbers are equally stunning. There were about 35 eagle nests in the Palmetto State at the start of her DNR tenure, compared with about 475 when she left. Blaik Keppler, deputy director of DNR's Marine Resources Division, said it's not an accident that Hope's career paralleled the positive trajectory of both species. "Charlotte's greatest priority has always been the survival of the animals she studied, and she worked tirelessly and without complaint often in challenging and unglamorous conditions to help ensure South Carolina remains a place where eagles soar and sea turtles come ashore each summer to nest," Keppler said. Hope entered the biology field during a time when few women served in scientific roles at DNR. Since then, she has mentored and inspired many young staff and students to do similar work, Keppler said. Bald eagles vesus DDT When Hope started at DNR in 1985, bald eagles, osprey, brown pelicans and several other large bird species were still trying to recover from the widely used chemical DDT, which drove bald eagles onto the endangered species list. DDT, developed in the 1940s, was the first of the modern synthetic insecticides, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It was used to combat diseases like malaria and control insects in crops, livestock productions and homes. In short, it was meant to help humans. But the insecticide created devastating effects on the environment, finding its way into the food chain and affecting birds including eagles from producing strong eggshells, thus cutting their reproduction chances. "It caused egg-laying animals their shells were so soft, they couldn't incubate," Hope said. "When an osprey or pelican or bald eagle sat down on the eggs to incubate, they would crush" them. The EPA issued a cancellation order for DDT in 1972. But the effects lingered. To help in their recovery, agencies like DNR received federal funding to study and monitor eagles to find out how many animals were left in the wild. At the time, the eagle numbers in South Carolina were alarmingly low. Biologists could only find 13 eagle territories in the entire state. Data would be collected by teams banding, or attaching numbers, to half of the chicks from every nests. It takes five years for a bald eagle to reach adulthood. DNR needed someone to track whether the banded ones survived that long. "That meant myself and a couple of colleagues had to go to every single nest in the state every winter to see if any of those adults were any of these banded chicks," Hope said. She suspects she spent roughly 6,000 hours staring at eagles and trying to read the numbers on their leg bands. Many of the populations were found in the Lowcountry due to the abundance of waterfowl, which bald eagles love to feast on. Over time, Hope's work with the birds included locating nesting territories, determining reproductive status of the animals, banding and monitoring them to determine mortality rates and conducting mid-winter surveys. She credits the Endangered Species Act for providing the funding and law enforcement needed to aid recovery of the animals. The law protected dozens of acres surrounding trees that had eagle nests in them. Most landowners who had nesting trees on their properties cooperated with the law and didn't bother them, Hope said. "(The act) gave us the law enforcement capability to protect these birds," Hope said. "And it also gave us the funds to do the monitoring so that we knew where the nests were and could protect them." The state is now tracking about 475 bald eagle nests but there could be more, Hope said. Each territory includes two adults and about one to two young eagles a year, Hope said. So the state could have roughly 2,500 to 3,000 eagles. But it's hard to know for sure. "So they've recovered quite well," Hope said, confirming the DDT ban was beneficial and gave the birds an opportunity to reproduce. The bird was considered endangered in places other than South Carolina, too. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service gave the species this designation in each of the lower 48 states, except for Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin, where it was considered threatened. The birds do not live in Hawaii, and Alaska's population remained robust, the service said. The endangered and threatened statuses allowed the agency and its partners to assist recovery through captive breeding programs, reintroduction efforts, law enforcement and nest site protection. Bald eagles have since been removed from the list of threatened and endangered animals but is still protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. These laws prohibit killing, selling or harming eagles, their nests or eggs. Sea turtles rebound When Hope started at DNR, there was also a declining population of about 1,200 loggerhead nests located on the state's six index beaches. South Island, Cape Island, Lighthouse Island, Edisto Beach State Park, Edisto Beach and Fripp Island have conducted consistent ground surveys on the animals since 1982. The highest mortality rates were caused by trawling fisheries, such as shrimping and other large scale drag fleets. Animals can get caught in nets when they are drug under the surface. Development of the turtle excluder device has helped with that. The device creates an escape hole in the net that allows turtles to wiggle out before being trapped with the rest of the catch. A decline in the shrimp industry also decreased the threat, as well. Each of the six sea turtle species found in the United States are protected under the Endangered Species Act. This means it is illegal to catch, harass, harm or kill them. The state has averaged more than 3,300 sea turtle nests along the coast over the last 10 years. Loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, green and leatherback sea turtles can be found along shores here. Hope said she believes the state's numbers are bound to improve because with each additional nesting years the average is increasing. This could be credited to protection of nests and the reduction of adult mortality, which is the most important part of sea turtle populations. Most beaches in South Carolina have local volunteer teams that watch after the animals and their nests. They have helped increase the amount of hatchlings that make it into the water. Before then, a lot were being washed away or eaten by racoons. There are more than 1,000 volunteers in the state who receive permits from DNR to move nests that might get washed away and install screens if there are predator problems. After the hatchlings have come out, the volunteers can dig up the nests and collect inventory so the state will have an idea of nesting success rates. Betsy Brabson is one of the many sea turtle volunteers Hope has trained over the years. She lives in the Georgetown area, which was part of Hope's territory. After 30 years or working together, Brabson can attest to Hope's dedication and passion for wildlife. Brabson said she distinctly remembers the first time she met Hope. Turtles in the area had nested, and eggs were hatching. Hope was there to do inventory with volunteers along the northern coast. "She was eight months pregnant digging a deep hole just with vigor and enthusiasm," Brabson said. "And I remember thinking, man, she is really dedicated. She's really into this." She's so dedicated that it became a normal habit for Hope to take home injured animals and nurse them back to health. At one point, Brabson said volunteers in her area learned that hogs were eating all of the nests on North Island. She, Hope and a group of others went to the island to figure out how to best protect the nests. "And while we were over there this particular day, Charlotte found an injured gull ... and she said the humane thing to do would be to wring its neck," Brabson said. "But Charlotte being the kind-hearted person she is took it home and tried to rehab it." Hope said that for years her children couldn't use their bathtub because there was either a pelican, sea turtle or some other animal in it. Her children also had rabbits in the house and cockatiels flying around. "Back then, there wasn't any official rehab places like the aquarium or the Center for Birds of Prey (in Awendaw)," Hope said. "So we were doing all that work, too." But now, Hope has no wild animals in her home. She has two dogs and a cat and hopes to travel during her retirement. With a successful career in the books, Hope is most importantly thankful and grateful for her family. "They've had to put up with a lot," she said. MYRTLE BEACH Myrtle Beach International Airport is undertaking a nearly $100 million construction project just as an increasing number of travelers pass through its doors. Plans call for an increase in the number of parking spaces; a larger fuel farm for aircraft; an additional TSA checkpoint and a future planned expansion of the airports terminal. Already under construction is a $20 million, two-year remodeling of the rental car parking lot with canopies to protect travelers who wait on their vehicles. The airport was actually looking at a modest terminal expansion prior to the pandemic, but the pandemic changed the aviation industry as a whole so that was put on hold, spokesman Ryan Betcher said. 2021 really showed us that there was this incredible growth and need for leisure travel and Myrtle Beach really showed its resilience. Last year, the airport located on the south end of Myrtle Beach saw a record 3.2 million passengers as COVID-19 restrictions were eased and travelers were itching to go on vacation. Myrtle Beach International started out this year with an even stronger spring than the first few months of 2021. In April, passenger traffic hit the airport's record high for that month. The total of 282,784 passengers was 32 percent higher than the airports previous record set last year. So far we are on track with 2021, so we should see very similar numbers, Betcher said. So, its a very strong year of growth and were hoping this is going to be the new normal for the airport. Airport officials plan to be proactive not only for Grand Strand tourists, but an increasing percentage of locals going on vacation out of state. A total of 448 parking spaces will be added by Memorial Day next year in the cellphone/waiting area and in the long-term parking lot. As the airport grows and we see more local travelers in our market, the need for parking becomes more apparent, Betcher said. The airport plans to increase its current 260,000-gallon fuel capacity with the addition of a 100,000-gallon fuel tank by next spring which will ease any disruptions in the supply chain and a current shortage of truck drivers. A second 100,000-gallon tank can be added in the future if needed. Myrtle Beach International is one of the few airports in the country that fuels commercial aircraft, according to Airports Director Scott Van Moppes. With more people flying in and out of Myrtle Beach, officials said they envision an ultimate expansion of the gates in the future. Betcher said it will be just outside of where Gate A7 is currently located and includes increased seating, more concession options and a possible outdoor terrace for passengers. Five or six extra gates for the use of multiple airlines are still in the design phase; however, Betcher said it could be completed within the next five years. Additionally, a second TSA checkpoint for peak travel times is also planned. Coming in after the pandemic, it became very apparent that we needed to move forward with the project, Betcher said. Charleston, SC (29403) Today Mixed clouds and sun this morning. Scattered thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 89F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 40%.. Tonight A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low 76F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. OMBRE GA'CHONG With a little more than one month to go before the primary election, we are seeing more political signage going up, special interest groups sp Read more The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) says major International Oil Companies (IOCs) have made significant investments in support of the ongoing development of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Parks Scheme. A statement posted on the NCDMBs website on Friday said the boards Executive Secretary, Simbi Wabote, made this known at the Nigerian Content Sensitisation Programme for Law Enforcement Agencies in Yenogoa, Bayelsa. Mr Wabote said the NCDMB was developing the oil and gas parks in conjunction with key operators in the oil and gas industry. He listed the key operators as Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Exxon Mobil Nigeria, and the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC). According to him, Shell funded the provision of power and utility cables deployed at the oil and gas park located at Emeyal -1, Bayelsa, while Exxon Mobil provided the electrical infrastructure for the park at Odukpani in Cross River. Mr Wabote said NAOC had earlier partnered with the NCDMB to develop the 10-megawatts gas power plant that would supply electricity to the Bayelsa park when completed. He said this was in addition to providing uninterrupted electricity currently to the Nigerian Content Tower and some strategic infrastructure owned by the Bayelsa State Government. Mr Wabote also said that the board had signed an agreement with the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN) to establish a gas-fired power plant at the Odukpani, park to provide the park with constant electricity. He said the power facility would be ready before the end of 2022, about the sametime the Emeyal-1 and Odukpani parks would be completed, ahead of commencing operations in early 2023. Mr Wabote also announced that the NCDMB had started inviting interested manufacturing companies and other firms to apply for spaces in the parks. He said the parks would have dedicated power supply and shared services and were conceived to domicile equipment components manufacturing in-country. Mr Wabote said this was to meet the needs of the oil and gas industry and sectoral linkages as well as create jobs for the nations teeming youths. He also said that the NCDMB was working to develop oil and gas parks at Oguta in Imo, at Onna in Akwa Ibom, Ilaje in Ondo State and in Delta, adding that work was progressing in different stages at the identified locations. Mr Wabote confirmed that the completed oil and gas parks would be managed by professional facility managers, to ensure their sustainability. He also said that the board was partnering with the Nigeria LNG Ltd to develop the Brass Island Shipyard as a Capacity Development Initiative. Mr Wabote said the feasibility study, geotechnical survey, and site selection study had been completed. In addition, the land valuation and perimeter survey has also been completed and the plan is to construct the shipyard in two phases, he added. (NAN) The President of the Igbo Movie Producers Association of Nigeria (IMPAN), JohnPaul Nwanganga, on Thursday, said Igbo Art, Culture and Film Festival would promote the beauty of The organisers say the festival aims to reawaken the consciousness of Ndigbo toward the beauty of their culture, Igbo culture. Mr Nwanganga said this at the unveiling of the Igbo Biggest Art, Culture and Film Festival in Enugu. He said the festival was also a way to promote Igbo culture and bring the regions people together. According to him, the festival aims to reawaken the consciousness of Ndigbo toward the beauty of their culture. The IMPAN President said the festival would re-establish and revive dwindling Igbo culture, especially the Igbo language, by creating awareness in their minds. He said the festival would showcase movies, music and dance produced using the language and lifestyle of the regions people. So with this project, we are bringing the five states of the South-east together and making them understand that despite the diversity in their various cultures, languages and traditions, they are one. There is that tradition that binds Igbo people together, which we are trying to bring alive through this beautiful project. We are going to have movies produced in Igbo dialect, Igbo music like Igbo Amaka by Flavour and stuff like that, which will go a long way to promote Igbo identity and heritage. Igbo Art Exhibition will be used to showcase creativity by Ndigbo, he said. Mr Nwanganga said the festival would be extended to Delta-Igbo and Igbo-speaking people in Rivers State. Patrons He said that IMPAN had many personalities renowned for their filmmaking abilities and acting. They include Pete Edochie, Patience Ozokwor, Ebelle Okaro, Nkem Owoh, Yul Edochie, and Chika Okpala alias Zebrudaya. Others were Diewait Ikpechukwu, Steve Ebo, Stan Amado, Kingsley Nweke, Nkem ALU, Raymond Agu, Rita Okonkwo, Paul Ibe, Brown Ene, Kingsley Amadi and Pat Ani, among others present at the unveiling. They also pledged their support for the festival. READ ALSO: Mr Nwanganga said there would be an awareness campaign across the states in the South-east, starting from Enugu being the regions headquarters. He said, We will be working with the regional governors through their Culture and Tourism Ministries, and the festival will kick off in early March 2023. Mr Nwanganga added that the festival would be held annually and serve as a unifying factor for all Igbo. Unveiling the project, Patience Ozokwor, who was Matron to the Organising Committee, blessed the project, saying that the festival would be one in town. She said that coming together of Igbo film producers to organise a festival that would unite all the Igbo-speaking races was a welcome idea. Ms Ozokwor lauded Nwanganga for initiating the idea and urged everyone to support the project. Earlier, the Chairman of the Organising Committee, Stanley Nwataetogo, said the festival would be a massive project that glued Ndigbo together. This is going to be a kind of festival Igbos have not had, and I want every Igbo son and daughter to support it, he said. (NAN) Rabiu Kwankwaso, the presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), on Saturday, advised a former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, to accept an offer of being his running mate for the forthcoming presidential election. Mr Kwankwaso said Mr Obi being on the ticket of the NNPP as a vice-presidential candidate in 2023 would provide a viable route for the South-East to actualize its presidential ambition in the future. The former governor also said accepting to be running mate to Mr Obi or any other presidential candidate would lead to the collapse of his own party, the NNPP. Mr Kwankwaso, a former governor of Kano State, who was in Gombe State to inaugurate the state office of NNPP and to meet with elected members of the party, stated this in an interview with journalists. He said his political profile built over the years and his wealth of experience, having served in various capacities in the country, had helped in bringing NNPP to limelight within a short time. He said with the fame the NNPP has achieved within a short time, anything short of his presidency under the party would mean the collapse of the NNPP. Mr Kwankwaso confirmed that his party had been in talks with the Labour Party for possible merger but the main issue hindering progress is the issue of who becomes the presidential candidate of such an alliance. From the discussion with Labour Party, the main issue was who becomes the president if the parties merge, Mr Kwankwaso said. A former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, is the presidential candidate of the Labour Party. At the end of the day, some of our representatives thought that there should be a criteria in terms of age, qualification, offices held, performance and so on, the NNPP candidate said. Of course the other side wouldnt want that. Most of the people from there believe that presidency has to go there (South East). If now I decide to be vice presidential candidate to anybody in this country; NNPP will collapse, because the party is based on what we have built in the last 30 years. I served for 17 years as a civil servant; we are talking of 47 years of very serious hard work that is what is rarely holding NNPP now, he said. The national leader of the NNPP said he was not against presidency going to any part of the country but it must be done based on strategy, political calculation and equation. According to him, the South-East are good in business and are well talented but they should learn politics. In politics they are at the bottom line, Mr Kwankwaso said. He stated that the zone lost out on the presidential and vice presidential candidates of both All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but now has a chance with the NNPP. He stated that those saying even if my friend (Peter Obi) wants to accept vice presidential candidate, some people in the South-East will not accept, that is not strategic. He said Bola Tinubu was strategic to have supported the APC in 2015 and today he is the presidential candidate of the APC. Mr Kwankwaso said the best option for the South East was for the zone to partner with NNPP, this is a golden opportunity, if they lose it, it will be a disaster. On the choice of his running mate, Mr Kwankwaso said we have options in the NNPP in the South to pick a good vice president and one of them is the Labour Party man (Peter Obi) you are talking about. On the chances of NNPP in 2023 elections, Mr Kwankwaso said his party had the structure, organisation and population across the country to contest and win elections. He said if elected president in 2023, his vision would be to create opportunities for the youths of Nigeria to get employed, achieved their dreams and be empowered educationally and economically. At least 51 people were killed in the past week (June 26 July 2) by non-state actors across Nigeria with a majority of the victims being security officials. The figure indicates an increase when compared to the previous week when at least 11 people were killed in eight separate incidents. Of the 51 people killed in six separate incidents, 40 were security personnel including 10 police officers and 30 soldiers. The remaining 11 were civilians. The six incidents took place in four of Nigerias six geopolitical zones, only the South-west and North-east recorded no incidents. The most fatal of the reported incidents was the killing of 43 people by terrorists in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State. The Shiroro incident has been condemned by President Muhammadu Buhari who said his government will find the terrorists who carried out the attack. PREMIUM TIMES compiled the incidents from media reports. Thus, unreported cases are not included. Below are the recorded incidents: Edo The Catholic Diocese of Auchi in Edo State confirmed the death of Christopher Odia, a reverend father, who was abducted on Sunday by gunmen in the state. Mr Odia, 41, was the administrator of St. Michael Catholic Church, Ikabigbo, Etsako West Local Government Area and also the Principal of St. Philip Catholic Secondary School, Jattu, in the state. Rivers Gunmen ambushed and killed an Assistant Superintendent of Police in Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State. The yet-to-be-identified officer attached to the Rivers State Police Command was said to have been ambushed by the assailants while returning from work in the Oyigbo area on Wednesday. Ebonyi Gunmen on Monday killed three people during an attack on the Ngbo community in Ohaukwu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State. They also destroyed properties believed to be worth millions of naira in the community. Enugu Two police officers were on Thursday feared killed when gunmen attacked a police checkpoint along Agbani Road in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State, Nigerias South-east. The incident happened at about 9 a.m. The gunmen were said to have opened fire on the police officers at the checkpoint, killing two on the spot. Niger Gunmen killed at least 43 people including 30 soldiers and seven mobile police personnel in an attack on a mining site in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State. The attack occurred on Wednesday afternoon in Ajata, Aboki in Gurmana ward of Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State. Kaduna Gunmen on Tuesday invaded Sabon Gero community, New Millennium City Settlement, in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State, killing a joint task force commander and a resident. The incident also led to the abduction of 16 other members of the community, including a medical doctor. Buhari speaks Reacting to the Shiroro attack, President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday said the attack was a direct assault on the Nigerian state which will not go unpunished. Mr Buharis media aide, Garba Shehu, in a statement, said the president paid tributes to the security officials who lost their lives during the attack. We honour our security forces, and particularly those brave souls who have given their lives fighting against the evil that is terrorism. They constitute the best that Nigeria has to offer and we remember each of them. Mr Shehu reiterated the governments narrative that it has reduced Boko Haram to a shell of its former self. But terrorists are parasites. They thrive when the world is suffering, he said. As always, their goal is the same: to sow fear and division amongst us. We will not let them. Instead let us pray for the families and loved ones of those who sacrificed their lives in the fight against evil, and let us pray for the safe and speedy return of those abducted. We will do everything possible to ensure their return. And to the sadists, I say this: we are coming. No matter what rock you crawl under, what hole you sink into, what lie you hide behind, we are coming and we will find you. Shiroro will see justice. Nigeria will know peace, Mr Shehu quoted President Buhari as saying. Eleven persons have been confirmed dead in an accident along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway. The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Ogun State confirmed this in a statement on Sunday morning. The spokesperson of the command, Florence Okpe, disclosed that the multiple crashes occurred late Saturday night. She said the accident involved three vehicles. She added that two Mazda buses and one unknown vehicle collided and caught fire near the Isara bridge, Ogere area of the expressway. The FRSC spokesperson further said that a total of 18 persons were involved in the accident but only seven survived. Ms Okpe further said the deceased persons were burnt beyond recognition. The injured victims were taken to Victory Hospital, Ogere for medical attention. One of the victims was rejected but finally taken to Babcock University Teaching Hospital, Ilisan. The fire service in Sagamu was contacted and the impact of the crash is obstructing the Ibadan-Lagos bound of the expressway. Traffic has, however, been diverted to the Lagos-Ibadan route and the crashed vehicles are currently still burning, Ms Okpe said. Motorists are advised to drive cautiously obey traffic rules and regulations and also cooperate with traffic managers managing the situation, she added. On Thursday, the senior pastor of Covenant Christian Centre, Poju Oyemade, tweeted a message on faith, which he concluded by urging youths not to waste their enthusiasm on a poorly planned project. Oyemades tweets He wrote in the tweets: Faith is not just blind belief or hoping for a miracle. Faith sees. Faith has her eyes opened and possesses the evidence upon which it builds its belief. Faith prepares long, sometimes for years just as Joseph did for the years of famine. Faith counts the cost before embarking. Without having real evidence upon which you are acting nor preparation for the task, recognising real obstacles that lie ahead and making concrete plans, one is just being delusional about the outcome. The enthusiasm of the youth must not be wasted on poorly planned projects. Noah spent months/years planning for the flood & he was operating in faith. Jesus said no man goes to battle without taking stock first nor lays the foundation of a tower without counting the cost first lest he will be mocked. Our faith is intelligent; it doesnt live in denial. As the host of The Platform, a forum which brings together resource persons to discuss national issues, Mr Oyemade is never shy of political commentaries. Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has appeared in the forum a couple of times to propagate his political ideas. The cleric appeared to be enamoured of the politician. Although Mr Oyemades tweets of Thursday made no direct reference to politics, Mr Obis supporters descended on the clergyman moments after the tweets appeared. They held the message as a criticism of their campaign for Mr Obi. Young people, many of them having no contact with the candidate or his party, have been the mainstay of Mr Obis campaign thus far. Their vitriol was, as usual, relentless. Even after Mr Oyemade took down the tweets, the supporters continued to drag him on social media, as they gloated over the capitulation of yet another enemy of Mr Obi. Commenting on the development, Sam Amadi, a lawyer and regular political commentator, wrote on his Facebook page on Saturday: Pastor Poju was right about the need for rigor and not rhetoric to solve national problems. But thay have cancelled him. It is a pattern that has become recurrent and thus disturbing, as the 2023 polls approach. Like Oyemade, like Mbaka Two weeks earlier, the chaplain of the Adoration Ministry in Enugu, Ejike Mbaka, was hounded by the same group of supporters after a foot-in-the-mouth remark the cleric made that Mr Obi would fail in his presidential ambition because he is stingy. Within days of the statement, thousands of Mr Obis supporters who were also followers of the Reverend Father bragged that they had unfriended him on his social media accounts. Their attacks persisted even after the Catholic Diocese of Enugu dissociated itself from Mr Mbakas utterances, before eventually suspending him from all activities of the church. Mr Mbaka later apologised for his statement. Pandora Papers This newspaper too has felt the intolerance of the supporters. Shortly after the party primaries, PREMIUM TIMES had reshared some of its previous investigative reports that indicted three of the leading presidential candidates of corruption. The reports had earlier been published between September 2020 and October 2021 on the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, his counterpart of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, and Mr Obi. None of the politicians challenged the findings of the reports, so they were reshared to offer readers glimpses of their past and characters. Although the three publications were shared within hours of each other, the supporters of Mr Obi were the most vicious in attacking this newspaper over a consortium of international journalists findings in the Pandora Papers that he registered secret companies outside Nigeria. The supporters baselessly alleged that the report was done out of bias or inducement. But their attacks have not been for only those who criticise them or their candidates. They also go after Nigerians for merely expressing support for different candidates. Although this is not peculiar to Mr Obis supporters, they have taken it to a new low. A day before turning on Mr Oyemade, they had ignited a controversy by their attacks on some actors who had declared their support for Mr Tinubu. The actors made their position known in a video clip shared by one of them, Yinka Quadri, that features them taking turns to endorse Mr Tinubus candidacy. In this instance, Mr Obis supporters accused the actors of giving their support to the APC candidate because he is Yoruba like them or trading it for money. In the controversy that followed on Twitter, a commentator, @ManLikeIcey, wrote: Psquare are free to support Peter Obi, its their right. Yoruba actors/actresses are free to support Tinubu, its their right. Youre equally allowed to support your preferred candidate, its your right. Dont bully people for their constitutional right. Lynch mob Mr Obis presidential aspiration appears to have been appropriated by a social media lynch mob who are attacking his opponents in packs and tyrannising those who do not share their views. Reno Omokri, a former aide of former President Goodluck Jonathan and campaigner for PDPs Mr Abubakar, last month cried out about the incessant verbal abuse he receives from the supporters of Mr Obi. In my life, I have never been insulted the way @PeterObi supporters insult me. Yet, this same Peter lobbied me when he wanted to be Atikus running mate in 2019. I supported him over others. Yet, he watches as his people insult Atiku and I. Nobody knows tomorrow. Obis call for restraint To be fair to Mr Obi, he had repeatedly admonished his supporters to stop insulting or attacking his opponents and their supporters. For instance, rather than joining issues with Mr Mbaka over his remarks on him, the candidate urged his supporters to cease the attacks, saying he would meet the cleric over his misgivings. Yet, the illiberalism of his supporters bodes ill for his own ambition and Nigerians efforts at building a democratic culture. Following the attacks on the actors supporting Mr Tinubu last week, some commentators quickly observed the contradiction in attacking the actors when entertainers and other celebrities who are Igbos like Mr Obi had also been campaigning for him without apology. They also remarked that many of his campaigners on social media are of the same ethnic stock. Identity politics Nigerians have been trying to escape from the trap of identity politics, since it was acknowledged as a big factor in the collapse of the First Republics. In the transition to the Second Republic, the military government tried to ensure that the political parties are national in outlook, although the success of the effort was modest. In the short-lived Third Republic, the military government of Ibrahim Babangida imposed two parties on the country in a futile effort to rebuild Nigerian politics on ideological foundations. Identity politics have also proved very inflammable and lethal in some countries, including Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan and defunct Yugoslavia However, despite the liberal nature of the laws guiding party formation in Nigeria, politicians have realised that a candidate cannot win the presidency without broad national support, regardless of the level of support the candidate draws from their own part of the country. Party structures Mr Oyemade might well have been alluding to Mr Obis supporters in his controversial tweet of Friday. But given his relationship with the candidate and concerns about political development in the country, he might have been giving honest advice through his admonition. Many observers genuinely see the frenzied campaign of his supporters as a sail that will take Mr Obi nowhere, until his party builds a structure across the country on which it can compete with the two major parties in a national election. He apparently recognises this too as he has been in talks with other parties for an alliance that may help them cover the country. The APC and PDP have party executives in perhaps each of the about 10,000 wards in Nigeria. These officials will mobilise party members and voters in their campaigns across the 774 local government areas of the country and monitor the process in the 178, 000 polling units on election days. Without structure in a constituency or area, the party is invisible, however heavy its work may be on social media. In last months governorship election in Ekiti, the LP was not visible for this reason and returned with an appalling 285 votes from across the 16 LGAS of the state. This is in spite of some of Mr Obis most ardent supporters being from the state. This may also be the case in the July 16 governorship election in Osun where the LP candidate, Lasun Yusuff, refused to have anything to do with Mr Obis social media mobilisers because the presidential candidate himself had not reached out to him. So if Mr Oyemade intended his message to be applied to the current politics, he probably was advising Mr Obi and his backers to spare time and energy in the eight months before the general elections for building the structures their party needs to harness Mr Obis seeming popularity and save the hope and enthusiasm of his youthful supporters from ending into a mirage in February 2023. Above scrutiny Another implication of intolerance of opposing views is that it scares people away from frank discussion of the personalities, records and ideas of the candidates. As can be seen in the case involving publications by this newspaper on three candidates as earlier cited in this piece, overbearing supporters want to place their candidates above scrutiny. Aside from denying the electorate the robust information they need to make informed decisions, it bears with it the danger of shrinking the political space and denuding pluralism. Democracy thrives on pluralism and that is the reason it strives for harmony by accommodating different tunes. In the final analysis, Mr Obis supporters cannot win broad support for him by merely sanctifying him in the sea of their own adoration and demonising everyone else. Other supporters also think the candidates they support are the best but they have no right to force those views on others. Akin Fadeyi, the founder of Corruption, Not in My Country advocacy group, in a comment on Thursday, after a supporter of Mr Obi attacked him over a comment he made on the candidate, said: Those of you who have constituted yourself into E-THUGS for politicians, youre not better than ballot-snatching political thugs you always repudiate. Some of them are actually better than some of you. Just take this to the Bank: Powerful and resourceful brains dont make noise and you can never win converts for a candidate youre building enemies for. Nigerians know that none of their politicians is a saint and after 19 years in active politics, eight of them as a state governor, it is Mr Obis past record in government as well as his ideas and promises that voters will use in assessing his candidature. He will be placed under scrutiny by those who take him seriously and all of them will not deliver the same verdict. Atiku walking a tight rope Atiku Abubakars ecstasy over his victory at the presidential primary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has ebbed over cracks in his party since he picked Delta State governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, as his running mate. Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom confirmed in an interview with Arise Television on Wednesday that the advisory committee the partys leadership and Mr Abubakar set up for guidance on the pick, by 13-4 votes, recommended Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike for the slot. Mr Wike, who was already aggrieved with the manner in which Mr Abubakar defeated him at the primary, has refused to take his latter disappointment with equanimity. It is a big concern for the PDP and its presidential candidates, realising that they cannot risk Mr Wikes wrath going to the elections, for many reasons. Rivers and PDP The governors Rivers State has always given the PDP some of its largest blocks of votes since the beginning of the Fourth Republic, largely compensating for the oppositions usual victories in Lagos and Kano, the two states with the highest numbers of registered voters. Losing the state or a large portion of its votes may be suicidal to the PDP in its quest to end its eight years out of power. Mr Wike also has influence in other South-south states, especially in Cross River State. Since that states governor, Ben Ayade, fled to the APC, Mr Wike has taken its PDP chapter under his wings. Cutting off his support will affect the campaigns of the party where the PDP is in the opposition for the first time in its life. Wikes backers It has also been established in recent weeks that Mr Wikes broad support at the primary was not a fluke. At least five other governors are in his camp. They are united in their current disaffection with their parties, which has further strengthened Mr Wikes hands in the confrontation with the partys national leadership. Mr Abubakar is an inadvertent victim in the furore over the choice of his sidekick. He had to choose whom he considers best to work with. And many leaders of the party, especially in the North, do not think highly of Mr Wike as a candidate for the high offices of president and deputy. This was one of the reasons that roused them into action when they realised the Rivers governor could bully his way into nomination at the convention. It was the reason that Sokoto governor, Aminu Tambuwal, succumbed to the pressure on him to step down at the last moment for Mr Abubakar, even though the two had never been friends. Ironically, Mr Wike had backed Mr Tambuwal to the hilt at the previous convention that he hosted in Port Harcourt and could not have expected the Sokoto governor to deliver the stab that killed his own bid in Abuja. Mr Abubakar rubbed salt on Mr Wikes hurt when, in announcing his running mate, he said he picked Mr Okowa from among those recommended because the Delta governor is suitable to be president. To be fair to Mr Abubakar too, he would have also drawn the wrath of Mr Okowa and others who helped him win the ticket, had he picked Mr Wike. Infidelity to principle Mr Abubakar is also a victim of his partys infidelity to principle. In this case, however, maybe he does not deserve much sympathy. Since he first returned to the PDP after the fiasco of his presidential run in 2007, he had been among the vocal advocates of zoning, the basis for their demand that President Jonathan should not run in 2011. They asked Mr Jonathan, who became president in 2010 after the death of President Umaru Yaradua, to stand aside so that the northern wing of the party could complete its abbreviated turn in that office. Eventually, a compromise was reached by the power brokers in the party for Mr Jonathan to run for a single term, his own South-south region having never produced the president or vice president. However, in 2015, after the president had developed his own sense of entitlement to a second term, Mr Abubakar was among the rebels who sabotaged his reelection by defecting to the newly formed APC. When he returned again to the PDP ahead of the 2019 elections, Mr Abubakar also campaigned on the zoning principle, as a result of which southern members left the field to their northern colleagues in the presidential primary. Mr Abubakar was reported to have promised his southern supporters that he would serve only one term and hand the baton over to the south in 2023. But having failed in his election bid again in 2019, Mr Abubakar, who appeared to have retired from politics after relocating to Dubai following that defeat, returned home this time to lead the charge against the zoning principle. He got his way again but may pay a heavy price in 2023 unless he manages to fill the cracks in his party. Some southern leaders of the party like former Ekiti governor, Ayodele Fayose, are implacable over the perceived dubiety of their northern colleagues. Mr Fayose on Wednesday vowed to support only a southern candidate next year, despite being a member of the ad hoc committee that recommended to the party to throw the presidential primary open, so that the best candidate could emerge. Lopsidedness in hierarchy Another facet of the crisis is how to resolve the albeit foreseen consequence of the partys presidential ticket going to the North after the national chairman emerged last year from the same region. When Iyorchia Ayu was elected as the chairman, it was on the understanding that the south would produce the presidential candidate. But it was also proposed that in the event the ticket again went to the North, Mr Ayu would give up his chair. Mr Wike and his camp are demanding that as the minimum condition for sheathing their swords. But Mr Abubakar is more comfortable with Mr Ayu, a political associate since the Third Republic, remaining on the chair. He can ill afford to have behind him during the election a chairman whose loyalty may be to another person or cause. Mr Abubakar has urged Mr Ayu to be allowed to remain until after the elections. It is not clear how he would persuade Mr Wike and his camp. But unless one of the sides backs down, Mr Abubakar risks retiring as the most persistent candidate who never won the Nigerian presidency. A Magistrates Court in Benin, Edo State, on Friday sentenced a 20-year-old man, Augustine Obasi, to three and half years in prison for raping a 15-year-old girl. Mr Obasi was arraigned before the court in November, 2020, on a four count charge of conspiracy, unlawful abduction, and rape. The Chief Magistrate, Esther Aimofumeh, while delivering the judgement, said Mr Obasi was guilty of count two and count four. Ms Aimofumeh said the convict was guilty of abducting and for having unlawful carnal knowledge of the victim. The chief magistrate sentenced Mr Obasi to six months imprisonment with an option of N60,000 fine, while on count four, the convict was sentenced to three years imprisonment without an option of fine. She said the sentences would run concurrently. Electrocution In a related development, the police in Abia have confirmed the electrocution of a suspected thief at Amoji-Ukwu Village, Obingwa Local Government Area of the state. The police spokesperson in the state, Geoffrey Ogbonna, said the suspected thief was electrocuted in the early hours of Friday, while cutting two cables linked to a transformer. Mr Ogbonna, a superintendent of police, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Aba on Saturday. Chinenye Agomuo, a resident of Amoji-Ukwu Village, said there was an explosion in the community on Friday, and that the explosion occurred when a man cut cables connected to a transformer. On Friday morning, about 4 a.m., we heard an explosion suspected to be from a transformer. After the explosion, I got phone calls from my brother living near the transformer, asking me to come to the scene. He said someone climbed the transformer and was electrocuted. When we reached there, it was a young man. He had climbed up to cut the armoured cables but unfortunately for him, the electric current killed him, Mr Agomuo said. He said that the community reported the matter to the Eastern Ngwa Police Station. Mr Agomuo said that the body of the suspect was deposited at a mortuary with the help of the police. (NAN) The Debt Management Office (DMO) says revenue generation is a major constraint of the Federal Government and impacts the countrys debt situation negatively. The Director-General of the DMO, Patience Oniha, said this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja. According to Ms Oniha, the systemic resource mobilisation has been compounded by recent economic recessions. She said that the most viable solution to the countrys challenge remained to grow revenues and plug all leakages, as cutting expenditure was not a viable option. She, however, said that several measures were being taken by the Federal Government under the Strategic Revenue Growth Initiatives (SRGI) to improve revenue and fiscal prudence. These measures include improving the tax administration framework, including tax filing and payment compliance improvement. According to her, it also includes evaluation of the process and policy effectiveness of fiscal incentives. Ms Oniha said that the federal government was also taking measures to identify and plug existing revenue leakages to enhance tax compliance and reduce evasion. To further enhance independent revenue collection, government aims to optimise the operational efficiencies and revenue generation focus of government agencies. Introduction of new and further increases in existing pro-health taxes, like the excise on carbonated drinks will also enhance revenue generation, she said. (NAN) KAE/IA The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has condemned an alleged act of electoral misconduct involving a corps member, Orji Nkenna and some staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Osun State. This was contained in a statement by the NYSC Director, Press and Public Relations, Eddy Megwa, on Sunday in Abuja. According to him, it is rather unfortunate that Nkenna, who is one of the accused persons, could debase himself into such an atrocious act. We have also noted that the case is under investigation, and if found guilty, the law should be invoked accordingly. The NYSC, as a responsible youth-moulding organisation, hereby dissociates itself from such unpatriotic act of the culprits, he said. Mr Megwa said the involvement of corps members in previous elections in the country was borne out of their track record of impeccable performances in several previous national assignments. He added that the scheme was proud of all of them that stuck to the rules. He also said all corps members, right from the orientation camps, were always sensitised by NYSC and INEC officials, to their roles during elections, including the statutory sanctions, in case they violated the electoral laws. Consequently, any corps member that engages himself in any form of electoral offence, must squarely face the wrath of the law, as stipulated in the electoral act. NYSC will continue to play its role of promoting the unity and integration of the country, as it has been doing in its almost 50 years of existence. With the 2023 general elections around the corner, the NYSC will not relent in consolidating the long-existing partnership with INEC, towards ensuring a free, fair and credible election, to the delight of all Nigerians and the world at large. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Osun Police Command on Saturday said it arrested Nkenna, an INEC supervisor and another, for being responsible for missing Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs). The commands spokesperson, Yemisi Opalola, alleged that the accused and others at large, manipulated the collection of PVCs at their Local Government Collection Office, in Atakumosa West Local Government Area. (NAN) The police in Ogun said they have arrested three suspected members of the dreaded Eiye Confraternity, who forcefully initiated a young girl into their cult after gang-raping her. The police spokesperson, Abimbola Oyeyemi, in a statement on Sunday in Ota, Ogun, said the suspects were arrested on June 30 in the Ajuwon area of the state. Mr Oyeyemi gave the names of the suspects as Daniel Njoku (a.k.a Agege), Damilare Ogundiran and Adebayo Olamilekan. He explained further that they were arrested following a report lodged at Ajuwon Police Divisional Headquarters by the mother of the victim. According to the victims mother, she sent her 15-year-old daughter on an errand in the Akute Odo area but was allegedly waylaid by Daniel Njoku. And Njoku forcefully took her to his gang at their hideout where the young girl was gang-raped, beaten and forcefully initiated into the Eiye cult group. The complainant further explained that her daughter was threatened by the suspects and that she would be killed if she dared inform anybody about the incident. Upon the report, the Divisional Police Officer, Ajuwon Division, SP Andrew Akinseye, detailed his detectives to go after the hoodlums. READ ALSO: Police arrest suspected cultists for killing four persons The team, acting on credible intelligence, located the hideout of the group at Akute Odo area, stormed the place and succeeded in arresting three members of the gang. They confessed to the commission of the crime and informed the police that they were desperately looking for more members to join their group, especially female members, and this prompted them to do what they did, he said. Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspects to the anti-cult section of the state Criminal Investigation Department for discreet investigation. (NAN) A judge in a State High Court, Uyo, on Wednesday, repeatedly threatened to send a defence counsel, Inibehe Effiong, to prison in a suit in which Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State is a party. Ekaete Obot, who is the states chief judge, lashed out at the counsel, Mr Effiong, who pleaded with the court to entertain his application which seeks the judges withdrawal from the case after his client, Leo Ekpenyong, accused her of bias. I will send you out of there now, remove that robe and send you to prison by the time you go to the Court of Appeal and come back. What is this? You are overstepping your bounds, Justice Obot lashed out at Mr Effiong. The court session was entirely dramatic. Justice Obot first ordered the police to temporarily confiscate mobile phones from observers inside the court to prevent any recording of the proceedings. The claimant counsel, Samuel Ikpo, in the middle of the court session, accused the defence counsel, Mr Effiong, of recording the court proceedings with his laptop, a development which prompted Mr Effiong to turn his laptop monitor to Mr Ikpo to look at, as a proof that he was not recording. The suits Governor Emmanuel sued Mr Ekpenyong, a lawyer, for defamation of character over the publication in which he accused the governor of buying judgment from the 2019 National Assembly Election Tribunal, an accusation the lawyer denied. The court had ordered Mr Ekpenyong to pay the governor N1.5 billion as general damages for libel. In another defamation suit between a former senator, Effiong Bob, and Mr Ekpenyong, which is before the same judge, the court had ordered Mr Ekpenyong to pay N150 million as damages to Mr Bob. Both judgments were given simultaneously on December 15, 2020, by Justice Obot. The defendants counsel, Mr Effiong, on November 25, 2021, challenged the court that it breached the Nigerian Constitution in its judgments against his client. Justice Obot scolded Mr Effiong for asking the court to set aside the two judgments and grant his application for extension of time for his client to defend himself. The case attracted public attention last year when the judge lashed out at Mr Effiong. Youre not on Channels TV, dont stand before me and talk nonsense, she had said. The court, however, set aside both judgments on February 16, 2022, and granted the application for extension of time as requested by Mr Effiong. Recuse yourself from the matter Dissatisfied with her handling of the matter, the defendant filed an application on June 23, 2022, asking the judge to recuse herself. The judge had already delivered judgment, even though in default, against Mr Ekpenyong where she asked him to pay Governor Emmanuel N1.5 billion, Mr Effiong told reporters after the court We are saying because you have already found the defendant guilty in this matter, it is only fair that the matter be reassigned to another judge in line with legal practice. The defendant said the judge attended the wedding of Mr Bobs daughter even when Mr Bob is a litigant in her court. Mr Effiong told reporters it was against the code of conduct for judicial officers for the chief judge to have attended such an event which was not a state function, adding that Mr Bob was present in her court for the penultimate hearing of the case. The claimants counsel, Mr Ikpo, declined comment on the case. Ms Obot continued to preside over the case despite Mr Ekpenyongs objection. Hes intimidating me Richard Peters, who is a priest with the African Church and a media aide to Governor Emmanuel, appeared as the governors witness in the case. He told the court that Mr Effiong was intimidating him, when the lawyer asked if his name Peters ends with r or s. Mr Peters told the court how he had a chat with the defendant on Facebook Messenger after the defendant made the alleged publications against the governor. He said the defendant told him he would publish more things against the governor. Mr Effiong asked the witness to spell his name before the court because the name used in the said Facebook chat is Peter, without the s. The witness told the court that the defendant, Mr Ekpenyong, used a verified Facebook account to chat with him, a claim Mr Effiong challenged with the argument that verified Facebook accounts usually have a blue tick. But the witness responded that it is possible to have a verified Facebook account without the blue tick. Mr Effiong objected to an electronic printout of the chats which the witness, Mr Peters, claimed he had with the defendant. The lawyer argued that it did not conform to Section 84 of the Evidence Act which requires that any electronically generated document to be tendered as evidence must be supported with a certificate of authentication. The witness did not tender a certificate to authenticate the chat he claimed he had on Facebook Messenger with the defendant. Mr Ikpo, the claimant counsel, prayed the court to discountenance the objection of the defence counsel and admit the document as evidence. He said the objection was unfounded. Justice Obot overruled Mr Effiong and admitted the document as evidence. She said the document conformed to the law. Mr Effiong drew the courts attention to the fact that only one document (the printout of the said Facebook chat) was tendered but that the court went beyond admitting it, to declaring that three exhibits the printout of the chat, printout of a Facebook page, and a certificate of authentication had been admitted. You do not have any understanding of what a deposition is. By your submission before me it shows your ignorance of what a deposition means, the judge told Mr Effiong. It appears the ruling of the court is different from the proceedings. This is why we are saying let our motion on recusal be entertained, Mr Effiong responded. Please shut up! Who do you think youre talking to? She lashed out again at Mr Effiong. You demonstrate as if anything is happening so they (journalists) will see your demonstrations and they will go and write nonsense in the press. I dont care. I dont care about all the shit. Now you face your work and do it decently, the judge said, and added that Mr Effiong was free to take the matter to the Court of Appeal. Even (Nigeria Judiciary Commission) NJC, go. Im waiting for you there. The drama continued as Mr Effiong contested the adjourned dates of 27/29 July. He showed the judge his diary, and told her the dates were not convenient for him, but his protest did not deter the judge. A woman has allegedly pushed her 14-year-old maid from a four-storey building in Awada, a suburb of Obosi Community in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State. The incident happened on Saturday. The suspect, Nnenna Onwanna, 29, allegedly pushed the victim, Ijeoma Nwafor, from the building while she was beating her over an offence. The victim survived the incident but sustained injuries. She is said to be receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital in the area. The police spokesperson in the state, Tochukwu Ikenga, confirmed the incident in a statement on Sunday. He said the suspect has been arrested. Mr Ikenga, a deputy superintendent of police, said it was a case of attempted murder. The Anambra State Police Operatives on July 2, 2022, arrested one Mrs Onwanna Nnenna, 29 years-old from Nando, Anambra East Local Government Area of the state for a case of attempted murder, he said Preliminary information shows that the victim, Miss Ijeoma Nwafor, F, a 14-year-old native of Achalla was pushed down from a four-storey building by the suspect, Mr Ikenga added. This is the second attack on minors within the last three weeks in the state. Mid-June, a 34-year-old man allegedly killed a 3-year-old baby boy in Nkwelle-Ezunaka, Oyi Local Government Area of the state. Last week, a 30-year-old man allegedly killed a 45-year-old mother of two in Nkpor Agu, Ogidi Community, Idemili North Council Area of the state. Tamuno: By now, Buhari should have visited Owo to commiserate with the people over the killings. Dike: He should have visited Anambra and Imo for the same reason too. Hadi: He cant be everywhere. The VP already visited Owo Tamuno: If he cant be everywhere, why doesnt he support state police so that the states can defend their people? Dike: Even Zamfara and Southern Kaduna are crying for help. If only the president had gone there instead of jetting off to Portugal. He shouldnt be missing in action at these critical times. Hadi: His officials are doing that. He doesnt have to be everywhere Since Nigerias return to democracy in 1999, the quality of leadership at all levels of governance has steadily nosedived. We throw scarce resources at problems, believing that money opens the door to all solutions. We hardly pause to THINK. We would rather blunder our way to a dead end and then splash money to purchase solutions from foreigners who deploy their brains to fashion a way out of any given complex situation. If only our leaders had a little respect for history, they would take cue from Mandelas timeless assertion that, What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead. Every administration ought to be concerned about the verdict of history. All great leaders keep an eye on how posterity will judge their words, actions and inactions. As we navigate our way to a new administration, despondency fills the land at all levels from the village to the suburbs and the cities. Many people wish tomorrow was yesterday. They cant wait. But wait they must. And that is why those running their last lap have to change gear and up their games, if only to satiate the peoples hunger for competence and empathy. Management experts identify 14 words as defining leadership: influential, charismatic, visionary, servant, inspirational, humble, sacrificial, motivating, rebellious, trustworthy, determined, passionate, creative, and result-oriented. I cannot, in good conscience, associate many of our leaders with those lofty qualities. And that is the root of the problem: Low quality of leaders operating a bastardised system cobbled from foreign sources. It is bad enough that the military tampered with the parliamentary constitution which was the basis of Nigerias independence in 1960. On May 24, 1966, through Decree 34, General JTU Aguiyi-Ironsi turned Nigeria to a unitary state controlled from the centre. He paid the supreme price. Nonetheless, his successors promptly adopted the system throughout the many years of military misrule and finally made a new constitution in their own image and likeness. the presidential system allows leaders from the local government, state and federal levels to be far removed from the people. A local government chairman lords it over his people, just as the state governor personalises the collective treasury and doles out favours at will. The president, of course, is the Kabiyesi-in-chief whose word is law and who does not have to accept responsibility for anything, except to take credit when things seem to go right. The pseudo-American presidential system which they have replaced it with, is alien to our circumstances and largely responsible for the widespread insecurity in the country today. It is not designed for the Nigerian environment, where we are blessed with 520 linguistic groups. The distinct ways of life of the various people making up the geographical space called Nigeria were taken into consideration in fashioning the Independence Constitution, following a series of constitutional conferences. The parliamentary system essentially makes it imperative for political leaders to be close to their people and to be responsive to their problems, otherwise they would lose their hold on power. The Nigerian variant of the presidential system now on offer is designed to impose emperors who rule by reigning, who lead by abdicating responsibility, and who define regime security as collective security. In the days of yore, a premier would be the first prominent visitor to the site of a disaster so that he could personally take charge and be seen by the people to be doing so. If he couldnt do that immediately, he would send the relevant minister to do an on-the-spot assessment of the situation and report back to him. That was necessary, not just because the premier needed to plan for relief materials but also because he would be asked tough questions in parliament the following day and could be made to look totally alienated from the people. By contrast, the presidential system allows leaders from the local government, state and federal levels to be far removed from the people. A local government chairman lords it over his people, just as the state governor personalises the collective treasury and doles out favours at will. The president, of course, is the Kabiyesi-in-chief whose word is law and who does not have to accept responsibility for anything, except to take credit when things seem to go right. Tim Akano (timakano1@gmail.com) describes the predilection of the ruling elite as, Pleasure without Productivity, Gains without Pains, Platinum lifestyle without Perspiration. The Country dies when the two most thriving sectors of the economy are Politics and YAHOO+! (Add hostage taking). In such a contraption, the nation can only run on auto-pilot. The sad part is that the programmed navigation is based on false parameters and the nations craft is heading anywhere but the promised land. That is where our national security is at the moment. It is so frustrating that the Governor of Zamfara State, Mohammed Matawalle, has advised residents to obtain guns to defend themselves. Matawalle was following the footsteps of Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina, who had earlier called on his people to arm themselves against the rampaging gunmen in the State. It is the duty of every patriot in the public space to espouse ideas that can lift the nation out of the terrible circumstances we have all been boxed in. I have every reason to wish the best for Nigeria because it is the only country I can truly call my own. And, terrible as it all looks now, if we can just engage our cerebral faculties and quit the medieval games our political elite have been playing, there is an oasis somewhere The Nigerian state no longer has the monopoly of dangerous arms and ammunition. Terrorists have therefore carved out fiefdoms for themselves in our various forests where they run colonies of kidnapped victims, share ransom booty and plan their operations. They overrun the military and police checkpoints at will. There is hardly any difference between bandit-inspired terror and Boko-Haram-inspired terror. Not anymore! Indeed, the lines between Boko Haram and the so-called bandits have since thinned out. Under the former parliamentary system of government, we had federal, regional and local government police forces. When the military collapsed it all into one monolith force controlled from the centre, something was bound to give. If the states and local governments had their own police forces, each state would have collaborated with its neighbours to flush out the criminals from their forests. The introduction of Amotekun in the South-West has shown that if the states had their own police forces, they would be able to handle their own security better. It is frustrating to hear some of the inane reasons being given by government partisans in defence of a centralised security arrangement. If the president has to superintend over everything from Abuja and the system is not working because it is impossible to do so, a reasonable reaction would be to quickly unbundle the police and redesign the security architecture. It is the duty of every patriot in the public space to espouse ideas that can lift the nation out of the terrible circumstances we have all been boxed in. I have every reason to wish the best for Nigeria because it is the only country I can truly call my own. And, terrible as it all looks now, if we can just engage our cerebral faculties and quit the medieval games our political elite have been playing, there is an oasis somewhere ahead in this desert of sorrow, tears and blood. In my piece, About Time the Real Buhari Stood Up (October 2017), I argued that, It is not a good sign for any nation when there isdoubt as to where the buck stops. The joke during the Jonathan administration was that the country was being ruled by five women and that the president was thought to be the weakest of the five. (Wicked humour!) These testy times in Nigeria call for a leader who can reach deep into his being to bring out the dormant qualities that can catapult the nation to achieve its potentials; a leader with Obasanjos native intelligence, Murtalas doggedness, Abubakar Umars commitment to principles, Donald Dukes organisational acumen, Mbakwes populism, Hassan Kukahs cerebral expansiveness and more. Perhaps it is now late in the day to make any fundamental change. But the president can resolve to finish strong by focussing on the little things that matter to the common people and decisively intervening on critical issues such as the ASUU strike (get our universities reopened) and the wooly petroleum sector where the price of diesel, which powers our factories and mass transportation, has jumped from N240 to N800. These and other daunting challenges will demand his physical presence and stern supervision. Anyone who says this duty is beneath the level of the president wants him to continue missing in action at critical times. And history neither forgives nor forgets. Wole Olaoye is a public relations consultant and veteran journalist. He can be reached on wole.olaoye@gmail.com. Twitter: @wole_olaoye; Instagram: woleola2021. The most significant thing about the letter by the Justices was that it had nothing to do with disagreements of principle or about the public standing of the judiciary. Rather it focused most on subsistence issues such as lack of accommodation, through diesel rationing, to WiFi hunger Tankos signal contribution to the degeneration of high judicial office in Nigeria was that he impoverished the Supreme Court to the point of making its Justice advocates of stomach infrastructure. The want of bread is terrible. Arthur Young, (1789) On Monday, June 27, General Muhammadu Buhari swore in Olukayode Ariwoola as Nigerias third Chief Justice in as many years, the fourth of his seven year-old tenure as president with electoral legitimacy. Ariwoolas predecessor, Tanko Muhammad, departed from office earlier on the same day, the second successive Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) to be forcibly resigned from office. The official reason given for the unceremonious resignation of CJN Tanko Muhammad was ill-health. This was true only as a metaphor for the state of the judiciary that he claimed to lead. In any other sense, ill-health was only a convenient cover for the un-mourned departure from office of a man who was uniquely unsuited for high judicial office and who would have struggled to make the office of a Magistrate in a different season, even in Nigeria. His presence in the office of Chief Justice emblematised every affliction that has come to define the third branch of government in Nigeria. Last Monday was not the first time claims of serious ill-health had swirled around CJN Tanko Muhammad. In December 2020, he missed the ceremonial opening of the judicial year and was unavailable to perform the swearing in of the new Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), traditionally the flagship in the annual diary of the Chief Justice. One newspaper reported on December 15, 2020 that the CJN had inaugurated eight justices of the Supreme Court on November 6 but since then, there are conflicting details on when he was last seen in public, a duration of 40 days. On the same day, another medium reported that Chief Justice Tanko had been flown to Dubai for emergency treatment after suddenly contracting coronavirus in what appears to indicate that he may be suffering from other ailments. The following day, a different publication said that the Chief Justice was enduring a torrid battle with dementia and heart disease complications, claiming that his illness, .has been kept under wraps since he assumed office as Nigerias top jurist in 2019. The reports and rumours about the ill-health of Chief Justice Tanko appeared to suggest that they were linked to advanced age. Under Nigerias constitution, a Chief Justice must vacate office at 70. The problem with Chief Justice Tanko was that a good deal about his background was shrouded in opacity or worse. In May 2019, the Federal High Court in Abuja terminated a case instituted against Acting Chief Justice Tanko Muhammad, which accused him of having falsified his date of birth to December 31, 1953. Avoiding the issue, the court held that the claimant lacked the standing to initiate the case and levied him with punitive costs of N10 million. Chief Justice Tanko paraded impressive academic certificates, including a first degree, Masters, and Doctorate degrees in Islamic Law from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, but could not quite account for his primary school education, claiming in an affidavit sworn to while he was a Justice of the Court of Appeal in Jos in 1998 that vicious termites destroyed his primary school certificate. In one of those miracles for which Nigeria is very famous, Tanko Muhammad was appointed a judge, in spite of these, and went on to thrive in judicial office, becoming the fourth out of the past seven Chief Justices of Nigeria to depart office in a blaze of scandal. On August 29, 2011, Chief Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu retired from office, a mere 11 days after the National Judicial Council (NJC), which he chaired, purported to suspend the then president of the Court of Appeal, Ayo Salami. Salami had accused Katsina-Alu of instructing the corruption of the judicial process by the Court of Appeal, in an election petition involving the contest in the 2007 election for the office of the governor of Sokoto State. At the termination of his office last Monday, it was said that the move to get Muhammad out of his seat was planned long ago and was spearheaded by a senior cabinet official and head of a security establishment. The same report also explained that the ex-CJN was forced to resign on two grounds the letter collectively written against him by 14 Supreme Court justices, and certain issues of financial impropriety. For this sin, the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC), chaired like the NJC by the CJN, sought to pack off the president of the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court, presenting it as a promotion. When he resisted, the NJC entered the fray turning the matter into a disciplinary encounter. To investigate the allegations, the NJC constituted a fact-finding committee chaired by Umaru Abdullahi, a former president of the Court of Appeal. The report of the Umaru Abdullahi fact-finding committee ran into 23,952 words. It has never been officially published. Before the Umaru Abdullahi Committee, a set of judicial elders led by former Supreme Court Justice, Bolarinwa Babalakin, had waded into the matter, portraying as an inter-personal kerfuffle, allegations that went to the foundations of the judicial enterprise. After Umaru Abdullahis committee, the NJC empanelled another chaired by then Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Ibrahim Auta, to determine the punishment. The end appeared pre-determined. Dahiru Musdapher, who was in line to succeed Katsina-Alu as CJN, testified on behalf of Katsina-Alu before the Umaru Abdullahi Committee but declined to do so on oath, infamously claiming that in lieu of an oath he had done his ablutions. When this was all done, the reputations of the outgoing Chief Justice, his assured successor and the president of the Court of Appeal were in ruins. None recovered. An even worse fate befell the public standing of the judiciary. The tragic appearance crystallised that Nigerian judges could be bought and sold at the highest levels in a political marche ouverte. The tenures of Aloma Mukhtar and Mahmud Mohammed as CJNs were mercifully devoid of scandal, which quickly returned when the tenure of Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen suffered the Guillotine at the hands of an ex parte order procured at night from the Code of Conduct Tribunal in January 2019. When he took office in succession to Walter Onnoghen in 2019, not much was expected of Tanko Muhammad as Chief Justice. At the termination of his office last Monday, it was said that the move to get Muhammad out of his seat was planned long ago and was spearheaded by a senior cabinet official and head of a security establishment. The same report also explained that the ex-CJN was forced to resign on two grounds the letter collectively written against him by 14 Supreme Court justices, and certain issues of financial impropriety. Among the allegations, a medium reported that a son (of the ex-Chief Justice) was said to have accepted a $10 million bribe from (a) former Governor. after promising to procure judgement for him on an election matter that didnt later materialize. At the heart of this crisis is the fact that over the past quarter century, the CJN has become more than merely a first among equals. In addition to being CJN, s/he also heads the NJC, the FJSC, the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee, and the board of the National Judicial Institute (NJI), all of these statutory or constitutional bodies. These accretions have brought with them powers, budgets and prerogatives that transformed the occupant of the office of CJN The fact that these allegations were so repeatedly made and credibly too during the tenure of Chief Justice Tanko was more important than whether in fact they were verified to a criminal standard of proof. With the CJN as the head of the NJC, little could be done to prove these allegations while the accused was in office. The now infamous letter by the Justices of the Supreme Court mercifully administered the coup de grace on a judicial tenure that always appeared programmed to end in calamity. Chief Justice Tanko possessed unique limitations that were well suited to magnifying the rot in Nigerias judiciary. It is easy to make him a scape-goat but that would be both lazy and convenient. The most significant thing about the letter by the Justices was that it had nothing to do with disagreements of principle or about the public standing of the judiciary. Rather it focused most on subsistence issues such as lack of accommodation, through diesel rationing, to WiFi hunger. It all affirmed Martin Luther Kings famous line that a riot is the language of the unheard. Tankos signal contribution to the degeneration of high judicial office in Nigeria was that he impoverished the Supreme Court to the point of making its Justice advocates of stomach infrastructure. The letter itself is evidence of how far Nigerias judicial branch has traveled from what should be its primary purpose. The responsibility at the Supreme Court for this must be collective. At the heart of this crisis is the fact that over the past quarter century, the CJN has become more than merely a first among equals. In addition to being CJN, s/he also heads the NJC, the FJSC, the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee, and the board of the National Judicial Institute (NJI), all of these statutory or constitutional bodies. These accretions have brought with them powers, budgets and prerogatives that transformed the occupant of the office of CJN from a judicial figure into a biological portal for contracts, preferments and patronage. Rather than being treated as a peer, the CJN had become a principality who must be worshipped and glorified by colleagues for basic entitlements. Perhaps the most astonishing passage in the letter by the Justices is the fact that they did not meet throughout the COVID crisis. This reveals a failure of pastoral and human care that verged on the criminal. The letter easily enables us to understand how two Justices of the Supreme Court tragically died in the three years that Muhammad Tanko was Chief Justice. For Acting Chief Justice Ariwoola, the things that need to change are obvious. The fate of his predecessor must be both object lesson and inspiration. Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, a lawyer and teacher, can be reached at chidi.odinkalu@tufts.edu. Africa needs a cohesive, mutually beneficial unification that does not necessarily have to deprive each nation-state of its autonomy but serves to strengthen each member of the unified body. For this, there is the need for forward-thinking progressivists at the helm of affairs who are also students of history For such leaders, Professor Anthony Asiwajus three-part compendium, a product of his intellectual sweat and academic sojourn and pursuit, is the right blueprint. As I read through the first few pages of Emeritus Professor Anthony Asiwajus Bridging African Boundaries: Cross-Border Areas and Regional Integration in Comparative History and Policy Advocacy, there was an epiphanic moment a remarkable discovery that brought a knowing smile to my face. Names are revered in Yorubaland, and several adages and maxims speak to this truth. Oruko omo ni romo (a childs name has a bearing on how such a child eventually turns out) is one of such maxims. In the case of Professor Anthony Asiwaju, I could not but agree more. Asiwaju is a Yoruba word that could mean vanguard, pathfinder, or forerunner, and this name truly befits the person, work, and achievements of Professor Asiwaju. After reading Bridging African Boundaries, you will agree that his work in comparative African history, cross-border studies, and African policies truly positions him as a vanguard in these fields. Notably, you will fully enjoy the goodness the author has laid out on the pages of Bridging African Boundaries by not skipping any part of the book, be it the Foreword or the Prologue. Starting from the Foreword, written by one of the most exposed, refined, and travelled presidents in the history of Africa, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Bridging African Boundaries draws the average reader in. Being a book on the career of Professor Asiwaju through his academic pursuits and passions, the Foreword does a good job of introducing us to a personal, hardly-known side of the distinguised professor. It takes us back in history to how the peculiarities surrounding Asiwajus life his parents are from two divides of the same clan must have ignited the professors lifelong interest in cross-border studies and international policy advocacy. History is like a glue in interdisciplinary studies. It is a discipline that cuts across every human endeavour and field of study. This fact is not lost on Professor Asiwaju, whose body of work, compiled in Bridging African Boundaries, shows us the integrality of history in our everyday life and studies. Anthony Asiwajus concerns about the scholarly model of African history are valid, and it is refreshing to see that the Emeritus Professor not only identified this early in his career but also worked as a vanguard in charting a new path and has now produced what could be termed as a blueprint for anyone interested in comparative African historical studies. As the professor rightly put it, the study of African history should be such that it makes research findings by historians relevant in world studies. African history has not enjoyed much of that, as it emerged mostly as a reactionary move or a resistance to the colonial discolouration of African history. There is a need for comparative study models among historians in African historical studies. Undeniably, Emeritus Professor Asiwaju occupies a prime position in comparative African history. It is, therefore, a blessing to the field of history that he has wisely compiled his three ground-breaking works on comparative African history into one. The three books, which are hard to come by most likely out of print can now be easily accessed and consulted complementarily, thanks to the Bridging African Boundaries compendium. Asiwajus narrative is refreshing, exciting, and expository in a way that makes it easy for non-academics to enjoy and tap valuable lessons from. Of truth, it is one of the most profound books I have read on the pre-colonial history of the Yoruba people. Another commendable thing about this masterpiece is its reader-friendly structure. Professor Asiwajus 962-page compendium is divided into books, parts, chapters, and sub-topics under each chapter Bridging African Boundaries is an endeavour akin to raising a child in a communal African society, a duty that rightfully requires the participation of all. Thus, to successfully bridge African boundaries, we must consult historical happenstances made available to us through records, books, and archival materials, study the patterns, and map out a plan. This strategy is not lost on Professor Asiwaju, whose first book in his latest body of work begins with a period that has taken centre-stage in discourses about Africas present predicament and seemingly hard-to-foresee upward movement the colonial era. A comparative study of French and English colonialism, with Yorubaland as the case study and first published in 1979, the first book in Asiwajus compendium was an immediate hit all over the world. And there is a reason for that: It was the first attempt at a comparative case study of Africas two most common colonial administrative systems. Professor Asiwajus comparative case study of the Yoruba in France-colonised Dahomey and Britain-colonised Western Nigeria is a rich historical text of the cultural and economic significance of the partitioning of Yorubaland in 1889 and its effects on the Yoruba people till today. Before this period, did the Yoruba people see themselves as one nation? Due to the partitioning, has there been any shift in the identity of the Yoruba people on either side of the divide? The author walks us through the foundational origins of the Yoruba people on both divides of the colonial partition Oyo, Benin, Sabe, and Ketu and how these foundational origins are all tied to Ile-Ife, deemed the historical founding centre of the Yoruba culture and civilisation. Asiwajus narrative is refreshing, exciting, and expository in a way that makes it easy for non-academics to enjoy and tap valuable lessons from it. Of truth, it is one of the most profound books I have read on the pre-colonial history of the Yoruba people. Another commendable thing about this masterpiece is its reader-friendly structure. Professor Asiwajus 962-page compendium is divided into books, parts, chapters, and sub-topics under each chapter, which makes it easier to consult the book without necessarily reading all the pages although I strongly recommend that you find time to read all the pages, as it is not every time we encounter such a historically rich text as this. The second book in the compendium, West African Transformations: Comparative Impacts of French and British Colonialism, is a more elaborate comparative historical study of West Africa under European rule, which uses not only the Yorubaland as a case study, but also adopts some other parts of West Africa, such as Borgu, Mono, Zou, and Opara, to mention a few. Professor Asiwajus work highlights the disruption caused by colonisation and its attendant partitioning of the African peoples. The colonisers, who did not conduct any preliminary research into the relationships or cultural and economic affiliations of the African people, divided the continent at the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885 like a piece of cake shared among schoolchildren, a move that permanently affected the inter-geographical and inter-cultural relationships of the African people till date. Professor Asiwaju brilliantly walks us through the heightened periods of the Oyo and Benin empires and how the fall or decline of both empires, coupled with Fulani Jihadist and intra-Yoruba wars, led to a weakening of political strongholds across the region. These periods, which coincided with the spark of European interests in the western side of the continent, the dehumanising period of the slave trade and mass migration Professor Asiwaju brilliantly walks us through the heightened periods of the Oyo and Benin empires and how the fall or decline of both empires, coupled with Fulani Jihadist and intra-Yoruba wars, led to a weakening of political strongholds across the region. These periods, which coincided with the spark of European interests in the western side of the continent, the dehumanising period of the slave trade and mass migration to and from West Africa, resulted in an increase in cross-border relations and institutional adaptation among peoples who once prided themselves in the autonomy of their individual city-states. Boundaries and African Integration: Essays in Comparative History and Policy Analysis, the compendiums third book, taps into historical data and proofs to show the possibility of impactful cross-border relationships among African states. Looking back, cultural and ethnic differences abounded among autonomous city-states, even those with shared foundational affiliations. These differences led to disagreements, wars, and conquests; still, there were blossoming mutual economic arrangements and agreements between these city-states. In the same vein, the Africa of today must catapult itself out of a sad, lamentable, self-loathing position, not by forgetting its past or the injustices of the colonial era but by drawing strength from its sufferings and resolving to be the better for what it has gone through. The world has witnessed bitter wars the World Wars being two yet, we see countries that were erstwhile sworn enemies coming together to form pacts, making agreements that would be of mutual benefit, advancing their causes, and helping them become better and stronger countries. Africa needs a cohesive, mutually beneficial unification that does not necessarily have to deprive each nation-state of its autonomy but serves to strengthen each member of the unified body. For this, there is the need for forward-thinking progressivists at the helm of affairs who are also students of history not by obtaining degrees in history but by reading about cross-border relations in pre-colonial, colonial, and early post-colonial Africa. For such leaders, Professor Anthony Asiwajus three-part compendium, a product of his intellectual sweat and academic sojourn and pursuit, is the right blueprint. For an intellectual feast, please join us at the public presentation of this book in Abuja on July 7. Toyin Falola, a professor of History, University Distinguished Teaching Professor, and Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities at The University of Texas at Austin, is the Bobapitan of Ibadanland. Village and ward heads in Ketare, Kankara Local Government Area (LGA) of Katsina State have been directed to ensure that all eligible persons in their domains are registered and collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVC). Usman Bello, the district head of Ketare, gave the directive when the Kankara LG INEC Electoral Officer, Yunusa Abdu, paid him a courtesy visit in his palace. He called on the communities of the area to take advantage of the time extension by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register and obtain their PVCs ahead of the 2023 general elections. The district head, who is also the Kanwan Katsina, stressed the importance of the PVC, saying it was a constitutional right of every eligible citizen to exercise their franchise. Earlier, the INEC Electoral Officer, Mr Abdu, said the visit was to inform the district head that an additional registration machine was provided by the state headquarters. According to him, the additional machine was to decongest some of the units and ensure all eligible persons were registered in the area. READ ALSO: Mr Abdu further informed the district head that the exercise targeted persons that reached the age of 18, those that changed their voting unit or relocated and those that lost their PVCs He, therefore, solicited the support and cooperation of the district head in achieving the mandate in Ketare district. The villages targeted in the exercise are Ketare, Hurya, Tsamiyar Jino, Kuka Sheka, Gundawa, Tudu, Gurbi, Katoge and Pawwa. He commended the traditional ruler for supporting INEC on the continuous voter registration and collection of PVC by all those that registered in the area. Recently in an interview with NAN, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Katsina, expressed concern over the low turnout of residents for the registration across the newly created 1,750 polling units in the state. He appealed to stakeholders to mobilise their people to be registered and also collect their PVCs, adding that INEC was fully ready for them. (NAN) A former governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, who has been accused of stealing billions of naira of public funds, has procured 370 cows for distribution to executives of the All Progressives Congress (APC), less privileged and vulnerable groups for the 2022 Eid-El-Kabir festival. The Chairman of the Distribution Committee and former APC state chairman, Lawal Liman, disclosed this while presenting the allocations of the cows to the beneficiaries in Gusau on Saturday. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the former governor had earlier in the week distributed 3,593 rams to beneficiaries across the state for the same celebration. Mr Liman said that the gesture was aimed at assisting the less privileged to celebrate the Eid-El-Kabir with ease. He said the beneficiaries also included new and old APC executives from the 147 political wards and local government executives of the party. Other beneficiaries include Islamic scholars, APC youth and women groups, associations as well as community leaders in the state, Mr Liman said. He commended the former governor for supporting the people of the state, especially those at the grassroots. Mr Liman called on Muslims to use the Eid-El-Kabir period to pray for peace and stability of the state and Nigeria at large. Yaris corruption PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Yari was arrested and detained by the anti-graft agency, which is investigating the alleged misappropriation of billions of naira while Mr Yari was Zamfara governor (2011-2019). Mr Yari is also being investigated for allegedly benefitting from the N80 billion allegedly stolen by the disgraced former accountant-general of the federation, Ahmed Idris. In May, the Federal High Court ordered the interim forfeiture of assets and monies traced to Mr Yari. Despite his corruption investigation, however, Mr Yari emerged as a senatorial candidate of the APC in Zamfara on the platform of the ruling party, APC. The Kano State Fire Service says it saved 135 lives and property worth N34.6 million from 42 fire incidents in June. This is contained in a statement signed by the Public Relations Officer of the service, Saminu Abdullahi, in Kano. Mr Abdullahi said 24 people, however, died and property worth N13 million were estimated to have been destroyed by fire during the period. According to him, the service responded to 77 rescue calls and 17 false alarms from residents of the state. The spokesperson attributed the fires to the careless use of sub-standard electrical appliances. He advised the general public to handle fires with care to avoid inferno, as Sallah celebrations approached. Mr Abdullahi also urged them to abide by traffic laws to avoid road accidents during the celebrations. (NAN) Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara has announced the commencement of training for a newly-established security outfit, Community Protection Guard (CPG), to tackle banditry and kidnaping in parts of the state. The announcement was contained in a statement by the Press Secretary to the Governor, Jamilu Birnin-Magaji, in Gusau. The statement said the new outfit would give needed support to the conventional security agencies in their effort to end banditry and kidnapping that had ravaged the state. Mr Matawalle said at the exercise that his administration had resolved to tackle the states security challenges head-on by implementing new security measures. The governor said the government came up with additional measures for combating insurgency in the state. Among the new measures is the recruitment of CPGs in each of the 19 Emirate Councils of the state. He said the decision to establish the CPG was informed by his administrations desire to use possible options to deal with the increasing act of banditry causing loss of lives, untold hardships and rupturing inter-communal peace in parts of the state, the statement said. It said that the governor urged the guards to concentrate fully on their training as the task ahead of them was enormous and daunting. As Community Protection Guards, yours is a patriotic call, your names would stand out in history as people with remarkable patriotism, selflessness and love for peace. Only people with courage and bravery will offer to serve as guards of their communities, bravely standing up to face the brutal infamy of the bandits, Mr Matawalle said. The governor also called on them to work within the parameters of the rules of engagement which would be clearly spelt out during the training. He counselled them as newly-recruited guards, to serve as agents for the restoration of normalcy and peace in their communities. Mr Matawalle said at the end of the training, the CPG members would be deployed to their various communities in the 19 Emirate Councils of the state to complement the security forces in the fight against banditry and sundry crimes. He reminded them to remain disciplined throughout the exercise and to keep in mind that they were trained for a life-saving mission that would spare their neighbourhoods from terror and suffering. He said their efforts would restore the dignity of human life and peaceful co-existence in the state. The Commissioner of Police, Zamfara Command, Ayuba Elkana, said the training was part of series of measures being taken to tackle crimes. Mr Elkana expressed the commands support to Mr Matawalle in the fight against banditry. He urged the recruits to be law-abiding, and God-fearing in the discharge of their duties to achieve the desired goals. Earlier, the Commissioner for Security and Home Affairs, retired Deputy Inspector-General of Police Mamman Tsafe, said the guard was established to assist the security agencies in securing the state. The event was attended by the Speaker, Zamfara House of Assembly, Nasiru Magarya, Secretary to the State Government Kabiru Balarabe, and Chief of Staff, Government House, Ibrahim Suleiman. Others included the State Head of Civil Service, Kabiru Muhammad, members of the State Executive Council as well as heads of security agencies in the state. (NAN) SSA/ IEI /IA The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State has faulted the proposed increase in the fare for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) across various routes in the state. The opposition party also called for the reversal of the plan. The Lagos State Publicity Secretary of the party, Hakeem Amode, in a statement on Saturday in Lagos, berated Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for approving such a hike, saying it would add to the plight of the masses. Mr Amode said that the APC-led government blaming the hike on the pump price of diesel from N187 to N830 and the unavailability of spare parts for the increase was not justifiable. According to him, with the crippling economic situation being experienced by Lagos residents on a daily basis, the government showed a lack of compassion and total disregard for the plight of the citizens of the state. Sanwo-Olu-led APC administration has completely abdicated its responsibility to the people of the state and turned a blind eye to their predicament. The few luxuries that the people benefit from the state is being taken away. Now is not the time for any form of increment, as the people of the state have suffered enough under this unsympathetic government, he said. Mr Amode said that the proposed increase should be shelved so as not to worsen the citizens situation in the face of dilapidated infrastructure, insecurity, hunger, rise in crime, among others being experienced by the people of the state. Gov Sanwo-Olu had on Thursday approved a flat rate increase by N100 in bus fares for all Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Standard Routes with effect from July 13. With the increase, a bus ride from Ikorodu-TBS will now cost N600 from N500 while Berger to Ajah is now N700, up from N600. Also, Oshodi to Abule Egba will cost N450 from N350 and Abule-Egba-CMS-Obalende will attract a fare of N600. (NAN) From that moment at UFC 271 in February, when Jared Cannonier, standing over his beaten, battered and utterly defeated opponent, Derek Brunson, had looked UFC president, Dana White, in the eye and shouted: I want that title shot next! Give it to me! Nobody else! Me! I knew this was a man who was ready, with all his heart, to be called champion. And Nigerias Israel Adesanya, who coincidentally successfully defended his middleweight title later the same night, was the man standing between Cannonier and a UFC title which he had laboured for the last 7 years, across 3 different divisions. And now, at 38, an age many people consider being past the fighting prime, Cannonier finally gets the first-ever title shot of his long UFC career. You can be sure he intends to make the absolute most of it. Adesanya himself appears to be relishing the new challenge. His last two fights were against guys he had defeated previously; the former middleweight champion he took the belt from, Robert Whittaker, and former No. 2 contender, the Italian Marvin Vettori. He even confessed he got bored during the Vettori fight. He was craving fresh meat as he called it and was glad when a fresh foe, as Jared Cannonier. While Adesanya remains the overwhelming favourite make no mistakes, they dont call Cannonier the Killa Gorilla for nothing. The man is reputed as one of only two fighters in UFC history to record knockout wins in three different divisions. He himself was quick to remind everyone at the UFC 276 press conference that his name, Cannonier, means the cannon man, so everyone can expect him to bring out the cannons once the cage closes on Sunday. Riding off a record of five wins in his last six fights, the No. 2 ranked contender has every reason to feel confident. His brutal knockout of Derek Brunson in his latest fight still sends shivers down the collective spine of the entire UFC space. And for a former heavyweight competing two weights below, the possibility of a sudden heavyweight-sized knock out always looms large whenever Cannonier is in a fight. But no matter how confident any fighter is, they cant be more so than the middleweight king, Israel Adesanya, whose confidence has spilled over and beyond into sheer arrogance. The champ has never lost at middleweight and though he is quick to reprimand anyone who doesnt acknowledge his loss at light heavyweight, it must feel good somewhere within that his record at his own weight class is still unblemished. And the champ will look to keep that clean record when he comes face to face with the Killa Gorilla. But truly, I expect this fight to be very much like the Paulo Costa fight. Unless, of course, Cannonier had, over the last four months, improved on his wrestling, which led to Adesanyas only loss, which he suffered at the hands of Jan Blachowicz. So Cannonier needs to borrow a leaf out of Ngannous playbook versus Gane and actually wrestle the much quicker and ever-evasive champion. And Cannonier, a former heavyweight, has the size to hold down Adesanyas smaller frame just like Blachowicz did and administer those vicious elbows. But if he wants to stand and trade with Adesanya, there are very few strikers that come close to the Stylebenders level and Cannonier isnt one of them. Yet Cannonier possesses that cannon in his arms and one well-placed shot could spell the end for whoever was in that cage with him. Adesanya has a solid chin, though, but its yet to be seen if that chin has ever been hit with power like the one in the hands of the gorilla. Whether the Gorilla can land it though is another matter entirely. We will find out on Sunday. Venue: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas Date: Sunday, July 3 Time: 3 am (Nigeria) BEIJING, July 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hong Kong Science Park, the city's high-tech hub, welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping for a visit during his busy two-day trip to attend celebrations for the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to China. The Science Park is the largest research and development (R&D) and business incubation base in Hong Kong, housing more than 1,100 enterprises and 17,000 innovators. Among them are SenseTime, an artificial intelligence (AI) giant, which is the only company from the Science Park listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and Da-Jiang Innovations (DJI), a world-leading commercial drone maker. The Science Park, launched in 2002 by the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to promote scientific and technological development in the city, also accommodates top-level laboratories with advanced scientific research equipment. So far, it has 28 R&D laboratories jointly operated by world-class universities and research institutions with locally based universities in Hong Kong. With a total floor area of 400,000 square meters and 23 well-equipped buildings as of March 2021, the park is still being expanded to increase its R&D space. High expectations for Hong Kong During his inspection tour of the Science Park, Xi said the country holds high expectations for Hong Kong. He said China has written its support for developing Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology hub in its 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025). Released last year, the plan serves as the blueprint and action agenda for the social and economic development of the country in the next five years. In recent years, with the support of the central government, Hong Kong has leveraged its own advantages to make remarkable achievements in basic research, talent cultivation, and development in the innovation and technology sector, Xi said. In 2021, Hong Kong ranked 14th on the global list of most innovative economies, according to the Global Innovation Index (GII) released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The HKSAR government should give full play to the role of technological innovation in supporting and leading economic development, Xi added. During his exchanges with the academicians, researchers and youth representatives of innovation enterprises at the Science Park, he called on Hong Kong to better cooperate with mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), strengthen the collaborative development of enterprises, universities and research institutions, and strive to build the GBA into a global highland for scientific and technological innovation. GBA's growing innovation power The GBA is comprised of the two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao, and nine cities in the neighboring Guangdong Province. The total area is around 56,000 square kilometers and covers around 6 percent of the Chinese population. The gross domestic product (GDP) of the GBA hit 12.6 trillion yuan ($1.97 trillion) last year, 2.4 trillion yuan more than in 2017. With less than 1 percent of the country's land area, the GBA contributed to 11 percent of the national GDP. Shao Xinyu, Chinese vice minister of science and technology, said the innovation capabilities of the GBA have been increasing continuously. In 2021, the R&D expenditure of the nine cities in the Pearl River Delta region within the GBA topped 360 billion yuan, accounting for about 3.7 percent of their GDP, according to Shao, compared with the overall national level of 2.44 percent. The number of high-tech enterprises in the area reached 57,000, and that of patents granted reached about 780,000, of which more than 100,000 were invention patents, he said. In the list of the world's top 100 geographical innovation clusters published by WIPO annually, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster ranked second for the past two years in a row. The rising innovation cluster, with noticeable growth in patents and scientific publications, has narrowed its gap with Tokyo-Yokohama, the No.1 innovation cluster on the list. Supporting measures for Hong Kong and Macao's sci-tech development China's Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) has rolled out a series of measures to support the scientific and technological development of Hong Kong and Macao to promote their further integration into the national innovation system, according to Dai Gang, director of the International Cooperation Department at the MOST. The ministry has supported Hong Kong in building a batch of innovation platforms, including 16 State Key Laboratories, six branches of the Chinese National Engineering Research Centers in Hong Kong, three national high-tech industrialization partner bases and two national-level incubators for science and technology companies. A similar policy has been taken with Macao. The ministry also put forward measures to support young people from Hong Kong and Macao to pursue careers in innovative industries and start their own businesses on the mainland. https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-07-03/Hong-Kong-on-highway-to-become-global-tech-and-innovation-hub--1blECIxf7X2/index.html SOURCE CGTN BEIJING, July 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The value of trade between the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the Chinese mainland has surged more than sixfold from $50.77 billion to $360.33 billion, an average annual increase of 8.5 percent since the Hong Kong's return to the motherland 25 years ago, according to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce. While integrating itself into the country's overall development, Hong Kong has become an important participant in domestic circulation and a key contributor connecting domestic and international circulation. By the end of 2021, investment from Hong Kong into the mainland had topped $1.4 trillion, accounting for 57.6 percent of the mainland's total attraction of overseas investments. "Proactively integrating itself into the country's overall development and carving out its role in national strategies, Hong Kong has maintained its strengths in its high degree of openness and in aligning with international rules," Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Friday at the meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland. "With continuously expanding areas and enabling mechanisms for Hong Kong's cooperation and exchanges with the mainland, people in Hong Kong now have better opportunities to start their own businesses and make achievements," he added. Tapping into Greater Bay Area The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), which aims to become a world-class bay area and city cluster, is a significant national project conceived and promoted by President Xi. On July 1, 2017, Xi witnessed the signing of a framework agreement between the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planner, and the governments of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao on deepening Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao cooperation. A year later, Xi announced the opening of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, a supergiant sea-crossing traffic project that links Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. It has become a physical symbol of China's vision for the GBA. On February 18, 2019, the outline development plan for the GBA was unveiled, which envisaged creating a role model of high-quality development, an international first-class bay area and a world-class city cluster. Last September, a plan was launched for further developing the Qianhai cooperation zone for the southern metropolis of Shenzhen and the HKSAR, with the aim of helping the zone better play an exemplary and leading role in the development of the GBA. The number of Hong Kong-funded enterprises in the Qianhai zone surged 156 percent year on year in 2021. Of the total foreign investment in actual use in Qianhai last year, 93.8 percent was from Hong Kong. Individuals from Hong Kong are benefiting from the GBA initiative too. Hong Kong and Macao professionals from eight sectors, including teachers, doctors and tour guides, are now allowed to practice on the mainland with mutual recognition of qualifications. By now, over 3,000 professionals have obtained qualifications on the mainland. Addressing at the celebration, Xi again said central government fully supports Hong Kong in its effort to seize historic opportunities offered by China's development and actively dovetail itself with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. National governance "Since Hong Kong's return to the motherland, it has been re-integrated into China's governance system, and a constitutional order was established with the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle as its fundamental guideline," Xi noted. Chinese citizens who are permanent residents of the HKSAR can participate in the governance of both the SAR and the country as empowered by law. After its return, at the Ninth National People's Congress (NPC) in 1998, deputies from Hong Kong began to participate in the NPC, the highest body of state power, to discuss plans for national development and problems affecting people's lives, and to put the people's expectations at the top of the agenda on state matters. Meanwhile, more than 5,600 representatives from all walks of life in Hong Kong serve as members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) at all levels, including over 200 in the CPPCC National Committee. They are all valued advisors on key national programs and contributors to the development of the country. Thirty-six deputies from Hong Kong were elected to participate in the work of the 13th NPC, accounting for 1.2 percent of total deputy numbers while over 200 CPPCC members are from the HKSAR, 10 percent of the total. Both ratios significantly exceed Hong Kong's share of the country's population of about 0.5 percent. https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-06-29/Hong-Kong-25-years-on-Better-integrating-into-national-development-1bfyY0p1lWo/index.html SOURCE CGTN HONG KONG, July 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Chubb Life today announced that Gail Costa will lead the company's life insurance operations in New Zealand that were recently acquired from Cigna. Ms. Costa, who is currently Chief Executive Officer of Cigna Life New Zealand, will continue to have executive operating responsibility for the business, which will operate under the Chubb Life brand in New Zealand. Gail Costa will lead the life insurance operations in New Zealand that Chubb Life recently acquired from Cigna. On July 1, Chubb, the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurer, completed its acquisition of the life and non-life insurance companies that house the personal accident, supplemental health and life insurance business of Cigna in six Asia-Pacific markets, including New Zealand. The addition of this consumer-focused business advances Chubb's strategy to expand its presence in the Asia-Pacific region, a long-term growth area for the company, and adds to an already sizable accident and health (A&H) business while expanding the company's Asia-based life insurance presence. Ms. Costa will, in addition to the local Board, report to Brad Bennett, Senior Vice President, Chubb Group and Chief Operating Officer, Chubb Life. "Gail is an experienced insurance executive who has led businesses for Cigna in multiple countries, including New Zealand, where she's been managing the operation through a period of growth and change since 2018," said Mr. Bennett. "She's a strong leader with deep expertise across finance, operations and marketing. New Zealand is a new market for Chubb Life, and we're fortunate to have Gail in this position. I look forward to working with her and welcome all of our new colleagues from Cigna at this exciting moment for our business in New Zealand and across Asia-Pacific." Ms. Costa has more than 40 years of insurance industry experience, including 18 years as an executive with Cigna. She has served as CEO of Cigna Life New Zealand since 2018, and also led the business from 2003 to 2013. Ms. Costa also held CEO positions for Cigna in Turkey, Hong Kong and Europe. Prior to joining Cigna, Ms. Costa was the General Manager Operations for Asteron. Ms. Costa is a qualified accountant and holds a bachelor's degree in Commerce and Administration from Victoria University and a Diploma in Direct Marketing from the Institute of Direct Marketing, London, U.K. About Chubb Life Chubb Life is an international life insurer, primarily focused on Asia, that provides protection and savings-oriented life insurance products to individuals and groups. Chubb Life serves the needs of consumers through a variety of distribution channels, including primarily captive agents, but also through banks, retailers, brokers, independent agents and direct marketing. Chubb Life has operations in eight Asian markets Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Myanmar, New Zealand, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam as well as Latin America. About Chubb Chubb is the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company. With operations in 54 countries and territories, Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. As an underwriting company, we assess, assume and manage risk with insight and discipline. We service and pay our claims fairly and promptly. The company is also defined by its extensive product and service offerings, broad distribution capabilities, exceptional financial strength and local operations globally. Parent company Chubb Limited is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: CB) and is a component of the S&P 500 index. Chubb maintains executive offices in Zurich, New York, London, Paris and other locations, and employs approximately 34,000 people worldwide. Additional information can be found at: www.chubb.com SOURCE Chubb Life HONG KONG, July 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Chubb Life today announced that Jack Chang has been appointed President of the company's life insurance operations in Taiwan that were recently acquired from Cigna. Mr. Chang is currently President of Chubb Life Taiwan. In his new role, Mr. Chang will have executive operating responsibility for Cigna Taiwan and will lead the integration, subject to regulatory approval, of the Chubb Life and Cigna Taiwan insurance operations in this market. During the integration period, Rose Huang, the current Chief Financial Officer of Chubb Life Taiwan, will serve as President of Chubb Life Taiwan. Upon completion of the integration, the combined business will operate under the Chubb Life brand in Taiwan. Chubb Life today announced that Jack Chang has been appointed President of the company's life insurance operations in Taiwan that were recently acquired from Cigna. On July 1, Chubb, the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurer, completed its acquisition of the life and non-life insurance companies that house the personal accident, supplemental health and life insurance business of Cigna in six Asia-Pacific markets, including Taiwan. The addition of this consumer-focused business advances Chubb's strategy to expand its presence in the Asia-Pacific region, a long-term growth area for the company, and adds to an already sizable accident and health (A&H) business while expanding the company's Asia-based life insurance presence. Mr. Chang will report to Brad Bennett, Senior Vice President, Chubb Group and Chief Operating Officer, Chubb Life. The appointment is effective immediately. "Jack is an experienced industry executive with a deep understanding of the insurance market in Taiwan," said Mr. Bennett. "That experience, along with his proven track record as a leader and manager, positions him well in his new role integrating the Cigna and Chubb Life businesses and continuing to build Chubb's life insurance presence in this important market. I look forward to working with Jack and welcome all of our new colleagues from Cigna at this exciting moment for our business in Taiwan and across the region." Mr. Chang has more than 25 years of experience in the insurance industry in Taiwan. He joined the company in 2021 as President of Chubb Life Taiwan. Prior to joining Chubb, he was Chief Partnership Officer at AIA Taiwan. He has also served as General Manager at TCB Life, where he was responsible for the general management and strategic direction of the joint venture between TCB Holding and BNP Paribas Cardif. About Chubb Life Chubb Life is an international life insurer, primarily focused on Asia, that provides protection and savings-oriented life insurance products to individuals and groups. Chubb Life serves the needs of consumers through a variety of distribution channels, including primarily captive agents, but also through banks, retailers, brokers, independent agents and direct marketing. Chubb Life has operations in eight Asian markets Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Myanmar, New Zealand, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam as well as Latin America. About Chubb Chubb is the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company. With operations in 54 countries and territories, Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. As an underwriting company, we assess, assume and manage risk with insight and discipline. We service and pay our claims fairly and promptly. The company is also defined by its extensive product and service offerings, broad distribution capabilities, exceptional financial strength and local operations globally. Parent company Chubb Limited is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: CB) and is a component of the S&P 500 index. Chubb maintains executive offices in Zurich, New York, London, Paris and other locations, and employs approximately 34,000 people worldwide. Additional information can be found at: www.chubb.com SOURCE Chubb Life Business to continue to operate as LINA Korea New logo emphasizes mutual respect and flexibility HONG KONG, July 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Chubb Life today announced that Jee Eun (Geannie) Cho has been appointed Country President of the company's life insurance operations in Korea that were recently acquired from Cigna. The business will continue to operate as LINA Korea. Ms. Cho, who has led the Cigna business as Chief Executive Officer since 2020, will continue to have executive operating responsibility for LINA Korea. Geannie Cho has been appointed Country President of the life insurance operations in Korea that Chubb recently acquired from Cigna. The business will continue to operate as LINA Korea. On July 1, Chubb, the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurer, completed its acquisition of the life and non-life insurance companies that house the personal accident, supplemental health and life insurance business of Cigna in six Asia-Pacific markets, including Korea. The addition of this consumer-focused business advances Chubb's strategy to expand its presence in the Asia-Pacific region, a long-term growth area for the company, and adds to an already sizable accident and health (A&H) business while expanding the company's Asia-based life insurance presence. Ms. Cho will report to Bryce Johns, Senior Vice President, Chubb Group and President of Chubb Life. The appointment is effective immediately. "Geannie has been in leadership roles at LINA Korea since 2011, including serving as CEO for the last two years," said Mr. Johns. "We're extremely pleased she will continue to lead this business, which she has been building and managing for a decade. Geannie knows the business, the market and the exceptional team at LINA. She has the experience and track record to lead this important business as we focus on delivering even greater value to our customers, agents and brokers, and business partners. We look forward to working with our new colleagues at LINA Korea." In conjunction with the closing of the acquisition, LINA Korea has also adopted a new corporate identity that aligns with the Chubb brand. The new LINA Korea logo, like Chubb's, can be expressed with nine different colors. These colors reflect the diversity of our people, the vibrance of our business and the customers we serve, the energy of our culture, and our respect for different ways of thinking. By adopting multiple colors, employees can also more freely express themselves. To celebrate this new beginning, LINA Korea, which is headquartered in Jongno-gu, will hold an evening lighting ceremony on July 4th. "For 35 years, LINA has been a reliable and stable presence in the Korea life insurance market. Becoming a part of the Chubb family will make us even stronger," said Ms. Cho. "Together, we will continue to offer the best insurance service to our customers, opportunities for our employees, and innovation that sets us apart." Ms. Cho has more than 20 years of experience in the insurance industry. Prior to serving as CEO of CIGNA Korea, she was Chief Operating Officer and Vice President, Operations. Earlier in her career, Ms. Cho was Assistant Vice President at Sun Life Financial and a manager at MetLife. Ms. Cho holds an MBA degree from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, a Master's degree from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, and a BS degree from Seoul National University. About LINA Korea LINA Korea, the first foreign life insurance company in Korea, was established in 1987 with the corporate mission to help the people we serve improve their health, well-being and peace of mind. With innovation and trust as our core values, we endeavor to provide service that is more than just an insurance policy. Today, LINA Korea ranks among the top insurers for consumer protection and financial soundness. We are continuing our story of success and innovation in the Korean market by launching GI product, dental and silver cancer plans for the first time in Korea and adopting telesales. About Chubb Chubb is the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company. With operations in 54 countries and territories, Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. As an underwriting company, we assess, assume and manage risk with insight and discipline. We service and pay our claims fairly and promptly. The company is also defined by its extensive product and service offerings, broad distribution capabilities, exceptional financial strength and local operations globally. Parent company Chubb Limited is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: CB) and is a component of the S&P 500 index. Chubb maintains executive offices in Zurich, New York, London, Paris and other locations, and employs approximately 34,000 people worldwide. Additional information can be found at: www.chubb.com SOURCE Chubb Life Beirut, July 3 : Lebanon Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib has said that Lebanon will be compelled to act in accordance with its own national interests for sending the Syrian refugees to their homeland in the absence of a clear international plan. He made the remarks on Saturday during a consultative ministerial meeting of the Arab League (AL) in Lebanon's capital Beirut, the National News Agency reported. "The international community does not have a roadmap for the return of the displaced Syrians, which will force Lebanon to act according to its own national interests in this matter," Bou Habib added. "The Lebanese government sees the need for the return of the displaced to be financed by the international community, instead of financing their stay in Lebanon," he said. Lebanon will not accept the establishment of camps for displaced Syrians in Lebanon on the Lebanese-Syrian border, Bou Habib added at a joint conference with AL Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, according to Elnashra news website. Meanwhile, Aboul-Gheit said the international community is keen to end the pressure caused by the displaced Syrians, but certain conditions must be met to decide on the return of the refugees, given that Syria's reconstruction will cost at least $500 billion, Xinhua news agency reported. A significant number of Syrian refugees have been living in Lebanon, adding to the nation's already severe financial situation and straining its infrastructure and economy. Beirut, July 3 : Lebanese President Michel Aoun has urged Arab leaders to unite in order to tackle the various challenges now facing the Arab world. "We must work together to address different challenges, including defending the Palestinian cause and rights of Palestinian people, putting an end to wars in our countries, and not sparing efforts to fight against terrorism in addition to dealing with the biggest waves of displacement in modern history," reported a statement by Lebanon's Presidency quoted Aoun as saying on Saturday. The President made the remarks during his meeting at Baabda Palace with Arab Foreign Ministers who had arrived in Beirut for the consultative ministerial meeting of the Arab League (AL), Xinhua news agency reported. During the meeting, which was chaired by Lebanon, Aoun urged Arab countries to help his country secure a safe return of Syrian refugees to their homeland as Lebanon is suffering from a number of crises and can no longer support a big number of displaced refugees on its territory. Lebanon is determined to resolve its multiple crises, the President said, adding the country has successfully held parliamentary elections and is now forming a government and seeking to reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund to prevent the country from collapse. For his part, AL Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit said the AL would support Lebanon, the Lebanese government and its people. The AL's Council of Foreign Ministers meets twice a year, in July and September, to discuss issues that concern the Arab nations. Athens, July 3 : A group of 28 Romanian firefighters was welcomed by Greek authorities in Athens during the launch of a European pilot programme for forest protection against fire this summer, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. Under the programme, a total of 200 firefighters from six countries across Europe (Bulgaria, France, Germany, Romania, Norway and Finland) will be positioned in Greece this July and August to assist in fire protection efforts and exchange know-how with their Greek colleagues, according to an e-mailed press release of the Ministry for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection on Saturday. The programme is implemented through the European Civil Protection Mechanism in the wake of last year's destructive wildfires in Greece, which scorched more than 100,000 hectare of forestry and farmland and damaged nearly 2,000 houses and businesses, Xinhua news agency reported. Romanian firefighters also participated in fire extinguishing efforts in Greece in 2021. Addressing an event held at the Hellenic Fire Academy in Athens on Saturday, Greece's Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Christos Stylianides said: "We thank you for coming to our country in a difficult summer to give a helping hand and demonstrate with actions that European solidarity is not a theoretical idea, but tangible." Greece suffers from wildfires every summer due to high temperatures and arsonists. In 2018, 102 people died in the coastal resort of Mati, near Athens in Greece's worst-ever fire disaster. Belgrade, July 3 : One migrant was killed and several were injured in a conflict between two migrant groups at the Serbian-Hungarian border, the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed in a press release. The conflict, between groups of migrants coming from unspecified countries, took place on early Saturday morning in a Serbian forest bordering Hungary, near the city of Subotica, the press release said. "Members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are working intensively to establish all the circumstances and identify the perpetrators of the conflict between two groups of migrants," it added. "Several migrants were brought to the police department in Subotica, with whom interviews will be conducted in order to determine all the circumstances of this incident," the press release said. For almost a decade, Serbia has been traditionally on the route of migrants coming from conflict zones in Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, looking to reach some European Union countries, Xinhua news agency reported. According to Serbian public broadcaster RTS, among the seven injured migrants who were treated at the local hospital in Subotica, the life of a 16-year-old girl is in danger. The Ministry confirmed that no Serbian citizens participated nor got injured in the incident. Beirut, July 3 : Hezbollah announced in a statement that it launched three unarmed drones on a reconnaissance mission toward the Karish gas field in Eastern Mediterranean. Earlier on Saturday, the Israeli military said it shot down three Hezbollah drones flying toward the Karish gas field. Israel has long claimed the Karish gas field in the Mediterranean Sea as its own property, but Lebanon expanded its claim in territorial waters, which would include at least part of the gas field. Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, leader of Hezbollah, an Iran-backed powerful Shiite political party and militant organisation, has threatened to use "military and logistical capacity" to prevent Israel from extracting gas from the Karish field, Xinhua news agency reported. The maritime border dispute between Lebanon and Israel has been growing since Israel sent a vessel operated by Energean, a London-based oil and gas production company, to the Karish field on June 5. Lebanon is seeking to revive indirect negotiations with Israel to determine their maritime border that began in 2020 but have mostly halted since Lebanon expanded its claim to include at least part of the Karish field in April 2021. Baghdad, July 3 : A soldier and a civilian were killed and four people wounded in two attacks by militants of the Islamic State (IS) terror group in northern and central Iraq, security sources said. In the northern province of Nineveh, a soldier was killed and two others wounded when a roadside bomb, believed to be planted by IS militants, exploded near an Iranian security unit outside a village near the town of Tal Afar, nearly 70-km west of the provincial capital Mosul, an army officer told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. The source said the attack took place on Saturday when the troops were hunting down IS militants in the area, Xinhua news agency reported. In a separate incident, a civilian was killed and two others wounded when a roadside bomb, reportedly planted by IS militants, exploded in a village in the Tarmiyah area, nearly 30 km north of the capital Baghdad, Ihsan al-Rubaie from the Baghdad police told Xinhua. Iraqi security forces have been fighting IS militants over the past months to crack down on their intensified activities. The security situation in Iraq has been improving since the defeat of the IS in 2017. However, its remnants have since spread into urban centres, deserts, and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against the security forces and civilians. Bareilly, July 3 : A school headmaster in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly district has been suspended for allegedly pelting stones at female teachers, following a scuffle. The headmaster, Khurshid Ali, has been accused of secretly making videos of female teachers while Ali has alleged that the teachers were working on their laptops instead of teaching children. The incident took place in Saidpur Primary school in Faridpur and a video clip of the incident has gone viral on the social media. Ali told the media that he was making the video to present it as a proof to senior school officials. According to the women teachers, when they protested against the headmaster secretly making a video, the latter became angry. The headmaster started abusing and fighting with the women teachers and then pelted stones at them. He even tried to snatch away their mobile phones. The school children were a witness to the entire incident. Later, the female and male teachers of the school submitted a complaint along with the video of the incident to Basic Shiksha Adhikari after which action was taken against the headmaster. New Delhi, July 3 : A quirk of fate changed her life and it had a Delhi connection! Almost 25 years later, life came full circle for this single mother and RJ from Kochi who visited the building where her late husband, an Indian Air Force officer, had worked till his death due to an accident on a West Delhi street. "The goal of my socially committed journey is to motivate and give strength and courage to the widows of the brave men in uniform, the guardians of our country," said the 44-year-old gutsy woman, who has planned to visit 75 Akashvani FM Rainbow stations coinciding with the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav'. But it was no routine visit for RJ Ambika Krishna, an Akashvani FM Rainbow artiste from Kochi. Solo biking on her Enfield Bullet, Ambika is on a mission to spread a word about the defence widows through her cross-country travel from Kochi to Shillong to Amritsar and back to Kochi. Her arduous journey began from Kerala and on the very third day she met with an accident. It happened when she had just entered Chennai. In the accident, Krishna fell down and incurred a major ligament tear in her left leg, the same that is used to change gears of her bike. However, determined not to let anything stop her, she continued with medication. Moving onwards, she covered Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh, and earlier this week she reached Delhi. It was at this time when IANS contacted her. When asked about her journey so far, she said, "Nothing bothered me, except when I was caught in the middle of a Agnipath protest in Uttar Pradesh. Fortunately, it was a matter of minutes and I came out scratch-free." She narrated her voyage as how she survived the oppressive heat in the central Indian belt and the devastating rainfall in northeast India. How she survived long, lonely highways along the eastern coast and the dusty, undulating roads at many places. Almost sticking to her schedule of 47-50 days, her journey through Uttar Pradesh was delayed a day or two as she had a fever that prompted an extra day halt in Agra. First thing she did after reaching Delhi was to visit a doctor. Then, just like she has been doing at all her halting stations, she visited the AIR FM Rainbow station in Delhi and recorded two back-to-back live sessions and shared her adventurous journey and her inspirational story. She also visited the Air Force building where her husband had worked. After a stay of three days in the national capital, the woman, determined to achieve her target, moved ahead to Haryana and Punjab. The roots lie in her own struggle when she had lost her husband. When IANS caught up with her in Delhi, Krishna was emotional as she was to visit the place where her husband was working then. Married in 1996, she lost him in a freak motorcycle accident, leaving her alone with their three-month-old daughter. "Come to think of it, I was in Kerala after delivery. He had gone to book a train ticket for the two of us to return with the child. Imagine how happy he must have been. But fate had other plans!" Thus, she started her real struggle that tested her grit and determination. She completed her studies that had stopped because of her marriage and child birth. With no support from her in-laws and only indirect support from her own parents, the single parent faced enormous hardships while raising the girl child. An accountant's job helped their survival. "With nobody close to support me in my hardship, I know how I kept my morale high and today, when my daughter is 24 and recently hired by Infosys, I can proudly claim to have sailed through this," Krishna said with a shine in her eyes. Her troubles never deterred her but instead made her stronger. Her originally shy nature changed once she accepted a part-time job as an RJ in 2015 and within no time, became popular all-around Kochi. For years, she nurtured her passion for photography and regularly went on photography tours. She is equally passionate about riding her bike and going solo on nearby trips as a regular. But the pandemic hit hard and made everyone sit at home. "This year, after almost two years of sitting at home, it struck me that I had to do something. A trial motorbike expedition followed and I was very happy I could do it. That set the ball rolling." With no sponsors, no crowd-funding, Krishna embarked on her solo expedition on April 11 from Kochi. Her Akashvani FM Rainbow colleagues have been helping her at most of the places with accommodation and, if needed, medical help. But she has managed fuel on her own. "But of course, if someone can sponsor, I am willing," she said. For now, she is deeply motivated with the choice of her purpose, a tribute to defence personnel and raising a voice to the cause of defence widows that resonated with her personal life. "To it I decided to add my professional life. As an RJ, I think, I have a sense of communication. I can put forth a point properly. This made me choose to be a voice of those women who may face troubles if their husbands die on duty," Krishna said, adding, "When I am back from this expedition, I am going to start the next phase of my mission -- visiting all the defence widows in Kerala." (Nivedita Khandekar can be reached at nivedita.k@ians.in) Ahmedabad, July 3 : The 145th Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath has begun in Ahmedabad. It's like a festival for the entire walled city where people from all the communities and class take a leap of faith. Ahmedabad is known for its philanthropy tradition. Rath Yatra is one such festive occasion which has survived on faith and philanthropy. Police personnel provide security to devotees assembled for the Rath Yatra and the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation helps in making other arrangements. All other facilities are provided by the people of the city voluntarily. People put stalls of butter milk, sharbat and water throughout the route undertaken during the Rath Yatra. They consider it as a service of the people who walk for 19 to 20km with their God. The maximum crowd gathers in the Saraspur area where Rath Yatra takes a brief halt and even deities -- Lord Jagannath, his brother Balbhadra and sister Subhadra -- are served the 'bhog' and presented with gifts from the maternal uncle called 'Mosalu' or 'Mameru'. This year such an arrangement has changed as earlier one had to wait for 10 years for Lord's 'Mamera'. There is the Ranchhodraiji Mandir Trust, which hosts the deity and performs the 'Mamera Vidhi'. One of the temple trustees told IANS that this year they had heavy clothes for the three deities and silver necklaces, gold rings, gold chains, toe rings and earrings for deity Lord Subhadra. Mahendra Bagdi, resident of Saraspur area, told IANS that nearly 1.5 to 2 lakh people visit Ahmedabad every year during the Rath Yatra. "We put stalls like butter milk, tea, sharbat, Rajwadi Khichdi for the Rath Yatra devotees. Many 'Pols' (housing clusters) of Saraspur area organise the bhandaras for the people. Each Pol feeds 10,000 to 25,000 people in a single day," he says. "We serve the people with wholesome dishes like puri, sabji, sweet, Farsan (Gujarati snack), dal and rice. But with God's grace, people come and donate raw material. No Pols have to bear all the expenses on their own. If the people need some material then they bring it and don't even worry about the expenses. No one reveals the amounts spent as it concerns religious faith." Sharmishtha Patel is a 75-year-old woman with both of her kidneys non-functional and a diabetic patient, loves serving people taking part in the Rath Yatra with tea and 'rajwadi khichdi'. She told IANS: "The 'Akhadians' don't have lunch, they just have tea. Therefore, we used to invite them to our home and serve them tea, other people started coming and asking for tea which we can't refuse as they take part in the Rath Yatra. Therefore, from 2001 I started serving them tea. We make tea from nearly 700 litres of milk. There are people who just visit Saraspur and don't join the entire yatra, they don't wait for lunch so we serve them khichdi. Every year we make about 1,000 kg khichdi for such people. I started this service now so that many people from Desai Ni Pol have joined me." A resident from Prajapati Pol said, "We feed around 15,000 people on the day of the Rath Yatra for the last 30 years. This year we made 1,500kg Mohanthal, 1000kg puri, 1000kg aloo-sabji and some fries. We serve them in the Indian tradition of sitting arrangement. We don't want to waste food or leave the place polluted at the end of the day. So we make them eat in 'Patrali' -- plates and bowls made of leaves, and we go and serve each and every person no matter how many times they call us. People start coming four or five days earlier and donate bags full of flour, lentils and vegetables. "We can see similar scenes in all the Pols of Saraspur area on the day of Rath Yatra. Same tradition is followed in the Jagannath temple where thousands of saints come from all over the country." Jagannath temple organises a large Bhandara for sadhus a day before the Rath Yatra. Even on the day of the Rath Yatra, thousands of people are fed with 'prasad'. (Asmita Dave can be reached at asmita.d@ians.in) Chennai, July 3 : With the main opposition in Tamil Nadu, the AIADMK facing tough times with an intense power struggle taking place, the ruling DMK is cruising along without much problems at the ground level. Since the 2019 general elections, the ruling DMK has been winning back to back elections -- the rural local body polls, then the 2021 assembly elections and the urban local body polls of 2022. The AIADMK stands vanquished after ruling the state from 2011 to 2021. The larger than life persona and shrewd political moves by the late J. Jayalalithaa had ensured that the AIADMK won back to back elections. However after the passing away of Jayalalithaa in December 2016, an intense power struggle commenced in the AIADMK with the former aide of Jayalalithaa, VK Sasikala and her family trying to take over the party. Sasikala was announced as the interim general secretary of the party and was on her way to assume the Chief Minister's post. A revolt broke out in the party with O. Panneerselvam, who is a fellow Thevar, opposing her move and sitting on a dharna near Jayalalithaa's memorial. Then, in a money laundering and disproportionate assets case, Sasikala was sentenced to four years in prison and the AIADMK got divided into two factions, one led by O. Panneerselvam and the other by Edappadi K. Palaniswami. Political moves at the highest level by the BJP bridged the differences between the two AIADMK leaders and Palaniswami became the chief minister of Tamil Nadu. Later with the AIADMK out of power and the party having a joint leadership of O. Panneerselvam and Palaniswami, the rift has widened between the two leaders. The BJP which is in a hurry to become a major force in the state is trying to widen the division between the two leaders. AIADMK organising secretary and former minister D. Jayakumar who is close to Palaniswami openly said that the BJP was trying to divide the party. Political analyst Mayulvahanan. R told IANS that, "This is the best period for the ruling DMK as the opposition in Tamil Nadu is totally divided. The BJP is trying to emerge as the main force in the state and is trying to cut the AIADMK to size. If the AIADMK does not stay together under a single leader, then it is almost certain that the opposition space will go to the BJP in Tamil Nadu even though it is not an easy proposition." With the AIADMK divided and no proper opposition in place in the state, the ruling DMK is having it easy. Another AIADMK ally Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) also announced that it was contesting on its own in the rural local body polls and later in the urban civic polls. Lucknow, July 3 : The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) has arrested three persons for fleecing several people by impersonating as owners of car agencies. The three are facing over 30 cases of fraud in Ghaziabad and Bareilly, besides cities in Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh. The STF spokesman said that the arrested persons include Vijay Kumar Prajapati, Amiruddin a.k.a Amir of Delhi and Pradeep Sharma of Ghaziabad. The STF has recovered a car, five mobile phones, three Aadhaar cards, three SIM cards and other documents. The case in which they were arrested was registered by the then manager of SBI (Ismailganj branch) Swati Agrawal in 2021 The fraudsters had posed as owners of a car agency and asked her to transfer over Rs 33 lakh. However, it surfaced that the real owner of the agency had not made any request for a transaction. London, July 3 : Australia's Nick Kyrgios advanced to the fourth round at Wimbledon for the first time since 2016 with a gritty 6-7(2), 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(7) victory against fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece. Kyrgios, who will next play American Brandon Nakashima, claimed his first win at a major against a top-10 opponent since the third round at Wimbledon in 2015. The 27-year-old will try to reach his third major quarterfinal and his first since the 2015 Australian Open. "Honestly it was a hell of an atmosphere, amazing match. I honestly felt like the favourite coming in, I played him a couple weeks ago. But I knew that it was going to be a tough match," Kyrgios told atptour.com. "He's (Tsitsipas) a hell of a player. I had my own tactics out there and he knows how to play me, he's beaten me once. Obviously I've had success. It was a hell of a match." In a match of frayed nerves, tension started to build at the end of the first set when Kyrgios was unhappy with a linesperson's call on the baseline. For the rest of the match, the Australian had constant discussions with the chair umpire. But finally, he emerged winner after three hours and 16 minutes. "I'm just super happy to be through. He (Tsitsipas) was getting frustrated at times and it's a frustrating sport, that's for sure," Kyrgios said. "I have the ultimate respect for him. Whatever happens on the court (is) on the court. I love him and I'm close with his brother." The Australian also received an audible obscenity warning after another linesperson made a report to the chair umpire. Kyrgios is looking to make another deep run at Wimbledon, where he made his first big splash as a 19-year-old in 2014. That year, he defeated Spanish stalwart Rafael Nadal en route to the quarterfinals. San Francisco, July 3 : Meta, formerly Facebook, is all set to shut down the pilot for its digital wallet service Novi and the company wants users to withdraw their balance before it is no longer available, which is September 1. Novi is a digital wallet that helps people send and receive money internationally -- instantly and with no fees. "The Novi pilot is ending -- withdraw your balance before September 1, 2022. Both the Novi app and Novi on WhatsApp will no longer be available starting September 1, 2022," according to Novi's website. "When the pilot ends, you will not be able to log in and access your Novi account. Please also be aware that starting July 21, 2022, you will no longer be able to add money to your account," it added. The company mentioned that there are two ways to withdraw the balance from a Novi account -- the US and Guatemala customers can transfer money to their bank account. Guatemala customers can get only cash at a nearby withdrawal location. If you have money remaining in your Novi account after the pilot ends on September 1, 2022, the company said it will attempt to transfer your balance to the bank account or debit card you have added to Novi. Users can request a copy of their Novi information until the end of the Novi pilot. After the pilot ends, users will no longer be able to request a copy of your information. San Francisco, July 3 : Cryptocurrency broker Voyager Digital (VYGVF) has suspended all trading, deposits withdrawals and loyalty rewards, as top crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) filed for bankruptcy in the US, in which Voyager has made significant investments. Voyager disclosed in a statement that it had significant investments in 3AC, and the Singapore-based hedge fund failed to make payments on its loan of 15,250 BTC ($294 million) and $350 million USDC. "This was a tremendously difficult decision, but we believe it is the right one given current market conditions," said Stephen Ehrlich, CEO, Voyager. "This decision gives us additional time to continue exploring strategic alternatives with various interested parties while preserving the value of the Voyager platform we have built together. We will provide additional information at the appropriate time," he added. Shares of Voyager plunged more than 26 per cent. Voyager said it is actively pursuing all available remedies for recovery from 3AC, including through the court-ordered liquidation process in the British Virgin Islands. The development comes as popular crypto tokens such as Bitcoin and Ethereum nosedived by nearly 70 per cent from their record highs amid the economic meltdown. The Monetary Authority of Singapore last week slammed Three Arrows for providing false information and breaching an asset under management threshold. The mega fund, founded by Credit Suisse traders Zhu Su and Kyle Davies, once managed an estimated $10 billion in assets. Beijing, July 3 : Apple captured half of smartphones sold in China during the 6.18 online shopping festival, at the expense of Chinese brands Xiaomi and Honor. According to new research from Strategy Analytics, 14 million units of smartphones were sold during the festival, down 25 per cent (on-year). "Apple outperformed the market selling nearly 7 million iPhone units, modestly down 4 per cent YoY. We estimate Apple generated a revenue of $6.3 billion," said analyst Peng Peng. Apple ranked top by revenue share across all major platforms (JD, TMall and Pinduoduo). Xiaomi and Honor ranked in the top three list, followed by vivo (IQOO) and OPPO. "We estimate Xiaomi seized 30 per cent volume share, slightly down from 32 per cent one year ago. Honor captured 10 per cent volume share, growing from 6 per cent in 2021," said Yiwen Wu, senior analyst. Covid-related disruptions and economic headwinds caused the mixed performance. Smartphone online sales price grew to $660 and above this year thanks to the greater mix of higher-priced iPhones, up 13 per cent YoY. "However, total smartphone online sales revenue still posted 16 per cent annual decline with $9.5 billion," said Linda Sui, senior director. The 6.18 online shopping festival in June is China's second largest shopping festival after Singles' Day in November. Thiruvananthapuram, July 3 : Kerala Janapaksham leader and former MLA P.C. George has said that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his daughter's foreign tours must be investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). He said that the controversial Kerala businessman, Pharis Aboobacker was behind this and Pinarayi Vijayan was part of a financial racket. George was speaking to mediapersons at his residence in Erattupetta in Kottayam on Sunday. He also said the Chief Minister was regularly travelling to the US and after two days of his reaching there, his daughter Veena Vijayan too follows her father. He said that Veena had also travelled to the UAE and Australia after the Chief Minister visited these countries. George said that a major financial racket was behind this which was controlled by Pharis Aboobacker, who is now based out of the US. The former legislator also said that he was being regularly targeted by the Kerala Police and that the Chief Minister was behind this. He said that he was contemplating filing a defamation suit against the Chief Minister and is consulting his lawyers regarding the same. It may be noted that a woman who was alleged to be involved in a criminal case and had earlier accused former Chief Minister Oommen Chandi in a sexual assault case, complained to the police that George had sexually assaulted her. Police, who were questioning George at the Thycaud government guest house in a case related to the gold smuggling matter, suddenly arrested him following the sexual assault case. However, the Thiruvananthapuram judicial first class magistrate court granted George bail on Saturday night itself. George lashed out against the Chief Minister and accused him of wrongdoings. George also called upon the Enforcement Directorate to conduct a detailed investigation into the financial transactions of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's wife Kamala and his daughter Veena Vijayan. New Delhi, July 3 : India reported 16,103 new Covid cases in a span of 24 hours, which is a marginal decline from the previous day's count of 17,092, said the Union Health Ministry on Sunday. In the same period, the country reported 31 more Covid deaths, taking the nationwide toll to 5,25,199. Meanwhile, the active caseload of the country has also risen to 1,11,711 cases, accounting for 0.26 per cent of the country's total positive cases. The recovery of 13,929 patients in the last 24 hours took the cumulative tally to 4,28,65,519. Consequently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.54 per cent. Meanwhile, India's daily positivity rate has also marginally increased to 4.27 per cent, while the weekly positivity rate currently stands at 3.81 per cent. Also in the same period, a total of 3,76,720 tests were conducted across the country, increasing the overall tally to over 86.36 crore. As of Sunday morning, India's Covid-19 vaccination coverage exceeded 197.95 crore, achieved via 2,58,31,465 sessions. Over 3.69 crore adolescents have been administered with a first dose of Covid-19 jab since the beginning of vaccination drive for this age bracket. Hyderabad, July 3 : Ram Charan, who is currently savouring the success of the blockbuster movie 'RRR', appeared in an impromptu video, which has taken the internet by storm. The Magadheera actor, who will be next seen in a heavy-budget political drama, had hosted multiple parties at his residence, having Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Venkatesh, and others on his guest list. Cut to the present, where Charan has thrown a unique surprise with a spontaneous video. Alim Hakim, Charan's hairstylist, posted a video of the actor sporting a new hairstyle. In the video, Charan is seen sporting a fashionable hairstyle and a well-groomed beard, and he looks dapper. Social media users are currently obsessed with this video, as Charan's makeover with a fashionable and suave appearance has impressed all. After the hugely successful RRR, Ram Charan was seen in the epic failure Acharya. Up to this point, there hasn't been a comprehensive update on RC15 outside of the formal announcement. So, the fans await the announcement of the first look poster and the title soon. Ram Charan and Kiara Advani are the main characters in Shankar's political drama RC15. New Delhi, July 3 : Jailed conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar was caught secretly sending a letter to someone from the high-security Tihar Jail in the national capital, officials said on Sunday. "A few days back it was noticed in CCTV recording that a Nursing Orderly (contractual staff) was seen taking some paper from Sukesh Chandrashekhar," Director General (Prisons) Sandeep Goyal told IANS. The top prison official further said that on inquiry it was revealed that it was a letter to be given to someone. Sukesh Chandrashekhar, presently lodged in Jail no 3 of the Tihar Jail, was arrested last year for allegedly cheating and extorting money from some high-profile people, which includes former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Mohan Singh's wife Aditi Singh. Many women Bollywood actors and models have been questioned by the Enforcement Directorate for their alleged links to Chandrashekhar. In April 2021, he was arrested in another money laundering case linked to the 2017 Election Commission bribery case, which allegedly involved a former AIADMK leader and others. Notably, the Enforcement Directorate, recently in an application in the Supreme Court, had mentioned that accused Sukesh has repeatedly committed offences, including that of money laundering during his incarceration in jail by subverting the legal system and prison rules with the help of his knowledge of technology and his "ability to con people". Earlier also in February, the alleged conman had once again tried to bribe the staff of Tihar Jail No 4 and was subsequently, as a precautionary measure, shifted to another jail. Hyderabad, July 3 : A front of non-BJP and non-Congress parties mooted long ago by Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao remained a non-starter as regional parties have failed to find a common ground. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader last year revived the idea of an alternative and vowed to play a key role in national politics by evolving a new agenda to bring what he calls a qualitative change. Despite his often repeated plans to call meetings of all like-minded parties to discuss and work out an alternative agenda, Chandrasekhar Rao failed to make any progress. KCR, as the TRS chief is popularly known, visited a few states in the last couple of months and held talks with leaders like Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray, Arvind Kejriwal, Akhilesh Yadav and Hemant Soren but could not bring other key regional leaders like Mamata Banerjee and Naveen Patnaik on board. Ever since he first proposed the idea of a national alternative in 2018, KCR repeatedly announced plans to hold meetings with economic experts, intellectuals, retired bureaucrats and other such people to prepare an alternate agenda but nothing happened on the ground. Going by his recent move to float a national party, it appears that KCR has given up the idea of a front of anti-BJP and anti-Congress parties. During a meeting with party leaders last month, he decided to launch a national party. TRS sources said the national party would be called Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). A final decision in this regard was expected to be taken on June 19 at the extended meeting of the TRS executive but this was postponed apparently due to the Presidential elections. KCR is likely to make a final announcement later this month. The TRS leadership is reportedly keen to have the TRS symbol of 'car' for the BRS as well. The TRS office coming up in the national capital will serve as the headquarters of the proposed national party, party sources said. After his meetings with Delhi Chief Minister Arvid Kejriwal, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (S) leader Deve Gowda in May, KCR had said that there would be a sensation soon in the country. Political analysts, however, believe that this move by KCR may only be symbolic to get some recognition at the national level. The proposed party is not likely to contest elections in other states. If KCR launches a national party, he will be the first leader from South India to take this step. Telugu Desam Party (TDP) founder and former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh, N. T. Rama Rao too had national ambitions. NTR, as the actor-politician was popularly known, wanted to launch Bharat Desam Party but it never saw the light of day. NTR's successor N. Chandrababu Naidu registered the TDP as a national party but it could not expand beyond Telugu states. P. Raghavendra Reddy, a political analyst, believes that at a time when many regional satraps have national ambitions, KCR launching a national party might not yield great results. "It's not just Mamata or Kejriwal who want to expand their national footprint, there are old war horses like Sharad Pawar, Nitish Kumar, Mayawati etc., who want to occupy the top post if they emerge as the consensus candidate. So KCR entering this race seems outlandish," he said. KCR, who is said to be acting on the advice of political strategist Prashant Kishor, appears keen to have some visibility at the national level with a national party as his efforts to cobble together an alliance and serve as its head have not borne fruit. The national party move also assumed significance in the wake of KCR's attempt to project a successful Telangana model. Highlighting the all-round progress made by the state within eight years of its formation, the TRS leader asks 'When Telangana can achieve it, why not the entire country with its abundant natural and human resources'. Raghavendra Reddy is of the view that KCR might be using this narrative to position himself as a counter weight to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and tell the voters of Telangana that Modi is not running the country in the right frame, and the KCR model of governance is the best for the country. When KCR first mooted the idea of a national alternative, he was targeting both the BJP and the Congress, blaming them for the problems faced by the country. This stand was not in sync with other regional parties who see the BJP as the number one enemy and were not averse to joining hands with the Congress. Last year, the TRS chief appeared more critical of the BJP than the Congress. He had even dropped hints of softening his stand towards the Congress by saying the priority of all parties should be to throw out the Narendra Modi government. However, the developments of the last few months appeared to have once again forced KCR to revert to his previous stand of 'equi-distance' from both the BJP and the Congress. It was for this reason that the TRS stayed away from the meeting of opposition parties called by Mamata Banerjee last month to discuss the strategy for the Presidential elections. KCR made it clear that the TRS will not be part of a meeting where the Congress was invited. Since the TRS considers the Congress as its main opponent in Telangana, KCR would not like to be seen rubbing shoulders with the leaders of that party at the national level. However, in the interest of opposition unity, KCR declared support for Yashwant Sinha, the joint candidate of the opposition parties in the Presidential elections. KCR's son and TRS working president K. T. Rama Rao along with party MPs was present when Sinha filed his nomination. Analyst Raghavendra Reddy believes that KCR and some of his fellow aspirants for the PM's post might realise that the Congress cannot be wished away from a contest, and the grand old party is the only counter weight to the saffron party across many states. "KCR is in a situation where he can neither align with the Congress nor bring others together without the Congress being in the equation," he said. Though KCR held a series of meetings with leaders of various political parties including the Shiv Sena, DMK, RJD, SP and JD (S) during the last few months, no consensus could be reached on forging a front as an alternative to both the BJP and the Congress. The much-awaited meeting between KCR and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee did not take place and despite the attempts made in the past KCR could not have Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on board as both the BJD and the YSRCP continue to extend support to the Narendra Modi government on key Bills. Another indication that KCR has given up his plans to forge a front came during the TRS plenary in April. At the day-long plenary of the TRS held to mark the 21st foundation day of the party, he hinted at floating a national party. As he did not speak at the plenary about his meetings with leaders of various political parties and the chief ministers of some states, this gave credence to the buzz that the TRS chief was toying with the idea of forming a national party. KCR told the plenary that some legislators suggested that TRS should be changed into BRS. The leaders who spoke at the plenary appealed to KCR to play an active role in national politics saying the country needs a visionary leader like him. In one of the resolutions passed at the plenary, the TRS said that it will play a key role in national politics in the coming days. The party observed it needs to play a constructive role and fill the political void at the national level. Responding to the requests made by the party leaders, KCR said he was ready to play an active role to the best of his ability. Srinagar, July 3 : The Self Help Groups (SHGs) are scripting a new chapter in 'Naya Jammu and Kashmir'. The government has provided wings to the aspirations of rural women in the Himalayan region by introducing various schemes under the SHGs. The J&K administration has embarked on a mission to form 11,000 new self help groups in the Union Territory by the end of this year. At present, there are more than 56,000 SHGs in J&K and as many as 5 lakh women are associated with these groups. Last year, J&K Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha had stated that under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home & Cooperation Minister Amit Shah, the country is witnessing renaissance in Cooperative movement to address the developmental needs of underprivileged sections of the society. He had asserted that the J&K Government won't leave any stone unturned to carry forward the mission of PM Modi and Amit Shah. "The new self help groups will be formed to give new impetus to entrepreneurial women organisations," LG Sinha had said. After August 5, 2019, when the Centre announced its decision to abrogate J&K's special status and bifurcated it into two union territories-the helmsmen in the Himalayan region have been working hard to truly realise the Prime Minister's vision of 'Sahkar se Samriddhi'. They are focusing on agri-marketing, food processing, branding, supply of seeds and other innovative activities in dairy & handicrafts and the women have become an integral part of the mission. Efforts on to cover 100 per cent gram panchayats According to the official figures, about 55 per cent gram panchayats have been covered under women SHGs in J&K and the efforts are on to expedite the initiative to make women financially independent. The formation of SHGs has helped in bringing transparency in selection of beneficiaries of government schemes. In order to popularise the SHG concept in J&K, the government has involved women from SHGs of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Bihar as resource persons. They are reaching out to women in the rural areas and explaining to them the benefits of joining the SHGs. The target is to cover the remaining 45 per cent gram panchayats by the end of this year. In January this year, the Institute of Rural Management undertook a study for the rural development ministry to assess financial progress, quality and sustainability of institutions built and financial services provided to women SHGs. The impact of the initiative, under the Deen Dayal Anyodaya Yojana National Rural Livelihoods Mission, was found positive. The reforms introduced by the government after abrogation of Article 370, a temporary provision in the constitution of India, to identify women's potential in the leadership role and providing them opportunity to scale up their businesses have changed the lives of the fairer sex in J&K. The initiatives like Saath, Hausla, Umeed, Tejaswini have laid a strong foundation for financial independence of rural women. Technology, market dynamics and financial inclusion are providing an opportunity to transform the women Self Help Groups. These groups are creating a niche for their products in a fiercely competitive global market and are proving to be an inspiration for the other women. Women SHGs keep wheels moving The women SHGs in the far-flung rural areas are keeping the wheels of socio-economic progress moving. This has helped the government to reduce disparities, inequalities in the society and create employment. On the occasion of Independence Day (August 15), the government is all set to honour 75 progressive women entrepreneurs from Rural Livelihood Mission Self Help Groups as an acknowledgment for their contribution towards women empowerment. The SHGs are organising workshops for women in different areas to boost their confidence. The success stories of women are being shared to make the fairer sex in the rural areas believe that they have the potential to become like their counterparts. Many women during the past two years have turned from job seekers to job providers. The SHGs have connected thousands of females and have provided them with an opportunity to interact with other women, to know their thoughts, livelihoods as well as about several government schemes. The SHGs are working hard to inculcate the habit of saving and banking among the rural women, to develop a relationship of trust between the rural women and the bankers, and to develop group activity so that women can become successful entrepreneurs. Success stories Women like Kaushaliya Devi of village Bali, Chenaniin district Udhampur have become role models. Her story from rags to riches is just one of the examples about how SHGs have changed the lives of women. While sharing her experience, Kaushaliya Devi while talking to a local newspaper revealed how difficult her life was. "I was a housewife and my husband was unemployed which made our lives very difficult. In 2013, I came to know about the UMEED scheme and joined SHG group Shri Mandir under the aegis of this scheme." She stated that her life changed after the government started to infuse funds into SHGs. The members started to utilise the funds to start their own small businesses. She started a small business of dairy farming and after taking help of government funds, small loan through bank linkage she started earning around Rs 8,000 per month. Getting inspired by the success of dairy farming, Kaushailya also started to look for alternate business to earn more money. After that, she started the business of tailoring and bag making which turned her into a successful member of the group. With the assistance under the UMEED scheme she bought a dumper after the government provided Rs 10 lakh loan to their group. Currently, Kaushailya is handsomely earning more than Rs 50,000 per month making her life and that of her family very happy. Her children are studying in a good school and she is living happily with her family. "Earlier people in my village used to tell women can't do anything but after my success, the same people are giving my examples," she said. Atiqa Wani, of Ramhal, area of Kupwara district in North Kashmir after completing her post-graduation thought to stand on her own and decided to start an educational institute. With the desire to do something big in life, she got associated with the SHG eco-system to augment her otherwise limited financial resources. She received a "Revolving Fund" of Rs 10,000 initially and later on a Community Investment Fund of Rs 20,000 and then three times a total loan of Rs 1.40 lakh. Seeing her performance of repayments etc. and her commitment towards her mission, she was recommended for bank linkage which helped her in running the affairs of the institute successfully. She started the institute with only five students in 2019. As on date, hundreds of students are enrolled in her institute as the financial support from the UMEED scheme has helped her to reach the top. "We are not only earning a decent living but we are proud to become job-givers rather than job-seekers and are able to provide gainful employment to fifteen persons in our institution so far," Atiqa told a Srinagar-based daily. Janna Begum, a SHG member, hailing from Singhporain North Kashmir's Baramulla district, established various livelihoods for herself and also engaged her entire family in it. "UMEED provided me with a platform to overcome my financial difficulty. I started cosmetics and a fodder shop and both the units were a good success. I now earn more than Rs. 25,000 profit a month," she said. Naseema Bano of Newa area in south Kashmir's Pulwama district wanted to extend a helping hand to her husband but every time lack of financial resources would stop her. "I not only now created a livelihood opportunity for myself but engaged my entire family with it. UMEED provided us with an appropriate platform for overcoming our financial difficulties we were facing for quite a long time," she asserted. With the financial help and bank linkage, she was able to establish a full-fledged workshop and a retail copper shop in her vicinity. The shop is a successful venture and she is earning more than Rs 30, 000 profit a month. Sheetal Kumari, hailing from village Sultanpur of Bishnah block was struggling on a daily basis for her livelihood. "It was very hard for us to make both ends meet. I used to make paper bags all night and sell them to the nearby vendor. I joined the UMEED programmeand did my best to revive our economic condition," she said. Kumari in a short span of her association with UMEED has generated quite a few assets for her family. She is a role model for the women in her village as well in her own community. She has at present a Kiryana shop, a load carrier, 2 to 3 cows and works as an AMC operator in her village. Anju Bala of Mathwar, Bhalwal area of Jammu region was imparted a number of trainings by the sakhiswhich opened her horizon. Currently, Anju is running a general store successfully and earning substantial income for her family. Women fountainhead of change After August 5, 2019, lives of women in J&K have changed. During COVID-19 pandemic, fairer sex played a lead role in sustaining the economy of J&K. Women made lakhs of masks and contributed immensely in the fight against the pandemic. The support offered by the government turned the women into key agents for the development of the society. Self-Help Groups especially for women helped them to start entrepreneurial activities which led to eradication of poverty. These groups have proven to be effective tools for women empowerment in J&K. The women members of the SHGs in J&K have set an example in repayment of loans with less than one per cent NPA. Union Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar had stated that women self-help groups in rural areas had set an example for the country in repaying loans. The J&K women are on a way to change their destinies through the Self Help Groups and they have proven their mettle through the dint of their hard work, sincerity, dedication and honesty. They are contributing immensely towards building 'Naya J&K' and the government is providing them with all possible support. Seoul, July 3 : South Korea's new coronavirus cases stayed above 10,000 for the second consecutive day on Sunday as the daily cases seemed to be rising again after months of subsiding. The country added 10,059 Covid-19 infections, including 191 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 18,389,611, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) was quoted as saying by Yonhap news agency. The country reported eight Covid-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 24,570. The fatality rate stood at 0.13 per cent. The number of critically ill patients stood at 53, the KDCA said. South Korea's Covid-19 outbreaks have shown a downward trend after daily new cases peaked at an all-time high of over 620,000 in mid-March. But the KDCA has said the pace of decline has recently slowed down amid waning vaccine immunity and increasing social interactions following eased social distancing rules, and that a possible spike in infections lies ahead. Sunday's figure is up by more than 3,800 from a week ago and nearly 4,000 from two weeks ago. Imported cases have remained above 100 since June 24 due to a rise in international flights. Of the 9,868 locally transmitted cases, Seoul accounted for 2,437 cases, with the surrounding Gyeonggi Province reporting 2,637 cases. There were 516 infections in Incheon, 40 km west of Seoul. The greater Seoul area accounted for 56 per cent of the total caseload. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) By Azernews By Laman Ismayilova The Culture Ministry is launching a "Shusha Fortress" project within the Year of Shusha in Azerbaijan, Azernews reports, citing the Culture Ministry. As part of the project, the Culture Ministry will release a series of videos about the city's historical buildings, monuments as well as reconstruction works. The ancient monuments in Shusha offer an insight into the city's history and culture. Azerbaijan's cultural capital is home to some fascinating sights like Shusha Castle, Bulbul's House Museum, Yukhari Govhar Agha Mosque, Ashaghi Govhar Agha Mosque, etc. Considering its historical and cultural significance, the city of Shusha has been declared the Cultural Capital of the Turkic World 2023. Major reconstruction work is carried out to restore historical, cultural, and religious sights in the city liberated from almost three-decade-long Armenian occupation. Vadodara, July 3 : The Gujarat Police have provided security to a BJP leader in Vadodara's Padra after he received death threats on social media for a comment regarding Kanhaiya Lal' murder. Nileshsinh Jadav, vice president of the BJP Padra Taluka Committee, in a complaint with the Vadu police station has stated, "One person with the ID of Abdul Subur Chaudhary has threatened that I will meet the same fate as that of Kanhaiya Lal of Rajasthan." He has further said this threat was in reply to his comment on Rajasthan's Superintendent of police Saurav Kumar Khichar's Facebook page, where he had commented, "There murderers were well aware that for this offence they will go to jail, even may get life term, it is possible to commit this offence... accused family may have received crores of rupees financial aid or help, this all money must be from Saudi, Qatar, Kuwait... So NIA should arrest their family members, Maulvi, so that funds can't be used, and their entire property should be seized, these people don't commit such crimes for religion but it is for money, if any journalist or political leader is supporting them, arrest them too." In reply to this comment, Abdul Subur Chaudhary used foul and abusive language and threatened him that "he too will meet the same fate. Jadav registered a complaint on June 30 and police provided him security on Saturday. Mumbai, July 3 : As anticipated, the new ruling alliance partner Bharatiya Janata Party's MLA, Advocate Rahul Narwekar was elected the new Speaker of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, here on Sunday. Narwekar secured 164 votes and defeated his sole rival -- the Maha Vikas Aghadi-backed Shiv Sena candidate Rajan Salvi -- who secured 107 votes, in the 288-member House. Shortly after the vote-count, Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal announced Narwekar as the new Speaker amid cheers from the treasury benches. Thereafter, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, Congress President Nana Patole, Nationalist Congress Party's Ajit Pawar and other senior leaders of various political parties, escorted Narwekar to the prestigious Speaker's chair. Later, in their speeches, Shinde, Fadnavis, Pawar congratulated and welcomed the new Speaker, and expressed hope that he would continue to take forward the glorious legislative traditions and ensure smooth functioning of the House. The elections were held by a division of votes on the first of the two-day Special Assembly Session ordered by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, last weekend. On Monday, Chief Minister Eknath S. Shinde, supported by the BJP, will seek a 'vote of confidence' in the new government sworn-in on June 30 after the collapse of the MVA government. Kiev, July 3 : The Ukrainian Armed Forces claimed on Sunday that it "has killed about 35,970 Russian soldiers between February 24 and July 3, including 100 in the past day alone". The claim was made by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in a Facebook post. According to the post, the Ukrainian troops have also "destroyed 1,584 Russian tanks, 3,744 armored fighting vehicles, 801 artillery systems, 246 multiple launch rocket systems, 105 air defence systems, 217 warplanes, 187 helicopters, 654 operational and tactical level UAVs, 144 cruise missiles, 15 warships/boats, 2,618 other vehicles and tanker trucks, and 64 pieces of special equipment". "The enemy suffered the greatest losses in the past day in the Kramatorsk and Bakhmut directions," the General Staff said. Latest updates on Russia-Ukraine War Karachi, July 3 : Families of Baloch missing persons and the Baloch Solidarity Committee organiser met senior Sindh police officials regarding the forcibly disappeared persons from Karachi, local media reported. According to reports, at the direction of the Sindh government, talks were held between the Sindh police and the families of the Baloch missing persons, where the senior police officials assured that the missing persons from Karachi would be recovered soon, Balochistan Post reported. On the occasion, the organiser of Baloch Soloidarity Committee Karachi, Amna Baloch briefed SSP South Asad Raza on the details of missing persons in Karachi. The SSP assured that the missing persons would be traced by contacting other concerned government agencies. Police officials told the delegation that the second round of talks would continue in a day or two. It will be chaired by Sindh Minister Mir Shabir Bijarani. During the talks, Amna Baloch said that these families are not protesting for fun but for the recovery of their loved ones which is their constitutional and legal right. She told police officials that innocent Baloch people are being picked up and forcibly disappeared. If the government does not listen, the families will ask for an answer to the question in the form of protest, which is their constitutional right, Balochistan Post reported. Amna Baloch demanded from the authorities to respect the democratic struggle and ensure the recovery of missing persons in Sindh within the ambit of law and order and not to use force to suppress their democratic and legal movement. Amna Baloch handed over the list of missing persons in Karachi to Sindh Police - according to which: Abdul Hameed Zehri from Gulistan-e-Jauhar area of Karachi, Saeed Ahmed son of Muhammad Umar from Malir area of Karachi and Muhammad Imran from Maripur went missing. Whereas, Shaukat Baloch, who went missing from Lyari, and Noorbakhsh son of Habib went missing from Raees Goth Karachi, after being arrested by CTD and security forces. It may be recalled that the families of the missing persons have been protesting outside the Karachi Press Club. Kathmandu, July 3 : India on Sunday gifted 75 ambulances and 17 school buses to various governmental and non-governmental, not-for-profit organisations working in the fields of health and education, spread across various districts of Nepal. The keys were handed over by Ambassador Naveen Srivastava in the presence of Devendra Paudel, Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, who also graced the event. Gifting of 75 ambulances also coincides with the India@75 celebrations being marked this year to commemorate 75 years of India's Independence, the Indian Embassy said. In his remarks during the event, Ambassador Srivastava said that this has been one of the long-standing traditions of the Government of India under the Nepal-India Development Partnership Programme to bolster the efforts of Government of Nepal to strengthen its infrastructure in health and education. He also highlighted that this is part of the very robust and strong development partnership between India and Nepal, which has a long history and legacy, and has geographical spread throughout Nepal, touching people's lives and bringing out a tangible progress in the development journey of Nepal. Minister Poudel, in his remarks, appreciated India's various ongoing developmental projects in Nepal and said that these will continue to strengthen people-to-people connect and the bilateral relations between the two countries. Since 1994, India has gifted 940 ambulances and 184 school buses to various beneficiary organisations spread across various districts of Nepal, till date. It is part of Government of India's continued support for the efforts of Nepal to strengthen health and education facilities and also facilitating easy physical access to these services, the embassy said. Seoul, July 3 : South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol is expected to appoint Army General Kim Seung-kyum as the new head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) early this week, a key presidential official said on Sunday, amid lingering tensions over North Korea's provocations. Kim, who was nominated for the top military job on May 25, should take over the position quickly to prevent any leadership vacuum in the armed forces, the official was quoted as saying by Yonhap news agency. "We haven't identified any ground for disqualification," the official added. Kim most recently served as the deputy commander of the South Korea-US Combined Forces Command. The outgoing JCS chief, Air Force Gen. Won In-choul, will step down on Monday. The planned appointment on Monday comes amid tensions over a series of North Korea's missile launches and a possible nuclear test. Kim would be the first the JCS chair to be appointed without a parliamentary confirmation hearing since 2006, when South Korea added a JCS chair to the list of nominees who are subject to confirmation hearings. Yoon does not require approval from the National Assembly in appointing Kim as his first JCS chair. In South Korea, the prime minister is the only Cabinet post that requires parliamentary approval. Last month, Yoon also appointed Kim Chang-ki, a longtime tax official, as the new chief of the National Tax Service. The two nominees could not undergo confirmation hearings due to a parliamentary deadlock over various issues, including who will chair the parliamentary legislation and judiciary committee. Hyderabad, July 3 : The war of words between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) on social media took a new turn on Sunday when the saffron party used Urdu language to counter the attack by Telangana's ruling party. After TRS took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP by listing achievements of Telangana government in Gujarati, the preferred language of the PM, the saffron party hit back with a series of tweets in Urdu to list out failures of the state government. "People are frustrated with you, Mr KCR. You became deaf to the problems of Telangana. Let's see if Shri KCR and super CM from Darussalam will listen if we tell them in their preferred language," tweeted BJP's Telangana unit in a dig at Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi. The saffron party tweeted in Urdu the failures of KCR and TRS. It alleged that under KCR's rule, prosperous Telangana fell into debt trap. It reminded KCR of his unfulfilled promises of providing 3 acre land to Dalits and making a Dalit the chief minister. The BJP also accused TRS ministers and leaders of corruption. "There is no freedom of expression in Telangana and Kalvakuntla (KCR) constitution is in force in the state," reads another point listed in Urdu. Earlier, the TRS listed 15 achievements of its government in Gujarati language. "Modi Ji & his party have failed to recognise the unprecedented development TRS govt has done in Telangana. So here are Telangana achievements in the PM's preferred language," it tweeted. The tweets in Gujarati highlight that Telangana is the fourth largest contributor to the Indian economy. It claimed that Telangana has the highest growth rate of per capita income, fastest growing IT sector and is the only state in India to provide 24/7 free electricity to farmers. The TRS also highlighted that Telangana is top state in paddy cultivation, home to the world's largest lift irrigation project, state with highest growth rate in per capita availability of power in India and the fourth largest producer of solar energy. Both BJP and TRS are engaged in a bitter war over social media amid the ongoing national executive committee meeting of BJP in Hyderabad which is being attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several union ministers and chief ministers of BJP ruled states. President of Telangana's state BJP unit Bandi Sanjay Kumar has already announced that if voted to power in the state, his party will completely ban Urdu as the second official language in the state. The saffron party also strongly opposed the state government's move in allowing the Group 1 exam to be written in Urdu. Sanjay had termed this as a dangerous move and alleged that it was being done at the request of MIM. Islamabad, July 3 : The Pakistani government's "intrusive" attitude towards the media was evident during the Imran Khan government when those critical of him and his government were targeted. With the rift between the Army and Imran Khan increasing, one now finds those critical of the Army being targeted. The Army has been sending out a clear message to all those who matter that they would not afford any criticism in any form, and from any quarter. However, the political dynamics in the country is so intricate that the possibility of vested interests pushing journalists to criticise the Army and then being attacked by their own cronies to show the attack as being carried out by the Army cannot be ruled out. On July 1, some unidentified persons attacked senior journalist and analyst Ayaz Amir of Dunya News programme "Think Tank". Pak Premier Shehbaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz have taken notice of the attack and sought a report. The attack on Amir intriguingly was carried out only a day after his speech at a seminar on regime change organised by lawyers of Islamabad High Court Bar Association who have been supporting the PTI of Imran Khan. In his speech, Amir had indirectly accused the General Headquarters (GHQ) of toppling Imran government and not the US. He also criticised Imran for giving extension to the present Army Chief and stressed that now onwards all successive army chiefs would aspire for a tenure of six years and more as long as they don't attain 64 years of age. Amir also lashed out at Imran Khan for relying on a single person (Faiz Hameed) for carrying out all tasks whether related to Balochistan, security issues or political matters. He came down hard on the former Prime Minister for handing over large swathes of land to the property mafia and Defence Housing Association. In all possibility, thrashing of Amir can be attributed to the military establishment. However, in the prevailing situation, the possibility of the PTI itself or the anti-Bajwa lobby being involved in the attack to further tarnish the image of Gen Bajwa and DG ISI Naveed Anjum cannot be ruled out. The "cowardly" attack has evoked strong reaction from the PTI Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan, President Arif Alvi and other PTI leaders as well as condemnation by media fraternity. Imran Khan's tweet indirectly held the military establishment and ISI responsible for the "dastardly" attack. Condemning the incident, the former Prime Minister said, "I condemn in strongest terms the violence against senior journalist Ayaz Amir today. Pakistan is descending into the worst kind of fascism with violence & fake FIRs against journalists, opposition politicians, citizens etc. When the state loses all moral authority it resorts to violence". Imran's chief of staff Shahbaz Gill tweeted that the incident is clear indication of the same tactics of traditional fascism. The media fraternity held the view that such incidents against journalists are "constantly occurring, and was absolutely deplorable and unacceptable". Investigative reporter Umar Cheema tweeted that Amir became the target of all elements in Pakistani politics as he criticised the incumbent government seeking a change in the government while at the same time he attacked the Army and Imran Khan as well. Another Pakistani media personality, Gharida Farooqi said that the attack on the senior columnist was the most condemnable act. She questioned whether it was an act by some affected persons or part of tactics against the govt? Najam Sethi tweeted that the physical attack on Ayaz Amir is shocking and reprehensible. It was meant to teach a lesson that some subjects are still taboo. Vlogger Murtaza Solangi wrote that the "dastardly assault on senior journalist Ayaz Amir is despicable and disgusting". "Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz must order to punish the culprits," he said. It is the duty of the security agencies and the police to find, prosecute and punish the thugs who had committed this horrible act. Journalist Talat Hussain tweeted that "Ayaz Amir was beaten up today. Shameful. Absolutely condemnable." Columnist and author Hamid Mir, condemning the incident recalled that last year unidentified people had harassed journalist Asad Toor after barging into his house in Islamabad. "The assailants could not be arrested till date. If Asad Toor had got justice, unidentified men would have not dared to attack Amir." Journalist Azaz Syed tweeted that he spoke to Amir in the morning regarding his "domineering speech". He said that "in the evening, this tragic incident took place. It is very important to expose the culprits by conducting an immediate investigation into the incident with Amir Sahib". Jammu, July 3 : Jammu and Kashmir Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha on Sunday announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh to the brave villagers of Reasi district for apprehending two most wanted terrorists. An official statement said, "Lt Governor, Manoj Sinha today announced Rs 5 lakh cash reward to villagers of Tukson Dhok, Reasi for displaying great courage and bravery in apprehending two most wanted terrorists. "I salute the bravery of villagers of Tukson Dhok, Reasi, who apprehended two most wanted terrorists. Such determination by common man shows end of terrorism is not far away. UT Government to extend Rs 5 lakh cash reward to villagers for gallant act against terrorists and terrorism," said the Lt Governor. The statement added that the villagers of Tukson Dhok showed extreme courage in apprehending two most wanted terrorists of Lashkar-e-Taiba. The terrorists had reached the area to take shelter after continued counter-terror operation by the police and Army. They have been identified as Talib Hussain of Rajouri and Faisal Ahmed Dar of Pulwama. Two AK rifles, seven grenades, a pistol and a huge quantity of ammunition were recovered from their possession. Washington, July 3 : China might be contemplating a "takeover" of the Moon as part of its military space program, NASA's administrator Bill Nelson has told newspaper Bild. In an interview, Nelson claimed that the United States is now involved in a new race to space, with China this time. He emphasized that in 2035, Beijing might finish construction of its own Moon station and start experiments a year later. Nelson claimed that we must be very concerned about China landing on the Moon and saying that it now belongs to the Peoples' Republic and everyone else should stay out, RT reported. Claiming that China's space program is a "military" space program, Nelson explained that the competition for the south pole of the moon is especially intense: potential water deposits there could be used in the future for rocket-fuel production. When asked by Bild what military purposes could China be pursuing in space, Nelson claimed that Chinese astronauts are busy learning how to destroy other countries' satellites. Despite Beijing's assurances that its ambitious space program has purely peaceful purposes, Nelson has long been a tough critic of China's policy in space, RT reported. In April, he accused Chinese officials of refusing to work with the US on its operations and of concealing important data. Earlier, however, he acknowledged that NASA abides by a 2011 law that prohibits the agency from engaging in direct collaboration with the Chinese government or any China-affiliated organizations without explicit approval from Congress and federal law enforcement authorities. Chinese officials have pointed to that ban, called the Wolf Amendment, as "unfortunate" and an impediment to direct cooperation with NASA. Kiev, July 3 : The UK Ministry of Defence, in its latest intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine, has said that the Russian-backed officials "plan to hold a referendum on the Kherson region joining Russia by autumn 2022". "Russian-backed officials have said they will hold a referendum on Kherson Oblast joining the Russian Federation by autumn 2022. Russia is likely prioritizing a pseudo-constitutional vote in an attempt to legitimize its control of the region," the ministry was quoted as saying by Ukrinform news agency. According to the update, despite the arrest of Kherson Mayor Ihor Kolykhaiev on June 28, 2022, "widespread armed and peaceful resistance continues across occupied areas". "Kherson is the region which has been brought under the new Russian occupation most comprehensively since February. Finding a constitutional solution for the occupation is likely a priority policy objective for Russia. It will highly likely be prepared to rig voting to achieve an acceptable result," the ministry said. Latest updates on Russia-Ukraine War Kolkata, July 3 : A trespasser, who reportedly entered the residence of West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee in South Kolkata after climbing up the boundary walls on late Saturday and was hiding inside the house for the whole night. He was nabbed by the security personnel on Sunday morning. He was handed over to the local Kalighat Police Station. The police are interrogating him to know with what intention he dared to enter that high-security zone and that too after climbing up the walls. Facing interrogation, he confessed that he climbed up the boundary wall and entered the Chief Minister's residence at around 1 a.m. and was hiding there for the whole night. Now the questions are being raised on how the person could climb up the wall and enter the chief minister's residence, hoodwinking the security personnel present there and also avoiding the CCTV cameras installed there. Recently, an aged couple was murdered in the same locality, which raised questions about the security arrangements there. Then it was learnt that a number of CCTV cameras installed there were non-functional. A senior official of the city police said that the questions of negligence of the police personnel posted there cannot be ruled out. It is learnt that all officers and personnel in charge of the security arrangements at the chief minister's residence will be questioned and the negligence part will also be probed. New Delhi, July 3 : The infertility and the impaired fecundity have been a concern through ages and is rising for various reasons. The prevalence of infertility in the general population is 15 to 20 per cent, as per the Word Health Organisation and the male infertility factor contributes around 40 per cent to this rate. Talking about the rising male infertility, Dr Neeta Singh, Professor, Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology,, said that Sperm DNA fragmentation is an important factor for this. "The parenting age has considerably increased compared to last 25-30 years because of late marriage trends. Now, males generally marry after 30-33 years and more or less, there is same pattern for females also. So, with the advancement of the ages, there happens DNA fragmentation in the sperm which is primarily responsible for the male infertility," said Dr Singh. Among other reasons, the rising temperature is also an important factor for the male infertility, she said, adding that, "Our clothing patterns have also an impact on the infertility." "The testes are naturally placed outside the body because it even can not tolerate the body's normal temperature. But, tight dressing trends and hot geographical location causes severe infertility," said Dr Singh of AIIMS, adding that it also affects the blood circulation of the body. She continued saying that the tight dressing is for the nations like US where temperature is normally cold, but in Indian context, it may be fatal. The effects of elevated testicular temperature may result in abnormal spermatogenesis and impaired sperm morphology and function, she said, while adding that "our ancestors used to wear loose and airy dresses like 'dhoti' and 'lungi'". Prolonged heat can create a problem on that part, she said, adding that it is advisable to wash the male part with cold water after several intervals if exposed to high temperature. She also underlined the late night working culture as prime factor for infertility because it affects the secretion of Melatonin hormone that is produced by brain in response to darkness. "There is a trend of declining sperm count across the globe and accordingly, the WHO has also reduced the acceptable value for normal sperm count. From 45 million sperm count, it has been reduced to 15 million sperm count which is supposed enough for pregnancy", said Delhi-based fertility expert Dr Archana Dhawan Bajaj. "In the semen analysis, good count was considered above 60 million a decade ago, but in today's environment, we find maximum normal sperm count around 30 to 40 million and it has considerably decreased," she added. Dr Bajaj said that around 40 per cent of total infertility is caused by male infertility, adding that if sperm count is above 15 million, pregnancy can be achieved. "The internal rhythm of the body has been broken due to work pressure of global lifestyle. People living in India work as per the timing of European countries or other nations which adversely affect the rhythm of the body and results into the performance pressure affecting their sperm quality", added Dr Bajaj. Meanwhile, India's Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is currently below the replacement level of fertility of 2.1 children per woman. The TFR is the average number of children born to a woman in her lifetime. The below-replacement fertility results eventually in negative population growth and extinction of the population in the long term. (Avinash Prabhakar can be reached at avinash.p@ians.in) Hyderabad, July 3 : Senior BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that the next 30 years will be the era of BJP and India will become a 'Vishwa guru' (world leader). Shah was speaking after presenting the political resolution on the second day of the BJP National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting here. The resolution was seconded by the Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and his Assam counterpart Himanta Biswa Sarma. The resolution talked about making the country free from politics of casteism, family rule and appeasement to take India into a new era of empowerment and development. Sharing details of Shah's address while presenting the political resolution, Assam Chief Minister Sarma said, "The Union Home Minister termed the recent Supreme Court judgement on the 2002 Gujarat riots historic and said all the allegations levelled against Prime Minister Narendra Modi proved baseless and politically motivated." "Some journalists, NGOs and political parties driven by their own ideologies and for their own agenda conspire to defame Prime Minister Modi. But Prime Minister Modi kept faith in the Constitution and faced SIT in Gujarat riots case without speaking a single word for 20 years unlike some leaders who enact political drama and spread anarchy when faced by investigating agencies on corruption charges," Sarma said quoting Home Minister Shah. "The Home Minister said that the recent electoral victory of BJP is victory of politics of performance and development, and it also ended politics of caste, dynasty and regionalism. "Home Minister also spoke about opposition parties and said that today the opposition is divided. Congress members are fighting to establish democracy within the party. "The Union Minister mentioned GST, air and surgical strike, triple talaq, abrogation of Article 370, CAA, vaccine, new recruitment scheme for armed forces 'Agnipath' and other government welfare schemes." Union Home Minister Shah also said that West Bengal and Telangana will be freed from dynasty politics. He also said that a BJP government will be formed in the other Southern states, including Telangana and Tamil Nadu. Congress is suffering from 'Modi phobia' and opposing every decision taken by the Modi Government in the national interest, Sarma said quoting the Home Minister. The political resolution also said that politics of region and language has ended after the Modi government came to power in 2014. Mumbai, July 3 : Comedienne Bharti Singh has all the reasons to cheer up as she gets a year older today. Her husband Haarsh Limbachiyaa shared a picture with Bharti on his Instagram stories in a green shimmery gown and wrote a small caption: "Happy Birthday my love". Born on July 3, 1984 in Amritsar, Punjab, Bharti has been part of several projects including 'Comedy Nights Bachao', 'Khatron Ke Khiladi 9', 'Hunarbaaz Desh Ki Shaan', 'The Khatra Khatra Show' and many more. This birthday is more special as she is celebrating with her baby Gola. Her family and friends including Avika Gor, Yuvika Chaudhary, Mubeen Saudagar and other are sending across their best wishes for her. Mubeen wrote with a heart emoji: "Happy Birthday to my sis God bless you" Many of her fans also shared birthday wishes. One fan commented: "Happy birthday Laughter Queen!" Another fan wrote: "Happiest born day bharti ji" Chennai, July 3 : Jammu and Kashmir official has thanked the unit of director Hanu Raghavapudi's 'Sita Ramam', featuring Dulquer Salmaan in the lead, for shooting in the Kashmir valley. Sources close to the unit say that an officer of the Union Territory government helped the unit all through the shoot and later profusely thanked the filmmakers for shooting 'Sita Ramam' in Kashmir. "He said that movies like this will showcase the beauty and the grandeur of Kashmir to a global audience," the source said. Senior Jammu and Kashmir officials apparently told the unit that they are witnessing a tremendous response and surge in film production houses from across India expressing the desire to shoot films in the valley. They said that permissions had been given to more than 130 different producers and production banners to shoot in the valley. 'Sita Ramam' is a beautiful love story set in the backdrop of the 1965 War. Dulquer Salmaan plays Lieutenant Ram, an orphan, serving the nation in snow clad mesmerising terrains and gleaming lakes of Kashmir. Pairing Dulquer is Mrunal Thakur as Sita Mahalakshmi, the female lead of the film, along with Rashmika Mandanna in an impressive role. The film is presented by the 50-year-old Vyjayanthi Movies and produced by Ashwini Dutt for Swapna Cinema. Sumanth Akkineni, Gautam Menon, and Prakash Raj appear in interesting supporting roles. Choreographed by Brinda, the camerawork in the movie is by PS Vinod and Vishal Chandrasekhar is rendering the music. The film will be released worldwide in three languages -- Malayalam, Telugu and Tamil -- on August 5. Srinagar, July 3 : The Jammu and Kashmir Traffic police on Sunday issued advisory for tourists, pilgrims and truck movement to inform about the travel timings and travel restrictions for NH-44 during Amarnath Yatra 2022. According to the advisory issued by the IGP Traffic Police, Jammu and Kashmir, empty tankers and trucks upto 10 tyres shall ply through Mughal Road towards Jammu. The trucks up to 10 tyres including those loaded with fresh perishable items shall preferentially use Mughal Road towards Jammu. The timings of Mughal Road have also been increased from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., for the present, subject to the daily assessment by traffic authorities. The advisory further said the movement via NH-44 the trucks with more than 10 tyres shall ply via National Highway-44. Trucks with more than 10 tyres loaded with fresh perishable items should reach Jakheni Naka/Qazigund Naka before 2 p.m. These trucks shall be parked separately and shall be given preference when traffic is released, it said. It said the movement of tourists in Kashmir Valley other than via 'Yatra Convoys' are advised to travel in the Kashmir Valley only between 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and must plan their travel so as to reach their destination within this time period. In case, the tourists fail to reach their destination within the stipulated time, i.e by 6 p.m., the security forces shall make such tourists halt for the night at the nearest lodgement centre, the traffic advisory added. Modasa : , July 3 (IANS) A group of 45 armed men chased and attacked a police party, escorting a couple, in north Gujarat, leaving two police personnel injured, and a police vehicle damaged, police said on Sunday. Three persons were arrested in this connection on Saturday night. Police head constable, Jayesh Jayantibhai in his complaint with the Shamlaji police station said: "Under Modasa Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate's order, the police team was escorting Bhupendrabhai Tarar, Munniben Khant, Shaluben Tarar and Bhupendrabhai's advocate Shailendra Rathod in a police vehicle from Modasa to Sunokh village." "When the vehicle was passing through the Shamlaji Ashram crossroads, an Eeco car blocked its way, and about a dozen persons armed with sticks and other weapons came out. Then another Eeco car with 10 more persons reached the spot and started attacking the police vehicle. Some of them tried to pull out Khant. They were shouting and threatening to kill Tarar." He added: "It was only when additional police force from the Shamlaji police station reached the spot, the accused fled away in their vehicles." Shamlaji Police Sub Inspector B.S. Chauhan said, police arrested three main accused -- Mahesh Tarar, Ashwin Kadam, and Ravikumar Tarar - and search for the rest is going on. Khant was married to Dhaval Parmar, but later fell in love with Bhupendra Tarar and both eloped. Parmar filed an application before the Modasa Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court seeking police search for his wife and produce her before the court. On Saturday afternoon, police produced the duo before the court, where Khant said that she wishes to go with Tarar. As she is an adult, the court granted her permission, but Tarar fearing assault, pleaded the court to provide police protection to his village Sunokh. On the court order, police were escorting the couple when they were attacked. Jamnagar, July 3 : Jamnagar police was shocked to learn that a 13-year-old boy, living in the police quarters, had been stealing liquor from a police storeroom, and in three months stole liquor worth Rs 1,70,000. The boy was caught finally on Saturday and a complaint was filed against the teenager. Home Guard Jawan Mohit Mehta, on duty at the headquarters, saw the boy breaking into the storeroom from the backside on Saturday. A few minutes later he saw the boy coming out carrying something in his hand. On checking, he found that the minor was in possession of two bottles of a premium beer. He was taken to the B-division police station, where in presence of Police Inspector Kamlesh Bhoi, the boy was questioned. It is believed that the accused told the police that he first broke into the store room in April 2022, since then he has been stealing seized liquor, said a Police Station officer. Later, a police team along with government witnesses carried out a search at the accused's resident, government quarter block B/5 room number 49, from where the police seized 29 bottles of premium whisky. Till July 2, he had stolen 317 bottles of Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) and seven tins of premium beer. The total market value is of Rs 1.70 lakh. Police Head Constable Dhavalgiri Gosai from the C-division police station in his complaint has stated that the police is using one bungalow, behind the cyber cell office, in the Police headquarters as a storeroom. Where muddamal of various crimes are being stored. Muddamal seized till June 7, 2022 was kept in the store room. The minor boy has been arrested under various sections of the Indian Penal code for theft, trespassing, house breaking with an intention of committing crime, and under the Prohibition act. New Delhi, July 3 : World Chocolate Day commemorates the most beloved indulgence. So, here are some of the best places in Mumbai to celebrate the occasion: Hitchki Hitchki is more than just a fun and quirky diner with amusing Bollywood-themed dishes. The restaurant serves nostalgia on a platter through popular Hindi film dialogues and lyrics that every Hindustani heart can relate to, as the word 'hitchki' or hiccup itself stands as a metaphor for remembrance. Dessert filled with cigarette candies, gems, and nuts, as well as generous scoops of vanilla and chocolate ice cream topped with drizzled chocolate sauce and wafer cones are a must try. Chocolate Lava Kulfi, on the other hand, suggests a delectable twist on the kulfi-and-chocolate-lava combination to enjoy the best of both worlds. 1522 Bar and Kitchen With its chic atmosphere and festive vibes, 1522 Bar and Kitchen brings life to the city of dreams. Coming from Bengaluru, the place is accustomed to Mumbai's pace, zest, and spirit. The multi-cuisine dine-in caters to culinary needs while providing visitors with homely comfort. Not only are its royal kebabs and finely curated cocktails prepared with premium ingredients, but so are its chocolate dessert. Ferrero Rocher Entremet comes in first place, combining crunchy wafers and roasted hazelnuts in Ferrero Rocher with the stunning French entremet. For a guilt-free indulgence, try its low-calorie Keto Choco Fudge. Love and Cheesecake To celebrate the occasion, Love and Cheesecake, Mumbai's premium dessert chain, will shower you with the best chocolate cheesecakes and layered cakes. This brand, co-founded by Ruchyeta Bhatia and Chef Amit Sharma, delivers across Mumbai from its fifteen store locations. Love and Cheesecake boasts a dessert menu with over 120 different flavours. From gooey chocolate fudge cake to the unique blend of flavours in Chocolate Banoffee Cake, this bakery's Chocolate base is limitless. Mad Over Donuts Head to Mad Over Donuts or order from their website from the comfort of your own home if you want to indulge in the fluffy and crispy goodness of doughnuts. Brownie Crumble, Chocolate Therapy, Double Trouble, Chocolate Decadence, and other variations on chocolate-flavoured doughnuts are available at this location. It serves bite-sized doughnuts, crunchy Belgian waffles, and eclairs, among other things, in addition to mouth-watering doughnuts with cream or melted chocolate filling. Poetry by Love and Cheesecake Poetry by Love and Cheesecake, a lively hangout spot, has locations throughout Mumbai. This cafe serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner in an American-European style to its customers. It not only serves delicious and nutritious meals, but it also specialises in freshly prepared desserts. On this World Chocolate Day, you can indulge in the Belgian Chocolate Waffle with marshmallows, chilled vanilla ice cream, and maple syrup, or Chocolate OD, for a more traditional yet sinful chocolate treat. (IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in) Chandigarh, July 3 : Less than four months after the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) sweeping victory in the Punjab Assembly elections, the Bhagwant Mann government will have its first cabinet expansion on Monday evening with five new ministers, including second-time legislator Aman Arora, likely to be inducted. With their induction, the total strength of the council of ministers will rise to 15, including the Chief Minister. There, still, will be eight vacancies. The government has sent a letter to Governor Banwari Lal Purohit for seeking time for the oath-taking ceremony on Monday, an official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told IANS. The legislators to be included are Fauja Singh Sarahi from Guru Harsahai, Inderbir Singh Nijjar from Amritsar (South), who was the protem Speaker, Anmol Gagan Mann from Kharar, Chetan Singh Jauramajra from Samana, and Arora from Sunam. In an unprecedented action, Health Minister Vijay Singla was sacked from the state Cabinet on May 24 and arrested on corruption charges with Chief Minister Mann saying his government has zero tolerance towards corruption. Chennai, July 3 : The movie 'Rocketry: The Nambi Effect' released globally on July 2 and is gaining good reviews as well as positive word of mouth. The movie is about the life and struggles of the country's eminent scientist, Dr. Nambi Narayanan who was a senior scientist in the ISRO and later was alleged of being involved in espionage. He fought the case and won it and got acquitted of all charges and even made the police pay him compensation for undue detention in police custody and trauma. Scripted and directed by actor R. Madhavan, the movie has been co-directed by Prajesh Sen, who had written a book on Nambi Narayanan and made a documentary on the eminent scientist. IANS caught up with Prajesh Sen, who has acted in several hit movies in the Malayalam film industry after quitting his job as a journalist in a leading Malayalam newspaper. IANS: You are part of the movie Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, Please share your experiences about the film. A: Experience means my close association with Nambi Narayanan Sir. I was in school when I first heard about the ISRO spy scandal and had a feeling that it was true. But later when I grew up, read a lot, and developed my own social outlook, I could understand that he was wronged. Later, I became a professional journalist and tried to get his interview but he didn't relent. However, after constant perusal, I could get his interview and my interview with him was a big hit which was titled 'Is there an answer to my nine questions'. Then I wrote a book on him, 'Ormakalude Brahmanapatham', which took five years for me to complete. I travelled to places where he had been to, including Vernon in France, and there I took visuals which later turned out to become my documentary on him, 'Nambi, the Scientist'. Q: Popular actor R. Madhavan is casted as Nambi Narayanan and how was the feel of Madhavan as Nambi? A: In fact Madhavan the actor has transformed into Nambi Narayanan literally and he has totally become the great scientist on screen. All the mannerisms of Nambi Narayanan were properly displayed by Madhavan. We never felt that he was acting but was living the role of Nambi sir. On watching the movie in a theatre among the crowd, I turned highly emotional at the performance of R. Madhavan. Q: Was your documentary, 'Nambi: The Scientist', a good experience in the larger frame of the movie? A: Yes, I did the documentary on my experience with travelling with Nambi Narayanan sir during the research on his book. Had the experience of visiting the scientific labs where he had conducted research, his studies, and everywhere. The visuals that I shot during these visits were later used for the documentary, 'Nambi: The Scientist'. It was indeed an experience for making a movie in a larger frame. Q: R. Madhavan has played the role of Nambi Narayanan and he acted in the movie as a 27-year-old Nambi and later as a 75-year-old Nambi Narayanan also. How was the feeling while working with him during the shoot? A: Yes, the period of Nambi Narayanan from the age of 27 to him turning the age of 75 was portrayed in the movie. This led to the movie taking two years to shoot to be completed. Madhavan had even bleached his beard and hair to get the grey look and had taken enormous effort and strain to bring the body condition to that of a 27-year-old Nambi Narayanan and later as a 75-year-old. This is the first time that I am seeing an actor taking this much strain and this was a totally dedicated effort on the part of R. Madhavan. Q: Madhavan has gone on record that this was his best film ever. Do you have the same feel? A: There is no confusion in stating that this is the best role played by R. Madhavan in his career. He has put his soul and heart and physique into the movie. He has turned each moment into the scientist Nambi Narayanan. This is his best performance, best makeover, and best direction. Even if this was his first directorial venture, he had performed exceedingly well. As a co-director of the movie, I had the feel of his total performance in the movie as an actor and director. His thirty years of acting experience was converted in the making of the movie. Q: You had written a book on Nambi Narayanan and later did a documentary on the Rocket scientist. Did these experiences help you during the direction of the movie? A: The experiences I had in writing a book on him and later making a documentary on him helped me a lot during the shooting of the movie. Also, I traveled quite a lot with Nambi Narayanan Sir. All these helped during the shooting of the movie. I had a personal rapport with him which can be termed a friendship and this helped me during the shoot. This has helped the totality of the movie as such. Q: Will the movie have a major impact across the globe as this is not a movie on a sportsperson or a movie star but on a scientist. Your comment? A: After watching this movie, the people would think of themselves -- not only scientists I mean, but each and every individual who watches this movie will think about themselves in the shoes of the great scientist and how he was wronged and targeted. The life of Nambi Narayanan, the scientist will be etched in golden letters in the hearts of the people who had watched the movie. Everyone who had watched the movie praised Nambi Narayanan sir and said that they were ignorant as to what a big man he was. People knew him only as a person who had escaped after being charged in an espionage case. Now the audience understood that he is beyond that and had made major contributions to science. Each individual who has watched the movie will understand that he is such a great nationalist and how much people will celebrate Madhavan as an actor, and so will Nambi Narayanan, the scientist be celebrated. The movie will give great recognition to the scientific community of the country and the world. Q: How was the experience during the shoot of this movie? A: I had completed the movie 'Captain' and was doing my preliminary discussions for my movie, 'Vellam' when I joined this team as a co-director. I could learn several things from Madhavan Sir and how he was molding actors and even as a co-director, I was made comfortable by him. Sync sound was done by people who have been exposed to that area of expertise. Graphics, including VFX, was done by a big company called Assemblage and I had the opportunity to visit their premises and cooperate with them giving me a great experience. The camera for the movie was wielded by Sreesha Roy from West Bengal, who is an FTII Pune product and this was his sixtieth movie. His experience helped us enjoy the style of his work. The editor of the movie was Bijith Bala who is the editor of all my movies and his experience and professionalism helped the movie and the team very much. The movie was made on a wider platform and Shah Rukh Khan and Suriya did cameo roles in the movie. I am totally indebted to R. Madhavan and Nambi Narayanan Sir for having given me an opportunity to be part of this movie which will be a game-changer. Moscow/Kiev, July 3 : Russia on Sunday said that its troops along with separatist forces have taken "full control" of the eastern Ukrainian city of Lysychansk, a claim that has been refuted by the Ukrainian side. "Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin on the 'liberation' of the Lugansk (Luhansk) People's Republic (LPR)," the Russian Defence Ministry announced on Sunday. "On July 3, 2022, the Russian Minister of Defense, General of the Army Sergey Shoigu reported to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces Vladimir Putin on the 'liberation' of the Lugansk People's Republic," the ministry was quoted as saying by Russia's Tass news agency. Ukrainian Defence Ministry spokesman Yuriy Sak has said that the city of Lysychansk is not under the "full control" of Russian forces, the BBC reported. However the spokesman added that the situation in the city had been "very intense for quite a while now" with Russian ground forces "attacking the city non-stop". Earlier on Sunday, the Russian Defence Ministry had said that its troops have captured the villages surrounding Lysychansk and are now fighting Ukrainian troops inside the city. "Russian troops and units of the Luhansk People's Republic are fighting inside Lysychansk, completely defeating the encircled enemy." Latest updates on Russia-Ukraine War New Delhi, July 3 : A homeless man, sleeping on a pavement in the national capital, was crushed under the wheels of a car, an official said on Sunday. The accused driver, identified as Ashok, 31, has been arrested. Deputy Commissioner of Police Sameer Sharma said a PCR call was received in Mangolpuri police station regarding a fatal accident near Ramlila Ground after which the police reached the spot where a large number of people were already gathered. "It was found that one unknown person had been hit by an unknown vehicle and his head was crushed due to that accident. He was lying on the ground in a pool of blood," the DCP said. The scene of crime was preserved and the injured person was shifted to Sanjay Gandhi Hospital immediately, where he was declared 'brought dead'. "The spot was inspected, where skid marks of tyres were seen. The Mobile Crime team of Outer District was called at the spot and the scene of crime was inspected and photographed," DCP Sharma said, adding, the Forensic Science Laboratory team also inspected the area. Accordingly, the police registered an FIR under section 279 (rash driving) and 304A (Causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code and took up the investigation. Subsequently, a police team was constituted which was tasked to obtain the details of the deceased and it was found that the deceased was a vagabond. During analysis of CCTV footage, one suspected car - Bolero white colour was identified. The details of the car were obtained and the owner was given the notice under section 133 MV Act, which stated that he had given his car to the accused Ashok on rent. The police detained accused Ashok from his residence who on interrogation disclosed that a generator is fitted with his car and when he was reversing it near the Ramlila ground, due to his rash and negligent driving, the tyre of the generator ran over a person sleeping in the ground. As the accused was frightened by the incident, he fled from the spot, the official said. The police have arrested accused Ashok while the details of the deceased are yet to be ascertained, the official added. Chennai, July 3 : An IT professional Muthumari, 29, was killed and 17 others of a private company were seriously injured when a tourist van carrying them to Masinagudi in Nilgiris fell off Kalhatti Ghat Road on Sunday morning. The tourists were on a holiday to the hill station. Two persons working with the resort, W. Vinod Kumar, 25, from Chennai and G. Joseph, 26, from Coimbatore were arrested for misguiding the van driver. Police told media persons that people from outside are not allowed to descend the Kalhatti Ghat Road due to the sharp gradients that have caused major accidents in the past. The van was guided by Vinod and Joseph who were on a motorcycle. According to the police charge sheet, they made a detour and went past the police check post at Thalakunda junction. Police stationed at the junction divert vehicles from descending the ghat towards Masanagudi and Gudalur. Vinod Kumar, Joseph, and the driver of the van have been booked under Sections 279 (rash driving in public place), 337, and 338 (causing hurt to persons by doing harsh or rash or negligent acts endangering human life) and 304 A (rash or negligent driving) of the Indian Penal Code. Shimla, July 3 : Tashigang, a hamlet located at an altitude of 15,256 feet in the picturesque Spiti Valley and close to the Indo-China border, has been provided with functional domestic tap connections, officials said on Sunday. This village in Lahaul-Spiti district is situated at the highest altitude in India. The state government has achieved cent per cent target of providing functional household tap connections (FHTC) in four districts -- Una, Chamba, Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti under the Jal Jeevan Mission and achieved 93.05 per cent target, an official statement of the state government said. So far, 24 blocks, 2,331 gram panchayats and 14,661 villages have been fully covered under the Jal Jeevan Mission, it said. During the last two and a half years, 8.44 lakh households were provided tap connections, while in the past 72 years only 7.63 lakh households were provided connections, as per the statement. Under the mission, Rs 4,418.37 crore has been allocated by the government of India to the state, including an incentive of Rs 1,028.43 crore, it said. Water supply has been provided to 411 habitations having 22,763 houses in remote Kinnaur district. Under the mission, 219 schemes were approved in the district, out of which 155 schemes completed. In another remote district of Lahaul-Spiti, water supply has been given to 364 habitations having 7,284 houses. Seven schemes are being implemented in the district. The total estimated cost of the works being executed is Rs 122 crore. Chamba district has been selected as an aspirational district by NITI Aayog. In this district, including tribal sub-divisions of Pangi and Bharmour, work is being done on schemes of Rs 420 crore. The target of 100 per cent coverage has been achieved by providing functional tap connections to all 121,752 households in the district, said the statement. Under the Jal Jeevan Mission, women's participation has been ensured in the district in resource selection, execution of schemes and field water testing for which the district has been appreciated by the government of India. In Una district, 15 schemes costing Rs 196 crore are being implemented. The cent per cent target of providing functional tap connections to all 115,949 houses in the district has been achieved. "In the assessment done by the government of India in 2020-21, Himachal Pradesh has been rated as the best in overall efficiency in quantity and quality of potable water available at the consumer level," the statement claimed. "The availability of quality water supply at consumer level has improved the standard of living and health conditions. The dependence of water from natural sources has reduced, which has saved people's time and they are now using their time to earn their livelihood," it said. Nagpur, July 3 : A court in Maharashtra's Amravati district on Sunday sent the prime accused in the murder of chemist Umesh Pralhadrao Kolhe to police custody till July 7, officials said here. The accused - Sheikh Irfan - who is also the mastermind behind the dastardly killing of Kolhe on the night of June 21, was nabbed from Nagpur on Saturday, hours after the Centre handed over the probe to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). The other accused arrested are Mudassir Ahmed, 22, Shahrukh Pathan, 25, Abdul Taufiq , 24, Shoib Khan, 22, Atib Rashid, 22, and Yusuf Bahadur Khan. Currently, Irfan, 35, is being interrogated by the investigation team, and the police indicate the possibility of more arrests being carried out in the case. Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis termed the Amravati incident as a "very serious matter and the killing was barbaric" and the NIA will attempt to unravel if it has any international links. Former Home Minister Dilip Walse-Patil, declining to comment, merely said that now the NIA has taken over the probe, they will do a thorough job. Kolhe, 54, a veterinary chemist was waylaid on the night of June 21 when he was driving home on his scooter, and stabbed in the neck, after he allegedly forwarded some posts supporting ex-BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma's comments. The incident - which took place at the height of a political crisis in the state - was virtually ignored and shot to limelight after the Centre asked the NIA to probe the matter. New Delhi, July 3 : About 10 states in India have detected a new sub-variant of Omicron BA.2.75, which may be "alarming" in nature, according to an Israeli expert on Sunday. However, the Indian Health Ministry is yet to officially confirm the detection of the sub-variant in the country. In a series of Tweets, Dr. Shay Fleishon, with the Central Virology Laboratory at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, said that 85 sequences from eight countries have been uploaded so far on Nextstrain, an open-source platform of genomic data. This included 69 from India: Delhi (1), Haryana (6), Himachal Pradesh (3), Jammu (1), Karnataka (10), Madhya Pradesh (5), Maharashtra (27), Telangana (2), Uttar Pradesh (1), and West Bengal (13). Besides India, the strain has also been reported by seven other countries: Japan (1), Germany (2), the UK (6), Canada (2), the US (2), Australia (1), and New Zealand (2), according to the Nextstrain data. "No transmission could be tracked based on sequences outside India yet," Fleishon wrote on Twitter. While he said it is "too soon to tell" whether BA.2.75 will be the next dominant variant, he noted that the sub-variant may be "alarming because it may imply a trend to come". Fleishon explained that in recent months, there has been a trend of second generation variants based on Omicron sub-lineages, namely BA.1, BA.2, BA.3, BA.4, and BA.5. This was based on Omicron lineages with mutations in the S1 section of the spike protein and specifically in the part of the spike protein which the virus uses to connect to and gain entry into cells. However, the rise seen in these sub-variants has been "at a level not seen in second-generation variants from other variants of concerns". Further, until now these second-generation variants have only been found in a few cases within one region. This is the first time a second-generation variant from Omicron has spread to multiple regions. "The fact that such a divergent 2nd gen variant can succeed inter-host is alarming. It means that if BA.2.75 will not succeed, and even if it will, other 2nd gen might grow better over time," Fleishon said. The sub-variant is worth "keeping a close eye" on, Thomas Peacock, a scientist at Imperial College London, said on Twitter. The BA.2.75 was also flagged by Bloom Lab at the Fred Hutch research institute in the US. In a tweet, posted this week, the institute said the sub-variant "is worth tracking, as it has appreciable antigenic change relative to its parent BA.2". The lab pointed to two mutations as key: G446S and R493Q. "G446S is at one of most potent sites of escape from antibodies elicited by current vaccines that still neutralises BA.2. So for immunity from vaccines or early infections, adding G446S to BA.2 will decrease neutralisation," the lab said. "However, G446S will have less effect on antibodies of people with prior BA.1 breakthrough infection. Therefore, BA.2.75's antigenic advantage relative to BA.2 will be most pronounced in people who have not had BA.1 exposure," it said. This means that "BA.2.75 will have antibody escape that is similar to that for BA.4/5 with respect to the current vaccine". The R493Q mutation, on the other hand, seems to increase the virus's ability to attach to ACE2 -- the protein which the Covid virus uses to enter cells. New Delhi, July 3 : Supreme Court judge Justice J.B. Pardiwala on Sunday called on Parliament ti dwell upon introducing appropriate legislative and regulatory provisions to regulate digital and social media as trials by digital media causes undue interference in the process of justice dispensation, as he cited various instances of the media crossing "Laxman Rekha". Justice Pardiwala, who was part of the Supreme Court bench, which slammed former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma for igniting the country and damaging the social fabric with her remark on Prophet Muhammad, emphasised on regulating digital and social media in the country to preserve the rule of law. Media trials are not healthy for rule of law, he said in his address on topic "Vox Populi vs. Rule of Law: Supreme Court of India" in the 2nd Justice HR Khanna Memorial National Symposium. "Regulation of digital and social media especially in the context of sensitive trials which are sub judice, must be dwelt upon by the Parliament by introducing appropriate legislative and regulatory provisions in this regard," he said. He said a trial is essentially a process to be carried out by courts, however in the modern-day context, trials by digital media are an undue interference in the process of justice dispensation -- crossing that "Laxman Rekha" many times. Justice Pardiwalwa said a section of people, possessing half-truths, scrutinising the judicial process "are a real challenge to dispensation of justice through the rule of law. Social and digital media nowadays primarily resorted to express personalised opinions against judges per say rather than a constructive critical appraisal of their judgments". He said constitutional courts have graciously accepted informed dissent and cited the personalised agenda-driven attacks on judges. "This is where digital and social media needs to be mandatorily regulated in the country to preserve the rule of law and our Constitutiona. Attacks on judges for their judgments lead to a dangerous scenario," he said. Justice Pardiwala said India still can't be classified as a complete and mature democracy, and social and digital media is employed frequently to politicise legal and constitutional issues. Citing the judgment in Ayodhya title dispute, he pointed out that as the case was nearing the verdict, there were political overtones. "Judges deciding the dispute may get a bit shaken, which is antithetic to the rule of law. That is not healthy for the rule of law." He emphasised that social media is overrun by people "possessing half-truth" and those who don't understand rule of law, evidence, judicial process and its inherent limitations. Citing cases of serious offences, Justice Pardiwala said the immense power of social and digital media is resorted to precipitating a perception of guilt or innocence of the accused even before the trial is over. Justice Pardiwala said he was a firm believer of the rule of law had no exceptions and that the opinion of the public hardly mattered when it came to judicial verdicts and added judicial verdicts could not be reflections of the influence of public opinion on the court. Hyderabad, July 3 : Former MP Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, one of the richest politicians in the country, on Sunday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Reddy, who quit the Congress party last year, formally joined the saffron party at the massive public meeting addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other top party leaders at Parade Grounds. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and party's national president J. P. Nadda formally welcomed Reddy into the party fold. Reddy took the decision after BJP national general secretary incharge of party affairs in Telangana, Tarun Chug along with Telanganae BJP president Bandi Sanjay met him last week and invited him to join the party. Reddy had later said that only BJP can be a real alternative to Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). An engineer and entrepreneur, Vishweshwar Reddy is husband of Sangita Reddy, managing director of Apollo Hospitals. He had declared assets worth Rs 895 crore in the 2019 elections. Reddy, who was with the ruling TRS before switching loyalties to the Congress, had earlier stated that both the Congress and the BJP can't be an alternative to the TRS. He had also hinted at floating a new regional party with an aim to defeat TRS in the 2023 Assembly elections. He was planning to bring together leaders of various smaller parties and even those TRS leaders who are unhappy with Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao to form an alternative. Vishweshwar Reddy had fought and won the Lok Sabha elections from Chevella on TRS ticket in 2014. During his term, he was one of the richest serving MPs. He is the only parliamentarian from India to be granted a US patent while serving as a Member of Parliament. As an engineer by profession, Reddy had worked as an adjunct faculty in the New Jersey Institute of Technology, N.J., Essex County College, Newark, U.S. A successful software entrepreneur, he founded Citadel Research & Solutions, a company involved in engineering research and development. He quit TRS before the 2019 elections and joined Congress. He contested again from Chevella but lost to the TRS candidate. Thiruvananthapuram, July 3 : The Student Federation of India (SFI), the student body of the CPI-M has disbanded its Wayanad district committee following criticism over the attack on the office of Congress leader and Member of Parliament from Wayanad constituency, Rahul Gandhi. SFI in a statement on Sunday said that a seven-member ad-hoc committee will look into the affairs of the Wayanad district committee till a new elected committee is put in place. A group of around 100 SFI activists led by its Wayanad district secretary Jishnu Sasi had on June 24 ransacked the office of Rahul Gandhi and even smashed the photograph of Mahatma Gandhi. The secretary of Rahul Gandhi's office and other staff were grievously injured in the attack. The attack was against the inaction of Rahul Gandhi as a Member of Parliament on the issue of buffer zone in the constituency wherein a Supreme court directive had made it mandatory for every protected forest tract and wildlife sanctuary to have an eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of one kilometer from its boundaries. If such a buffer zone is implemented, large tracts of land in Wayanad district would fall into that category leading to the displacement of people and demolition of residential and commercial properties. With the SFI having egg on its face following the attack, the CPI-M summoned the student body's national president V.P. Sanu and state president K. Ansuree to the party-state headquarters AKG centre and gave dressing down to the leaders. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, LDF convener E.P. Jayarajan and senior CPI-M leaders deplored the action of the SFI. Sitram Yechury also came out strongly against the attack and vandalism of Rahul Gandhi's office. Leader of the opposition V.D. Satheeshan had lashed out against Chief Minister Vijayan over the attack on Rahul Gandhi's office and had tweeted that when the gold smuggling issue allegations against the Chief Minister had come up, the CPI-M was resorting to tactics to divert the attention. Mumbai, July 3 : Language and genre are no longer restrictions, and actors across different regional industries are working together in Bollywood as one unit today. Popular actress Wamiqa Gabbi, who was seen in 'Jab We Met', 'Mausam', 'Love Aaj Kal' and other Bollywood movies, believes that this is a good and much-needed change in the industry. Wamiqa says: "I feel that prominent names of cinema have a fresh formula to win the pan-Indian audience. They have learnt that the divide between vernacular and national films can be obliterated." "Not only regional stars are making their way to mainstream Bollywood but vice versa too. Today, actors from across regional industries are coming together with a single aim -- to make good content," she adds. Wamiqa was last seen in the official Indian adaptation of the hit American anthology series, 'Modern Love', by the name of 'Modern Love: Mumbai'. The show is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Ahmedabad, July 3 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday talked about his government in Delhi and governance in Gujarat. Citing BJP's 17-member delegation's two-day visit to Delhi for a reality check of schools and Mohalla Clinics, Kejriwal said, "Even after two days' visit, they could not find any shortcomings. This shows the performance of the AAP government in Delhi." Kejriwal further said: "The AAP government always welcomes constructive suggestions and criticism if it is good for the people at large. If any lapses are brought to our knowledge, we act at the earliest." He administered the oath to 6,988 office bearers of the party to be "honest, to serve the country and the people of Gujarat, build Gandhi and Sardar's dream of Gujarat." In Gujarat, only two parties are actively campaigning -- AAP and BJP. The Congress is not visible anywhere, he said. Earlier, speaking to media persons, Kejriwal condemned barbaric murder of Kanahiya Lal in Udaipur and he hoped that the accused gets severe punishment for such heinous crime. He also said it is not a time for finger-pointing. "AAP's base is expanding, workers should not be afraid of anyone," said Sandeep Pathak, AAP's Gujarat in-charge and he also advised party workers that "When you are running Bijli campaign, trust yourself, people are with you." Chennai, July 3 : The Madras High Court will, on Monday, hear a plea by AIADMK General Council member, M. Shanmugham, seeking to restrain the party from holding the body's meeting on July 11. The court will also take a call on staying the appointment of senior AIADMK leader A. Tamilmagan Hussain as the party Presidium's Chairman. A bench of Justices M. Duraiswamy and Sunder Mohan would also take up the petition filed by Shanmugham on the alleged contempt of court proceedings against senior leaders K. Palaniswami, CVe Shanmugham, D. Jayakumar, Hussain, K.P. Munusamy, and Dindigul Sreenivasan. The petitioner, in a series of sub-applications filed in a pending appeal, told the court that the AIADMK's founding leader M.G. Ramachandran had wanted its supreme leader to always be elected by the primary members of the party and that the bylaws of the party were drafted in this manner. He cited the election of O. Panneerselvam and Palaniswami, jointly elected as the Coordinator and Co-coordinator of the party, respectively, through a single vote process in December 2021. Such election process needs to be ratified in the party General Council held on June 23, the applicant said. Shanmugham, in the petition, said that he had filed a civil suit in the High Court on June 22 when he came to know that there was a plan to pass a resolution in favour of a single leadership in the June 23 General Council meet and sought an interim order restraining the party from passing any such resolution. While a single-judge bench refused to issue an interim order, a division bench, headed by Justice Duraiswamy, restrained the General Council from taking a decision on any new resolution but for the 23 resolutions that had been approved by Panneerselvam. The court heard the petition at the residence of Justice Duraiswamy at 2.30 a.m. on June 23 and passed the order at 4.40 a.m. The petitioner, in the complaint, said that Palaniswami moved a resolution, seconded by Jayakumar and Sreenivasan, to appoint Hussain as the party Presidium Chairman. Shanmugham argued that Hussain, Palaniswami, Sreenivasan, and Jayakumar were guilty of contempt of court as Hussain had announced that the next General Council meeting would be held on July 11. He said that the actions of Hussain were circumventing court orders. The petitioner also sought to restrain the conduct of the next General Council on July 11, punish the AIADMK leaders for contempt, and stay the appointment of Hussain. New Delhi, July 3 : Delhi Police have busted a gang of hi-tech cyber criminals and arrested four people who used to cheat gullible people on the pretext of facilitating online loans, an official said on Sunday. The accused were identified as Deepak Patwa, 23, Sunil Kumar Khatik, 34, Sunil Kumar Khatik, 34, and Dev Kishan, 32, all residents of Chittorgarh, Rajasthan. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Rohini) Pranav Tayal said a complaint was lodged by a man alleging that he received a text message on his phone with a link about getting a loan of Rs 2 lakh. "The man uploaded basic details on the same link after which he received a WhatsApp call and was asked to deposit 5 per cent of the loan amount in advance which will be refunded later," the DCP said. However, after depositing a sum of Rs 40,000 in three transactions, the alleged people stopped responding on WhatsApp. During the course of investigation, on the basis of money trail, it was learnt that the cheated amount had been transferred into bank accounts at Neemuch, Madhya Pradesh. "On further analysis, it was learnt that more than Rs 75 lakh has been transferred into the alleged account within two days and Crypto Currency i.e. USDT was being purchased on various platforms from the cheated money," the official said. With the help of technical surveillance, it was learnt that the accused people are operating from the area of Chittorgarh, Rajasthan after which the police conducted raids and all the four accused persons were apprehended. During interrogation, the accused disclosed that they got this idea (modus operandi) of cheating from YouTube. They came in touch with some Chinese nationals on Telegram App who used to cheat innocent people on the pretext of facilitating online loans, the official said. They used to procure the bank accounts and registered SIM cards by paying 1.5 per cent to account owners and further provide the same to the cheats through telegram. The accused used to get the cheated money in different bank accounts through UPI and then convert it into crypto currency by purchasing USDT from cheated money on Binance Crypto Exchange. "Arrested accused Deepak Patwa used to receive commission in USDT and later redeem it into his account and through hawala," said the official. On further probe, it was also learnt that the IP address of the alleged WhatsApp number belongs to China. "In order to communicate with the alleged WhatsApp number, the accused Deepak used to translate the messages received in Chinese language in Hindi with help of Google Translator and further also used to pass his version with the help of Google translator," Tayal said. He said that the investigation of the case is still in progress and more victims of the accused persons are being identified. Srinagar, July 3 : A Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel was shot at and injured by militants in J&K's Anantnag Sunday, police said. Militants fired at Firdous Ahmad Bhat in Bijbehara town of Anantnag in the evening, police sources said. "He was shifted to the local hospital for treatment from where he has been referred by attending doctors to army's base hospital in Srinagar," a source said. The area has been cordoned off for searches. Toronto, July 3 : While bone loss is a natural phenomena as human bodies age, astronauts on long-duration flights tend to have a permanent loss of bone density, finds a study. The findings, published in Scientific Reports journal, showed that some astronauts who flew on shorter missions, under six months, recovered bone strength and density in the lower body, compared to those who flew for longer durations. This loss happens because bones that would normally be weight-bearing on Earth, like your legs, don't have to carry weight in microgravity - you just float, said the team from University of Calgary in Canada. They followed 17 astronauts before and after spaceflight from 2015 to understand whether bone recovers after 'long-duration' spaceflight. The researchers scanned the wrists and ankles of the astronauts before they left for space, on their return to Earth, and then at six and 12 months post-return. "We found that weight-bearing bones only partially recovered in most astronauts one year after spaceflight. This suggests the permanent bone loss due to spaceflight is about the same as a decade worth of age-related bone loss on Earth," said lead author Dr Leigh Gabel, Assistant Professor in kinesiology at the varsity. "We've seen astronauts who had trouble walking due to weakness and lack of balance after returning from spaceflight, to others who cheerfully rode their bike on Johnson Space Center campus to meet us for a study visit. There is quite a variety of responses among astronauts when they return to Earth," added Dr. Steven Boyd, director of the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health at the varsity. According to former University of Calgary Chancellor and astronaut Dr. Robert Thirsk, "just as the body must adapt to spaceflight at the start of a mission, it must also readapt back to Earth's gravity field at the end". "Fatigue, light-headedness, and imbalance were immediate challenges for me on my return. Bones and muscles take the longest to recover following spaceflight. But within a day of landing, I felt comfortable again as an Earthling." As future space missions are exploring travel to more distant locations, the study's next iteration will explore the effects of even longer trips, to support astronauts who may one day travel beyond the International Space Station. Patna, July 3 : The Patna district administration on Sunday launched an anti encroachment drive and demolished 90 illegal structures, according to the District Magistrate of Patna. The anti-encroachment drive was started at 5.30 a.m. in Rajiv Nagar and Nepali Nagar localities of central Patna. During the drive, the district administration faced stiff resistance from the local residents who had stored bricks and stones on the rooftops of the buildings and pelted them on the police party, officials of district administration and Bihar Rajya Awas Board. Half a dozen police personnel including City SP central Ambrish Rahul were injured in the clash. The district administration arrived at these two adjoining localities with 14 earth mover machines (JCB machines) and 2,000 police personnel. "As we faced stiff resistance from the encroachers, our police force fired tear gas shells on them. Some police personnel also sustained injuries including City SP Ambrish Rahul. We have arrested 12 persons so far and efforts are on to identify others," said Chandrashekher Singh, District Magistrate of Patna. "Rajiv Nagar and Nepali Nagar were developed illegally by land mafias. The registries here have been completely banned. Still, the majority of them got the registry done at other places or took the power of attorney of lands which belong to Bihar Rajya Awas Board and local land mafias illegally sold this land to innocent people," Singh said. "We had served legal notice to every resident to vacate the land a month ago. Still, they ignored it. We eventually used force to remove the encroachment. The structures which were demolished are under construction," Singh said. Meanwhile, local residents claimed that they are the legal owners of land and also paying municipal taxes, electricity and power bills for more than 20 years. If the land belongs to Bihar Rajya Awas board, how would we get government facilities like power supply and house tax deposit. During the clash, Jan Adhikar Party president Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav also visited Rajiv Nagar and Nepali Nagar and blamed government bodies for allowing them to construct houses and then demolish the same. "The government officials including land record and registry officials, municipal corporation officials, police officials and others should be booked for taking bribes and allowing construction. This is a matter of corruption and officials are directly responsible for it. When the construction took place in these areas, why did law enforcement agencies not stop that?" Yadav said. Hyderabad, July 3 : In a message to BJP leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asked them to learn lessons from the mistakes of political parties who ruled the country for years but are now on decline. The Prime Minister said this while addressing the concluding session of the two-day BJP National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting here. Sharing the details of the Prime Minister's address, former union minister and senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said: "Prime Minister Modi today outlined the evolution of BJP over the years, what is our obligation towards the country, what duty we owe to the people of the country." In his address, Modi said that many parties which have ruled the country for years are on decline and asked the party leader to learn from their mistakes. "The Prime Minister said that many political parties which have ruled India for years are today fighting for their existence. The Prime Minister categorically stated that this terminal decline of their identity should not be a cause of laughter for us (BJP leaders). They have given us a lesson not to commit the mistakes they have made in the past," Prasad said. Prasad said that the Prime Minister congratulated Telangana BJP workers for organising the meet, and mentioned that 'Bhagyanagar' (Hyderabad) was the place where Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel laid down the foundation of 'Ek Bharat' or united India. "The Prime Minister said now it is the BJP's responsibility to make it 'Shresth Bharat'," the former Law Minister said. The Prime Minister also stated that the thought should be to move from 'appeasement' to 'fulfillment'. "Prime Minister said that our aim should be from appeasement to fulfillment," Prasad said. Prasad noted that the Prime Minister also talked about the rapid expansion of BJP over the years in the country and proudly conveyed his appreciation for the courage of BJP workers in states like Telangana, Kerala and West Bengal for working in 'unfavourable circumstances'. The former union minister said that the Prime Minister repeatedly emphasised on diversity of the country and all must be brought under ambit of BJP's organisational structure. "The Prime Minister said our approach should be from pro people initiative, and good governance," Prasad said. The Prime Minister also said the country is fed up with dynastic politics and dynastic political parties and it's difficult for dynastic political parties to survive for long. The Prime Minister also asked party leaders to undertake 'Sneh Yatra' to reach out to all sections of society. Hitting out at the Opposition parties, Modi noted that it is the BJP who built a Congress leader Sadar Patel statue. Referring to the Presidential polls, the Prime Minister lauded the NDA candidate Draupadi Murmu and asked all BJP MPs and MLAs to ensure there is no mistake in voting, and make sure their votes don't get rejected. The Prime Minister also asked the party MPs and MLAs to ensure more votes in favour of Murmu. Srinagar, July 3 : The massive security arrangements notwithstanding, this year's Amarnath Yatris are being welcomed with open arms by J&K's Muslims who are facilitating the smooth conduct of the pilgrimage at every step. One such example is these two friends who have erected a big hoarding at the very entry into the Valley, that reads: "If Kashi (Varanasi) is Lord Shiva's Nagri (City), Kashmir Valley is Lord Shiva's Himalayan home." With this heartening message, two local Muslims have been welcoming the pilgrims of Amarnath Yatra 2022. Javed Beigh, who has been the PRO of a former J&K Chief Minister and who proudly claims to stand for Sufism, Rishiism and anti-casteism and his friend, Asif Mir, who runs NGO 'The Human Race' have been welcoming the Amarnath Yatris. The welcome hoarding, set up by these two friends, also says: "Bham Bham Bhole", to remind the Yatris that for the local Muslims to welcome their Hindu brethren is an honour. Beigh, in a tweet, said: "My dear friend Asif Mir running NGO called "The Human Race" and I, welcomed our beloved guests (Amarnath Yatris), arriving from different parts of our country outside Navyug tunnel at Qazigund, south Kashmir with roses." Hyderabad, July 3 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed that people of Telangana double-engine government of BJP but avoided attacking Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government. Addressing a massive public meeting at Parade Grounds, he exuded confidence that the BJP will come to power in Telangana. He, however, surprisingly avoided criticising KCR or his government. As the public meeting was held a day after KCR launched a bitter attack on Modi and dared him to answer his questions, it was expected that the Prime Minister would give a strong counter. Speaking at a meeting organised by TRS on Saturday to welcome opposition parties' combined candidate for Presidential election, Yashwant Sinha, KCR had slammed Modi for 'killing democracy' and 'acting like a adictator'. Unlike in the past when Modi came down heavily on KCR for family rule and appeasement politics, this time he made no mention of the Chief Minister or TRS. He instead focused on listing out steps taken by the Central government during the last eight years for the development of Telangana and what BJP would do if voted to power in the state. "When BJP forms a double-engineered government in Telangana, every city and every village will see development at a rapid pace. We have to link all with positivity and development. We have to speed up the development and take Telangana to new heights," he said. The public meeting organised at the end of the two-day national executive of the BJP received a huge response with thousands of people from various parts of the state converging at Parade Grounds. Union ministers Amit Shah and Piyush Goyal, BJP national president J.P. Nadda, party's state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar were the other speakers. Several central ministers, chief ministers of BJP-ruled states and many top leaders of the party were present. In his speech, Modi claimed that the support of Telangana people for BJP grew manifold since 2019 Lok Sabha elections when the party had bagged four seats. "The states with double-engine governments of BJP are witnessing rapid development and increasing trust. The people of Telangana have the same aspiration. They have awakened and are paving way for a double-engine government," he said. Claiming that all round development of Telangana is among top priorities of BJP, the Prime Minister said his government was working continuously for the state's development. He said in the last eight years, his government tried to bring a change in the lives of every citizen and the benefit of development reached the people. "Those remained backward and deprived for decades have been partners in development. Poor, Dalit, oppressed, backward and tribals all feel that BJP government is meeting their requirements and aspirations," he said. He claimed that the benefits of schemes of the Central government were reaching all sections of people in Telangana. He spoke about the help provided during Covid pandemic including free vaccines, free ration and free medical treatment of the poor. Modi stated that his government was making a sincere effort to turn women's power into national power. He told the public meeting that surveys show that women's partnership has increased in the money deposited in the banks. He pointed out that out of 45 crore Jan Dhan bank accounts opened in the country, Telangana accounted for one crore. He said 55 per cent of the bank accounts were of women. "Two-third of Mudra loans were provided to women. Under Standup India, 80 per cent of loans were given to women." Speaking about the strengths of Telangana in research and innovation, he said the work done here for Covid vaccine and other equipment during the pandemic saved crores of lives. Earlier, Amit Shah during his speech slammed KCR and TRS for family rule and called on the people to throw the TRS government out of power and give BJP a chance. He alleged that KCR is only bothered about making his son the chief minister. He reiterated that the steering of TRS' car is in the hands of MIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi. He also alleged that KCR went back on his promise to celebrate Telangana Liberation Day officially due to pressure from Owaisi. Shah said that KCR does not go to the state secretariat as a tantrik told him that if he goes to the secretariat he will lose the government. Stating that BJP-ruled states are witnessing rapid progress, he said Telangana was going backward. BJP president Nadda alleged that KCR was resorting to undemocratic means to suppress opposition. He predicted that the BJP will definitely come to power in the state. The BJP leader also remarked that the Kaleshwaram irrigation project became an ATM for KCR as he inflated the cost of the project from Rs 32,000 to Rs 132,000 crore. He alleged that because of corruption by the TRS government, Telangana's debts mounted to Rs 4 lakh crore. Guwahati, July 3 : Lok Sabha MP and All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) chief Badruddin Ajmal has urged the Muslim community in Assam not to sacrifice cows during the upcoming Eid on July 10. "India is home to individuals from many different communities, ethnic groups, and religions. The Sanatan faith, which worships the cow as a holy symbol, is practiced by the majority of Indians. Hindus believe cow as a mother," he said. Also, Islam says not to hurt any animals, he added. Ajmal stated: "That is why I appeal to the Muslims not to kill cows during Eid. We strongly object to this practice." He requested the Muslim community to offer the sacrifice using other animals in order to fulfil the religious obligation and avoid hurting the sentiments of others. Darul Uloom Deoband, the country's largest Islamic academic institute had also issued an appeal to avoid sacrificing cows on Eid two years back, said Ajmal. The Assam unit of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind also requested the same. Notably, in Assam, restrictions had been imposed by the state government last year on the sale of beef in areas dominated by non-beef consuming communities and within a 5-km radius of temples and 'satras' formed by the 15-16th century saint-reformer Srimanta Sankaradeva. Chennai, July 3 : With over 50 per cent of its flights not operating on time, hundreds of passengers of IndiGo Airlines across the country faced a tough time on Saturday. According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, IndiGo Airlines operated only 45.2 per cent of its flights on time on Saturday. Curiously, the number of grievances received by the government against IndiGo on Saturday was only six. It is said, large number of IndiGo's cabin crew on Saturday reported sick allegedly to attend the recruitment interview of Air India. If that is the case, the recruiter should also look at the prospective staff's attitude before hiring them, is one view. The Ministry of Civil Aviation has called for an explanation from IndiGo for the huge flight delays. IndiGo has not issued any statement on the delay of its several flights. London, July 3 : India captain Rohit Sharma is out of isolation after having tested negative for Covid-19 in the latest round of testing and will now be available for the white-ball series against England, beginning with the first T20I in Southampton on July 7. Sharma missed the ongoing rescheduled fifth Test against England in Edgbaston after he tested positive during the four-day warm-up game against Leicestershire. "Yes, Rohit (Sharma) has tested negative and is now out of quarantine," a BCCI source told IANS on Sunday. Notably, Sharma had tested positive thrice leading to him being ruled out of the Test, which started on July 1. In his absence, Jasprit Bumrah is leading the side. While Sharma will play from the first game of the white-ball series, the likes of Virat Kohli, Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja -- who are part of Test XI -- will be available only from the second T20I as BCCI named two different squads for the three-match series to give some rest to the red-ball regulars. The first T20I starts on July 7, two days after the scheduled end of the rescheduled fifth Test on July 5. Lanzhou : , July 3 (IANS) Prominent Tibetan monk Jigme Gyatso, who was frequently jailed for protests against Chinese rule, died at his home in northwestern China's Gansu province in the weekend, a report said. Jigme Gyatso, a monk at the Labrang Monastery also called Jigme Goril, died Saturday at home in the Kanlho Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, a former student said. "During his imprisonment, he has been subjected to severe beatings due to which he has been admitted in hospital for a long time without any sign of improvement," the former student now living in exile told RFA Tibetan. No cause of death has been given, but sources said he had been in poor health since his release from prison in 2016. "Since May his health took the turn for the worse, and he was taken to a medical facility in Xining, Qinghai province, for a long period but without any success. The Chinese government is trying to block information regarding Gyatso which is why has become extremely difficult to get a recent photo of him," said a source in Tibet, RFA reported. Previously detained in 2006, 2008 and 2010, Gyatso was again taken into custody in 2011 and handed a five-year prison term by the Kanlho People's Intermediate Court on a charge of working "to split the nation". He was released on October 26, 2016, in Lanzhou prison, "but still the Chinese government kept a close watch on him, restricting his movement and his visit to the hospital, depriving him of medications when he needed them," said another source in the region. Gyatso became an instant hero in the Tibetan community after a 2009 video in which he described his brutal treatment in custody was widely circulated on the Internet. "I can take any empty space and call it a bare stage. A man walks across the empty space whilst someone else is watching him, and this is all that is needed for an act of theatre to be engaged," wrote Peter Brook famously in his book 'Empty Space'. A book that most theatre directors and actors hold close to their heart. This book has single handedly played a huge role in shaping attitudes, approaches, concepts, vocabularies and in making the 'invisible visible', cutting across physical boundaries and cultural references. A lighthouse of profound ideas, he shared with us, a new way of looking at text, space and body. Stripping it of the superficial, the extraneous and getting to the bone of the matter. "He is," said Sir Barry Jackson, the producer for whom Brook first worked, "the youngest earthquake I know." His actors talk about needing an oxygen tent after his rehearsals. He has been described in various ways, one adjective contradicting the other, but all equally valid. From being called a madman to a genius, an abrasive intellectual to an extraordinary showman, myths circulate around him, crystalised and made epic, by his extraordinary talent and his constant desire for change. His life is as fascinating as his work. Born in London in 1925, the son of a Russian emigrant chemist, his parents were penniless when they arrived in England, until his father invented Brooklax, a laxative. Due to the success of this pill the family became well-ensconced financially, leaving their penury-ridden existence behind. Aware of his Russian ancestry, most people refused to accept Brook as a Russian surname, and were convinced that he was hiding his parentage. Many incidents of Brook leaving lucrative job offers due to an argument about his name, becoming a subject of inquiry and distrust, are part of the folklore that followed Brook. Performing Shakespeare under a circus tent with a trapeze artiste swinging wildly in 'Midsummer Night's Dream' was his much celebrated production, making him the new creative voice in British theatre. Despite success, accolades and huge grants, he ran away from British Theatre and spent the next five decades of his career in Paris, working on a project that could be termed idiosyncratic. His project, 'Conference of the Birds', compiled in a book, shared experiences of taking his actors from the cocoon of living in Paris to the tumult, heat and dust of traversing a difficult and alien landscape in Africa. His international group of actors were made to take this journey in an attempt to search for a new language of sound. To figure out if actors from different cultures and backgrounds could transcend the clogged urbanisation of city living and, through encounters and confrontations, bring a richer perception and quality to their lives. I met Peter Brook in Bhopal at Bharat Bhavan in 1981, when he was touring India to identify actors, forms, images, colours and smells that could be fed into his production, based on the 'Mahabharata'. Through this production, Brook sought to achieve universality and comprehensibility through images and gestures, stating that the 'Mahabharata' did not belong to one country or race but to humanity. A workshop was organised at Bharat Bhavan, which included an overwhelming list of celebrated directors, local actors, dancers, musicians and observers. I was supposed to manage the logistics of the workshop and see to Brook's comfort and well-being. What I noticed was a watchful man, with a gnomish appearance, short and stocky, dressed in lose denims, but the energy that flowed were like tiny bomb explosions. An exercise was given, in which the directors, including Brook, had to choreograph the opening scene from Kalidasa's 'Shakuntalam' -- the first meeting of Dushyanta, the king, and the maiden Shakuntala. Brook's wife, the brilliant actress Natasha Parry, played Shakuntala without carrying the cultural baggage, memory or references to the character. Escaping the cliched performance templates that existed for characterising classical characters, Brook made us see through Parry's Shakuntala a fresh avatar of the classical heroine. Utterly alive, an animated being, a voluptuous spring of sexuality that one may never have associated with the image of Shakuntala, as we knew her from our Sanskrit theatre classes! His chapter on Deadly Theatre was understood practically! During that visit, I was supposed to buy him a gift as a way of thanking him. But I had read that Peter Brook possesses three shirts, one suit and two pairs of jeans. His home has minimal furniture and no artifacts. A rootless man, actually nomadic is how he has been described. It was truly a dilemma to locate a gift for the spartan Brook! He made the impossible possible by staging a nine-hour-long performance of the 'Mahabharata' in a stone quarry framed against a forest on the outskirts of Avignon. Starting at sunset and ending with the sunrise was magical, where the two warring families with their arches taunt and a giant wheel rolling across the stage shows the great battle with cosmic grandeur. A clash of two great dynasties, locked in a moral fight of ideal heroes representing divine forces arrayed against demonic energies, creating a production of monumental dimension. This was in 1985. Peter Brook's death is like the end of an era, the loss of a revered figure. A formidable creative giant, a theorist, and definitely an anarchist, who tore into established ways of working by introducing something fresh, novel and experimental. He believed very deeply in the transformative power of theatre and his legacy will live on. What one could only dream about was actualised by Brook, not one to be intimidated by the scale and vision of his own inspiration. It was the gift that he bequeathed to the world of theatre. Take risks, jump the cliff, let your vision swirl in a vertiginous precipice! (Neelam Mansingh Chowdhry is an acclaimed theatre director and Padma Shri awardee) New Delhi, July 4 : One person was killed while four others sustained injuries after a Gramin Sewa cab met with an accident in south Delhi on Sunday, a police official said. The deceased was identified as Vinod (45), a resident of Delhi, was working as a mason. Additional DCP (south), Pawan Kumar said the incident took place around 6.30 p.m. when a Gramin Sewa Cab plying on the route from Indira Kalyan Vihar to Devli village with 8 to 10 passengers in it turned over at Hamdard Chowk on MB Road in the Sangam Vihar police station area. "Five persons sustained injuries after which they were rushed to Majeedia hospital, MB Road, where one of the injured was declared brought dead," the official added. Preliminary enquiry has so far revealed that the driver of the cab was driving under the influence of alcohol. The other four injured were identified as Deepak (25), Dinesh (32), Radhika (28) and Gyan Chand (38), all residents of Delhi. Kolkata, July 4 : Metro Railway seems to have dropped its guard even as the number of Covid-19 cases continue to show a rise in Kolkata and the suburbs. While passengers are no longer being asked to wear masks -- a precaution prescribed by medical practitioners and supported by the West Bengal government -- even officials and medical staff are appearing without them at events that are being publicised, photographs reveal. One of the photographs circulated by the Kolkata Metro is of a medical check-up camp organised at the Belgachia station to celebrate Doctor's Day on Friday. While the lady commuter undergoing the check-up is masked, two health workers sitting close to her have their masks pulled down to their chins. The second photograph is even more telling. This is during the inauguration of an escalator at the Sovabazar-Sutanuti station on Saturday. None of those present, including the child who is cutting the ribbon, are seen wearing masks. "The Metro used to be very strict till a few months ago. Why have they dropped their guard at a time when the number of cases are rising? Even on Saturday, more than 1,400 fresh cases and three deaths were reported. The positivity rate is around 14 per cent. The state government has appealed to people to take all precautions and wear masks," a doctor associated with the state Health department said. Commuters spend a lot of time in an air-conditioned environment while travelling by Metro. In such confined spaces, even one affected person -- even if he is asymptomatic -- can spread the infection to several others. People with co-morbidities are at greater risk and many of them have had to be admitted to hospitals with severe complications. Another doctor from the R.N. Tagore hospital said how several patients with Covid-19 are now getting admitted to the special ward. Some of them are youngsters without known co-morbidities. The severity of the virus may have got reduced but Covid-19 still remains, he reminded. "A few days ago, I returned from Mumbai. They were strict about masks at the airport and on-board the flight, even threatening to offload passengers who do not comply. Several establishments in Kolkata, including shopping malls, have now reimposed the mask rule. This is necessary. Metro authorities should take note. After all, its not only passengers but their own staff who are at risk," the doctor said. A Metro Railway official admitted that there has been a bit of laxity in recent times. The problem is the absence of any circular or notice from the Railway Board. Without such a notice, enforcing a rule becomes difficult as the state government has not yet made masks mandatory in public places. Dhaka, July 4 : The toll from Bangladesh's unprecedented floods has risen to more than 100, the authorities said. According to a daily flood report of the Health Emergency Operation Center and Control Room on Sunday, the floods have killed 102 people in 27 of the 64 flood-affected districts between May 17 and June 28. Most victims died from drowning, snake bites and lightning in the flood-hit areas, showed the report. At least 7 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours as of Sunday morning, Xinhua news agency reported. With roads washed away by the floods triggered by heavy seasonal rains and onrush of water from hills, the authorities have still been battling to deliver supplies in many northeastern and northern districts. The floods have caused widespread damage to houses and crops across vast swathes of northern and northeastern regions. Bangladeshi State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief, Md Enamur Rahman earlier told reporters that both the government and private agencies have been working together in the greater Sylhet region worst hit by the floods. Jerusalem, July 4 : Israel's interim Prime Minister Yair Lapid has pledged to run a functional government despite another round of political instability that triggered new elections. In the first cabinet meeting since Lapid took office as interim Prime Minister on Friday, he sat next to his predecessor Naftali Bennett. The two rotated on Friday under a power-sharing deal they agreed upon in June 2021, after their ideologically diverse eight-party coalition government collapsed only a year after it took office. "Our goal in the coming months will be to manage the government as if there were no elections ... This is what I expect from my fellow Ministers," he told the Ministers at the beginning of the meeting. "This government will continue to act for the good of the citizens," he said, adding "we will make decisions, we will take actions, and we will continue to increase the economic, diplomatic and security strength of Israel." Lapid encountered his first security challenge as Prime Minister on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported. Three drones, identified by the Israeli military as belonging to the Lebanon-based armed group Hezbollah, approached the airspace over Israel's territorial waters, near the recently built Karish natural gas platform. An Israeli fighter jet and a Navy missile cruiser intercepted the drones, the Israeli military said in a statement. The interim Prime Minister said Israel would take the necessary measures to thwart threats and defend itself, its people and its assets. Lapid also noted that Hezbollah is still pursuing terrorism, which makes it more difficult for Lebanon to settle an agreement on a maritime border (with Israel). He will serve as the country's interim Prime Minister until a new government is formed after the elections scheduled on November 1. The parliament, or Knesset, voted to dissolve itself last week after the coalition lost its majority in the parliament, sending Israelis to the ballots for the fifth time in less than four years. Lapid is expected to embark on his first diplomatic journey as Prime Minister on Tuesday, travelling to Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron. In mid-July, he will host the US President Joe Biden, whose Middle East trip includes stops in Israel and Saudi Arabia. Fried chicken may be a staple of summer, but Coast Packing Companys Corporate Chef Greg Hozinsky is literally beefing up that tradition this year, with a new recipe that bathes the bird in beef tallow just in time for National Fried Chicken Day, July 6. Our recipe for National Fried Chicken Day says goodbye to flavorless fowl and embraces an amazingly moist and savory way to prepare this summer favorite, Chef Greg says. When it comes to frying chicken, there are many choices of fat for deep frying, so why tallow? Because the flavor that tallow imparts gives the dish more complexity. Tallow is also far superior when you want a dry (non-oily) crisp texture. Really, nothing compares for deep frying performance. Ingredients 3 - 4 pound whole chicken 2 cups buttermilk 2 egg whites 3 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 1 teaspoon paprika teaspoon garlic powder teaspoon onion powder teaspoon dry thyme teaspoon cayenne pepper For the Dredge 4 cups all-purpose flour cup cornstarch 1 tablespoon baking soda 1 tablespoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 7-8 cups of beef tallow for frying Prepping the Chicken Start off by removing the chicken from any packaging and pat it dry; most whole chickens will be around 4 lb. For this recipe, a chicken between 3 - 4 pounds works best. Buy a chicken already cut up, or have a butcher do it for you. Once you learn how to do it, its worth the extra effort. A 10-piece bone-in chicken works best -- 2 legs, 2 thighs, 2 wings, and 2 breasts, cut in half, for a total of 4 breast pieces. To cut up the chicken, start with the breast side down and remove the wings by cutting them just behind the joint. This is a good time to nip off the wing tips as well. Next, flip the chicken over with the breast side up and cut the skin where the leg meets the breast; apply downward pressure on the legs and thighs until the thigh bone pops, then carefully use the knife to cut on the leg and thigh. Then, separate the leg and thigh; note the line of fat on the bottom side; use this as the guide and cut down to separate the leg and thigh. For the breast, use the knife to cut above the spine. When you reach the end, pull the breast up and finish cutting through, saving the spine for stock. With the skin side down, cut through the breastplate and finish separating the breasts. Next, split each breast crosswise, trying to keep the size as equal as possible. Heres a tip: since a picture is worth 1,000, make sure to watch the video for this recipe. Once the chicken pieces have been cut, season well with paprika, teaspoon black pepper, and 2 teaspoons of kosher salt. This called a dry brine; let the chicken rest in the refrigerator for about an hour, if possible. For the Dredge In a large bowl combine, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, salt, pepper and baking soda; mix well with a wire whisk and set aside for later. While baking soda may seem an odd ingredient, it works to balance out the ph-levels of the chicken, resulting in a crispier, longer-lasting crispy crust. To Prepare the Marinade Start off by separating the egg yolks and the whites, being careful not to break any yolks (or the whites wont whip). You wont need the yolks for this recipe, so reserve them for another recipe. Add the salt to a large bowl containing the egg whites. Whip until frothy but not more than is needed to create soft peaks. Add the remaining black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, and thyme, and mix well. Pour in the buttermilk and gently stir to combine; be careful to keep as much air in the marinade as possible. Lightly dredge the chicken in the flour mix; shake off any extra, then submerge in the marinade and let it marinate for about 2 hours. Dredging the Chicken While dredging -- or a few minutes before you start -- place the 7-8 cups of beef tallow into a heavy bottom pot or deep fryer. Fill the pot no more than half way. If using a pot, keep a digital thermometer handy. The ideal temperature for frying bone-in chicken is about 325-335 degrees. This allows time for the chicken to cook in the fryer before its transferred to the oven, and it keeps the color golden. Remove a piece of chicken and place into the flour dredge, using your hands to coat the chicken well. Dont shake off extra flour; you want a nice coating. The extra flour becomes the crispy bits and is often what guests like best about fried chicken. Repeat the process until all the chicken is coated. Frying the Chicken Make sure the beef tallow is between 325-335 degrees; keep the heat on the stovetop between medium and low, to maintain this range in temperature. Cook the chicken in batches, gently placing a few pieces into the hot beef tallow (heres a tip: gently place the chicken into the oil; as you release the chicken, let it fall away from you. That way, if it splashes, youll avoid potential burns.) When choosing what pieces to fry together, try to cook similar-size pieces at the same time. A small wing and large breast wont take the same amount of time to cook, so keeping batches consistent is helpful. Cook chicken for approximately 12-14 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165-170 degrees and is golden brown on the outside. Serve hot and drizzle with just a bit of honey. About Coast Packing Company Now marking its 100th year in business, Coast Packing Company (http://www.coastpacking.com), a closely held corporation, is the number one supplier of animal fat shortenings particularly lard and beef tallow -- in the Western United States. The company sells to major manufacturers, distributors, retailers, smaller food service operations and leading bakeries. The company participates actively in diverse ethnic markets from Hispanic retail chains, with its VIVA brand, to various Asian specialty markets. Based in Vernon, Calif., Coast Packing Company is regional, national and, increasingly, global. In some cases, supplier relationships are multigenerational, extending back 50 years and more. Coast is a founding member of the Healthy Fats Coalition. For more information about Coast Packing Company, visit: http://www.coastpacking.com. Follow us via social media on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/coastpackingco, Twitter @coastpackingco and Pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/coastpackingco. "As a local Nashville home security company, we are thrilled to be offering new A.I. enabled home security systems and smart alarm monitoring services to homes & businesses that you can sign up for directly on our new website." - Kevin Allen, Owner Premier Tech Home Security, a leader in providing security systems to homes in businesses in Middle Tennessee, is proud to announce the launch of their new website. Though the company offers their services across a wide geographic area, customers can select the webpage specific to their location. The website also hosts a blog that keeps followers up to date on the latest developments in home security and maintenance. The Premier Tech Home Security website is optimized for ease of use by both homeowners and businesses and offers online exclusive promotions. Customers can choose from a selection of set plans or customize their own package from a wide variety of options to achieve their ideal level of security. Customers looking for smart home security can preview the smart home app, and the products associated with the wide selection of customizable monitoring plans. Customers looking for smart home security can preview the smart home app, and the products associated with the wide selection of customizable monitoring plans. SoftIron, the leader in purpose-built and performance-optimised data centre solutions, today announced that it has been selected by Storage Magazine to receive an award in its 19th annual Storage Awards for 2022. Dubbed The Stories, the awards were presented at a gala event at the Tower Bridge Leonardo Hotel in London on the evening of June 9th, where SoftIron was awarded as a winner of the Storage Innovators of the Year category. SoftIrons flagship HyperDrive software-defined enterprise storage portfolio is custom-designed to maximise the performance and efficiency, giving large enterprises and SMEs open source-based storage on which to build core-to-edge IT infrastructures. Congratulations to SoftIron, who has been chosen as the Storage Innovators of the Year for 2022, an award which celebrates true innovation in the storage arena among those who are making an impact with innovative new ideas, said David Tyler, Editor of Storage Magazine. The Storage Awards winners are selected by a nomination and voting process driven by our readers. SoftIron is challenging storage orthodoxy with a fresh approach to storage performance innovation using open source combined with design optimisation at the hardware level. Theyre capturing the attention of our readers, making SoftIron our Storage Innovators of the Year. SoftIron is challenging the industry by offering a new way to think about the interaction between software-defined infrastructure and the underlying hardware, said Phil Straw, CEO of SoftIron. Weve built our HyperDrive storage appliances to be the ultimate productisation of Ceph, giving our customers an open-source, unified, distributed storage system designed for excellent performance, reliability, and scalability. The results are an integrated solution that offers SoftIrons customers the best in performance, price, and sustainability while eliminating vendor lock-in. SoftIron is innovating on virtually every front, using a modern, Industry 4.0 technology approach to drive new value into the core-to-edge data centre. We are grateful to receive the Storage Innovators of the Year award from Storage Magazine for 2022. SoftIron creates the worlds best appliances for highly efficient, scale-out data centre solutions, delivering industry-leading performance on all critical metrics, including density, efficiency, capacity, speed, and heat emission. Performance breakthroughs are enabled through task-specific specialisation, optimising the performance of its operating software at a granular level and thus creating the ultimate productisation of open source Ceph. Uniquely, SoftIron controls the entire design and build process, producing all its products within its own manufacturing facilities. As a result, SoftIron offers Secure Provenance, which is the auditable provenance on all of its data centre appliances. This enables customers to ensure that units are clear-box solutions, free of hidden componentry or embedded software - often at the root of common supply chain attacks. The SoftIron HyperDrive family of products are available for POC and purchase. SoftIron offers traditional purchasing (CAPEX) and as-a-Service (OPEX) options. For more information, visit SoftIrons HyperDrive Storage page. To view the Storage Awards 2022 winners, please visit: https://storage-awards.com/. About SoftIron SoftIron makes the products that underpin the next evolution of IT infrastructure. Our blueprint is radical. Taking full control over design and manufacture of platforms optimised for selected open source software, our highly integrated products reduce space and energy footprints while delivering extraordinary performance. Challenging traditional IT manufacturing and organisational strategy, weve developed a model that enables us to create a more resilient and connected business for the customers we serve. A commitment to openness, transparency, and simplicity helps address emerging multi-faceted threats while eliminating the vendor lock-in so common elsewhere. IT leaders mindful of the pain of proprietary technologies, increasing cloud and energy costs and growing skills gaps understand that solving these challenges needs a holistic approach that only an integrated technology company can achieve. For more information, visit https://softiron.com/?utm_source=Press%20Release&utm_medium=Press%20Release&utm_campaign=boilerplate&utm_term=boilerplate&utm_content=boilerplatehttp://www.SoftIron.com Ayo Animashaun, Founder of The Headies with Nayo Campbell, Ava Hall, Kellen McDowell and Audu Maikori at The Headies Brunch in Hollywood During a private media and VIP brunch in Hollywood, Ayo Animashaun, founder and executive producer of The Headie Awards the global music awards show celebrating excellence in African music officially kicked off the #RoadMapToTheHeadies. This year, The Headies will be broadcast from the United States for the first time in its 15-year history. Since 2006, The Headies have recognized outstanding achievements in Nigerian music. As the music industry across the continent continued to grow, giving rise to mega stars like Wizkid (Nigeria), TooFan (Togo), Fally Ipupa (Democratic Republic of Congo), Sarkodie (Ghana) and past award recipient Yemi Alade (Nigeria), The Headies also became a bold celebration of the various genres and sounds evolving from more traditional African music. Over the course of the awards wildly successful run, The Headies have become the most coveted prize for African artists and music industry stakeholders. Other past winners at The Headies have included pioneering Afrobeats artists like DBanj, 2Baba (formerly known as Tuface), and M.I.; as well as contemporary artists of the genre, including Davido, Tems and Tiwa Savage. The Headies trophy itself encapsulates the bold exuberance of the African youths who have pushed the music industry forward over the course of the past few years. Conceptualized by Animashaun and designed by artist Wale Adewoye, the plaque is made of precious elements, including copper, steel, marble and gold. It depicts the image and shout of a young, vibrant individual whose talent can challenge that of renowned local and international artists, but who finds himself nearly discouraged by his circumstances. Today, it stands as a testament to the many African artists who have circumvented those challenges to become global superstars in their own right, while standing as a beacon of possibility for up-and-coming talent across the continent. With African artists and Afrobeats music creating a massive audience and finding tremendous success on U.S. airwaves over the past few years, hosting The Headies in Atlanta this year cannot be better timed. The list of nominees, which was announced on May 22, features several acts who have helped introduce Afrobeats and Afropop music to American audiences. Wizkids inescapable Tems-assisted hit Essence is nominated in four categories, with both artists also nominated individually in a number of categories. Ahead of the show, fans in Africa are invited to vote for their favorite artists across 22 Headie Awards categories, including Next Rated, for which the prize includes a Bentley Bentayga! Voting instructions can be found here. Patoranking, who co-starred alongside Beyonce on her 2020 Lion King: The Gift single Already has also earned several nominations, including Best Reggae & Dancehall Album. American artists Brandy, D Smoke and Lucky Daye have each earned nominations for their guest appearances alongside Nigerian stars Tiwa Savage, Fireboy Dml and Adekunle Gold, respectively. Newly-minted reality TV stars Diamond Platinumz and 2Baba (Netflixs Young, Famous & African) are also among the 2022 nominees. During the show, The Headies will also acknowledge globally renowned legend Angelique Kidjoe as the 2022 Hall of Fame Honoree. The Headies have also expanded to include an International Artiste of the Year category - one of three new awards being added to the program. The inaugural international nominees are Beyonce, Chris Brown, Drake, Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber, and Nas. Additionally, this year will see prizes handed out for Best Inspirational Single and Digital Artiste of the Year, which will recognize the artist with the most outstanding achievement and impact digitally in the year under review. Nominees include Burna Boy, Davido, and CKay, whose single Love Nwantiti was a social media favorite in the year under review. The new additions bring the total number of awards to be presented to 37; 15 of which are selected by jury, along with the Hall of Fame Honoree. The full list of 2020 Headie Awards nominees can be found here. While The Headies Awards will be produced in the U.S. this year, this bold showcase of talent will air in 89 countries around the world, including 44 countries across the continent of Africa on satellite and terrestrial, as well as across several digital platforms around the world. The 2022 Headies will be held at the Cobb Energy Center in Atlanta on September 4, 2022. For more information, visit theheadies.com. Additional video and photo assets from The Headie Awards Brunch are available here. For media interviews, contact: frontpagefirm@icloud.com Cheba Hut, a fast-growing brand breaking the mold of mundane fast-casual concepts by becoming the first marijuana-themed sandwich joint, has opened its fifth Texas location owned and operated by husband/wife Chance and Angie Steed. The opening is the second for the Steeds. The new Cheba Hut shop debuted at 1217 8th Ave Suite 115 Fort Worth, TX 76104. This Fort Worth market is something Ive personally been trying to make happen for a long time, and our new franchise partners are the perfect ones for the job, said Chief Relationship Officer, Seth Larsen. Chance and Angie are Fort Worth natives and the perfect franchise partner for the job. We know this is going to be a huge success. Chance Steed grew up in Fort Worth, graduated from Texas A&M and began investing in real estate and stocks. Steed got into the Cheba Hut business when he went on a snowboarding trip in March 2019 where he went to the restaurant in Dillon, CO. He was blown away by the food and the atmosphere and decided to sign for his first location in 2019. The reason we like the Near Southside neighborhood is because Magnolia Ave is an established bar and restaurant scene, said Steed. We are in the hospital district and close to downtown, TCU, south main and the zoo. Its very central and growing up here, I know the area will love the great food, chill vibes and unique theme that Cheba Hut will bring to the community. Cheba Hut has been escaping the established and getting toasted since its founding in 1998. The brand has broken the mold of mundane fast-casual concepts and set itself apart by becoming the first marijuana-themed sandwich joint (pun intended). Cheba Hut is dedicated to combining locally sourced ingredients with a chill, eclectic environment where genuine food is served by genuine people. The toasted sub shop offers over 30 signature sub sandwiches, as well as a variety of Rice Krispy treats, salads, and munchies along with a full-service bar. Drinks like the Dirty Hippie, Hot Box and Ms Parker consisting of Ole Smokey blackberry moonshine are all Cheba Hut signatures while the beer will feature a mix of national and local favorites, Rahr & Sons, Revolver, Martin House and Panther Island. For more information about Cheba Hut of Fort Worth, visit the restaurants official website, https://chebahut.com/locations/fortworth-8thave/ or follow them on Facebook and Instagram ABOUT CHEBA HUT: Cheba Hut has been escaping the established and getting toasted since 1998. Breaking the mold of mundane fast-casual concepts by becoming the first marijuana-themed sandwich joint, Cheba Hut is dedicated to providing customers with delicious and memorable sandwich and munchie options in a chill, eclectic environment where made-to-order food is served by genuine people. Cheba Hut's fun and authentic dining experience includes a full-service bar and highlights its menu because its not about getting high, its about epic food and legendary service! Team Fastrax Professional Parachute Demonstration Team We hope that this performance will evoke in everyone who views it, that profound feeling of pride and joy that we have in our country. Monday, July 4th, from 6am to 9am, Team Fastrax will complete one of the most spectacular patriotic aerial performances they have ever executed for live television, as part of FOX News Channels FOX & Friends Weekend. Throughout the morning, the news channel will cut to the Live Feed of Team Fastrax while they skydive with their majestic 5,000 sq. ft. US Flag. Viewers across the nation will also be treated to their outstanding pyrotechnic show, and red, white and blue smoke show. All of this will be captured and relayed to FOX News Channel from the teams home base at Start Skydiving, in Middletown, OH. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to perform our patriotic show for such a large audience, commented John Hart, owner of Start Skydiving, and Founder of Team Fastrax. Many members of Team Fastrax have served the United States of America as part of the Armed Forces, protecting the freedoms that we hold dear. So, Independence Day is a holiday that we particularly enjoy celebrating. We hope that this performance will evoke in everyone who views it, that profound feeling of pride and joy that we have in our country. According to the FOX News website, Mondays programing will also include a two-hour primetime special, "Fox News Presents: An Independence Day Celebration," from 8-10 p.m. ET. The special will feature "Outnumbered" co-host Kayleigh McEnany, "Cross Country" host Lawrence Jones, "FOX & Friends First" co-host Carley Shimkus, and Johnny Joey Jones commemorating Independence Day and spotlighting stories of patriotism and triumph from across the country. It will also include musical performances from Lee Greenwood, Chris Janson and Kameron Marlowe. This performance by Team Fastrax is dedicated to Navy CPO Ron Condrey in support of the important work that the Concussion Legacy Foundation (CLF) and their Project Enlist program does for Americas Veterans. The Concussion Legacy Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports athletes, Veterans, and all affected by concussions and CTE through education and innovation. Project Enlist is a program of CLF created to accelerate critical research on traumatic brain injury (TBI), chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in military Veterans. Brain bank research is an essential step in developing effective treatments for TBI, CTE, and PTSD so we can protect and support the heroes who courageously fight for our nation. Since 2000, more than 430,000 service members have been diagnosed with a TBI. Veterans who have suffered a TBI have double the risk of suicide. Anyone, regardless of TBI history, can pledge their brain. Learn more at ProjectEnlist.org. For information on Navy CPO Ron Condrey and the Concussion Legacy Foundation, visit concussionfoundation.org. To schedule a Team Fastrax performance at your next event, go to the Team Fastrax website. ABOUT TEAM FASTRAX Team Fastrax, sponsored by SELECTiON.COM, is the most ambitious professional skydiving team in the world. The team has a roster of more than twenty-nine active members, with a collective of more than 300,000 skydives. Team Fastrax has performed exhibition skydives all over the world for audiences large and small as a patriotic display or as a product promotion. ABOUT SELECTiON.COM SELECTiON.COM is a nationwide provider of criminal and pre-employment background screenings, also referred to as a Consumer Reporting Agency. Headquartered in Cincinnati, OH, SELECTiON.COM is a veteran-owned company that has been in business since 1991 and offers more than 35 background and data collection services. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. By subscribing to rdrnews.com you agree to recurring payments and your credit card will be billed at the subscription intervals selected, cancel anytime. BRATTLEBORO Following the overturn of the Roe V. Wade decision by the United States Supreme Court, the Select Board will be considering a resolution to signal support for the right to abortions. Its a statement of solidarity and expression of the boards values as far as the issue and how we might exercise our power in the ways that we can support fair access to abortion, board member Jess Gelter said in an interview Sunday. On Tuesday, the board will take up the resolution as proposed by Gelter. Roe V. Wade determined that the Constitution of the United States generally protects a pregnant womans liberty to choose to have an abortion, states the document. The proposed resolution notes other states and jurisdictions have begun passing laws to pursue legal action against those who have or provide abortions and those who aid them, however, Vermont law preserves the right to abortion in law and Vermonters will vote on an amendment to make that right part of the states Constitution on Nov. 8. Five Planned Parenthood locations in Vermont and New Hampshire are closing this year, the proposed resolution states. [C]urrently, before those closures 38 percent of Vermont women live in counties with no abortion clinic, the proposed resolution states, adding that providers of reproductive and family planning services have experienced an increase in violent attacks over the last two years ... and Vermont law does not protect people seeking reproductive health care and/or clinic personnel from blockades, harassment, and/or violence. The resolution describes access to abortion being tied to economic wellbeing of a community. It says unintended pregnancies can lead to financial difficulties for families, and women are at least four times more likely than men to reduce hours or leave the workforce for a period of time to care for children. Gelter said she appreciates the allyship of Board Chairman Ian Goodnow and Vice Chairman Daniel Quipp for putting the resolution on the agenda, and Interim Town Manager Patrick Moreland and Town Attorney Bob Fisher for reviewing the language. Most of the language was drafted by Gelter, who used some models for potential actions and heard from constituents who raised concerns. According to an administrative report, the resolution could require further discussion at the next meeting as well. Gelter said the title, A Resolution to Protect a Womans Right to Choose, was shortened from the original in a way that excludes all the folks who can get pregnant, by gendering the issue. Thats something I know we need to fix about it, she said. Another agenda item for Tuesdays meeting involves an agreement for the fire department to have additional oversight by a medical doctor as it works in its first year with Golden Cross Ambulance to provide a paramedic-level of care after the town chose not to continue to working with Rescue Inc. after contract disputes. This service is not a new practice for the department, Fire Chief Len Howard wrote in a memo. As a first response Advanced EMT service, we have been receiving two hours a month at no charge for this service. For its first year as a paramedic-level service, the department needs to increase the oversight to eight hours a month. Howard said the requirement comes from Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center and Vermont EMS District 13s medical director. Two hours will still come at no charge but the additional six will need to be compensated, according to the memo. The monthly fee of $1,415 from Dartmouth Hitchcock will total about $16,980 for the year. The groups doctors work in the emergency department at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. After one year of oversight operating at this paramedic level, the districts medical director feels this oversight can be reduced to four hours a month, Howard wrote. This is a vital role to have the Brattleboro Fire Department performing at the highest level of care. Brattleboro Fire Department, Golden Cross Ambulance officially begin partnership BRATTLEBORO Golden Cross Ambulance and the Brattleboro Fire Department are now responding Also on the agenda are items regarding downtown safety, a mural on High Street, the purchase of a hybrid vehicle used at the Wastewater Treatment Plant, a request for an increase in water and sewer allocation for Commonwealth Dairy, adoption of fines associated with the towns Rental Housing Inspection Program, endorsement of a recommendation for replacing Melrose Bridge, emergency construction on a retaining wall on Williams Street, a collective bargaining agreement with the Brattleboro Professional Firefighters Association, and an employment agreement for Moreland to serve as interim town manager. Downtown 'lawlessness' sparks calls for action BRATTLEBORO Burglaries at Evan James Ltd. Diamond Jewelers & Goldsmiths are among some Commonwealth Dairy seeks wastewater treatment improvements BRATTLEBORO A new wastewater treatment project at Commonwealth Dairy will meet several obj Rental inspection program passes BRATTLEBORO A ramped up inspection program for rental units around town will be rolled out around October despite cries from landlords who opposed the new fee and felt there were little Photographer / Multimedia Editor Has been working as a photojournalist since 2007, before moving into newspapers, he worked with an NGO called Project HOPE. He then went to work for the Press and Sun-Bulletin in New York, and then in New England working for the Brattleboro Reformer. Investigators from the New Hampshire State Police Major Crime Unit collect evidence at 484 Scofield Mountain Road, in Winchester, on Thursday, July 14, 2022, after the shooting death of Timothy Hill. Winchester police were called to the residence on Wednesday for a welfare check and found th This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SHERMAN Sherman Chamber Ensembles first concert of its 2022 summer season will be held July 9 at 7:30 p.m., at the McGuire Auditorium on the campus of the Canterbury School in New Milford. The concert, titled Bravo! will pay tribute to three seemingly unconnected themes: the music of former Roxbury resident, Stephen Sondheim, a contemporary American composer, songwriter, and lyricist, who passed away late last year; Felix Mendelssohns Octet in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 and to the Sherman Chamber Ensembles 40th Anniversary. The ensemble was founded 40 years ago in 1982 by cellist Eliot Bailen and his wife, flutist Susan Rotholz. Special guests and Broadway veterans Marissa McGowan (Kiss Me Kate, Into the Woods) and Michael Mendez (Chaplin) will present an assortment of Sondheims music and will be joined by pianist Sean Cameron, Bailen and Rotholz. Also performing will be violinists Doori Na, Robin Zeh, Paul Woodiel, Jane Chung; violists Sarah Adams and Kallie Sugatski and cellist Mark Shuman. While some may see the combination of Sondheim and Mendelssohn as an unusual pairing, its this kind of innovative and unexpected programming that has kept audiences coming back for more over the years. Bailen, the Ensembles Artistic Director, said, All great music is Chamber Music and, with a wink to Sondheim, works well Side by Side. Sondheim tunes into the same intimate style as most Chamber Music. After four decades Bailen still finds his work with the Sherman Chamber Ensemble reinvigorating with endless horizons to explore in terms of music. We never arrive to a point where we have learned everything, Bailen said. There is always more to look forward to, more music to study, learn, enjoy and share. General Admission tickets are $40, and include an After Concert Anniversary Fete. Children ages 15 and under are admitted free. In addition, tickets for Reserved Seating, which includes entrance to a pre-concert cocktail reception begin at $100. Tickets may be purchased online at www.SCEmusic.org. General admission tickets will be available at the door. For information or reservations call 860-355-5930 or email info@SCEmusic.org. The Summer Concert Series continues with Women of Genius, Aug. 12, 7:30 p.m. at St. Andrews Church in Kent and Aug.13, 7:30 p.m. at The JCC in Sherman; and A Masterpiece and a Premiere, Sept.. 1, 7:30 p.m. at the Salem Covenant Church, Washington; Sept. 2, 7:30 p.m. at St. Andrews Church, Kent;and Sept. 3, 7:30 p.m. at the Lake Mauweehoo Club, Sherman.. Tickets are $25 and children ages 15 and under are admitted free. To download the complete season schedule and purchase tickets, visit www.SCEmusic.org Gyatso became a hero among Tibetans after a 2009 video in which he described his brutal treatment in jail. Prominent Tibetan monk Jigme Gyatso, who was frequently jailed for protests against Chinese rule, died at his home in northwestern Chinas Gansu province at the weekend, sources familiar with his situation told RFA. Jigme Gyatso, a monk at the Labrang Monastery also called Jigme Goril, died Saturday at home in the Kanlho (in Chinese, Gannan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, a former student said. "During his imprisonment, he has been subjected to severe beatings due to which he has been admitted in hospital for a long time without any sign of improvement, the former student now living in exile told RFA Tibetan. No cause of death has been given, but sources said he had been in poor health since his release from prison in 2016. "Since May his health took the turn for the worse, and he was taken to a medical facility in Xining, Qinghai province, for a long period but without any success. The Chinese government is trying to block information regarding Gyatso which is why has become extremely difficult to get a recent photo of him," said a source in Tibet. Previously detained in 2006, 2008 and 2010, Gyatso was again taken into custody in 2011 and handed a five-year prison term by the Kanlho Peoples Intermediate Court on a charge of working to split the nation." He was released on October 26, 2016, in Lanzhou prison, "but still the Chinese government kept a close watch on him, restricting his movement and his visit to the hospital, depriving him of medications when he needed them," said another source in the region. Splittism is a charge often brought against Tibetans who assert their national culture and identity or who protest Beijings rule in Tibetan areas, where self-immolations and other protests have led to crackdowns by security forces and the arrests of scores of Tibetans. Gyatso became an instant hero in the Tibetan community after a 2009 video in which he described his brutal treatment in custody was widely circulated on the internet. Translated by Tenzin Phakdon. Written by Paul Eckert. Their arrest and sentencing raise questions about the governments commitment to cleaning up the environment. Nguy Thi Khanh, executive director of the Green Innovation and Development Centre, sits at her desk during an interview about sustainable development at the NGO's headquarters in Hanoi, Vietnam, Feb. 6, 2020. The arrest and sentencing of prominent environmentalist Nguy Thi Khanh and other rights defenders in Vietnam are in conflict with the countrys commitment to reducing its considerable carbon emissions to combat climate change, human rights and environmental groups said. Nguy Thi Khanh, an ardent opponent of Vietnams reliance on coal power and winner of the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2018, was arrested in January for failing to pay a 10% tax on her U.S. $200,000 prize money, equivalent to about 4.65 billion Vietnamese dong. The executive director of the environmental NGO Green Innovation and Development Centre was sentenced on June 17 in Hanoi. The Oil Change International (OIC), the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders criticized the arrest and demanded Khanhs release. Earlier this month, Nguy Thi Khanh was sentenced to prison on trumped up tax evasion charges, which have widely been condemned as an attempt to silence Vietnams most influential environmental activist, OIC said in a statement issued Tuesday. Her arrest is the latest in a string of efforts to repress activists in Vietnam. Khanh had been active in pointing out the negative effects of coal-fired plants and calling for clean energy use. Vietnam is the ninth-largest coal user in the world, but Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh vowed that the country would stop building new coal-fired power plants and work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050. In October 2021, Khanh and representatives from other NGOs told Pham that Vietnam needed to revise a national power development plan for 2021-2030 to meet its goals, according to the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders. Two years earlier, she joined a dozen NGOs in signing the Hanoi Statement, demanding that the government stop funding coal-fired power plants. Khanh is the fourth environmental rights defender to be arrested this year on a tax evasion charges, the Observatory said in a statement issued on June 24. On Jan. 11, 2022, Mai Phan Loi, founder and director of the Center for Media in Educating Community (MEC), was sentenced to four years in jail, while Bach Hung Duong, MECs former director, received a two-year, six-month sentence. Nearly two weeks later, Dang Dinh Bach, director of the Law and Policy of Sustainability Development Research Center (LPSD), was sentenced to five years in prison. Though nonprofit organizations are exempt from paying corporate taxes in Vietnam, the tax law pertaining to NGOs receiving funds from international donors are particularly vague and restrictive, according to the Observatory. The organizations of the activists and the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights believe that the arrests were triggered by their promotion of civil societys role in monitoring the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement that came into force in 2021, the Observatory said. Both Loi and Bach were executive board members of VNGO-EVFTA Network, a group of seven development and environmental CSOs set up in November 2020 to raise awareness about the FTA and its civil society element, known as the Vietnam Domestic Advisory Group. After the organizations, including MEC and LPSD, submitted applications for membership in the advisory group, Loi and Bach were arrested in early July 2021. The Observatory, a partnership of the FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture, called on Vietnamese authorities to guarantee the well-being of Khanh and the other activists, and to immediately and unconditionally release them. The Observatory strongly condemns the judicial harassment and arbitrary detention of Nguy Thi Khanh, Dang Dinh Bach, Bach Hung Duong, and Mai Phan Loi, as it seems to be only aimed at punishing them for their legitimate environmental and human rights activities, the organizations statement said. The organization also demanded that authorities stop harassing activists and human rights defenders in Vietnam, including through the court system, and ensure they can exercise their rights as citizens without any fear of reprisal. A man works in a coal yard in Hanoi, Vietnam, Nov. 9, 2021. Credit: AFP Silencing those who dare to speak The charges against the four environmental rights defenders have raised questions about the Vietnamese governments commitment to protect the environment at the United Nations Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2021. U.S. Special Presidential Climate Envoy John Kerry and his European Union counterpart, Frans Timmermans, have also called for the release of Nguy Thi Khanh and the other climate activists. A Politico report on June 26 said those calls risk derailing a deal to shift Vietnam off coal, but doing nothing would risk criticism from civil society groups that oppose helping finance climate action in countries that jail activists. In April, the Group of Seven, a political forum that includes, the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Japan, agreed on a plan to help Vietnam, the worlds ninth largest coal-consuming nation, reach its carbon emission goals. The Politico article quoted Saskia Bricmont, a Belgian member of the European Parliament, as saying that the tax evasion allegations against the activists were not credible and were clearly a deception. Vietnams Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam said at a regular press briefing on June 23 that Khanh had been investigated and prosecuted for economic crimes, specifically violating the provisions of the law on tax administration, and that she admitted to tax evasion. Some speculations that Nguy Thi Khanh is being criminally handled for her activities and opinions related to climate change are baseless and not true to the nature of the case, a spokesman said. Responding to the ministrys statements, a person who used to work with the Alliance for the Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases of Vietnam a group to which the NGOs affiliated with the sentenced activists belonged said the environmentalists had been wrongly imprisoned. The arrest of environmental activists aims at silencing those who dare to speak out and stands in the way of the authorities, said the source who declined to be named for safety reasons. With great contributions to nonprofit scientific activities, contributing to the development of environmental policies, public health, and sustainable development for the country ... the leaders of these organizations should not be held dangerous to society and be imprisoned, the person said. An attorney familiar with the cases against the activists told RFA that it is not reasonable to criminally charge, convict and imprison activists like Khanh, Bach and Loi. He cited the case of Law and Policy of Sustainability Development Research Center, which authorities accused of evading more than 1.3 billion dong in taxes, saying the NGOs grants to implement projects serving community and environmental benefits should not be subject to corporate income tax. By law, organizations like LPSD are entitled to zero tax payments, said the attorney, who declined to be identified so as to speak freely. If its my prerogative to not pay taxes, then why I am charged with tax evasion? Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. Russian troops have begun to reinforce their positions in key cities and regions in the south of Ukraine as they prepare for an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive, even as the Kremlin's forces press their onslaught in the Donbas region in the east. The British Defense Ministry said on July 17 that Russia was moving troops and equipment between Kherson, Mariupol, Melitopol, and Zaporizhzhya, where Russia occupies Europe's largest nuclear plant. Given the pressures on Russian manpower, the reinforcement of the south whilst the fight for the Donbas continues indicates the seriousness with which Russian commanders view the threat, the British statement said. The comments come the same day that Britain's top military commander, Admiral Tony Radakin, told the BBC in an interview that Russia had lost some 50,000 killed or wounded soldiers in its invasion and that nearly 1,700 tanks have been destroyed. He cautioned, though, that any speculation the setbacks would lead to the quick downfall of Russian President Vladimir Putin was "wishful thinking." A Ukrainian military official, meanwhile, said Russia was preparing for the next stage of its offensive in Ukraine following orders from Moscow to step up military operations, with a main goal of fully capturing the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the east, known as the Donbas, but with attacks occurring in the central, northeast, and south of Ukraine as well. "It is not only missile strikes from the air and sea," said Vadym Skibitskiy, a spokesman for Ukrainian military intelligence. "We can see shelling along the entire line of contact, along the entire front line. There is an active use of tactical aviation and attack helicopters. Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, how Kyiv is fighting back, Western military aid, worldwide reaction, and the plight of civilians and refugees. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here. "There is indeed a certain activation of the enemy along the entire front line.... Clearly preparations are now under way for the next stage of the offensive." Kyiv has said in recent days that its forces are themselves preparing for a massive counteroffensive to reclaim land previously lost, especially in the south. Claims and counterclaims on both sides in the conflict are difficult to immediately verify. On July 17, Russian missiles hit industrial and infrastructure facilities in and near the strategic southern city of Mykolayiv. The mayor, Oleksandr Senkevych, said the missiles struck a key shipbuilding center in the estuary of the Southern Bug River. There was no immediate word on casualties. The Ukrainian military's General Staff said on July 17 that Ukrainian troops thwarted Russian attempts to advance toward Slovyansk, the key Ukrainian stronghold in the eastern region of Donetsk, and other attacks elsewhere in the region. Moscow announced on July 16 that it would step up its military operations in Ukraine. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu gave "instructions to further intensify the actions of units in all operational areas, in order to exclude the possibility of the Kyiv regime launching massive rocket and artillery strikes on civilian infrastructure and residents of settlements in Donbas and other regions," the Defense Ministry said. Ukraine says at least 40 people have been killed in Russian shelling of urban areas in the last three days. Russian missiles hit an industrial and infrastructure facility in the city of Mykolayiv in southern Ukraine, Mayor Oleksandr Senkevych said on July 17. There was no immediate information about casualties. Also on July 17, relatives and local residents attended the funeral of 4-year-old Liza Dmytriyeva in the central Ukrainian city of Vinnytsya. Liza, who had Down syndrome, was killed in a missile strike on central Vinnytsia on July 14 that killed 24 people, according to Ukrainian authorities. More than 200 others were wounded, including Liza's mother, who remains in an intensive-care unit in grave condition. Three people were killed in a Russian strike in the northeastern town of Chuhuiv in the Kharkiv region, regional Governor Oleh Synyehubov said on July 16. Speaking in his July 16 evening address, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy pledged that his country would "endure." Zelenskiy said Ukraine had "withstood Russia's brutal blows" and managed to take back some of the territory it lost since the start of the war, and will eventually recapture more occupied land. A Ukrainian official suggested that Crimea, which most of the world still recognizes as part of Ukraine but was annexed by Russia in 2014, could be a target for U.S.-made HIMARS missiles, recently recently received and deployed by Kyiv. "If any other state, be it Ukraine or NATO countries, believes that Crimea is not Russian, then this is a systemic threat for us," former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on July 17. Any outside attack on the region will prompt a "Judgment Day" response, he said. On the diplomatic front, the European Union was set to discuss a tightening of sanctions against Russia on July 18. Brussels is expected to hold initial sanctions discussions, but not make a same-day decision, a senior EU official was quoted as saying by AFP. With reporting by Reuters and AFP TBILISI -- Tens of thousands of Georgians rallied on the streets of Tbilisi, angered by what the opposition sees as the governments failure to make progress on reforms that can boost the Caucasus countrys hopes of joining the European Union. Participants of the July 3 event, organized by the Shame civic movement and other pro-democracy groups, also displayed support for Ukraine in its war against Russia, which occupies segments of Georgian territory captured in a short 2008 war. Protesters holding flares and waving Georgian and EU flags and banners blocked traffic on the central Rustaveli Avenue and demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and for a new government of national accord to be formed. Georgia has been gripped by protests after EU leaders last month deferred Tbilisi's membership candidacy, recognizing it as a perspective member but insisting that candidate status could only be granted as soon as set priorities are met" and widespread reforms are put in place. While deferring on Georgia, the EU at the same time formally agreed to take the historic step of making Ukraine and Moldova candidates for EU membership in the midst of the war in Ukraine and Moscows bitter denunciations of the two countries intensions. Garibashvili has said his government is "mobilized" to meet the requirements set by Brussels "so that we get candidate status as soon as possible." No immediate estimate on the number of rally participants was available, but an estimated 120,000 people took part in each of two previous rallies in the Georgian capital. In one demonstration, Shota Digmelashvili of the Shame movement read out a manifesto and announced the launch of a new popular movement that will include opposition parties, civil society organization, journalists, and labor unions to make demands on the government. The manifesto asserted that the countrys main obstacle on its European path is Bidzina Ivanishvili," the billionaire founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party who is widely believed to be the top decision-maker in the South Caucasus country even though he does not hold office. In May, the European Parliament passed a nonbinding resolution calling on the EU to impose sanctions against Ivanishvili for his "destructive role" in Georgia's politics and economy. Ivanishvili insists he has retired from politics. In a Facebook statement, rally organizers called on Ivanishvili to "relinquish executive power and transfer it, in a constitutional manner, to a government of national accord." The statement said a new government could "carry out the reforms required by the EU, which will automatically bring us the status of an EU membership candidate." "A next stage of our protests begins today. We will not disperse." The government led by the Georgian Dream party has been hit by increasing international criticism over perceived backsliding on democracy, damaging its EU hopes. The European Commission said the conditions that Tbilisi must fulfill include ending political polarization, progress on media freedom, judiciary and electoral reforms, and "de-oligarchization." Georgian Dream officials insist they are following democratic principles and accused the opposition of "plans to overthrow the authorities by organizing anti-government rallies." Opinion polls show that at least 80 percent of the Georgian population favor plans to join the EU, as well as NATO, amid perceived threats from Russia. Georgias aspirations to forge closer ties with the West have long angered Russia. Tensions culminated in Russia's invasion of Georgia in 2008 after which Russia recognized South Ossetia and another region, Abkhazia, as independent countries and stationed thousands of its soldiers in those areas. With reporting by AFP Irans relations with the countries of Central Asian have been up and down for more than 30 years. Now there are signs that their ties are again strengthening: Between May 29 and June 19, three Centra Asian presidents paid official visits to Iran. One reason for the outreach is the unreliability of the regions traditional trade route through Russia after international sanctions were imposed on Russia for its war on Ukraine. But there are also other factors at play. This weeks Majlis podcast discusses the warming ties between Central Asia and Iran. Since starting an anti-war activist group in the Russian city of Belgorod following the Kremlins February invasion of Ukraine, Ilya Kostyukov has faced threats of expulsion from his university, been visited at his home by police, and continues to walk a careful line around the countrys new censorship laws. While the early days of the invasion saw anti-war protests across major cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg, five months into the conflict Russia has a dwindling number of dissidents and increasingly few people willing to tackle it head on. Members of the minority that have spoken out face both a deepening sense of hopelessness and hardening repression from the authorities in the form of arrests targeting activists and new legislation that can lead to a 15-year prison sentence for criticizing Russias military. But the 19-year-old Kostyukov from Belgorod, a city some 40 kilometers from the border with Ukraine, says he believes a substantial portion of the Russian population is still receptive to arguments against the war despite a growing wave of nationalistic support for the offensive. It is generally accepted that the majority of citizens of our country are supporters of the governments policies in Ukraine, but not everything is so simple here, Kostyukov told RFE/RL. I created an organization so that an alternative point of view exists in Belgorod. We have already gathered 100 like-minded people despite the fact that the [group] is not engaged in any campaigning right now. Kostyukov set up what he calls the Belgorod Anti-War Committee, which has been able to achieve some modest goals in the city while navigating a shrinking and increasingly repressive space for activism inside Russia. It's hard for me to just sit and be silent. We can try to change something [this way], and at least well know that we did everything that we could, Kostyukov said. Waiting For A Breakthrough Kostyukov says the group has sent more than 15,000 written appeals to lawmakers at the local and national level in Russia and asked for them to bring the war to an end. Theyve also focused on more local issues such as the cancellation of a new trolleybus fleet for Belgorod, a city of some 400,000 people north of the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. The committee, which is a loose collection of activists and concerned citizens, also covers political trials in Belgorod on their Telegram channel and provides legal support to defendants. Kostyukov says the group also plans to put up leaflets around the city and raise awareness about the economic costs that the war is bringing to Russia and residents of Belgorod in particular. He says that getting the message across that Russia should stop its invasion is becoming more and more difficult, especially as he believes a growing number of people are convinced by their own nationalism that Ukrainians are Nazis and that a certain section of the population is unreceptive to changing their views on Ukraine. Still, he says, arguments about how the war is affecting the national economy resonate the most and can be an easy introduction for people who are otherwise supportive of the special military operation in Ukraine, the term that Moscow uses for its offensive. For the moment, the Kremlin has avoided a general military mobilization and has not formally declared itself at war. You need to start with everyday trifles and then turn your attention to serious topics related to the special operation, Kostyukov said. At some point later, their empathy switches on and they understand how bad all this is now for their neighbors [in Ukraine]. Navigating A New Reality There are some signs of the impact of Western sanctions across Russia, but experts say they will take time to percolate through the economy. Gauging public opinion about the war inside Russia is difficult. Opinion polls suggest majority public support for the war, but some experts say it remains passive, especially for areas in Russia further removed from the effects of the conflict. According to the independent Levada Center pollster, the interest Russians have in the war is declining by each month. For instance, 64 percent of respondents said in March they were paying at least some attention to the fighting in Ukraine, but only 56 percent said they were in May. Unlike in Moscow and St. Petersburg, where the war has little impact on many peoples everyday lives, in Belgorod it is more of a reality. In early April, Russia said two Ukrainian helicopters had attacked a civilian oil storage depot on the outskirts of the city, causing a fuel blaze. Video appeared to show missiles hitting the facility, but the Ukrainian military denied it was involved. On July 3, Russian authorities reported explosions in Belgorod that they said were the result of a Ukrainian attack. Kyiv has dismissed the claims. For Kostyukov, this leaves a difficult road ahead. He says he remains committed to independent politics inside Russia and has no plans to stop his activism but adds that he and his fellow committee members continue to walk a tightrope when it comes to censorship and avoiding repercussions from the authorities. During his interview with RFE/RL, Kostyukov said that he chose his words carefully and only referred to the fighting in Ukraine as a special military operation instead of a war due to new laws introduced following the Kremlin's invasion. He said he has no plans to leave Russia but is worried about what the future holds. I don't want to end up in a Russian prison and I'm trying to protect myself however I can, Kostyukov said. We act and speak very carefully. We still have to follow internal censorship so that we are not [prosecuted]. It wont be hard for [the authorities] from our region to mold a criminal case out of nothing. Written by Reid Standish in Prague based on reporting by Daria Egorova for RFE/RLs Russian Service ST. PETERSBURG, Russia -- As Russian forces pounded Mariupol with heavy artillery, reducing the city to rubble, Anastasia fled the Ukrainian city with her son to the only destination it seemed possible to reach: Russia. With little money and few possessions in hand, she looked forward to receiving the 10,000-ruble ($185) payment Russian President Vladimir Putin had promised Ukrainian refugees even before he launched a large-scale invasion of the country on February 24. The money would help her cover their basic needs for a short period of time while she and her son hunkered down in St. Petersburg, waiting for the war to end. Three months after arriving there, she has yet to receive the payment. Workers at the local government center handling such issues said they didnt know anything, said Anastasia. Like other refugees RFE/RL spoke to for this story, she did not want her last name published for fear of repercussions. [They said], wait, at some point they will give it to you, she said. Anastasia is by no means alone in her complaint. Svetlana Tikhomirova, a St. Petersburg journalist who volunteers to help Ukrainian refugees, said recently that about 90 percent of those who have arrived in the Leningrad region -- which surrounds the city of St. Petersburg but does not include it -- have yet to receive their promised payment. In a letter addressed to Putin in mid-June and published on social media, Tikhomirova said Ukrainian refugees in Russia are caught in a vicious cycle. Without the payment, many dont have enough money to pay for services -- such as document translations -- critical for receiving a Russian passport and employment. Tikhomirova is one of hundreds of people across Russia helping Ukrainian refugees with money, food, and other essentials. The volunteers as well as the refugees have created their own chats on social media to share updates and concerns, one of which is the payment delay. The situation in [provincial Russia] is much more dire than in Moscow and St. Petersburg, according to accounts from volunteers, she wrote in the letter, adding that in more remote areas the volunteers themselves are unable to provide support for the refugees due to lower standards of living -- people are going hungry in the direct sense of the word. When contacted by RFE/RL, Tikhomirova declined to comment on the letter. Her colleague, Galina Artemenko, said in a Telegram post that the situation is "exactly" as described in the letter. Their comments would appear to contradict Russias Emergency Situations Ministry, which oversees the payments to refugees. An unidentified ministry official told state media on June 7 that 301,510 Ukrainian refugees -- or nearly four out of five of those who the official said applied -- had received the 10,000-ruble payment. More recent figures were not immediately available. There are about 1.3 million Ukrainian refugees in Russia, according to the UN, while the Russian government has put the number at 2.1 million, including 340,000 children. Kyiv has accused Moscow of forcibly taking Ukrainian citizens to Russia. Most of the Ukrainian refugees are financially vulnerable pensioners and women with children, in part because many of the men in the parts of Ukraines Donbas region that were held by Russia-backed separatists long before the February invasion have -- willingly or not -- stayed to fight. One expert told RFE/RL that red tape and bureaucratic run-arounds could sap hope. For Natalia Yurchenko, who fled from mainland Ukraine to the Russian-controlled Crimean Peninsula with her husband, that has already happened. They have been waiting three months for their payment to arrive. Our family is no longer hoping for the promised payment, she told RFE/RL. We really needed the money. We didnt have anything to live on and we had to sell some of our possessions. A 10,000-ruble payment in any case would not last long in Russias largest cities. Use of Moscows subway system would eat up a quarter of that amount in a month. One of the assertions Putin has used to justify the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is that Russian speakers in the Donbas needed protection from the government in Kyiv, which he has falsely claimed was committing genocide there. The Russian offensive has destroyed much of the Donbas, leaving many of the Russian speakers who survived the onslaught without a home, possessions, or a job. Six days before the February 24 invasion, Putin ordered his government to pay each refugee from the Donbas 10,000 rubles to help them settle in a new place [and] buy all items necessary for now. The Russian government allocated 5 billion rubles prior to the start of the war for refugees, implying it anticipated up to 500,000 refugees. Russias failure to make the payments on time despite early preparation may reflect the Kremlins expectation of a quick, victorious war that would generate far fewer refugees. It may also be a reflection of a notoriously unwieldy bureaucracy. At a meeting in early May with 147 refugees staying at Mechta (Dream), a childrens camp outside Moscow, Nina Ostanina, a Communist Party lawmaker in Russias lower house of parliament, the State Duma, said she would intervene on their behalf after learning only 32 had received their payments. Ostanina told the group that after she first raised the issue in the Duma, the Labor Ministry was ordered to assist the Emergency Ministry in processing applications and distributing the money but still nothing has changed. She said the list of refugees from Mechta still awaiting payment had been sent to the relevant authorities but everything got hung up there again. How long can we talk about this? she said in exasperation. For those who dont have politicians on their side, the process of getting through to officials at the bureaucracy can be daunting. Alyona arrived in St. Petersburg in early May from the Luhansk region in the Donbas and was told she would be paid 10,000 rubles within 10 days. Two months later, she has yet to receive it. She said she called the local center handling the distribution of funds to find out when she would be paid and was told to call back in 15 minutes. I have been calling for days but no one picks up the phone, she said. Ukrainian refugees in other regions, including Moscow as well as Krasnodar and Rostov in Russias south, told RFE/RL they too have been waiting months for their payments. Olena, who arrived in Moscow region from Mariupol with her daughter and mother, said she has yet to receive her payment despite submitting her application in April. She said she has had to run around Moscow to collect documents and visit doctors, sometimes standing all day in line. If you [Russia] are the receiving party [for refugees], then accept us in a normal fashion, she told RFE/RL. Behave humanely toward people who sat for a long time in the cold, hungry and under bombardment and who were forced to cook food over an open fire. Svetlana Gannushkina, head of Civil Assistance, a Moscow-based rights group that helps migrants and refugees, told RFE/RL that lengthy bureaucratic procedures are at the heart of the problem facing Ukrainian refugees. They have to submit documents, such as their passport, and go through a background check before they can potentially receive their payment and seek a job, she said. One elderly woman at Mechta told Ostanina that she had been denied the payment because she did not pass the background check for reasons that were not explained to her. However, they may be required to travel to another region handling their paperwork, or face other hurdles that sap time and energy, Gannushkina said. People spend so much time [dealing with the bureaucracy], and its not clear how they are expected to survive in the meantime. In short, they lose hope, she said. Maria, who fled the Donbas for Krasnodar, was told by the local government office that her case and others like it were being transferred to the neighboring region of Rostov. I dont even know which government office to look for in Rostov, she said. Maria said without the money she cant complete the medical checkup necessary to gain employment. Gannushkina said about 3,300 refugees have turned to Civil Assistance for help and that very few have received the 10,000-ruble payment. Of course, it's very crucial money for these people and it's important that they receive it immediately, she said. Gannushkina said another hurdle for refugees is restrictions on converting Ukrainian hryvnya into Russian rubles and finding employment. Refugees cant convert hryvnya into rubles until they have completed their background check and are approved for the payment. Even so, the refugees can only officially convert up to 8,000 hryvnya ($275). The two restrictions impact the ability of refugees to buy essential goods upon arrival in Russia though they can also turn to the black market for currency exchange. Where is the logic here? said Gannushkina, expressing frustration. Written by Todd Prince based on reporting by RFE/RLs North.Realities Chinese Wisdom in Xi's Words: Borrow a pair of wings from crane to soar up to sky Xinhua) 09:47, July 03, 2022 BEIJING, July 2 (Xinhua) -- "I would like to borrow a pair of wings from the crane to soar up to the sky," Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday quoted the poem by Meng Jiao in Tang Dynasty (618-907) when delivering a speech during a trip to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Xi cited the line when addressing the meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland and the inaugural ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to encourage Hong Kong to create a splendid feat. In the speech, Xi said that China's national rejuvenation has become a historical inevitability, and the successful practice of "one country, two systems" in Hong Kong is an important part of this historic process. Xi said that with the strong backing of the motherland and the solid guarantee provided by "one country, two systems," Hong Kong will surely create a splendid feat on the journey ahead toward the second centenary goal of building China into a modern socialist country in all respects, and will share the glory of the Chinese nation's rejuvenation together with people in the rest of the country. (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji) By Vugar Khalilov Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and the newly appointed ambassador of the Czech Republic to Azerbaijan, Milan Sedlacek, have discussed the prospects of ties, as well as regional security issues, Azernews reports, per the ministry. Noting that Azerbaijan attaches importance to the development of relations with the Czech Republic, Bayramov said that there is a high level of political dialogue and mutual understanding between our countries. He emphasized that the Czech Republic is one of the nine EU member states with which Azerbaijan has established strategic partnership relations. Bayramov briefed the incoming ambassador on the region's post-conflict status, rehabilitation and construction efforts in the liberated regions, concerns with the execution of trilateral agreements, and Azerbaijan's efforts to normalize ties with Armenia. He spoke about Azerbaijan's approach to securing regional peace and stability, which is based on rigorous respect for international legal norms. The minister stated that Azerbaijan is ready to give adequate support to the newly-appointed ambassador during his diplomatic activities in the country and wished him good luck. Bayramov accepted a copy of Ambassador Milan Sedlacek's credentials and congratulated him on his appointment. Sedlacek, for his part, thanked the minister for his congratulations. He stated that in his previous positions, he had worked in the neighboring region. The ambassador stated that there is significant potential for the growth of bilateral ties and that he will make every effort to capitalize on this potential. The sides agreed on the necessity of ongoing political talks between the two nations and shared views on the potential of cooperation in a variety of areas, including economic, transportation, energy, and humanitarian. (jckonline.com) - On Sunday, President Joseph R. Biden, along with the other members of the Group of Seven (G-7), announced a collective ban on the import of Russian gold at the 48th annual G-7 summit in Schloss Elmau, Germany. Russia is generally considered the worlds second largest gold producer. The G-7 consists of the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom. On Tuesday, the U.S. Treasury prohibited the import of Russian Federationorigin gold into the United States with immediate effect, unless licensed or otherwise authorized by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). The edict specifically excludes Russian gold that was purchased prior to Tuesday. As with diamonds, gold that is substantially transformed in another country is currently exempt from the export ban. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The first thing to understand about the barren storefronts casting a pall over parts of San Francisco and Oakland and other large cities is this: Every parched void is a tale unto itself. Union Square, hollowed out by a dearth of tourists, tells a different story than the blocks around Salesforce Tower, hollowed out by a dearth of young office workers. High-rise apartments in central Oakland pose their own distinct challenge with ground-floor spaces that have never been leased. This is the urban reality of 2022, and it would still exist even if all of COVIDs variants died out. The damage is cumulative and deep. What cities and building owners must do now is find intriguing, inventive ways to plug holes on a short-term basis so that todays terrain of for rent signs doesnt become a permanent blight on too many urban blocks. Not all vacant spaces are the same, but they can all contribute to the overall sense that San Francisco is in decline, said Kate Sofis, director of the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development. We have to turn around the narrative. That narrative is a visual one in places like the corner of Bush and Sansome streets in San Francisco. This is a portal to the Financial District, with the rich masonry of 225 Bush St. and the Adam Grant Building at 114 Sansome St. setting a dignified tone, but the air of stability is clouded since both structures retail corners which held a Target and a CVS are papered over. Across the bay in downtown Oakland, art displays fill windows on Broadway that would have held stores in 2019; a 33-story residential tower at 17th Street meets the sidewalk with barren ground floors despite the 254 chic apartments upstairs. This holds true for recent mixed-use buildings in other Bay Area hubs the goal is lively blocks bustling with shoppers and residents as well as workers, but empty storefronts hide behind all that new glass. The pandemic played a huge role in this, forcing many retailers or cafes out of business. But the past two years only exacerbated trends that already were powerful. Amazon was already a behemoth. Department stores already were in decline. Thats why we cant assume that, even if Mayor London Breed is successful in persuading San Franciscos large employers to lure their workers back to the office, that retail tenants will suddenly clamor to be on, say, the 200 block of Pine Street where four empty spaces face off at one end, a Subway squeezed between the north sides pair. Cities need to find ways to prime the pump, and facilitate new types of ongoing activities within otherwise vacant ground floor spaces. SFNext SFNext is a Chronicle special project to involve city residents in finding solutions to some of San Franciscos most pressing problems. Send feedback, ideas and suggestions to sfnext@SFChronicle.com Where to find more SFNext content Whet peoples curiosity. Light a spark like the parklets that kept so many restaurants afloat through COVIDs surges, or the retail pop-ups that drew crowds during the 2007-09 recession. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle One promising initiative comes out of Sofis office: Vacant to Vibrant, which would allocate $750,000 in the 2022-23 city budget to pairing property owners with artists and small businesses who can use the space for short term activations. Done right, this could attract a basic concern of building owners who might see the advantage of filling a storefront for six months or a year with maker space or art studios a hip ground floor can make space upstairs more marketable but dont want the chore of lining up permits and managing the short-term tenants on a day-to-day basis. If the city serves as the go-between, or provides grants to nonprofit community business districts to take on that task, things could begin to happen. Something like this isnt sexy, but its really important, Sofis said. We need to understand better what the issues are. This view is echoed by Michael Berne of MJB Consulting, who works with cities on retail planning. Having a nonprofit take on a master lease allows for more flexibility to manage the spaces, Berne said. This could be especially true in the Bay Area, where you assume theres no shortage of ambitious entrepreneurs to try something creative. But why stop there? Imagine if civic or cultural institutions committed to programming a year of exhibitions in a spacious storefront near Salesforce Tower, one after the other, each showcasing a niche within their collection. The novelty of immersing yourself in Bay Area travel posters, perhaps, or local sporting memorabilia (all those shiny recent trophies!) could make the space a draw. Heck, regional transportation agencies could display maps of crazed freeway plans that never came to be. People would show up, if only to scoff or sigh, and from there they might do some exploring on foot. More Information About the project SFNext seeks to involve city residents in finding solutions to some of San Francisco's most pressing problems. Send feedback, ideas and suggestions to sfnext@sfchronicle.com Follow the discussion on Twitter: @SFNext Listen to the "Fixing Our City" podcast: sfchronicle.com/fixing-our-city Sign up for our newsletter: sfchronicle.com/newsletters/sf-next See More Collapse City Hall itself could commit to a storefront that would function as a service center an easy spot for residents to get assistance face to face. Vaccinations and checkups could be provided one day each week for people who might not have convenient health plans. It also makes sense to loosen the definition of what is allowed along could-be-busy sidewalks. 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. Oakland is now exploring this for its 850-acre central core. Part of the reason for crafting a comprehensive downtown plan, one document acknowledges, is that some areas need more flexible ground floor requirements after (the) pandemic. In storefronts lining commercial streets like Broadway, owners would no longer need special permits for tenants like a yoga studio or medical offices. Nearly all of 14th Street, meanwhile, would be rezoned to encourage arts and culture and their supportive services on the ground floor of buildings. When storefronts are vacant, its hard, said Steve Snider, executive director of the Downtown Oakland Association. He describes part of his job as lobbying building owners to take the ground floor out of their business model, and think of it as part of the public realm. None of this is easy. The novelty of something new can wear off fast. Thats why San Franciscos proposed budget next year includes $2.5 million for special events and streetscape improvements in what the city calls the economic core. The goal: to draw a wide range of both business and leisure visitors over the course of a week. And give them a reason to stop by more than once. Whatever we do has to be a campaign, said Laura Crescimano of Sitelab Urban Studio, whos working with the Downtown Community Benefits District on efforts to enliven the traditional Financial District and its surroundings. These things happen in layers. Another district, branded as the East Cut, is financed by a fee on property owners on Rincon Hill and in the blocks around the Transbay transit center. Back in 2016, its leaders tried to nudge owners of the then-new residential towers to pursue the idea of a curated neighborhood, where theyd work together to attract retailers who might give the emerging area a spark. Few owners bought in, recalls East Cut Executive Director Andrew Robinson. But one developer made space available for neighborhood events until the space was leased. Another briefly devoted a storefront to an environmental art installation. Thats what makes a city. People want to meet people, feel like theyre part of something, Robinson said. If we just create a vertical suburb, weve failed as a neighborhood. John King is The San Francisco Chronicles urban design critic. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron Monkeypox cases have more than doubled over the past week in California and the Bay Area, where health officials are joining a global scramble to contain the outbreak while the virus still circulates in limited social networks. California had reported 95 monkeypox cases as of Friday, up from 40 the week before, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 460 cases have been reported nationwide as of Friday, up from 150 the week before. In the Bay Area, more than two dozen confirmed or suspected cases have already been reported, with 16 in San Francisco alone as of Friday, though that number is updated only once a week and is almost certainly higher by now, health officials said. The infectious disease, a cousin of smallpox, manifests itself as skin lesions and is spread by intimate, person-to-person contact. Most people recover fully without treatment, but monkeypox can cause severe illness in children and some other vulnerable groups. Even for those who arent seriously sick, it can take weeks to get over and cause discomfort and pain. Almost all cases so far have been reported among gay or bisexual men, most of whom are believed to have been exposed through sexual or other close contact with someone who was infected. The risk to the general public remains very low, local and federal health officials say. Monkeypox is nothing like COVID, and is not currently and almost certainly never will be a threat at the same crisis level, experts say. But the outbreak is at a critical stage where health officials have an opportunity to stamp it out before cases spread further and potentially affect more vulnerable people. Monkeypox is not the same scale of a problem (as COVID). That said, if theres an opportunity to control an emerging disease, its important we try to do it, said Dr. Seth Blumberg, an infectious disease expert at UCSF. We cant blow this off. We need the political and societal will to control the disease now. Its possible that monkeypox, if allowed to widely circulate, could become endemic in the United States and threaten the general population, though many health experts said that outcome is unlikely given the nature of the virus and how it spreads, plus the existence of effective vaccines to stop it. Monkeypox also could establish itself as a recurring threat that triggers fresh outbreaks every few years, especially if it becomes embedded in U.S. animal populations. Or it could join the ranks of sexually transmitted infections, including syphilis and gonorrhea, that affect certain communities and have proved stubborn to control. It will suck if monkeypox joins the list of STIs that people have to worry about, said San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who has called for a hearing this month to discuss the citys public health response to monkeypox. We need to be moving quickly on vaccination and stopping the spread now. In the Bay Area, pressure is mounting on health officials to make vaccines which for monkeypox, can work before and after exposure to the virus more broadly available, and to conduct more widespread surveillance to quickly determine whether the disease spreads beyond the communities currently affected. Most testing is being done by state laboratories, which confirm results with the CDC. Stanford began providing laboratory testing for monkeypox two weeks ago in anticipation that the outbreak and demand for surveillance could grow quickly, said Dr. Benjamin Pinsky, head of the Stanford Clinical Viral Laboratory. Vaccination efforts around the country are currently held up by lack of supply. Two vaccines are authorized for prevention of monkeypox, though the preferred product called Jynneos is in much shorter supply. The second vaccine, called ACAM2000, has side effects that for some people could be worse than the illness itself. The U.S. last week announced plans to rapidly ramp up its vaccination efforts with Jynneos. So far, about 66,000 doses have been delivered to states with monkeypox cases; an additional 240,000 doses are expected to go out in the coming weeks, and at least 1.6 million total doses should be available by the end of the year, according to the CDC. On Friday, the U.S. Health and Human Services Agency said it had ordered an additional 2.5 million doses, which will be available at the end of this year and in 2023. California, which has about a quarter of all cases in the U.S., expected to receive about 15,000 doses by the end of last week or early this week. Jynneos is administered in two doses given 28 days apart. Bay Area counties reported receiving anywhere from 10 doses to more than 500, in San Francisco. Thats not enough to offer vaccination to everyone who might want it, so local health officials say they are targeting only those with a known exposure at the moment. That includes people identified through contact tracing of reported cases, people who hear informally that a partner was recently diagnosed, or those who attended an event or venue associated with one or more monkeypox cases. We dont have enough for everybody, said Frank Strona, the incident management lead for the San Francisco Department of Public Healths monkeypox response. Strona said more than 200 doses had been administered in the city as of Friday morning. We anticipate more batches every few days, he said. Once more vaccine becomes available, officials said, they hope to offer it to people at risk of becoming infected but who dont necessarily have a known exposure. The vaccine may not ever be needed for the general public if the outbreak is contained. 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. Monkeypox tends to cause flu-like symptoms and a trademark rash, with dense, fluid-filled lesions. Most people are sick for two to four weeks and dont need treatment, though a few drugs are available for severe cases. Worldwide, a handful of deaths have been reported this year, but none in the U.S. This years global outbreak, which has so far infected more than 5,000 people, has baffled infectious disease experts who have never seen the virus spread much beyond the West African countries where its endemic. The United States would typically see a few travel-associated cases every few years, but previously had reported only one outbreak: In 2003, 47 cases were identified, all linked to rodents imported from Ghana. Its not clear why monkeypox suddenly took off, though experts suspect it may be a combination of the virus mutating to become more transmissible and finding traction in groups where it could spread quickly and easily. Monkeypox transmits primarily through direct, sustained contact. People are most at risk if they are exposed to the fluid inside lesions, for example by touching the rash of an infected person or sharing bedding or towels with someone whos infected. The virus can also pass from person to person through respiratory droplets, but only at close range it doesnt spread through the air of restaurants and grocery stores. In the U.S., 271 of the first 305 cases were in men, and more than 70% were men who have sex with men, according to the CDC. Several large clusters have been traced to events or venues including private sex parties and clubs or bathhouses where people had sex with multiple partners. A small number of people have a large number of sexual contacts, and that can cause very rapid and early spread, said Dr. Jason Andrews, an infectious disease expert at Stanford. But it doesnt necessarily mean it will be sustained that way. Health officials note that unlike with HIV and some other sexually transmitted infections, theres no connection between particular sexual practices and the spread of monkeypox the virus just happens to have taken root first in gay networks. It can spread as easily among heterosexual partners, or among close household contacts. Andrews said he suspects the global outbreak may be starting to slow after weeks of explosive growth. He and other infectious disease experts noted that because of a long incubation period for monkeypox, cases being diagnosed now are probably from exposure one or two weeks earlier. The possibility remains for the virus to get a foothold in the broader population. The most concerning outcome would be if it spreads more broadly as an endemic infection across all ages, or through casual contact routes, Andrews said. I dont think we have strong evidence of that happening right now, but we have to prepare for it. Erin Allday is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: eallday@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @erinallday Regarding Lowell High perpetuates exclusion (Open Forum, July 1): Vincent Matthews makes a compelling argument for inclusivity. The University of California may not use the SAT, and perhaps Lowell shouldnt use a test for admissions, but UC and Lowell want to ensure that excellent students are at a place where they can thrive without being held back by students who are unmotivated or unprepared for rigorous courses. The School of the Arts uses admission criteria, too, to ensure a good fit between the school and the student. Would it be better if UC Berkeley admitted everyone? No. UC Berkeley needs to be exclusive, not racially, but academically. If you make Lowell like every other school, then you dont believe in true equity, where students who need to be challenged deserve a particular environment, just as students who struggle may need a special environment to thrive. Lowell is not for everyone, and it doesnt need to be for everyone to be a great school. Adam Michels, San Francisco EPA ruling is big news Regarding EPA limited in curbing emissions (Nation, July 1): The Supreme Court just eviscerated the EPA. Why is this not front page news? Currently, half of our carbon emissions come from electricity generation and transportation. The courts decision hamstrings our ability to produce clean electricity, and without clean electricity, we cant electrify our cars and trucks. As any teacher can tell you, doing only half the work is failure. I have been fighting climate change for decades, and this is the first time Ive felt truly hopeless. Trumps court may have sounded the final trump. Cynthia Cudaback, Oakland Blame Harry Reid Regarding Trumps role overblown (Letters to the Editor, June 30): Selective memory blames then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells stonewalling of Merrick Garland and his rush to install Amy Coney Barrett on the Supreme Court, and the conservative Federalist Societys list of conservative judges, as the main reason for the conservative Supreme Court majority Donald Trump was able to put in place. Blame also goes to former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who in 2013 set this whole thing in motion by changing sacrosanct Senate filibuster rules that required a 60-vote hurdle to move legislation and judicial nominees. Frustrated by Senate Republicans blockade of then-President Barack Obamas judicial nominees, Reid changed the filibuster rules to not apply to federal judgeships below the Supreme Court level. In the near term, the change allowed him (and Obama) to get a large bunch of judges confirmed. However, after Republicans took control of the Senate, McConnell was able, as payback, to eliminate the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees, too, and that led to justices being installed who almost certainly would not have passed the previous 60-vote hurdle. David Sander, Martinez Get rid of Dilbert Regarding Dilbert pushes Big Lie (Letters to the Editor, July 1) This letter prompted me to finally stop procrastinating and write a letter Ive been intending to write for five years. Why does The Chronicle still publish the Dilbert cartoon? I stopped reading it in 2016 when its author very publicly supported Donald Trump for president. Apparently that support has not wavered. Dilbert stopped being interesting or amusing a long time ago, and it persists in promoting values which are inconsistent with San Francisco. It makes me angry every time I see it on the printed page. Why do you continue to enrich Scott Adams? The Chronicle will be improved by the removal of Dilbert from its pages. Since its enactment in 1970, the California Environmental Quality Act or CEQA, as it is widely known has expanded exponentially beyond its original scope of protecting the natural environment. It now includes numerous public health considerations such as traffic, noise and tenant displacement to its list of environmental impacts that must be analyzed in reviewing development projects. As most people who follow California housing news know, this expansion of CEQAs scope has become a favorite tool of NIMBYs who file dubious legal challenges under the law to preserve their neighborhoods status quo. Less known, however, is how special interest groups have harnessed the law not to protect the environment, but to extract a self-serving toll from housing developers. As a lawyer who has seen environmentally sound projects in the Bay Area stalled for years by specious CEQA claims, allow me to fill you in on how this racket works. Faced with the prospect of a CEQA lawsuit, housing developers are forced to make a financial choice about whether to fight an expensive court battle, cave to demands or simply give up on their development. Each of these scenarios is lose-lose, stalling or killing projects or driving up the cost of construction and therefore rents. Typically, developers choose a non-litigation option. Opponents of CEQA reform argue that litigation is rarely used to stop housing development. Their oft-cited statistic is that only 2% of projects requiring CEQA-mandated environmental impact reports are subjected to legal claims. But that statistic is a diversion; a much higher percentage of projects are targeted for meritless CEQA litigation threats rather than actual lawsuits. In an example from the East Bay, where I represent housing developers, leveraging the threat of CEQA litigation has been the longstanding strategy of an association of four building trade unions that demand high-priced no-bid contracts from developers in exchange for an agreement to stand down on meritless CEQA claims. The association goes by the reasonable-sounding name East Bay Residents for Responsible Development. In reality, they are the Plumbers and Pipefitters, Local 342; Electric Workers, Local 595; Sheet Metal Workers Local 104; and Sprinkler Fitters Local 483. They make up just a fraction of the trades needed to complete a housing project, but their involvement in politics, including campaign contributions, and skillful use of CEQA, give them outsize influence over whether housing gets built in cities like Oakland. I learned firsthand how the CEQA scheme works several years ago while representing a developer on a 167-unit, middle-income housing project on a long-vacant parking lot near BART in San Lorenzo. First, my client received a call from an East Bay Residents rep requesting no-bid contracts for its trade unions. My client refused. And so the unions opposed the project on CEQA grounds, including specious claims that potential construction emissions and a possible catastrophic gas explosion were not properly analyzed. The county planning commission approved the project anyway, but the unions appealed it to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. That led to a meeting with a supervisor who represented San Lorenzo, where it was made clear to me and my client that the project likely would not be approved by the board. Further negotiations with the unions, however, might be move things along. There was no discussion of the projects potential environmental impacts. In the end, my client agreed to use some, but not all of the unions. The supervisors approved the project. But the projects cost paid in part by future renters increased significantly. The no-bid union contracts were estimated to be 10%-20% higher those that would go out to bid. More recently, East Bay Residents went after a proposed 222-unit project, including 16 low-income units, on a vacant lot adjacent to the West Oakland BART Station. In March 2021, the Oakland Planning Commission unanimously approved the project and specifically noted that the projects environmental review was sound. After being denied no-bid contracts, however, the trades appealed the commissions approval to the Oakland City Council. They claimed, among other things, that the projects environmental documents failed to adequately assess soil contamination. In reality, the projects property had undergone extensive soil cleanup and had been the subject of three separate environmental studies, including one that covered all of West Oakland, according to the projects developer. Nonetheless, in September, the Oakland City Council paused the project to consider whether to require yet another environmental report. That move prompted Californias newly formed Housing Accountability Unit to investigate whether the city council violated state housing laws, which prohibit the denial of legally compliant housing projects. The state has still not released the results of its investigation. On April 19, Oaklands City Council voted unanimously to once again delay the project and requested further review the soils issue. At the close of the meeting, City Council Member Dan Kalb encouraged the developer to meet with the East Bay Residents for Responsible Development for further negotiations. Based on my experience in San Lorenzo, those words were eerily familiar. Its clear that the only thing negotiable between unions and developers is construction contracts. Environmental impacts either exist or they do not. Thankfully, state authorities seem to be making good on Gov. Gavin Newsoms recent promises to hold jurisdictions accountable when they wrongly reject housing projects. But it remains unclear if dubious environmental study demands violate housing laws or the extent to which those violations can be enforced if they are indeed illegal. Californias Housing Accountability Act limits cities discretion to reject housing that complies with all planning and zoning laws, but that does not free a project from having to conduct an environmental review under CEQA. The fact that so many union CEQA appeals have less to do with environmental concerns than no-bid contracts does not appear to phase many local elected officials. Its simply how business is done. Thats why sharper tools are needed to stop the laws abuse. One Los Angeles developer is suing a CEQA-abusing project opponent, alleging three counts of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO. Plaintiffs use RICO to allege extortion. So long as unions continue to wield the specter of environmental harm alongside their political influence, Californias housing crisis will spiral even further out of control. Robert Selna is a founder of Selna Partners LLP, an Oakland law firm specializing in real estate and litigation. For years, many Californians have rolled their eyes at conservatives wanting the northern part of the state to secede into a State of Jefferson, or Silicon Valley moguls like Tim Draper blowing $5 million on a ballot measure proposal to divide California into six states. It all seemed so silly. But now, the Democrats who dominate California seem to be yearning for their own version of the same dream: to be insulated from the countrymen whose views they despise. Ive been getting a lot more calls recently on secession, Darrell West, who has studied secession as director of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, told me. Mainly from Texas and California. These are the two states where its percolating. Its more than percolating in Texas. The Texas Republican Party in its official platform wants a ballot measure in 2023 to determine whether or not the state of Texas should reassert its status as an independent nation. That Texas GOP platform also says homosexuality is an abnormal lifestyle choice, that the party oppose(s) all efforts to validate transgender identity, wants to abolish abortion and repeal the Voting Rights Act of 1965. While Texas Republicans dream about the glory days before 1845 and jockey to leave the union, California is ready to lead it. Or at least the parts that arent clinging to their tricornered hats. California the worlds fifth-largest economy isnt waiting for marching orders from a federal government that is paralyzed by gridlock or a conservative Supreme Court that is drawing its inspiration from the 1700s. From abortion rights to gun safety to climate change to immigration to health care, California is becoming the nation-state that Gov. Gavin Newsom often refers to it as. Many Californians see little in common with a country where women wont be able to control what happens to their bodies in the 26 states expected to ban abortion. So California is passing laws to turn the state into a national haven for those seeking the procedure and joining with Oregon and Washington to form an alliance to ensure access to reproductive health. Last week, the Supreme Court crippled the Environmental Protection Agencys ability to regulate industrial polluters. So California whose embrace of electric vehicles inspired U.S. carmakers to bump up their EV production to satisfy the states demand should quadruple down (its climate efforts) along with other blue states, Newsom said after the courts decision dropped. California isnt waiting for Washington, D.C., Democrats and President Biden to improve health care. The state is now ensuring health coverage for every resident, regardless of their immigration status. And while the high court just made it easier to openly carry firearms in public, California touts the strongest gun safety laws in the country and a gun death rate that is far better than Texas and 37% below the national average, according to Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. California is leading the resistance. Unlike 2016, its not just against Donald Trump. Its against gridlock and regressivism. I am very mindful that California can play an outsize role at this moment. Im mindful of the fact that we punch above our weight, Newsom said in the wake of the Supreme Court decision killing Roe v. Wade. We want folks all around the rest of the country and in many parts of the globe to know that I hope were your antidote to your fear, to your anxiety, perhaps to the cynicism that many of you are feeling about the fate and future of not only our state, but the world and country were living in. Los Angeles writer and producer Matteo Pizzolo envisioned this scenario years ago with his popular comic book Calexit. Its a genre known as speculative fiction. Except that it doesnt seem as speculative anymore. Illustrated by Amancay Nahuelpan, the story is about how California declares itself a sanctuary state after the federal government issues an order to deport all immigrants. The federal government responds militarily and chaos ensues. Pizzolo created Calexit during the 2016 election cycle out of frustration that political polarization was preventing people from working together. We werent able to address the big problems like climate change because we were at each others throats. Now, Pizzolo told me the other day, I feel like its actually more dangerous than it was in the way that the Supreme Courts decisions are pitting people against each other and destroying the notion of purple state. I feel that secession or factionalization is even more real now than it was a few years ago. The recent court decisions are incrementally getting rid of a kind of national identity. Were really splitting everything into a state level, he said. Real secession is hard to do. It would take the support of both houses of Congress and three-fourths of the nations state legislatures to permit a state to leave. Good luck with that. Even if that happened, there would be a million other factors to consider, large and small. California would have to create and fund its own military. Oh, and that road trip to Vegas or South Lake Tahoe? It might cost you more in transnational tolls into the neighboring country of ... Nevada. Then theres the political cost of California leaving and its 55 electoral college votes evaporating. If California were to leave it would, it will destroy the Electoral College for Democrats, West, the Brookings expert on secession, told me. Who cares? Californians wouldnt give a damn about the Electoral College anymore. Theyve got their own country. California might care if they had an ultranationalist neighbor right next to it, West said, referring to the United States. Without Californias Democratic votes, the remaining conservative majority might elect someone more ultranationalist than Trump. Countries that live next to one another have wars all the time. People should remember history. Look at Europe. Instead of seceding, Pizzolo envisions a more powerful role for California. Yes, the state has huge challenges in dealing with its skyrocketing homeless population, affordable housing shortage, mammoth wealth inequality and high poverty rate. But seceding wouldnt enable us to address all the systematic problems that we share nationally, he said. I think a lot of people want California not to lead the country, but to be a leader for the country, Pizzolo said. Thats one of the things that has always made California so inspiring to people from all over the country and all around the world. There is a spirit of sort of creative resistance here. Speaking of, Pizzolos next series comes out in October. Its called Rogue States of America. His publicist described it: What if a contested Presidential election plunged America into turmoil? What if political violence consumed the streets? And what if a raging Supreme Court, in a strict interpretation of the 2nd Amendment, legitimized and deputized all militiastransforming the entire country into a vigilante police state? If that sounds a little too close to yesterdays headlines, Pizzolo conceded that it is challenging to write speculative fiction and stay ahead of the freight train of our transformative times. Lets hope so. Rogue States of America is set in San Francisco. Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli San Franciscos crime landscape has transformed since 2020, along with residents perceptions of their own safety. While overall reported crime is still lower than it was pre-pandemic, the city has seen a rise in homicides and burglaries, a shift in the concentration of some crimes into wealthier neighborhoods and an increase in the number of reported hate crimes against Asian residents. For the last two years, much of the public debate around crime in San Francisco has centered on District Attorney Chesa Boudins role in these changes, culminating with his recall in June. But to understand local crime trends, its essential to understand whats going on with another agency, one with a likely far bigger impact on day-to-day criminal activity the citys Police Department. Since the pandemic began, data show San Francisco police officers have struggled to respond quickly to urgent calls for help. Their ranks have dwindled, and their arrest rates for property crimes have decreased. At the same time, their median salary has increased, and they have been fatally shooting fewer people compared to the early 2010s. The Chronicle made eight charts illustrating the state of the SFPD and police activity in recent years. The police department declined to comment for this article. How many officers does the SFPD have, and how does that compare to other California cities? SFPD currently has 2,023 sworn officers, according to the departments website. The department has fewer officers than at nearly any point over the last two decades, based on historical data from the Department of Justice. (Sworn officers usually carry guns and have the power to arrest people; non-sworn or civilian employees generally work in technical positions like forensic analysis.) The SFPD has thus said they are significantly understaffed, though a previous Chronicle analysis found that even with reduced numbers, the department is one of the most highly policed cities in California by population. While the department has lost roughly 250 officers since 2019, a decline of about 11%, the citys population has also declined by about 8%, from about 882,000 people in 2019 to roughly 815,000 people as of mid-2021, according to census data (the city saw a 6.5% decline from 2020 to 2021 alone). The department has staffing and recruitment and retention problems that we as a city ... need to work on and are working to address, San Francisco Police Commissioner Kevin Benedicto said. But, he added, I dont think its a unique problem, noting that police departments across the country are struggling to hire and retain officers. In a lot of ways, I believe in the long term, having a department with progressive policies and practices in terms of reform will help the staffing issue, he continued. Youll have a stronger culture of trust between the community and the department. How much are S.F. Police officers paid? The median annual pay for full-time SFPD employees, defined as anyone working 2,080 or more hours a year, was just shy of $160,000 in 2021, according to data provided by the City Controllers Office and analyzed by The Chronicle. Median total pay was about $150,000 a year for full-time department employees in 2016. Overall median police pay was even higher in 2020, largely due to an increase in median overtime pay for employees. Minus overtime and other pay, the median base salary of a full-time SFPD employee has increased by nearly 11% since 2016, from just under $118,000 to over $130,000. Do the SFPDs ranks reflect San Francisco as a whole? Compared to the demographics of the city as a whole, San Francisco sworn police officers are more likely to identify as white, Hispanic or Black, and less likely to identify as Asian. Benedicto said that the relative lack of Asian-identifying officers is troubling, particularly because of the rise in anti-Asian violence in the city. He added that the department lacks Cantonese-speaking officers, which are needed in monolingual Cantonese-speaking neighborhoods like Chinatown. But, he noted, the department recently added six bilingual officers to its ranks, including at least one Cantonese speaker. How many people have SFPD officers killed? How does their killing rate compare to departments in other U.S. cities? San Francisco police officers have been involved in 80 shootings since 2009, according to the SFPDs statistics. In the course of those shootings, officers have killed 37 people, including bystanders, people suspected of committing crimes and other officers. According to data from the Washington Post, which tracks police shootings nationwide, San Francisco police officers kill people at a rate somewhere in the middle-to-lower end of other similarly sized U.S. cities. From 2015 through June 2022, SFPD officers killed residents at an overall rate of 23 people per million population higher than the city of Seattle but lower than cities including Denver and Columbus, Ohio. The average number of people killed by SF police appears to be trending downward, an observation Benedicto called really encouraging. He said that the apparent decrease in deadly shootings was likely attributable, at least in part, to a landmark use-of-force policy the commission passed in 2016, which requires officers to undergo multiple additional de-escalation training sessions. Still, he said, theres room for improvement; he wants to add a requirement that officers re-take trainings at regular intervals so they do not go stale. Phelicia Jones, founder of Wealth and Disparities in the Black Community in San Francisco also called the reduction in killings a good thing. However, when you look at those who they have killed, did they really need to be killed? Jones said, noting that the most recent SFPD fatal shooting involved two people without guns (the two men killed, both unhoused, had been grappling over a knife). The case is currently under investigation by the Attorney Generals Office. I wouldnt call it a victory, she continued of the reduction. Its like, maybe something theyre doing a little bit better. 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. How quickly does the SFPD respond to urgent calls for help? San Francisco police officers have become much slower to respond to urgent calls for help from citizens over the last several years, according to calls for service data and data from the City Controllers Office. The median response time of a police officer to urgent Priority-A calls has increased by roughly 30% since 2015, from about 6.5 to 8.5 minutes. Priority-A calls, according to the city, require a rapid response because there may be an immediate threat to life or a substantial risk of major property loss or damage, like active shootings. The departments median response time to still time-sensitive but less-urgent Priority-B calls has also increased significantly, doubling from about 16 to 30 minutes since 2015. Its response time to least urgent Priority C calls has been more varied over the years. Benedicto said this slowed response to urgent calls could be due to multiple factors, from officers having to don PPE before responding to a call to fewer officers being available to respond. Jones said she wasnt surprised at the SFPDs slow-down in calls for service, and that San Francisco police have always taken their time to get to the Black community. How effective is the SFPD at clearing criminal cases? The SFPDs clearance rate, defined as the share of reported criminal incidents it closes through an arrest or other resolution, has decreased in recent years. Its clearance rate for property crimes was 6% in 2020, the latest year with data available for all California cities. While this number may sound low and its a significant decrease from the citys 10% clearance rate in 2010 its on par with current figures and trends seen in other major California cities, like San Jose and Sacramento. The departments clearance rate for violent crimes has remained much steadier, hovering between 30% and 35% from 2010-2020. But out of a sampling of five large California cities, as of 2020, SF had lower clearance rates for violent crimes than three Los Angeles, San Jose and Sacramento and higher rates than just one: Oakland. While official FBI data stops at 2020, figures from the departments dashboard and letters from government officials show that the departments clearance rates continued to drop in 2021. According to a letter sent by District Supervisor Hilary Ronen to SFPD Chief Bill Scott, police only cleared 8.1% of all crimes in 2021, and just 3.5% of reported property crimes. Benedicto said that a combination of low staffing and low morale may be responsible for the departments reduced performance on quantifiable metrics like clearance rates and response times, along with anecdotal reports of officers standing by as crimes are committed in front of them. There are currently two different lineages of monkeypox. One is located in the area of the clade (phylogenetic group) of Central Africa and the other one in the clade of West Africa the latter being the one with the least virulence and circulating in Peru. The specialist said that despite the fact that a less virulent and deadly variant circulates in our territory, it is necessary to continue with genomic surveillance so as to later determine whether there is variability in this virus or whether it remains the same. Scientific evidence "The sequencing of the first monkey virus genome in our country enables us to be aware of what we are facing, as well as to take adequate prevention and control measures. The health system bases its actions on scientific evidence; that is why the work of the INS team is important," he indicated. Likewise, the specialist called on the population not to be alarmed by the recent monkeypox cases detected in the South American country because the transmission of this disease is not comparable to that of COVID-19, which is still affecting the entire world. How is monkeypox spread? Dr. Escalante stated that this disease is transmitted by close contact with an infected person or through the droplets that one expels while speaking. Thus, it is important to continue wearing facemasks which not only protect against COVID-19 but also monkeypox. Logro peruano! Los investigadores ?????????????? del @INS_Peru del #Minsa secuenciaron el genoma completo del virus que causa la viruela del mono a partir de una muestra del primer paciente en el pais con esta enfermedad. pic.twitter.com/wVj6DUMpEN San Francisco has a wealth of truly incredible parks, from huge Golden Gate Park to vibrant Dolores Park to Twin Peaks and its stunning city views. But a report from the San Francisco Civil Grand Jury argues that, while most of the citys 220 parks live up to high standards, the city isnt doing enough to tell the public which parks could pose safety issues for people, especially those with physical limitations. No one wants to trip and fall while walking in a park, the report states. But for many, particularly for the disabled, the elderly, parents with strollers, or anyone with a walking aid, finding a park to access can be challenging. The (Recreation and Park Departments) website does not indicate if and how each park is in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, nor does it contain information about the parks surface condition for pedestrian or wheelchair travel. The report singles out what it calls defective pathways at Buena Vista, Lincoln and Brooks parks, where images show rutted and uneven paved trails, and notes that wheelchair users cannot visit the Hyde and Vallejo Mini Park at all because there is no ramp available beside the concrete stairs. The Recreation and Park Departments website describes the 0.15-acre minipark as a postage stamp-sized jewel tucked away in the Citys Nob Hill neighborhood. The Civil Grand Jury is a volunteer-run government oversight panel that conducts investigations and makes recommendations based on its findings. In the summary to its Safe and Accessible Parks for All report, the jury contends that park-goers dont have the information they need because the park department doesnt publicize which parks have accessible pathways and ones where paths are in disrepair. The jury offers a number of recommendations, including using the park departments website to provide accessibility information, the state of pathway conditions, and park audits and scoring conducted by the city. The report cites the California State Parks website as an example of how San Franciscos parks agency can add an accessibility communication standard to its own website. The state parks system shows what accessible activities are available at parks, instead of putting the burden on the public to call the parks department to receive that information. Currently, the Office of the Controller is responsible for performing an annual audit of San Franciscos park maintenance and cleaning, according to the report. Park surveyors fill out report cards addressing 12 features, including childrens play areas, table seating areas, restrooms and hardscape, which refers to asphalt, paved paths and hiking trails. The report cards go to a database kept by the Controllers Office, which computes park maintenance scores based on quarterly reports. Low scores mean the overall condition of a park is poor. The jury recommends that these scores be shared on the park departments website, and that the hardscape category be expanded to evaluate pathway conditions. 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. The Civil Grand Jury has requested responses within 60 days from the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, Recreation and Park Commission, and Office of the Controller. In closing, the jury says that parks are invaluable resources for the public. Parks allow residents and visitors to connect with natural wonders and open space. Parks need to be safe and welcoming and bring people together, the report states. These changes will enhance the park experience for users and make the parks more accessible, equitable, and enjoyable for all. Kellie Hwang is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kellie.hwang@sfchronicle.com COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) Cash-strapped Sri Lanka on Sunday extended school closures for one week because there isn't enough fuel for teachers and parents to get children to classrooms, and the energy minister appealed to the country's expatriates to send money home through banks to finance new oil purchases. A huge foreign debt has left the Indian Ocean island with none of the suppliers willing to sell fuel on credit. The available stocks, sufficient for only several days, will be provided for essential services, including health and port workers, public transport and food distribution, officials said. Finding money is a challenge. Its a huge challenge, Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera told reporters. He said the government has ordered new fuel stocks and the first ship with 40,000 metric tons of diesel is expected to arrive on Friday while the first ship carrying gasoline would come on July 22. Several other fuel shipments are in the pipeline. But he said authorities are struggling to find $587 million to pay for the fuel. Wijesekera said that Sri Lanka owed about $800 million to seven fuel suppliers. Last month, schools were closed nationwide for a day due to fuel shortages and had remained closed for the last two weeks in urban areas. Schools will remain shut until Friday. Authorities also announced countrywide power cuts of up to three hours a day from Monday because they cant supply enough fuel to power generating stations. Sweeping power cuts have been a blight on Sri Lanka's economy for months, along with severe shortages of essentials including cooking gas, medicine and food imports. Wijesekera said the main problem is the lack of dollars and appealed to some 2 million Sri Lankans working abroad to send their foreign exchange earnings home through banks instead of informal channels. He said workers remittances, which usually stood at $600 million per month, had declined to $318 million in June. According to the Central Bank, the remittances the nations main foreign exchange earner dropped from $2.8 billion in the first six months of 2021 to $1.3 billion in the same period this year for a decline of 53%. The drop came after the government last year ordered the mandatory conversion of foreign currency. It said that black-market premiums have led people to hoard foreign currency. Sri Lanka's has been getting most of its fuel needs from neighboring India, which provided it with a credit line. The government said it was also negotiating with suppliers in Russia and Malaysia. Sri Lanka has suspended repayment of about $7 billion in foreign loans due this year out of $25 billion to be repaid by 2026. The countrys total foreign debt is $51 billion. The economic meltdown has triggered a political crisis with widespread anti-government protests erupting across the country. Protesters have blocked main roads to demand gas and fuel, and television stations showed people in some areas fighting over limited stocks. In the capital, Colombo, protesters have been occupying the entrance to the presidents office for more than two months to demand President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's resignation. They accuse him and his powerful family that included several siblings holding top government positions of plunging the country into the crisis through corruption and misrule. Pancakes are not a food as much as they are an experience or a memory. Easy to make (anyone can do it, right?), difficult to make well (mine always turn out goopy in the middle) and almost impossible to separate whats actually on the plate from ones own pancake nostalgia. But Im more than willing to put myself between a newly discovered plate of golden brown goodness and my own unreliable memory. And thats just what I decided to do when I read that Paulas Pancake House in Solvang were the best pancakes you will find in your life, according to Tripadvisor power reviewer Cesar C., describing the Danish-style offerings at the restaurant. The Danish style, I came to find out, is like the New York pizza slice version of the pancake: paper thin, oversized, built to dissolve on the tongue and tough to find done right on the West Coast. But Cesar C. is far from alone. Peruse Yelp or Google or Facebook and youll see Paulas is a strong contender for best-ever in the hearts of those whove had a taste. Photo By Andrew Pridgen Everyone is loyal to their favorite pancake, and Im no exception. My top three are Freds Coffee Shop in Sausalito (plate-sized and usually cooked to a more tree-bark brown to match the large interior community tables); Lucky Penny in SF (RIP); and Little Swiss Cafe in Carmel (a cozy space covered in murals of the old country, with a light and creamy Bavarian twist on the breakfast staple to accompany the frescos). For this one, I needed someone with expertise who could also help me sweep my biases aside, so I enlisted the most prolific pancake connoisseur I know: my 8-year-old son. On a recent Monday night, I told him that we were going to go on a quick road trip the next morning to score some of the best pancakes in the world. This was a mistake. At 5 a.m., I was shaken awake by a hungry kid holding a notebook and, inexplicably, wearing a neckerchief. He was all dressed up and ready to discover more at his soon-to-be new favorite spot. We arrived in downtown Solvang at quarter past 8 and found parking in front of the restaurant. You can shut off your GPS as soon as you turn off the freeway; Paulas is impossible to miss. Even in a sea of single-story Danish-accented buildings that lend credence to my SFGATE colleague Julie Tremaines assertion that Solvang is, in fact, grown-up Disneyland, Paulas features Disney-esque lines practically all day, every day. Maybe thats what she meant. Beyond the crowds gathering on the sidewalk to match any latest-and-greatest brunch spot on a slow-to-start SF Sunday morning, one thing to note about Paulas is that its set smack dab in the middle of breakfast heaven. Image via Yelp Image via Yelp Photo By Andrew Pridgen Image via Yelp Scenes from Solvang: Paula's Pancake House is a breakfast institution serving up a wide range of plates for breakfast, including chicken fried steak, lower right. (Images via Yelp & by Andrew Pridgen) Inside Paula's Pancake House, a beloved breakfast institution located in Solvang, Calif. Solvang is built around the most important meal of the day. As proof, within a three block radius of Paulas, there are many renowned offerings. Olsens Danish Village Bakery. Birkholms Bakery & Cafe. Belgian Cafe. Mortensens Danish Bakery. Solvang Restaurant. Danish Mill Bakery. The crowd is full of people who seem to be extras for a big blockbuster titled Your Favorite Breakfast Ever. They ease around on their morning promenade, coffee in one hand, tiny white go-bag of Danish pastry in the other, small dog accessory may or may not be included. With bakery and cafe smells coming at me from all directions, I wondered whether itd be better to duck in and grab something equally tasty from a neighboring restaurant. But I remembered the many online reviews that said to keep your eyes on the prize, get your name in and talk to some folks the wait will go fast. So thats just what we did. Lissette Guerrero, the restaurants assistant manager for the past 11 years, greeted us at the curbside stand. She asked me if I wanted a counter spot if one opened. Yes please, I said, then identified myself and sheepishly asked if it was always this busy on a Tuesday. Guerrero humored me with a smile and said, Yes. But its also summer and especially this summer because people are traveling again. Dont worry, she assured me, we wont run out. Photo By Andrew Pridgen To avoid the surge, Guerrero advises that summer travelers get to Paulas early (before 8 a.m.) or later in the afternoon (after 1 p.m.). If you do find yourself there in prime time, get to know a few of your fellow diners gathered around the front of the restaurant. Maybe it was because Paulas gives such a strong about-to-ride-the-Matterhorn energy, but everyone seemed in an exceedingly good mood, especially for a cohort that hadn't had their coffee yet. There was Carlos Ferrufino, a San Fernando Valley resident who came with his wife and two children on a quick getaway for his older daughter's 10th birthday celebration. He was there on recommendation from his cousin, who also gave him the advice to not let the crowds deter you. We dont mind waiting, he said. This is a highlight of the trip, and everyone here is nice. Ferrufino admitted he was a big breakfast guy and was there for the pancakes. Its nice to be away from the city, he said. I mean, look around you. This is a perfect little place. Ferrufinos name was called soon after and they were off. He turned around and waved me farewell and said, Here we go! as he rested his hands on his sons shoulders, bouncing in anticipation, which Ive never seen happen at a restaurant before. When my name came up, we were led to the back corner of the restaurants centerpiece L-shaped white Formica counter. The host dressed in a traditional dirndl, decorated with needlepoint pulled the chair out for the kiddo. He immediately sat down and started taking notes. I took his cue and jotted down a few observations about the place myself: The wood paneling gave it the timeless lived-in feel youd expect, and the round tables took up an outsized amount of room for a restaurant this compact but also provided maximum comfort for patrons who all seemed delighted to be eating themselves into a joyful delirium. Photo By Andrew Pridgen My young partner ordered the Danish-style pancakes with fruit (an orange slice) and I got the buttermilk with sausage and a side of eggs. We agreed to swap halfway through. Two vacationers next to us, Kevin and Heather Gonzales, had come up early from Claremont to kick off a four-day weekday retreat in the Santa Ynez Valley. They told us that they were sure to make Paulas their first stop, though they were not big breakfast people. We may want to come back again, Kevin said after he placed his order. He got the Danish pancakes and she ordered an omelet. Like us, they promised to swap midway through. We basically did the research and this is the place to go to, he said. Best pancake in the state, thats what we heard. Soon after, both tables meals came out. Kevin and my sons eyes did that cartoon thing where they widen and pop out as they observed the frying pan-sized thin rounds stacked and covered in a first-snowfall-of-the-season layer of powdered sugar. It was a good-looking, if not formidable, portion. For more traditional breakfast fare, there was Heathers omelet, and my own buttermilk stack was served with Danish sausage the size of a frankfurter. Photo By Andrew Pridgen As my son and I dove in, the agreed-upon breakfast exchange never happened. Ive seen the 8-year-old completely ignore a plate of carefully prepared dinner, and Ive seen him take down a trio of store-bought birthday cupcakes at once. But Ive never seen him eat like this. Midway through, he grabbed his spoon, along with his fork so he could double-fist his bites, just one scoop after another. Its no exaggeration to say his plate was clean within five minutes. He would later declare Paulas the best pancake ever or at least better than yours. I turned to Kevin, who was moving slightly more thoughtfully through his stack, and asked him how it was. Honestly, man, delicious, he said between bites. Its so simple, but Ive never had anything like it. That is the philosophy behind Paulas. The restaurants eponymous owner, Paula Greenwald, moved to the Santa Ynez Valley in 1971 with her husband Charlie. After opening the Belgian Cafe in Solvang, the pair purchased Ellens Pancake House a newer version is now in next-door Buellton in 1986. We took down Ellen's sign and put up Paulas, Charlie told the Lompoc Record in 2014. Image via Yelp Its plain food, not heavily seasoned, Paula Greenwald explained to the Santa Maria Times in October 2011 for an article commemorating the towns centennial. Most Danish cooking is very bland. That may well be the secret to why Paulas pancakes are so popular. Theyre simple, not too fussy, the epitome of what a pancake should be. They conjure up the memories of all the pancakes that weve eaten. Everyone should be so lucky to enjoy them at least once in their life. Everything about the experience from the wait to the anticipation of the first bite to the people we enjoyed them with was the most memorable kind of bland. Planning a trip to Disneyland has never been more expensive. Ticket prices are way up and inflation and eye-watering gas prices have made every aspect of a vacation pricier. Taking a family of four to Disneyland will never be cheap, but there are little ways to trim your budget to make it slightly easier to manage. Weve gathered some of our favorite tips and tricks to get deals and cut costs for your next trip to the Disneyland Resort. Disney doesnt do sales, but every so often theyll do a limited ticket deal. Currently, California residents can get a three-day, one-park ticket for $83 a day (excluding Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays) for visits through Sept. 15. Sometimes Disneyland will drop similar deals for slower travel seasons, like between Labor Day and the holidays. If youre an active member of the military, Disneyland offers discounts year-round; more information is available at Disneylands website, but keep in mind you need to purchase your tickets through a participating military base, not via Disney. Be careful with any third-party websites or resellers on Craigslist, eBay, etc., that claim to offer discounted Disneyland tickets. Do your research and contact Disney customer service if youre not sure if the seller is legitimate. If you buy a ticket from a third party and there are problems scanning them at the gate, Disney is much less likely to be able to assist you. A small discount generally isnt worth the risk. Finally, if youre really looking to save some cash, consider a one park per day ticket. Adding the park hopper option, which allows you to start in one park and hop over to the other at 1 p.m., adds $60 per ticket. That adds up fast for a family. Although the convenience of being able to jump between Disneyland and Disneys California Adventure is nice, its certainly not essential to enjoying your vacation. How to drive or fly to Disneyland on a budget Gas is ridiculously expensive right now, but if you've got a big family, it will still usually end up cheaper to drive than to buy individual plane tickets for everyone. Its also easier to pack essentials in the car, like food and drinks (more on that later). Bringing a car will add parking fees to your trip, however. Disneyland Resort hotels charge guests $35 per night (or $50 per night if you use the valet), and parking in the Disneyland lots is $30 a day. Many non-Disney hotels in Anaheim also charge a daily parking fee for guests. If you dont want to rent a car and you certainly dont need one given the Disneyland Resorts compact size you might save money and time by flying into the two airports that are closer to Anaheim. John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana and Long Beach Airport are both about 20-25 minutes from Disneyland, which means your Uber, Lyft or taxi ride will be much cheaper and shorter. Also, traveling through massive and crowded LAX is a surefire way to put extra stress on your vacation; the smaller airports are easy to navigate and generally have short TSA lines. You can see John Wayne Airports nonstop destinations at its website; Long Beach Airport also lists the cities it flies nonstop on its website. AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images If you can, try to be flexible about your travel days. Flights on a Monday or Tuesday can be significantly cheaper than Fridays or weekends, and giving yourself a little leeway allows you to wait for a good flight deal. Southwest in particular regularly has fare sales; recently, they offered 40% off tickets for summer and fall travel. Make sure you add up all fees before determining which airline is really the cheapest. Budget airlines like Frontier might work great if you only need to pay for one carry-on, but if youve got lots of luggage, it could actually be more expensive than other airlines. How to find a cheap Disneyland hotel Unlike Disney World, where parks are miles apart and Disney has free transportation for hotel guests, staying off-property is equally convenient in Anaheim. Plenty of non-Disney hotels are as close or closer to the park gates than the Paradise Pier Hotel, Disneys cheapest option. Non-Disney hotels may also offer free breakfast, free parking or kitchenettes for meal prep, cutting costs there too. Check out some of our favorite Anaheim hotels. I like booking Anaheim hotels through Expedia, where I can use points to get additional discounts and perks, or by using my Chase credit cards travel points. If you have your heart set on staying at Paradise Pier, the Disneyland Hotel or the Grand Californian, make sure you book your room when theres a sale. Disneyland regularly discounts rooms from 10% to 25% off, although there tend to be strings attached. Their current promotion only offers the 25% off deal for stays of four nights or longer. Theyve also done sales for Disney Plus subscribers only, or for specific times of year. For my money, the Paradise Pier was not worth the price. Its about a mile walking from the park gates, the rooms are lackluster and Disneyland cut its best hotel perk, the pre-pandemic Magic Hour early entry for guests, back to only 30 minutes. If youre going to stay on Disney property, you might as well make it a once-in-a-lifetime splurge and save up for the Disneyland Hotel or Grand Californian, which are closer to the parks and offer way more Disney magic. Disneyland Hotel via Yelp How to save money on Disneyland food and drinks The biggest cost-saver on a day at the parks? Bringing your own food. Disneyland allows you to pack your own food and non-alcoholic drinks. You cant bring glass containers or bottles, so make sure those items are packed in plastic. They even have a picnic area if you want to utilize that for mealtime. Theres no point in buying basics like fruit or granola bars when you can get it much cheaper outside the gates and bring it in. If youve got your heart set on some specialty Disneyland treats, consider sharing. Entrees are no surprise often heavy and decadent, and splitting portions is a good way to cut costs and ensure you dont get a sour stomach on Soarin 20 minutes later. My favorite entree to share is the Plaza Inn fried chicken meal, which is a hefty portion of three pieces of chicken, mashed potatoes, seasonal veggies and a biscuit. For $18.99, you can feed two adults or one adult and a few kids. Can you bring water into Disneyland? Yes! I always carry a reusable water bottle in my backpack and fill it up throughout the day as needed; if you ask a cast member at a quick-service restaurant, they will give you free cups of water and ice. There are also water fountains throughout the park, plus dedicated water bottle filling stations at Rancho del Zocalo, Red Rose Taverne, Pioneer Mercantile, outside the restrooms in Galaxys Edge, Autopia, Tom Sawyer Island and near the sanctum in Avengers Campus in California Adventure. Opt for cheaper but more personalized Disney souvenirs Its not hard to drop $100 in the blink of an eye in Disneys gift shops. To avoid racking up huge shopping bills, look for more unique and inexpensive souvenirs. At Plaza Point, you can pick out a holiday ornament and get it personalized for just a few dollars extra, creating a special family heirloom thats yours alone. (Remember to go early if you want one, though; once the artists are booked up for the day, they cut off new orders.) Personalized silhouettes havent returned yet to Disneyland, but they are back at Disney World, which does portend its return someday. For about $10, you can get a handmade silhouette of yourself or even your pet just bring a clear side-profile photo of your beloved critter and the artists will use it to craft a portrait. If your kiddo absolutely needs a new toy on their vacation, consider buying one at your local Walmart or toy store and packing it in your luggage to gift during the trip. Disneylands toy selection isnt particularly unique; similar play sets and items like toy swords can be found at big box retailers. You can also buy bubble wands on Amazon before your trip and avoid the sticker shock of the nearly $30 Disney wands that are ubiquitous in the parks. AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images Another budgeting tip? Buy a Disney gift card online or at Target before your trip. (If you have a Target RedCard, youll also get 5% off your purchase, which means a $100 gift card will cost you $95.) Use the gift card instead of a credit card, and when the money is used up, youve hit your pre-set budget. Do you need Genie Plus at Disneyland? For most people, Genie Plus isnt a necessity for a great day in the parks. If youre willing to wake up early and be at the park at the opening time (also known as rope dropping), you can knock out the heavy-hitter rides before big crowds arrive around midday. Disneyland also tends to be the busiest in the evenings when locals show up after work or school. Early risers can get a jump on crowds without needing to pay $20 extra per ticket, per day to skip lines with Genie Plus. There is one big caveat. If this is your once-in-a-lifetime trip to Disneyland, it might be worth it for you. Your odds of getting on every ride your heart desires are better with Genie Plus than doing stand-by lines alone. So if thats a priority for you, shelling out the additional cash may be the difference-maker for your dream vacation. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate HONG KONG (AP) China's famed Palace Museum began displaying artifacts in Hong Kong on Sunday amid a drive to build loyalty to Beijing in the former British colony that reverted to Chinese rule 25 years ago. Works of calligraphy and paintings on silk dating back more than 1,000 years feature heavily in the exhibition, housed in a seven-story building in a newly developed harborside arts district. The delicate artworks will be returned to Beijing for safekeeping after 30 days, but China's Communist Party leaders want the exhibition's cultural and political impact to linger for far longer. Despite that background, museum director Louis Ng stated that the Hong Kong space was not simply a branch of the Beijing Palace Museum. We have our own visions, identity and also the autonomy in our operation and curatorial decisions, Ng said. The opening of the exhibition came just two days after Chinas leader Xi Jinping marked the anniversary of Hong Kongs return with a visit to what is officially called the special autonomous region and a speech emphasizing Beijings control under its vision of one country, two systems. Xi praised the city for overcoming violent social unrest a reference to massive pro-democracy protests in 2019 that were followed by a crackdown that has snuffed out dissent and shut down independent media. The sweeping national security law imposed by Beijing has seen government critics who have not moved abroad being either jailed or intimidated into silence. That has aligned Hong Kong ever closely with the party's rigid controls exercised on the mainland and in the outer regions of Tibet, Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia. The political controls have increasingly taken on cultural and linguistic elements, and Friday's ceremony was conducted entirely in the national language of Mandarin, rather than Hong Kong's native Cantonese. The building of the Palace Museum in Hong Kong was controversial because of the lack of public consultation, and came as a surprise to many Hong Kong citizens. Daisy Wang, the museum's deputy director, said the current exhibition was a once in a lifetime opportunity to look at some of the rarest early works of painting and calligraphy in Chinese art history." The collection was built during the Ming and Qing dynasties and many of its finest works now reside on the self-governing island of Taiwan, where they were taken after the Communists seized power on the mainland in 1949. NEW YORK (AP) Kevin Jennings is CEO of the Lambda Legal organization, a prominent advocate for LGBTQ rights. He sees his mission in part as fulfilling that hallowed American principle: All men are created equal. Those words say to me, Do better, America. And what I mean by that is we have never been a country where people were truly equal, Jennings says. It's an aspiration to continue to work towards, and we're not there yet. Ryan T. Anderson is president of the conservative Ethics and Public Policy Center. He, too, believes that all men are created equal. For him, the words mean we all have the same dignity, we all count equally, no one is disposable, no one a second-class citizen." At the same time, he says, not everyone has an equal right to marry what he and other conservatives regard as the legal union of a man and woman. "I don't think human equality requires redefining what marriage is," he says. Few words in American history are invoked as often as those from the preamble to the Declaration of Independence, published nearly 250 years ago. And few are more difficult to define. The music, and the economy, of all men are created equal make it both universal and elusive, adaptable to viewpoints social, racial, economic otherwise with little or no common ground. How we use them often depends less on how we came into this world than on what kind world we want to live in. Its as if All men are created equal leads us to ask: And then what? We say All men are created equal but does that mean we need to make everyone entirely equal at all times, or does it mean everyone gets a fair shot? says Michael Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice, which promotes expanded voting rights, public financing of political campaigns and other progressive causes. Individualism is baked into that phrase, but also a broader, more egalitarian vision. There's a lot there. Thomas Jefferson helped immortalize the expression, but he didn't invent it. The words in some form date back centuries before the Declaration and were even preceded in 1776 by Virginia's Declaration of Rights, which stated that all men are by nature equally free and independent. Peter Onuf, a professor emeritus at the University of Virginia whose books include The Mind of Thomas Jefferson, notes that Jefferson himself did not claim to have said something radically new and wrote in 1825 that the Declaration lacked originality of principle or sentiment. The Declaration was an indictment of the British monarchy, but not a statement of justice for all. For the slave owning Jefferson and most of his fellow patriots, enslaved people were property and therefore not included in these new polities, leaving their status unchanged, Onuf says. He added that did not mean he did not recognize his enslaved people to be people, just that they could only enjoy those universal, natural rights elsewhere, in a country of their own: emancipation and expatriation. Hannah Spahn, a professor at the John F. Kennedy Institute in Berlin and author of the upcoming Black Reason, White Feeling: The Jeffersonian Enlightenment in the African American Tradition, says that a draft version of the Declaration made clear that Jefferson meant all humans were created equal but not necessarily that that all humans were equal under the law. Spahn, like such leading Revolutionary War scholars as Jack Rakove, believes that all men are created equal originally referred less to individual equality than to the rights of a people as a whole to self-government. Once the Declaration had been issued, perceptions began to change. Black Americans were among the first to change them, notably the New England-based clergyman Lemuel Haynes. Soon after July 4, Haynes wrote Liberty Further Extended: Or Free Thoughts on the Illegality of Slave-Keeping, an essay not published until 1983 but seen as reflecting the feelings of many in the Black community, with its call to affirm, that Even an affrican, has Equally as good a right to his Liberty in common with Englishmen. Spahn finds Haynes response philosophically innovative," because he isolated the passage containing the famous phrase from the rest of the Declaration and made it express timeless, universally binding norms." He deliberately downplayed Jeffersons original emphasis on problems of collective assent and consent, she says. The words have since been endlessly adapted and reinterpreted. By feminists at the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848 who stated We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men and women are created equal. By civil rights leaders from Frederick Douglass to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who in his I Have a Dream speech held up the phrase as a sacred promise to Black Americans. By Abraham Lincoln, who invoked them in the Gettysburg Address and elsewhere, but with a narrower scope than what King imagined a century later. In Lincoln's time, according to historian Eric Foner, they made a careful distinction between natural, civil, political and social rights. One could enjoy equality in one but not another. Lincoln spoke of equality in natural rights life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, says Foner, whose books include the Pulitzer Prize winning The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery. Thats why slavery is wrong and why people have an equal right to the fruits of their labor. Political rights were determined by the majority and could be limited by them." The words have been denied entirely. John C. Calhoun, the South Carolina senator and vehement defender of slavery, found not a word of truth in them as he attacked the phrase during a speech in 1848. Vice President Alexander H. Stephens of the Confederate States contended in 1861 that the great truth" is "the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery subordination to the superior race is his natural and normal condition. The overturning of Roe v. Wade and other recent Supreme Court decisions has led some activists to wonder if All men are created equal still has any meaning. Robin Marty, author of Handbook for a Post-Roe America, calls the phrase a bromide for those who ignore how unequal our lives truly are. Marty added that the upending of abortion rights has given the unborn greater protection than most, a contention echoed in part by Roe opponents who have said that All men are created equal includes the unborn. Among contemporary politicians and other public figures, the words are applied to very different ends. President Donald Trump cited them in October 2020 (The divine truth our Founders enshrined in the fabric of our Nation: that all people are created equal) in a statement forbidding federal agencies from teaching Critical Race Theory. President Joe Biden echoed the language of Seneca Falls (We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women are created equal) while praising labor unions last month as he addressed an AFL-CIO gathering in Philadelphia. Morse Tan, dean of Liberty University, the evangelical school co-founded by the Rev. Jerry Falwell Sr., says the words uphold a classic, longstanding Judeo-Christian notion: "The irreducible worth and value that all human beings have because they (are) created in the image of God. Secular humanists note Jefferson's own religious skepticism and fit his words and worldview within 18th century Enlightenment thinking, emphasizing human reason over faith. Conservative organizations from the Claremont Institute to the Heritage Foundation regard all men are created equal as proof that affirmative action and other government programs addressing racism are unnecessary and contrary to the ideal of a color-blind system. Ibram X. Kendi, the award-winning author and director of the Center for Antiracist Research at Boston University, says the words can serve what he calls both antiracist and assimilationist perspectives. The anti-racist idea suggests that all racial groups are biologically, inherently equal. The assimilationist idea is that all racial groups are created equal, but it leaves open the idea some racial groups become inferior by nurture, meaning some racial groups are inferior culturally or behaviorally, says Kendi, whose books include Stamped from the Beginning" and How to Be an Antiracist. To be an anti-racist is to recognize that its not just that we are created equal, or biologically equal. Its that all racial groups are equals. And if there are disparities between those equal racial groups, then it is the result of racist policy or structural racism and not the inferiority or superiority of a racial group. WAGON MOUND, N.M. (AP) Two men are facing charges after a car crash in the small northern New Mexico town of Wagon Mound left a woman and two small children dead. New Mexico State Police said 22-year-old Jesse Joel Blanco allegedly was speeding on State Road 120 around 10:45 p.m. Friday when the vehicle he was driving struck a car that was backing out of a driveway. Hayne Palmour IV/AP DEL MAR, Calif. (AP) California will provide $300 million to help relocate train tracks along a stretch of eroding seaside cliffs near San Diego, regional transportation officials said. Local governments and the North County Transit District have spent millions buttressing sections of the bluffs in Del Mar that have collapsed in recent years, causing delays for passenger and cargo trains. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. (AP) Police are investigating after more than 30 bodies, some decomposing, were found inside a southern Indiana funeral home. Police in the Louisville suburb of Jeffersonville responded to Lankford Funeral Home and Family Center on Friday evening and found 31 bodies, including some "in the advanced stages of decomposition, Maj. Isaac Parker said. He said the county coroners office had reported a strong odor emanating from the building. Inside, officers wearing hazmat gear found bodies in different places around the building. Some of the bodies had been at the funeral home since March, Parker said. Police also found the cremated remains of 16 people. It was a very unpleasant scene, Parker said. The conditions were not good. The owner of the funeral home has been speaking with police since Friday, Parker said, and an investigation is ongoing. The owner did not immediately respond to an email from the Associated Press seeking comment Sunday. The remains were taken to the Clark County Coroner's Office for identification, and police asked anyone who may have information to contact the coroner's office. A woman who sent her brother's body to the funeral home for cremation after he died in April told WHAS-TV that she is still waiting for his remains. Tara Owen said when she reached out to the funeral director, he responded that he was dealing with a lot at the moment." This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate In overturning a half-century of nationwide legal protection for abortion, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Roe v. Wade had been wrongly decided and that it was time to return the issue of abortion to the people's elected representatives in the states. Whether those elected officials are truly representative of the people is a matter of debate, thanks to another high court decision that has enabled control of state legislatures to be skewed to the right or left. In June 2019, three years before its momentous abortion ruling, the Supreme Court decided that it has no role in restraining partisan gerrymandering, in which Republicans or Democrats manipulate the boundaries of voting districts to give their candidates an edge. The result is that many legislatures are more heavily partisan than the state's population as a whole. Gerrymandering again flourished as politicians used the 2020 census data to redraw districts that could benefit their party both for this year's elections and the next decade. In some swing states with Republican-led legislatures, such as Michigan and Wisconsin, arguably gerrymandering really is the primary reason that abortion is likely to be illegal, said Chris Warshaw, a political scientist at George Washington University who analyzes redistricting data. Meanwhile, in states where Democrats have gerrymandered, its going to help probably make abortion laws more liberal than people would like, he added. A majority of Americans support abortion access in general, though many say there should be some restrictions, according to public opinion polls. States have sometimes been viewed as laboratories for democracy institutions most closely connected to the people where public policies are tested, take root and potentially spread. Writing for the Supreme Court's majority in its June 24 abortion decision, Justice Samuel Alito noted that 30 states had prohibited abortion when the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling short-circuited the democratic process, usurped lawmakers and imposed abortion rights nationwide. Our decision returns the issue of abortion to those legislative bodies, and it allows women on both sides of the abortion issue to seek to affect the legislative process by influencing public opinion, lobbying legislators, voting, and running for office, Alito wrote. Abortion already is an issue in Wisconsin's gubernatorial and legislative elections. A recent Wisconsin poll showed a majority supported legal abortion in most or all cases. But a fight is brewing over an 1849 state law which had been unenforceable until Roe v. Wade was overruled that bans abortion except to save the life of the woman. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is backing a court challenge to overturn the law, enacted just a year after Wisconsin gained statehood. He also called a special legislative session in June to repeal it. But the Republican-led Assembly and Senate adjourned in a matter of seconds without taking action. Wisconsin's legislative chambers had one of the nation's strongest Republican advantages during the past decade and are projected to continue to do so under new districts in place for the 2022 elections, according to an analysis by PlanScore, a nonprofit that uses election data to rate the partisan tilt of legislative districts. "Democracy is distorted in Wisconsin because of these maps, Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer said. In 2018, Democrats won every major statewide office, including governor and attorney general, races where gerrymandering isn't in play. But they have not been able to overcome heavily gerrymandered state legislative districts since Republicans won control of the statehouse during the midterm elections in 2010. If we had a truly democratic system in Wisconsin, we would be in a different situation," she said. "We would be overturning this criminal abortion ban right now" Republican state Rep. Donna Rozar, a former cardiac nurse who backs abortion restrictions, said gerrymandering shouldn't stop political parties from running good candidates to represent their districts. She expects a robust abortion debate during the campaign to carry into the 2023 legislative session. This is an issue that is so critical to come back to the states, because each state then can elect people that will represent their values. Rozar said. The 2010 midterms, two years after former President Barack Obama was elected, were a pivot point for control of statehouses across the country. Coming into that election, Democrats fully controlled 27 state legislatures and Republicans 14, with the rest split. But sweeping GOP victories put the party in charge of redistricting in many states. By 2015, after two elections under the new maps, Republicans fully controlled 30 legislatures and Democrats just 11. That Republican legislative advantage largely persisted through the 2020 elections, including in states that otherwise are narrowly divided between Democrats and Republicans, such as Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. In New Mexico, it's Republicans who contend the Democratic-led Legislature has pushed beyond the will of many voters on abortion policies. The New Mexico House and Senate districts had a sizable pro-Democratic edge during the past decade that got even more pronounced after districts were redrawn based on the 2020 census, according to the PlanScore data. Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed legislation last year repealing a dormant 1969 law that banned most abortions. After Roe v. Wade was overruled, she signed an executive order making New Mexico a safe harbor for people seeking abortions. Unlike most states, New Mexico has no restrictions on late-term abortions. I dont think that the majority of New Mexicans support New Mexicos abortion policy at this time, Republican state Sen. Gay Kernan said. New Mexico is the late-term abortion capital of the United States, basically." The Republican nominee for governor, Mark Ronchetti, has proposed to ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy with exceptions for rape, incest and when a woman's life is at risk. But the legislative proposal has been described as dead on arrival by Democratic state Senate Whip Linda Lopez. Michigan could provide one of the biggest tests of representative government in the nation's new abortion battle. Republicans drew Michigan legislative districts after the 2010 census and created such a sizable advantage for their party that it may have helped the GOP maintain control of the closely divided House, according to an Associated Press analysis. As in Wisconsin, Democrats in Michigan won the governor's race and every other major statewide office in 2018 but could not overcome legislative districts tilted toward Republicans. The dynamics have changed for this year's elections. The GOP's edge was cut in half under new legislative districts drawn by a voter-approved citizens' redistricting commission, according to the PlanScore data. That could improve Democrats' chances of winning a chamber and influencing abortion policy. Michigan's Republican gubernatorial challengers generally support a 1931 state law temporarily placed on hold by a judge that bans abortions unless a woman's health is at risk. Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is running for reelection, wants to repeal that law. Republican state Rep. Steve Carra said lawmakers are looking to replace it with "something that would be enforceable in the 21st century. "Its more important to protect life than it is a womans right to choose to take that life, said Carra, who leads a coalition of 321 lawmakers from 35 states that had urged the Supreme Court to return abortion policy to the states. Unsure about their legislative prospects, abortion rights advocates are gathering signatures for a November ballot initiative that would create a state constitutional right to abortion, allowing its regulation only after fetal viability. Its the best shot that we have at securing abortion access, Democratic state Rep. Laurie Pohutsky said. "I think if this is put in voters hands, they will want to see this ballot measure succeed. FRANKFORT AND MANISTEE Thousands of visitors expected to flock to the beaches in Benzie and Manistee counties as the busy tourist season gets underway after the Fourth of July holiday. However, visitors should remember there is inherent danger in swimming in Lake Michigan, as well as when venturing out on pier structures. So far, 20 people have drowned in Lake Michigan, according to the Great Lakes Surf and Rescue Project, an organization dedicated to teaching water safety and documenting Great Lakes drownings. The Army Corps of Engineers explains some of the dangers of swimming in the Great Lakes and swimming near pier structures, like those found in Frankfort and Manistee, on its website. According to the Army Corps of Engineers, pier structures are meant to be used for navigation, but are often used for recreation. Walking along breakwater structures can be hazardous the uneven, slippery surfaces, especially when doubled with wave action, increases the risk of falling into the water, the website reads. In addition, large armor stones may be hidden below the water surface. There is significant risk of getting wedged between armor stones or striking a stone with ones body, should an individual fall or jump into the water. While pier structures are most dangerous in the fall, when quickly changing weather patterns bring fall storms and wind, high winds can appear on Lake Michigan at any time, according to the Army. The Army also warns beachgoers to beware of rip currents. Rip currents are fast-moving, narrow currents of water that flow away from shore, the website reads. Structural currents can occur at fixed structures such as breakwaters and piers, and flow away from shore parallel to the structure. Those caught in rip currents are pulled into Lake Michigan from the shore, and trying to swim against the current often results in fatigue. To get out of a rip current, it is advised to flip, float and follow until the current subsides to save your energy and reduce your risk of drowning, the website reads. The flip, float and follow technique involves a person caught in a rip current flipping onto their back and letting the current take them out into the lake until it is no longer pulling, then swimming parallel to the shore until out of the currents grasp, according to the Great Lakes Surf and Rescue Project. After several high-profile drownings off the pier at Frankfort, the city joined a pilot program and teamed up with the Benzie Wellness and Aquatics Center to help promote beach safety. The city installed two Swimsmart Warning Systems signs at the beach, which get information from the National Weather Service. The signs have three lights, one green, for when the weather is OK for walking on the pier, an amber light, for when caution is needed, and the red light, which means the conditions are dangerous. There also will be clear signage that will educate people about water safety and what the different colored lights mean. Diane Tracy, president of the Benzie Wellness and Aquatic Center Board of Directors, said volunteers also will be at the beach on weekends through Labor Day to teach people how to read the signs and offer other beach safety tips. Were going to be supporting the city of Frankforts pier safety initiative by having volunteers work on the weekends to provide information to beachgoers about how the waring systems works and about our programs, she said. They can answer questions about water safety. Tracy said volunteers will be at Frankfort beach from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays and noon to 1 p.m. on Sundays. Weve chosen the weekend because a lot of people who might not have experience with the lake will be visiting then; especially in the summer, Tracy said. QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) A passenger bus slid off a mountain road and fell into a deep ravine in heavy rain in southwest Pakistan on Sunday, killing 19 people and injuring 12 others, a government official said. Mahtab Shah, assistant administrator for the district of Shirani in Baluchistan province, said about 35 passengers were traveling in the bus. He said rescue workers were searching for survivors in the wreckage of the destroyed vehicle and surroundings. CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) Congolese refugee Kiruhera Nkingi, 19, feels better prepared for his last year of high school at Cedar Rapids Washington and life after graduation because of the classes hes taking this summer at the Catherine McAuley Center. Last month, the Cedar Rapids school board approved an agreement with the center a nonprofit serving immigrants, refugees and women experiencing crisis in Cedar Rapids to provide 10 weeks of summer programming for students entering high school this fall. The school district allocated $25,000 to provide at least 25 English Language Learners two full days and two half days of learning each week to mitigate summer learning loss, build stronger English proficiency and literary skills, contribute to students personal growth and engage them in the community. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that Nkingi, whose family moved to the United States from Congo in 2019, received a $75 scholarship from the McAuley Center to be a part of his schools National Society of High School Scholars, which requires a 3.5 grade-point average or higher on a 4-point scale. Jamie Forster, program coordinator for the centers Learning is for Everyone, or LIFE, said the students she works are sharp and quick to learn. I would venture to guess everyone in this room is smarter than you and me, said Forster, who began her position in May. The center launched the program In the summer of 2020 for refugee youth. The students met three mornings a week with a focus on English literacy, personal development and community engagement. The program continued that fall to support refugee high school and middle school students navigating virtual learning during the pandemic. Socially distanced study spaces were created for about 30 students with on-site staff to help. In January 2021, after students returned to in-person learning, the center began offering the Learning is For Everyone program as an after-school English language and homework assistance program. It continued in the 2021-22 school year, serving up to 30 students. Summer school students are expected to demonstrate progress in at least 70 percent of assessed areas, including letter recognition, phonics, reading mechanics, reading and oral comprehension, writing, verbal expression and basic math, according to the agreement. Also, at least 75 percent of the students are expected to show increased self-esteem around their learning and English skills. English Language Learners in the Cedar Rapids district scored low in the spring 2021 Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress compared to their non-English Language Learner peers. The test, taken by students in grades three through 11, measures student performance in English, math and science. English Language Learner students scored an average of 14 percent in English, 8 percent in math and 8 percent in science. The average results for all Cedar Rapids students was 59 percent proficient in English, 50 percent in math and 49 percent in science. The students in Forsters classroom speak at least six different languages. Since Forster doesnt speak those languages, she said she often communicates through body language, facial expressions and charades a game where a person acts out words or phrases for others to guess. I am learning as much about their culture as they are learning about mine, Forster said. And when a student is struggling to learn, Forster said she turns it around on herself: What are the ways I could help this individual achieve? Kasa Mukucha, 14, an incoming freshman at Washington High School, said she is feeling more prepared to start high school because of her summer school experience. Kasa, who is from Tanzania, moved to the United States with her family in 2017. She said it was lonely not knowing the language but that she now has a crazy friend group, and they go on bike rides together. She communicates with her peers in summer school those who have fewer English skills with hand gestures. Anne Dugger, director of education services at the McAuley Center, said the staff adds in some fun during summer school, with field trips to go swimming and visits to Cedar Rapids Opera and the public library. Students also are interested in finding summer jobs, so the center is helping them put together resumes and working on their interview skills, Dugger said. If you dont know the language, its just miserable, Dugger said. The idea of this is to get them into the community, make them understand they have a voice here, a role to play here within our community. Theyre welcomed. TAMPA, Fla. (AP) When the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade last Friday, dismantling its nearly 50-year precedent protecting the right to an abortion, Marin Fehl was furious. The 20-year-old college student from Hillsborough County had seen the leaked draft decision the month before. She knew what was coming, but the finality of the courts ruling and its implications for reproductive rights hit like a rocket to the gut. I was extremely enraged. I still feel a huge amount of anger, Fehl said. But I also felt a desire to act. That afternoon, Fehl took to Instagram and announced a bake sale. The proceeds, she posted, would go to the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund. Others had similar ideas in mind. From bake sales and benefit concerts, to haircuts and charity kickball games, people around Tampa Bay are getting creative in their efforts to support organizations that help women pay for abortions. While some funds around the country have paused or ceased collecting donations as they navigate legal hurdles that have arisen as a result of the Roe ruling, in Florida, abortion is still legal. Organizations that help women access such care are preparing to ramp up activity. Livia Wallick, a board member for the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund, didnt provide a dollar amount raised, but said since the decision came down last Friday, the organization has received enough to pay for more than 280 abortions. She said the cost of a standard abortion paid for by the organization is between $500 and $600. The fund typically sees an increase in donations when major news drops. Wallick called them "rage donations." When Florida passed a law earlier this year banning most abortions after 15 weeks or just after the first trimester Wallick said the fund saw an uptick in support. When a Supreme Court draft opinion was leaked in May, indicating judges were poised to overturn Roe, donations again surged. Whats different this time, said Wallick, is the range of support. Theres a spin class fundraiser for us. Theres a baked goods and wine night happening at a local coffee shop to raise money, Wallick said. Businesses and individuals want to do something in response to the courts devastating decision. Abortion costs The influx of support has been felt by organizations across Florida, too. Florida Access Network executive director, Stephanie Loraine Pinero, said her organization which is run by queer women who have had abortions has received more than $100,000 since the Supreme Court decision dropped. That money will be used to help women access abortions across the state. More than 1,400 people were in attendance at an indoor event the organization hosted in downtown Orlando this week, Pinero said. Others were lined down the block trying to get in. That abortion funds are receiving increased support right now is vitally important, Pinero said. Abortion is expensive. The median cost of a first-trimester abortion is around $560, according to research from the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, a nonprofit that analyzes the efficacy of charitable giving. With more than half of the U.S. population living paycheck to paycheck, a cost that large is unfeasible for many. Restrictive legislation is adding to the expense. In April, a Florida judge upheld a law requiring a 24-hour waiting period between a first consult and an abortion after a seven-year legal battle in the courts. So if they have to take off time for work, that has to happen twice, Pinero said. If they need a ride or help to pay for gas, that has to happen twice. They need childcare for both times. Beginning Friday, when the new Florida abortion law takes effect, the organization will have to pay for women whose pregnancies have progressed beyond 15 weeks to travel out of state for abortion, too. If people want something tangible to do in this moment, donating to an abortion fund can help, Pinero said. She said recurring donations are preferred because they allow the organization to plan ahead. Looking to elections While abortion funds focus on getting people access to care, Laura Goodhue, Planned Parenthood PAC director, said turning attention to upcoming elections is also a priority for groups looking to protect abortion rights. Were focused on elections right now because that is what is going to protect access to reproductive health care in Florida, Goodhue said. Following the Supreme Courts decision, Goodhue said her organization launched canvasses and held news conferences around the state. More than 400 people tuned in to an online information session the day the decision came down. One in four women have had an abortion, Goodhue said. Were focused on electing champions to the Florida Senate to get closer to parity on reproductive health care. She said that call volumes at Planned Parenthood clinics have surpassed usual capacity by the hundreds since the decision dropped. Were getting calls from people who want to volunteer and donate, Goodhue said. But were also getting calls from patients looking for birth control or wondering how to get their appointment in before they no longer can. An Edwardsville man is in the hospital with serious injuries after a fatal airplane crash killed his Floridian co-pilot Saturday in St. Jacob. Robert L. Binger, 60, of Lake City, Florida, was announced dead on the scene of the crash by a Madison County coroner. RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Two women have been found dead and a retired police department employee has been charged with second-degree murder in their killings following a lengthy weekend standoff, authorities in suburban Richmond said. The incident began Saturday afternoon when Henrico County police were called to a home for a reported shooting. Arriving officers heard gunfire from the home, according to a news release. BEAUFORT, S.C. (AP) Former Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling says he has a new perspective on life after nearly drowning six weeks ago in a sailing accident on the Beaufort River, and new mission: promoting CPR training. Keyserling was basically a goner when people reached him May 12 after the cat boat he and his brother Paul were sailing May 21 in the Beaufort River tipped in a gust of wind, sending both men into the water. I was blue, Keyserling said. My eyes were just sort of staring into nowhere. Totally unresponsive to anything. No pulse. But that team just wouldnt quit. Or at least thats what hes told. Keyserling doesnt remember people pulling him from the river, rushing him to land and resuscitating him. No pain, Keyserling says, no struggle, no memories of anything. Keyserlings spoke to the newspaper on his 74th birthday. His face was ruddy; he was grateful to be alive. That team passersby in two motorboats, including, luckily, a nurse, and later firefighters and EMTs and Beaufort Memorial Hospital employees are credited with bringing Keyserling back from the brink. Two weeks after nearly drowning, Keyserling met with firefighters who were involved in his rescue. I got very teary and I said, I was dead, Keyserling recalled. Im alive two weeks later. Look at me. Its because of you. It was an emotional meeting for everybody. But one of the firefighters said something Keyserling says he will never forget. What the former mayor did not realize, the firefighter said, was that they train each day to save people, but they cant save everybody. "'It makes us feel good that all the training and everything we do worked, said Keyserling, recounting what the firefighter told him. It does something for our morale to have a win. And taking somebody who is totally blue, with no sign of life and (being) able to bring them back, makes what we do that much more important to us. Keyserling, a life-long Beaufort resident, says hes been recreating on the water alone since he was 7 and never has been trained in CPR, despite seeing countless advertisements for training over the years. Had I been in the power boat and come across the distressed sailor who was in my condition, would I have been equipped to do what they did for me? he says. As a result of his experience, Keyserling says he plans to promote the idea of bringing boaters together, perhaps once a year, for CPR training. Its criminal, he says, that we have this water and we use it but were not aware of what it can do and what we can do to make it safer for other people. Keyserling spent three days in the hospital. Ten ribs were broken in the process of getting water out of his lungs and restarting his breathing. For five weeks, he slept in a recliner because of the pain. Once he got off the pain medication, and his head began to clear, he realized he had to drop all of the things he typically worries about and just take care of himself. He kept it simple: No. 1 was keeping his oxygen concentration at 95%. No. 2 was getting up and walking a little bit. No. 3, eat. No. 4, get some sun. Thats how you make it through the first three or four days, Keyserling says. Given it hasnt quite been six weeks since the rescue, Keyserling calls his recovery remarkable. His ribs are healing. Hes getting his lung capacity back. Im surprised every day, he says. The experience affirmed his belief in humanity but specifically Beaufort. Keyserling doesnt remember anything other than going sailing and getting ready to race his cat boat. A cat boat has a gaff rig. That means theres a little boom off the top of the mast, as well as a regular boom. The gaff rig became twisted in a line so part of the sail went one way, and part of the sail went one way. At the same time a huge gust of wind came from absolutely nowhere and just knocked us down, Keyserling says. He remembers the boat being on its side and halfway underwater. Keyserling said he went under to try to grab a line with the thought that he could give the line to one of the boats that had arrived to help. And thats the last thing I remember until I woke up in the hospital. Keyserling had already served on the City Council and two terms as a state representative before he was elected mayor in 2008 and reelected in 2012 and 2016. He left office in 2020 but hasnt slowed down. Now hes involved with a not-for-profit called Second Founding of America: Reconstruction Beaufort, whose mission is telling the untold stories of the Reconstruction Era, which includes restoring and conserving historic structures from that period. All of his life, Keyserling says, hes given 150% in everything Ive done. But now, he says, he wants to spend more time with his friends, maybe those he hasnt seen in a few years, and traveling to places hes never experienced before. Its not going to prevent me from doing what I needed to do, he says of reserving more time for his personal life. Keyserling visited the Grand Army of the Republic Hall on Newcastle Street one day earlier this week with former Beaufort County Coroner Ed Allen. Built in 1896, its one of the historic structures Keyserlings group is involved in preserving. Allen kidded Keyserling about the sailing accident, saying he survived because he still has work to do. You were too bad to go to hell, Allen said, and not good enough to go to heaven. So right now, youre still with us. For now, Keyserling plans to take a break from sailing and smoking. For years, he says, hes been looking for an excuse and the courage to quit smoking. Part of his recovery includes breathing exercises using a bubble blower. You know, the funny thing is when I want a cigarette I get my little bubble blower, Keyserling says, and I suck on that instead of a cigarette and I know Im clearing my lungs instead of cluttering my lungs. Keyserling says nearly drowning has affected his perspective. I guess Ive come to realize no ones immortal, he says. And there are many things wed like to see in the world change, that no matter how hard we work on them, how much we dedicate ourselves to, theres only so much we as individuals can do. LONDON (AP) Germany and Ireland have condemned the U.K governments move towards unilaterally rewriting parts of the post-Brexit deal with the European Union. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Irish counterpart Simon Coveney said there was no legal or political justification for overriding the agreed trade rules in Northern Ireland. Writing in British newspaper The Observer on Sunday, the ministers say Britain will be breaking an international agreement just two years old which it hadn't engaged in with good faith. The so-called Northern Ireland Protocol within the deal maintains an open border with EU member Ireland and free of customs posts. British Prime Minister Boris Johnsons administration wants to remove the checks on goods such as meat and eggs arriving in Northern Ireland from the rest of the U.K., which protect the European Unions single market. Lawmakers in London passed legislation which permits the move last week. Johnsons critics, opponents and some members of his own party, along with European observers, have said the plan breaks international law. The government argues it is justified because of the genuinely exceptional situation. Baerbock and Coveney said the bill wouldn't fix the challenges around the protocol. Instead, it will create a new set of uncertainties and make it more challenging to find durable solutions, they wrote. The foreign ministers also argued the move jeopardizes peace in Northern Ireland under the Good Friday Agreement, which helped end decades of sectarian violence and has stood since 1998. Johnsons government has hoped to pass the legislation, which will be debated again in Parliament on July 13 by the time its summer break begins later in the month. This could see it become law by the end of 2022. The EU has threatened to retaliate against the U.K. if it goes ahead, raising the prospect of a trade war between the two major economic partners. Separately, Irish Deputy Prime Minister Leo Varadkar told the BBC on Sunday it wasn't appropriate or right time for a poll on Irish reunification. Varadkar said such a referendum, permitted under the Good Friday Agreement when a majority in Northern Ireland in favor of a united Ireland is considered likely, would be divisive and defeated at the moment. The Northern Ireland Assembly, its devolved legislature, has been paralyzed for months over the implementation of the protocol, leaving it without a regional government. FLORENCE, Ala. (AP) Bill Simpson never knew Ike Coffee, but he heard numerous stories about him from when his mother and aunts were growing up. Simpson said Coffee lived in a small apartment attached to the James Stewart family home. He looked after their children and often other children in the neighborhood. He was really engaging with them, Simpson said. He really showed them a lot of love. They always talked about him in such glowing, loving tones. Coffees obituary stated he was a former slave and had served as a house servant in the Stewart home for the past 65 years, helping raise all 10 of the Stewart children. He was 95 years old when he died in about 70 years ago. Coffee died at the Chestnut Street home of James W. Stewart and his wife, Cora B. Stewart. The Rev. M.C. Griffin of the Tennessee Valley Community Negro Methodist church officiated at Coffees graveside service. The obit stated he had no survivors. On Saturday, several people gathered at Coffees grave in Florence City Cemetery for a brief memorial service. Simpson, his cousin, Sabine Brown, and Chubby Stewart arranged for a new headstone to be placed at Coffees grave. It was a nice, quiet, pleasant service, Simpson said. A lot of love was shown by everybody that was there. Simpson said he does not know the date Coffee moved in with the Stewart family, or how long he lived with them. Chubby Stewart said Coffee was a driver with Stewart Brothers Transfer, but had to retire due to his eyesight. Simpson said census records had Coffee listed as a driver and servant. (Coffee) was sort of rescued by Chubby Stewarts grandfather, James Stewart, according to Simpson. The story, as told to Simpson by Chubby Stewart, was that James Stewart was riding his horse toward town on Cloverdale Road and gave Ike Coffee a ride into town. What isnt clear is how old Coffee was when this happened, Simpson said, adding that Coffee died when Simpson was about 2 years old. He said he has a vague memory of a Black man in an apartment, but admitted it could have been generated by the stories he had heard about Coffee. Simpsons daughter, Tammy Hendrix, said her father had asked her to have the headstone made and placed at Coffees grave after he died. Hendrix said she and her sisters convinced him to do it while he was living. Its just a very nice thing hes done, Hendrix said. There are a lot of slaves and veterans around here who were buried without headstones. He did this for a man who went through a lot in his life. Simpson said he began thinking about Coffee about 20 years ago when he developed an interest in genealogy. He came across Coffees name, then began digging deeper and learned Coffee was buried in Florence Cemetery. He located the grave and discovered it lacked a marker. At one time, at least, there was some sort of marker, Simpson said. By the time I got there, it was gone. I felt like he was such a loved human being, that he deserved to be recognized for that. He said the headstone was installed last year, but the memorial was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The stone says, Ike Coffee. Born a slave, 1857. Died free, Oct. 10, 1952. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) The Afghan policeman opened fire on us with his AK-47, emptying 26 bullets into the back of the car. Seven slammed into me, and at least as many into my colleague, Associated Press photographer Anja Niedringhaus. She died at my side. Anja weighed heavy against my shoulder. I tried to look at her but I couldnt move. I looked down; all I could see was what looked like a stump where my left hand had been. I could barely whisper, Please help us. Our driver raced us to a small local hospital in Khost, siren on. I tried to stay calm, thinking over and over: Dont be afraid. Dont die afraid. Just breathe. At the hospital, Dr. Abdul Majid Mangal said he would have to operate and tried to reassure me. His words are forever etched in my heart: Please know your life is as important to me as it is to you. Much later, as I recovered in New York during a process that would turn out to eventually require 18 operations, an Afghan friend called from Kabul. He wanted to apologize for the shooting on behalf of all Afghans. I said the shooter didnt represent a nation, a people. My mind returned to Dr. Mangal for me, it was him who represented Afghanistan and Afghans. I have reported on Afghanistan for the AP for the past 35 years, during an extraordinary series of events and regime changes that have rocked the world. Through it all, the kindness and resilience of ordinary Afghans have shone through which is also what has made it so painful to watch the slow erosion of their hope. I have always been amazed at how Afghans stubbornly hung on to hope against all odds, greeting each of several new regimes with optimism. But by 2018, a Gallup poll showed that the fraction of people in Afghanistan with hope in the future was the lowest ever recorded anywhere. It didnt have to be this way. ___ I arrived in Afghanistan in 1986, in the middle of the Cold War. It seems a lifetime ago. It is. Then, the enemy attacking Afghanistan was the communist former Soviet Union, dubbed godless by United States President Ronald Reagan. The defenders were the U.S.-backed religious mujahedeen, defined as those who engage in holy war, championed by Reagan as freedom fighters. Reagan even welcomed some mujahedeen leaders to the White House. Among his guests was Jalaluddin Haqqani, the father of the current leader of the Haqqani network, who in todays world is a declared terrorist. At that time, the God versus communism message was strong. The University of Nebraska even crafted an anti-communist curriculum to teach English to the millions of Afghan refugees living in camps in neighboring Pakistan. The university made the alphabet simple: J was for Jihad or holy war against the communists; K was for the Kalashnikov guns used in jihad, and I was for Infidel, which described the communists themselves. There was even a math program. The questions went something like: If there were 10 communists and you killed five, how many would you have left? When I covered the mujahedeen, I spent a lot of time and effort on being stronger, walking longer, climbing harder and faster. At one point, I ran out of a dirty mud hut with them and hid under a nearby cluster of trees. Just minutes later, Russian helicopter gunships flew low, strafed the trees and all but destroyed the hut. The Russians withdrew in 1989 without a win. In 1992, the mujahedeen took power. Ordinary Afghans hoped fervently that the victory of the mujahedeen would mean the end of war. They also to some degree welcomed a religious ideology that was more in line with their largely conservative country than communism. But it wasnt long before the mujahedeen turned their guns on each other. The fighting was brutal, with the mujahedeen pounding the capital, Kabul, from the hills. Thrice the AP lost its equipment to thieving warlords, only to be returned after negotiations with the top warlord. One day I counted as many as 200 incoming and outgoing rockets inside of minutes. The bloodletting of the mujahedeen-cum government ministers-cum warlords killed upward of 50,000 people. I saw a 5-year-old girl killed by a rocket as she stepped out of her house. Children by the scores lost limbs to booby traps placed by mujahedeen as they departed neighborhoods. I stayed on the front line with a woman and her two small children in the Macroyan housing complex during the heaviest rocketing. Her husband, a former communist government employee, had fled, and she lived by making and selling bread each day with her children. She opened her home to me even though she had so little. All night we stayed in the one room without windows. She asked me if I would take her son to Pakistan the next day, but in the end could not bear to see him go. Only months after my visit, they were killed by warlords who wanted their apartment. ___ Despite the chaos of the time, Afghans still had hope. In the waning days of the warring mujahedeens rule, I attended a wedding in Kabul where both the wedding party and guests were coiffed and downright glamorous. When asked how she managed to look so good with so little amid the relentless rocketing, one young woman replied brightly, Were not dead yet! The wedding was delayed twice because of rockets. The Taliban had by then emerged. They were former mujahedeen and often Islamic clerics who had returned to their villages and their religious schools after 1992. They came together in response to the relentless killing and thieving of their former comrades-in-arms. By mid-1996, the Taliban were on Kabuls doorstep, with their promise of burqas for women and beards for men. Yet Afghans welcomed them. They hoped the Taliban would at least bring peace. When asked about the repressive restrictions of the Taliban, one woman who had worked for an international charity said: If I know there is peace and my child will be alive, I will wear the burqa. Peace did indeed come to Afghanistan, at least of sorts. Afghans could leave their doors unlocked without fear of being robbed. The country was disarmed, and travel anywhere in Afghanistan at any time of the day or night was safe. But Afghans soon began to see their peace as a prison. The Talibans rule was repressive. Public punishments such as chopping off hands and rules that denied girls school and women work brought global sanctions and isolation. Afghans got poorer. The Taliban leader at the time was the reclusive Mullah Mohammad Omar, rumored to have removed his own eye after being wounded in a battle against invading Soviet soldiers. As international sanctions crippled Afghanistan, Omar got closer to al-Qaida, until eventually the terrorist group became the Talibans only source of income. By 2001, al-Qaidas influence was complete. Despite a pledge from Omar to safeguard them, Afghanistans ancient statues of Buddha were destroyed, in an order reportedly from Osama bin Laden himself. Then came the seismic shock of 9/11. Many Afghans mourned the American deaths so far away. Few even knew who bin Laden was. But the country was now squarely a target in the eyes of the United States. Amir Shah, APs longtime correspondent, summed up what most Afghans were thinking at the time: America will set Afghanistan on fire. And it did. After 9/11, the Taliban threw all foreigners out of Afghanistan, including me. The U.S.-led coalition assault began on Oct. 7, 2001. By Oct. 23, I was back in Kabul, the only Western journalist to see the last weeks of Taliban rule. The powerful B-52 bombers of the U.S. pounded the hills and even landed in the city. On Nov. 12 that year, a 2,000-pound bomb landed on a house near the AP office. It threw me across the room and blew out window and door frames. Glass shattered and sprayed everywhere. By sunrise the next day, the Taliban were gone from Kabul. ___ Afghanistans next set of rulers marched into the city, brought by the powerful military might of the U.S.-led coalition. The mujahedeen were back. The U.S. and U.N. returned them to power even though some among them had brought bin Laden from Sudan to Afghanistan in 1996, promising him a safe haven. The hope of Afghans went through the roof, because they believed the powerful U.S. would help them keep the mujahedeen in check. With more than 40 countries involved in their homeland, they believed peace and prosperity this time was most certainly theirs. Foreigners were welcome everywhere. Some Afghans worried about the returning mujahedeen, remembering the corruption and fighting when they last were in power. But Americas representative at the time, Zalmay Khalilzad, told me that the mujahedeen had been warned against returning to their old ways. Yet worrying signs began to emerge. The revenge killings began, and the U.S.-led coalition sometimes participated without knowing the details. The mujahedeen would falsely identify enemies even those who had worked with the U.S. before as belonging to al-Qaida or to the Taliban. One such mistake happened early in December 2001 when a convoy was on its way to meet the new President Hamid Karzai. The U.S.-led coalition bombed it because they were told the convoy bore fighters from the Taliban and al-Qaida. They turned out to be tribal elders. Secret prisons emerged. Hundreds of Afghan men disappeared. Families became desperate. Resentment soared especially among the ethnic Pashtuns, who had been the backbone of the Taliban. One former Taliban member proudly displayed his new Afghan identity card and wanted to start a water project in his village. But corrupt government officials extorted him for his money, and he returned to the Taliban. A deputy police chief in southern Zabul province told me of 2,000 young Pashtun men, some former Taliban, who wanted to join the new governments Afghan National Army. But they were mocked for their ethnicity, and eventually all but four went to the mountains and joined the Taliban. In the meantime, corruption seemed to reach epic proportions, with suitcases of money, often from the CIA, handed off to Washingtons Afghan allies. Yet schools were built, roads were reconstructed and a new generation of Afghans, at least in the cities, grew up with freedoms their parents had not known and in many cases looked on with suspicion. Then came the shooting in 2014 that would change my life. It began as most days do in Afghanistan: Up before 6 a.m. This day we were waiting for a convoy of Afghan police and military to leave the eastern city of Khost for a remote region to distribute the last of the ballot boxes for Afghanistans 2014 presidential elections. After 30 minutes navigating past blown-out bridges and craters that pockmarked the road, we arrived at a large police compound. For more than an hour, Anja and I talked with and photographed about a dozen police officials. We finished our work just as a light drizzle began. We got into the car and waited to leave for a nearby village. Thats when the shooting happened. It was two years before I was able to return to work and to Afghanistan. ___ By that point, the disappointment and disenchantment with Americas longest war had already set in. Despite the U.S. spending over $148 billion on development alone over 20 years, the percentage of Afghans barely surviving at the poverty level was increasing yearly. In 2019, Pakistan began accepting visa applications at its consulate in eastern Afghanistan. People were so desperate to leave that nine died in a stampede. In 2020, the U.S. and the Taliban signed a deal for troops to withdraw within 18 months. The U.S. and NATO began to evacuate their staff, closing down embassies and offering those who worked for them asylum. The mass closure of embassies was baffling to me because the Taliban had made no threats, and it sparked panic in Kabul. It was the sudden and secret departure of President Ashraf Ghani that finally brought the Taliban back into the city on Aug. 15, 2021. Their swift entry came as a surprise, along with the thorough collapse of the neglected Afghan army, beset by deep corruption. The Talibans rapid march toward Kabul fed a rush toward the airport. For many in the Afghan capital, the only hope left lay in getting out. Fida Mohammad, a 24-year-old dentist, was desperate to leave for the U.S. so he could earn enough money to repay his fathers debt of $13,000 for his elaborate marriage. He clung to the wheels of the departing US C-17 aircraft on Aug. 16 and died. Zaki Anwari, a 17-year-old footballer, ran to get on the plane. He dreamed only of football, and believed his dream could not come true in Afghanistan. He was run over by the C-17. Now the future in Afghanistan is even more uncertain. Scores of people line up outside the banks to try to get their money out. Hospitals are short of medicine. The Taliban hardliners seem to have the upper hand, at least in the short term. Afghans are left to face the fact that the entire world came to their country in 2001 and spent billions, and still couldnt bring them prosperity or even the beginnings of prosperity. That alone has deeply eroded hope for the future. I leave Afghanistan with mixed feelings, sad to see how its hope has been destroyed but still deeply moved by its 38 million people. The Afghans I met sincerely loved their country, even if it is now led by elderly men driven by tribal traditions offensive to a world that I am not sure ever really understood Afghanistan. Most certainly, though, I will be back. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 3 1 of 3 Karl Mondon/AP Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Rich Pedroncelli/AP Show More Show Less 3 of 3 SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) Gov. Gavin Newsom is running for reelection in California, but his latest television ad is airing in Florida. The 30-second spot scheduled to air on Fox News starting Monday takes shots at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his policies, while drawing a contrast with California. Details about Kaitlin Armstrong's fugitive life in Costa Rica are beginning to emerge in the days after her arrest on suspicion of killing professional cyclist Mo Wilson. According to police, Armstrong, 34, fatally shot Wilson on May 11 in Austin, Texas. After being questioned by authorities, Armstrong was released and went on the run, sparking a nationwide manhunt for the fugitive that finally ended in her being taken into custody Wednesday at a Santa Teresa Beach hostel in Provincia de Puntarenas. "The Marshals Service elevated the Kaitlin Armstrong investigation to major case status early in this investigation, which likely played a key role in her capture after a 43-day run," U.S. Marshal for the Western District of Texas Susan Pamerleau said in a statement. "This is an example of combining the resources of local, state, federal and international authorities to apprehend a violent fugitive, bring an end to that run and hopefully a sense of closure to the victims family." Police say they tracked Armstrong to Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey on May 18, four days after she was seen carrying a yoga mat through Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. According to investigators from the Marshals Service and Homeland Security, they recently discovered Armstrong then allegedly used someone else's passport to board United Airlines Flight 1222 from Newark on May 18. At a press conference, Deputy Marshal Brandon Filla said Armstrong "resembled" the person in the passport, but did not explain how she came to be in possession of it. "She looked very similar to that individual, Filla said. So that was a fraudulent use of it, but it wasnt fraudulent in itself because it was issued to a certain individual. U.S. Marshals After Armstrong landed in San Jose, Costa Rica, she went about changing her appearance. She cut her distinctive reddish hair and dyed it brown. Then, according to Filla, Armstrong went back to her old habit: taking yoga classes. Marshals say one of the primary ways they tracked Armstrong was by searching for local yoga studios and seeing if Armstrong signed up for courses. "Once she got to Costa Rica, she didnt really move around a lot," Filla said. "We knew she was going to be associated with some type of yoga studio. When foreign officials arrived at that yoga studio, they did find a handwritten login that was the same alias that she was going by when she traveled to Costa Rica. "Once they developed that pattern, it really opened up things and they quickly closed in on Kaitlin Armstrong." When she was arrested, Armstrong had bandages and bruises on her face, which Filla said she attributed to a surfing accident. According to the Daily Mail, Armstrong was living at a $50-a-night hostel and possibly giving yoga lessons. "She was getting really ready to establish that next part of her career," Filla said. According to the Marshals Service, the yoga teacher and real estate agent killed 25-year-old Wilson, a champion mountain biker who lived and worked in San Francisco from 2019 until recently. On May 11, Wilson was staying with a friend in Austin to prepare for an upcoming race. That evening she allegedly went swimming with Armstrong's boyfriend Colin Strickland, a fellow racing competitor and alleged former romantic partner of Wilson. Wilson was later found by her friend at the apartment, bleeding and unconscious in the bathroom with multiple gunshot wounds to the torso, before being pronounced dead by first responders. Authorities have painted the murder as motivated by jealousy. The complex details of the alleged love triangle-turned-murder involving recently purchased guns, text messages, lies and an anonymous tipster were revealed in an arrest warrant on May 19. In the warrant, an anonymous caller allegedly told police that on discovering Strickland and Wilson were romantically involved, Armstrong "became furious and was shaking with anger" and said she wanted to kill Wilson. After her arrest in Costa Rica on Wednesday, Armstrong was flown back to Texas on Saturday. Her bond will be set at $3.5 million, court records show. NEW YORK (AP) A federal judge has granted bail to a prominent Buffalo developer and other businessmen serving prison time for a bid-rigging scheme related to former Gov. Andrew Cuomos Buffalo Billion economic redevelopment program. U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni signed an order Friday allowing developer Louis Ciminelli and three others to be released after the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the appeal of their wire fraud convictions. The justices are expected to take up the case during their next term, which begins in October. The high court also agreed to hear the related case of Joseph Percoco, a former Cuomo aide convicted in 2018 of accepting more than $300,000 from companies that wanted to gain influence with the Cuomo administration. It was not immediately clear whether Percoco also would be released on bail. Among the issues in the case is whether private citizens with official connections may be convicted of honest-services fraud. Ciminelli was convicted in a pay-to-play conspiracy in which his firm won a development job worth a half billion dollars. Prosecutors called the scheme an enormous fraud and said it involved state-funded contracts worth more than $850 million being steered to favored developers. Also granted bail on Friday were developers Steven Aiello and Joe Gerardi, executives at Syracuse-based COR Development, and Alain Kaloyeros, formerly the president of the State University of New Yorks Polytechnic Institute. Prosecutors said Kaloyeros arranged for Ciminelli and his company LPCiminelli to win a development job in Buffalo worth a half billion dollars. Cuomo was not charged or accused of wrongdoing, but the criminal proceedings tarnished a program the former governor had made a centerpiece of his efforts to lift the upstate economy. SALISBURY, Md. (AP) The 21-year-old Maryland man accused of killing a sheriff's deputy in June has been indicted on a total of 18 charges. Austin Jacob Allen Davidson was indicted last week on charges including first- and second-degree murder, using a firearm in the commission of a violent crime, and multiple counts relating to illegal firearm possession, The Star Democrat reported Sunday. NEWPORT, Ky. (AP) Faith Community Pharmacy, a nonprofit that for 20 years has provided free prescription medications to Northern Kentucky residents, is moving and expanding. The pharmacy recently relocated from Florence to Newport, where they have more than three times the space of the former location, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. The pharmacy currently serves about 1,000 patients a year, but they hope the new location will help them bring their services to more people, Executive Director Aaron Broomall said. Faith Community Pharmacy will provide 90 days of medication to anyone in a 14-county Northern Kentucky area who is seeking the help. It provides medications on an ongoing basis for those earning 300% of the poverty level and below. Costs of the pharmacy are covered with funding from Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties, St. Elizabeth Healthcare, foundations including the Spaulding Foundation, grants and donations. Most of the medications come from nonprofit Americares. For the community, the costs are far offset by better health, Broomall said. Clients emergency room visits drop by at least half from the year before they are enrolled to the first year of enrollment, the nonprofit has found. Hospitalizations drop by 70% based on the entire patient population. The new office is in a hub of social services, and Broomall said the visibility will bring Faith Community Pharmacy more clients. The new location is also on a bus line helpful to people with limited transportation options or gas money, and its in the urban core of Northern Kentucky, where many of the pharmacys clients live. In recent years, the pharmacy has seen its client base expand from primarily seniors on a fixed income to include the working poor who have either no or inadequate health insurance. The pharmacys client base has jumped 60% since 2017, with 30% of that enrollment coming in 2020. The surge has slowed as the pandemic has eased, Broomall said, but enrollment continues to grow. To bring the service to more people, the organization plans to increase outreach at churches, schools, clinics and emergency and urgent care departments. For rural clients, the pharmacy will even deliver their prescriptions. Kellee Yelton has been receiving medications for diabetes and hypertension from Faith Community Pharmacy since she lost her job in 2020. Yelton has remained enrolled at the pharmacy even after getting hired eight months ago as a receptionist. She said her high-deductible insurance makes it impossible for her to afford her medications at this time. What we do is critical, Broomall said. It really allows people to live their lives. What we do allows them to stay at work, provide for their family, be healthy for their kids. Its hard to be poor, he said. Its hard to have a low income, and its really hard to have a chronic illness. In 2017, five great white shark carcasses washed ashore in four months in South Africa. Four of them were missing livers, and one had its heart removed. Now, scientists have zeroed in on the suspects: a pair of male orcas named Port and Starboard with a taste for energy-rich shark liver. The attacks have continued, and the pair are probably not the only orcas terrorizing great whites in the area. A study published in the peer-reviewed African Journal of Marine Science on Wednesday found that orcas are displacing great whites as the top predator in Gansbaai, a popular shark viewing destination about 75 miles east of Cape Town. With great whites increasingly absent, smaller predators can multiply unchecked, threatening prey species and destabilizing the entire ecosystem. Similar responses when a new top predator arrives in a land ecosystem have been well-studied, but documenting the same phenomenon in the ocean is rare, according to Alison Towner, a marine biologist at the Dyer Island Conservation Trust who led the study. "We now have direct evidence that one of the oceans largest apex predators completely displaces the another, and it is the first time in the world that white shark carcasses have been available for scientific examination directly after being hunted by Killer whales," she wrote in an email to The Post. Researchers launched the study in 2017 after performing necropsies on the likely victims of Port and Starboard, identified by their distinctive dorsal fins. The waters off Gansbaai are normally teeming with sharks - in the months leading up to the 2017 attacks, scientists were logging close to seven sightings per day. But following the orca attacks, sightings immediately plummeted to 1.17 per day on average for the next six months. The average remained under two sightings per day for 2018 and 2019. Before 2017, there had only been two periods since data collection began that great whites had not been observed for a week or more, a week in 2007 and a three-week stint in 2016. In 2019, scientists were averaging almost 10 weeks between sightings. The rapid departure and prolonged absences - which lengthened as sightings of orcas went up - led the researchers to conclude that fear of the larger predators was probably driving the great whites away from those waters. Orcas can grow to 50% than great whites, and a previous study showed that they displaced great whites off the coast of San Francisco. But they had never been documented doing so off South Africa, according to the study published Wednesday. The researchers likened the great whites' behavior to wild dogs in the Serengeti in Tanzania, which abandon territory for the long term when lions move in. The study also examined how the ecosystem responded to the missing great whites. They warned that it could lead to a trophic cascade, when the decline or disappearance of one level of the food web destabilizes the entire ecosystem. "Ecology is a balance," Towner wrote. "Remove sharks at the top and everything is disrupted, smaller predators dominate and the system can potentially collapse or certainly some species within it." In the absence of the great whites, smaller bronze whaler sharks moved into the territory for the first time, a sign of the rapid effects it could have lower on the food chain, researchers said. In Gansbaai, great white sharks keep the local Cape fur seal population in check. Without a predator to fear, they will be able to prey on endangered African penguins or gorge on the small fish the penguins rely on. The researchers considered alternative explanations for the great whites' absence, such as sea surface temperatures and fishing, but neither could explain the "sudden localized decline" at Gansbaai. In Mossel Bay, another area frequented by great whites roughly 200 miles to the east, the orca pair was not seen and shark sightings remained stable. The orcas may have been drawn to the area by a decline in prey elsewhere in their territory, according to the study. Scientists are examining whether changing conditions offshore linked in part to climate change are driving orcas out of their normal hunting grounds, according to Towner. Though great whites are becoming more prevalent in certain areas, such as off the California coast, their overall population remains fragile and the emergence of a new predator is concerning, according to the researchers. Towner said the study serves as a warning sign of more ecological damage to come. "[It's] almost as if the science cannot keep up with how rapid the ecology is changing," she said. "The evidence is there, it needs to be taken into account by policy makers to [to avoid] the situation escalating completely beyond help." JERUSALEM (AP) A Palestinian man who was shot by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank died of his wounds on Sunday, Palestinian officials said. The Israeli military said soldiers came under attack during routine security activity near the town of Jaba in the northern West Bank on Saturday. It said Israeli forces fired at a man suspected of throwing a firebomb, and that the incident was under review. The Palestinian Foreign Ministry identified the man as 19-year-old Kamel Abdallah Alwaneh from near the city of Jenin and condemned his killing. Alwaneh's death was the latest in a surge of deadly violence in the West Bank in recent months. The Israeli military has conducted daily raids in Palestinian towns and villages in the wake of a series of deadly attacks by Palestinians that killed 19 Israelis, with several of the attackers coming from the Jenin area. Dozens of Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli military raids. Most of the dead were alleged to have opened fire on Israeli forces or hurled stones or firebombs at them. The dead also include at least two apparent passersby. Nearly 500,000 Israeli settlers live in more than 130 settlements scattered across the West Bank, alongside nearly 3 million Palestinians who live under Israeli military rule. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war and the Palestinians seek it as the heartland of a future state. Israel views the West Bank as the biblical and historical heartland of the Jewish people. The Palestinians and much of the international community consider Israel's West Bank settlements a violation of international law and an obstacle to a peaceful resolution of the decades-long conflict. CLINTON, N.C. (AP) Two children were among six people who were wounded Saturday night in an apparent drive-by shooting, police in eastern North Carolina said. Officers responded to a home for a report of shots fired around 9:30 p.m. Saturday, the Clinton Police Department said in a news release. They found six people suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. CHESTERFIELD, Va. (AP) A child is dead and another person is injured after multiple shootings at a party in central Virginia, police said. Officers were called to an event venue in suburban Richmond on Saturday night for a report of a shooting, local news outlets reported. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate AKRON, Ohio (AP) A Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again, authorities said Sunday at a news conference. Akron police released video of the shooting of Jayland Walker, 25, who was killed June 27 in a pursuit that had started with an attempted traffic stop. The mayor called the shooting heartbreaking while asking for patience from the community. It's not clear how many shots were fired by the eight officers involved, but Walker sustained more than 60 wounds. An attorney for Walker's family said officers kept firing even after he was on the ground. Officers attempted to stop Walker's car around 12:30 a.m. for unspecified traffic and equipment violations, but less than a minute into a pursuit, the sound of a shot was heard from the car, and a transportation department camera captured what appeared to be a muzzle flash coming from the vehicle, Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said. That changed the nature of the case from a routine traffic stop to now a public safety issue," he said. Police body camera videos show what unfolded after the roughly six-minute pursuit. Several shouting officers with guns drawn approach the slowing car on foot, as it rolls up over a curb and onto a sidewalk. A person wearing a ski mask exits the passenger door and runs toward a parking lot. Police chase him for about 10 seconds before officers fire from multiple directions, in a burst of shots that lasts 6 or 7 seconds. At least one officer had tried first to use a stun gun, but that was unsuccessful, police said. Mylett said Walkers actions are hard to distinguish on the video in real time, but a still photo seems to show him going down to his waist area and another appears to show him turning toward an officer. He said a third picture captures a forward motion of his arm. In a statement shared Sunday with reporters, the local police union said the officers thought there was an immediate threat of serious harm, and that it believes their actions and the number of shots will be found justified in line with their training and protocols. The union said the officers are cooperating with the investigation. Police said more than 60 wounds were found on Walkers body but further investigation is needed to determine exactly how many rounds the officers fired and how many times Walker was hit. The footage released by police ends with the officers' gunfire and doesn't show what happened next. Officers provided aid, and one can be heard saying Walker still had a pulse, but he was later pronounced dead, Mylett said. The chief said an officer firing at someone has to be ready to explain why they did what they did, they need to be able to articulate what specific threats they were facing ... and they need to be held to account. But he said he is withholding judgment on their actions until they give their statements. A handgun, a loaded magazine and an apparent wedding ring were found on the seat of the car. A casing consistent with the weapon was later found in the area where officers believed a shot had come from the vehicle. State Attorney General Dave Yost vowed a complete, fair and expert investigation" by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and cautioned that body-worn camera footage is just one view of the whole picture." Akron police are conducting a separate internal investigation about whether the officers violated department rules or policies. The officers involved in the shooting are on paid administrative leave, which is standard practice in such cases. Seven of them are white, and one is Black, according to the department. Their length of service with Akron police ranges from one-and-a-half to six years, and none of them has a record of discipline, substantiated complaints or fatal shootings, it said. Demonstrators marched peacefully through the city and gathered in front of the Akron justice center after the video was released. NAACP President Derrick Johnson said in a statement that Walkers death wasn't self-defense, but was murder. Point blank. Late Sunday, police in full riot gear fired a dozen tear gas cannisters to disperse a handful of protesters outside the justice center, WKYC-TV reported. Walkers family is calling for accountability but also for peace, their lawyers said. One of the attorneys, Bobby DiCello, called the burst of police gunfire excessive and unreasonable, and said police handcuffed Walker before trying to provide first aid. How it got to this with a pursuit is beyond me, DiCello said. He said Walkers family doesnt know why he fled from police. Walker was grieving the recent death of his fiancee, but his family had no indication of concern beyond that, and he wasn't a criminal, DiCello said. I hope we remember that as Jayland ran across that parking lot, he was unarmed, DiCello said. He said he doesnt know whether the gold ring found near the gun in the car belonged to Walker. Thomas X. Grasso, Sr., the longtime president of the Canal Society of New York State and a key advocate for the preservation and development of the Erie Canal, has died. The cause of his death on June 6 was cancer. He was 82 years old. Grasso lived a few miles north of the village of Pittsford, one of the canal villages he never tired of promoting. He was likely the world's foremost Erie Canal expert, and certainly its greatest booster. He served as president of Inland Waterways International and brought the World Canals Conference to upstate New York multiple times. He led the effort to restore the Port Byron Old Erie Canal Heritage Park in Cayuga County and wrote many scholarly and popular works on the Erie Canal as well as canals in Europe and elsewhere. Officials tout Cayuga County canal project's tourism impact A canal rewatering project is gaining momentum in Cayuga County as the local tourism industry particularly recreational boating looks to r "When you get out on that canal, you'd never think it's an artificial construct of human kind," Grasso said in 2017. "It's just like it was always here. It's a part of us, and we're proud of it. As we should be." Born in Lackawanna, Erie County, Grasso earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Buffalo and a master's degree from Cornell University. He helped found the geosciences department at Monroe Community College and served as its chairman for nearly 30 years. "One he got the geosciences program started at MCC, its done nothing but grow," said Michael Boester, a professor in what is now the chemistry and geosciences department. "It's rare to have such a large geosciences department at the community college level. ... Everyone knows if it hadnt been for Tom Grasso, none of this would be possible." Grasso joined the Canal Society of New York State in1966. He served as president of the society, which recently acquired a former church in Port Byron to use as a new history center to house its archives of canal documents, photographs, maps and more., for more than 40 years. His canal expertise was wide-ranging: geologic, historical, economic and ecological. Increasing recreational usage and appreciation of the canal was a primary concern. "He was always looking for linkages on how things all fit together, whether it was a type of wine or food or a piece of shale or a canal in Germany," said Craig Williams, current president of the Canal Society and a longtime friend of Grasso. "He was really at his best when he was out in the field explaining something to people where they could reach out and touch something." The Erie Canal was Grasso's greatest passion, but he was an expert on canals elsewhere as well. He led sightseeing tours along canals in Europe, an experience that informed his ideas about what the Erie Canal could become. "In Europe, they really use (the canals) for everyday pleasure," his wife, Carola Smith-Grasso, said. "After he started traveling to Europe it gave him much better perspective on what could be done over here." Grasso's courtship with his wife, by the way, began at the Coal Tower restaurant on the canal in Pittsford. "The canal is always in there somewhere," she said. In 2012, Monroe County named a lodge at Greece Canal Park in his honor. For decades, Grasso advocated for re-watering the Broad Street aqueduct in downtown Rochester. The city is now taking steps toward such a project. Grasso is survived by his wife, two children, two stepchildren and six grandchildren, among others. His funeral will be at 11 a.m. July 6 at the First Unitarian Church of Rochester, 220 S. Winton Road. NEW YORK (AP) The ex-boyfriend of a New York City woman who was shot dead as she pushed their infant daughter in a stroller has been ordered jailed without bail, with prosecutors describing the killing as a premeditated execution. Isaac Argro, 22, appeared Saturday evening in Manhattan Criminal Court on charges of second-degree murder and second-degree weapons possession. Prosecutor Brittany DeCesare told Judge Eric Schumacher that on the night of the killing, Argro dressed in all black and wore a ski mask as he paced back and forth waiting to shoot Azsia Johnson, his estranged girlfriend. This case can only be described as a premeditated execution," DeCesare said, according to The New York Post. The defendant persuaded the victim to meet after work and under the guise that he wanted to give the deceased items for their 3-month-old daughter. Argro's defense attorney declined to comment. Johnson, 20, was shot around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday near the intersection of Lexington Avenue and 95th Street on Manhattans Upper East Side. She was pronounced dead at a hospital. The 3-month-old in the stroller was not hurt, but was taken to a hospital for medical evaluation, police have said. Authorities allege Argro called Johnson's family after the shooting to ask where his child was and threatened that another unidentified person was next, the Post reported. Johnson's family has said Argro routinely abused the mother of his child, beating her during her pregnancy and threatening to kill her. Argro is set to return to court Thursday. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate ROANOKE, Va. (AP) The ambassador of the bananas came to talk with the community of oranges to see how the two fruits could peacefully coexist on the imaginary island of Fruitopia. Sydney Werness, 17, a junior at Patrick Henry High School, was the banana ambassador who met the oranges to discuss life on their diverse yet segregated island. The whole exercise was part of a role-playing game among members of Roanokes expanding refugee and immigrant populations that taught methods for communicating across language and cultural barriers and forming communities, like a real-life Fruitopia. Words of Dari, Swahili, Spanish and English weaved together as students talked and worked with art supplies and fruit to create personalities for their imaginary communities. A frowny face was made from pipe cleaners on a banana. Feathers popped out from the head of an orange with googly eyes. More than 20 high school and college students gathered at Belmont Library on a Saturday afternoon in May to participate. Some were refugees, others grew up in Roanoke. Many had never met before. Each fruit group faced challenges in their homeland, which led them to Fruitopia alongside other fruit groups that had persecuted them. The project mimicked the immigrants own experiences of leaving home and seeking refuge in a new country. The activity was organized by Hardwired Global, a nonprofit organization based in Richmond that is traveling throughout the commonwealth this year, targeting areas with high refugee populations, and using their simulation workshop to support social integration of refugees and newcomers into schools and communities. They are partnering with resettlement organizations, including Commonwealth Catholic Charities in Roanoke which, as of May , has helped resettle 438 refugees to the Roanoke area since 2019. Victoria Tiggas, outreach and development officer with Hardwired Global said the goal of the workshop is to promote pluralistic societies where people can go beyond simply coexisting with others who might be very different and engage with those people more fully. So for example, here (during the Roanoke workshop) we have Afghan refugees, we have some Hispanic refugees, and we also have Congolese refugees, Tiggas said. So, even between those refugee groups, they will have to engage with one another here in their community and in their schools, and we want them to feel comfortable doing that. Tiggas said fruit is used as an analogy to help students feel more comfortable discussing hard topics such as pluralism, acceptance and tolerance. Throughout the simulation, they work through fears and misconceptions that they have with one another, they break those down, and then they rebuild them into a more positive view or perception of the other fruit. Even the ones that persecuted them back in their home. Four hours later, a roomful of students that began mostly silent, erupted with excitement. Members from the different fruit groups put fears and prejudices aside to discuss attributes each group had that could help contribute to the community. Werness, the banana ambassador, wanted to attend the workshop to learn more about the different cultures that she sees at school. I learned how different my life has been from the newcomers life, said Werness, who was born in Roanoke. Ive learned their stories. Josette Iradukunda, 24, one of the oranges, talked about her own life, moving around for 15 years as a refugee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which has been ravaged with civil war for over two decades. Just be you and grip opportunities, advised Iradukunda, talking to fellow oranges Negina Rasoli, 20, and Marjan Sharifi, 22, both refugees from Afghanistan. Iradukunda came to Roanoke in March 2021. I understand because, in Congo, we lost a lot of people, said Iradukunda about the ongoing civil war in her homeland. She lost many of her own family members. We had to split and when we are running away everyone is running for their life, she said. Its so frustrating. Yeah, its frustrating, agreed Rasoli who said she came to Roanoke in October 2019, fleeing Afghanistan just after finishing high school in an unsafe area controlled by the Taliban, and having to leave some family members behind. Right now its going wonderful for me because its almost three years Ive been here, Rasoli said. But the first one and a half years was too hard for all my family members. Rasoli currently works at a textile company and will attend Virginia Western Community College in the fall. She hopes to be a surgeon someday. Werness said she liked the simulation because it was fun and informative. My high school is very diverse, but so separate, Werness said about Patrick Henry. She said she is not uncomfortable reaching out to students who came from other countries but that she can be hesitant because she is unsure what to ask. But she said she does try. I think its really important to understand and empathize with everyone, she said, to learn about different cultures and where they came from, and just to make everyone feel comfortable and accepted. The workshop ended with the citizens of Fruitopia mingling and sharing what they learned from each other. Tina Ramirez, executive director with Hardwired Global, concludes that all fruits have seeds on the inside and that it is not ideal to simply coexist with one another. She said she hoped the simulation taught the group that through interaction, different cultures can learn from each other and people need other people to survive. Does this orange have to believe the same thing that the banana believes in order to get along with the banana? Ramirez asked. A resounding No, is the response from the room. In your schools you have people that are different from you and not just newcomers and Americans, you have people that believe and act and have lots of different ideas from you. Is it possible to live together, is it possible to get to know them? Yes, replied the group. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) You enter Discovery Places new grotto atop a gentle slosh of surf projected beneath your feet, so realistic and unexpected that you might fight the urge to prance in retreat to keep your toes dry. But youve only reached the shallows of Unseen Oceans, a summerlong exhibition at the science museum that truly lives up to the description of immersive experience. Illuminated in turquoise hues counterfeiting the uppermost layer of sea, its caverns beckon visitors to learn about the motor dynamics of Earths oceans, the clever life forms that occupy its regions and the perils that a sick sea could inflict on mankind. Most of all, Unseen Oceans sketches the greatest mystery on Earth what lies beneath the waves that cover 70% of our planets surface? The exhibition at Discovery Place Science in uptown opened in May, and is organized by the American Museum of Natural History in New York. Oceans are so vast but the depths are unknown, said Heather Norton, chief science officer for Discovery Place. A Florida native with scuba experience, she recognizes how most of us are far out of our depths when it comes to the seas. We know the surface of Mars 100 times better than the Earths marine underworld accurate maps exist for only about 15% of the seafloor, Norton said. Humans often struggle with things so big we cant understand them, she said. We sometimes dismiss them, assume that theyll always be there and heal themselves. One not-to-miss feature of Unseen Oceans is an amphitheater in the shape of a research sub, including windshield and portholes. Here visitors take a voyage of discovery, first descending past the flanks of an iceberg, then meeting various animals at their cruising depths, plankton to whales. Steadily, and more darkly, visitors descend to about 7 miles down to enter the perilous realm where sunlight never penetrates, through vast canyons that hold otherworldly creatures immune to crushing pressures. Live sea creatures ranging from moon jellyfish to seahorses to a zebra bullhead shark are on display, acquired for the exhibition and destined to live afterward in Discovery Place aquariums as part of the museums collection. Other creatures on display are long dead, even extinct. There is a fist-sized megalodon tooth, about 23 million years old, from the prehistoric shark the size of a bus that fed on whales and seals. Sharks are one of the most successful designs nature ever hatched, ancient even in the era of the dinosaurs. But for the first time in their history, these apex predators are in danger because of overfishing by humans. Encounter With Giants is a high-resolution film showing life-size sea-bigs like Earths largest mammal the blue whale sailing past at 100 feet in length, or a flock of manta rays, cruising serenely on winglike flippers. Other curious incredibles flashing tentacles, snouts or unblinking eyeballs are drawn to the camera for startling close-ups. A subtext of the exhibition is humanitys ingenuity in exploring the hostile environment of the oceans, Norton said. Exhibits show how sonar and satellites sketch the undersea terrain and how submersibles take us into the inky depths. Two virtual-reality stations allow young explorers to drive a mini-submarine to collect reef samples (just keep an eye on your fuel and air gauges) and return to base. As humans we depend on the oceans for all that we do, from the oxygen we breathe to the food we eat, Catherine Wilson Horne, Discovery Places president, said in a statement. Yet theres still so little we know about life underseas. Increasing acidity, melting glaciers and warming seas are some of the problems that concern oceanic scientists. These not only threaten marine ecosystems but imperil our food supply and climate. Exhibits show how the United States and Canada allowed the northeast cod fishery to collapse. In contrast, Norway and Russia set strict limits on the cod harvest to 700,000 tons annually off Europe, which ensured a sustainable supply for the future. Another exhibit shows how reef management and new fishing techniques have mitigated damage to the seabed and its denizens, offering hope we can live more in harmony with our otherworldly companions on this blue planet. MOSCOW (AP) The president of Uzbekistan has backed off proposed constitutional changes that would have prevented the Karakalpakstan region from holding a referendum on splitting away from the country. A large protest against the proposed changes broke out Friday in the regions capital, Nuku. Demonstrators reportedly tried to seize government buildings and clashed with police. By Manuela Tobias CalMatters Eviction protections for thousands of California households still waiting in line for payments from the state's multi-billion dollar rent relief program expired Thursday. Since September 2020, the Legislature has passed and Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed four laws shielding tenants who were unable to pay rent due to COVID-19 from eviction. The most recent extension shielded tenants through June 30 who had applied for rent relief from the state's $5 billion program by the March 31 deadline but had yet to hear back or receive payments. Those tenants can now be brought to court by their landlords. "It's highly unlikely that they are going to get through all these applications by June 30, when the eviction protections expire," Sarah Treuhaft, vice president of research at PolicyLink, a nonprofit that has been reviewing the state's rent relief program, said during a press conference this week. "This means they are likely to be evicted and they might eventually get rental assistance." Debra Carlton, chief lobbyist for the California Apartment Association, said they have asked their members not to take their tenants with pending applications to court. The state Department of Housing and Community Development, which administers the program through a contractor, said on July 1 they had approved all complete applications for eligible tenants. Geoffrey Ross, a deputy director handling the program, said they are still processing 13,000 applications that are either missing documentation, or represent an appeal following a denial. They expect to clear all pending applications by early August. The rent relief program has paid 339,000 households an average of $11,000 totaling nearly $4 billion, according to the state's public data dashboard. Checks will soon be on their way to about 16,000 households approved this week. The gap between completed applications and approved ones has shrunk significantly over the past week as case management has ramped up. On June 30, the program dashboard showed about 404,000 people had completed their applications. Late this morning, following the original publishing of this story, the dashboard was updated to show only 352,000 completed applications. Ross said more than 70,000 applicants were cleared from the queue and issued denials because of account inactivity. These applicants with incomplete applications were contacted at least three times and given at least 20 days to respond, many times longer, he said. Using data from June 23, PolicyLink, which has been reviewing weekly program data from the state through Public Record Act requests, found more than 28,000 initial applicants and 57,000 people who reapplied have not yet heard back from the program. Ross from the housing department said the data, albeit produced by the state, has "flaws within the interpretation" but declined to comment on specifics. Horne LLP, a Mississippi-based accounting firm that specializes in disaster relief, will be paid a maximum of $278 million to distribute federal rent relief funds capped at $4.5 billion, according to a contract renewal dated April 1 that CalMatters obtained through the Public Records Act on June 17. The housing department was unable to say how much the company had been paid to date. State Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, a Democrat from Oakland and co-author of the last extension, acknowledged the program has been "incredibly frustrating." She said the state housing department had assured her qualifying applications would be paid. "I think it's no secret that it's had challenges," she said. "And while I'm sympathetic to some of the challenges we've had as a state government in terms of dealing with a global pandemic that none of us anticipated, it's also our job as government to run well especially when you're talking about critical social safety nets." But there's a silver lining for tenant advocates. A key portion of the now expired law was the preemption of more stringent local measures against eviction, many of which will now go into effect, including in Los Angeles County. The state faces at least two lawsuits over the program from tenant advocates, who argue it has denied funding to qualifying tenants and isn't covering the amount of rental debt originally promised. More than 135,000 people -- or nearly a third of all households -- who applied for rent relief had their applications rejected as of June 17, according to data CalMatters obtained from the housing department through the Public Records Act. That number spiked in the last few weeks as the program wound down. The lawsuit, which cites the same set of data, says tenants are receiving little to no explanation for their denials, which makes it difficult to contest the final decision. "Tenants are facing eviction even as their landlords are given these giant checks and tenants who are eligible for assistance are being denied with these cryptic notices that don't tell them why. It just doesn't make sense," said Madeline Howard, a senior staff attorney at Western Center on Law & Poverty, one of the groups suing the state over the program. Ross, from the housing department, was unable to provide specific numbers on denials, but said about half of applicants are denied over ineligibility: they either make too much money, don't reside in a place covered by the state program, applied for a time period outside the program guidelines or were unable to prove their tenancy or the impact the pandemic has had on their ability to pay rent. The other half of denials were due to incomplete or inactive applications. He said an unspecified number of applications were fraudulent, or had been submitted multiple times. He said tenants with incomplete applications are told which section they need to provide further proof, but aren't limited to specific documents. He also said they were given instructions on how to reach their case managers for help. Wicks said the latest state budget, approved this week, includes nearly $2 billion to pay back the state for a line of credit opened earlier this year to pay tenants who submitted applications prior to March 31, although it does not include any new funds for rent relief. The program covered rent for up to 18 months between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2022 for low-income tenants who were financially impacted by COVID-19. Copyright 2022 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area. Copyright 2022 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Charles Darwin might have loved pigeons, but for city-dwellers they have posed more than a few problems; mainly, their poop. BART has had to deal with its dove denizens for years. Now the transit agency has launched a creative way to deter the roosts: a bird of prey. No, they aren't trying to create a blood bath. The mere sight of Pac-Man, an adult male Harris hawk, sends the birds up up and away and out of the rafters, BART says. Pac-Man has been seen lately at the El Cerrito Del Norte Station, happily perched atop its handler's arm. Pac-Man comes from Falcon Force, a business out of La Crescenta that offers professional bird abatement services. The hawk and its handler, Ricky Ortiz, come to the El Cerrito station three times a week, up to eight hours a day, BART said. If you think bringing in the art of ancient falconry is a bit drastic, consider what BART says it has already tried to no avail: bird-repellent spikes, netting, owl statues, weird noises. Lest you think pigeons are cute, BART reminds us that they are "non-native, non-migratory, and invasive." On top of that, their droppings can carry bacteria, fungal agents and ectoparasites that can affect humans, the transit agency says. The plan is to make the pigeons think that the station is now the hawk's territory, in hopes that they will go set up shop somewhere else. As for Pac-Man, he enjoys the hustle and bustle of a busy station and is not bothered by it, his handler said. Apparently Harris hawks are "mellow," he said. BART and Ortiz welcome anyone who sees them in the station coming up to say hello and maybe take a selfie. And you probably won't have to worry about something unpleasant landing on your head anymore, too. The California Highway Patrol is reporting a fatality on Interstate Highway 280 South near the Trousdale exit on Saturday. Traffic is impacted and a Sig Alert went out at 4:40 p.m. According to CHP, a sport utility vehicle was traveling at 80 m.p.h. and spun out. A fire was reported in at least one car. There is no further information at this time. Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 357 into law on Friday, the Safer Streets for All Act, which repeals a provision of state law criminalizing "loitering with the intent to engage prostitution." The legislation was put forth by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco). Opponents of the former law claim that it allowed for arrests of suspects based on an officer's subjective perception of whether a person is "acting like" or "looks like" they intend to engage in sex work. This has resulted in the disproportionate criminalization of trans, Black and Brown women, and perpetuates violence towards sex workers, a spokesperson for Wiener's office said. "Today, as trans people are being criminalized across the country, Governor Gavin Newsom has once again shown that California stands with the LGBTQ community and communities of color," said Senator Wiener. "Everyone, no matter their race, gender or how they make a living, deserves to feel safe in the streets." A large coalition of former and current sex workers sponsored the bill, Wiener said. The bill does not decriminalize soliciting or engaging in sex work, his office said. "It simply eliminates a loitering offense that leads to harmful treatment of people for simply 'appearing' to be a sex worker." Wiener said that the crime had been so subjective that it allowed police officers to arrest people simply on how they were dressed, whether they are wearing high heels and certain kinds of make-up, how they are wearing their hair, and the like. Black and Brown transgender women have been cited "simply for walking down the street," the senator said. Senator Wiener further stated that criminalizing sex work does not make sex workers or communities safer, adding that most criminal penalties for sex workers do not address human trafficking, for example. "In fact, loitering laws make it harder to identify trafficking victims," said Wiener's office. "Trafficking victims are often afraid to come forward in fear of being arrested or incarcerated." Transgender persons who have done street-based sex work are more than twice as likely to report physical assault by police officers, Wiener said, and four times as likely to report sexual assault by officers. "For far too long, California law has been used to profile, harass and arrest transgender and gender-nonconforming people simply for existing in public spaces," said Tony Huang, executive director for Equity California. "We all deserve to live peacefully and without arrest." A similar law was passed in New York last year, according to Wiener's office. A Petaluma woman was sentenced to 29 months in prison for defrauding a Sausalito hotel, the Department of Justice Northern District of California announced on Friday. Stephanie Simontacchi, 48, was employed as a bookkeeper at the Cavallo Point Lodge from December of 2009 to April of 2016, the DOJ said. Simontacchi had access to the lodge's accounting records systems and had signatory authority over the business' bank accounts. She admitted that between October of 2012 and March of 2016, she used her skills as an accountant to access the lodge's accounting systems to steal approximately 81 accounts payable checks and accounts receivable checks issued to the lodge. She deposited the checks into her personal account for her own personal gain, the DOJ said, to the tune of $384,363.28. Simontacchi also admitted to using her position as a senior accountant and manager at Redwood Credit Union to embezzle and misapply approximately 35 checks including voided cashier's checks returned to RCU by its members, as well as other checks. These too she deposited into her own accounts for person use and used the funds to make payments toward a personal home equity line of credit. Combined, the checks came to at least $437,162.24, the DOJ said. Further, Simontacchi filed false tax returns. She was indicted on June 24, 2021 for seven counts of misapplication and embezzlement of credit union funds and four counts of tax evasion. In her plea agreement, she she pleaded guilty to one count of each crime and has agreed to pay at least $821,525.52 in restitution. In addition to her prison term, Simontacchi will serve three years supervised release. She must surrender to serve her term on or before Aug. 11. Final determinations as to restitution will also be considered, the DOJ said. Oakland Police are investigating shootings that occurred on Friday, one of which resulted in a homicide. The first shooting occurred at approximately 10:09 p.m. in the 2400 block of Foothill Boulevard, police said. When officers arrived, they discovered two adult males with apparent gunshot wounds. One victim is currently in critical condition and the other is now stabilized. The second shooting occurred at approximately 11:45 p.m. near the intersection of 30th Avenue and International Boulevard. Officers responded to the area after hearing gunshots, police said. Upon arrival, police discovered an adult male with an apparent gunshot wound. OPD officers attempted life-saving measures but the victim succumbed to his injuries at the scene and was pronounced dead by medical professionals. The man's name is being withheld pending notification of next-of-kin. San Francisco Police have arrested a man on suspicion of the shooting death of another on Friday in the Bayview. Robert Malachi Barton, 33, of SF, was arrested at approximately 12:30 p.m. after a search warrant was issued for his residence on Espanola Street and tactical teams arrived, police said. The shooting occurred on July 1 at approximately 11:55 p.m. in the 1600 block of Shafter Avenue. Upon arrival, officers discovered a 38-year-old male suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. He later succumbed to his injuries. Police said that an initial investigation determined that the victim had allegedly been involved in a dispute with the suspect which had escalated. A San Jose man has pleaded guilty to a fraudulent loan application scheme in order to get millions of dollars from programs implemented to assist businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Department of Justice Northern District of California announced on Friday. Lebnitz Tran, 41, submitted at least 27 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) applications and at least seven Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) relief funds applications on behalf of multiple persons and business entities using false and fictitious information, the DOJ said. In total, Tran sought $8.5 million in PPP and EIDL funds and actually received $3.6 million in illicit loan proceeds, netting approximately $1.7 million from the scheme. Prosecutors say that Tran and others used this money to purchase at restaurants and retail stores, make deposits into personal accounts, buy cryptocurrency, and, in one instance, purchase a $100,000 Tesla. Tran was indicted on July 1, 2021 for six counts of wire fraud and one count of bank fraud; he pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud. If he complies with the plea agreement, the rest will be dismissed at sentencing, the DOJ said. Tran is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 3 and he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud. He will also most likely be ordered to pay restitution. This case was investigated by the Attorney General's COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The Stanford Blood Center (SBC) is currently facing an immediate need for all blood types, especially type O negative, and is asking Bay Area residents to come out and donate as soon as possible to help meet the needs of local patients. "Summer is always a difficult time to collect blood donations," said Renee Gipson, donor services director at the SBC. "We typically see a decline in donors this time of year, which can impact patient care." Type O negative is one of the most frequently needed blood types, the center said. Supplies are critically low. "Before heading out for summer activities or that family vacation, we're urging the community to please consider making an appointment to donate to help maintain a steady supply this holiday weekend and in the coming months," said Gipson. Donors are encouraged to make appointments at one of three donation center locations in Campbell, Menlo Park or Mountain View. The centers are open seven days a week. They are located at 295 E. Hamilton Avenue in Campbell, 445 Burgess Drive Suite 100 in Menlo Park, and 515 South Drive Suite 20 in Mountain View. To make an appointment, call (888) 723-7381. There will also be a number of mobile units available to the public, including blood drives in Milpitas, Pleasanton, San Jose and Sunnyvale. Anyone who donates now through the 31st will receive a Grateful for Life" tie-dyed T-shirt. To make a mobile appointment, go to stanfordbloodcenter.org or call (888) 723-7831. Donors should be in good health, with no cold, flu, or COVID-10 symptoms. Be sure to eat well prior to donation, drink fluids and please bring a photo ID to your donation. Copyright 2022 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area. Copyright 2022 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. In 1956, I turned 18 and entered college after having spent the summer working in the oil fields in Texas for a young oil man named George H.W. Bush. I played football that fall on the Williams College freshman team, and we went undefeated. I was on top of my little world when, in December, I broke my back in an accident and was partially paralyzed. Nothing has been the same again, and so the year 1956 has remained sharply reserved in my memory. The other evening, I was listening to the radio old timers do that when one of my favorite movies, released that year, was mentioned, and I listened in rapt attention as Bing Crosby sang the lovely Cole Porter tune I love you, Samantha from the film High Society. In the film, as Crosby sings that song, he is standing before a large mirror tying a bow tie while in the background Louis Armstrong plays a soft obligato on his trumpet. Of course, Grace Kelly is Samantha. The combination of Crosby with Kelly and the rest of a superb cast, including Frank Sinatra and Celeste Holm, romping through a score of Porter songs produced a huge hit film. For me, the highlight is the duet True Love sung by Crosby and the luminous Kelly. It is the only time she sang in a film, and it is a delicious segment. Another feature of the score is a lively jazz tune with Crosby and Armstrong singing in front of the jazz All Stars. Crosby loved jazz and he was at his best in that film. During the fall of that year, Bing came to our little college town to visit his youngest son, Lindsay, who was in my freshman class. I have a vivid memory of der Bingle strolling up the main street in Williamstown, whistling and clearly enjoying himself. He stayed with a faculty couple whom I knew, and they told me that when he sang softly during his morning shower, the entire host family sat quietly on the front hall stairs and listened. Apparently, he was a wonderful guest who was warm and friendly to the college community. Sadly, his son never adjusted to college life nor to the academic requirements and left school after a few months. Many years later, I read he had taken his life after the trust fund established by his father ran dry. Celebrity comes in some cases with a steep price. Our college town had another tie to that superb film. Cole Porter maintained a house in town where he spent many weekends and was afforded total privacy. The townspeople were proud he lived among them and respected his major talents. But they also took care to leave him the space he required. One faculty wife told me many years later that Porter had once complimented her on a particular red dress she was wearing in a restaurant, and she was so thrilled she kept it in her closet for decades. He cut a swath through the town. After he had a serious accident when he fell from a horse and his legs were damaged, his favored activity was to take long drives in the Berkshire countryside where he could enjoy the lovely views and verdant rolling hills. In my view, Porter was so special because he wrote both the words and the music for his Broadway shows. His genius is evident in the stunningly clever lyrics to Lets Do It that begins with the memorable lines, Birds do it, Bees do it, Even educated fleas do it, Lets Do it, Lets Fall in Love. When I was at Yale Law School, I lived in Vanderbilt Hall where Porter lived as a Yale undergrad. No wonder I find his life and works so fascinating. And genius may arise in small towns; Porter was born in Peru, Indiana. Connecticut native Fay Vincent was commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1989 to 1992. In a cable TV ad that will soon be running in Florida, Gov. Gavin Newsom urges people living in the state to join California in fighting back against what he sees as Republican extremism. "Freedom is under attack in your state," Newsom says in the ad. "Your Republican leaders are banning books, making it harder to vote, restricting speech in classrooms, even criminalizing women and doctors. I urge all of you living in Florida to join the fight. Or join us in California where we still believe in freedom freedom of speech, freedom to choose, freedom from hate and the freedom to love. Dont let them take your freedom." Newsom's re-election campaign paid about $105,000 for space to run the 30-second ad, which will air on Fox News in Florida on July 4. The assertions Newsom makes in the ad are related to several recent policies in Florida: Earlier this year, the Florida Department of Education rejected 54 math textbooks 41% of the 132 textbooks reviewed by the department from being included in the state's K-12 curriculum going forward, saying they touched on "prohibited topics" such as "Critical Race Theory." Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill last year that adds restrictions to absentee and mail voting, which many critics say will disenfranchise voters. The state made national headlines earlier this year for a controversial measure known as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, which prohibits classroom instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade in the state's public schools. The Florida Legislature signed a bill in April that would ban abortions in the state after 15 weeks, with no exceptions for rape and incest. Exactly why Newsom is running cable TV ads in a state roughly 2,700 miles away is unclear, although many speculate that the move is yet another sign that the governor is preparing for a presidential run in the near future. As we've previously reported, Newsom has dramatically escalated his national posturing over the past month so much so that supporters of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris say they're keeping an eye on him. Newsom did an interview with The Atlantic earlier this month to talk about the national Democratic Party and conservative legislation on abortion and LGBTQ rights, and in that interview, called for the national Democratic Party to be more combative. Those comments came just weeks after he made headlines for publicly calling out the Democratic Party during a news conference. Newsom has also joined Donald Trump's social media app Truth Social with the stated goal of "calling out Republican lies," and has dedicated a lot of time taking shots at national GOP officials namely DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Twitter and in news conferences. Newsom has made an effort to lead the nation on major political issues. Following the United State Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Newsom signed a bill that protects people traveling from states with abortion restrictions to California to receive the procedure. He also garnered a lot of attention last year for introducing a bill that allows private citizens to sue gun manufacturers, a bill that is intentionally modeled after a Texas abortion law. Editor's note: This story was updated on July 3 at 10:30 a.m. to clarify the grade levels impacted by Florida's so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill. NY Marine Warnings and Forecast for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY URGENT - MARINE WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Boston/Norton MA 1223 PM EDT Sun Jul 3 2022 ...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IS CANCELLED... Winds and seas have subsided below small craft advisory thresholds. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather July 3, 2007 MORAVIA Cayuga County Sheriff's Office deputies started their shifts from a substation for the first time in years on Monday afternoon. Deputies Tom Carbonaro, a 16-year veteran of the sheriff's office, Bernie Gallow, a 27-year veteran, and Joe Ryan, a four-year veteran, are all residents of southern Cayuga County and will start their shifts out of the southern Cayuga County substation in the Moravia Village Justice Center. It can take 20 to 30 minutes to respond to a personal injury accident or a serious domestic incident from the Public Safety Building in Sennett, including going through all the lights in the city of Auburn, Gallow said. Believe me, Cayuga County is a long county, he said. He welcomes the opportunity to work out of the Moravia substation. He has grandchildren in the village and he knows many of the children who live in the area. He also knows the area well because he is a part-time officer with the Moravia Village Police Department. Sgt. Corey Colton will be in charge of the substation and will aim to spend part of his workday there. The sheriff's office will share a communal space with the Moravia Village Police Department and have its own private room to conduct interviews confidentially. James Willis, the officer in charge of the village police department, said chaotic events like the Sept. 11 attacks and the discrepancies in different agencies' plans shows the importance of interoperability between agencies. This is as close as that as you can come, Willis said. All the officials, including Moravia village trustees and law enforcement officers, celebrating Monday afternoon's opening of the Moravia substation said the close-knit nature of the justice center will help with stronger responses to emergencies and better pursuit of investigations. Nothing like in-person communication can solve crimes, Sheriff David Gould said. Gould estimates his office has spent $50,000 over three years in gasoline driving from the northern and southern parts of the county to check-in at the PSB in Sennett. Gould said village of Cato and Moravia officials signed contracts Monday to seal the deal for the sheriff's office to run substations within both of those localities. Gould's predecessor, Rob Outhouse, used a fleet system where patrol deputies were assigned to cars and reported to the Public Safety Building in Sennett at the beginning of their shifts. Gould promised in his campaign to reopen the substations. Gary Mulvaney, a village trustee who will become the mayor Monday, July 9, said it's wonderful to have additional officers supplement the village's small force. There are six part-time officers who work for the village police department, including officers who are on leave and Gallow. The justice center opened last fall and has been in use for the last several months by village officials and the New York State Police. Two state troopers, Jonathan Austin and Tom Badman, and Trooper Donald Langtry, a school resource officer, work out of the other side of the justice center. It's nice, said state police Sgt. Terry Clark, the zone sergeant for the Auburn area, as he gave a tour of the state police's space. We really enjoy it here. The Moravia Village Court, including the main courtroom and a jury room, sit between the state police space and the other two agencies' space. The sheriff's office also will open a substation in the village of Cato's municipal building, but that substation will await its opening for the village's expansion of its building. The southern substation was originally in Venice. The Nation's Weather for Monday, July 4, 2022 _____ NATIONAL SUMMARY High pressure will continue to bring dry conditions and low humidity to the Great Lakes region into the Northeast today. Meanwhile, a system will bring showers and strong storms to the northern Plains and Midwest. Some of the storms, especially those in southern Wisconsin, northeastern Iowa, northern Illinois and southwestern Minnesota are likely to be severe with high winds, hail, flash flooding and isolated tornadoes. Meanwhile, spotty thunderstorms will continue to riddle the Southeast, where some storms could contain heavy downpours. Showers and storms are also forecast to erupt over parts of the Northwest, especially over Montana, where the risk of flash flooding, gusty winds and hail will exist. The Southwest will continue to see afternoon thunderstorms as moisture continues to funnel into the region. SPECIAL WEATHER No new information for this time period. WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS No new information for this time period. DAILY EXTREMES National High Sunday 107 at Phoenix, AZ National Low Sunday 25 at Bodie State Park, CA _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather WFO AMARILLO Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, July 2, 2022 _____ SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING The National Weather Service in Amarillo has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for... Southwestern Texas County in the Panhandle of Oklahoma... Southeastern Cimarron County in the Panhandle of Oklahoma... Northwestern Sherman County in the Panhandle of Texas... * Until 915 PM CDT. * At 842 PM CDT, a severe thunderstorm was located 8 miles southeast of Griggs, or 11 miles north of Stratford, moving northeast at 15 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Minor damage to roofs, siding, and trees is possible. Hail damage to vehicles is expected. * Locations impacted include... Texhoma. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building. Torrential rainfall is occurring with this storm, and may lead to flash flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded roadways. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather WFO DALLAS / FT. WORTH Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING The National Weather Service in Fort Worth has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for... Northeastern Denton County in north central Texas... Southeastern Cooke County in north central Texas... Southwestern Grayson County in north central Texas... * Until 615 PM CDT. * At 520 PM CDT, a severe thunderstorm was located near Pilot Point, or 14 miles south of Whitesboro, moving northeast at 10 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Hail damage to vehicles is expected. Expect wind damage to roofs, siding, and trees. * Locations impacted include... Sherman, Whitesboro, Pilot Point, Howe, Collinsville, Gunter, Dorchester, Ray Roberts Park Isle Du Bois, Ray Roberts Park Johnson Branch, Lake Kiowa, Southmayd, Tioga and Sadler. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... For your protection get inside a sturdy structure and stay away from windows. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather WFO MIDLAND/ODESSA Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ CHILD ABDUCTION EMERGENCY The following message is transmitted at the request of the Texas Department of Public Safety. THIS IS A CHILD ABDUCTION ALERT ISSUED BY THE TEXAS AMBER ALERT NETWORK THE GARLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT IS SEARCHING FOR YADHIRA MEDINA, HISPANIC, FEMALE, 17 YEARS OLD, 5 FEET 0 INCHES, 150 POUNDS, BROWN/REDDISH HAIR, BROWN EYES. LAST SEEN WEARING GLASSES WITH A BLACK T-SHIRT, BLACK SWEATPANTS WITH A BLACK BACKPACK. POLICE ARE LOOKING FOR DAVID MALDONADO, 20 YEARS OLD, HISPANIC, MALE, 5 FEET 7 INCHES, 160 POUNDS, BLACK HAIR, BROWN EYES. IN CONNECTION WITH HER ABDUCTION. THE SUSPECT IS DRIVING A WHITE, UNKNOWN YEAR, FORD OR GM MAKE, UNKNOWN MODEL WITH UNKNOWN LICENSE PLATE NUMBER. THE VEHICLE HAS TAN OR SILVER TRIMMING ON THE BODY. THE SUSPECT WAS LAST HEARD FROM IN GARLAND, TEXAS. LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS BELIEVE THIS CHILD TO BE IN GRAVE OR IMMEDIATE DANGER. IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION REGARDING THIS ABDUCTION, CALL THE GARLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT AT 9 7 2 4 8 5 4 8 4 0. NEWS MEDIA POINT OF CONTACT IS GARLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT AT 9 7 2 4 8 5 4 8 4 0. ...AMBER ALERT... THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE IS TRANSMITTED AT THE REQUEST OF THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather WFO NORMAN Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING The National Weather Service in Norman has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for... Southeastern Wilbarger County in northern Texas... * Until 400 PM CDT. * At 330 PM CDT, a severe thunderstorm was located 8 miles southwest of Electra, moving north at 20 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts and nickel size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Expect damage to roofs, siding, and trees. * Locations impacted include... Harrold. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather WFO SPOKANE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ FLASH FLOOD WARNING The National Weather Service in Spokane has issued a * Flash Flood Warning for... The Ford/Corkscrew Burn Scar in... Southern Stevens County in northeastern Washington... * Until 315 PM PDT. * At 119 PM PDT, Doppler radar indicated thunderstorms producing heavy rain over the Ford/Corkscrew Burn Scar. Between 0.5 and 1 inch of rain has fallen. Flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly. Excessive rainfall over the burn scar will result in debris flows. The debris flow can consist of rock, mud, vegetation and other loose materials. HAZARD...Flash flooding caused by thunderstorms in and around the Ford/Corkscrew Burn Scar. SOURCE...Radar. IMPACT...Flooding of areas in and around the Ford/Corkscrew Burn Scar. * Some locations that will experience flash flooding include... Tum Tum. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... The affected areas are in and below the Ford Corkscrew burn scar east of Ford and Clayton, including Rail Canyon Road, Scoop Mountain Road, and Hutchins Road. Some drainage basins impacted include those into Williams Valley, Scotts Valley, Mission Creek and Rail Creek. High intensity rainfall on the burned area may cause flash flooding, mud slides and rock slides. Hikers, residents, and motorists in and below the Ford/Corkscrew burned area should take immediate precautions to protect life and property. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather WFO SPOKANE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ FLASH FLOOD WARNING The National Weather Service in Spokane has issued a * Flash Flood Warning for... Central Ferry County in northeastern Washington... Southwestern Stevens County in northeastern Washington... * Until 445 PM PDT. * At 135 PM PDT, Doppler radar indicated thunderstorms producing heavy rain across the warned area. Between 1.5 and 2.5 inches of rain have fallen in the areas of heaviest rainfall. Flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly. HAZARD...Flash flooding caused by thunderstorms. SOURCE...Radar. IMPACT...Flash flooding of small creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets, and underpasses as well as other poor drainage and low-lying areas. * Some locations that will experience flash flooding include... Twin Lakes, Inchelium, Hunters, Gifford, Cedonia and Fruitland. This also includes the Summit Trail burn scar. Areas near Hail Creek, Sitdown Creek, and Lynk Creek are particularly susceptible to flooding. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Move away from recently burned areas. Life-threatening flooding of creeks and roads is likely. The heavy rains will likely trigger rockslides, mudslides, and debris flows in steep terrain, especially in and around these areas. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather WFO SPOKANE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ AREAL FLOOD ADVISORY Flood Advisory National Weather Service Spokane WA 201 PM PDT Sun Jul 3 2022 ...FLOOD ADVISORY HAS EXPIRED... The Flood Advisory has expired for portions of East Central and Northeast Washington, including the following counties, in East Central Washington, Lincoln. A Flash Flood Warning remains in place in Ferry County. The heavy rain has ended. Flooding is no longer expected to pose a threat. Please continue to heed remaining road closures. The National Weather Service in Spokane has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for... Central Stevens County in northeastern Washington... * Until 245 PM PDT. * At 202 PM PDT, a severe thunderstorm was located over Colville, or 51 miles northwest of Priest River, moving north at 5 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts and half dollar size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Hail damage to vehicles is expected. Expect wind damage to roofs, siding, and trees. * Locations impacted include... Colville, Kettle Falls, Marcus and Evans. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building. Torrential rainfall is occurring with this storm, and may lead to flash flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded roadways. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather Many people voluntarily have handed over wild animals that they are breeding to officials of the Thua Thien - Hue Forest Protection Department From 2020 to now, many people voluntarily handed over wild animals that they are breeding to officials of the Thua Thien - Hue Forest Protection Department. The staff of the Department will take care of these rescued animals and after these animals are healthy, they will be released back to the natural forest. A rare brown-shanked douc langur is rescued from a luxury resort in Thua Thien Hue Thua Thien - Hue Forest Protection Department rescues and releases 3 pig-tailed monkeys and 1 red-faced monkey into the wild Caring for rare pangolins rescued from people's homes Students draw pictures about environment protection By Van Thang Translated by Anh Quan By Vugar Khalilov The Azerbaijani armys radiological, chemical, and biological defense units hold methodological training sessions, Azernews reports, citing the Defense Ministry. According to the ministry, chiefs of services and commanders of military subunits participated in sessions to strengthen their professional abilities in line with the authorized training plan. The workshops highlighted officers' responsibilities in strengthening unit coordination, military personnel's practical skills and capacities in completing given tasks, as well as enhancing their moral-psychological endurance. The command staff received theoretical and practical support in the formulation and implementation of necessary guidance papers during the talks. A comprehensive exchange of opinions on matters impacting the Azerbaijan Army's combat capacity was held during the training-methodological sessions, the report concluded. Azerbaijan undertakes drills on a regular basis to strengthen the combat readiness of its military personnel. The drills also seek to strengthen servicemen's interaction and combat coordination during operations, as well as to improve commanders' military decision-making and unit management skills. Over the last year there were a few nights that Andrew Kirkland looked at the balance sheet for his Auburn restaurant, the Lavish Lounge. To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account. We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription. A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means youre helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much! But the EPA wanted to consider it as part of its review of the Pinjarra expansion to better assess the cumulative impacts of multiple mining operations on the forest over which Alcoa has a 700,000-hectare lease from Mundaring to Collie. The company says it will only mine 8 per cent of the lease which has jarrah forest. Meanwhile, South32 intends to clear 4399 hectares near the country town of Boddington, which would provide 150 more jobs and allow it to maintain its currently approved mining rate of 18.8 million tonnes per year and annual refinery production of 4.7 million tonnes. Wilderness Society WA campaigns manager Patrick Gardner and WA Forest Alliance convener Jess Beckerling on Mount Vincent Credit:Peter de Kruijff The plans have drawn concerns from environmentalists and recreational forest users as tourism in towns like Dwellingup rises. Only 35 kilometres from the Perth suburb of Armadale are popular walking trails at Sullivan Rock. A short walk up the trail you can see the approaching mining, which could come closer if Alcoas expansion is approved. The state government recently announced a ban of native timber logging in the state from 2024, but clearing trees for mining purposes will be exempt. WA Forest Alliance convenor Jess Beckerling said the forest that would be lost to bauxite mining had high conservation values. South32s Worsley footprint from 1988 to 2020 has seen the mine move right next to Boddington. The town is just over 100 kilometres from Perth. Credit:Google Earth The Northern Jarrah Forest was identified as one of a handful of Australian ecosystems most at risk of climate collapse in the latest report by the UNs panel of experts on climate change, she said. To do more damage as this proposal would clearly do would be an unforgivable act of self-sabotage for our state and set conservation efforts back decades. The forest home to threatened species like black cockatoos, woylies and mainland quokkas is part of the globally significant South West biodiversity hotspot. Wilderness Society WA campaigns manager Patrick Gardner wants the EPA to go further than its two individual environment reviews of the South32 and Alcoa expansions by doing a strategic assessment, similar to one undertaken in the Exmouth Gulf. The prognosis by the IPCC [of forest collapse] sits uncomfortably alongside the state agreements that sanction this massive volume of native forest clearing, he said. Those agreements are in urgent need of review and modernisation to help protect what little native forest we have left. Loading Operations underpin thousands of jobs Alcoas mining operations in WA support about 3750 jobs across its sites, two port operations, and three refineries. Federal Liberal Canning MP Andrew Hastie said the company was an important employer for the Peel region, but important social, environmental and strategic factors needed to be considered. I have heard from locals in Dwellingup who are concerned about what impact the close proximities of the expansion could have on their community, he said. The region has also enjoyed the growth of adventure and nature-based tourism in recent years, with the support of all levels of government. It is important that we dont undermine the progress of the growing tourism industry and the jobs it brings. On the question of expanding raw bauxite exports, I am concerned that we do not undermine the long-term viability of our own strategic industries and the jobs they support. We refine almost 7 percent of the worlds alumina here in WA. We dont want to lose that capacity. The rehab conundrum South32 has purchased private land with similar forest values to what it intends to clear as an offset and both companies rehabilitate mine sites by planting trees where operations have taken place. Alcoa went from planting east coast eucalypts and pines to native species like jarrah and marri from 1988. The companys rehabilitation practices have evolved to the point it keeps the topsoil it takes from the ground and puts it back after mining. Some of the forest cleared for Alcoas Willowdale mine is easily seen from public roads. Credit:Peter de Kruijff But Curtin University forest ecology and environmental management adjunct associate Professor Grant Wardell-Johnson said any further expansions of bauxite mining would be a backward step, with the fragmentation of the forest by the spiderweb of mining a big concern. Logging is bad enough because thats effectively mining the timber resource, but mining the substrate takes out the whole ground system, he said. In a drying climate and a dropping water table, the jarrah forests in the north could see the water table hit bedrock by the middle of the decade. Once the water table hits bedrock, then the jarrah forest is surviving only on the rain as it falls rather than tapping into a supply of water constantly, he said. Professor Wardell-Johnson said miners should just plant shrubs and no jarrah at all. You wont make the water table rise again, but you will slow down the loss of that water table, he said. A South32 spokesman said it was working hard to be responsible stewards of the environment and treat natural resources with care so they were available for future generations. He said clearing would be avoided for areas of high environmental value. We are committed to continually improving our sustainability performance and minimising the impact of our operations and aim to create enduring social, environmental and economic value, the spokesman said. In 2021 we updated our internal environment standard with new minimum performance requirements for land disturbance and rehabilitation activities. We have committed to continually rehabilitating land we clear as a result of our operations, helping to re-establish flora and fauna habitat. Where there is any residual impact, we will offset habitat loss through direct and indirect offset packages. The period to comment on the public environment review of South32s Worsley expansion closes August 15. Public consultation for a similar review for Alcoa is due to open soon. The research also shows that a move to online viewing is happening for legacy television viewers who are choosing to watch their shows live or on catch up through apps such as 9Now, 10Play and 7Plus. So, what shows actually deliver ratings gold? Sevens coverage of the concert for Queen Elizabeth IIs Platinum Jubilee is among its highest ranked programs of the year so far. Credit:AP But the commercial TV networks arent just fighting for viewers against each other. Data from the Australian Communications and Media Authority published last week said there are more adults watching streaming services such as Netflix, Stan and Binge, than watching free-to-air television. From Ash Bartys historic Australian Open win to Shane Warnes memorial and the Queens Platinum Jubilee , its been a big year so far for the commercial television networks. As the annual TV ratings war clocks over to the second half of the year, the battle is getting heated. And for the two biggest networks Nine and Seven it will be a tight finish. Buying broadcast rights is expensive, but if the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games were anything to go by, major sport events bring people back to the big TV screen. Its the reason why the free-to-air broadcasters are asking the government to review legislation to make sure sports are free for Australians. Ash Bartys win at the Australian Open was an example of just how well a sport event can perform for a network. It wasnt just the highest rated Australian Open womens final since the measurement provider OzTAM began, but 241,000 viewers live-streamed on 9Now. That makes up nearly 7 per cent of Nines national audience for the match (3.6 million viewers) and broke streaming records. Ash Barty after her Australian Open victory in January. She has since announced her retirement from tennis. Credit:Eddie Jim Sevens coverage of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics gave it the early ratings push it needed to kick off the year, out-rating rival programs in the same timeslots. Seven said at the time that the two-week event gave its app 7Plus an extra 100,000 registered users. Nines recent broadcast of the State of Origin was also indicative of the shift to internet viewing. The first match of the State of Origin was watched by 2.9 million but its live audience on 9Now was up 52 per cent compared to the same match in 2021. Almost half a million viewers were watching Queensland defeat NSW through an app, compared to 280,000 viewers the previous year. The second State of Origin match, which ran last week, was watched by 3 million Australians, and 394,000 of those watched online. Consumer and insolvency experts have called for travel agents to operate trust accounts to protect customers in case they go bankrupt after the liquidation of STA Travel has resulted in the recovery of money for only 587 clients. Consumer Champion founder Adam Glezer said several travel agents went out of business during the pandemic without having passed on the customers payments to the various airlines, hotels, tour companies and other travel operators. Aged care worker Lara Collin from the Central Coast fears she has lost the $15,000 she paid for two Contiki tours that were meant to take place in 2020. Credit:Janie Barrett Lawyers need trust accounts and real estate agencies need trust accounts because they are dealing with money that is earmarked for a third party, so why dont travel agents need them? said Glezer, who charges people to help recoup funds from travel companies. To me, its just mind-boggling that they actually dont need it because they are dealing with large sums of money. Millennials of Australia, pull up your skinny jeans and embrace your soy lattes: you and I have got cause to gloat. Weve caught up, numbers-wise, with Baby Boomers our parents, or grandparents, who for decades have been able to boast of the largest proportion of our population. In fact, given there were just under 5,700 more Boomers than Millennials when the census was conducted in August last year, theres a fair chance weve now overtaken them. Australian census data shows the population of millennials is fast overtaking boomers. But what does that mean for how the economy will look? Credit:Tanya Macheda As the countrys head statistician David Gruen said last week when launching the first release of census data, the changing age demographics has profound implications for the society we are, and also the society well become in the future. But before we get there, how did Millennials overtake Boomers, given the birth rate has dropped in Australia since the aforementioned Boomers were born? Two Omicron sub-variants with a greater ability to evade COVID-19 vaccines have become the most dominant strain in Geelong and Melbourne. In a statement released this evening, Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said the BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants now accounted for about 40 per cent of virus wastewater detections in Victoria. There are growing calls for Australias booster vaccination program to be expanded. Credit:AP They have become dominant in greater Geelong and Melbourne and are on track to become the most common variant in the entire state in the coming weeks. Sutton said this was in line with similar patterns in NSW and Queensland where authorities had reported a sharp increase in the number of people in hospital with COVID-19 during June. Victorias Department of Health is bracing for a hike in the number of infections, reinfections, hospital admissions and deaths as a result of the spread of BA.4 and BA. 5 in the community. While there is no evidence to suggest the sub-lineages cause more severe diseases, the department is keeping a close eye on the situation. Loading The spread of the newer variants comes amid a push from epidemiologists and public health experts to reintroduce mask mandates and reduce the age limit for booster doses. Masks are currently strongly recommended in shared indoor settings, situations where physical distance is not an option or when caring for those vulnerable to COVID-19. Boosters are only available to Australians over 65, those in aged or disability care, and people who are severely immunocompromised. Infectious diseases pediatrician Professor Robert Booy said about 20 per cent of eligible Australians were yet to receive their fourth dose. Theyre playing roulette ... theres an effective vaccine. If you had three doses, the fourth will dramatically increase your protection, he told Sky News. Having a booster some time in the last six months is very protective against hospitalisation and death. With AAP. Deicorp was the first developer to get a star rating. Its founder Fouad Deiri said its new iCIRT rating had influenced prospective buyers. Weve had buyers cancel contracts with other builders and sign a contract with us because they desperately want to have confidence in who they buy from, he said. Im not saying were perfect because nobodys perfect but we respect our customers by making sure if theres a problem, were there to fix it. In a Construct NSW survey of more than 2000 NSW residents and buyers released in May, but undertaken before the register was launched, 45 per cent of prospective buyers said buying without a risk or quality rating of developers and builders was a problem. About 64 per cent of residents and 60 per cent of prospective buyers said the greatest challenge when purchasing was not knowing whether an apartment had defects. About 60 per cent said they would pay a premium of 1 to 5 per cent of the purchase price for more certainty like the ratings scheme. Lack of trustworthy information a problem, say apartment buyers The top five challenges when buying an apartment 60 per cent of buyers said not knowing whether an apartment has defects 49 per cent said not having enough information on the building and those involved in its construction 46 per cent said the absence of a risk or quality rating for the building 45 per cent said the lack of a risk or quality rating for developers or builders who constructed it 39 per cent said the absence of a reliable warranty Source: Construct NSW survey. Before the ratings were unveiled, even buyers like lawyer and management consultant Tim Morse found it hard to work out which developers and builders to trust. Loading Morse inspected nearly 30 apartments when he went shopping on Sydneys north shore for a new home for his brother who has learning difficulties. Vendors and strata reports would put a positive spin on problems, he said, and charge for reports to discourage prospective buyers from uncovering issues with the building or disputes. It was only after inspecting one apartment that Morse learned about a defect that a vendor had only hinted at. A neighbour gave Morse a brochure detailing extensive issues. Another vendor refused to disclose details of an ongoing legal dispute mentioned in the contract. Morse opted to buy an older apartment with no history of faults. I hope the new ratings scheme works, he said. The industry says the ratings and Chandlers high-profile inspections of apartments is restoring confidence about the quality of residential construction in NSW. Karen Stiles, the executive officer of the Owners Corporation Network, which represents strata owners, said the introduction of the star ratings were excellent for consumers. We have [them] for fridges, and washing machines, and we are very particular about the cars we buy depending on ANCAP ratings, she said. Now we have this to distinguish vendors from those we wouldnt touch with a barge pole. While Chandler has been praised for his work, he is not without critics. A video where he was heard to say he was giving banks an informal list of certifiers I wouldnt be having on a bloody job prompted the NSW Shooters and Fishers party to question whether he had misled parliament last year, The Australian reported. Loading Chandler told parliament that he didnt recommend particular workers. We do not ever say that certifier or that design solution. It is not clear whether Chandler was referring to the existing disciplinary register on Fair Tradings website that publicly names and shames certifiers, fining some and disqualifying others. Minister for Fair Trading Eleni Petinos has asked Department of Customer Service secretary Emma Hogan to review all available information, and couldnt comment further and is awaiting advice. University students wanting to pursue honours degrees say theyve been unfairly slugged up to $15,000 in extra fees despite enrolling in the course before the federal government introduced cost rises in 2020. University of Sydney Arts Student Society president Angelina Gu said she and many others who enrolled in certain arts degrees before 2021 have been forced to incur the fee increases due to what they believe are retrospective changes to the course requirements. Tom Martin, Angelina Gu and Victoria Gillespie have all been affected by retrospective fee rises. Credit:Peter Rae When the Job Ready Graduates package was passed last year, I was absolutely devastated. Enrolled students were ensured this would not impact them. I quickly found this was not true, she said. The university said it shared students concerns but was hamstrung by the legislation and was working with the federal education minister to find a solution. Civilian aircraft shot down Iran announced that US warships shot down an Iranian civilian airliner carrying 290 people over the Gulf, and that passengers and crew were dead. The Iranian news agency IRNA said Iranian naval frogmen had retrieved 100 badly disintegrated bodies from the water; that pieces of the downed plane, an Airbus, showed it had been hit by a missile. Regional shipping sources said the aircraft vanished shortly after a clash between the US navy and Iranian forces in the Gulf. So Stalin is dead Moscow: We are meant to believe that the Communist Party that Stalin drilled and terrorised and warped into his own image finally crawled away to die in some dark basement in the Kremlin this week, and a new and open democracy tottered hesitantly forward in its place. Boris Yeltsin returns from the political graveyard and up and down the halls of the Kremlin, the delegates cry out that the Tsar wears no clothes; that shops are empty and queues are swelling. Bidding on a high revival While many an old timer around Broken Hill looks back with nostalgia on the days of the famous two-up school, tourism officials are trying to have the game revived legally. Geoff Mobbs, the owner of the Silver Spade motel said, If it came back it would bring thousands to town. A lot of people say Broken Hill is not just the same. It is like the Eskimo without an igloo. Bookie Teri Kalamistrakis said, Two-up is the purist form of gambling. The global honeybee crisis has reached alarming levels in Quebecs blueberry pastures. Its flowering season at Nicolas Pedneaults farm in the French-speaking Canadian province and every bee that lands on a blossom helps boost his blueberry crop. Hundreds of hives dot his fields, but he needs more and cant get them. We dont have enough pollinators, said Pedneault, who fears his output will be slashed. Every honeybee hive we dont get is impacting our fields. Blueberry growers across the entire country face similar troubles due to a shortage of the commercial hives they rely on to boost their bounty of Canadas most valuable fruit crop. Canadian beekeepers have on average lost half their colonies this year, and in some areas theres almost total collapse. That leaves berry farmers with a crippling bee shortage and few suppliers to fill the void. We probably havent seen this high of losses since one of our early years in beekeeping, said Kevin Nixon, who has been in the business for nearly three decades. He lost 40% of the 10,000 hives he manages south of Red Deer, Alberta. I know some guys that lost 90%. Beekeepers worldwide have been reporting massive honeybee deaths for years, but in parts of Canada this years losses are catastrophic. The impact on the C$274 million ($211 million) blueberry market in Canada, the worlds seventh-largest exporter, is a warning to the world of what happens when there is a breakdown in the fragile pollination industry. Ive not heard of other places where theres been a pollination shortfall, said Robert Paxton, zoology head at Germanys Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg. Beekeepers are having more problems maintaining their colonies and theres more demand for their colonies for pollination. The industry in North America has expanded to support a boom in fruit and vegetable acres as wild bee numbers withered. Beekeepers who struggled to make money selling honey started renting out hives to farmers seeking to boost yields. Pollination brokers connected growers with hives, which today crisscross the continent on semi trucks to reach their destinations. Bees play a key role in spreading pollen between flowering plants to trigger reproduction, ultimately giving the world nutritious and colorful foods such as apples, cherries, melons and almonds. More than 100 US crops rely on pollinators and the added revenue they bring to crop production is valued at $18 billion annually, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Overworked bees helped create a pollination crisis, said Mark Winston, a leading expert in the field. The paradigm of bringing in honeybees is at a breaking point, he said. Bees are not getting better; they are slowly getting worse. Death rates among honeybee colonies have been a concern for decades, and staggering losses first reported in the US in 2006 raised further alarm. The phenomenon appeared in other countries too and has been attributed to issues ranging from extreme weather and crop-chemical exposure to parasites. American beekeepers typically lose an average of 40% of their bees a year, while losses in Canada average around 20%. Despite die-offs, studies suggest the number of managed honeybees rose more than 80% since the early 1960s as beekeepers expanded alongside rising agricultural demands. Weve built this dependency on managed pollinators, specifically honeybees, said Maggie Shanahan, a beekeeper and researcher at University of Minnesotas Spivak Lab. Weve created this demand for commercial pollinators that we move around in pollination units. Thats pretty far from the natural environment where a honeybee could thrive. Canadas latest losses underscore the challenges of replacing commercial colonies when regular suppliers fall short. As many as 400,000 colonies were lost this year and there are few options to replace the hives, according to the Canadian Honey Council. Canada imported 40,000 packages of beeseach can be used to rebuild a lost hive but thats barely 10% of whats needed to stem losses. A 2-pound package holds about 8,000 bees. New Zealand accounted for 85% of Canadas honeybee imports by value in 2020, with the rest split between Chile and Australia, according to Statistics Canada. We need to find a way to get more pollinators in North America besides importing from Australia and New Zealand, said Jason Smith, chair of the BC Blueberry Council in the westernmost Canadian province. Blueberries are Canadas top fruit export, representing 61% of the value and almost half the volume shipped in 2020. British Columbia, the nations biggest cultivated blueberry producer, is probably short around 20,000 hives, said Smith, a grower in an agricultural community east of Vancouver. The number of bees we need this year highlights how susceptible the industry is to a disaster situation, said Rod Scarlett, Canadian Honey Councils executive director. The greater fear is if we have something close to this next year, things like the pollination industry and the fruit crops and even canola seed could be in jeopardy. Andrew Sempells argument that beliefs regarding sexuality dont matter in regards to holding an office in the Anglican church because sexuality is a topic not covered in any of the creeds or statements of faith of the church in the past sounds superficially plausible but doesnt stand up to scrutiny. The creeds and statements of faith such as the 39 Articles of the Anglican faith were written at particular times to address controversies then causing division in the church by summarising the teaching of Scripture on those topics, and were never intended to cover all that Scripture teaches. Roger Gallagher, Lay Canon, St Johns Regional Cathedral, Parramatta It seems that to be a faithful Sydney Anglican, you must regard women as second-class citizens, demonise people who are different, including gay and lesbian people and those of other religions, and believe that the Bible is literally true. Thats quite a broad commitment. No wonder people are choosing not to belong. If Jesus were to return, he might not only give the Rabbitohs a hand by playing on the wing, but he might also give some of his so-called adherents a lesson in compassion and understanding. Derrick Mason, Boorowa Miserly pay hurts community ACTU secretary Sally McManus (Wage rises must keep coming, says ACTU chief, July 2) is just doing her job, supporting wage increase campaigns that will rectify some of the loss in real wage growth that workers have experienced over recent years. Federal and state governments have a role to play by strongly discouraging price increases and, if necessary, to penalise any price gouging. On a broader front, in crucial occupations such as teaching and nursing, it is intolerable that the wages of these workers remain relatively low, thereby ensuring that in education and health we will always struggle to have the required number of professionals to service the needs of our children and the community. The Perrottet government seems incapable of understanding that there is a relationship between wages and conditions offered and the attractiveness of particular jobs. Continuing resistance to pay reasonable wages will only result in further deterioration of services. Ross Butler, Rodd Point Bagels and being there Sarah Holland-Batt writes about our cultural denial of death, noting that death is not an extraordinary event but utterly ordinary, present everywhere, a force that no human denial can stop (The powerful lesson I learned watching my father die, smh.com.au, July 2). Many years ago, I read an essay by a rabbi who went to console a man whose wife had died. The rabbi didnt know the man very well, but he stopped off on the way to buy coffee and bagels. The gesture was small and beautiful. As Holland-Batt demonstrates, presence matters. For the rabbi, coffee and bagels signalled connection, care and compassion. So does being there. Brendan Kelly, Professor of Psychiatry, Dublin, Ireland God only knows . Credit:Hulton/Getty The Jesus statement I am the way and the truth and the life/No one comes to the Father except through me (Letters, July 2) reminded me of my own metaphorical road to Damascus moment. A long time ago, during my school days, I was interested in becoming a Christian. In my discussion of this core Christian belief, I asked whether someone like Mahatma Gandhi or those who had never been exposed to Christianity, like the natives in the Amazonian jungle, would be admitted to heaven. No chance, I was told. Yet in the same breath I was told that criminals and even murderers would eventually go to heaven if they believed in Christ. I did not think then, and still do not, that God, if you believe in her or him, would be that unfair and not include the likes of Mahatma Gandhi in this exclusive club. Thiam Ang, Beecroft Much ado about rowing I thought things had reached the lowest point for education in Australia, considering COVID closures, remote learning, teacher shortages, funding arguments, industrial action, mental health crises, influenza, paperwork pressures, NAPLAN concerns, curriculum critics and pay issues. But wait! We now discover that Kings and Scots schoolboys are victims of argy-bargy at this years Henley rowing regatta (On-water matters split GPS crew, July 2)! Lorraine Hickey, Green Point Lives or convenience? Your correspondent (Letters, July 2) describes a 30km/h speed limit in urban streets as absurd. The Australian College of Road Safety estimates that for every 1km/h increase in speed, there is a 4 to 5 per cent increase in fatal crashes. Sure, speed limits have to strike a balance between convenience of drivers and safety, but having a speed limit of more than 30km/h in residential streets is clearly valuing convenience of motorists over lives of pedestrians. Which is more important? Ross Mewton, North Bondi Your correspondent claims that most drivers are sensible, responsible and law-abiding. I beg to differ. I take my life into my hands every time I use a pedestrian crossing. I try to observe the speed limit but Im harassed by tailgaters. Just take a drive on the Great Western Highway, where the speed limit is merely a suggestion. Ron Russell, Leura EV does it The difficulties of EVs in apartment blocks (Letters, July 2) provides the government with the opportunity to encourage car manufacturers (particularly start-ups) to build cars with a changeover battery a car where the battery is owned by a third party with the ability to swap batteries rapidly (time comparable to petrol tank refills). The car would be designed for city use, with a smaller battery allowing plug-in charging from a standard power point, as well as the rapid changeover. This would make the car cheaper than a petrol-engined model, as well as catering for a new industry of battery provider-owners. Roy Robinson, Annandale Your correspondent may be interested to know that his strata committee is incorrect in stating that the electrical capacity of the building prevents installation of EV charge points. I am on a strata committee that is evaluating solutions, and there are plenty available that are designed to work within current building supply limits. I would advocate strata committees examining this topic carefully. Adding EV charging will make a substantial difference to apartment values in the near future. The NSW Government has an excellent online resource on this topic search for EV ready buildings. Jeremy Webber, Surry Hills Entente intent It is such a pleasure to see our new prime minister on the world stage this week. Solemn and not a smirk in sight. Llieda Wild, Eastwood Je suis Albanese. Thank you, PM. I dont think, I know, we are no longer lying in the gutters of Paris. David Gunter, Sydney At last! Australia has a statesman as prime minister. Richard Fry, Marrickville Was it just coincidence that Le Don De Vie and Le Gai Soleil both won at the Sunshine Coast on Saturday? George Zivkovic, Northmead Naval gazing Shades of the Civil Defence Organisation or just another episode of Dads Army (Premier wants tinnie army to be rescue force, July 2)? Allan Gibson, Cherrybrook Font and centre The number of job vacancies private high schools need to fill has more than doubled in two years with the most severe teacher shortages in the subject areas of maths and physics. A national survey of independent school principals has found about two-thirds of school heads said there were insufficient maths teachers to fill positions and 55 per cent reported a shortage of physics teachers. A class of year 11 physics students at Five Docks Rosebank College. Principal Iris Nastasi said the school has about 50 physics students in the senior years and recruiting teachers for sciences is increasingly difficult. Credit:Edwina Pickles The Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA) surveyed its 440 members who oversee 443,000 students on recruitment and retention of staff in schools across the country. Of the third that responded, 42 per cent reported design and technology teacher shortages, and about a third said finding teachers for chemistry and languages subjects was increasingly difficult. The survey found high school teacher turnover rates jumped from about 5 per cent in 2019 to 11.5 per cent last year, with family relocation, retirement and teachers taking up positions at other schools the top three reasons for leaving. During her recent trip to Malaysia, Minster for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong said she wanted Australias full diversity to be reflected in the Albanese governments approach to diplomacy. Not only does that mean better engaging with our migrant story a timely statement given the recently released census data revealed more than half of all Australians are first- or second-generation migrants but also incorporating a First Nations perspective in our approach to international relations. Senator Penny Wong in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Credit:Farhan Iqbal Speaking in the capital, Kuala Lumpur, Wong echoed her election statements about building on the knowledge and experience of First Nations Australia: The time has come for Australias full story to be told: our modern diversity and the rich heritage of First Nations peoples. Developing a First Nations foreign policy is arguably the biggest development in Indigenous relations in decades. NAIDOC week is an opportune time to ask what is a First Nations foreign policy, and how does it differ from Australias approach in the past? In Australia, which initially kept its death toll low with repeated lockdowns, the shift to daily double-digit deaths has been swift. Murray said coronavirus deaths were now hitting more than 1200 every month. Loading But its just disappeared from the headlines. This is somebodys mother, grandmother and somebodys relative, so of course its very distressing for the individual and their family, Murray said. It is the price of us opening up, of people in the community not being careful enough about trying to prevent transmission, or not getting vaccinated, or not getting their third or fourth dose which, in my view, increases everybodys risk. The risk factor most likely to lead to death from COVID-19 is old age. In older people, the most severe symptoms from an Omicron infection are often not respiratory, instead it affects physical and cognitive function, causing delirium, for example, leading to an overall decline. Older people are also more likely to have comorbidities. The ability of their immune systems to respond fully to vaccination is also diminished, which is why there have been prioritised for a winter booster, Murray said. The most challenging question really remains are they dying with COVID or from COVID? Murray said. Theyre an older group, who are frail, and therefore it doesnt take much to make their heart failure worse or their dementia worse when they get sick with coronavirus. Despite the high number of deaths in older Australians, the uptake of fourth booster shots in aged care remains slow. Only about 65 per cent of eligible residents have had their fourth vaccine dose. The Victorian data reflects what we have been saying all along about just how important boosters are, infectious disease expert Professor Paul Griffin, who has been the principal investigator for seven COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials, said. We are entering into another wave of COVID-19 where were really concerned about the impact on hospitals and intensive care. The best thing we can do is get our third or fourth dose, but it seems to be a message that people are not very receptive to at the moment. Nearly 90 per cent of Victorians over the age of 65 have received a third vaccine dose, while 46 per cent have had their fourth, winter dose. Melbournes Austin Hospital intensive care director Stephen Warrillow said their ICU ward, once full of people critically ill with coronavirus, was now only treating one or two COVID patients a day. Last week there were 23 Victorians with coronavirus in ICU. Of the Victorians who died in hospital with or due to COVID-19 between January and June 28, 296 were unvaccinated and 21 had received only one dose. The disparity between daily deaths and ICU admissions is mostly due to the high numbers of deaths in aged care, after the removal of strict lockdown restrictions. Interim chief executive of the Aged and Community Care Providers Association, Paul Sadler, said the booster program was in progress and working well overall. Many aged care homes are working with local GPs and pharmacies to arrange ongoing access to booster shots for residents who choose to be vaccinated, he said. However, he added it was vital the federal government urgently addressed aged care workforce shortfalls, to avoid staff shortages and interruptions during COVID or flu outbreaks. Due to high rates of community transmission, Warrillow said he was now seeing more immunocompromised people infected with the virus being admitted to the ICU at the Austin, such as organ donor recipients. These patients were becoming seriously ill with the virus, despite taking all the precautions, including being up-to-date with their fourth and fifth booster shots. Loading Ive certainly personally cared for a number of patients recently who lead healthy, busy lives, and thats the success of their organ transplant, but theyve been terribly unlucky due to being immunosuppressed, he said. It is a reminder to the community to get vaccinated and not to forget all the health advice we have learnt. Its not just yourself that youre protecting, but youre also looking out for people who deserve our protection. Less than 20 per cent of coronavirus deaths were reported in Victorians aged between 70 and 79. This declined even further for people in their 60s, who made up about 6 per cent of the total reported deaths until the end of June, while those in their 50s made up 3.3 per cent of deaths. There were 15 coronavirus related deaths among Victorians in their 50s died until June 28, while 12 were in their 40s, and less than 10 people were in their 20s. Head of infectious diseases at Melbournes Western Health, Marion Kainer, said deaths among younger, otherwise healthy people, who have been vaccinated, remained exceptionally rare. Often a death occurred in a younger, vaccinated person because they were immunocompromised in some way, such as a person undergoing cancer treatment. Its a numbers game. If youve got a lot of disease and youve got a lot of people being infected then, in rare cases, youre going to see these bad outcomes, she said. Loading Australias death toll is a fraction of what has been recorded in similar countries around the world in the UK, 10,000 had died from the virus by April 2020, and the same figure was recorded within two months this year. Professor Nigel McMillan, program director of infectious diseases and immunology at Griffith University, said COVID is on track to become the second leading cause of death in Australia in 2022, behind coronary heart disease. The current 50 deaths per day is hardly noted and yet, it is more than twice the daily road toll, McMillan said. We need our public health leaders to rethink the approach to this disease. We need Omicron-specific vaccines, wider use of antivirals, and we need to wear our masks much more. A Victorian health spokeswoman said staying up to date with COVID-19 vaccinations including third and fourth doses significantly reduces the chances of going to hospital or dying from COVID-19. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to all the families and friends who have lost loved ones to COVID-19 over the course of the pandemic, she said. We now know that for those eligible, a fourth dose significantly reduces the chance of dying from COVID-19, compared with having three doses. She urged Victorians to wear a face mask indoors or when unable to physically distance, stay home when unwell and continue to get tested when they had symptoms. Up until June 28 this year, 14,537 people have required treatment in Victorian hospitals for COVID-19-related illness during the reporting period. This represents just 0.76 per cent of the more than 1.9 million cases diagnosed this year. Of the cases admitted to hospital, 5 per cent were later admitted to ICU. With Mary Ward Very few Australians would not know someone who has had COVID-19. With more than 8 million having now tested positive, many would have had it themselves. On Sunday, the cumulative death toll reached 10,000 and most of those died this year. The figure is barely a fraction of death totals recorded in similar countries around the world. In Britain, 10,000 had died from the virus by April 2020, and the same figure was recorded within just two months this year but in Australia, a country which locked down for so long to keep its death toll low, the shift to daily double-digit death figures has been swift. If learning to live with the virus was the goal, then maybe that has been achieved. But scratch the surface of most schools, the health system and many households and workplaces, and the chaos that is playing out due to the ongoing impact of the pandemic, along with a bad flu season, is not hard to spot. Loading There is, however, little appetite for a return of vaccine or mask mandates. And governments are not about to enforce new restrictions that have little public support. Thats the right call. After nearly two and a half years of living with a pandemic, its hard to argue that people dont have a good understanding of how to lower their risk of being infected and how to stay out of hospital. Foreign citizens seeking to visit Australia will no longer have to declare their COVID-19 vaccination status, bringing to an end one of the tough border control measures enacted because of the coronavirus pandemic. Health Minister Mark Butler said the change to the Biosecurity Act will come into effect from 12.01am on Wednesday, July 6, and was based on advice from Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly. Health Minister Mark Butler. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Travellers will still have to comply with other COVID-19 requirements that exist such as mask-wearing on inbound international flights, while state-based rules on masks will also remain in place. The Australian government makes decisions on COVID-related issues after considering the latest medical advice, Butler said. Independent senator David Pocock has signalled his support for legislating Labors 43 per cent emissions reduction target for 2030 despite wanting a more ambitious goal, describing it as a floor, not a ceiling that should be raised over time. Tasmanian senators Jacqui Lambie and fellow party member Tammy Tyrell said they were open to backing the Albanese governments target of reducing emissions by 43 per cent by 2030, too, but the government will still need either the votes of the Greens or the opposition to pass the legislation through the Senate. Anthony Albanese, centre, has the support of Jacqui Lambie and David Pocock for legislating a 2030 emissions reduction target. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen, James Brickwood Pococks comments will ratchet up pressure on the Greens, in particular, to come to the table after the party in 2009 sided with then-opposition leader Tony Abbott to vote down Kevin Rudds carbon pollution reduction scheme, citing its lack of ambition. Former prime minister Julia Gillards carbon price, subsequently legislated, survived less than three years. The Coalition has conceded China does appear to be aiming to establish a military base in Solomon Islands, a change of tack from former prime minister Scott Morrisons insistence no such thing would happen. But acting Prime Minister Richard Marles, who is also defence minister, is hopeful Australias relationship with China is on track to improve after his meeting last month with China State Councillor and Defence Minister General Wei Fenghe. Defence Minister Richard Marles and opposition defence spokesman Andrew Hastie. Credit:James Brickwood On Sunday, Marles said the meeting on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore was longer and more interactive than he expected despite having traversed pretty difficult ground. He said the discussions started and ended with a desire from both sides to get the relationship to a better place. The costs of phasing out coal and gas are so high that governments must redirect coal royalties and create a sovereign wealth fund from the critical minerals boom to pay for it, a leading centrist think tank says, equating the shift away from a fossil fuel-dominated economy to a second industrial revolution for Australia. The Grattan Institute warned Australias social fabric could tear under Australias commitment to reach net zero greenhouse emissions by 2050 if the jobs and economic losses in regional coal mining communities are not replaced with targeted industry policy to spur growth in new industries. The clean energy revolution will need billions in investment and the Grattan Institute says coal and gas should help pick up the bill. Credit:Robert Rough The decline of coal and gas for Australia is a big deal because we earn so much of our export revenue from those two sources the best part of $100 billion dollars [earned each year] between the two of them, Grattans energy and climate change director Tony Wood said. Grattans report The next industrial revolution, released on Sunday, said state governments should redirect a portion of coal royalties they earn to growing new industries that will feature in a net zero world such as building wind and solar farms, and mining and processing critical minerals like copper, lithium and nickel and hydrogen fuel. The Wallabies did their country proud on Saturday evening in a 30-28 victory over England, which saw the home side go about their business with 14 men for 47 minutes of the match. The result snapped an eight-game losing streak against England and has set up a tantalising clash in Brisbane next week. Here are our player ratings from a memorable night for Australians rugby fans. 100 years ago 1922: Flagstaff had the best Fourth of July celebration in years. During the two days, Tuesday and Wednesday, there was something doing all the time. Tuesday's attendance at the ballpark was the largest ever seen there. There wasn't a vacant seat and hundreds stood. The Knights of Pythias management was well coordinated, every member having his particular duty and attending to it. That made for smooth running promptness in handling the crowd and the events. The Knights raised money toward their new building and deserved every cent they made. Downtown at night, on Railroad Avenue, the street was crowded. In the special chanties housing the various carnival features, people were standing many deep from dark to midnight, awaiting a chance to try their luck, while in two big spaces roped off in the street, hundreds danced to the jazzy music. The country store, where you took a punch and got a sack of flour or something else or nothing else, was presided over by Wid Raudebaugh. Bill Switzer was a race judge. The grand parade began from the Emerson school at 10 a.m. on Tuesday. It traversed the main streets of the business section of Flagstaff, and ended at the courthouse, where a stirring patriotic oration was given by judge J. E. Jones to a large crowd of citizens. The streets were crowded an hour before the parade began, and everyone was enthusiastic over the splendid showing made by the floats representing the different organizations and business houses, and the original and artistic manner in which many automobiles in the procession were decorated. 75 years ago 1947: Drivers are warned to go easy on the throttle and also the bottle. Heaviest automobile traffic since the prewar days is expected to jam Arizona highways beginning tonight as thousands of persons head out of the cities to enjoy the extended Fourth of July weekend in cooler regions and join in celebrating at Flagstaff and other mountain cities. As the State Highway Patrol prepared for a busy three days, Superintendent A. G. Walker warned drivers to take it easy. Celebration or no celebration, Walker said, we will not tolerate drunken driving. A large proportion of the patrol has been shifted to the northern part of the state, destination of most of the holiday vacation lists. The 60th annual frontier days rodeo and celebration and the southwest all Indian powwow at Flagstaff are expected to draw thousands of persons. Walker warned motorists to be especially careful on the highway between Phoenix and Wickenburg. We will have patrolman accompanying the heaviest traffic flow along this stretch of Highway, Walker said. The assistant state highway engineer advised motorists headed for the Grand Canyon and other northern points to take it easy on a 7-mile stretch of US 89 just south of Ask Fork -- which is under construction but open to traffic. 50 years ago 1972: The sounds of powwow took on a new dimension Sunday night. Power to the people Indians are starving Don't dance. Don't dance The sounds echoed through the night air, which was punctuated by the fumes of dying ceremonial fires. The sound system was shut down momentarily. Smoke rose from the fires. About 20 persons clasped and raised their hands as they sat in a semicircle formation around the center ring. The steady whine of the police sirens could be heard in the distance and the flash of red and blue lights could be seen approaching. This was Powwow 1972 -- a new version. The ceremonials, in the 44th year, found steady applause, and also found the spotlight temporarily turned on the young out-of-town militants who had posted some verbal threats in advance. Claims had been voiced that the Indians were being exploited. Some of the more than 200 dancers apparently did the challenge Sunday night to avoid an outbreak of further trouble. Only a handful, maybe 25 or so, joined in the traditional round dance, the colorful and happy closing ceremony of the two-hour show. Thousands of spectators who gathered for the highlights of powwow watched the proceedings in awe as protesters shimmied up the side of the announcers booth. The handful of protesters, although a minority voice, had shouted loudly. Their claims that the Indians are not receiving a fair share of the proceeds had been heard. The final curtain had come down. It had a little tear in it. But the scar of powwow had started to heal today. The show will go on. 25 years ago 1997: The Historic Preservation Commission approved Wednesday a proposed downtown district and design handbook for historic buildings in Flagstaff, forwarding it to the Planning and Zoning Commission. Planning and Zoning will meet Tuesday. If that goes well, the package will go to city council on Aug. 5. If approved, the historic district would be an amendment to the city's zoning map and the handbook would be appended to the land development code, said Mark Young, principal planner for the city. The district would require property owners of buildings in a 15-block area downtown to submit to a review of planned building renovation or demolition. The district is defined as the area within the south side of Cherry Avenue, the west side of Verde Street, the north side of Route 66, and the east side of Humphreys Street. While the historic district concept, which was largely organized by the Flagstaff Main Street Foundation, has its fans, some have spoken out against the idea. Nobody in attendance spoke in favor of or against it at the Wednesday meeting. The design handbook defines various architectural styles found downtown, guidelines for restoring or renovating historic buildings 50 years old or older, and gives ideas for color and design schemes. If the package is implemented, property owners in the district will go to the development review board if they want to do any alterations, reconstruction or demolition to the exterior of a historic building. The commission would ideally keep the extra review process under 21 days. The design handbook is based on an earlier version completed in 1990. The historic preservation ordinance, passed in 1995, was used to qualify Flagstaff for certified local government status administered by the state historic preservation office. London: Anthony Albanese has pledged $100 million more to Ukraines war effort after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky face-to-face in a historic first trip by an Australian prime minister to the war-torn country, boosting Australias aid efforts higher than that of some European allies. Albanese, completing a week-long trip to Europe to attend a NATO summit in Madrid, made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian leader at Kyivs Presidential Palace, announcing Australia would gift the nation 14 more armoured personnel carriers, 20 more Bushmaster vehicles and drones in a new assistance package. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at a press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Credit:AP The additional $100 million of military support brings Australias total spending to almost $390 million more than any other non-NATO country and more than some 30 nations in that grouping. On his way home to Australia after returning from Kyiv via a 12-hour train journey back to Poland, Albanese praised the Ukrainian leaders bravery and leadership emblematic of his people in the face of Russias invasion. London: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has toured three war-ravaged towns amid heavy personal security in Ukraines Kyiv region, saying he had witnessed the aftermath of devastating war crimes committed by Vladimir Putins forces. The top-secret visit was revealed by local governor Oleksiy Kuleba on Sunday evening AEST, who wrote on Telegram that Albanese visited the towns of Bucha, Irpin, and Hostomel, where Ukraine says Russia committed atrocities against civilians. Russia denies the allegations. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visits war-torn Irpin, Ukraine. Credit:AP In footage released by international media based in Kyiv, Albanese is seen observing the aftermath of airstrikes on a town on the outskirts of the capital. And here we have what [is] clearly a residential building ... brutally assaulted. You know, this is a war crime, he tells reporters gathered. Loading Eritrea has been ruled by Isaias Afwerki since 1993. It has not held national elections since, its parliament and judiciary have no power and is ranked by Human Rights Watch as having one of the worlds worst human rights records. Reporters Without Borders says press freedom there is worse than in North Korea. Fesahas people-smuggled journey is one both sides of Australian politics say they are proud to have stopped and now an envious Britain is attempting to copy. The British government has engineered a migrant deportation plan with Rwandas Paul Kagame, a known human-rights abuser. Kagames government is at pains to show the world Rwandas maturation from a developing nation into the Singapore of Africa in less than three decades since Hutu extremists slaughtered hundreds of thousands of Tutsis and Hutu moderates in the 1994 genocide. The president points to Gashora, one of Rwandas poorer, rural villages. Sign for the transit centre in Gashora, Rwanda. Credit:Latika Bourke It is here that we meet Fesaha who arrived on a flight from Libya last year and, around eight months ago, applied to resettle in Canada. The Gashora Transit Centre, run by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, has received about 1000 African asylum seekers and refugees from Sudan, South Somalia, Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Eritrea since September 2019. We saved this situation where thousands of young Africans were caught up in Libya, [because] they are trying to get to Europe, they are not getting there. They got stuck, they were imprisoned. They were even slaved, there were people coming to buy them as slaves, Kagame said at the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government summit he hosted. So we offered something to the international community. We told them look, instead of having these people suffering in Libya, can we have them in Rwanda? Houses for asylum seekers while their claims are processed by the UNHCR at Rwandas Emergency Mechanism Transit Centre in Gashora. Credit:Latika Bourke So far, 644 people have been resettled; 442 are waiting for their refugee claims to be processed; 14 babies have been born and the centre has been expanded to accommodate hundreds more refugees, who are all invited to choose Rwanda as their resettlement country. But none have, opting instead for Norway, Sweden, France, the Netherlands, Finland, Belgium and, like Fesaha, Canada. I would prefer to go Canada, Fesaha said. I came here to Rwanda for transitioning to another country. When asked if he would advise his friends in Libya to come to Rwanda for processing, his response was immediate: Yes, of course, compared to Libya there is freedom. But his reluctance to call Rwanda home is critical. Zemen Fesaha, right, tried to get to Italy by boat from Libya but his vessel sank. Credit:Latika Bourke The UK has made much of the fact that Rwanda will welcome its unwanted migrants who arrive in Britain by boat, should their asylum claims prove invalid. It has invested 120 million ($213 million) on the transfer deal. But judging by the experience of those in Gashora, it appears unlikely, that many will want to stay in Africa. Australias inspiration is writ large. The objective of the UK policy is familiar - to deprive the people-smugglers on the French shores of the English Channel of the valuable opportunity to sell dangerous boat journeys to those fleeing persecution or wanting a better life. Asked, while in Rwanda, if he is proud to see the UK adopting Australias model in a country with a dubious human rights record, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said: Having a firm border which means that governments are in power and the UNHCR is empowered, and people smugglers are disempowered, is the best human rights outcome that you can have in this space. Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles at the Commonwealth Heads of Government summit in Kigali, Rwanda. Credit:Latika Bourke He declined to endorse or criticise the UKs adoption of Australias approach, which while effective, has also been widely criticised for its human rights costs. Its a matter for them and they can answer for their own policies, he said. The UKs first deportation was held up by the European Court of Human Rights. Kagame said he would be happy if none ever made it to Rwanda. If they dont come, we wont complain. Its not like we are dying to have people come to us, he said. But he defended the objective of the policy. The criminal networks are known in Africa and Europe and if countries are trying to say we are trying to have orderly migration, whats wrong with that? the president said. But Fesaha says nothing, not even the threat of losing his own life, would have stopped him from getting on a boat and that if he were in the same situation, he would do it again. Kyiv/Konstyantynivka: At least three people were killed and dozens of homes damaged in the Russian city of Belgorod near the Ukraine border, the regional governor said on Sunday, as Kyiv acknowledged it could lose its last big bastion in eastern Ukraine to Kremlin forces. Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported a number of blasts in the city of nearly 400,000 some 40 kilometres north of the border with Ukraine. A paramedic helps a man wounded by Russian shelling to leave his house in Slovyansk, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on June 30. Credit:AP At least 11 apartment buildings and 39 houses were damaged, including five that were destroyed, Gladkov said on the Telegram messaging app. The sound was so strong that I jumped up, I woke up, got very scared and started screaming, a resident of the city told Reuters, adding the blasts occurred around 3am. Copenhagen: Danish police believe a shopping mall shooting that left three people dead and four others seriously wounded was not terror-related, and said Monday that the gunman acted alone and appears to have selected his victims at random. Copenhagen chief police inspector Sren Thomassen said the victims a 17-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl, both Danes, and a 47-year-old Russian man were killed when the gunman opened fire on Sunday afternoon in the Fields shopping mall, one of Scandinavias biggest. People out front of the Fields shopping centre in Copenhagen after the shooting. Credit:AP Four other people were treated for gunshot wounds two Danish and two Swedish citizens and were in critical but stable condition, Thomassen said. Several other people received minor injuries as they fled the shopping mall, he added. Thomassen said police had no indication that anyone helped the gunman, identified as a 22-year-old Dane, during the attack. He said while the motive was unclear, there was nothing suggesting terrorism, and that the suspect would be arraigned later on Monday on preliminary charges of murder. Abortion rights demonstrators chant outside the US Supreme Court in Washington DC on June 25. Credit:Bloomberg The legal ambiguity around abortion spooks doctors who dont want to risk lawsuits or prison time. Brazils health ministry issued a memo last month saying every abortion is a crime but penalties may be waived in specific cases. Doctors convicted of performing an illegal abortion risk up to four years in prison. Many prefer to err on the side of caution, even when it might be detrimental to the victims. More than 17,000 children aged 10 to 14 in Brazil become pregnant each year, according to government figures. These mothers are five times more likely to die in childbirth than women over 20, and also have greater chances of suffering uterine ruptures, pre-eclampsia and anaemia. Cases of rape victims seeking legal abortion have become lightning rods for both sides of Brazils abortion debate. In 2020, antiabortion activists, including several politicians, gathered outside a hospital in northern Brazil to protest a legal abortion for another 10-year-old. Authorities said the girl had been impregnated by her uncle, who raped her repeatedly. When her hospital in Espirito Santo state denied her an abortion, she was taken to a hospital in Recife, more than 1700 kilometres away. Antiabortion activists leaked her name and the location of the hospital. They protested there while the procedure was performed and called her doctor an assassin. The girl has since joined the witness protection program and changed her name and address. But public opinion is changing. Polls show support for complete abortion bans is falling, and abortion rights activists are hopeful the country will join the green wave of legalisation that has swept Mexico, Colombia and Argentina. A case waiting to be heard by Brazils supreme court calls for the decriminalisation of abortion through to 12 weeks of gestation. In the recent case, the girl, from the southern state of Santa Catarina, discovered she was 22 weeks pregnant in May. It was 22 weeks and two days when she sought an abortion at a hospital in Florianopolis, the state capital. Federal law guarantees rape victims a right to the procedure at any stage of the pregnancy. But Brazils health ministry recommends that all abortions be conducted before 22 weeks. The hospital, citing that guidance, refused to perform the procedure without judicial authorisation. Neither the girl nor her hometown have been publicly identified. The hearing was held in Tijucas, outside Florianopolis, in May. Loading Ribeiro Zimmer, the judge, asked the child if she would be willing to stay pregnant two or three more weeks to allow the fetus to grow. She also asked whether the girl could feel the babys kicks, and whether her rapist would agree to give it up for adoption. Ribeiro Zimmer turned to the victims mother. In terms of the little baby, do you understand that if we interrupt the pregnancy, the baby is born and we have to wait for the baby to die? she said, falsely. Can you understand that? That it is immense cruelty? That the baby will be born and cry until he dies? Throughout the hearing, the girl repeated that she did not want to continue the pregnancy and deliver the baby. But she eventually agreed to Ribeiro Zimmers request that she wait a few more weeks to increase the fetuss chances of survival outside her uterus for potential adoption. In her ruling, the judge equated abortion to homicide and ordered the girl to a shelter to prevent the mother from conducting any procedure that leads to the death of the baby. She was separated from her family for more than 40 days. After the video was published, state authorities said the girl was removed from her home while prosecutors investigated whether she was raped by a family member not for the safety of the fetus. While the girl waited at the shelter, the case divided Brazilians. The baby has SEVEN MONTHS of gestation, regardless of how he was conceived or whether or not he is protected under law, President Jair Bolsonaro tweeted. It is inadmissible to talk about taking away the life of this defenseless being! Activists for abortion rights, meanwhile, took to the streets, demanding the girl be released from the shelter and granted her abortion. Over 300,000 women signed a petition calling for the judges dismissal. Loading Brazils federal public prosecutors office ultimately ordered the hospital to perform the procedure, and on June 23, the girl, now 11, had an abortion. The office lamented the sad occurrence of the hearing and said it was investigating the conduct of the hospital and the judge. The supreme court asked the health ministry to review its recommendation on when abortions should be conducted and that states that all abortions are illegal. Ribeiro Zimmer has been promoted into another role and is no longer on the case. Juliana Cesario Alvim, a lawyer who worked with the 10-year-old victims team, is hopeful of change. If it is possible to see something positive from this tragedy, it is the mobilisation it generated, she said. Even if this case is resolved, we understand we have to continue mobilising, to call on the international community, to increase visibility and pressure. The fight for the legalisation of abortion is here. Tyler Sizemore / Hearst Connecticut Media With a 5-4 vote, the Stamford Board of Education voted Tuesday against renewing Superintendent Tamu Luceros contract. As a graduate of Stamford Public Schools who is now an educator myself outside of Stamford, I can say with confidence that this decision is not simply a valid disagreement among elected officials, but a concerted and deliberate effort by a small cabal of members on the Board of Education to leave Stamford Public Schools worse than they found it. As a graduate of Stamford High School in 2012 I have seen first-hand deep levels of incompetence in past superintendent administrations. Just in the past several years, we have seen superintendents who left in disgrace only to be fired from other large public school districts, we have seen central offices engulfed in scandal when a principal sought to cover up the sexual abuse of a student by an educator, and most recently a superintendent who neglected to do what was necessary to combat the mold problem in our schools before it got out of hand, before himself leaving. 73 years ago, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a Western military alliance emerged from the womb of the Cold War with objectives devised by a postwar Truman administration that had fanatical hawks, consumed with the goal of full-spectrum dominance. In the process, a radical shift took place, under which Moscow went from indispensable ally in the war against Nazi Germany to implacable foe. What ensued was the Cold War, during which the very real risk of nuclear Armageddon, involving both contending blocs extending themselves in acquiring evermore powerful and destructive nuclear arsenals, becaming normalized. In truth, the Cold War never really ended with the demise of the Soviet Union. It merely shifted emphasis as Washington has sought to keep what was now the Russian Federation weakened and accepting of its new status of defeated foe. In this respect, NATO maintained its relevancy not so much as a shield to protect democracy, but as a sword to advance U.S.-led Western hegemony. It is by now no secret that former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker assured then Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in a meeting on February 9, 1990, that NATO would not expand "one inch eastward" upon the reunification of Germany. According to declassified documents, Baker's pledge was made as part of a "cascade of assurances" over Soviet security given by Western leaders at that time and on into 1991, when the Soviet Union came to an end. It is the breaking of those assurances that lies at the heart of the deterioration in relations between East and West that has taken place since, and which informs the current crisis and conflicts related to Ukraine as these words are being written. Flush with triumphalism over the demise of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, NATO was loosed upon the world not in the name of democracy but in the cause of imperialism. New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman wrote openly of the driving ethos of Western foreign policy after the Soviet Union's demise as a drive to cement U.S. domination over the world's natural resources and markets. Friedman's unabashed celebration of the economic opportunities lying open to the U.S. in the post-Soviet world was shared by power brokers in Washington on both sides of the aisle. Intoxicated with a misplaced sense of exceptionalism and virtue, the world now lay before Washington like a vast banquet upon which it was invited to feast. The first course in this feast was Yugoslavia, which with its abundant human and natural resources, not to mention its strategic location in the Balkans, was deemed ripe for the taking. Michael Parenti, in his definitive work on the destruction of Yugoslavia, "To Kill a Nation," points out that after the fall of communism in eastern Europe "the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) remained the only nation in that region that would not voluntarily discard what remained of its socialism and install an unalloyed free market system. It also proudly had no interest in joining NATO." The decisive role of NATO in achieving the West's objectives in the Yugoslavia need not detain us. The point is that today bearing in mind NATO's role in the dismemberment of Yugoslavia, its role in helping turn Afghanistan into a war-worn state, its critical role in toppling Muammar Gaddafi in Libya and turning that country into a chaotic place, and its stance in threatening Russia's security in Eastern Europe it is no longer feasible or possible to harbor any lingering belief that NATO is anything other than a tool of U.S. hard power, deployed not to protect and defend, but to destroy and dominate. Whenever you hear Joe Biden and other leaders and officials of NATO member states pontificating about the verities of security and stability in our world, it is notable that none advocate for the one thing that would not only end the bitter conflict in Ukraine, but do much to restore that stability and security to a world that has long been desperate for both. That one thing is NATO's disbandment and the embrace of a multipolar alternative to the unipolar world that has proved the harbinger of grievous instability, conflict and chaos. In the last analysis, if the decades since the demise of the Soviet Union has confirmed one thing above all else, it is that the overriding challenge facing humanity is not the lack of democracy within states, but the lack of democracy between states. Until the latter is achieved the former will always remain a victim of the asphyxiating effects of hegemony and unipolarity. The author John Wight is a writer and political commentator. Source:CGTN Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca said on Sunday, on the occasion of Justice Day, in which he says that talks with the deputy chairwoman of the European Commission for values and transparency, Vera Jourova, which were also aimed at Romania's registered progress in implementing recommendations from the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (MCV), encourages continuing actions which the authorities are doing in order to reform the justice system. "Marked each year with the first Sunday of July, Justice Day highlights the role of the justice act, of court partners and all law enforcement in consolidating the rule of law. Recent discussions with the chairwoman of the European Commission for values and transparency, Vera Jourova, which were also focused on the progress registered by Romania in implementing recommendations within the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, encourages us to continue our actions that are doing for reforming the justice system. The challenge is bringing the perspective of finishing the process of monitoring Romania through MCV and we are proving that Romanian justice works 100% on the European Union's principles of justice," Ciuca said, Agerpres.ro informs. He specified that justice "in the service of the citizen" and a modern, efficient, accessible, and quality system, adapted to the needs of society and business environment represents objectives in which he believes and which the government team took upon itself through the governing program. "We now have the possibility to support it, including through projects that will receive financing from the EU budget, through Romania's National Recovery and Resilience plan (PNRR)," the PM added. Nicolae Ciuca highlighted that respect towards the law, truth, defending rights and legitimate interests of the citizen, being impartial, integrity and independence of the court and all those that are in the service of the law are "values which need to prevail in a justice system adapted to transformations which occurred in Romanian society for the past three decades". "Happy anniversary to Romanian Justice and all those who are in this field!," the Prime Minister said. The General Inspectorate of the Border Police (IGPF) informs that 177,869 persons entered Romania through border crossing points, on Saturday, including 12,060 Ukrainian citizens (up by 4.7% from the previous day). According to a press release sent to AGERPRES, 6,748 Ukrainian citizens have entered Romania from the Ukrainian border (up by 18.5%), and 1,321 Ukrainian citizens entered from the border with the Republic of Moldova (up by 12.8%). Since the start of the conflict (24.02.2022) until Thursday, at 24:00, as many as 1,402,572 Ukrainian citizens have entered Romania, nationwide, Agerpres.ro informs. Furthermore, since February 10 (pre-conflict period) 1,437,101 Ukrainians have entered our country. LONDON (AP) Peter Brook, a British theater and film director known for an influential and distinguished career which saw him garner worldwide acclaim, has died. He was 97. The two-time Tony Award winner, who had settled in France decades ago, directed the film adaptations of his best stage works as well as the 1963 movie Lord of the Flies. Brooks publisher Nick Hern Books said in a statement Sunday that he leaves behind an incredible artistic legacy." French media reports said that Brook died in Paris on Saturday. Born in London in 1925, Brook would go on to study at Oxford University and direct his first London show Doctor Faustus while he was still a teenager. After serving as director of productions at the Royal Opera House, he gained further notoriety through his work with the Royal Shakespeare Company, or RSC, including Titus Andronicus starring Laurence Olivier. He was a Tony Award winner for Best Direction in 1966 for his interpretation of Peter Weiss Marat/Sade, and in 1970 for the production of Shakespeares "A Midsummer Nights Dream." Brook was also the recipient of an Olivier Award, an Emmy and an International Emmy during his seven-decade career. After settling in Paris in the 1970s, the director founded the International Center for Theater Research, for which he would regenerate the rundown Bouffes du Nord theater in the French capital. Worldwide recognition also saw him honored with art prizes including Japans Praemium Imperiale, Italys Prix Italia, and most recently Spains Princess of Asturias in 2019. British actor Adrian Lester, who worked with Brook across RSC productions of Hamlet, tweeted he had been a giant in our field. Brook was married to actress Natasha Parry from 1951 before she died following a stroke in 2015. They are survived by two children, Irina and Simon, both of whom are directors. JEFFERSON CITY A Springfield-area state legislator accused of promoting a fake stem cell treatment quit Friday after a jury found her guilty of wire fraud, illegal distribution of controlled substances and making false statements to investigators. This letter serves to submit my resignation to the Missouri House of Representatives, former state Rep. Tricia Derges, R-Nixa, wrote to House Speaker Rob Vescovo on Friday. A federal grand jury indicted Derges in early 2021 on charges of making false claims about treatment and illegally distributing prescription drugs to patients. Prosecutors said Derges administered amniotic fluid, which she falsely claimed contained stem cells, as a treatment for patients who suffered from various diseases, including erectile dysfunction, Lyme disease and urinary incontinence. The indictment included eight counts of wire fraud, 10 counts of violating the federal Controlled Substances Act and two counts of making false statements to federal agents. A second indictment in March 2021 accused Derges, who was an assistant physician and founded medical clinics in southwest Missouri, of fraudulently submitting claims for $900,000 in federal COVID-19 funds. A jury found Derges guilty of all 22 counts on Tuesday, the Springfield News-Leader reported, and directed her to forfeit $300,000 in federal pandemic funds from Greene County. Derges, first elected to the Missouri House in 2020, refused to resign after she was indicted early in 2021, despite pressure. She was stripped of her committee assignments in the House and given an office in a broom closet in the Capitol after the federal charges were lodged against her in 2021. The Missouri Republican Party moved in February to block Derges from running for reelection as a member of the GOP. Her name does not appear on a list of candidates running in the Aug. 2 primaries. After Derges, 64, was convicted following a two-week trial, federal prosecutors asked that Judge Brian Wimes revoke her bond, calling her a flight risk, citing her ties to the Caribbean, and a danger to the community, the News-Leader reported. She graduated from Caribbean Medical University on the Dutch island of Curacao in 2014. Derges was a successful businesswoman in the Springfield area when she decided in her 50s to go into medicine to answer what she described as a religious calling. Derges, who was born in Texas and is a 1975 graduate of Kirkwood High School in suburban St. Louis, where she was recognized in 2019 among several outstanding alumni. Wimes allowed Derges to remain free on bond pending sentencing, which might not take place for more than four months. He ordered Derges to turn over her passport and medical licenses and directed her not to refer to herself as a doctor or speak publicly about stem cells. Originally posted at 9:15 p.m. Saturday, July 2. JEFFERSON CITY A wealthy candidate for U.S. Senate may have breached state election law by pledging to forgo her congressional salary if she wins the race. Trudy Busch Valentine, a Democrat seeking to replace Republican Roy Blunt in the Senate, issued a news release Wednesday saying she will not accept a salary if she is sent to Washington. All my life Ive known that true meaning is found in service to others. Thats why I became a nurse serving the most vulnerable in our state, Valentine said. To me, public office is another way to give back. Thats why Im committing to taking no salary as a U.S. Senator. But under state election law, candidates cannot promise to serve for a less sum than the salary paid for the office as an inducement to voters. According to election law ... it is a class 4 election offense for a candidate to make statements regarding salary declination to entice votes, said a spokesman for Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, who oversees elections in Missouri. The offense is classified as a misdemeanor punishable by no more than one year in jail or a fine of not more than $2,500. Her campaign said Friday it was not a violation. That law is specific to inducements for someones vote, not a press release which just states Trudys plans, said campaign manager Alex Witt. Valentine, a first-time candidate who is an heiress to the Busch beer brewing fortune, filed paperwork Sunday as part of her bid for the office showing she has a net worth between $69.4 million and $219.4 million. Her yearly income is listed at between $4.3 million and $30.7 million. Valentines one-fifth ownership stake in Grants Farm, the family-owned south St. Louis County tourist attraction where she grew up, is worth between $5 million and $25 million. The filing shows that Valentine holds much of her wealth in stocks, bonds and securities. The personal financial disclosure form she submitted to the U.S. Senate shows she owns $34 million in stocks, including Google, Apple, CVS, Bank of America and General Motors. She has delegated control of her finances, including which stocks she owns, to outside professional managers, a campaign spokesman said. She also owns a farm in Montgomery County, north of Rhineland. Valentine is among a large field seeking to replace U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, a Republican who announced his retirement last year. Other Democrats include Lucas Kunce and Spencer Toder. Republicans seeking the seat include Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, former Gov. Eric Greitens, state Senate President Dave Schatz, St. Louis attorney Mark McCloskey and U.S. Reps. Vicky Hartzler and Billy Long. Republican attorney John Wood announced this week hes mounting an independent bid for the office backed by former U.S. Sen. Jack Danforth. Valentine is not the only candidate planning to spend some of her wealth to get elected. Schatz, a Sullivan businessman, earlier made a $1 million loan to his campaign. Long, an auctioneer from Springfield, put $250,000 into his campaign. Toder, a St. Louis businessman, has put at least $240,000 into the race. In addition to promising to not take the Senates $174,000 per year salary, Valentine pledged to institute a ban on members of Congress trading stock while in office. No Senator should be able to earn money using inside information when they should be focused on serving the people who elected them, Valentine said. She and her husband, John Fries, plan to put their fortune in a blind trust if she wins. Valentine, a registered nurse, is a member of the family who owned a majority stake in Anheuser-Busch until it was sold to InBev in 2008 for $52 billion. In 2020, Forbes magazine listed the overall wealth of the family at $17.6 billion, making the Busches the 16th-wealthiest family in the nation. Valentine, 65, is the daughter of August Gussie Busch Jr., who died in 1989. Her mother, Gertrude Busch, was Buschs third wife. In 2019, the St. Louis University School of Nursing was named for Valentine after she contributed $4 million to the school. She graduated from the school in 1980. Its not the first time a candidate has gotten into hot water over a pledge to not take a salary. In 1990, officials cried foul over similar pledges by Joan Kelly Horn, a Democrat who challenged U.S. Rep. Jack Buechner in the 2nd Congressional District, and state House candidate Martin Bubs Hohulin, a Republican from Lamar. Horn, who defeated Buechner but served only one term, promised to give her share of a pay raise to social service organizations in her district. During his campaign, Hohulin promised to use some of his paycheck to give scholarships to students in his southwestern Missouri district. He was elected and served 13 years in the House. Originally posted at 5 p.m. Sunday, July 3. July 1 marks the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland. The Chinese people, including Hong Kong compatriots, are blessing the city. But every year during such days, there are always some vicious voices coming out from the US and the West. In a video, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson publicly declared that the UK is "not giving up on Hong Kong." Foreign Secretary Liz Truss repeated the same old tune that the UK has a "historical responsibility" to Hong Kong and its people. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also issued a statement at the same time, pointing fingers at China. The boastfulness of Johnson and Truss shows that the "British Empire mentality" has persisted stubbornly in the minds of some of the so-called UK elites. If they have time, they should think more about the questions arising from Scotland and Northern Ireland's pursuit of breaking away from the UK. Does London have a "historical responsibility" for Scotland and Northern Ireland? Do Scots and those in Northern Ireland agree that London has such "historical responsibility?" London should be more concerned about its own internal contradictions that are difficult to reconcile, and whether Great Britain is facing the risk of "disintegration." It should not talk lavishly about its "historical responsibility" for Hong Kong, or fantasize about "taking back" Hong Kong. Similarly, Washington's judgment of Hong Kong's situation today is also delusional. In 2019, Hong Kong rioters, with the support of the UK and the US, tried to hype up a "color revolution" via street violence and attempted to seek power through elections. But this attempt was foiled by the central government with overwhelming moves. Washington, like London, is extremely dissatisfied and helpless about the rebirth of Hong Kong from the ashes. Therefore, every once in a while, some people in the UK and the US tend to yell out vicious but powerless scolding. This scolding is more like a lament. The various freedoms in Hong Kong guaranteed by the Basic Law are the legal arrangements under "one country, two systems," and have nothing to do with the US or the UK, let alone their adjudication or "pressuring the Chinese government" to "reinstate the promise." During the last 25 years and despite the turbulence, Hong Kong did not become a bridgehead for the US and the West to "overturn China." On the contrary, it has become more tightly connected to the mainland, which is the fundamental reason why some people in the West can't stop complaining. Hong Kong is an international financial center and a trade and shipping hub under "one country, two systems." It adopts the common law system as a free port, and enjoys a unique status and advantages that allow growing international connectivity. The facts show that along with China's continuous opening-up and the progress of the Belt and Road Initiative, Hong Kong will play a big role. This general trend goes entirely contrary to the fantasy held by some in the UK and US about making Hong Kong an anti-China base. The construction of the Greater Bay Area is deepening continuously. Hong Kong, as a large market rich in enterprises and resources, demonstrates great potential of development. As some Hong Kong entrepreneurs have unmistakably expressed, the advantage of the city is being part of China and it will have a brighter tomorrow. It is only some Western politicians still living in the 19th century who are daydreaming and crying. The thousands of overseas-funded companies, including those invested by UK and US enterprises, are positive and confident about Hong Kong's future. It is certain that Hong Kong can create a better future by sticking to the basis of "one country" and taking advantage of "two systems," which is a trend no foreign force can prevent. (Source: Global Times) From one July Fourth to the next, a steep slide for Biden WASHINGTON (AP) President Joe Biden is set to mark his second Fourth of July since taking office, and he's finding a far different political atmosphere today than a year ago. At this time last year, the United States had been making steady progress against the pandemic, and Biden said the country was closer than ever to declaring our independence from a deadly virus. But in the past year, two variants proved the coronavirus remained a threat, and Biden's presidency has become bogged down in other challenges, some of them outside of his control. His approval rating has fallen 20 percentage points between his first and second Independence Days, according to polls from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. 3 dead, 3 critically wounded in shooting at Denmark mall COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) Danish police say three people were killed and three others are in critical condition after a shooting at a shopping mall in Copenhagen. Copenhagen police inspector Sren Thomassen says the three victims in Sunday's attack are a man in his 40s and two young people. Thomassen says a 22-year-old Danish man was arrested after the shooting. He tells reporters there is no indication that anyone else was involved, though police aere still investigating. Thomassen says it is too early to speculate on the motive for the shooting. It happened in the late afternoon at Fields, one of the biggest shopping malls in Scandinavia. According to witnesses, when the shots rang out, some people hid in shops while others fled in a panicked stampede. 'Stay tuned' for new evidence against Trump in July hearings WASHINGTON (AP) A member of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot says more evidence is emerging that lends support to recent testimony that President Donald Trump wanted to join an angry mob that marched to the Capitol and rioted. Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger says there will be way more information and stay tuned. He's not disclosing the new information he's referring to and he's not saying who's provided it. But he says the information hasn't shaken the committee's confidence in the testimony of former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson. At least two more hearings are scheduled this month. And the committee's vice chair, Rep. Liz Cheney, is making clear that criminal referrals to the Justice Department, including against Trump, could follow. Hope and despair: Kathy Gannon on 35 years in Afghanistan KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) Kathy Gannon has reported on Afghanistan for the AP for the past 35 years, during an extraordinary series of events and regime changes that have rocked the world. Through it all, the kindness and resilience of ordinary Afghans have shone through for her which is also what has made it so painful for her, she says, to watch the slow erosion of their hope. Gannon says she has always been amazed at how Afghans stubbornly hung on to hope against all odds, greeting each of several new regimes with optimism. But by 2018, a Gallup poll showed that the fraction of people in Afghanistan with hope in the future was the lowest ever recorded anywhere. It didnt have to be this way, Gannon says. Russia claims control of pivotal eastern Ukrainian province KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russia has claimed control over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of Moscows grinding war. The General Staff of Ukraines military reported Sunday that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk in Luhansk province. Ukraine's president acknowledged the withdrawal in his nightly video address but said his forces would return with more modern weapons. If confirmed, Russias complete seizure of Luhansk would provide its troops with a stronger base from which to press their advance in the Donbas. Russian President Vladimir Putin is bent on capturing that region in a campaign that could determine the course of the entire war. Video shows Akron police kill Black man in hail of gunfire AKRON, Ohio (AP) Authorities say a Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again. Akron police released video Sunday of the pursuit and killing of 25-year-old Jayland Walker. The mayor called the June 27 shooting heartbreaking while asking for patience from the community. It isn't yet clear how many shots were fired by the eight officers who were involved, but Walker sustained more than 60 wounds. Alpine glacier chunk detaches, killing at least 6 hikers ROME (AP) A large chunk of a glacier in Italy's Alps has broken loose and killed at least six hikers and injured nine others. Alpine rescue service officials provided the death toll Sunday evening and said it could take hours to determine if any hikers might be missing, with unconfirmed reports saying there could be as many as 15 unaccounted for. The National Alpine and Cave Rescue Corps tweeted that the search of the area of Marmolada peak involved helicopters and rescue dogs. On Sunday night, the corps posted a phone number for callers whose loved ones might not have returned from excursions near the glacier. The long, ongoing debate over All men are created equal NEW YORK (AP) All men are created equal. Few words in American history are invoked as often as the preamble to the Declaration of Independence, published nearly 250 years ago. And are few more difficult to define. The music, and the economy, of all men are created equal make it both universal and elusive and adaptable to viewpoints otherwise with little or no common ground. How we use them often depends less on how we came into this world than on what kind world we want to live in. Its as if All men are created equal leads Americans to ask: And then what? WWII Medal of Honor recipient to lie in honor at US Capitol WASHINGTON (AP) The last remaining Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, Hershel W. Woody Williams, will lie in honor at the U.S. Capitol. The native West Virginian will receive that tribute at a later date. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced the honor on Sunday. During a memorial in Charleston, West Virginia, Williams was remembered for his courage, humility and selflessness. President Harry Truman awarded the Medal of Honor to Williams in 1945 for his heroics during one of the Pacific theater's fiercest fights, the battle for Iwo Jima. Wimbledon wild-card entry steals set, not win, from Djokovic WIMBLEDON, England (AP) Novak Djokovic found himself locked in a tight fourth-round match at Wimbledon against a wild-card entry making his Grand Slam tournament debut. They were even at a set apiece after about 1 1/2 hours of play. But Djokovic soon was in control and ended up winning 6-2, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 on Sunday night. There have been many surprises and new faces at this tournament. Djokovic just keeps winning and is moving closer to a fourth consecutive title at Wimbledon and seventh overall. He also is seeking a 21st major championship overall. This was the first time that Wimbledon is a planned 14-day tournament with play scheduled for the middle Sunday. AKRON, Ohio (AP) A Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again, authorities said Sunday at a news conference. Akron police released video of the shooting of Jayland Walker, 25, who was killed June 27 in a pursuit that had started with an attempted traffic stop. The mayor called the shooting heartbreaking while asking for patience from the community. It's not clear how many shots were fired by the eight officers involved, but Walker sustained more than 60 wounds. An attorney for Walker's family said officers kept firing even after he was on the ground. Officers attempted to stop Walker's car around 12:30 a.m. for unspecified traffic and equipment violations, but less than a minute into a pursuit, the sound of a shot was heard from the car, and a transportation department camera captured what appeared to be a muzzle flash coming from the vehicle, Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said. That changed the nature of the case from a routine traffic stop to now a public safety issue," he said. Police body camera videos show what unfolded after the roughly six-minute pursuit. Several shouting officers with guns drawn approach the slowing car on foot, as it rolls up over a curb and onto a sidewalk. A person wearing a ski mask exits the passenger door and runs toward a parking lot. Police chase him for about 10 seconds before officers fire from multiple directions, in a burst of shots that lasts 6 or 7 seconds. At least one officer had tried first to use a stun gun, but that was unsuccessful, police said. Mylett said Walkers actions are hard to distinguish on the video in real time, but a still photo seems to show him going down to his waist area and another appears to show him turning toward an officer. He said a third picture captures a forward motion of his arm. In a statement shared Sunday with reporters, the local police union said the officers thought there was an immediate threat of serious harm, and that it believes their actions and the number of shots will be found justified in line with their training and protocols. The union said the officers are cooperating with the investigation. Police said more than 60 wounds were found on Walkers body but further investigation is needed to determine exactly how many rounds the officers fired and how many times Walker was hit. The footage released by police ends with the officers' gunfire and doesn't show what happened next. Officers provided aid, and one can be heard saying Walker still had a pulse, but he was later pronounced dead, Mylett said. The chief said an officer firing at someone has to be ready to explain why they did what they did, they need to be able to articulate what specific threats they were facing ... and they need to be held to account. But he said he is withholding judgment on their actions until they give their statements. A handgun, a loaded magazine and an apparent wedding ring were found on the seat of the car. A casing consistent with the weapon was later found in the area where officers believed a shot had come from the vehicle. State Attorney General Dave Yost vowed a complete, fair and expert investigation" by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and cautioned that body-worn camera footage is just one view of the whole picture." Akron police are conducting a separate internal investigation about whether the officers violated department rules or policies. The officers involved in the shooting are on paid administrative leave, which is standard practice in such cases. Seven of them are white, and one is Black, according to the department. Their length of service with Akron police ranges from one-and-a-half to six years, and none of them has a record of discipline, substantiated complaints or fatal shootings, it said. Demonstrators marched peacefully through the city and gathered in front of the Akron justice center after the video was released. NAACP President Derrick Johnson said in a statement that Walkers death wasn't self-defense, but was murder. Point blank. Late Sunday, police in full riot gear fired a dozen tear gas cannisters to disperse a handful of protesters outside the justice center, WKYC-TV reported. Walkers family is calling for accountability but also for peace, their lawyers said. One of the attorneys, Bobby DiCello, called the burst of police gunfire excessive and unreasonable, and said police handcuffed Walker before trying to provide first aid. How it got to this with a pursuit is beyond me, DiCello said. He said Walkers family doesnt know why he fled from police. Walker was grieving the recent death of his fiancee, but his family had no indication of concern beyond that, and he wasn't a criminal, DiCello said. I hope we remember that as Jayland ran across that parking lot, he was unarmed, DiCello said. In Greitens resigned in disgrace. Heres why he leads in Missouris US Senate race. (June 26), Laddonia, Missouri farmer Tony Hoyt supports U.S. Senate candidate Eric Greitens because, he says, For me, its the fact that Democrats hate him. That is not a valid reason why anyone should vote for a candidate for any office. As a social conservative, I am extremely disappointed and disgusted that Greitens is Republicans leading candidate in the primary. Greitens resigned his governorship in disgrace rather than be impeached. Additionally, he is an admitted adulterer who had a documented affair with his hairdresser that included allegedly perverted, handcuffed escapades all while being married with two young children. He also reportedly took pictures of his mistress and tried to blackmail her for her silence. Greitens is also in a custody battle with his ex-wife, Sheena. Shes accused him of abusing her and their young boys. In my opinion, his recent controversial RINO hunting campaign video is further evidence that he might have some mental health issues. I believe elected officials have an obligation to conduct themselves and represent their constituents with decorum and, I believe, to have a personal life that is beyond reproach. If Greitens is indeed the winner of our Republican primary, this Republican will vote with the left because I despise him. John Jelovic Chesterfield Regarding Page backs $1 million St. Louis County plan to help residents get out-of-state abortions (June 30): I am not the property of the state in which I reside. As such, I have the liberty to travel state to state. I also have the liberty to spend my money as I please or give it to whom I choose. I have the liberty to do anything that is legal in a state I visit. None of the above is a crime. The Russian military has a manpower problem in Ukraine, where heavy losses among officers and troops have been difficult to replace. This includes senior commanders. Not only have more than a dozen generals been killed in combat, but even more senior generals have been fired (relieved and often forced to retire) for lack of success. The senior generals are replaced by recently retired generals who, while older, have more experience and a record of success in combat situations. But no Russian generals alive today faced a situation like modern Ukraine, where the opposition is composed of fellow Slavs who are better prepared, armed, led and more numerous than the Russian invaders. Worse, Russia doesnt consider Ukraine a combat situation but rather an internal security matter as Russia seeks to pacify what Russian leaders consider part of Russia. The rest of the world and many, if not most Russians disagree with this fantasy and are not willing to die trying to make it work. This is a rather unique, and tragic situation that Russian history is full of. Russian leaders, especially the current president-for-life Vladimir Putin make it work by observing a few rules to prevent Russia from blowing up in their faces. Post-Soviet Russia only works if the leaders comply with certain public demands. One such here involved an end to conscription. That was supposed to happen gradually as Russia hired more contract (volunteer) soldiers. Eventually all Russian troops were to be better paid volunteers with conscription retained only for use in a national emergency, which invading Ukraine is not. For the Ukrainians the Russian invasion was a national emergency and conscription was not needed because there were so many volunteers. Russian troops in Ukraine are outnumbered a Ukrainian force that is about fifty percent larger than what the Russians have in Ukraine. The better led and motivated Ukrainians face reluctant and often poorly led Russian troops who suffer higher casualties. Russia still depends on conscripting up to 300,000 conscripts a year, who serve for a year and are banned by law from being sent into combat unless it is a national emergency. Putin refuses to declare Ukraine a national emergency because it isnt, and too many Russians will actively oppose such a move. Putin was supposed to have more contract troops in the Russian military by now but he is short of cash because his initial 2014 land grabs in Ukraine got him Crimea and part of two provinces in eastern Ukraine (Donbas). The international response was economic sanctions on Russia and military and economic aid for Ukraine. Putins response was not to back off but to attempt to seize all of Ukraine in February 2022. This brought more economic sanctions on Russia and substantial military aid for Ukraine. The Russians discovered early on that their invading troops suffered enormous casualties because the Ukrainians were better prepared and armed for such a foolish move by Russia. The invasion force contained some conscripts, who were told they were still in Russia until the well-armed locals tore their unit to pieces and within weeks forced the survivors to retreat back to the border. That was because about a third of the invaders were lost. This included those who surrendered or deserted as well as those killed or wounded. Russia tried to limit the spread of this bad news but could only slow it down. Soon conscripts were refusing to respond to conscription notices while many contract soldiers quit or refused to return to Ukraine, which their contracts allowed them to do because Ukraine was not a war. The government responded by accepting this but adding a notation to contract soldier records and personal ID about what these soldiers did. The contract soldiers saw this as official recognition of how they beat the system and legally avoided certain death if they returned to Ukraine, where depleted and demoralized Russian forces were ordered to carry out suicidal attacks that rarely succeeded. In response to this troop shortage, Russian again changed the recruitment rules. Age limits on new contract soldiers were raised and non-Russians were accepted as long as they knew enough Russian to handle military service and were fit to fight and willing to do so in Ukraine. Another change was allowing new conscripts to become contract troops. Previously, only Russians who had completed their year of conscript duty could become contract soldiers. This meant a new category of contract soldier with no military experience and only the paramilitary training available to high-school students. It would require at least four months of training before these inexperienced contract soldiers were ready for combat. Youthful enthusiasm helps but is not enough. You need some experienced troops as cadre and, while these are available in Russia, they are expensive and wary about going to Ukraine. The best source of these experienced mercenaries is the Caucasus, where three million non-Slav Moslems live. There are several different groups and the most well-known are the Chechens. It took Russia several tries and great violence to pacify the Caucasus after 1991 and they offered the survivors the usual deal; some autonomy under a local faction loyal to Russia. It worked in the past and works now. The Chechens are the most notorious group and require financial incentives for difficult jobs, like fighting Ukrainians. Thats because several hundred Chechens were sent in with the initial 2022 invasion with orders to get to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and kill the Ukrainian president. The group failed, with heavy losses. After that the Caucasus mercenaries raised their prices for returning to Ukraine. Russia agreed to the higher pay and sent some more Caucasus troops into Ukraine. The Caucasus troops were effective, but still suffered losses and found that Russia did not pay on time at the agreed-on rate. This, more than formidable opposition in Ukraine, discouraged a lot of Caucasus troops from going, or going back. Russia blames the payroll problems on corruption, but is unsure if it is Russian or Chechen corruption. The Chechens arent the only ones suffering from corruption in Ukraine. It is also a problem there and the current Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, was elected in 2019 because he promised to oppose Russian threats and deal with corruption in Ukraine. Zelensky did both. There is not as much wartime corruption in Ukraine because when Zelensky learns of incidents he removes the guilty officials quickly and very publicly. That encourages less corruption and improves morale for Ukrainian troops. Zelensky is still on the Russian hit list while corrupt Russian officials are often not. That means Russian efforts to rebuild their invasion forces with well-trained, well-equipped and motivated troops are not working. Russia often falls back on their traditional use of indiscriminate violence and lots of firepower. Ukrainians have been the victims of this several times in the last century but this time the Russians do not have overwhelming superiority in firepower and troops available. Since 2014 Ukraine has received military, economic and diplomatic support from the West, it had received little or none in previous battles with Russia. It makes a difference that most Russians understand but their leader, Vladimir Putin is a determined traditionalist who believes that destroying enough of Ukraine and killing enough Ukrainians will eventually work. This is causing more resistance within Russia and Putin seems to believe that this will not do to his Russia what it did to the Soviet Union in 1991. SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Barrett-Jackson, The Worlds Greatest Collector Car Auctions, delivered the ultimate automotive lifestyle experience during this years Las Vegas Auction, June 30-July 2, in the West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Fittingly, American muscle cars led the way over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, including a 1970 Plymouth HEMI Superbird (Lot #734) that sold for a world auction record $1.65 million. In total, 663 vehicles sold with No Reserve for over $48.2 million, while 279 pieces of automobilia brought in over $869,000, bringing the total auction sales to more than $49.1 million, a Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas Auction record, with a 100-percent sell-through rate and over 40 world record auction sales achieved. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220703005015/en/ A 1970 Plymouth HEMI Superbird (Lot #734) sold for a world auction record $1.65 million during the Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas Auction. (Photo: Business Wire) Our Las Vegas Auction provided our guests an amazing, unparalleled experience over the Independence Day holiday weekend, said Craig Jackson, chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson. We set the stage with our world-class Opening Night Party at Zouk Nightclub followed by our supercar therapy event with the Driven Project that put kids battling serious illnesses into supercars on Thursday morning. We then filled the next three days with exciting auction moments, including the sale of 2023 Cadillac Escalade-V First Retail Production VIN 001, which raised $525,000 for charity. The Las Vegas Auction also demonstrated the demand for blue chip HEMI cars that brought in strong hammer prices. The top 10 non-charity vehicles that sold during Barrett-Jacksons 2022 Las Vegas Auction included: The depth, breadth and quality of our docket, especially muscle cars, hot rods and Resto-Mods, was among the best weve ever offered in Las Vegas, said Steve Davis, president of Barrett-Jackson. American HEMI muscle appropriately led the charge this holiday weekend. Classic trucks and SUVs, especially Chevrolet C10 trucks and Ford Broncos also continue to be popular. The collector car hobby is enjoying a banner year and I look forward to riding the momentum into our Houston Auction this October. During this years Las Vegas Auction, Barrett-Jackson raised $650,000 for charity from the sale of two vehicles led by the 2023 Cadillac Escalade-V First Production VIN 001 (Lot #3000), which raised $525,000 benefitting the Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design. Barrett-Jackson VIP Dan Snyder placed the winning $500,000 bid and fellow VIP Michelle Mauzy generously donated another $25,000 to the cause. The 2022 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 392 (Lot #3001), crossed the block on Saturday with 100 percent of the $125,000 hammer price benefiting Ronald McDonald House Charities of Detroit. To date, Barrett-Jackson has helped raise over $148 million for charitable organizations. Barrett-Jacksons Las Vegas Auction sold 279 automobilia pieces at No Reserve for $869,100.00 (includes buyers premium). The top three automobilia pieces that sold during the Las Vegas Auction include: 1954 Mobil Oil Neon (Lot #8299) - $34,500 1940s Greyhound Bus Lines Animated Neon Sign (Lot #8294) - $29,325 Circa 1930s-40s Quality Restaurant Single-sided Neon Porcelain Diner Sign (Lot #8296) - $25,300 Barrett-Jackson is accepting consignments for the 2022 Houston Auction, October 20-22, at NRG Center. Those interested in being a part of the auction may consign their collector vehicle here. Those interested in registering to bid for the 2022 Houston Auction may do so here. To purchase tickets and VIP packages to the event, click here. Join Barrett-Jacksons online conversation with #BarrettJackson and #BJAC on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. About The Barrett-Jackson Auction Company Established in 1971 and headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, Barrett-Jackson, The Worlds Greatest Collector Car Auctions, is the leader in collector car auctions and automotive lifestyle events, which include authentic automobilia auctions and the sale of private collections. Welcoming over 500,000 attendees per year, Barrett-Jackson produces live collector car auctions in Scottsdale, Arizona; Palm Beach, Florida; Las Vegas, Nevada and Houston, Texas, where thousands of the most sought-after, unique and valuable automobiles cross the block in front of a global audience. With broadcast partner A+E Networks, Barrett-Jackson features live television coverage of its events on FYI and The HISTORY Channel, as well as all the cars, all the time via its produced livestream on Barrett-Jackson.com. Barrett-Jackson also endorses a one-of-a-kind collector car insurance for collector vehicles and other valued belongings. For more information about Barrett-Jackson, visit www.barrett-jackson.com, or call 480-421-6694. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220703005015/en/ Barrett-Jackson Communications Rodney Scearce, Director of Public Relations at (480) 306-8251 | [email protected] Automotive Media Aaron Cook, TimePiece PR & Marketing at (214) 520-3430 | [email protected] Source: Barrett-Jackson PUTEAUX, France--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Regulatory News: Following the appointment of Laurent Guillot as ORPEA's (Paris: ORP) new Chief Executive Officer as of 1 July 2022, the ORPEA Group is announcing major changes in its Board of Directors that will be proposed at the next Annual General Meeting. The Annual General Meeting will therefore be asked to appoint five new directors for a four-year term, four of which will be independent and whose varied skills will bring additional expertise to the Group. The four new independent directors to be voted on by the shareholders on 28 July 2022 are: Guillaume Pepy, Chairman of Initiative France and former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SNCF; and former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SNCF; Isabelle Calvez, Director of Human Resources at the Veolia Group; John Glen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BIC S.A. until May (proposed by CPPIB); David Hale, Chief Executive Officer of the Guerbet Group. Furthermore, as announced on 2 May 2022 on the occasion of his appointment, Laurent Guillot, ORPEA's Chief Executive Officer, will also be proposed as a new director at the Annual General Meeting. Finally, Bertrand Finet, Chief Executive Officer of Peugeot Invest Assets, will succeed Thierry de Poncheville as the permanent representative of Peugeot Invest Assets on ORPEA's Board of Directors at the end of the Annual General Meeting. Philippe Charrier, who chaired the Board of Directors and was ORPEA's provisional Chief Executive Officer from February to June 2022, has decided to step down as a director at the end of the next Annual General Meeting. Having left CPPIB, Moritz Krautkramer resigned his directorship on 17 June 2022. Jean-Patrick Fortlacroix will not seek to renew his term of office as director, which will expire at the end of the next Annual General Meeting. If elected, Guillaume Pepy will be proposed to chair the new Board of Directors. The new Board of Directors will therefore be composed as follows: Personal information Experience Position on the Board Age Gender Nationality Number of shares Number of offices held in listed companies Independence First date of appointment Term of office Length of service on the Board Mr Guillaume Pepy 64 M French - - Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 - Mr Laurent Guillot 53 M French - 2 No 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 - Ms Laure Baume 46 F French 928 1 Yes 14/12/2016 AGM 2024 6 Ms Corine de Bilbao 55 F French 40 2 Yes 23/06/2020 AGM 2024 2 Ms Isabelle Calvez 57 F French - 1 Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 - Ms Bernadette Danet-Chevallier 63 F French 246 1 Yes 16/09/2014 AGM 2025 8 Peugeot Invest Assets, represented by Mr Bertrand Finet 56 M French - 2 Yes 15/02/2012 AGM 2023 10 Mr John Glen1 62 M British and Irish - 1 Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 - Mr David Hale 54 M Franco-American - 1 Yes 28/07/2022 AGM 2026 - Mr Olivier Lecomte 56 M French 230 2 Yes 16/11/2020 AGM 2025 2 Ms Pascale Richetta 62 F French 10 1 Yes 23/06/2020 AGM 2024 2 Ms Joy Verle1 42 F Franco-British 1 2 Yes 27/04/2017 AGM 2023 5 Ms Sophie Kalaidjian (director representing the employees) 44 F French 20 1 No 15/01/2015 AGM 2024 7 Mr Laurent Serris (director representing the employees) 51 M French - 1 No 15/12/2020 AGM 2023 2 1 Candidates proposed by CPPIB The new Board of Directors will determine the new composition of its Committees. Following its endeavor for full transparency, the first remedial measures established, and the reflections initiated on the transformations to be undertaken, this new governance affirms ORPEA's desire for a transformation that will allow to best fulfil its mission and to meet the challenges of the healthcare and medical-social system. The Board of Directors wishes to thank sincerely its Chairman, Philippe Charrier, who agreed to take over as Chief Executive Officer on a temporary basis at the epitome of the crisis experienced by ORPEA, in order to restore confidence and enable the company to continue its mission under the best possible conditions. From February to June 2022, the desire for transparency was furthered through the external audits carried out by the Grant Thornton and Alvarez & Marsal firms; the Group signed a refinancing plan securing its future; a new Chief Executive OfficerLaurent Guillotwas recruited; remediation measures were initiated; and a dialogue was originated with the Group's stakeholders to set in motion a long-term reflection process, with the holding of the Etats Generaux du Grand Age roundtable talks. The re-founding of the Group can thus begin on these new footings, thanks to the commitment and dedication of Philippe Charrier. In addition, two new independent directors are expected to join the new Board of Directors when they are released from their current obligations. A press release will be issued in due course. Bio of Guillaume Pepy Recognized for his extensive leadership experience, Guillaume Pepy is currently Chairman of Initiative France, the leading network of associations for financing and supporting new entrepreneurs, and of LYDEC, a subsidiary of Suez, charged with managing water and electricity in the Greater Casablanca region in Morocco. Guillaume Pepy is also a Senior Advisor to Salesforce and the Boston Consulting Group. He is a director of Chemours Inc in the United States. Guillaume Pepy began his career at the French Council of State and then at the Ministries of Finance and of Labor, Employment and Social Affairs. In 1996, he was made Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the SOFRES Group. He was then appointed Director of Main Lines at the Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer Francais (SNCF) in 1997. Following this, he went on to take up the position of Chief Operating Officer for Customers, Group Chief Operating Officer and then Chairman and Chief Operating Officer from 2008 to 2019. Guillaume Pepy is a member of the Board of Directors of the Shoah Memorial, Malandain Ballet Biarritz and the Heart and Research Foundation. He is a graduate of the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (Paris Political Studies Institute) and the Ecole Nationale d'Administration. Bio of Isabelle Calvez With a long career in the field of Human Resources, Isabelle Calvez has been Director of Human Resources of Veolia since April 2022, after having been Group Director of Human Resources of Suez from May 2017 to May 2022. Isabelle Calvez began her career in executive search before joining Thomson-CSF, now Thales, where she was appointed Business development director for Communications electronic warfare in 1996. In 2000, she joined the Canal+ Group as Director of Human Resources for Canal+ Technologies and HR Development VP for the group. She was appointed HR VP France & Benelux Accenture in 2003, HR VP for the Groupama Group in 2007 and then for Carrefour France in 2012. Isabelle Calvez graduated from the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (Paris Political Studies Institute) in 1986. Bio of John Glen Particularly experienced in governance and leadership as well as finance and real estate, John Glen began his career at Unilever, before joining Air Liquide in 2000 as Group Finance Director and member of the Executive Committee. From 2008 to 2019, he was Chief Executive Officer of Buccleuch Estates Ltd, the holding company of a family group operating in the agricultural field of activity and industry sector in England and Scotland. In particular, he has helped to develop and market a portfolio of large energy projects in sustainable technologies. In addition, he became a director of The Borders Distillery Co. in 2016. From January 2020, he served as Group Chief Operating Officer of DC Thomson Publishing before being appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of BIC SA until May 2022. John Glen is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Certified Accountants and holds a master's degree in Accounting and Economics from the University of Edinburgh. Bio of David Hale A specialist in the healthcare sector, David Hale has been Chief Executive Officer of Guerbet since December 2019, following several months with the group as Chief Commercial Officer and member of the Executive Committee in charge of sales, marketing, development and engineering of diagnostic imaging medical devices. David Hale has worked for Ascom and Boston Consulting Group, among others. He then joined GE Healthcare in France and the United States, where for 15 years he held several management positions in the areas of quality, sales, marketing and product management in the services and information systems sectors. David Hale graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology (USA) with a degree in industrial and systems engineering and an MBA from the Institute of Management Development (Switzerland). About ORPEA (www.orpea-corp.com) Founded in 1989, ORPEA is one of the world leaders in Dependency care (nursing homes, assisted living, post-acute and rehabilitation hospitals, mental health hospitals, home care services) ORPEA is listed on Euronext Paris (ISIN code: FR0000184798) and is a member of the SBF 120, STOXX 600 Europe, MSCI Small Cap Europe and CAC Mid 60 indices. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220703005017/en/ Investor Relations ORPEA Benoit Lesieur Investor Relations Director [email protected] Investor Relations NewCap Dusan Oresansky Tel. : +331 44 71 94 94 [email protected] Media Relations Image 7 Charlotte Le Barbier Tel.: +33 (0)6 78 37 27 60 [email protected] Laurence Heilbronn Tel. : +33 (0)6 89 87 61 35 [email protected] Source: ORPEA JAKARTA, Jul 3, 2022 - (ACN Newswire) - - President Joko Widodo has accomplished his visits to Ukraine and Russia on Thursday evening (June 30) to invite both countries to build dialogue, stop the war, and build peace. President started his mission by visiting Kiev, Ukraine. At the Maryinsky Palace, Kyiv, Jokowi was greeted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday afternoon (June 29). For Ukraine, that day was a historic day, as President Jokowi's visit was the first one to be made by an Asian leader since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Jokowi, during a joint press statement with Zelenskyy, conveyed several important points from his visit to Ukraine. "I conveyed to President Zelenskyy that I made this visit as a manifestation of Indonesia's concern for the situation in Ukraine," he remarked. He reiterated the invitation to Zelenskyy to attend the G20 Summit in November 2022 in Bali. Jokowi also emphasized Indonesia's principled position regarding the importance of respect for sovereignty and territory. "Although it is still very difficult to achieve, I still convey the importance of a peaceful settlement, and the spirit of peace must never fade," he affirmed. Indonesia will strive to contribute through assistance, including medicines, and remain committed to reconstructing one of the hospitals around Kiev. To this end, President Jokowi offered to carry a message from President Zelenskyy to President Putin. On the other hand, President Zelenskyy praised Jokowi's visit because Indonesia hosts the G20 Presidency this year and is the strongest country in ASEAN. Zelenskyy expressed optimism that it would strengthen the effort to end the war. After visiting Kiev, President Jokowi also made a visit to Moscow, Russia and meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. During the visit, Jokowi emphasized the issue of peace and humanity has always been a priority for Indonesia. "The Indonesian Constitution mandates Indonesia to always try to contribute to the creation of world peace. In this context, I made visits to Kiev and Moscow," he stated. He also emphasized that food and fertilizers were humanitarian issues and were of interest to the world community. Thus hundreds of millions of people affected by disruptions, especially in developing countries. Hence, Jokowi lauded Putin's guarantee for the security of food and fertilizer supplies. Jokowi stressed that Indonesia has no interest apart from helping resolve the war between Russia and Ukraine. "I invite all world leaders to work together to revive the spirit of multilateralism, the spirit of peace, and the spirit of cooperation," President Jokowi stated. Meanwhile, Putin noted that Indonesia is one of their key partners in the Asia-Pacific region. "Russian-Indonesian relations are constructive and mutually beneficial, developing steadily on the basis of long-standing good traditions of friendship and mutual assistance," he said. During the joint press conference, President Jokowi reiterates the importance of the spirit of peace. With President Jokowi's visit to Ukraine and Russia for a peaceful mission, hopes are pinned high on the war ending soon and the food crisis being mitigated quickly. Written by: Katriana, Editor: Rahmad Nasution (c) ANTARA 2022 Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved. SIT is the world's first blockchain-based algae biomass project offering. The project will be built utilising patented sustainable technology to deliver a pioneering green investment opportunity. Carbon credits generated by biomass projects will be tokenized as Algaecoin. LONDON, July 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The world's first blockchain-based algae biomass project, built on the energy-efficient Tezos blockchain, was announced today by leading capital markets technology firm, Globacap. Developed and operated by Sustainable Impact Token (SIT), the project will support the development, construction, and operation of algae biomass farms. The initiative will use blockchain technology to bridge the gap between two of the fastest growing investor markets in the world asset-backed finance and crypto. SIT's algae biomass farms produce high quality, non-animal protein, based on a system powered exclusively using renewable energy. These algae farms are absorbing large amounts of carbon out of the atmosphere and a net producer of renewable energy. The SIT project is currently supporting the development of a "proof of concept" algae biomass farm in Europe using patented, sustainable technology. Myles Milston, CEO of Globacap says, "Being part of this pioneering project marks an important milestone in our ongoing mission to enable frictionless asset creation and transferability. With Globacap, the capital raising process is completely digital, mostly automated, transparent, secure, and compliant. Our work with SIT and Tezos is transformational in the way this market can operate." The $5 billion algae biomass sector is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 6.3% during the next 5 years (Quince Market Insights) and the success of the project will provide the basis to expand globally. SIT provides investors with tokens issued via smart contracts deployed on the proof-of-stake Tezos blockchain, representing their preferred shares in the project. Carbon credits generated from the algae production will also be tokenized into Algaecoin, a tokenized asset representing tradable carbon credits. "By bringing agri-tech solutions and carbon credit-backed assets into private markets and beyond, we can make significant, impactful steps towards sustaining our planet for future generations," adds Milston. The SIT offering was designed to enable frictionless transferability in full compliance with securities regulation through the Tezos FA2 compliant token contracts for holding and settlement. This pioneering offering links the sustainable asset-backed and crypto investment worlds together to create a compelling blockchain-enabled investment vehicle. "As solutions to the macro challenges of food scarcity and sustainable energy production continue to be a global priority, demand for investment vehicles that can also support these objectives are increasing. We are thrilled to see Globacap choose Tezos to power this unique blockchain based, asset-backed offering," says Mason Edwards from Tezos Foundation. Tezos is an energy-efficient open source blockchain network powered by a globally decentralised network of users and validators. Companies and builders around the globe leverage Tezos for projects exploring the potential for blockchain to be a tool for sustainable innovation. Recently, Cambridge University announced the Cambridge Centre for Carbon Credits (4C) which is creating a trusted decentralised marketplace on Tezos where purchasers of carbon credits can confidently and directly fund trusted nature-based projects tying together corporate funders to conservationists, via automated and transparent global oracles. Globacap is committed to enabling adoption of tokenization for most asset classes and providing a means for digital securitisation to global capital markets. Blockchain technology enables previously illiquid investment to now be transacted efficiently in seconds instead of weeks, and with minimal overheads. Globacap's mission is to bring the archaic processes behind capital markets into the digital era by offering private placement, securities issuance, securities registry management, and liquidity products. Chairman & Founder of Sustainable Impact Token, Peter Henderson, says, "Our vision is to play our part in addressing some of the real challenges of our time how can the growing world population be fed sufficiently, nutritiously and can this ambition be achieved in a way that improves, rather than harms, the environment? We believe our approach helps on all these fronts and know that the investor community is keen to join us on the journey. "SIT presents a unique investment opportunity that is underpinned by our three core pillars: food security, renewable energy and carbon reduction. "We wanted to structure the offering using an innovative, transparent and secure approach. Investors are being offered an attractive return, in a real asset, but through digital technology and they can make their investments through fiat or crypto currencies. "Bringing the token offering to market has been amazingly smooth, which is a credit to our partners at Globacap, Tezos and Lumin Capital." To learn more about Sustainable Impact Token, visit https://sustainableimpacttokens.com/ To learn more about Globacap, visit https://globacap.com/ To learn more about Tezos, visit https://tezos.com/ About Globacap: Globacap is driving the digitisation of all assets by using technology to unlock the true potential of capital markets. It has standardised the securities landscape, enabling frictionless asset creation and transferability. Over $14 billion of private share and debt instruments are digitally administered on the platform, and Globacap has now executed over $180 million of secondary liquidity in private securities with digital, automated settlement. Globacap is regulated by the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) as an arranger and custodian and its platform can onboard investors from over 60 countries, in compliance with local regulations. For more information on how Globacap is changing the private capital markets industry, please visit www.globacap.com. About Tezos: Tezos is smart money, redefining what it means to hold and exchange value in a digitally connected world. A self-upgradable and energy-efficient Proof of Stake blockchain with a proven track record, Tezos seamlessly adopts tomorrow's innovations without network disruptions today. For more information, please visit www.tezos.com. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/asset-backed-token-raise-to-support-the-build-of-algae-biomass-protein-farms-301579081.html SOURCE Globacap Fred Krieg received a call at 6:30 a.m. from a truck driver notifying him that his farm about two miles west of Lingle was under water as the result of a breach of the Interstate Canal. By later Friday morning, that breach threatened the small Wyoming town. After I got the phone call, I called my farmer and he said we got a massive water problem, Krieg said. He could see about a 20 foot section broke out of the Tri-state ditch ruptured and it was dumping water downhill to our property. Dan Ellis, who leases the Krieg farm ground, Well, I've heard of it happening. But this is the first time I've ever witnessed it and it's a lot of water." Krieg and his wife, Sue, rent the house on their farm, which was quickly evacuated. He said the first floor of the house along with the barn were under water Friday morning. Sue said the water was running down both sides of U.S. Highway 26 toward Lingle when they tried to reach their farm. Ellis said about 550 head of cattle were moved out of Brian Greenwalds feedyard before it became completely flooded. They got the canal shut off but it's gonna take quite a while for it to drain, Ellis said. It drains back both directions for a while and then we get a lot of our water out of the little ditch, the Lucerne canal and it broke it out, too. So its running water too but not near the volume. According to an alert issued by the U.S. National Weather Service-Cheyenne office, by mid-morning, residents of Lingle have been advised to evacuate due to the canal breach one mile east of Lingle. A Flash Flood Emergency has been issued for the Lingle area. The warning stated, "This is a PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW!" The Flash Flood Emergency is in effect in and near Lingle until 4 p.m. The weather service advised that a Whalen Dam operator reported that flow in the canal should begin to recede after 2 p.m. HONG KONG, July 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Chubb Life today announced that Gail Costa will lead the company's life insurance operations in New Zealand that were recently acquired from Cigna. Ms. Costa, who is currently Chief Executive Officer of Cigna Life New Zealand, will continue to have executive operating responsibility for the business, which will operate under the Chubb Life brand in New Zealand. On July 1, Chubb, the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurer, completed its acquisition of the life and non-life insurance companies that house the personal accident, supplemental health and life insurance business of Cigna in six Asia-Pacific markets, including New Zealand. The addition of this consumer-focused business advances Chubb's strategy to expand its presence in the Asia-Pacific region, a long-term growth area for the company, and adds to an already sizable accident and health (A&H) business while expanding the company's Asia-based life insurance presence. Ms. Costa will, in addition to the local Board, report to Brad Bennett, Senior Vice President, Chubb Group and Chief Operating Officer, Chubb Life. "Gail is an experienced insurance executive who has led businesses for Cigna in multiple countries, including New Zealand, where she's been managing the operation through a period of growth and change since 2018," said Mr. Bennett. "She's a strong leader with deep expertise across finance, operations and marketing. New Zealand is a new market for Chubb Life, and we're fortunate to have Gail in this position. I look forward to working with her and welcome all of our new colleagues from Cigna at this exciting moment for our business in New Zealand and across Asia-Pacific." Ms. Costa has more than 40 years of insurance industry experience, including 18 years as an executive with Cigna. She has served as CEO of Cigna Life New Zealand since 2018, and also led the business from 2003 to 2013. Ms. Costa also held CEO positions for Cigna in Turkey, Hong Kong and Europe. Prior to joining Cigna, Ms. Costa was the General Manager Operations for Asteron. Ms. Costa is a qualified accountant and holds a bachelor's degree in Commerce and Administration from Victoria University and a Diploma in Direct Marketing from the Institute of Direct Marketing, London, U.K. About Chubb Life Chubb Life is an international life insurer, primarily focused on Asia, that provides protection and savings-oriented life insurance products to individuals and groups. Chubb Life serves the needs of consumers through a variety of distribution channels, including primarily captive agents, but also through banks, retailers, brokers, independent agents and direct marketing. Chubb Life has operations in eight Asian markets Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Myanmar, New Zealand, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam as well as Latin America. About Chubb Chubb is the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company. With operations in 54 countries and territories, Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. As an underwriting company, we assess, assume and manage risk with insight and discipline. We service and pay our claims fairly and promptly. The company is also defined by its extensive product and service offerings, broad distribution capabilities, exceptional financial strength and local operations globally. Parent company Chubb Limited is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: CB) and is a component of the S&P 500 index. Chubb maintains executive offices in Zurich, New York, London, Paris and other locations, and employs approximately 34,000 people worldwide. Additional information can be found at: www.chubb.com View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/chubb-life-announces-gail-costa-will-lead-newly-acquired-life-insurance-operations-of-cigna-in-new-zealand-301580021.html SOURCE Chubb Life Acquisition of Leading European Seamless Rolled Rings Manufacturer Expands Global Platform of Large Diameter Forgings VENETO, Italy, July 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Siderforgerossi Group S.p.A. ("Siderforgerossi"), a leading global manufacturer of forged products and a portfolio company of KPS Capital Partners, LP ("KPS"), announced today that it completed the acquisition of Grupo Euskal Forging, S.L. and its subsidiaries (together "Euskal Forging" or the "Company"). Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Euskal Forging is a manufacturer of forgings and seamless rolled rings, including rings greater than eight meters in diameter, serving the wind power, capital goods, oil & gas, power transmission and mining end-markets. Headquartered in Irura, Spain, the Company operates three manufacturing facilities and has approximately 170 employees. Daniele Crose, Chief Executive Officer of Siderforgerossi, said, "The capabilities of Euskal Forging represent an unparalleled opportunity for Siderforgerossi to expand our product portfolio, manufacturing footprint and competencies. This acquisition is an important step as Siderforgerossi advances its leading position in the wind power wide diameter forgings market, across both offshore and onshore applications. We are extremely impressed by the strength of Euskal Forging's management, customer relationships and unrivaled commitment to quality." Inigo Fernandez Garate, General Manager of Euskal Forging, said, "The combination of Euskal Forging and Siderforgerossi creates clear benefits for the customers and employees of both companies. Euskal Forging and Siderforgerossi share a commitment to quality and customer service that extends from our operations to our products. We are thrilled to operate under KPS' ownership and join Siderforgerossi in this exciting new chapter of growth." Banco Sabadell S.A. served as lead financial advisor, Houlihan Lokey served as debt capital markets advisor and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP and Cuatrecasas served as legal counsel to Siderforgerossi and KPS. Alantra Corporate Finance, S.A.U. served as financial advisor and BSK Legal & Fiscal as legal counsel to the seller, Inversiones Nider Lekim, S.L. About SiderforgerossiSiderforgerossi is a leading, vertically integrated manufacturer of rolled and forged products with capabilities across the manufacturing spectrum, including ring-rolled, open die and closed die forging. Siderforgerossi specializes in large diameter forged products and primarily serves the wind power, oil & gas, earth moving, and aerospace end-markets across Europe and India. Siderforgerossi provides customers with a vertically integrated offering including heat treating, destructive and non-destructive testing and machining. The Company is headquartered in Veneto, Italy and operates nine manufacturing sites in Italy and three additional sites in India. For additional information, please visit www.siderforgerossi.com. About Euskal ForgingEuskal Forging is a manufacturer of forgings and seamless rolled rings, including rings greater than eight meters in diameter, serving the wind power, capital goods, oil & gas, power transmission and mining end-markets. Headquartered in Irura, Spain, the Company operates three manufacturing facilities and has approximately 170 employees. For additional information, please visit www.euskalforging.com. About KPS Capital PartnersKPS, through its affiliated management entities, is the manager of the KPS Special Situations Funds, a family of investment funds with approximately $13.4 billion of assets under management (as of March 31, 2022). For over three decades, the partners of KPS have worked exclusively to realize significant capital appreciation by making controlling equity investments in manufacturing and industrial companies across a diverse array of industries, including basic materials, branded consumer, healthcare and luxury products, automotive parts, capital equipment and general manufacturing. KPS creates value for its investors by working constructively with talented management teams to make businesses better, and generates investment returns by structurally improving the strategic position, competitiveness and profitability of its portfolio companies, rather than primarily relying on financial leverage. The KPS funds' portfolio companies have aggregate annual revenues of approximately $19.7 billion, operate 233 manufacturing facilities in 27 countries, and have approximately 52,000 employees, directly and through joint ventures worldwide. The KPS investment strategy and portfolio companies are described in detail at www.kpsfund.com. KPS Mid-Cap focuses on investments in the lower end of the middle market that require up to $100 million of initial equity capital. KPS Mid-Cap targets the same type of investment opportunities and utilizes the same investment strategy that KPS' flagship funds have for over three decades. KPS Mid-Cap leverages and benefits from KPS' global platform, reputation, track record, infrastructure, best practices, knowledge and experience. The KPS Mid-Cap investment team is managed by Partners Pierre de Villemejane and Ryan Harrison, who lead a team of experienced and talented professionals. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/siderforgerossi-group-acquires-euskal-forging-301579567.html SOURCE Siderforgerossi Group S.p.A. ORLANDO, Fla. (Tribune News Service) The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket successfully launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Friday evening while carrying a missile warning satellite among its payloads for the U.S. Space Force. The rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 shortly after 7 p.m., after being delayed on Thursday due to bad weather. On board was two satellite payloads including the Wide Field of View (WFOV) Testbed developed by L3 Harris based on a Millennium Space Systems platform to be used for tracking missile threats. Also on board is the Space Test Program's USSF-12 Ring spacecraft, built by Northrop Grumman, which itself will be hosting classified payloads. Both the WFOV and Ring spacecraft are headed for geosynchronous orbit approximately 22,000 miles above the equator. "We're focused on integration of an end-to-end mission capability for resilient space-based missile warning tracking and defense to prevail what is a fast-evolving threat, particularly in hypersonic missile threats across the globe," said Col. Brian Denaro, Program Executive Officer for SSC's Space Sensing Directorate. "The change in the threats we see coming online today are highly maneuverable, and so it's harder to predict where those missiles are going to go, therefore the need to be able to track those missiles through their course of flight." The WFOV experiment, will cast its more sensitive eye over more than one-third of the Earth across the Pacific during a planned three-year test run. It's a prototype that's a first step in what Denaro said is the Space Force's No. 1 mission, planned to be part of a future satellite architecture that would provide 24/7 coverage of global missile threats. USSF-12 marks ULA's 94th National Security Space mission, and it has two more on tap later this year. "The Atlas V has been a very good, reliable launch vehicle for us," said Space Force Col. Erin Gulden. "It's placed valuable national assets into the intended orbits, which has added to our national security space launch program of unprecedented success for over the past 90 consecutive launches since 2003." The flight is the fourth for ULA this year, still using the workhorse Atlas V rockets that will soon be replaced with the new Vulcan Centaur. The planned launch comes days after SpaceX managed another Falcon 9 launch just south of ULA's launch pad, the 27th for Elon Musk's company this year. The previous ULA missions included last month's launch of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner to the International Space Station. The company has set aside enough Atlas V rockets to complete its contract with NASA for ferry service via the Starliner to the station through at least 2025. Its future Vulcan rocket is capable of the service, as well, but Boeing has yet to request certifying that rocket for future Starliner flights. All the remaining Atlas V rockets are spoken for as well, with many tied to launches for Amazon's Project Kuiper, an internet satellite constellation set to compete with SpaceX's Starlink. That project has also bought up 38 Vulcan flights as well. The Vulcan's first launch is on track to come before the end of the year, said ULA's VP of Government and Commercial Programs Gary Wentz. It has two certification flights on tap before its first launch for the Department of Defense in late 2023, the first of three on its manifest for the Space Force that year. "We have seen no loss or missed opportunities for delivery of capability,: Gulden said. "We've got ULA providing a great Atlas fleet and Delta fleet for what we need today, and Vulcan is on track for delivery for that first acquired mission at the end of next year, so I would say from the Space Force perspective, we don't see any issues or concerns at this point in a gap in capability or ability to launch." The new ULA rocket has faced delays including the delivery of its engine, the BE-4, from Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. ULA expects delivery of its first usable engines this summer. It's part of the new U.S. requirements to steer off of Russian-made rocket engines by 2022. Blue Origin's in-the-works New Glenn rocket will also be using the BE-4, but its first launch is not expected until 2023 after it's satisfied its supply contract for ULA. To date ULA has flown 151 missions since the joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Boeing was formed in 2006. It's been the DOD's go-to launch provider until recently branching out to SpaceX. The future could see more launch service providers as well as they come online such as Astra Space, Relativity and Blue Origin. "We're looking to the future. We are working together with our current industry partners that provide our current launch services," Gulden said. "Future launch services as industry continues to build capabilities and technology just as we have done with other new entrants, we will continue to work with those entrants and if they're able, capable and willing to contract within U.S. government and United State Space Force, we'll be willing to include them in our future launch opportunities to provide those critical national capabilities that are required." 2022 Orlando Sentinel. Visit at orlandosentinel.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. CORONA, N.M. (Tribune News Service) They say something crashed out here in the desert. Something weird, maybe something from another planet. Definitely something the U.S. government has never fully explained. When it happened, 75 years ago this summer, many called it a flying disc or flying saucer. Today, the sometimes-rocky plain about 25 miles southeast of Corona looks like any other piece of New Mexico desert desolate, uninhabited, untouched by man or machine. While the alleged crash has come to define the New Mexico city of Roswell awash in UFO enthusiasts this weekend it has somehow neglected to honor Corona, a ranching village of fewer than 170 people that actually had dibs on the event. But maybe thats how it should be, several Corona residents said recently. A drive down its main street revealed almost no hints of the historic wreck, though the alien dummy standing in an old pay phone booth outside the Corona Motel might ignite a visitors interest in the subject. Guiding visitors around the Corona Museum of Frontier Life, which does not have one artifact related to the 1947 crash, 84-year-old volunteer Mary Seely said she has not had one person ask her about the crash an event that continues to fascinate stargazers, skeptics, believers and those who like the idea of seeing little green men. They tell me they like it that way, she said of Coronas residents. Tracie Proctor Gallegos is one of those folks. Though she lives in nearby Encino now, the Corona native said that as she watches the curious descend on Roswell every year for the annual UFO festival, she feels a sense of relief. The majority of Corona residents would probably agree that the fact that Roswell took the claim to fame and everything is actually all right, she said. Gallegos has a personal tie to the 1947 event, now commonly known as the Roswell Incident. Her grandmother, Loretta Proctor, was the next-door neighbor of rancher William Mack Brazel, who first reported finding wreckage debris left on the Corona desert floor early on a July morning. Loretta Proctors son, known as Dee, accompanied Brazel on his morning review of the nearby Foster Ranch to check on potential damage from a thunderstorm that took place the night before. The story, reported in many a book about the incident, including the 1992 tome Crash at Corona, by Don Berliner and Stanton T. Friedman, says Brazel brought pieces of the wreckage he collected to the Proctors home for examination making them eyewitnesses to at least one part of this chapter of history. All this within 30 miles of Corona, once was a railroad stop with much more activity than it has today. The town is about 100 miles from Roswell, which then housed the Roswell Army Airfield, which later became Walker Air Force Base. But it was because the military stepped in and took control of the investigation and materials from the crash and maybe, some stories say, retrieved some alien bodies from the incident that the larger town of some 48,000 people slowly became enmeshed in UFO history. Roswell got in first ... embraced its history, said writer and investigator Nick Pope, who, as a civilian, investigated UFO reports for the United Kingdoms Ministry of Defense. Pope, one of the featured speakers at this years UFO fest in Roswell, which started Friday and ends Sunday, said Roswell is entitled to the fame because the wreckage was taken back to the base. Its not as if Roswell isnt an integral part of the story, he added, but part of the story [about Corona] has gotten lost for 75 years. Content in the shadows How or why that part of history got lost does not seem to be important to many who attended this years festival, which drew about 10,000 people on its opening day Friday. The truth is, most people in Corona and Roswell really didnt pay too much attention to the 1947 incident until about 1980, when authors Charles Berlitz and William L. Moore published The Roswell Incident, which included the first reported interviews with some of the key players in the saga. Gallegos, who was born in the late 1960s, said she grew up with no knowledge of the crash until the book came out. It was not something they talked about in common conversation: Oh yeah, we had this UFO crash right here in our backyard, she said. When that book was released and it was just a hit and everybody started looking into the actual crash and what really happened and the cover-ups and so forth thats when my granny became a celebrity, she added. Dee Proctors son, Todd Proctor, said his father, who has since died, did not talk about his ties to the crash. He would generally say, I was 8 years old, and I dont remember much about it, Todd Proctor said. His grandmother didnt talk a whole lot about it either, Proctor recalled, though sometimes she would remember examining the debris material Brazel brought to her house that summer day. She described it as a weird material they had never seen before ... pliable but strong, Proctor said. Todd Proctor said it made sense Roswell got all the glory if thats what you want to call it especially as Corona, like so many small rural New Mexico communities, began dying on the vine sometime in the 1970s or 1980s. At about that time, the UFO craze began kicking in. And while Corona geared down, Roswell kicked up. In 1992, the International UFO Museum and Research Center opened on Main Street in Roswell in a former movie theater. Four years later on the 49th anniversary of the incident the town and various entities organized the first official UFO Festival. Since then, Roswell has stamped itself with an identity forever linked to the 1947 event. Its high school teams have names like Coyotes and Rockets and Colts, but to the world, Roswell is symbolized by an alien. If that incident did not happen, I dont know if we [ Roswell] would be known worldwide, said Juanita Jennings, a city spokeswoman. For Roswell, the move has paid off. Jennings cited a 2019 market research study of the festivals financial impact on the city. That year, the event delivered $11.5 million in economic development and drew 11,500 people. The three-day event always leads to sold out hotels, packed restaurants and sidewalks full of vendors selling items often linked to UFOs. You can find little green men on T-shirts, hats, earrings, backpacks, coffee mugs and a big one holding up the sign at the Roswell Dunkin Donuts outlet. This is our biggest weekend of the year, she said. Local businesses produce more revenue in three days than they do in three months. The 1947 incident still fascinates people, Pope said, because it is the literal Ground Zero of modern UFO mysteries. That saga includes a potential government cover-up, military reports that the flying saucer was just a weather balloon gone awry in the storm and conspiracy theories saying the military has spent decades covering up what is a legitimate flying saucer crash. Welcome to alien nation Corona does not seem to be green with envy, though Roswell is probably green with the color of the money the UFO phenomenon pours into its coffers. Jennings likened the weekend celebration to three Black Fridays in a row for local businesses. Corona, meanwhile, seems quite content with the drive-through business it gets from truckers, temporary employees working on local construction or solar power projects and the occasional Roswell UFO historian who has heard Corona played a role in history. Rhonda Oord, who runs the Corona Motel which does boast one alien-themed room for guests said just the night before she had hosted a couple of people heading to the Roswell UFO festival. When we tell most people the crash was near here, they are very surprised, she said. She said this village with no stoplights, no lines in its lone local grocery store and not much business activity past 6 p.m. appeals to her sense of laid-back quietude. Another resident described Corona as a modern-day Mayberry, referring to Andy Griffiths long-running 1960s television comedy series about a small fictional town where everybody knew everybody, and everybody liked it that way. Seely, who was born and raised in Roswell and worked a ranch in the area for decades, can tell stories of seeing strange lights in the sky and of U.S. military operations playing out on her backyard in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. A UFO doesnt mean outer space, she said. It means you dont know what it is. Then she added: Something happened. But nobody knows what. Walking around the museum of relics that attract those who search the skies for signs of visitors from other planets, Seely said she was both amused and amazed Roswell has capitalized on the incident to the degree it has. Still, she said she harbors a dream that those people will channel their energies into more important activities. I always wondered what it would be like if people who show up for that festival went to a prayer meeting, she said with a laugh. 2022 The Santa Fe New Mexican (Santa Fe, N.M.) Visit www.santafenewmexican.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. (Tribune News Service) Some 134 years after he was buried on what once was a Greene County family farm, one of the nations biggest Air Force bases respectfully tends to the grave of U.S. Army Pvt. Hiram Honaker. Just south of state Route 235 on Wright-Patterson Air Force Bases Area A, the Air Force is the careful custodian of the grave of Honaker, an African-American Union Army veteran who served in Company A, 5th Regiment in what at the time was called the U.S. Colored Calvary. He is the only military veteran buried on Wright-Patterson, said Steven Byington, the 88th Civil Engineer Groups cultural resources manager. Honaker was buried in 1888 in what was then a family cemetery in the village of Osborn. Today, the plot is a small patch of grass near the north end of a base runway south of Loop Road, a brief drive from the bases air traffic control tower or its commercial traffic entry gate to the east. The original gravestone was unreadable when it was replaced in 1971. Henry Gonzalez, a congressman from San Antonio, Texas, asked the Army to provide a new stone when he read about Honaker in a news story. Thats sort of in perpetuity, Byington said of the bases custodianship of the cemetery. This is part of our history, and were cognizant of the history of this area, (the village of) Osborn and all the different families who gave up land for the Air Force base. Its something we take on as a serious part of our mission. Osborn was the village that was physically moved roof and rafter as local historians put it in the early 1950s in a merger with Fairfield, forming what today is the northwestern Greene County city of Fairborn. The 445th Airlift Wings C-17 Globemasters regularly roar above the cemetery. The wings hangars are a short walk away. Byington said the cemetery is the resting place to some 80 people, but only 45 grave markers are in place. The rest have been lost to floods, weather and the ravages of time. Motorists passing by on Chambersburg Road may be able to just make out a black fence surrounding the markers and monuments. I think there are a lot of folks who have driven by and sort of seen something out here, Byington said. They wonder what the fence is. Its hard to see the monuments from the roadway. But those familiar with Fairborns history and local genealogy may know something of the cemetery, he said. The son of enslaved people in Kentucky, Honaker has a humble marker. Not much is known about him. He signed up for military service at the estimated age of 38 near Louisville, Ky., in 1864 as a private. His son, George, enlisted with him. He was honorably discharged, also as a private, in Arkansas two years later. His service was primarily in Kentucky, Byington said. It is thought that he rode in cavalry raids of Virginia from Kentucky, most prominently against Saltville, Va., a major salt-producing area and a highly contested Civil War site, Byington said. According to the National Park Service, the 5th Colored Cavalry held the captured Confederate works for more than two hours while running low on ammunition before withdrawing at dusk. Of 400 soldiers engaged in the battle, about 114 enlisted men and several officers were killed or wounded, and the Park Service says a significant portion of Black soldiers were killed. In the U.S. forces retreat from Saltville, a number of wounded Federal soldiers were left behind. Black troops left behind were cruelly slaughtered by Confederates, according to a Park Service account of the battle. Honakers daughter, Lucy, is buried next to him, and it is thought that his wife, Rachel, is buried with him, although his gravestone does not reflect that. Byington said Honaker moved north at some point and found employment on the farm of the Cox family, a wealthy family with property in Osborn and Clark County. (c)2022 the Dayton Daily News (Dayton, Ohio) Visit www.daytondailynews.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. The Supreme Court ended its term Thursday with an important declaration: Using regulation as a shortcut to lawmaking will no longer fly. This limitation is long overdue. The shift emerged in the courts decision in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency, a highly anticipated environmental law case about the scope of the EPAs authority to regulate carbon emissions. The courts conclusion will impact not only emissions, but also regulation in many key policy areas of political and economic significance. The result may be a much-needed reinvigoration of Congress will to reclaim its legislative prerogative. The 6-to-3 opinion, written by Chief Justice John Roberts, found that the Obama administrations EPA overstepped its authority when it used a minor provision in the Clean Air Act to develop its far-reaching Clean Power Plan. The plan, which sought to regulate emissions from power plants, essentially would have shut down sizable portions of disfavored sectors of the energy industry, such as coal-powered plants. The court declared that the little-used Clean Air Act provision could not support the agencys sweeping claim of authority to shift the power industry from coal to renewable sources. The broader takeaway is this: If an agency tries to take significant action with national economic and political impact, the agency must identify clear statutory authority for that action to be lawful. Congress must legislate policy requirements and grant authority through statutes empowering federal agencies to act. For decades, congressional gridlock has hindered significant legislation of this kind in response to modern problems. Instead, our nations lawmakers have favored headline-grabbing or less-permanent action through oversight, commissions, investigations or patchwork solutions in appropriations and emergency legislation. The burdens of the legislative process are ones of design. The Constitution deliberately imposes high hurdles for the passage of legislation. Yet, administrative agencies have tried to sidestep this process by shoehorning preferred policies into attenuated authorities granted under old laws, justifying them with claims of necessity or emergency. Consider, for example, the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions claim of authority under a 1944 law to declare a national moratorium on evictions. Or the Occupational Safety and Health Administrations attempt, under a 1970 law, to impose a nationwide vaccine-or-test mandate in private workplaces. In both cases, the court held that the policy was unlawful. In West Virginia v. EPA, the court for the first time expressly identified a doctrine that limits federal agencies from claiming such broad, novel authorities by issuing regulations of vast economic and political significance. Titled the major questions doctrine, it posits that for a court to conclude agency action of national significance is lawful, Congress must have clearly granted the relevant authority. The court does not go so far as to require that an act explicitly address each potential regulatory proposal with specificity. But the four corners of the underlying statutory source must, by their terms, support the agency action. This will prevent agencies from claiming ever broader power from old, vaguely worded statutes as Congress sits on its hands. The court went to great lengths to show that this doctrine has been in place for decades, pointing to several additional past rulings. These included a 2000 decision that the Food and Drug Administrations regulation of tobacco was unlawful and a 2006 opinion that the Controlled Substances Act could not be enforced against the prescription of medication for assisted suicide. The practical consequences of this ruling will anger many who see agencies as essential generators of solutions to national problems. But the courts focus on Congress is critical to democratic accountability and constitutional process. Congress must serve as the institutional actor reaching consequential policy choices by majority vote. The Constitution embeds this mandate by vesting legislative power exclusively in Congress, which comprises elected representatives from every region and state. That rich and varied representation reflects diverse geographic and cultural interests with far greater reach than the monolithic representation of interests provided by a single agency or a single, nationally elected president. Under West Virginia v. EPA, overly general and outdated statutory language can no longer be the source of broad, novel regulatory initiatives. This holding will have far-reaching implications, potentially impacting a number of critical policy areas currently regulated under decades-old laws, including technology, telecommunications, health care and corporate governance. Lawmakers will now face greater pressure to reach policy consensus more routinely and update old regulatory schemes to address new technological and industrial innovations. Re-situating Congress as the locus of policy control better reflects democratic will and restores a more constitutional order. Jennifer L. Mascott is an assistant professor at Antonin Scalia Law School and the co-executive director of the C. Boyden Gray Center for the Study of the Administrative State. Eli Nachmany is a recent graduate of Harvard Law School and a senior research fellow at the Gray Center. HEIHE, China On the bank of the Amur River across from Russia, Wang Xuzhen sat scrubbing some shoes on a sunny afternoon. Wang, 67, has lived for decades within sight of Russia here on Chinas northeastern fringe, but she has never felt moved to take the short ferry ride to see Blagoveshchensk. She recalls how frightening the fortified border was before exchanges began in the 1980s. She tells her grandchildren not to forget a Russian massacre of Chinese residents more than a century ago. Near the water, a sign urges vigilance against spies. Despite the enduring wariness across the river, Wang is clear where she stands. When it comes down to it, she says, Russia and China are on the same team, resisting what she sees as Americas global meddling. She says Ukraine should have accepted its place in Russias sphere of influence instead of courting the United States and NATO. I support Russia, she said. Two neighbors have to stick together so they arent bullied. Wangs outlook mirrors that of many of her compatriots. Around the world, ideological lines are hardening. In the United States, politicians and lay citizens alike increasingly view international affairs through the lens of great-power competition against China and Russia. The same is the case in China, where many see the Ukraine war as a proxy conflict with the United States. Western governments have rallied to the cause of Ukraine, in Europe, and Taiwan, in Asia, calling them bastions of the free world that must not fall. In China, these moves are seen as worrisome attempts to ramp up the Western sphere of influence on the doorsteps of Russia and China. The widening ideological gulf is grist for Chinas government to shore up its standing at home by playing to nationalist sentiment, galvanizing citizens against an overseas enemy to distract from domestic troubles. It also raises the risk of further international conflict, as governments and militaries boost preparations for any great-power confrontation. In Heihe, many residents views on the Ukraine war dont stray far from Beijings official stance, and its hard to say where government propaganda ends and where grass-roots opinion begins. The effect of propaganda is particularly strong in China, where news programs are closely controlled, many international websites blocked and social media comments censored. People are regularly punished in China for political speech that diverges from the official line, and some in Heihe were wary of saying too much about the war in Ukraine. We shouldnt talk about it in the countryside, said Chi Xiude, a 78-year-old who grows cabbages on the citys outskirts. Its a war. It hurts the average people. Wang, though, could hardly contain her anger over U.S. geopolitical interventions abroad. She named her toy poodle Trump, after former president Donald Trump, so she can scold the dog: Cant you behave? What are you biting now? While sympathetic to the plight of Ukrainian civilians, she put the blame on Ukraines leaders for not pacifying Moscow. Once a little brother, always a little brother, Wang said. You should help each other. What are you doing, running around with the United States and those scum of the Earth? China-Russia relations have long been tenuous. After close cooperation between the Soviet Union and Mao Zedongs China in the early 1950s, relations turned bitter, leading to military clashes along the northeastern border in the 1960s. In recent years, Moscow and Beijing have found common cause against the West, with Chinas leader, Xi Jinping, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, touting a no limits relationship in February. Still, the two countries do not have a formal alliance, and the bond is often described as a marriage of convenience. On June 10, Chinas first highway bridge to Russia opened in Heihe, connecting it to Blagoveshchensk. The 4,200-foot bridge was a symbol of Beijings commitment to supporting Moscow one that Xi touted in a phone call with Putin on June 15. Local Chinese authorities have said the bridge will decrease shipping costs across the river. But this symbol of friendship isnt quite so clear-cut: The bridges construction was completed in November 2019, but the opening was delayed because of Chinas strict pandemic controls and negotiations over tolls. Although it can handle more than 600 trucks a day, the red-trimmed bridge had little use on a recent afternoon, with only a lone, empty flatbed truck seen making its way from Blagoveshchensk. China has been wary of violating Western sanctions on Russia that could trigger secondary sanctions on its companies. Nor is it willing to relax its zero covid measures for the sake of trade. Russian tourists have yet to be allowed back into Heihe, leaving the tourist town ghostly quiet. The two sides sometimes wave to each other as their boats pass at a distance over the Amurs coffee-brown waters. Chinese purchases of Russian oil and other commodities have soared, and Xi recently pledged trade with Russia will reach new records. But Chinas exports to its northern neighbor remain well below prewar levels, according to a study from the Peterson Institute of International Economics. Beijing has pushed back against Moscows requests for greater support in recent weeks, according to Chinese and U.S. officials, The Washington Post reported. The Chinese side has been very, very cautious about what kind of trade is going on, said Jacob Gunter, senior analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Germany. Despite Beijings efforts at caution, the Commerce Department on Tuesday put five Chinese companies on a trade blacklist for allegedly supplying Russias military or defense industry. Chinas Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Fishing on the bank of the Amur River, a Heihe resident who would only give his surname, Wang, said the Ukraine war had little to do with them, except for higher gas prices. But he said Heihe locals followed the news and knew what was going on. Theres no way wed support Ukraine, he said. The Americans are trying to cause trouble. Another Heihe resident, 57-year-old Liu Hongyao, agreed, saying Chinas fate was linked to Russias, so the two needed to hang together. He called Ukraine cannon fodder, saying he thought Western countries had somehow provoked it into a self-destructive confrontation with its powerful neighbor. If America wipes out Russia, then China is toast too, he said. Beijing has avoided calling Russias assault an invasion, and it has rebuffed Western requests for it to publicly denounce Moscow. The International Criminal Court is investigating evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine. A handful of figures in China have publicly criticized Moscow, including a group of university professors who published an open letter in February. As a country that was once ravaged by war, where families were destroyed, where everywhere people were dying of starvation ... [w]e sympathize with the pain of the Ukrainian people, it said. Chinese authorities have tamped down recent news of Russian atrocities toward civilians in Ukraine. But there is a different collective memory here in Heihe that is allowed. In 1900, amid Russia-China clashes, Russian Cossacks drove the Chinese residents on the far side of the Amur into the river, resulting in thousands of deaths. People in Heihe today continue to recount the horror in vivid detail, although it happened long before they were born. The river was full of blood, Liu said. The Aihui history museum on the outskirts of Heihe keeps alive the memory of that massacre in Blagoveshchensk, as well as other Chinese humiliations, such as when the Qing dynasty ceded a swath of land across the river to Russia in 1858. Wang said she had taken her grandchildren to the museum twice. I told the children, Never forget the nations humiliation, she said. A country must have strong national defense. Or look what happens. They cut the barbed-wire fence and pushed the peasants into the river. Lyric Li in Seoul contributed to this report. Edward Jones, a FORTUNE 500 firm, provides financial services in the U.S. and through its affiliate in Canada. The firm's nearly 19,000 financial advisors serve more than 8 million clients with a total of $1.7 trillion in client assets under care. Edward Jones' purpose is to partner for a positive impact to improve the lives of its clients and colleagues, and together, better our communities and society. Through the dedication of the firm's 50,000 associates and our branch presence in 68 percent of U.S. counties, the firm is committed to helping more people achieve financially what is most important to them. The Edward Jones website is edwardjones.com and its recruiting website is careers.edwardjones.com. Member SIPC. AL-TANF GARRISON, Syria A burst of Russian and Iranian maneuvers against U.S. interests in the Middle East has forced the regions new military commander toward an early reckoning over how to reestablish deterrence without sparking a wider conflict, a perennial problem that has taken on new urgency amid the global instability ignited by Moscows war in Ukraine. Army Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, who took charge of U.S. Central Command this spring, met in late June with dozens of the approximately 300 soldiers, Special Operations forces and foreign trainees stationed at this sprawling base in eastern Syria. The high-level visit occurred just days after Russian fighter jets attacked a combat post operated by Syrian opposition fighters inside the garrison. Russian military officials, citing a purported vehicle explosion they claimed had wounded Syrian government troops, notified the Americans of their intent 35 minutes prior, according to a U.S. military official. The Biden administration is presiding over a unique moment, as familiar threats like those posed by Iran and its proxies have, in ways, been overshadowed by Russias aggressive posture toward Europe and Chinas quest for regional dominance in the Pacific. As the U.S. government looks to reprioritize, key Middle Eastern allies including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Israel are growing impatient, acutely aware that Washingtons attention and war capital are being drawn elsewhere. It has given new urgency to a classic strategic challenge: How much harassment is the United States willing to tolerate, and how can it deter adversaries from testing Washingtons red lines? The biggest question U.S. policymakers have to wrestle with is that at some point, the Emiratis, Saudis, Israelis and other Middle Eastern allies, if they dont believe that the United States is going to deter Iran on its own, theyll be looking for ways to deter Iran by themselves, said Raphael S. Cohen, who researches military strategy and doctrine at the RAND Corporation. No U.S. personnel were harmed in the Russian strike on Tanf. But that was little solace to Kurilla, who characterized the incident as part of a wider attempt by U.S. adversaries to assert dominance in the region while betting that the United States will not mount a kinetic response. Theyre going to push to what they think our limits are going to be and then reestablish our red lines, Kurilla told those assembled in the bright morning desert sun. Were ready to come off the leash whenever the time comes, one U.S. service member interjected. Kurilla cracked a smile. I have no doubt, the general replied. The month of June saw multiple instances of what U.S. military officials have decried as provocative, escalatory, or unsafe and unprofessional acts by Russia and Iran. In addition to the strike here at Tanf, U.S. officials said they documented Russian aircraft menacing U.S. military planes over Syria through maneuvers that failed to adhere to long-established deconfliction protocols requiring that both sides assent to, not simply warn each other of, planned operations that could put either countrys personnel or interests in danger. Central Command declined to offer further details to bolster its claims. The brush with Russia has coincided with an escalation in provocations by Iran and its proxies, including a recent near miss at sea when fast-attack boats operated by Tehrans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps crept up on U.S. vessels in the Persian Gulf, coming within 50 yards of one. The Pentagon earlier this year scrambled in response to attacks, orchestrated by Iranian-affiliated rebels in Yemen, targeted U.S. and UAE troops at a base south of Abu Dhabi. Iran, the United States most formidable rival in the Middle East, has long been a preoccupation of CENTCOM commanders. Kurilla, who spent much of the spring traveling throughout the region and meeting with foreign counterparts, is fixated on the aggressive activity Tehran has gotten away with and frequently references a recent NBC News analysis that counted 29 attacks against U.S. targets since October that did not elicit a forceful response. The Tanf garrison, located along Syrias borders with Jordan and Iraq, still bears scars from an Iranian militia attack in October. Marks from where drones struck the compound are visible on a building near the U.S. militarys command center, where a whiteboard logs recent incidents within the 35-mile deconfliction zone that surrounds it. A floor-to-ceiling map of the area marks exactly what parts of the territory those threats have rendered vulnerable. The U.S. military has enough firepower here to beat back an attack, officials say: There are armored vehicles and two high-mobility artillery rocket systems with the range to hit anything encroaching on the deconfliction zone. But most of the time, as with U.S. assets elsewhere in the region, they sit unused because the perceived dangers of responding with force are adjudged to be too high. The last thing we want to do is start a conflict with Russia right now, Kurilla told the troops at the garrison. But, he added, we will defend ourselves ... We wont hesitate to respond. Russias aggressive actions against the United States have only complicated a balancing act in the Middle East that in recent years has dictated how the U.S. military manages its interests. Iran routinely tries to test where American red lines might be, and march up to that, said William Wechsler, director of Middle East programs at the Atlantic Council and a former high-ranking Pentagon official. Theyre trying to establish an accepted set of behaviors that work to their advantage ... and we have, in effect, largely accepted these malign norms of behavior over multiple administrations. For red lines to work, one of two dynamics must be in effect. One is that we understand our own red lines with great specificity internally and communicate those externally very clearly, Wechsler said. The second way is that if you have a degree of overwhelming power, then you can have a degree of strategic ambiguity. But I fear those days are behind the United States ... Fear of American power has faded in the last 20 years. In the Middle East, in particular, the United States is scaling down after decades of war in Afghanistan and Iraq. That creates opportunities for adversaries to flex, experts say, and show they are a force to be reckoned with. In the case of Russia, the obvious factor driving tensions with the United States is the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin is furious about the U.S.-led effort to constrain Moscow and arm Kyiv and its leaders, analysts say, are worried about losing clout elsewhere in the world. Kurilla attributed Russias increased bravado in Syria to Colonel-General Aleksandr Chayko, who has returned to the Middle East after stunted tenure commanding Russian forces in Ukraine. What we dont know is, is he a dog off-leash trying to reestablish himself? Kurilla said to U.S. troops at Tanf. What is the reason for some of this more aggressive behavior? There are questions as well about what is driving the escalation in attacks backed by Iran. Generally, they coincide with the long, slow breakdown of efforts to revive an international compact to constrain Tehrans nuclear ambitions. The incident in the Persian Gulf also tracks closely with the United States imposing new sanctions against Iranian petrochemical producers and tit-for-tat incidents between Greece and Iran involving the seizures of oil tankers. But there is another element at play: shifting signals from Washington. The Biden administration has not shown the lenience toward Russia espoused by his predecessor, nor the unsparingly hard line toward Iran. Unlike President Donald Trump, Biden has adopted a posture of defiance toward Moscow while putting greater emphasis on diplomacy with Tehran, though the administration insists it is not allowing provocations go unanswered. There is nothing President Biden takes more seriously than the security of U.S. personnel deployed overseas, said a National Security Council spokesperson, speaking on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House. This person said that the upon taking office, the Biden administration acted swiftly to deter attacks by Iran-backed groups, deploying a variety of tools, including military strikes, plus diplomatic and coercive measures. Not every response will be seen or visible, but Iran fully understands that the United States is prepared to respond directly to any threat against U.S. personnel, the spokesperson continued. Though U.S. government officials are coy about what would trigger a military response, there is a consensus among experts that one clear red line for the United States is the killing an American citizen. Deaths of Americans demand a response. Destruction to U.S. interests or U.S. partners and allies, its a question mark, said Matthew McInnis, a senior fellow with the Institute of the Study of War. Thats just where the American people are right now. (Tribune News Service) The chief security officer for the U.S. Supreme Court demanded that Maryland officials enforce laws against picketing in front of private houses, saying that "threatening activity" has increased in recent weeks. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh live in Montgomery County outside of Washington, D.C. Demonstrators have been protesting at both homes since a draft opinion of the ruling that ultimately overturned Roe v. Wade, which had legalized abortion nationwide, was leaked in May. Gail A. Curley, Marshal of the Court, sent letters on Friday to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich, noting that state and county law prohibit such protests in front of private homes. "For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have picketed Justices' homes in Maryland," Curley wrote to Hogan. "Earlier this week, for example, 75 protesters loudly picketed at one Justice's home in Maryland for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket another Justice's home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first Justice's home," she wrote. "This is exactly the kind of conduct that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit." Curley, who is responsible for investigating the leak of the draft opinion, didn't mention the justices by name in the letters. The offices of Hogan and Elrich didn't return requests for comment. In mid-May, the Justice Department provided security services to the Supreme Court and its justices as protests rose over the leaked opinion. Last month, a California man was charged with attempted murder after being arrested with a pistol outside of Kavanaugh's house and threatening to kill him. ___ 2022 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. DALLAS (Tribune News Service) Pete Arredondo will resign from his seat on the Uvalde City Council, he told the Uvalde Leader-News Friday. Arredondo, also the Uvalde Consolidated ISD police chief, was elected to the council position May 7 and was sworn into the role on May 31, behind closed doors. The swearing-in came less than a week after the May 24 massacre at Robb Elementary School that killed 19 children and two teachers the deadliest school shooting in Texas history. "After much consideration, I regret to inform those who voted for me that I have decided to step down as a member of the City Council for District 3," Arredondo told the Leader-News. "The mayor, the city council and the city staff must continue to move forward without distractions. I feel this is the best decision for Uvalde." Law enforcement has been widely criticized for the response in Uvalde. Eighty minutes elapsed between the first call to 911 and police confronting the shooter, who fired at least 142 rounds, according to a timeline from Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw. Arredondo said afterward he didn't believe he was in charge of the response. Yet, as one of the first responding officers, those at the scene looked to him for what to do. And he told officers not to enter the classrooms, even though children and teachers were still in danger. McCraw testified last month before the state Senate that Arredondo's decisions cost lives. "The only thing stopping a hallway of dedicated officers from [entering rooms] 111 and 112 was the on-scene commander who decided to place the lives of officers before the lives of children," McCraw said. "The officers have weapons, the children had none," he said. "The officers had body armor, the children had none. The officers had training, the subject had none." Arredondo previously asked for an extended leave from the City Council, but was denied the request in a meeting held June 21. He was placed on administrative leave from his position as police chief June 22. 2022 The Dallas Morning News. Visit dallasnews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. WASHINGTON The Texas Supreme Court ordered late Friday that the state's century-old abortion ban, struck down in Roe v. Wade in 1973, can be enforced immediately. That overrules a Harris County judge who had allowed abortion through six weeks to resume temporarily, and puts abortion providers and at risk of fines and lawsuits. The state's high court issued the order a week after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe and erased protection for abortion. It's a major setback for abortion providers left with few options after the ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health, though the order does not allow criminal charges against abortion providers. Texas is one of 13 states with a "trigger law" to ban abortion once Roe was scrapped. That law will take effect 30 days after the Supreme Court's ruling in Dobbs is final, which could be another six or seven weeks. But the Legislature never formally repealed the law struck down in Roe, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has pressed to dust off the 1925 statute immediately a law that abortion rights advocates called "antiquated." Those groups assert that courts ruled decades ago that Roe effectively repealed the 1925 ban, making it unenforceable. "Performing elective abortions has been a crime in Texas since (at least) 1854," Paxton's office argued before the state's high court. "It was a crime in 1973, when the United States Supreme Court erroneously found a right to elective abortion somewhere in the penumbras of the Constitution. And it was a crime on June 24, 2022, when that Court finally corrected its error." That, the state argued, means that allowing enforcement simply restores a legal status quo that was interrupted by Roe, albeit for 49 years. Paxton wants prosecutors in Texas to be able to press criminal charges under the 1925 law. He called the order a "pro-life victory" that "slapped down the abortion providers and the district court carrying their water. Our state's pre-Roe statutes banning abortion in Texas are 100% good law. Litigation continues, but I'll keep winning for Texas's unborn babies." In a filing with the Texas Supreme Court, the state argued that "unborn children will lose their lives in the absence of relief. This irreparable harm far outweighs Plaintiffs' asserted injury of being unable to prolong the Roe v. Wade regime a bit longer....Plaintiffs intend to immediately perform elective abortions under cover of the [temporary restraining order] and may have done so already." The Center for Reproductive Rights, American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Texas, Whole Woman's Health and a number of other abortion providers had asked a state district court in Houston to halt efforts to enforce the 1925. She issued a preliminary injunction on Tuesday and set arguments for July 12. The Texas Supreme Court's order keeps in place an injunction against district attorneys, averting any criminal enforcement of the ban. But it opens providers to civil penalties, including fines and loss of medical licenses. The court gave the attorney general's office and those supporting abortion rights until Tuesday afternoon to file more thorough briefs on the enforceability of the 1925 ban. "Just last year, the Legislature determined that its criminal ban on abortion would not take effect until 30 days after the U.S. Supreme Court issues its judgment in a decision overruling Roe v. Wade," the abortion rights groups argued before the state's high court, asserting that Paxton is overstepping his authority by claiming he can "put all Texans on `notice' that, months before that criminal ban takes effect, providing an abortion in Texas is a felony immediately." Under the penal code from 1925, any person who causes an abortion "shall be confined in the penitentiary not less than two nor more than five years." The new trigger ban says that anyone who provides an abortion faces 5 to 99 years in prison. That conflict, the groups, argued, shows the folly of Paxton's position that the 1925 law is still enforceable. "These laws are confusing, unnecessary, and cruel," said Marc Hearron, senior counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights, in response to the Texas Supreme Court's order. "Texas's trigger ban is not scheduled to take effect for another two months, if not longer. This law from nearly 100 years ago is banning essential health care prematurely, despite clearly being long repealed." Even without the 1925 ban, or the new trigger law, the state's six-week abortion ban remains in place. That ban, known as Senate Bill 8, is enforced through a novel scheme already mimicked in other states to empower legal vigilantes to sue doctors and anyone else who helps a woman end a pregnancy once fetal cardiac activity can be detected. Few lawsuits have been filed SB8 took effect Sept. 1. But the threat of ruinously costly lawsuits caused a sharp drop in the number of abortions in Texas. "Those criminal abortion statutes are not unconstitutional there is no reason [Texas] cannot enforce them again," now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in Dobbs that states have authority to ban abortion, Paxton's office argued. The only exception might be in Dallas County, where the longtime prosecutor Henry Wade was on the losing end of the challenge brought by a woman known in court papers as Jane Roe. "The Dallas County District Attorney might need to move for relief from the judgment in Roe v. Wade, but [Texas] and other prosecutors do not," Paxton's office argued. That's only hypothetical, though. The current Dallas district attorney, John Creuzot, is one of many big city prosecutors in Texas who say they'll refuse to enforce criminal abortion bans. "I want women... to rest assured that my office will not stand in the way of them seeking the health care they need," he tweeted shortly after the Dobbs ruling. "Bans on abortion disproportionately impact the poor, women of color and other vulnerable populations and endanger public safety which goes against the very core of policies I was elected to put in place." Tarrant County's district attorney does intend to pursue abortion prosecutions. "Extremist politicians are on a crusade to force Texans into pregnancy and childbirth against their will, no matter how devastating the consequences," said Julia Kaye, staff attorney at the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project. "We won't stop fighting to ensure that as many people as possible, for as long as possible, can access the essential reproductive health care they need." 2022 The Dallas Morning News. Visit dallasnews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. The shifting nature of the war in Ukraine has prompted a split among analysts and U.S. lawmakers, with some questioning whether American officials have portrayed the crisis in overly rosy terms while others say the government in Kyiv can win with more help from the West. The growing conjecture comes more than four months after Russias invasion and its failure to seize the capital. Russian President Vladimir Putin has since narrowed its objectives, focusing on capturing eastern Ukraines industrial Donbas region while launching thousands of artillery rounds per day at outgunned Ukrainian forces. President Joe Biden, speaking Thursday at a summit of NATO leaders, said the United States is rallying the world to stand with Ukraine and pledged to support the cause as long as it takes. I dont know ... how its going to end, the president said, but it will not end with a Russian defeat of Ukraine in Ukraine. U.S. officials acknowledge that as Russian forces have massed firepower, they have gradually seized territory in the east. That includes capturing the strategically important city of Sievierodonetsk in June and pressing to do the same in its nearby sister city, Lysychansk. Russia claimed control of the latter city on Sunday, while Ukrainian officials acknowledged their military had withdrawn. U.S. officials have downplayed the gains, calling them halting and incremental, while highlighting the significant number of Russian military fatalities that have come as a result. But Ukraine has sustained heavy casualties, too. Independent estimates indicate each side has seen tens of thousands of soldiers killed and wounded. The Pentagon has largely refused to publicly discuss its assessments of killed and wounded. The Defense Departments overriding concern about discussing the Ukraine military is balancing what can be said at an unclassified level and not providing an unintended assessment that Putin can use to his advantage, Pentagon spokesman Todd Breasseale said. Were simply not going to do Russias BDA or intel work for them, Breasseale said, using a military acronym for battle damage assessment. However, I think we have discussed what we can, when it is knowable, demonstrable and objective. The scrutiny is fueled by U.S. government assessments of other wars, notably in Afghanistan, where U.S. officials habitually glossed over widespread dysfunction and corruption and sidestepped questions of whether battlefield successes were not only achievable but sustainable. Successive administrations insisted Afghan forces were in the lead even as their performance was often deeply flawed and their survival depended on U.S. logistical support and air power. The Biden administration has committed more than $6.9 billion in weapons and other security assistance to Ukraine since Russias Feb. 24 invasion, while encouraging other Western allies to provide similar help. The weapons have become increasingly sophisticated, with recent packages including the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, surface-to-air missile defense systems and launchers for Harpoon anti-ship missiles. Several observers said what the Biden administration says about the war in Ukraine appears to be accurate but that the Pentagon sometimes withholds information that would be unflattering to Ukrainian partners or highlight limitations on U.S. support. Kori Schake, director of foreign and defense policy studies at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, said that with Ukraine, as opposed to Afghanistan, the Pentagon lacks the incentive to perennially say the army that it is supporting is turning a corner. There are no known U.S. troops involved in the conflict, limiting the administrations interest in making such pronouncements, she said. But Schake criticized what she characterized as Pentagon officials congratulating themselves about the type and amount of weapons they are providing while leaving out that the United States could send more, faster. Our sense of self-satisfaction and complacency and confidence is actually a disservice to Ukraine, she said, calling such complacency practically and morally suspect. Schake assessed that Ukraine forces are able to win the war and probably in the process of accumulating arms ahead of a major counteroffensive that cannot begin until they have enough to repel the Russians. We just need to slam the gas pedal on the floor and help them succeed as fast as possible, she said. A Ukraine lawmaker, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, shared similar concerns. The flow of American weapons often is not fast enough, the official said, noting that the rate of howitzer artillery fire, in particular, could soon outpace supply. We need a lot of this for yesterday, not even tomorrow, he said. We are losing the most valuable thing: our soldiers and officers. Thats why we need heavy weapons faster, and as much as possible. Others more wary of U.S. involvement in Ukraine see Washingtons assessments as incomplete for different reasons. Benjamin Friedman, a policy director at Defense Priorities, said that Ukraines stated objective to push Russian forces out seems increasingly unrealistic and that the Biden administration must do more to press Ukraine to negotiate with Russia and strive for a political settlement. Nobody wants them to cede territory, or hardly anyone wants them to cede territory, Friedman said. But you have to assess the situation honestly and say that youre trading peace for territory. I think we should be doing more to pressure them, and I think were sort of doing a disservice not just to regular Ukrainians, but to a lesser extent Americans and everyone else who is suffering economic problems because of the war. Friedman said the U.S. government is spinning for Ukraine for the obvious reason that we are rooting for them and because a more blunt assessment of Ukrainian losses or liabilities might assist Russia. Its natural, he said, not to criticize the people youre fighting with, and certainly not in public. Feelings are similarly split on Capitol Hill. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., said he does not think the administration is spinning what is happening in Ukraine. Overselling success against Russia could undermine future support from Congress, he said, when there has been a remarkably trusting and congenial dialogue about the war since it began. Moulton, a former Marine Corps officer and combat veteran, said that the story of this conflict is the degree to which the administration is disclosing large amounts of detail about what is happening in Ukraine, and that it has been remarkably open and candid in what is going on. We didnt tell the American public what ISIS was going to do next, Moulton said, referring to the Islamic State terrorist group, or what the insurgents in Afghanistan were going to do next. But thats exactly what weve done with Putin. While U.S. support for Ukraine has engendered a degree of bipartisanship seldom seen in Washington, Republicans still see challenges for the administration. Rep. Peter Meijer, R-Mich., said the fighting now has a well-defined line of conflict, with territory changing hands slowly. It can be difficult, he said, to understand the nuance of what is coming next as a result. I think thats the fundamental challenge, is we dont really know, he said. But we know it probably is not going to be quick. The Pentagons role is to communicate what the Defense Department is doing and why, Meijer said. The administration doesnt have the greatest track record of communicating accurate analytical statements to the American public that dont quickly collapse when events change, he said, alluding in part to early predictions from top U.S. officials that Putins military would quickly topple the government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Think of the prognosis on how long the Afghan government would hold after the Aug. 31 withdrawal date, Meijer said. Think of the initial estimates of how quickly Kyiv would fall in the wake of a Russian invasion. Meijer, who served in Army intelligence units, said the truth can be watered down, so its as inoffensive as possible when intelligence is shared with senior U.S. officials and presidential appointees. Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., also pointed to last summers evacuation of Afghanistan, saying that while administration officials highlighted how many planes of evacuees they were able to move per day, they often downplayed the overall strategic debacle. In the end, thousands of Afghan interpreters and other allies in the war were left behind. I think in Ukraine, theyre very much focused on the amount of stuff that theyre moving and the speed with which theyre moving it once its approved by the White House and I think losing sight of the fact that Russian is grinding the Ukrainian military down, he said. Waltz said that while the Pentagon is looking through the very narrow parameters of the mission it has received from the White House, it also has a responsibility to the American people to see the forest through the trees. Theyre describing their success and their very narrow mission set, but what theyre not explaining is: Does that mission set meet American interests? Waltz said. Waltz said the United States is good at seeing where the front lines of the war are and assessing where tanks, ships and planes are on the battlefield. It is more difficult, he said, to assess the accuracy of what the Ukrainian Defense Ministry tells the U.S. military, how well the equipment the United States provides is being used, how quickly ammunition is being launched and whether any is disappearing onto the black market because of corruption. As Biden faces criticism from Republicans, he also is vulnerable to pressure from the left flank of his party, which already is looking for an exit strategy. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said that while he applauds the administrations objective in stopping Russia from seizing Kyiv, the United States cannot resign itself to a prolonged, never-ending conflict that is wreaking havoc on the American economy and the global economy. I believe we should declare victory for the presidents efforts in standing up for a sovereign Ukraine. We should say we won. The Russians lost. They did not achieve their fundamental objective, he said. Democrats, he said, are not resigned to support Ukraine at all costs. People dont want to see a resigned attitude that this is just going to go on as long as its going to go on, Khanna said. What is the plan on the diplomatic front? The Washington Posts Alex Horton contributed to this report. The driver was head-butted on the nose and punched twice in the face. He was then attacked outside the bus and was bitten twice on the arm, leaving teeth marks A man who head-butted, punched and bit a bus driver in what a judge has described as one of the worst attacks on a public service worker has been jailed. Brendan Gilmore previously pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm and causing criminal damage to a bus shelter. Police were called to Gibsons Lane in Newtownards last October following a report that a Translink bus driver had been assaulted. The driver told police that Gilmore appeared intoxicated when he boarded the bus and was looking in his pockets for a ticket, which he couldnt find, and he told the driver to take him to Portaferry. When told that the bus was going to Belfast, the defendant became agitated and aggressive, shouting abuse around the bus. When the driver, concerned for passengers, got out of his cabin he was head-butted on the nose by Gilmore and was punched twice in the face. The driver was then attacked outside the bus and was bitten twice on the arm, leaving teeth marks. Both men fell through a bus shelter causing injuries to both parties. READ MORE: Exclusive: Sick predator pictured moments after trying to snatch runner in broad daylight READ MORE: Man who had unprotected sex with underage girl he plied with drink and drugs jailed The bus driver attended hospital and received five stitches to his hand. His account of what happened was corroborated by other witnesses. Newtownards Magistrates Court was told Gilmore was restrained by members of the public until police arrived. Gilmore, from Ashlea Place in Lisburn, said he could not recall the events because he was intoxicated. His lawyer said alcohol was the root cause of what unfolded and Gilmore is very ashamed. The court was told Gilmore had been off alcohol for a substantial period as part of bail conditions. Sentencing Gilmore to 14 months, 10 of which are to be spent in jail, the judge described what happened as appalling and said the bus driver was simply trying to do his job. Bail was fixed at 400 pending appeal of the sentence. Kevaeh Sheehy was born just one month after her father, the talented Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, was brutally mown down by Englishman Logan Jackson on July 1, 2019. Tracey Tully, mother of murdered champion Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, and Mr Sheehyall daughter Kevaeh (2) at a gathering today, Friday, July 1, to commemorate the third anniversary of Kevin Sheehys murder. Photo by Dave Gaynor. Story by David Raleigh Undated handout photo of Kevin Sheehy, who died after he was knocked down on the Hyde Road in Limerick at around 4.40am this morning. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Monday July 1, 2019. An investigation has been launched after a 20-year-old man was killed in a suspected hit-and-run in Limerick. The sportsman died at the scene after he was hit by a black SUV, partial registration plate number WV52, which failed to remain at the scene. See PA story POLICE Crash Ireland. Photo credit should read: Ken Moore/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. PA Tracey Tully, mother of murdered champion Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, and Mr Sheehyall daughter Kevaeh (2) at a gathering today, Friday, July 1, to commemorate the third anniversary of Kevin Sheehys murder. Photo by Dave Gaynor. Kevin Sheehy, who died after he was knocked down on the Hyde Road in Limerick at around 4.40am this morning. Photo. : PRESS ASSOCIATION PA Tracey Tully, mother of murdered champion Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, holding a chocolate bar with a printed cover image of her late son The daughter of Limerick champion boxer Kevin Sheehy paid a touching tribute to the murdered dad she never met on the third anniversary of his death on Friday. Kevaeh Sheehy was born just one month after her father, the talented Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, was brutally mown down by Englishman Logan Jackson on July 1, 2019. These photographs show Keveah (2) placing her hands on a sign left at a family gathering held in honour of her dad. Tracey Tully, mother of murdered champion Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, and Mr Sheehyall daughter Kevaeh (2) at a gathering today, Friday, July 1, to commemorate the third anniversary of Kevin Sheehys murder. Photo by Dave Gaynor. As her family prepares for a High Court battle to keep her fathers killer imprisoned in this country, Kevaeh and her extended family gathered to remember Kevin as the champ, the family man and the hero that he was. Its like the day had been planned from heaven above, Kevins mum Tracey Tully told Sunday World. Its a very hard day for us all, the anniversary of Kevins death. But Im so proud of each and every one of my family for marking yesterday as Kevins Day. A gathering today, Friday, July 1, to commemorate the third anniversary of Kevin Sheehys murder. Photo by Dave Gaynor. Yesterday was almost overwhelming for me, because Ive spent so much time in bed. But Im proud of myself for getting out of that bed and Im so blessed with the family who organised this, leading up to the anniversary. We are a very big, close family, Tracey added."We are like The Waltons, thats what Kevin used to call us. Kevin was just 20 when the five-times Irish champion suffered catastrophic and fatal head injuries after being repeatedly struck by a vehicle driven by Jackson, of Longford Road, Coventry, England outside a house party at Hyde Road Limerick. Undated handout photo of Kevin Sheehy, who died after he was knocked down on the Hyde Road in Limerick at around 4.40am this morning. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Monday July 1, 2019. An investigation has been launched after a 20-year-old man was killed in a suspected hit-and-run in Limerick. The sportsman died at the scene after he was hit by a black SUV, partial registration plate number WV52, which failed to remain at the scene. See PA story POLICE Crash Ireland. Photo credit should read: Ken Moore/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. PA Following a trial before the Central Criminal Court last December Jackson was convicted of Kevins murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. However, 31-year-old Jackson then applied to Minister for Justice Helen McEntee for a transfer from Ireland to a prison in the UK where he can serve out his sentence. In judicial review proceedings against the Minister for Justice, Tracey has challenged that decision and is seeking an order from the Court quashing the transfer. Tracey Tully, mother of murdered champion Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, and Mr Sheehys daughter Kevaeh (2) Photo by Dave Gaynor. A stay was put on the transfer of Jackson to a prison near his family in England pending the outcome of High Court proceedings. Lawyers representing Minister McEntee are fully contesting the application, which will be heard on July 15. Ill do whatever it takes to keep fighting for Kevin, Tracey said. I didnt know very much about the justice system going into it but I knew straight away that this was wrong (to send Jackson back to England). Tracey fears that if the transfer goes ahead, she will not have any say, nor be able to make any submissions to the UK authorities when Jackson applies for parole. Tracey Tully, mother of murdered champion Irish boxer Kevin Sheehy, and Mr Sheehys daughter Kevaeh (2). Photo by Dave Gaynor. She has stated that if the transfer goes ahead any decision on a parole application by her sons killer would be in the hands of the authorities in another jurisdiction. She claims the Ministers decision to allow the transfer to go ahead is unconstitutional and an abdication of the Irish states responsibility to determine when a person serving a life sentence may be paroled. I still feel confident (that Jacksons transfer) will be halted, Tracey said. But as it gets closer to the date of the hearing, I am starting to get anxious because I feel like Im running out of time. I have so many people backing me but I had to go to my doctor to get some sleeping tablets because Im awake every night. It never leaves my mind. I just feel like theres been an awful injustice been done here. Tracey explained that she was never informed when the Justice Minister granted Jackson a transfer from Limerick Prison to a UK jail last March. Weve never been considered at all, she added. It was never taken into consideration just how hard this was going to be on all of us. The decision was made and that was itDone and dusted. I dont know how anyone could make a decision like that, after all we had been through. Speaking about Fridays event, Tracey added: It was so special. We all wore blue, as that was the colour Kevin wore when he was fighting away from home. Stephen Cooper forced a woman to take part in a strip search after he claimed she had stolen drugs from him. He told her I used to be a Garda, I know how to do this A vile ex-garda convicted of brutally assaulting two women has been placed on protection on the G3 sex offenders landing in the Midlands Prison to serve out a six-year stint behind bars. A Sunday World investigation into sicko ex-copper Stephen Cooper who forced one of his victims to submit to an internal examination with his bare hand can today reveal how: During a previous stint in the Midlands for drug possession and perverting the course of justice, Cooper was accused of orchestrating an assault on himself to try to force a move to an open prison On being released from jail for those offences, Cooper set himself up as gym gear provider Grip Gym Gear posting images on his website of unwitting celebrities, including former Miss World Rosanna Davison and coach John Kavanagh using his gym gear; The 37-year-old also posed alongside unwitting charity workers belonging to the Suicide or Survive organisation to bolster his credentials as a respectable businessman; And he set up a LinkedIn profile detailing his career on which he erased his history as a disgraced garda and instead highlighted a four-month stint volunteering with the Peter McVerry Trust and his support for animal welfare, education, health and human rights. But Coopers self-portrayal as a respectable businessman hid the darker side of a character that now sees him housed on protection alongside some of the most notorious sex offenders in the country. On Tuesday, the shocking details emerged of how Cooper and sicko pal Stephen McGrath carried out drug and alcohol assaults on two women, which culminated in one woman being bundled into a van and told she would be driven to the mountains and buried. During the ordeal in April 2021, former Garda Cooper forced a woman to take part in a strip search after he claimed she had stolen drugs from him. Cooper threatened the woman and then told her: I used to be a garda, I know how to do this and if you werent a thief, I wouldnt have to do this. After forcing the crying woman to strip, Cooper then inserted his fingers into her body and repeatedly told her to shut up. This assault took place at a house in Naas, Co Kildare, at the tail end of a four-day drink and drug binge that had begun in a hotel elsewhere in the county. Cooper, his accomplice Stephen McGrath (37) and a second woman then moved to a house in Ashfield, Kilteel Road, Rathcoole, Co Dublin. When the two men began accusing this woman of stealing cocaine from them, McGrath began a prolonged and vicious assault, kicking and punching the woman repeatedly and tearing clumps of her hair out. Both men told her at one point that they were going to bring her up the mountains and bury her. They then tried to lift her into the back of a van but she began screaming and kicking out and they stopped and instead put her in the footwell of the front seat. Cooper handed McGrath a small multi-tool knife and McGrath told the woman I am going to stick that in your head. Cooper said to McGrath: You have to take care of her or we are both f***ed, prosecuting counsel, Edward Doocey BL, told the court. McGrath drove off with the woman as she begged him to let her live and told him she had a child. She later told gardai that every time she opened her mouth, he punched her. He also pulled down her trousers and underwear and stuck his finger aggressively into her anus. At their sentence hearing at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, Judge Martin Nolan said that the mens behaviour was cruel beyond extreme, reprehensible and shameful. To say they ill-used these women would be a gross understatement. They terrified them, they threatened them, they assaulted them, he said. Cooper, of Kingswood Heights, Tallaght, Dublin, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm of the first woman at a place in Naas. He also pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to the second woman at Rathcoole, making a threat to kill her and to production of an article capable of inflicting harm. Cooper was previously jailed in 2014 for perverting the course of justice and drug dealing after he allowed a friend to take the blame when gardai found the drug LSD during a search at the Electric Picnic music festival. According to his LinkedIn, it was during the run-up to his sentencing that he volunteered with the Peter McVerry Trust a move he believed would have garnered him some favour at sentencing. Instead, he was hit with a three-year sentence. While on protective custody in the Midlands, Cooper was subjected to an assault by another inmate, Ger Brown, who was convicted of assault causing serious harm in the Circuit Court and sentenced to three years in prison. Brown later unsuccessfully appealed the sentence to the Supreme Court claiming Cooper had asked to be assaulted in an effort to be transferred to an open prison. Brown accepted he hit Cooper on the top of the head, using a mug in a sock. But he claimed Cooper had suggested he pretend to attack him while Cooper was being escorted to the gym and alleged Cooper had said dont hold back and just make sure there is blood. He claimed Cooper told him in return he would give Brown sensitive documents and information, plus 1,000 cash. After his release from prison, Cooper set up Grip Gym Gear, a company supplying bespoke steel gym equipment to health and fitness centres across Dublin. On the companys Facebook page, he posted images of unsuspecting celebrities like Rosanna Davison using his equipment in an effort to boost sales. On May 25, 2019, Cooper supplied spin bikes to the Suicide or Survive charity for a fundraiser in the capital. The charity later posted a picture of two staff members with Cooper thanking the amazing Stephen from Grip Gym Gear for his support not knowing Coopers past or that in a few short months he would again unravel and revert to his chaotic drug-taking lifestyle. Contacted this week, a staff member with the charity said it had no knowledge of Coopers background. At Tuesdays sentencing, Maurice Coffey SC, defending, said after serving time for the earlier offences Cooper got his life together, married and set up a business. He said his marriage broke down and his business was hit by Covid, and Cooper fell back into drug use and his life spiralled out of control. Sentencing Cooper and McGrath, Judge Martin Nolan said both men had entered guilty pleas which were practical indications of their remorse and shame and saved the victims the trauma of coming to court. I doubt either man would come before this court again for anything remotely as serious, he said. He said both men came from good families and have brought great shame to their families. He sentenced Cooper to total of six years in prison and McGrath to a total of eight years. Kampgrounds of Americas Billie Gunn has been promoted to executive director, finance & accounting and Lyndsey Geering joins as the companys controller. KOA announced staffing changes within finance and accounting as a response to the companys growth over the last two years. Promoted into a newly created executive director, finance & accounting role, KOAs Billie Gunn will create company-wide financial efficiencies and reporting tools. Additionally, KOA welcomes Lyndsey Geering as the organizations new controller. Previously serving as KOAs controller for over five years, Gunn has displayed a passion for designing and implementing efficiencies to keep KOA compliant, modern and relevant. Her desire to bring more modern systems to KOA has begun revolutionizing the companys accounting during her tenure. Across her work at KOA, its been apparent that Billie has big, innovative ideas for how our organizations accounting functions can evolve, said Chris Scheer, chief financial officer of Kampgrounds of America. She created an impressive plan that includes overhauling our policies and processes, implementing better systems and software, and even changing how we hire and develop our accountants. This role will allow Billie to bring her detailed plan to life and propel KOA forward. In her new role, Gunn will serve as a key member of KOAs executive leadership team as her work will have a positive impact within each department in the organization. Gunn achieved a masters of professional accountancy from Montana State University. A Montana-native, she was raised in Custer. Filling the role of controller, Geering will oversee KOAs daily accounting operations and reporting requirements. She will work with Scheer and Gunn to guide the companys strategic financial decisions, bringing new perspectives from her extensive experience outside of KOA. Spending nearly 14 years in public accounting, Geering most recently held roles as controller and interim chief financial officer for two private equity-owned, national healthcare companies. Outside of her accounting duties, Geering is also passionate about community involvement and currently is a board member and vice president of Big Sky Senior Services. Born and raised in Billings, Geering attended Montana State University where she obtained a bachelors degree in business with an accounting option. Street battle | Shocking video showing bare-chested men brawling in Galway is probed by gardai Yes, it is the low fares carrier of the car world but the truth is that the Romanian company (owned by Renault since 1999) know exactly what they are doing. And they do it very well. Dacia has long been the butt of the jokes in the automotive world, but in recent years thanks to the Sandero and the all-conquering Duster it has turned a corner. Yes, it is the low fares carrier of the car world but the truth is that the Romanian company (owned by Renault since 1999) know exactly what they are doing. And they do it very well. Especially now that they have discontinued the Logan which was just a shambles of a car. Thankfully for car enthusiasts who dont care about the badge as long as the car is either fun or great value, or both, Dacia has given us the two absolute crackers so far in their award-winning mini SUV and compact cars. So when the much-improved car company announced last year that they were about to release a seven-seater we got very excited. Well, I did anyway. Imagine Ryanair bought a bigger plane and decided to offer long haul flights. If the Sandero is a flight to Stansted and the Duster is a flight to Faro then the Jogger is a Ryanair flight to NYC. Its bigger and bolder than anything theyve done before. And while some of its design features have come under fire from some quarters I want to tell you why we should embrace them. For starters, the front end of the car right up to the B Pillar is basically a Sandero. From there it grows 40mm in height and extends more than two metres more out the back to accommodate two more rows of seats. In using the Sandero front, Dacia have saved a fortune on manufacturing and design costs meaning they can pass that saving onto the customer. And that is why you can have a Jogger sitting in your driveway for less than 25k. Even my fully-loaded pimped out version only came in at 27,185. Yes, you read that right. Thats 8k less than a Ford Tourneo Connect, 11k less than an entry-level Citroen Grand C4 SpaceTourer, 15k less than an entry-level Peugeot 5008 and a mind-boggling 24k less than the discontinued SEAT Alhambra. So, what do you get? Well actually you get more than youd expect. This is far from stripped back of all its best possible features. Rear view cameras, heated seats, touch screens and sat nav are all part of the middle and upper spec versions. Dacia have cleverly introduced a phone holder to their entry-level spec that allows you to pop your phone on and use it as a touch screen once you launch the Dacia app. This is full of clever ideas like that. Even the roof rail adjusts to facilitate roof boxes and bike racks of different shapes and sizes. Another clever idea was having back row seats that come out of the car completely if you want to create extra space. The folded-down version of row three isnt amazing for boot space so the designers quickly came up with the idea to make them pop out easily. Speaking of row three, there is more leg and head room than you would expect, and while my knees were up against the seats in front, I wasnt uncomfortable. That makes this a rare seven-seaterits an adult seven seater. Moving forward, row two is perched a few inches higher than you would normally have giving the kids a much better view out their windows. They each have airplane trays too attached to the front seats that cleverly slide out to reveal a cup holder. The front row of the car is the same as the Sandero but thats not a bad thing. It didnt win Compact Car of the Year at the recent motor awards for nothing. There is a lot of plastic on the interior panelling but it is not completely devoid of personality as there is a nice upholstered finish to some sections making the overall look much more appealing. Driving wise its short of fun, but it is a brilliant car. Its around 1litre and it comes in a six-speed manual gearbox with 110 bhp and 200Nm of torque. It corners well and soaks way more bumps and lumps than you would expect from such a good value car. The one thing that you may notice more is that it is noisier than most other cars. Most sound deadeners (such as carpeted floors) have been take out so when you get heavy on the accelerator you will find that you may need to turn the music up; or speak louder to your passengers. But its a small price to pay for having this giant people carrier sitting in your driveway for potentially less than 25k. I know a lot of people will not consider this car for their next purchase but I am here to tell you that you absolutely should. Reality bites | Shark attacks lifeguard during training exercise in Long Island, New York The lifeguard had been playing the role of a victim during a training exercise when the shark bit him in the chest and hand A shark. Photo: Stock AP Sun 3 Jul 2022 at 22:27 Officials in New York closed a Long Island beach to swimming on Sunday after what they described as an unprecedented shark attack that injured a lifeguard. It could not immediately be determined how many hikers were in the area or whether any were missing, said Walter Milan, a spokesperson for the national Alpine rescue corps as he confirmed six people had been killed. At least six people have been killed and another eight were injured when a chunk of an Alpine glacier broke loose and slid down a mountainside in Italy, sending ice, snow and rock slamming into a popular hiking trail. It could not immediately be determined how many hikers were in the area or whether any were missing, said Walter Milan, a spokesperson for the national Alpine rescue corps as he confirmed six people had been killed. Rescuers were checking licence plates in the carpark as part of checks to determine how many people might be unaccounted for, a process that could take hours, Mr Milan said. Nationalities or ages of the dead were not immediately available. The area where a glacier collapsed on Marmolada mountain, Italy. Photo: Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico/ via Reuters via REUTERS Of the eight hospitalised survivors, two were in grave condition, emergency dispatch services said. The National Alpine and Cave Rescue Corps tweeted that the search of the involved area of Marmolada peak involved at least five helicopters and rescue dogs. "There are five dead among the people hit by the detachment of the serac," the emergency service's initial tweet said, referring to a technical term for a pinnacle of a glacier. "There are eight injured, two of them in grave condition." The emergency dispatch service, which is based in the nearby Veneto region, said 18 people who were above the area where the ice struck will be evacuated by the Alpine rescue corps. The dispatch service said the avalanche consisted of a "pouring down of snow, ice and rock". Marmolada, towering about about 11,000 feet, is the highest peak in the eastern Dolomites. "A breaking away of rock provoked the opening of a crevasse on the glacier, leaving about 15 people involved," the emergency dispatchers tweeted. The Alpine rescue service said in a tweet that the segment broke off near Punta Rocca (Rock Point), "along the itinerary normally used to reach the peak". It was not immediately clear what caused the section of ice to break away and rush down the peak's slope. But the intense heatwave gripping Italy since late June could be a factor, Mr Milan said. "The heat is unusual," he said, noting that temperatures in recent days on the peak had topped 10C. "That's extreme heat. Clearly it's something abnormal." The injured were flown to several hospitals in the regions of Trentino-Alto Adige and Veneto, according to rescue services. Barker, who is married to reality TV star Kourtney Kardashian, said he was "so very, very grateful that with intensive treatment I am currently much better. Travis Barker has confirmed he was admitted to hospital with "severe life-threatening pancreatitis". The 46-year-old Blink-182 drummer was pictured earlier this week being carried into Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles on a stretcher. Pancreatitis is an inflammation of the pancreas, a small organ located behind the stomach that helps with digestion. Writing on Twitter, Barker said he had gone for an endoscopy "feeling great" but after dinner developed "excruciating pain" and had been receiving treatment in hospital ever since. He said: "During the endoscopy, I had a very small polyp removed right in a very sensitive area, usually handled by specialists, which unfortunately damaged a critical pancreatic drainage tube. "This resulted in severe life-threatening pancreatitis." Barker, who is married to reality TV star Kourtney Kardashian, said he was "so very, very grateful that with intensive treatment I am currently much better". Kardashian also shared a statement online, describing the last week as "scary and emotional". "Our health is everything and sometimes we take for granted how quickly it can change," she wrote on Instagram. "Travis and I went in for a routine endoscopy together and he ended up with severe, life-threatening pancreatitis. "I am so grateful to God for healing my husband, for all of your prayers for him and for us, for the overwhelming outpouring of love and support. "I am so touched and appreciative." Kardashian, who recently changed her surname on her official Instagram page to Barker-Kardashian, thanked the specialists, doctors and nurses at Cedars-Sinai for taking care of her husband and her during their stay. She added: "It's crazy how sometimes words could never truly express the gratitude or feelings I have inside of me." News that Barker had been admitted to hospital earlier this week prompted messages of support from the worlds of music and celebrity. On Thursday, his daughter Alabama, 16, thanked friends and fans for their "prayers and love". Barker has two children with his ex-wife and model Shanna Moakler, a former Miss USA - 18-year-old Landon and Alabama. One woman said that when she was 23, Randall Emmett made clear that to receive acting work from [him], she would have to perform sexual favors A top producer on the hit movie The Irishman is facing allegations that he offered actresses movie roles in exchange for sex. The Los Angeles Times has claimed that Randall Emmett is implicated of sexual misconduct in addition to unethical business practices marked by debt and expanded litigation. Lawyer Gloria Allred is representing one woman who said that when she was 23, Emmett made clear that to receive acting work from [him], she would have to perform sexual favors. The woman, who did not reveal her name out of fear of repercussions, said that she once asked Emmett in a text message if she had received a role she tried out for, and he wrote back, Yes. one day of work and u need to f*** me hun. The LA Times claims it published the piece based on hundreds of court filings, internal company records and interviews with dozens of former associates who corroborated that the 51-year-old faces a mountain of debt, lawsuits and abuse allegations. However, the movie producer has denied all allegations in the article, telling Page Six via his spokeswoman, Sallie Hofmeister, This stems from one allegation dating back from 2012 that Randall denies. The movie producer also blames his ex-fiancee, Vanderpump Rules star Lala Kent, and her alleged smear campaign. These allegations are false and part of a now-familiar smear campaign orchestrated by Randalls ex-fiancee to sway their custody dispute, Hofmeister has been quoted as saying. Lala Kent has lied and manipulated others in her desperate attempt to win full custody of her daughter, keep her name in the press and remain relevant in reality television. Kents rep declined to comment. However, Page Six claims that a source said: This piece was clearly [done with] many, many sources over many, many months of reporting by the LA Times. Lala was a small part of this whole story. The article is really focused on Randalls shady business practices for the last 10 years-plus. Another woman claims the Irishman producer direct-messaged on Instagram and sent her unsolicited messages in early 2022. The 30-year-old, who is based in Las Vegas, claimed in a declaration filed in Emmetts custody proceeding that he asked her to fk on the dl, meaning down low, and to do heroin and meth, according to the report. I was shocked, concerned and afraid because Randall is a stranger to me, the woman wrote in the court document obtained by the publication. His persistence despite my never responding to a single message from him is frightening. Hofmeister told the LA Times her client has been sober for almost a year and provided negative drug tests. The crisis-management publicist told Page Six: This allegation conveniently arose in his custody proceeding with Lala, who could provide no forensic proof that these texts were not spoofed using one of many apps. Needless to say the judge gave this no credence. In addition, Randall provided the Times with unimpeachable proof that he had tested negative for drugs during this period and continues to be drug-free. A third woman, who also chose to remain anonymous, shared with the LA Times her own experience with Emmett. She said that in 2014, the Lone Survivor producer approached her in his Rolls-Royce as she was leaving a bar and allegedly said to her, Im not a creep, I promise. Im a movie producer, you can Google me please Google me. Emmett denied the incident occurred. Current Print Subscribers will be prompted to either login to their current site user account or to create a new one. A confirmation email will be sent when a new user account is created, which must be confirmed within three days in order to provide uninterrupted online access through your Print Subscription. Once the email address is confirmed please provide your Account Number to activate your Print Subscription Service. During challenging times like the ones we are currently facing it is crucial that we have elected representatives who put the well-being of our state first. It is only then that we will be able to prioritize the needs and the safety of our citizens. One of these elected officials is our Congressman, Matt Rosendale. We have a dangerous situation on our Southern border with illegal drugs pouring in every day. Because of this, cities across Montana, and across the country, are being overrun with drugs and crime. This includes human trafficking and sex crimes against children. According to the Montana Attorney Generals office, effectively 100% of the fentanyl that is being seen in Montana is coming across the southern border, which thanks to Joe Biden, is wide open. Not only this, but violent crime in our state has increased over 30% in just one decade. Congressman Rosendale supported and introduced legislation like the Secure Americas Borders First Act to combat these trends, to secure the southern border, and protect Montanans from dangerous drugs and stop human trafficking. Darin Gaub Helena Montana has long been associated with big skies, open spaces, freedoms, and liberties. Ryan Zinke, however, has a different vision for Montana a dangerous one that denies half a million Montana women the liberty and autonomy to control their own bodies. We know our Montana women to be a sign of strength and independence. We climb mountains, row rapids, raise herds, and bail hay. We deserve to be treated equally to the men we work alongside, and that includes the freedom to make decisions on our own reproductive health. The first woman elected to Congress was a strong, Montana woman herself, that relentlessly stood up for womens rights, and is to thank for our protections in the first place. Zinkes shameful voting record is an assault on womens rights, health care, and reproductive freedom. Hes repeatedly voted against abortion services, in favor of defunding family planning organizations that provide preventative care and cancer screenings, and has been endorsed by anti-choice groups. A womans medical decisions are her own to make, not a politicians. Montana is already facing an endemic of abuse and violence against Indigenous women. Stripping the reproductive freedoms of Indigenous women and blocking access to safe and legal abortions will only perpetuate domestic violence against both mothers and children, derailing educational and career-focused pursuits and placing a greater financial burden on the shoulders of struggling mothers. Montana is the only refuge left for reproductive freedom in the Rocky Mountain West, and its up to us to vote in leaders that will protect the rights of all Montanans. A Californian, Zinke doesnt represent Montanans, and certainly not Montana women. The only choice for women's rights and our freedoms this election is Monica Tranel. Quincey Purcell Ennis ninjatalli Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Bangalore Posts: 3,179 Thanked: 10,547 Times View My Garage How far can a tank of petrol get you? The Washington Post (source a Toyota Camry - although I would have the Corolla would be more appropriate) will get you around. With the current prices in the US, half a tank of gas for the Camry is estimated to cost around $40 (~3100 inr) so using data from Here's a snapshot of some of their analysis - do have a look at the more detailed article linked above (with local interviews across multiple countries & additional data). How far $40 of gas will get you in the countries with the largest economies Contrary to our beliefs, Indian fuel prices fits somewhere middle of the chart when looked globally. As per Global Petrol Prices (India ranks 64 out 168 countries with oil rich countries like Venezuela & Libya at the top having the cheapest price (no surprises) and Norway, Finland & Hong Kong at the end with prices hovering at nearly 170Rs per liter! Neighbouring/Peer countries like Bangladesh (75Rs), Bhutan (92Rs), Pakistan (89Rs), Nepal (112Rs), China (114Rs) & Sri Lanka (120Rs) are all spread across thanks to their own economic conditions and the local taxes their governments impose on fuel. Of course, when one looks at purchasing capacity, the story is always a different one to tell. But hopefully the above view gives you a worldwide perspective just from a fuel cost aspect. Key links for further reading: 1. Washington Post 2. Global Petrol Prices That's an interesting question, right? Especially depending on where you are, there's a significant difference on how much the fuel costs you.The Washington Post (source link ) definitely thinks so. The linked article nicely details out how half a tank of gasoline (/petrol) in one of the most common car across the world () will get you around. With the current prices in the US, half a tank of gas for the Camry is estimated to cost around $40 (~3100 inr) so using data from Global Petrol Prices and some social-economic data, they came up with this nice article that touches upon the concerns and local issues of some of the countries with highest population and how the current fuel prices affect their daily life.Here's a snapshot of some of their analysis - do have a look at the more detailed article linked above (with local interviews across multiple countries & additional data).Contrary to our beliefs, Indian fuel prices fits somewhere middle of the chart when looked globally. As per Global Petrol Prices ( link ) who track this across nations on a daily basis,countries with oil rich countries like Venezuela & Libya at the top having the cheapest price (no surprises) and Norway, Finland & Hong Kong at the end with prices hovering at nearly 170Rs per liter! Neighbouring/Peer countries like Bangladesh (75Rs), Bhutan (92Rs), Pakistan (89Rs), Nepal (112Rs), China (114Rs) & Sri Lanka (120Rs) are all spread across thanks to their own economic conditions and the local taxes their governments impose on fuel.Of course, when one looks at purchasing capacity, the story is always a different one to tell. But hopefully the above view gives you a worldwide perspective just from a fuel cost aspect.for further reading:1. Washington Post article 2. Global Petrol Prices site Last edited by Aditya : 2nd July 2022 at 05:23 . Reason: As requested Recap: It's been a tough year for Meta. The tech giant has faced plummeting stocks, hiring freezes, large-scale turnover, and a failed venture into the cryptocurrency space. In a recent Q&A with employees, CEO Mark Zuckerberg discussed changes in the company's focus, management style, and employee expectations. Unfortunately for Meta employees, the expectation communicated is that many of them may no longer be needed or welcome. During the session, Zuckerberg bluntly told the Meta workforce that "...some of you might decide this isn't the place for you, and that self-selection is OK with me." The statement highlights the company's need to brace for additional economic hardships and coincides with a ~30% reduction in planned 2022 hires, down from the original 10,000 target to between 6,000 and 7,000 hires this year. Zuckerberg's focus on increased performance and reduced hiring is designed to weed out poor performers and those who are unable to meet Meta's new performance goals. His statements come on the heels of Meta CPO Chris Cox's, whose pre-meeting memo to employees outlined Meta's intent to "prioritize ruthlessly" and "operate leaner, meaner, better executing teams." Despite the personnel and management changes, Cox's memo also highlighted Meta's need to expand the number of GPUs in its data centers to support their TikTok-style app, Reels, as well as to fuel AI tasked with surfacing popular feeds from users' Facebook and Instagram accounts. In addition to Meta's current social media-based services, the company's hardware division has been focused on delivering a mixed reality headset to the market. Nicknamed "Cambria," the next generation headset will supposedly feature 16 cameras as well as eye and face tracking capabilities. The headset is set to launch in the second half of 2022 with pricing rumored to start at $799. Many of the changes are meant to help Meta regain ground and increase revenue growth for the remainder of the year and beyond. Zuckerberg's and co. strong words may be designed to appeal to investors and shareholders, but will undoubtedly have Meta employees touching up resumes or looking for other safer, more stable opportunities. And from the sounds of it they should. Statements like these aren't simply a warning that change is coming, but rather the sign that the change is already here, and casualties are inevitable. In context: Recently released statements from TikTok employees reveal that Chinese employees repeatedly and improperly accessed nonpublic U.S. user data. Despite earlier claims that Tiktok user data was secured and controlled by a "US-based security team," the social media giant has been found to have improperly accessed user data on several occasions and was suspected of possibly leaking information directly to the Chinese government. Now, a TikTok executive has provided congress with a letter explaining how the company will protect the info from ByteDance and house it in an Oracle data center in the U.S. The letter from TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was sent to nine U.S. senators to explain how the company will keep all information stored in U.S. based Oracle data centers. The data would be periodically audited by a U.S.-based security team. Chew acknowledged that the move was part of the social media company's larger approach to enhance data security known as Project Texas. Chew also minced no words in the letter, acknowledging that TikTok is one of the "...most scrutinized platforms from a security standpoint, and we aim to remove any doubt about the security of U.S. user data." The follow up letter from TikTok was provided in response to inquiries from Marsha Blackburn, John Thune, and several other U.S. senators who questioned the company and their data practices. Their questions were submitted following a report from BuzzFeed on ByteDance's data security practices (and flaws). The response from TikTok denies any wrongdoing on the company's behalf, stating that the accusations and insinuations in the BuzzFeed article were incorrect and not supported by facts. Chew's letter goes on to discuss data controls and reiterated the company's intent to delete all U.S. user data from its current servers once the Oracle transition is complete. However, he was also clear that ByteDance employees in China would still work on TikTok, developing algorithms designed to feed personalized recommendations to the platform's users. He also acknowledged that specific videos and comments would remain open to Chinese employees, but only under approved government conditions. On Friday, Senator Blackburn said that Mr. Chew's letter proved that fears about the Chinese Communist Party's influence on the company were well founded. "The Chinese-run company should have come clean from the start, but it attempted to shroud its work in secrecy," she said, adding that TikTok needed to testify before Congress again. Who is Dev Pragad? He is the CEO of Newsweek, a news magazine established in 1933. The CEO is now in hot waters as he was accused of fraud and launching threats against Christian churches, including a Christian university, in "collusion" with Newsweek Editor Naveed Jamali and others. The source finally spoke up after weeks of silence following threats from the Newsweek CEO. HNGN, the publication that published this story, said its source, who was very close to the matter, requested anonymity due to fears of retaliation from Pragad, Jamali, and the Newsweek newsroom. "I am certain that Newsweek had played some role or influence, fully or partially, in the NYSED's decision not to renew the PTO," a source close to the matter said. Recently, New York State Education Department (NYSED) announced it would not renew the Permission to Operate (PTO) of Olivet University's extension site in New York. This university has been operating an extension site in New York for close to a decade with Permission to Operate status granted by the NYSED on November 5, 2012, which has been renewed several times since then. The existing PTO expired on June 30. However, this week, NYSED has decided not to renew the PTO again. A reporter also confirmed that Newsweek had reached out to NYSED several times regarding Olivet University. The department itself has acknowledged that Newsweek had contacted them several times and, almost in exasperation, stated, "the Department has gotten multiple inquiries from Newsweek, most recently today [June 30]," according to an email this reporter has seen and verified. Allegedly, Newsweek is targeting Olivet University and aggressively contacting governmental agencies. The source said this accusation stems from the desire of Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad to take over full control of the company unlawfully. The source added that Pragad had threatened in March that he would go to the media about "OU (Olivet University) raid by DHS" and allege "human trafficking" - threats aimed to help him further his business goals. As the year 2022 starts, Pragad believes that he is the "savior of the news." With that, he deserved to own the company outright. To fulfill this, he began to orchestrate the removal of the company's founder and other shareholders, Johnathan Davis. Since he had no legal standing, he instead launched a series of threats on Davis, but on Davis's church and a Christian university where his wife had served as president. The reporter verified this message: "If Olivet (the bible school), JD (the Newsweek shareholder) ... or others attack me then I'll go to media about Olivet raid by DHS for human trafficking etc to protect myself ... [and show] ... that they are trying to undermine Newsweek," Pragad messaged the source on March 2, 2022. Weeks after the alleged threat, on April 22, 2022, Newsweek published an inflammatory hit piece against Olivet University, alleging it is under investigation for human trafficking, among other things. Neither DHS nor any other government agency has officially confirmed what Newsweek has alleged. "I was shocked to see Newsweek publish this article, and I was even more shocked to see this article being published as the main headlines on Newsweek site. The article could not be further from the truth. As soon as I saw the article, I was convinced that he (Pragad) had started weaponizing Newsweek newsroom to attack the university and carry out his threats, under the guise of 'protecting himself," the source revealed. The source said that he now understands clearly what Pragad's threats were all about. "Subsequently, in no uncertain terms, he told me his demand - he said loud and clear that he wanted the 50 percent shares of Newsweek that is owned by the husband of the former president of the Christian university. If he got what he wanted, he said he would remain an 'ally' of Olivet. If not, the attacks would be launched." The aftermath of NYSED's decision to not allow Olivet University to continue operating in New York makes the source more convinced that Newsweek has played a role or influence in NYSED's decision. "It is interesting to note that all the Newsweek articles were published soon after he (Pragad) had issued the threats and more interestingly, all the inflammatory articles related to Olivet University or related entities, were published as the main headlines of the Newsweek site. It is as if Newsweek, a national newspaper that should be focusing on more important and newsworthy pieces, desperately wanted the Olivet-related articles to gain attention. I am utterly disappointed to see how Newsweek has degraded into a tabloid, just as I am certain Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad has weaponized the newsroom to kill Olivet University in New York," the source said. Note from HNGN: HNGN was registered by Davis in 2016 before divesting the publication in 2018. HNGN was an advertisement partner of Newsweek during 2017 and 2018, a period when Dev Pragad was the CEO of Newsweek. Ryan Lee is an acquaintance of Dev Pragad and is a member of the same church that Davis attends. Pragad left the church just before Newsweek articles were published. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Unsplash/ Oana Cristina) period tracking Period tracking is a great way to monitor your overall health and keep tabs on your reproductive health-related issues. Although it does not pose a threat to those who like to have their information on hand, it is also not unreasonable to be nervous about tracking any reproductive health-related information. If having the data on your phone or server makes you uncomfortable, there is something you can do about it. Delete Your Tracking Data Deleting a period tracking app from your smartphone is easy. However, deleting an app does not mean that your health data has been deleted, too, according to The Guardian. For example, if you were to delete your Flo app, the Flo company could still have your data in their system for at least three years in case you decide to re-download it. This is because while some tracking apps store data locally, many stores your data in the cloud. If they store it in the cloud, your period data can be accessible to the company and third parties unless you delete your account, according to The New York Times. Also Read: Period Tracking and Contraception with Smartwatch? Here Are Tech and Apps that Support It After you've deleted the app, it may take several weeks for the company to comply with the deletion process. It is best to follow up by emailing their customer support to make sure that your request has been honored, according to The Verge. There are a lot of period tracker apps in both Apple's App Store and Google Play Store, and each has its own privacy policies. Here's how you can get started for some of the most popular period tracking apps. Flo Tracking App In the Flo app, just go to Menu, select Home, and choose Contact Us. Next, submit your deactivation request. If you are an anonymous user, you must register for an account first. You can also request for your account and your data to be deleted by emailing their customer support, support@flo.health. Once the account and data are deactivated, Flo will notify you. Glow Tracking App To delete your account and data in the Glow tracking app, just go to More or the sidebar and select Account Settings. Choose Delete Account at the bottom of the page. If you are using iOS, you can find the Delete Account option under the Log Out button. Glow will warn you that when you delete your account, you will also delete your data from the system, and it can't be restored anymore. You can also request that your account and personal data be deleted by emailing their customer support, privacy@glowing.com. Clue Tracking App In the Clue tracking app, go to More to delete your account and data, click Support, and select Account Questions or Account & Data. Next, scroll down and select Delete My Clue account. You will be asked to back up your data and enter your password so you can delete your account permanently. You can also have your account deleted by emailing their customer support trust@helloclue.com. Clue will remind you that it will take 30 days for your data to be deleted. Related Article: Roe v. Wade Overturn Has Women Health Tracking Tech Pushing for More Privacy This article is owned by Tech Times Written by Sophie Webster 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Authorities already used Google searches to track women based on recent cases where mothers were arrested. (Photo : Photo by DIPTENDU DUTTA/AFP via Getty Images) An Indian man surfs on his mobile phone using the Google search engine with its new logo, in Siliguri on September 2,2015. Google refreshed its logo to better suit mobile devices that are supplanting desktop computers when it comes to modern Internet lifestyles. If this is true, there's a high chance that this kind of online tracking will get worse, especially after the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v Wade. Because of this decision, many Americans are criticizing officials who upended the landmark Roe v Wade case. On the other hand, even U.S. President Joe Biden said that this is a "tragic error." He added that because of this decision, the United States is now down an "extreme and dangerous path," as reported by The Guardian. Google Abortion Searches Already Used by Police To Track Women According to The Washington Post's latest report, there were already instances when the police used Google abortion searches to track and prosecute women. (Photo : Photo credit should read TORSTEN SILZ/DDP/AFP via Getty Images) A woman works on her computer as on the wall behind is seen the logo of web search engine Google at Frankfurt's international book fair, on 23 October 2005, the fair's last day. South Korea is the guest of honour at the 57th annual Frankfurt Book Fair and has brought out 62 authors to Germany to introduce them to the western public. Also Read: Democrats to Google: Stop Using Location Data Against People Who Get Abortions One of these is the "Baby Fisher" 2017 case. During this incident, court records said that authorities identified that Latice Fisher, the prosecuted mother, searched for the "Misopristol Abortion Pill." They said Fisher tried to buy this item online 10 days before her newborn child was found dead in their bathroom. Because of this, the court charged her with second-degree murder. However, experts said that there was really no evidence proving that Fisher really took the so-called Misoprostol pills. Although this is the case, she was still imprisoned. The Baby Fisher case is just one of the scenarios where authorities used online searches and texts related to abortion to track women and prosecute them. You can visit this link to see similar cases. Will Google Abortion Search Tracking Worsen? As of writing, it is hard to conclude if authorities will enhance their Google abortion search tracking activities. But, aside from your online activities and text messages, period apps are also possible to be used for tracking women with abortion intentions. With the landmark Roe v Wade overturned, more than 26 states in the United States are now expected to ban abortion. But, the exact date is still known. Recently, GoDaddy removed the Texas Right of Life group after it snitched users wanting to have an abortion. On the other hand, the previous U.S Supreme Court ruling over Roe v Wade is now expected to affect online privacy. For more news updates about google abortion searches and other related online activities, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes. Related Article: Meta's Facebook and Instagram Take Down Posts Offering Abortion Pills to Women This article is owned by TechTimes Written by: Griffin Davis 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Azerbaijani army is ordered to be ready at any time to prevent possible provocations of Armenian revanchist forces, Azernews reports per the Defense Ministry. This instruction was issued by Defense Minister Col-Gen Zakir Hasanov during an official meeting at the ministry on July 2. At the meeting, the operational conditions on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border and the Karabakh economic zone were extensively analyzed, and specific tasks were given to strengthen the material, technical and combat support of the units, to improve the service combat activities of military personnel, and also to increase the vigilance of personnel. The minister positively assessed the activity of the newly established Operations Commando military units, as well as their manning, and gave appropriate instructions to pay special attention to the combat training of the commandos. BILLINGS, Mont. Energy companies bid more than $22 million to secure drilling rights on about 110 square miles of public lands in the western U.S. including in North Dakota, during the first onshore oil and natural gas lease sales since President Joe Biden took office. Leases on about 90 square miles went unsold in the U.S. Bureau of Land Management online auctions Thursday that included parcels of federal lands in seven states. Oil and gas produced from the leases will be subject to a royalty rate of 18.75%. That's up from 12.5% and the first royalty increase since the 1920s. About 200 square miles of federal lands had been offered for lease in eight western states including North Dakota. Most of those sold were in Wyoming, where companies paid more than $13 million for parcels totaling about 105 square miles. A planned sale in Utah for a single, 160-acre parcel did not happen and there was no immediate explanation from federal officials. The auctions came as federal officials try to balance efforts to fight climate change against pressure to bring down high gas prices. Biden faces calls from fellow Democrats to do more to curb fossil fuel emissions that are heating the planet, even as he's being pushed by Republicans to expand U.S. crude production. Critics of the leasing program pointed to unsold parcels in Wyoming, Colorado, Montana and Nevada as further evidence oil companies have enough leases and drilling permits already stockpiled to last them for years. It is apparent that the calls from oil and gas CEOs for more drilling on public lands were just a distraction as they aim to maximize their profits, said Pegah Jalali, an environmental policy analyst at the Colorado Fiscal Institute. But with several prior lease sales still tied up in court challenges from environmentalists, some companies had concerns going into the sale that they might not be able to drill on leases they acquired, said Ryan McConnaughey, vice president of the Petroleum Association of Wyoming. Those worries could have dampened interest in the latest sale, he said. They still haven't issued leases from 2020, McConnaughey said. They paid upfront and if they can't get to those leases, they can't produce from them. That's a huge tie up of capital resources. Oil production increased in the U.S. in recent months, but its still well below pre-pandemic levels. Companies have been hesitant to expand drilling too quickly because of uncertainty over how long high prices will continue. Biden suspended new leasing just a week after taking office in January 2021. A federal judge in Louisiana ordered the sales to resume, saying Interior officials had offered no rational explanation for canceling them. The government held an offshore lease auction in the Gulf of Mexico in November. A court canceled that sale before the leases were issued. Urgent | Kamal Kharazi to Al-Jazeera: It is no secret that we have the technical capabilities to manufacture a nuclear bomb, but we have no decision to do so In China in the 1960s, everyone was very poor, and many people could not even have enough food to eat. The first sentence when acquaintances and friends greet each other is, have you eaten yet? This is probably why so many of my childhood memories are related to eating. When I was three or four years old, our hometown also implemented a large communist canteen, and everyone had to eat in the public canteen. At noon, my parents brought back a small bowl of rice from the canteen, and the three of sister and brothers gathered around a small square table waiting for grandma to district the meal for us. Grandma took out a chopstick and carefully divided the rice into four pieces, and everyone chose one. I was the youngest in the family, I always choose first, then it's my brother and sister's turn to take it, and the last one was for my grandma. I was very selfish as a child, I always looked left and right every time, carefully comparing the size of each piece of rice, and choosing the largest one. Sometimes, when I watched for a long time and couldnt make up my mind on which one to choose, my brother and sister were tired of waiting, so they urged me to say, why is it so slow, hurry up, hurry up. After I got the meal, although I was very hungry, I always ate very slowly, and really ate one grain at a time. I hoped that I would never finish the meal. I would only slow down until my brother and sister had finished eating. Slowly eat the little bits left in my bowl. My grandmother (mothers side) loved me very much. Every time she went to someone else's wedding for dinner, she tried to bring me with her. Once, I went to a wedding with her for lunch, and the start of the meal was delayed for a long time. I was already very hungry, and my stomach was growling, I was arguing with my grandmother to go to the kitchen and get a piece of fried dough to eat.crispy on the outside, crispy on the inside, golden color, it was the first dish of the banquet at that timeShe was embarrassed to go to get it, I kept arguing, she was dizzy and at a loss because of my quarrel. After returning home, she said to my mother, "I will never take Ming Yazi to other people's houses for dinner in the future." But the next time she went to someone else's house for dinner, she took me with her again. Cheng Laojin was my (mother's side) grandfather's nickname, and everyone liked to call him that. My grandfather is smart and capable, doing some small business for a living. His house had a large backyard, where he grew a lot of vegetables, as well as a big grapefruit tree and a large grape shed. The grapefruit and grapes produced every year were big and sweet. He was also very good at raising pigs. When the litter of piglets grows up, he took a razor and perform castration and breeding operations on each piglet very quickly. He wore a large cloth around his waist, and holds the little boar between his two thighs. If it was a little sow, he pressed it to the ground. The little pigs roared and struggled, trying to escape from the palm of the grandfather, but they were all powerless. When the fruit was ripe, someone always came to steal his grapes. Once, while I was playing under the grape shed, I suddenly saw someone picking grapes with hooks outside the fence. I quickly told my grandfather that there were grapes. He shook his hand and asked me not to make a sound. I saw my grandfather took a dung spoon that was eight feet long, and then took out a large spoon of thin and smelly pig dung from the pig dung, and slowly walked to the wall, and suddenly throws away the pig dung to the thieves at outside of the wall. All I heard was a screeching noise from outside the fence. It was so stinky that the grape thieves were so frightened that they ran away. I lamost became a thief. when I was about 4 years old, my brother and I were sent to a street kindergarten for a few days. The kindergarten was actually a few ladies who concentrated on watching children in the hall of a house. The house was in a compound, and there was a big hole in the fence to the right of the entrance to the compound. My brother always took me out to play secretly, and the ladies couldn't find us anywhere. After running away secretly a few times, the ladies who looked after the child never let us go again. Mom and Dad were very busy and didn't have time to watch over us, so we became unattended children. My grandmother's house was very close to our house, only a five-minute walk away. I always played in front of the grandma's house. I often saw a boy named Black Skin, he may be five or six years older than me, he had around face and was very strong. In summer, he often walked alone with his head down. One morning, he asked me to go pickup valley with him. I was very small and ignorant, so I followed him. He took me across the pontoon bridge next to Shi Bi Tan. The wood on the bridge was sparse and loose, and it was very scary to walk on it. We walked a long way again and came to the heart of the county farm. He gave me two candies and told me to wait for him by a house. It was noon, and the peasants went home for dinner. I saw him carrying a large bag and walking to a threshing machine in the rice field, and soon he came back with a bag full of valley. He told me that he was done picking it up, and then he took me home with him. Soon, he took me to pick up sweet potatoes in a nearby village called Sanyang Street. He also stole a large bag of sweet potatoes directly from the farmer's field and carried them home. After I went to school, I rarely saw black skin. Many years later, I heard that he had been working as a thief in the field, and the stealing skill was very fast. Later, he was caught for stealing money and served several years in prison. Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Zayd Dorhn was five when his parents, Bernardine Dohrn and Bill Ayers, leaders of the radical left-wing militant organisation the Weather Underground, turned themselves in to the FBI to end their decade on the lam. Theyd made a deal with prosecutors in Chicago for a reduced prison sentence, but still had to make the cross-country trip from New York without being caught along the way or the deal was off. They were, understandably, very nervous, recalls Dohrn, now 45 and a playwright and writing professor at Northwestern University. I remember we stopped at a rest stop to get gas and food, and this older couple started talking to me. They thought I was a cute kid or whatever and they asked, Where are you going? And I said, Were going to Chicago to turn ourselves into the FBI. My dad grabbed me and we ran back to the car. Even as a four-year-old, I knew the FBI was chasing us, but I didnt know what the FBI was or why or what it meant. Dohrn tells his parents story, and that of the Weather Underground, in the remarkable new podcast Mother Country Radicals, charting the organisations years of political dissidence from 1969 to 1977 and the fallout after the movement fizzled. Named for a line from Bob Dylans Subterranean Homesick Blues (You dont need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows), the group carried out a bombing campaign against US government buildings in the early 70s in protest of American imperialism, as well as an audacious jailbreak of psychedelic figurehead Timothy Leary in 1970. While it charts similar terrain to the acclaimed 2002 documentary The Weather Underground, the podcast floats on Dohrns intimate perspective of growing up with parents intent on dismantling what they saw as Americas rotten social order. Bernardine was a student activist whose opposition to the Vietnam War and anti-Black racism escalated to the point where she was placed on the FBIs 10 Most Wanted list and labelled the most dangerous woman in America by J. Edgar Hoover. Bill was a preschool teacher turned revolutionary, who participated in bombings of the US Capitol building in 1971 and the Pentagon in 1972. As the couples first child, Dohrn was baptised into the cause. In the podcasts second episode, he recalls lessons his dad taught him as a toddler in hiding about how to spot undercover cops. If you see a white guy and a black guy together in an unmarked car in Harlem, definitely cops, Dohrn relates. If I noticed a car like that on our block, I was supposed to let my parents know right away. Dohn (centre), with his parents Bernardine and Bill and younger brother Malik while living underground. Its hard to believe, but I cant remember a time before [my parents] were telling me those things, Dohrn says. At three, four years old, it all felt normal to me. Like any kid, youre born into a situation and its hard to know how strange things are until youre older and step outside of it. Advertisement Alongside the anti-state activism were other countercultural shenanigans. One of the Weather Undergrounds policies was smashing monogamy, a free love idea aimed at entrenching bonds between comrades by eschewing coupled-off members. Seeing your parents like that could be quite awkward for a child? Dohrn laughs. By the time I was six, my parents had mostly left that stuff behind. When we were underground, we were in a lot of places - hippie communes in the Pacific Northwest, safe houses in New York and Harlem - where there was a communal living thing, so I was aware of people living together in various combinations. But by the time I was conscious of it, we were a somewhat normal family. My parents were together, and they were raising us as a kind of nuclear family. It was only later when I looked back - and, of course, no kid likes to think of their parents in that sexualised way - that I was like, Wow, my parents were into that?! In 1980, after they turned themselves in, Bernardine was imprisoned in the Manhattan Correctional Centre for several months, while Ayers got probation and avoided serving time, part of a deal they negotiated to allow one of them to take care of the kids: Zayd, his younger brother Malik, and their adopted brother Chesa Boudin. Boudin, a Rhodes Scholar and the outgoing District Attorney of San Francisco, is the son of former Weather Underground members Kathy Boudin and David Gilbert, who were convicted of murder in the 1981 Brinks robbery; Bernardine and Bill assumed guardianship of Chesa when he was 14-months old. I remember vividly going to visit my mum in jail and sneaking books in and things like that, Dohrn recalls. But my dad was always there, single parenting us for the time that she was locked up. Other aspects of life with militantly political parents seem comparatively quaint. In another episode, Dohrn mentions a Che Guevara poster that hung on his wall growing up - perhaps a common rite of passage in teenage bedrooms, but one with a stronger punch considering his legacy. Its funny, in my family I was always the least political. Compared to most people I was probably very political, but, you know, compared to my family... he laughs. As a writer, I always felt like the odd man out. Its not like I was against their politics, but I thought of myself as an artist first, and only secondarily as someone who was interested in politics. But [politics] was always there, as you can imagine. Growing up, the basic idea was to be out in the streets, protesting all the time, making your opinions known. Advertisement Musings both personal and political swayed Dohrn into delving into his parents life for the podcast. At 80, Bernardines age made him realise he was potentially running out of time to ask her all the questions I wanted to ask, and to put her voice on tape for whatever you want to call it - posterity, for my daughters, for the public - because I think she has important things to say, says Dohrn. As a listener, its easy to be struck by the current resonance of their story, the ugly cycle of history revisited. With a US government veering towards law and order authoritarianism since Trump and the post-George Floyd reckoning against police brutality and racist systems of oppression, its bewildering that so much of what the Weather Underground fought 50 years ago are the same issues sparking protests today. Loading Fiery excerpts of Bernardine and Bill and their fellow students protesting en masse against the Vietnam War to no avail also speak to ongoing debates about the limits of civil protest. In her declaration of war against the US in May 1970, delivered following the police murder of Black Panther leader Fred Hampton, Bernardine said: Tens of thousands have learned that protest and marches dont do it. Revolutionary violence is the only way. In the face of state-sanctioned indifference, one can almost understand the activist logic that led to Dohrns parents taking that radical next step. Im glad you noticed that, says Dohrn. You see this today in America with gun violence, for example - all these young people protesting every time theres a new school shooting, everybody writing letters to their congressmen, and still nothing changes. You can start to feel the frustration building up. Dohrn is clear he doesnt condone his parents shift towards violence. But I do think its important for us to understand where this kind of frustration comes from, and why people feel the need to escalate beyond peaceful protest. In a recent interview about the podcast, Dohrn said he hoped to show listeners the mistakes that his parents and their comrades made in the midst of their progressive efforts. Has he come to a greater understanding of the decisions they made? Advertisement A billionaire philanthropist has challenged Anthony Albanese to take charge of an impending overhaul of Australias early education system to ensure the sweeping reforms stay on track. Nicola Forrest, who co-founded the Minderoo Foundation with mining magnate husband Andrew Twiggy Forrest in 2001, said the prime minister had a unique opportunity to seize on the growing political focus on early education and its potential to allow more women to rejoin the workforce. Nicola Forrest has challenged Anthony Albanese to take charge of an impending overhaul the early education system. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Labor has promised to lift the maximum childcare subsidy rate to 90 per cent for the first child in care for all families earning up to $530,000, which would reduce both the cost and employment disincentives for women. It has also signalled it wants to expand the system to offer universal childcare as an economic reform and has committed to developing a new strategy to improve the wellbeing, education and development of young children. Women of Australia. I am generally in awe of how you run your lives, run your work, run your families and basically run the country. Just a teensy tiny request. Could you cool it on the mumsplaining? We are all familiar with the term mansplaining, when a bloke seeks to school a woman about something they are already knowledgeable about, a rude gesture that thus betrays his own greater ignorance. Most women have experienced some form of mansplaining. Credit:Alamy Maybe it is just me, but I have been observing the altogether different phenomenon of mumsplaining for a while now and my own family history is guilty in this regard. Back when he was growing up, my brother was late to start talking, and mum was so concerned she took him to the local GP. He doesnt need to talk, the GP bluntly informed her. You do everything for him. Prime minister to return from Europe before Fiji trip Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. Were working to restore it. Please try again later. Dismiss The Victorian Auditor-Generals Office has settled a case brought by a former director who alleged the Auditor-General bullied her, worked her to breaking point and terminated her employment unlawfully at the height of the pandemic. Victorias Auditor-General Andrew Greaves was accused by former director Kyley Daykin of bullying her and unlawfully taking adverse action against her after she had a breakdown. It left her devastated after 25 years in the public service, she previously told The Age. Kyley Daykin was a public service executive working with the Victorian Auditor Generals Office. Credit:Justin McManus Greaves is one of Victorias most senior public servants and is responsible for ensuring financial prudence and integrity in the public service. Appointed in 2016, Greaves was named personally in the lawsuit, alongside the state of Victoria as a co-defendant. In an internal message published on June 20 and seen by The Age, deputy Auditor-General David Barry told the agencys staff the matter was finalised and that Daykin had left the organisation. Lee Gugino believes that if you havent seen Old Fort Niagara in a few years, then you havent seen it at all. Everything is different, he said, referring to the forts recent programming that focuses on Native American history and womens involvement in military efforts. On Saturday, Gugino, who handles the parks public relations and marketing, donned a Royal Roussillon Regiment French uniform and joined around 400 other re-enactors as they re-created the 19-day siege that occurred at the fort in July of 1759. The battle at Old Fort Niagara between English and French troops, with Native American assistance on both sides, was essentially a territorial dispute during the French and Indian War thats often overshadowed by bigger fights, yet it played a large role in the eventual victory by the English, Gugino said. It also is the switch to being English, he added, I mean, we speak English today, so if theyre not taking Niagara, New York probably wouldnt extend to where it is. Saturdays event was one of three this holiday weekend that portrays the siege, with displays like an artillery demonstration, musket firing, colors ceremonies and hourlong battle re-enactments. Around 100 spectators gathered by the fort to watch a re-enactment of the early days of the siege, where British captain Griffith Rutherford attempted to convince French commander Pierre Pouchot to surrender the fort. While the re-enactment didnt include the breakfast the two officers shared, the events narrator explained that Pouchot politely declined over a bottle of claret and a glass of liqueur, leading the siege to continue until July 25. The officers of both the French and English armies were said to have had more in common with each other than with their reporting soldiers, who were common people and not of the officers social class, the events narrator said. While re-enactors obtain an extensive knowledge of history through their participation in events like this, one of the most rewarding aspects of the hobby is being able to share that knowledge with younger generations and, hopefully, recruit them, said Robert Nipar, a reenactor since 1971. You want people to know that this exists, its not all calculators or Fitbit watches and iPads and cellphones. There were other ways that brought this along, he added. When John Sawyer began re-enactment work in the early 1980s, he learned the activities that would be relevant to the colonial era, like riding a horse and plowing a field. Now he can use an 18th century-style compass or map during his re-enactment work. It becomes an intellectual activity, he said. While much of the programming is dedicated to the battle re-enactment, there are also various time-relevant tents set up for visitors to peruse. Lee Guginos parents, Sylvia and Brian, set up a tent with Brians handmade silver work. Like Sawyer, Sylvia Gugino also loves the intellectual aspect of the re-enactment, always looking to make visitors think critically when they stop by her and her husband's tent. Often shell point to a large circular glass filled with water on a table and ask kids to analyze it before telling them that its an 18th century work light. Other times shell ask them if there were ever silversmiths that were women, eager to see their reactions when she tells them there were. Women could not vote, they could not own property," she added, "but there were women silversmiths. It was Mark Twain who said facts are stubborn things, but statistics are pliable. The statement that Australia has become strikingly more godless, as reported in The Age this week, demonstrates such pliability when addressing the latest census data. Yes, the proportion of self-identified Christians has dropped. Yes, those who find meaning through formal church attendance has declined. But such facts, although bewildering for current adherents to experience and observe, are not to be equated with a descent into national godlessness. Change is not only inevitable, it is essential if the Christian faith is to be translated into relevancy for an increasingly diverse Australia. Credit:Chris Hopkins Institutions have a habit of getting between the aims of their founders and the needs of the consumer. The church is no exception. It is growing in some parts of the world and declining in others. Its conservative in places and progressive elsewhere. Wherever it exists it is influenced by local culture, history, tradition and internal politics. Mayors have told the Andrews government to redesign parts of its flagship Suburban Rail Loop project amid concern poor connections to existing Metro train lines and other public transport could undermine the $34.5 billion project. The City of Monash started writing to about 24,500 households last week highlighting its concerns about the design of the Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) station at Glen Waverley, where passengers will have to exit the new underground station and walk about 200 metres at ground level to transfer to the Metro station. Monash Mayor Stuart James said the design was not a proper connection and the decision not to build an underground walkway between the two stations was a missed opportunity to create an integrated transport hub. Instead of building a tunnel underground, theyre going to make it at grade and presumably thats to save money, he said. Its a logistical feat to get 50 naked women posed perfectly around the State Library on a cold winters morning. While Swanston Street was dark and deserted before sunrise on Sunday, the Latrobe Reading Room was bathed in a yellow glow, amid a hum of chatter and the occasional peal of laughter. Project members pose in front of the Redmond Barry statue on the library steps. An unclothed pregnant woman could be seen casually flicking through a book on the ground floor, while others leaning on balconies stood in dramatic poses, easily mistaken for Greek statues. The mass artwork for which they were posing was part of the Tour de Nood, a nationwide undertaking born of the #MeToo movement by photographer Lauren Crooke, who wants the female figure desexualised in art. Very few Australians would not know someone who has had COVID-19. With more than 8 million having now tested positive, many would have had it themselves. On Sunday, the cumulative death toll reached 10,000 and the vast majority died this year. The figure is barely a fraction of death totals recorded in similar countries around the world in Britain, 10,000 had died from the virus by April 2020, and the same figure was recorded in just two months this year but in Australia, a country that locked down for so long to keep its death toll low, the shift to daily double-digit death figures has been swift. Melburnians in masks at the South Melbourne Market. Credit:Wayne Taylor If learning to live with the virus was the goal, then maybe that has been achieved. But scratch the surface of most schools, the health system and many households and workplaces, and the chaos that is playing out because of the pandemic, along with a bad flu season, is not hard to spot. There is, however, little appetite for a return of vaccine or mask mandates. And governments are not about to enforce new restrictions that have little public support. Thats the right call. After nearly 2 years of living with a pandemic, its hard to argue that people dont have a good understanding of how to lower their risk of being infected and staying out of hospital. But thats not to say governments should put up the white flag. The months ahead are likely to be challenging. According to Brendan Crabb and Mike Toole, from the Burnet medical institute, because the COVID-19 virus is so rapidly changing genetically via mutations, its able to avoid gained immunity. They point out that this is leading to reinfections becoming increasingly common and not necessarily milder than the initial infection. In response, federal Health Minister Mark Butler has called on his department to find ways to greatly increase awareness of the antivirals Lagevrio and Paxlovid, which have had poor uptake. If taken soon after testing positive, they have proven to reduce severe illness significantly, which would keep people out of overcrowded hospitals. There is also a push by some epidemiologists for Australia to speed up the approval of a fourth COVID-19 booster shot for the entire adult population, although others are arguing that it would be better to wait until a better Omicron-targeting vaccine is available. With Butler admitting that a third wave of Omicron infections was on the way, The Age would hope that a decision is made quickly. And the campaign to get more people to agree to a booster shot must continue. While more than 90 per cent of those aged 12 and over have had two doses Australia-wide, only 62 per cent have received their booster shot. Recent figures from Victoria reveal the deadly consequence. Of the 2171 who died in the state from, or with, COVID-19, to June 28 this year, 72 per cent had not had their third dose. These numbers are surely reflected elsewhere. And in Sydney, recent data showed a third COVID-19 vaccine dose in middle-aged and older adults provided 65 per cent greater protection against hospitalisation or death from the virus than only two shots. Australia has weathered the pandemic better than most. In France, nearly 1000 patients have been hospitalised each day with COVID-19 during the past two weeks. During one week in June, Britain had an estimated 2.3 million test positive. There are persistent cliches about public servants they are mousy and pernickety; they love rules more than people. Charles Dickens satirised the bureaucracy brilliantly in Little Dorrit, inventing a department called the Circumlocution Office, whose officials existed to obfuscate and obstruct. But public servants can be quietly noble too, and recent examples abound. Take the case of Wandrea Shaye Moss, and her mother Ruby Freeman, two ordinary American women who were working as electoral officials in Georgia during the 2020 presidential election. Wandrea Shaye Moss, a former Georgia election worker, is comforted by her mother Ruby Freeman, right, while giving evidence. Credit:AP Many state electoral officials have testified at the Congressional Hearings into the storming of the Capitol building on January 6th, 2021. But Moss and Freeman struck me as the bravest because they were low-ranking and had much to lose. The hearings have shown how relentlessly Trump and his political henchmen pressured officials to overturn the democratic results of the 2020 election. Bennie Thompson, the Democratic chair of the January 6 committee, says that pressuring public servants into betraying their oaths was a fundamental part of the playbook for Trump in his insistence on taking illegal power. One of a raft of commuter car parks promised by the Morrison government in Melbournes east was so unpopular that 81 per cent of residents rejected the project before funding was axed suddenly in the lead-up to the May federal election. Unpublished documents drafted by Boroondara Council in March, obtained by The Sunday Age under freedom of information, reveal the projected cost of another car park, in Hawthorn, had blown out to double what was initially set aside by the former federal government. An artists impression of the Glenferrie Station commuter car park in Hawthorn, which will no longer go ahead. Credit:Boroondara Council Then-treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced in March that four commuter car parks would no longer go ahead in his former electorate of Kooyong, following community consultation, three years after they were promised during the 2019 election campaign. The Australian National Audit Office had critcised the former governments allocation of money from the fund for favouring Liberal seats. The Boroondara documents reveal, for the first time, the extent of community opposition to the car parks. The boxes are strewn everywhere, the artworks have been removed from the walls of Kim Carrs Carlton office ready to be taken to the Museum of Australian Democracy and the bookshelves are stripped bare. It is a muted end to the 29-year career of the senator and factional heavyweight of Labors Left, who dominated Victorian politics for more than three decades and made plenty of friends as well as enemies along the way. In his prime, Carr who turned 67 on Saturday was one of the most dominant forces in the factional politics of the Victorian Labor Party, making and breaking leaders, wheeling and dealing to secure internal victories and crush enemies. Kim Carrs three-decade stint in Parliament came to an end on Thursday. Credit:Joe Armao By the end, he had few friends and fewer allies. The university and manufacturing sectors, which he has consistently championed, voiced their sadness at seeing Carr leave politics. Politicians, though, were unusually quiet about the end of Carrs three-decade stint as a Victorian senator, which formally ended on Thursday, ending a years-long factional battle to dump him. The opposition will ask the Victorian government to table a secret report on bullying and sexism in the states fire services as a tribute to Jane Garrett, who commissioned the review and wanted its contents made public. Garrett, a Labor MP and former minister, died on Saturday of breast cancer, aged 49. As emergency services minister in 2015, she commissioned the review into the culture of the states fire services, and last year she publicly called for the politically sensitive report to be released. Jane Garrett last year. Credit:Joe Armao Labor has argued it does not have access to the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission report. The report was suppressed in 2018 by the Court of Appeal, which found the commission did not have the legal right to review fire agencies. The firefighters union fought for the report to remain confidential. Nice, France: Tourism is booming again in France and so is COVID-19. French officials have invited or recommended people to go back to using face masks but stopped short of renewing restrictions that would scare visitors away or revive anti-government protests. From Paris commuters to tourists on the French Riviera, many people seem to welcome the governments light touch, while some worry that required prevention measures may be needed. People wearing face masks to protect against COVID-19 on a platform at the Paris Metro. Virus cases are rising fast in France and other European countries after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in the spring. Credit:AP Virus-related hospitalisations rose quickly in France over the past two weeks, with nearly 1000 patients with COVID-19 hospitalised per day, according to government data. Infections are also rising across Europe and the United States, but France has an exceptionally high proportion of people in the hospital, according to Our World in Data estimates. French government spokesperson Olivia Gregoire has said there are no plans to reintroduce national regulations that limit or set conditions for gathering indoors and other activities. The Buffalo area is home to Ronnie Hartman, but not in a strict sense of the definition. "When I was 28 years old, I moved to Buffalo and it saved my life," said Hartman, who will compete in his seventh Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Coney Island. The July 4 event will be televised on ESPN. Hartman, a professional wrestler who goes by Megabyte Ronnie and ranks as the world's 20th-best competitive eater, hit rock bottom after leaving the U.S. Army in 2014 following deployment in Afghanistan. A self-proclaimed "military brat," he moved to North Carolina to live with his mother because he had no other option and nowhere he identified as "home." "I wasn't responsible to be out here," Hartman said Friday of the first few years back in civilian life. "I was missing days of work, losing money, spending money on stupid things. I had a dead-end job, no money to my name. I worked the night shift on weekends, so I had no social life. "It was just miserable. I don't know how I was functioning back then," he said. Hartman joined the competitive eating circuit in the U.S. and saved enough money to travel up to Buffalo for the National Buffalo Wing Festival in September 2018. "I saw the city and I fell in love with it," he said. It was there that he reconnected with Trent Walden, one of his best friends from the military, who invited him to move into the basement of his Orchard Park home that December. Hartman remains grateful, especially because Walden's wife, Jenna, was mid-pregnancy during the months Hartman lived in their home. The new start turned Hartman's fortunes. He joined Grapplers Anonymous, a wrestling school in Lackawanna, to spark his pro wrestling career, and held information technology jobs at law firm Goldberg Segalla and New Era Cap. He now lives in Fort Drum, near Watertown, where his wife whom he met in Buffalo serves in the Army. "I never lived anywhere longer than two or three years," said Hartman, who was born in Fort Polk, La., where he stayed a few months before moving to Germany. "I moved my entire life. I never felt like I was from anywhere until I moved to Buffalo, and now I finally have a hometown." Hartman hits Coney Island fresh off his personal best in a hot dog eating contest, slamming 29.5 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes during a qualifier last weekend in Washington, D.C., but he's still not bursting with confidence ahead of the downstate holiday spectacle. Gusto guide: The Texas hot, Buffalo's least understood specialty After a call for entries on social media, News Food Editor Andrew Galarneau visited every currently open WNY Texas hots place that at least two fans mentioned. Heres his tasting notes from that tour. "I'm not delusional," Hartman said. "I'm not going to be anywhere near Joey Chestnut, Geoff Esper, Miki Sudo, those people but if I can get up there and beat people ranked ahead of me, that's really what my competition is." Chestnut has won 14 of the last 15 Nathan's competitions, setting a world record by eating 76 hot dogs in last year's competition while Sudo, the favorite on the women's side, returns after missing last year as she anticipated her first child. It's been a battle for Hartman to qualify for Nathan's, one of few official eating competitions that requires qualification. He failed to seal his place in 2015, 2016 and 2017, despite traveling to Chicago, Tennessee and Georgia to participate in qualifiers, but Monday will make four straight earned trips. "I think if the hot dogs are good, and all the conditions are there, I think I can definitely hit 35," Hartman said of his hot dog target. "I'm going into it saying I'll be happy if I break 30." While Hartman said that to him the competition is primarily a physical challenge, he did not discount the mental mountain. "Eating as many hot dogs as you can for 10 minutes, that's rough," he said. "Sometimes I'm up there and it's like minute six and mentally I'm like, 'Man, what am I doing with my life?'" Hartman believes he thrives with softer, sweeter foods that require less chewing. He rampaged through 14 pounds of strawberry shortcake in eight minutes during a recent competition, losing to an opponent who ate one pound more. That result was telling for Hartman in regard to his strengths, however, as that victor usually eats around 40 hot dogs. Chicken wings are also not Hartman's forte. "That's what we call a technique food, and I eat like a barbarian," Hartman said. "It sucks that I'm not good at the ones I'd like to be good at." Even though Monday's event is not in Hartman's wheelhouse, he cannot wait. "It's the best weekend of the year," he said. Hartman carries Buffalo with him through a tattoo on his left bicep. It's half chicken wing, half Buffalo skyline, with the city name scrawled across the middle. "Buffalo is a city that's like, 'Yeah, we may be beat up, but at least we're still in this together,'" Hartman said. "It really feels like a community in Buffalo. It feels like somewhere I could go if I ever needed something." Peter Brook, the legendary theater director behind works like Marat/Sade and The Empty Space, has died at the age of 97. Brook passed in Paris, where he has lived since the 1970s. Born March 21, 1925, in London, Brook's career spanned eight decades, bringing untraditional and experimental approaches to classics of the theatrical repertoire and new works alike. His career began with a production of Dr. Faustus in 1943, and he served as director at the Royal Opera House from 1947 to 1950, where, among his works, was a production of Salome designed by Salvador Dali. Brook joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1950, where he staged Measure for Measure and The Winter's Tale with John Gielgud, Titus Andronicus with Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, a much talked-about King Lear with Paul Scofield, and one of his defining productions, 1970's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Midsummer would take on a life of its own, moving to the West End from its original run in Stratford-Upon-Avon and going on a world tour. Regarded now as one of the 20th century's most important Shakespeare productions, it removed the trappings of classic works and set the play in a bright white box. Among the actors were Ben Kingsley, Frances de la Tour, and Patrick Stewart. Brook won his second of two competitive Best Director Tony Awards for Midsummer. His other was earned for Peter Weiss's Marat/Sade in 1965, and he was given a special award in 1984 for his production of La Tragedie de Carmen. Brook began his Broadway career with 1953's The Little Hut, and it included the original production of Irma La Deuce (1960), and The Visit (1959). In more recent years, Brook and longtime collaborator Marie-Helene Estienne worked regularly with the New York-based Theatre for a New Audience, staging The Grand Inquisitor (2008), Fragments (2011), The Valley of Astonishment (2014), The Prisoner (2018), and, finally, 2019's Why?, which ran in the fall of 2019 and would mark Brook's final New York production. Another of Brook's storied productions is Jean-Claude Carriere's The Mahabharata, a nine-hour production (11 hours including breaks), which toured the world for four years. Critically acclaimed, it was adapted for television as a six-hour miniseries, which was edited for theatrical release into a three-hour piece. Brook returned to the work in 2015 for a new adaptation, created with Carriere and Estienne, called Battlefield. Brook's 1968 book The Empty Space has become a staple of the modern theater, translated into more than a dozen languages and regularly taught in college and graduate courses. He co-founded the International Centre for Theatre Research in 1970, and ran its permanent base, the Bouffes du Nord Theatre, until 2008. He was named Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1965 and Commandeur de la Legion d'honneur in France in 2013. Brook was married to actor Natasha Parry for 64 years, until her death in 2015. He is survived by their children. In a 2018 interview with our sibling website WhatsOnStage, Brook said that working in theater excited him most because "our shared work can be useful and meaningful to others." The biggest detriment? "The monstrosity of excessive seat prices." Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. Organization helps students become informed citizens, stewards of the land. Wyomings future looks brighter thanks to a generous gift from Devon Energy. The company recently donated to Wyoming Agriculture in the Classroom (WAIC), an organization providing free curriculum to help develop students understanding of the states vast resources. Devons contribution will specifically help WAIC train elementary school teachers in workshops focusing on agriculture, minerals and tourism. The educators will then incorporate what they learn into their science and social studies lessons. With Devons gift, were better able to help students understand agricultures importance in our community and know where their food comes from. said WAIC Executive Director Jessie Dafoe. Agriculture is a driving economic force in Wyoming, and were thankful to Devon for supporting our efforts to keep the industry thriving in the next generation. Christina Rehkop, Devons director of community relations, said Devon is excited about the work WAIC is doing and is proud to further the organizations efforts. WAICs vision perfectly aligns with Devons values, Rehkop said. They imagine a future in which Wyomings people truly value the states agriculture and natural resources. We sincerely applaud their efforts to engage young people and set Wyoming up for success. Revea Smith, a fifth-grade teacher at Wagonwheel Elementary School in Gillette, said attending WAICs workshop has inspired new ideas for her classroom. I really enjoyed the workshops content and relevancy, as well as the balance of technology with hands-on activities, Smith said. Im looking forward to sharing what Ive learned with my students and witnessing their blossoming appreciation for the agricultural industry. Cheyenne, WY (82001) Today Sunny early then increasing clouds with some scattered thunderstorms this afternoon. Record high temperatures expected. High 96F. Winds W at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 40%.. Tonight Partly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 68F. Winds W at 15 to 25 mph. Thirteen of the indictment's 27 counts involved using a firearm to commit hate crimes, and the 12-page document revealed the weapons and ammunition law enforcement seized from the suspect's car at the Tops shooting as well as from two addresses in his hometown of Conklin. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. An Erie County judge has promised to grant youthful offender status and a sentence of probation to a 15-year-old accused of bringing a gun to a Buffalo high school in December if he pleads guilty to the felony gun charge he faces. The teen, who was warned by Judge Susan Eagan in early May about his failure to comply with court-ordered conditions, has since been meeting requirements of the pretrial program, Eagan said during a court appearance on Wednesday.. Eagan said she based her commitment on the teen having no prior involvement with the criminal justice system and this being an "isolated incident." The teen, who was indicted in February on one count of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, is accused of bringing a loaded handgun into the Bennett School Community Campus on Dec. 16, 2021. The Buffalo News is withholding his name due to his age. The report of a gun on campus prompted a shelter-in-place order in the building for about 2 hours. Police recovered the gun in another student's bag, prosecutors have said. A designation as a youthful offender means the teen's record would be sealed at sentencing. Eagan rejected a motion from the teen's defense attorney, Crystal L.M. Wentz, to move the case to family court. The judge said she felt "constrained by the language of the statute." She did not elaborate. In January, prosecutors said they would not extend a plea offer to a reduced charge. The teen, who at the time of the incident was a student at Research Laboratory High School for Bioinformatics & Life Sciences, recently began living with an aunt in Rochester, he told the judge. While she typically doesn't allow someone facing charges to leave the jurisdiction, the judge told him, she would allow him to keep staying there. He is still required to attend court appearances here, the judge said. The Erie County Probation Department has reached out to the Monroe County Office of Probation-Community Corrections to find out if that agency can take over supervision of the teen. The teen, who remains released on $25,000 bail, had not been attending mental health counseling and other appointments, nor had he attended virtual classes, the judge said in court May 4. About a week after that court appearance, the teen began attending some required appointments, Eagan said. On Wednesday, Eagan said, the teen was "continuing to comply with conditions" of the pretrial program. After the incident and his arrest in December, the teen's case was handled in Youth Part. The case has been in adult criminal court since the teen was indicted in February. Bennett Community School Campus, located in the Main Street building formerly known as Bennett High School, houses three schools: Research Laboratory High School for Bioinformatics & Life Sciences, Middle Early College High School and Lewis J. Bennett School of Innovative Technology. Saanich Police joined by Victoria Police and RCMP respond to reports of gunfire involving multiple people and injuries reported during an active situation in Saanich, B.C., June 28, 2022. (The Canadian Press/Chad Hipolito) BC RCMP Identify Twin Brothers as BC Bank Shooting Suspects Twin brothers in their early 20s were responsible for the shooting that injured numerous police officers at a bank in Saanich, B.C., earlier this week, RCMP alleged Saturday. Mounties spokesman Cpl. Alex Berube named the men as 22-year-olds Mathew and Isaac Auchterlonie from Duncan, B.C. Six officers were shot and the brothers were killed in the shootout with police on Tuesday outside the Bank of Montreal branch. Berube said officers have spoken with the twins relatives, who are co-operating with the investigation. Investigators are looking into the suspects backgrounds, and he said neither man had a criminal record or was known to police. We understand that the release of the names of the two deceased may answer the who, but there are still many outstanding questions and investigation efforts that need to take place in order to fully understand what took place and why, Berube told a news conference. The motive behind the armed robbery and subsequent exchange of gunfire with police has not yet been determined. Police have also confirmed that the twins are associated with a white four-door 1992 Toyota Camry that has two black racing stripes over the hood and roof, Berube said. The car was found with multiple explosives, which were removed and destroyed last week Berube said the investigation has so far determined that there were only two suspects in the bank. However, we are continuing to look into whether anyone else was involved or associated to the events on Tuesday. An update on the condition of the injured officers wasnt given. Earlier, Saanich Chief Const. Dean Duthie had said three of the officers remain in hospital, including one who is in intensive care while another will require more surgeries. Chris Pincher, then minister of state in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities, in Downing Street, London, on Feb. 8, 2022. (Aaron Chown /PA Media) Boris Johnson Unaware of Specific Allegations Against Former Tory Whip Chris Pincher: Minister British Prime Minister Boris Johnson did not know specific allegations about Chris Pincher before appointing him deputy chief whip, a Cabinet minister has said after the MP was suspended over sexual misconduct allegations. Pincher, MP for Tamworth, resigned from the whips office on Thursday after The Sun reported that he had groped two male guests at the Carlton Club, a Conservative Party private members club in Londons Piccadilly, on Wednesday evening. The Conservative Party on Friday suspended his party membership following a formal complaint. It was the second time Pincher has quit the whips office, having resigned as a junior whip in November 2017 following a complaint that he made an unwanted pass at the former Olympic rower and Conservative candidate Alex Story. Prime Minister Boris Johnson holds a news conference at the end of the NATO summit in Madrid, Spain, on June 30, 2022. (Stefan Rousseau /PA Media) Following Pinchers suspension, Johnson came under pressure to explain why he had given the MP a key ministerial role in February 2022 despite earlier allegations of misconduct. Former Number 10 adviser Dominic Cummings alleged that Johnson had referred to the MP as Pincher by name, pincher by nature long before appointing him. In media interviews on Sunday, Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey defended the prime ministers handling of the matter. Coffey told the BBC she believes to the best of my knowledge that Johnson was not aware of specific allegations about Pincher before appointing him to the whips office. Asked how she could be sure, she said, Ive been informed this morning that he didnt know about specific allegations. Pressed about who gave her the assurances, she said, Somebody from the Number 10 press office. Desperate The main opposition Labour Party said Pincher should never have been promoted to a ministerial role. Shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said elements of Coffeys defence were desperate. Its clear from what we know this morning that Chris Pincher should never have been put back into the whips office, the Labour MP told Sky News. In a statement issued on Saturday, Pincher said he would cooperate fully with the inquiry, and that hes seeking professional medical support over stresses. I respect the prime ministers decision to suspend the whip whilst an inquiry is underway, and I will cooperate fully with it, the MP said. Pincher said hes truly sorry for the upset he had caused by drinking too much and embarrassing himself and others. PA Media contributed to this report. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks during the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP26), in Glasgow, Scotland, on Nov. 10, 2021. (Yves Herman/Reuters) Buttigieg Responds After Hundreds of Flight Cancelations Reported Over July 4 Weekend Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg informed travelers about how to get refunds amid hundreds of cancellations and thousands of delays in flights across the United States ahead of July 4. According to airline tracking service FlightAware.com, as of Saturday, over 5,800 flights were delayed in the United States, including those in and out of the country. There were also at least 655 canceled flights, which is more than three times the average of about 210 canceled flights daily. As of Sunday morning, the tracking service said 211 flights were canceled and more than 938 delays were reported nationwide. Flight canceled? You are entitled to a prompt refund. Learn more about your rights at our Consumer Protection site, Buttigieg wrote on Twitter with a link to the Department of Transportations website on Saturday. According to the Transportation Department website, with the exception of non-refundable tickets, customers are entitled to a refund from airlines when a flight is canceled or delayed, or when bags are lost. They are also entitled to some refund if they were involuntarily moved to a lower class of service. In the case of delayed flights, refunds only apply when the delay or schedule change is significant, which is something the transportation department determines on a case-by-case basis. Customers can get a refund from airlines if they booked directly with them. Those who booked with third-party companies would need to obtain their refund via the travel agent. Some 2.49 million travelers went through security checkpoints at U.S. airports on Friday, which is even higher than the 2.46 million travelers earlier in the week, according to data released by the Transportation Security Administration on Saturday. The passenger volume on Friday was a 13 percent increase from July 1 in 2021, which was the Thursday before the July 4 holiday. Travelers wait at Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, on July 1, 2022. (Jeenah Moon/Getty Images) Industry Challenges Airlines continue to struggle to keep up with the high travel demand amid staffing shortages, high fuel costs, and other factors such as the weather, which on Saturday included thunderstorms on the East Coast and parts of the Midwest. Separately, more than 12,000 American Airlines flights in July were lacking a captain, first officer, or both, after a glitch in the companys platform for scheduling flights allowed pilots to drop assignments, CNBC reported on Saturday, citing the airlines pilots union. The airline said in a statement that the technical glitch meant that certain flights were swapped when they shouldnt have been allowed to be. We already have restored the vast majority of the affected trips and do not anticipate any operational impact because of this issue, it said. The Associated Press and Jack Phillips contributed to this report. Sunset in the Salton Sea, seen from Bombay Beach, Calif., on March 15, 2022. (David Swanson/Reuters) California Approves Lithium Tax Despite Industrys Warnings California on Thursday approved a plan to tax the electric vehicle battery metal lithium to generate revenue for environmental remediation projects despite industry concerns that it will harm the sector and delay shipments to automakers. Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, approved the tax as part of a must-pass state budget on Thursday. The state legislature had signed off on the levy during deliberations on Wednesday night. The tax is structured as a flat-rate per ton and will go into effect in January. The tax will be reviewed every year, and state officials have agreed to study potentially switching to a percentage-based tax. The largest American state sits atop giant lithium reserves in its Salton Sea region, east of Los Angeles, an area heavily damaged in the 20th century by years of heavy pesticide use from farming. Funds generated from the tax are earmarked in part to cleanup of the area. Federal officials have praised the areas start-up lithium industry because it would deploy a geothermal brine process that is more environmentally friendly than open-pit mines and brine evaporation ponds, the two most common existing methods to produce lithium. Two of the areas three lithium companies warned the tax would scare off investors and customers. Both said they may leave the state for lithium-rich brine deposits in Utah or Arkansas. Privately-held Controlled Thermal Resources Ltd. said the tax would force it to miss deadlines to deliver lithium to General Motors Co. by 2024 and Stellantis NV. by 2025. EnergySource Minerals LLC., also privately held, said it halted discussions with potential financiers and an automaker. Chicago police work at the scene of a shooting near East Chicago Avenue and North State Street in the Near North Side neighborhood in a file photo. (Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Chicago Sun-Times via AP) Chicago Violence: 7 Killed, 29 Others Shot Over Fourth of July Weekend At least seven people were killed and 29 more were injured in shootings across Chicago over the Fourth of July weekend, officials said on Sunday morning. Authorities said that a male and another male were shooting at each other at the 2200 block of South Wentworth Avenue at around 10:50 p.m. A 24-year-old unidentified woman was shot in the torso and was later pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital, officials told the Chicago Sun-Times and ABC7. The incident left a 42-year-old injured, and an official said shes in good condition at a nearby hospital, the paper reported. One of the suspects, a 38-year-old male, was shot in the buttocks and is in critical condition in Northwestern Memorial Hospital, authorities said. Early on Sunday, a 35-year-old male was shot dead at around 3 a.m. while in a vehicle in Brighton Park, officials said. The male was in the passenger seat as a female driver was driving a car on the 3800 block of South Kedzie Avenue when he was hit in the neck by gunfire. And on Friday, authorities said a 26-year-old male was shot and killed in the South Sides Englewood district. The male was outside about 5:45 p.m. in the 6500 block of South Wolcott Avenue when someone approached and shot him. On Sunday, two people were injured and one persona 24-year-old maledied in a shooting at Grand Crossing on the South Side, police said. They were shot in the backyard of a house in the 7000 block of South Harper Avenue at around 5:30 a.m. local time. Police said that in another incident, a 29-year-old male, identified as Keishone Roberts, was shot dead in the 4300 block of West Van Buren Street in West Garfield Park, the paper reported. He was shot several times after someone approached him and opened fire. He was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital sometime later. Around midnight Saturday, a 30-year-old male was shot and killed in the 9000 block of South Escanaba Avenue when someone shot him in the head, police said. Other details about the incident werent provided. Authorities also confirmed that a man was shot and killed while riding a bike in the 2100 block of East 71st Street at around 4 p.m. Saturday. The man, 26, was struck in the head and arm before he was taken to a nearby hospital and was later pronounced dead. During the Fourth of July weekend in 2021, more than 100 people were shot, of which 19 died. That prompted Chicago Police Chief David Brown to say that residents should expect more officers on the streets this weekend. While I wont give a number, we do have adequate resources where we need them, Brown said last week, according to reports. Navy Pier obviously is a focus. All of our high-violence areasobviously the top 55 beatsare a focus. As well as areas within every neighborhood and downtown. And last week, officials said that a 19-year-old male suspect, Anthony Heredia, was charged in the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old girl in a Chicago parking lot of a business. Police told Fox32 that the girl approached Heredia who produced a gun and fired shots at her. A Chinese citizen shows his ID card and bank book at a branch of the Bank of China in Sanya City, Hainan Province, China, on May 5, 2008. (Feng Li/Getty Images) China Tightens Rules for Online Platforms, Requiring Companies to Authenticate Users Identities The Cyberspace Administration of China issued new regulations on June 27 requiring all online platform operators to authenticate users identities and verify the account information submitted by users during registration. The new regulations require the network information service provider to display user IP addresses on their page of account information, which would facilitate Beijings monitoring of user locations. The new rules will take effect on Aug. 1, when companies will need to validate every users online identity. Current affairs commentator Lu Bei told The Epoch Times that the new rules allow the regime to maintain its control over information as it faces growing criticism online. Lu said that Beijing aims to extend its centralized control of information systems into citizens everyday lives, supervising their every move. The regime has been known to use network technology in a way that violates the rights and privacy of ordinary citizens, while at the same time failing to monitor the movement of criminals. He said a recent example is the regimes use of the compulsory COVID health app to stop depositors, whose savings were frozen by rural banks, from protesting. Several depositors told The Epoch Times on June 14 that the health code on their COVID-19 contact tracing app turned red as soon as they scanned barcodes for venues in Zhengzhou, the provincial capital of central Henan Province. A red health codeindicating a potential COVID-19 infectionbars the individual from accessing public places, from public toilets to shops to train stations. These individuals also face mandatory quarantine in centralized isolation centers. Across Henan, tens of thousands of people have been fighting to recover their banked savings for more than two months. The crisis started in April, when at least four lenders in Henan froze all cash withdrawals, citing internal system upgrades. But customers said that neither these banks nor officials have since offered any information on why or how long the process will take, prompting angry protests outside the banking regulators office in Zhengzhou in May. Illegal Posts Critical of Regime On June 28, Chinas Ministry of Public Security said on its public WeChat account that its cybersecurity department had investigated more than 600 cases of illegal posts by the internet water army or internet navymany fake accounts that get paid to post positive comments to inflate companies online imageand arrested more than 4,000 suspects, according to the state-run Peoples Daily. The report said that those commentators had spread unfavorable views of Chinas economy and that some had released illegal and harmful information to manipulate or disrupt the order of online public opinion. Lu believes that Beijings crackdown on the so-called illegal internet navy is to keep people from talking about hot topics, such as the Iron Chain Woman human trafficking scandal, the nightmare lockdowns in Shanghai, the Tangshan women-beating incident, and the Zhengzhou bank depositor incident. Any topic that concerns the ordinary citizen is suppressed, and inappropriate comments are filtered out, taken down, or attached with warning labels. People are deprived of freedom and labeled criminals for picking quarrels and provoking trouble, Lu added. Meanwhile, the legal Internet navy is paid for by the Chinese Communist Party. They are reportedly paid fifty cents for every pro-CCP remark or in exchange for a reduced jail sentence. Dorothy Li contributed to this report. James Robb, former TOPGUN commander, retired Navy admiral, and president of the National Training and Simulation Association, in a screenshot in June 2022. (Screenshot via The Epoch Times) China Unlikely to Invade Taiwan If It Affects Economy: Ex-TOPGUN Commander If the United States opposes a Chinese invasion of Taiwan Beijing, will be unlikely to take the island because the Chinese economy will not withstand the potential sanctions and possible separation from the global economy, said James Robb, former TOPGUN commander and retired Navy admiral. For China to cut itself off from the United States economy would be really almost like setting himself on fire, Robb said on EpochTVs Crossroads program. China needs the U.S. economy, the global economy, and global trade to grow, and this hedges against a possible Chinese invasion of Taiwan, he explained. Robb thinks the Chinese side tries to determine whether the United States will support Taiwan in the eventuality of a Chinese invasion, and calculate what kind of pain they are willing to suffer to take over Taiwan. If the United States said no, and seriously went over there and did things that they are trained and planned for, then, I think, thats a deterrent to China. In the Gulf War of 1991when the United States and international coalition forces attacked Iraq by airthe real victory was that the enemy left the air, the former TOPGUN commander said. TOPGUN fighter pilots took part in combat but there werent a lot of enemy airplanes shot down during the Gulf War, Robb said. The enemy knew that the Americans were going to swiftly come through there, they werent going to be able to hold up their own, and would die if they did not leave, he said. Its pretty clear evidence that they had a respect for us [knowing] that we were going to be the superior force. TOPGUN is the Navys elite fighter training program that has been synonymous with aviation excellence, according to the Department of Defense. CCPs Long-Term Strategy The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has a long view, Robb said. The country has 5,000 years of history and its leaders want another 5,000 years, but they would like to be the key influencer around the globe, Robb pointed out. To achieve this goal, the Chinese leadership needs to ensure that it is able to control its people, which means that it should be able to feed them and sustain its economy so people will not stage a revolution, the commander said, calling it a defensive side of the Chinese plans. On the offensive side, the CCP will advance slowly in small steps such as taking some islands on the south side, exerting its influence on the South China Sea, Panama Canal areas, Cuban oil, and South American nations, Robb explained, describing the Chinese tactics as very quiet in many ways but very effective. The Chinese influence has also reached the United States and it can be seen in the American economy and social media, Robb said. Walmart and Costco are flooded with cheap Chinese goods, and Americans like good deals, he added. Where theres not enough baby formula, or theres not enough food, theres shortages that are in reality caused by this reliance on China for a certain amount of goods and services. They slowly buy companies, and then they steal the technology. Theyre inside much more than you think. [The Chinese] think the Americans fall asleep to that, and they dont pay attention. Its a slow but serious effort to just take over, Robb warned. Total War The United States strategy is mostly to react, while the first part of the Chinese strategy is to convince the United States that China is going to launch a total war, Robb said. In other words, its propaganda. If Americans do not believe it and will not prepare to counter it they can only react, Robb said. Americans tend to believe that certain military options are not feasible, he added. However, we have a lot of evidence over time of people doing things that were just not feasible. For example, airplanes [that crashed] into [World Trade Center] towers was not feasible in the mindset of the United States people before it happened. America is not prepared to fight a total war against another country because the cooperation across governmental agencies does not work well, Robb said. Total war is the ability to bring all elements of power together so to prepare for it a country has to take a total government approach, he explained. The Department of Defense executes well but when other elements of the government need to get involved in a war they dont train together, and theyre not really prepared to fight together, said Robb, who is also the president of the National Training and Simulation Association. Its sort of an innocence of America, he said, that makes people believe that the United States can establish friendly relations with other countries and there is a way to negotiate with them. Theres certain factions, that we found over time, that they just hate us and their will and their desire is more focused on just barbarianism than it is [on] negotiations. Stealing Technology By the CCP Robb said that during his trips to China in the 1990s the Chinese leaders declared the nation a third world country and it was pretty far behind. At that time, the Chinese leaders had decided to bring Western economics into China, Robb said. Reforming the Chinese trade and investment and introducing incentives led to a surge in foreign direct investment in China beginning in the early 1990s, according to a congressional research report from 2019 (pdf). Such foreign investment inflow has been a major source of Chinas productivity gains and rapid economic and trade growth, the report states. Economically, China afforded itself the opportunity to compete with the United States materially in the military world, Robb said. Theyve also done extremely well at stealing our secrets. Americans spend years and billions of dollars to develop a product, but the Chinese steal the design and replicate it without incurring the research costs and spending time on design, he continued. Robb said he flew in the 1980s a Chinese fighter jet, the F-7 (an export version of J-7), which was a knockoff of the Russian fighter aircraft MIG-21. Many experts consider the Chinese fifth-generation stealth J-20 fighter jet to be a copy of the American F-35 stealth fighter in terms of both stealth and conventional capabilitieswith blueprints and other technology probably obtained illegally from U.S. firms such as Honeywell, wrote Stu Cvrk, a retired U.S. Navy captain. China should have been officially moved from its third world country status to the first world probably in the mid-2000s, Robb said. [It is] now that pacing threat from a technology point of view with our military. Chinas status as a developing country at the World Trade Organization (WTO) was reaffirmed in June by Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao in a WTO statement (pdf). The WTO does not have any definitions of developed and developing countries. It is up to each member state to declare itself as a developed or developing country, according to the WTOs website. Ella Kietlinska Reporter Follow Ella Kietlinska is a reporter for The Epoch Times focusing on U.S. and world politics. Police and other first responders work the scene where officials say dozens of people have been found dead and multiple others were taken to hospitals with heat-related illnesses after a semitrailer containing suspected illegal immigrants was found in San Antonio, Texas, on June 27, 2022. (Eric Gay/AP Photo) Court Document Reveals Likely Cause of Texas Mass Human Trafficking Deaths An unsealed court document shows that issues with air conditioning in the semi-truck likely caused the deadliest human trafficking incident in San Antonio, Texas. Alleged conspirator Christian Martinez, 28, who was charged along with the truck driver Homero Zamorano, Jr., told a government confidential informant that the air conditioner was not working properly before the incident. In addition, MARTINEZ said the driver was unaware the air conditioning unit stopped working and [that] was the reason why the individuals died, read the court document filed on Wednesday. Martinez and 45-year-old Zamorano have been charged with conspiracy to transport illegal immigrants, resulting in their death. Both face up to life in prison or the death penalty if convicted. Zamorano is originally from Brownsville but resides in Pasadena, Texas. Two other persons, 23-year-old Juan Claudio DLuna-Mendez and 48-year-old Juan Francisco DLuna-Bilbao, were charged with crimes not directly related to the deaths. Both of them are citizens of Mexico. Deadliest Human Trafficking Incident Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) on Monday discovered a tractor-trailer packed with 67 individuals in San Antonio after receiving 911 calls from concerned citizens. Upon arrival, authorities found many of the persons dead. Initial reports counted 48 deaths, but this death toll reached 53 a few days later. Police officers arrested Zamorano who was hiding in a brush after attempting to flee the scene. Temperatures in the area that day had soared as high as 103 Fahrenheit (39.4 Celsius), and authorities called to the scene found no water supplies or signs of working air-conditioning inside the cargo trailer. Surveillance photographs captured the truck passing through a border checkpoint at Laredo, Texas, at 2:50 p.m. CT on Monday before the illegal aliens are believed to have boarded the trailer. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat whose district includes the eastern part of San Antonio, told Reuters that the illegal immigrants had likely crossed the border and gone to a stash house before being picked up by the trailer and passing the Encinal checkpoint. Members of law enforcement investigate a tractor trailer in San Antonio, Texas, on June 27, 2022. (Jordan Vonderhaar/Getty Images) The tragedy comes as huge numbers of illegal immigrants have been coming to the United States, many of them taking perilous risks to cross swift rivers and canals and scorching desert landscapes to reach U.S. soil. Illegal aliens were stopped nearly 240,000 times in May, up by one-third from a year ago. Illegal immigrants typically pay $8,000 to $10,000 to be taken across the border, loaded into a tractor-trailer, and driven to San Antonio, where they transfer to smaller vehicles for their final destinations across the United States, said Craig Larrabee, acting special agent in charge of HSI in San Antonio. The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to the report. As expected, a federal judge has approved the release of Louis Ciminelli and the other Buffalo Billion" defendants in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Courts decision this week to hear their appeals. Louis Ciminelli could be released in wake of Supreme Court decision Louis P. Ciminelli and others imprisoned in the "Buffalo Billion" case could be released from custody soon if the judge who presided over their trial agrees that should happen in light of the Supreme Court's decision to hear their appeals. Agreeing with a request from the defendants lawyers, U.S. District Court Judge Valerie Caproni signed an order late Friday allowing for their release. However, Capronis order was not made public until Saturday. Ciminelli, a prominent Buffalo developer, remained in prison in Tucson, Ariz., on Saturday, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons website. But under Capronis order, he and the other "Buffalo Billion" defendants could be released at any time. Convicted of fraud charges in 2018, Ciminelli was imprisoned in February and had been scheduled to be released on Jan. 5, 2024. In his letter to the judge, Ciminelli's lawyer, Michael C. Miller, said Ciminelli and the other defendants should be released in light of the Supreme Court's announcement Thursday that it would hear their appeal during the court's next term, which starts in October. The Supreme Court will review the validity of the legal theory under which Ciminelli and the other defendants were convicted. That "right to control" theory says that suspects are guilty of fraud if they deliberately withhold important financial information from their business partners, even if there is no clear evidence that they benefited from that action. "The Supreme Courts grants of certiorari to review these questions necessarily establishes that they are substantial questions, which if resolved favorably to the defendants will result in reversal of their convictions," Miller said. The others convicted in the case are former SUNY Polytechnic Institute head Alain Kaloyeros and Syracuse businessmen Steven Aiello and Joseph Gerardi. They are expected to be released from prison at any time as well. All the men were convicted of fraud after the government accused them of concocting a bid-rigging scheme, which, in the case of Ciminelli, was said to have steered the contract for the giant Riverbend project in South Buffalo to his company. The Riverbend project now is a Tesla factory. A lawyer for Joseph Percoco, a former aide to former governor Andrew M. Cuomo who was convicted in a related case, asked that Percoco be released as well, as the Supreme Court will be considering his appeal, too. But as of Saturday night, federal records did not show that the judge had signed an order allowing for Percoco's release. To reduce their dependence on China, Korean beauty companies are accelerating their entry into the U.S. market where favorability for Korean products is increasing. The photo shows AmorePacific as a sponsor promoting cosmetics during the concert of the boy band BTS at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles from November 27 to 28, 2021. (Courtesy of AmorePacific) Deep Losses in China Force Korean Beauty Companies to Expand in North America Korean firms have begun expediting their expansion into North America to reduce their dependence on Chinese customers due to difficulties sustaining product sales in China under the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) zero-COVID policy. Koreas success in the United States, where their beauty products are rapidly gaining popularity, has been facilitated in part by the Korean boy band BTS and the hugely popular Netflix series Squid Game. Koreas largest beauty company, AmorePacific, reported that its first-quarter sales increased by 60 percent compared to the same period last year. The company attributes this growth to its U.S. expansion, with top-selling brands like Sulwhasoo for the luxury market, Laneige for the mid-range market, and Innisfree for the low-cost market. Since this year, the company has focused on developing online and offline sales channels in the United States. Both Laneige and Sulwhasoo expanded their online sales via listings on Amazon, the largest e-commerce company in the U.S., this past March and April respectively. As for in-store sales, Sulwhasoo entered 51 stores of beauty retailer Sephora in March, and Innisfree expanded its presence to more than 490 retailers, including Sephora and Kohls. Koreas second-largest beauty company, LG Household & Health Care, facilitated its expansion into the United States. via the acquisition of local retailers. In April, the company acquired a 65 percent stake in The Creme Shop for $120 million. This acquisition gives LG Household a strong position in products targeting Americas young adult market. Last year, LG Household & Health Care acquired a 56 percent stake in the U.S. company Boinca for $100 million. Boincas high-end hair care brand Arctic Fox is also highly popular among Americas young adults. Prior to the CCPs zero-COVID policy, Korean beauty companies largely depended on product sales in China. Roughly 70 percent of AmorePacifics overseas sales and 50 percent of LG Household & Health Care overseas sales were in the Chinese market. AmorePacific led the Korean cosmetics boom in China starting in 2016. After that, the company achieved operating profits of approximately $780 million for the first time since its founding. Chinas zero-COVID policy is not the only reason Korean beauty companies are focused on expanding into the United States. Starting in 2017, Korean product sales in China began to drop due to a boycott imposed on the country by the CCP in retaliation for South Koreas installation of the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system on a U.S. military base. Due to the CCPs actions, AmorePacific said its first-quarter sales in China for 2022 dropped 10 percent year-on-year. As a result, in comparison to the previous year, the companys total overseas sales dropped 6.1 percent, while operating profits dropped 19.5 percent. Earlier this year, AmorePacific announced it would be closing half of its 280 stores in China, Korean media Chosun reported. Beauty firms ETUDE HOUSE, Hera, and IOPE are also restructuring and plan to withdraw from in-store sales in China. LG Household & Health Care said its first-quarter sales dropped 19.2 percent and operating profits dropped 52.6 percent due to sluggish sales in China. In a conversation on June 16 with Reuters, Nicholas Burns, the U.S. Ambassador to China, said he expects Beijings zero-COVID policy to persist into 2023. By rapidly expanding into North American markets, Koreas beauty companies are hoping to recover from their deep losses in China. If youre planning to barbeque over the Fourth of July weekend, consider grilling in ways that emit less air pollution. Ali Ghasemi, who heads the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District, says he cooks with gas barbeques, one connected to the natural gas line in his house and another hooked to a propane gas tank. Gas and electric grills are more energy-efficient and produce fewer pollutants than charcoal, Ghasemi told me. Pollutants from charcoal include formaldehyde, a colorless gas the National Toxicological Program says is known to cause cancer, and acetaldehyde, a respiratory irritant the U.S. EPA lists as a probable human carcinogen. The cancer risk depends on levels and duration of exposure and factors specific to individuals, according to the EPA. The more likely effect of exposure from an occasional barbeque is irritation of skin, eyes, nose and throat. Burning charcoal also emits tiny, lung-damaging specks of toxic soot and smoke known as PM2.5 and PM10. PM stands for particulate matter and the numbers refer to particle size, in microns. The California Air Resources Board regulates these inhalable particles because they can induce inflammation and damage tissue in the lungs. As the air board notes on its PM webpage, Short-term exposures to PM10 have been associated primarily with worsening of respiratory diseases, including asthma, and long-term (months to years) exposure to PM2.5 has been linked toreduced lung function growth in children. Several studies show that combustion of BBQ charcoal can also be a significant source of emissions of toxic trace metals emissions posing additional potential health concerns. Cooking with an outdoor electric grill may be the cleanest option, especially in Ventura County, where so much of our power is supplied by renewable sources. Electric grills are especially favored by people whose outdoor cooking is limited to a small balcony. But it may not provide the same thrill as barbequing with a flame. My wife and I barbeque with gas, and since our home is entirely powered by electric energy from photovoltaic panels, we rely on propane canisters for gas. I recently refilled an empty 5-pound propane tank with 1.2 gallons propane at U-Haul for under $7 inexpensive, though U-Haul will not refill tanks more than five years old and waiting in line for an attendant to service your tank can take some time. More convenient, but more expensive, Ralphs offers seemingly more convenient but more expensive pre-filled Blue Rhino tanks. Ralphs charges $21.99 for a tank exchange and $59.99 for a new tank. Presumably, this should be a faster option than re-filling, but when I tried it recently at a Ralphs in Ventura, finding a staff person familiar with the program took some time. I first asked a checkout clerk, who referred me to the customer service desk attendant, who called over a manager, who asked a staff person to help me. Overall, the time involved was about the same as U-Haul. Barbequing with charcoal briquettes remains popular, partly because charcoal can add a smoky flavor. For John Polich, of Agoura Hills, whose family will barbeque at a local lake next weekend, I just do it that way because thats how I learned to barbeque. However, even those committed to charcoal can cut pollution, such as avoiding lighter fluid, a petroleum solvent that contributes to ground level ozone pollution and can leave a residue in grilled items, according to Lester Grahams online The Environmental Report. Graham cites experts recommending a charcoal chimney or an electrical charcoal starter instead of a lighter fluid. Ive been at sites where lighter fluid is prohibited, Polich said, so I learned how to use a charcoal chimney, with crumpled paper in it, and Ive been using it ever since. Ghasemi, of the local Air Pollution Control District, provides additional tips for those using charcoal. Citing the studies posted on the MD Anderson Cancer Center website, he noted, You can also cut air emissions and reduce cancer risk by cleaning your grill, avoiding charring of meat, using a marinade, and trimming fat. Republished from enh.org Secretary of Education Betsy Devos speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House on March 27, 2020. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images) Education Freedom and Secretary Betsy DeVos Commentary Former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has come up with a bold, liberating approach to giving younger Americans the best possible education. She calls it education freedom. Education freedom is an important concept because it recognizes both the structural and technological opportunities for learning that have emerged since the development of the school choice movement. School choice began in Wisconsin under Gov. Tommy Thompson and State Rep. Polly Williams (a former welfare recipient who was Jessie Jacksons state chair and became the longest serving Wisconsin state legislator with 30 years of service). The addition of vouchers was the bold reform of 1989. However, at the time we assumed the only delivery system for learning was made up of physical schools. Vouchers sought to both expand the opportunities for students and parents to find the right schools for their needs and put competitive pressure on unionized public school bureaucracies and force them to improve or lose students. Since the development of school choice and vouchers, there has been an explosion of new approaches and technologies from individual family home schooling, collective home schooling cooperatives, apprenticeships, and now online learning. At Gingrich 360, we work with Dr. Ben Carsons American Cornerstone Institute, which has created the Little Patriots Program. It is a remarkable resource for students, parents, and educators looking to learn about American history in an engaging, fun, and informative way. Khan Academy, Prager University, and Udacity are examples of other online learning tools to encourage lifelong learners. Secretary DeVos captured this explosion of choices and the education freedom they offer in her new book Hostages No More: The Fight for Education Freedom and the Future of the American Child. As DeVos wrote: Education freedom starts with the premise that every student is unique, and every student learns differently. This is something every parent knows. Yet we have a school system that essentially treats children as if they are all the same. At the core, my vision for American education is to ensure all children have the freedom to learn in their own way. Its to give parents freedom to find the best option and fit for their children. Critically, education freedom also means giving teachers freedom to meet their students needs in many different learning environments. As it stands, public school teachers have very limited choice in where they teach and in how they teach. The positive, aspirational vision for education freedom is this: students are empowered to find places to learn that maximize their potential rather than be trapped in government assigned, zoned schools. Every child has the opportunity and the resources to learn and to become a fully productive member of his or her community. Education freedom honors this vision. It puts the student, rather than the system, first. This alonemaking children the center of our education systemis reason enough to advance this cause for every child. DeVoss concept of education freedom has been translated into a new Arizona law that would expand its Empowerment Scholarship Account program. As Steve Moore wrote in the Committee to Unleash Prosperity Hotline newsletter: Weve been saying for many months that THIS is the school choice moment weve all been waiting for. So we are standing on our desks cheering that Arizonas legislature has passed what might be the most ambitious school choice bill in American history. While praising Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) for championing the bill, Moore wrote that the ESA would offer $6,400 scholarships for Arizona students to attend the schools of their choice, including public, private, religious, or charter schools. Since 2011, the program has only been open to 11,800 students who had parents in the military, were in foster care, or were Native Americans living on reservations. However, soon all the states 1.1 million students could benefit from the program. As ALEC and other organizations carry forth the messageand as more and more concerned Americans read Secretary DeVoss bookwe approach a genuine revolution in getting true educational freedom for all Americans. No other education reform would do more to help poor children learn, leave poverty, and engage in lives of accomplishment and prosperity. No other reform can more effectively prepare the next generation of Americans to compete with China and have a productive, effective, work force. No other reform is as important in helping citizens learn enough to be truly self-governing and free. From Gingrich360.com Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. Ex-head of Anaheim Chamber of Commerce Pleads Guilty to Federal Charges LOS ANGELESThe former president and CEO of the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce pleaded guilty on July 1 to federal charges for defrauding a cannabis company, fraudulently obtaining a COVID-relief business loan worth nearly $62,000, lying to a bank while seeking a loan for a $1.5 million second home and cheating on his taxes. Todd Ament, 57, of Orange, pleaded guilty in Los Angeles to two counts of wire fraud, one count of making a false statement to a financial institution, and one count of subscribing to a false tax return. Aments plea agreement requires him to cooperate with the government and pay almost $250,000 in back taxes. U.S. District Judge Fernando L. Aenlle-Rocha scheduled a Dec. 9 sentencing hearing, at which time Ament will face up to 20 years in federal prison for each wire fraud count, up to 30 years for the false statement count, and a possible three years of imprisonment for the tax count, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Federal prosecutors said Ament schemed with a political consultant who was a partner at a national public relations firm to divert funds intended for the Chamber through the firm and into Aments personal bank account to help him acquire a home in the San Bernardino Mountains. Ament also solicited a $225,000 payment from a consultant and a cannabis company to the chamber to create a cannabis task force that would lobby Anaheim officials. Of that amount, $41,000 was paid in kickbacks to Ament, who put the money in his bank account. In addition the defendant admitted defrauding the Small Business Administrations program providing COVID-19 pandemic relief. He received $61,900 in loans, but used the money for personal expenses such as property taxes on his home and to make purchases at clothing and boating stores. Ament also acknowledged committing tax fraud by failing to report income. The initial charge against Ament came a day after a federal search warrant affidavit targeting then-Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu was made public. Falun Gong practitioners take part in a parade marking the 30th anniversary of the spiritual discipline's introduction to the public, in New York on May 13, 2022. (Larry Dye/The Epoch Times) Fight to Control COVID-19 Narrative Sees Intensified Persecution of Falun Gong in China: Nonprofit Director Uptick in harassment and imprisonment due to whistleblower risk One way the Chinese regime has maintained control over the COVID-19 narrative is by imprisoning more people who practice Falun Gong, a nonprofit director told a religious freedom summit on June 30. Chinas ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) declared war on Chinas independent journalists, doctors, and citizen journalists during the pandemic, including Chinese who practice Falun Gong due to the increased risk they pose to the regime for whistleblowing. Thousands more practitioners were harassed by Chinese officials and police, and hundreds more practitioners were sentenced in each of the past two years, compared to numbers in 2019, according to data presented during a panel at the International Religious Freedom Summit on June 30. Levi Browde, executive director of New York-based nonprofit organization Falun Dafa Information Center, explained during the panel that the CCP chose to escalate its persecution against Falun Gong because of the sheer size of the spiritual grouptens of millions of practitioners in Chinathat is already subject to the Chinese regimes methods of information control and disinformation. That is why during the pandemic, Falun Gong incarcerations actually went up, because Falun Gong is no longer just a persecuted minority. Its also a whistleblower, Browde said. Levi Browde, executive director of the Falun Dafa Information Center, at a Falun Gong rally at City Hall in New York on May 11, 2016. (Benjamin Chasteen/Epoch Times) He added: And they [Beijing] know if theyre hiding something about the virus in Wuhan, or other places, Falun Gong is the first one they need to keep quiet, because theyre the ones who are going to expose the news about what the CCP is doing. And thats exactly what happened. Persecution of Those Who Value Truth There were 3,582 cases of harassment in 2019, but the number of cases jumped to 9,159 in 2020 before climbing to 9,332 in 2021, according to the Falun Dafa Information Centers new biannual report released in May, titled: Pandemic, Persecution and Pushback: Trends and Analysis from the Suppression of Falun Gong in China and Beyond. Last year, 1,372 practitioners were sentenced to prison, a jump from 775 in 2019. The number of practitioners killed because of their faith also matches the alarming trend. According to the report, there were 180 reported deaths in 2021almost double the 98 known deaths in 2019. For the first three months of this year, there are already 21 confirmed deaths. Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that teaches its practitioners to live by the universal tenets of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. It was widely popular in China in the 1990s, with about 70 to 100 million practitioners, according to official estimates. In 1999, the CCP perceived the popular discipline as a threat to its rule and launched a nationwide persecution targeting the practice and its adherents. Millions have been detained inside prisons, labor camps, and other facilities, with hundreds of thousands tortured while incarcerated, according to the information center. Additionally, there are over 4,700 documented deaths as a result of persecution, though experts say the true figure is likely much higher. Falun Gong Whistleblowers Falun Gong practitioners run the largest underground media and information network inside China, the report noted. One of the whistleblowers identified is Fang Bin, a self-described citizen journalist, who exposed the severity of the outbreaks in Wuhan during the onset of the pandemic after he successfully filmed dead bodies at overcrowded hospitals in the city. A pro-democracy activist (C) from HK Alliance holds a placard of missing citizen journalist Fang Bin, as she protests outside the Chinese liaison office in Hong Kong on Feb. 19, 2020. (Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images) Days after his footage was made available online, Fang was detained by police. His current whereabouts are unknown, but he was reportedly being held at the Jiangan Detention Center in Wuhan in November 2021. Prior to the pandemic, Fang was once detained for over four years and egregiously tortured for practicing Falun Gong, according to the report. The report also named whistleblower Xu Na, one of 11 Falun Gong practitioners indicted in April 2021 for providing information relating to the pandemic in Chinas capital Beijing to the Chinese-language edition of The Epoch Times. Xu was sentenced to eight years in prison in January. Murder for Organs The panel also discussed Chinas state-sanctioned practice of harvesting organs from Falun Gong practitioners. The practice turned China into a top destination for transplant tourism because Chinese hospitals often offer short waiting times for matching organs for patientsmuch faster than developed countries with established organ donation systems. Allegations of forced organ harvesting from Falun Gong prisoners of conscience first emerged in 2006. Now, more than 15 years later, China is still murdering practitioners for their organs, according to Browde. Its very much happening in China. its very much a money-making business. Its a multi billion-dollar industry, the act of killing innocent people and selling organs, Browde said. One of the participants on the panel was Han Yu, a Falun Gong practitioner, who shared how she suspected her father, Han Junqing, was a victim of Chinas criminal organ harvesting scheme, who passed away in 2004 while being held at a detention center in Beijing. At that time, Han was still in China but she eventually moved to the United States in 2018. Yu said police told her that her father died of a heart attack. But she suspects that determination of the cause of death based on how healthy her father was prior to his detention. Moreover, Yu said the fact that it took more than a month for the police to allow the family to see her fathers body aroused her suspicion. Under the close watch of police officers, Yu and her family finally got to see the elder Hans body. But they were in shock at what they saw. My father was laying there with green and the purple bruises all over [his body], Han said. What struck me the most were the thick stitches on his throat area. The stitches extended from the throat area to his abdomen, according to Han. She said her family then pressed his abdomen and found that it was filled with hard ice. My uncle was furious and confronted the police about what they had done to my father. The police just said that this was due to an autopsy. But no one in my family had consented to an autopsy, and the police also refused to release the autopsy report, Han said. Forced organ harvesting is one of the most egregious human rights abuses taking place today in China, and it targets minority religious communities. At #IRFSummit2022, we heard from Yu Han, whose father was a victim of forced organ harvesting. This is her chilling story. pic.twitter.com/DiuiaBPjEE IRF Summit 2022 (@IRFSummit) June 30, 2022 She said it hurts every time she shares her fathers story but she must continue doing so. I dont want my fathers death to be in vain when we can stop forced organ harvesting in China, Han told the summit. Crimes Against Humanity In 2019, an independent panel, called the China Tribunal, found that such practice was happening on a significant scale in China. It concluded that such actions amounted to crimes against humanity, with Falun Gong practitioners being the main source of organs. Larry Liu, deputy director of government and advocacy at the nonprofit organization, said the U.S. State Department could help end Chinas persecution of Falun Gong. We encourage the State Department to consider to designate the persecution of Falun Gong as a crime against humanity and or a genocide, Liu said. Falun Gong practitioners raise awareness about forced organ harvesting atrocities in China, as they march through Manhattan celebrating World Falun Dafa Day, on May 16, 2019. (Edward Dye/The Epoch Times) Forced Organ Harvesting of Falun Gong Adherents Should Be Focus in Human Rights Talks With China: Advocates The forced organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners should be the focus when addressing human rights issues with China, according to top human rights advocates participating at the International Religious Freedom Summit 2022 in Washington from June 2830. We need to focus on it, first of all, [because] it is one of the most appalling crimes you can imagine, Katrina Lantos Swett, former chair of the U.S. Committee on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), told EpochTVs China Insider program. But its also very concrete. Its something people, when they hear about it [will get] shocked and sickened, Swett added. July 20 marks the 23rd year of the Chinese regimes persecution of Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline with meditative exercises and moral teachings. It grew in popularity during the 1990s with up to 100 million people practicing in China by the end of the decade. Perceiving this to be a threat, the Chinese regime in 1999 launched a nationwide campaign seeking to eradicate the practice. Millions of Falun Gong practitioners have been detained in jails and detention facilities across the country, where they are subjected to torture and forced organ harvesting. According to Swett, upon hearing about the ghoulish crime, people relate to the fact that their medical schools, their hospitals might be indirectly complicit, because theyre training Chinese doctors, and they are participating in programs with them. It may cause people to get their level of moral outrage up and be more prepared to really focus on the whole range of abuses in China, she said. Lord David Alton from the British House of Lords, also called the practice outrageous and said that he, together with his colleagues from all party lines, have been working on legislation to bring in greater penalties for anyone involved in organ harvesting. It produces disincentives for people to travel to do that [organ transplant] from the United Kingdom, Alton said. Katrina Lantos Swett, vice chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, speaks during a hearing of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission on The Plight of Religious Minorities in India on Capitol Hill in Washington on April 4, 2014. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images) Not Chinas Internal Problem Swett dismissed the Chinese regimes rhetoric that human rights issues are its domestic internal problem and that no other countries should intervene. She cited the U.N.s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, saying, No country can say to the rest of the world, how we treat or mistreat our own citizens is none of your business. The rights of their citizens are a matter of international law, not Chinese law, she added. In Swetts opinion, Beijing makes excuses because they dont like their sins to be paraded in front of the world. And they go to great lengths to pressure and intimidate others to keep from doing that. But the very fact that they are so sensitive, and so defensive, and so hostile to any effort, to tell the truth, tells us that theyre a little bit afraid of the world knowing the truth, Swett said. Mary Beth Long, former U.S. assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, also echoed Swetts arguments. The way that China treats its human rights has security implications for all of us, Long said. This artificial lines of internal and external, as human beings, we cant buy it, not when it comes to our basic human rights. like religious freedom, she added. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Mary Beth Long (C) and Commander, Combined Forces Command Afghanistan Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry listen to Drug Enforcement Agency Administrator Karen Tandy as she testifies before the House Armed Services Committee on the status of safety and security in Afghanistan, in Washington on June 28, 2006. (Joshua Roberts/Getty Images) Calling for Action Swett further urged leaders across the globe to take action against human rights crimes in general and in particular the persecution of Falun Gong adherents by the Chinese regime. We need more government leaders at the highest levels talking about this persecution, calling it out, and holding China accountable, she said. Nadine Maenza, a former USCIRF commissioner, shared the same view saying, The U.S. government needs to use every lever it has to push against China, and to bring in human rights, to bring in other countries along with it. We might tie religious freedom, tie human rights to foreign policy goals, she added. Were safer when religious freedom and human rights are better around the world. And what with things deteriorating and continuing to get worse, its setting up all sorts of conflicts around the world that were going to have to deal with. Meanwhile, Long suggested integrating the Chinese regimes human rights with the United States national security strategy. That is non-negotiable, and should never be negotiable as part of our national security, or our policies, she said. Should China choose to be a positive contributor in the global workspace, it must recognize that fundamental right as to how that plays out with our economic relations, trade relations, our involvement with each others sporting activities, Long said. Once you become an irresponsible international player, like North Korea, if you cant protect the very values that are integral to our very being on this earth, then you must be isolated, she added. Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd during the public hearing into media diversity in Australia at the Environment and Communications References Committee in the Main Committee Room at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on Feb. 19, 2021. (Sam Mooy/Getty Images) Former Australian PM Kevin Rudd Joins Ukraine Advisory Group Former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd has joined an international advisory group set up by the president of Ukraine to look at ways to prevent future Russian aggression. The whos who group of ex-government foreign policy specialists held its first meeting earlier this month after being established by Ukraines leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy in May. The group hopes to create security guarantees to avoid a repeat of Russias invasion of Ukraine, including by boosting pre-emptive diplomatic powers to ward off an attack. I hope this working groups recommendations will support Ukraines legitimate desire to rebuild as a strong, free and sovereign country pursuing its own destiny, Rudd said in a statement on his website. Ukrainians are rightly focused on winning this war. But when it ends, Ukrainian leaders will want to clearly understand what sorts of domestic and international mechanisms might deter further aggression against their country by Russia or any other state. The head of the Ukrainian presidents office, Andriy Yermak, said recommendations may include facilitating quick access to military, economic, and humanitarian assistance. Other members of the 12-person group include Britains former foreign secretary William Hague, former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt and ex-Polish foreign affairs minister Anna Fotyga. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is contemplating a lightning visit to war-torn Kyiv following an invitation from Zelenskyy. Albanese, who has been in Europe attending a NATO Summit in Madrid and holding diplomatic talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, is yet to confirm whether he will take up the offer. The prime minister has been working on rebuilding ties with Paris after the diplomatic fallout over the nuclear submarines deal axed by the Morrison government in 2021. Hong Kong Democratic Party Indicates It Will Continue to Speak Out The 25th anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong took place on July 1 2022, and it also marked two years from the national security law coming into effect. Under the new political situation, the survival of many pro-democracy parties and organizations have become increasingly difficult, and some have even dissolved. The Hong Kong Democratic Party, which was founded in 1994, posted a Declaration Statement on June 30, stating that restoration of Hong Kong does not only refer to restoration of the land, but most importantly, it is the restoration of peoples hearts. Only true democracy and greater freedom can win the hearts and minds of Hong Kong people. They also pointed out that those in power should take the first step in mending the sorrow, and called on the government to release all political prisoners. In the face of the difficult political situation, Hong Kong Democratic Party emphasized that it will continue to maintain hope, and will not give up. The Democratic Party stated in its Declaration Statement that, when the Party was founded, there was a vote of confidence in Hong Kong after the handover of the city in 1997. The Party hoped that democratic universal suffrage and a representative political system would be implemented under the one country, two systems principle. It intended to function as a political party to contribute to Hong Kongs social development, and express the ideas of Hong Kong people. Although we are still far from our founding goals, the original intention of the Democratic Party remains unchanged. We still believe that one country, two systems, with Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong with a high degree of autonomy, are policies that are most in line with the aspirations of the Hong Kong people. The Hong Kong Democratic Party spokesperson said, although our expectations on the implementation of one country, two systems is quite different from that of the communist China, we will continue to make clarifications to the Hong Kong government, and to the communist regime. The spokesperson also recalled the July 1 Declaration issued 25 years ago, that frankly stated restoration of Hong Kong does not only refer to restoration of the land, but most important, it is the restoration of peoples hearts. It is only through allowing true democracy and greater freedom that can the hearts of Hong Kong people be won. We believe that according to the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law, the government should give Hong Kong citizens a high degree of autonomy, freedom in the management of their own affairs, and welcome their participation in social affairs. Letting citizens feel that they can exert their influence on social development through various channels acknowledged within the system is the best way to eliminate social grievances, thus winning back peoples hearts. The Democratic Party further pointed out that the success of Hong Kong has always depended on the creativity, vitality, and imagination of Hong Kong citizens. It also mentioned that, only if political parties, the media, and civil society are allowed to freely express their opinions on government policies, can these policies conform to procedural justice and public expectations. These are the most important characteristics of Hong Kong. The Democratic Party further believes that the success of one country, two systems, requires mutual trust between the CCP, the Hong Kong government, and Hong Kong citizens. However, the sorrow in the society has been very serious in recent years. If the sorrow remains untreated, the damage will not recover, and Hong Kong can only limp forward slowly. In fact, many citizens have already chosen to emigrate. They also suggested that the first step in repairing the sorrow should be taken by those in power, and called on the government to release political prisoners, reduce the sadness and confront the worries of Hong Kong people. Only by persistently using different measures to stabilize the hearts of its citizens, can it retain its talents. Facing the difficult political situations, many members of the Democratic Party or other democracy activists have been imprisoned or remanded on different occasions, and many different organizations have been disbanded or cease to operate. Tired, powerless, helpless, hesitant, discouraged, fearful, worried, but they stated that they will not escape, because these emotions stem from our love for Hong Kong. The Democratic Party also emphasized that it will continue to maintain hope in the future, will not give up, and will try its best to speak up no matter what happens. The more difficult it is, the more tenacious we should be, the more we must continue to stand, shoulder-to-shoulder, with all the citizens who are willing to stay in Hong Kong; and we will work hard to build the land we love. It will continue to promote democracy and freedom, defend human rights and the rule of law, work to improve the well-being of citizens, address poverty and housing problems, epidemic prevention, and assist with post-epidemic economic recovery. At present, many members of the Democratic Party are still on remand pending trial, including the former Eastern District Council Vice-Chairman and former convener of the Democratic Forces Chiu Ka-yin; Former Kowloon East Legislative Councillor, and former New Territories West councillor Wu Chi-wai, who was involved in the democratic primary election case; Legislative Council member and former Kwai Tsing District Councillor Wan Siu-kin; Former New Territories East Legislative Council Member, and former North District Councillor Lam Cheuk-ting, to name just a few. In addition, two senior members of the Democratic Party, including former Democratic Party Chairman and former Hong Kong Island Legislative Council Member Yeung Sum, and former Hong Kong Island Legislative Council Member and former Kwai Tsing District Council Chairman Sin Chung-kai, were also gazetted by the government earlier. They were stripped of their Silver Bauhinia Star Awards and their posts of Justice of the Peace. In addition, many members of the Democratic Party have also left Hong Kong due to the political situation or have gone into exile, including former Democratic Party Chairman Li Wing-tat and his wife Chen Shu-ying, who left Hong Kong for the UK last year; and former Hong Kong Island Legislative Council member and former Central and Western District Councillor Hui Chi-fung, amongst others. House Republicans Seek to Designate June a Month of Life in Celebration of Supreme Court Ruling Rep. Carol Miller (R-W.Va.) has led 46 other House Republicans in introducing a congressional resolution aiming to declare June as the Month of Life, in commemoration of the Supreme Courts recent decision to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling. As a mother and grandmother, I know the joy that children bring to a family, Miller said in a July 1 statement from her office. All children, no matter their age, should be cherished, and the Supreme Courts decision reaffirms that. She added: I am thrilled to stand alongside my colleagues to celebrate this historic moment and designate June as the Month of Life. I urge my colleagues to pass this resolution immediately to honor the unborn and stand up for life. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on June 24 following a 63 vote. Justice Samuel Alito, who wrote the courts majority opinion, said that Roe was egregiously wrong from the start, and, It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the peoples elected representatives. After Roe was returned, judges in Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Utah blocked abortion restrictions or bans from being enforced. Meanwhile, several states with abortion trigger laws are being challenged, including Idaho and Oklahoma. According to the Guttmacher Institute, as many as 26 states could eventually ban abortions. House Resolution 1216 states that the right to life is one of the founding principles of the United States and the U.S. Constitution does not include a right to abortion. It adds that the rights of states are included in the Constitution and should be respected and supported. Whats more, the resolution emphasizes how scientific and medical technology has demonstrated repeatedly the humanity of the unborn child. The resolution also calls out states to provide necessary resources to help women and families with unplanned pregnancies to find life-affirming alternatives to abortion. If passed, the resolution would commit House lawmakers to recognize the importance of reaffirming the dignity of human life and support life both inside the womb and outside the womb as well as the pregnant mother, among other things. According to Millers statement, the resolution is supported by Americans United for Life, Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee, March for Life, Family Research Council, Heritage Action, and Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. Among the co-signers of the resolution are House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Reps. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.), Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Greg Steube (R-Fla.), and Kat Cammack (R-Fla.). Days earlier, a group of Republican senators led by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) introduced a resolution celebrating the pro-life movements historic victory after the Supreme Court ruling on abortion. The Supreme Court decision is a victory for the pro-life movement and the volunteers who have supported mothers and children for the past 50 years, Blackburn said, according to a statement from her office. Pro-life supporters come together from different states, religions, professions, and backgrounds in order to fight for the lives of the unborn, and I look forward to empowering the work of these volunteers as they continue to fearlessly defend the right to life, she added. The bill commemorates those who have stood up for life over the last nearly 50 years and condemns all threats and incidents of violence fueled by the decision. Co-sponsors of the Senate resolution include Sens. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), James Risch (R-Idaho), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.). Man Dead After Explosion at Michigan Air Show A 40-year-old man has died after an explosion at an air show in Michigan on Saturday, police said. Chris Darnell, 40, was a driver of a jet-powered semitruck at the annual Battle Creek Field of Light Air Show and Balloon Festival. According to a statement from the Battle Creek Police Department, Darnell was driving the SHOCKWAVE Jet Truck during the air show. The truck races over 300 mph down the runway at the Battle Creek Executive Airport. At about 1:10 p.m. today, during Darnells performance in the air show, an accident happened that resulted in his death, the department said. The accident remains under investigation, with no new information available. Battle Creek Fire, Battle Creek Police, and Federal Aviation Administration Officials continue to investigate. The vehicle was headed down a runway at the Battle Creek Executive Airport when the explosion happened, according to air show spokeswoman Suze Gusching, the Battle Creek Enquirer reported. He was doing his show and going down the runway, Gusching told the outlet. He passed by the explosion, and his truck had exploded. Video of the scene showed prop planes performing aerial tricks and flying low above the Jet Truck at the time. Air show performances were canceled for the rest of the day. The air show is expected to resume on Sunday. Other evening activities at the festival continued Saturday evening and have not changed for July 3 and 4. The deceased mans father, Neal Darnell, said in a statement posted on the Jet Truck Facebook page that the incident occurred as a result of a mechanical failure on the Jet Truck. Neal Darnell said his youngest son passed away from his injuries at approximately 1:01 pm and that no one else was involved. We are so sad, the father said. Just one month ago Chris turned 40. He was so well loved by everyone who knew him. Chris so loved the Air Show business. He was Living the Dream as he said. He added that funeral arrangements will be provided sometime this week. According to the Michigan governments website, the event is the largest combined air show and balloon festival in the United States and is consistently voted as one of the best air shows in the country. Featuring the United States Air Force Thunderbirds, US Air Force F-35A Lightning II Demo Team, US Navy F-35C Lightning II Demo Team, and US Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet RHINO Demo Team plus some terrific civilian acts along with pyro and the WALL OF FIRE, the website reads. Fireworks, hot air balloons, night air show & more! The event is billed as a terrific and affordable family fun aviation event. A controversial $148 million settlement offer in the Diocese of Rochester, along with recent deals of $87.5 million and $121.5 million, respectively, in bankruptcy cases in the Diocese of Camden, N.J., and Archdiocese of Sante Fe, N.M., give glimpses into where mediated negotiations might be heading for the Buffalo Diocese, its parishes and schools and more than 900 people who have filed sex abuse claims with a federal court. Nearly 2 years after a flood of Child Victims Act lawsuits prompted the Buffalo Diocese to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, attorneys indicated this week that they are still at least several months from being able to reach a deal compensating abuse victims. Bankruptcy judge halts sex abuse suits against Buffalo Diocese parishes, schools The judge said allowing the state litigation to move forward would become an inherent distraction that promises to complicate negotiations among the parties involved in the Diocese of Buffalo bankruptcy reorganization. By no means can I say the case is going to settle, but I think we are literally getting into the meat of it, so to speak, lead diocese bankruptcy attorney Stephen A. Donato told a federal judge this week. Donato said it will take an absolute minimum of four to five months to have a clearer picture of whether mediated negotiations ordered by Chief Judge Carl L. Bucki of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Western District of New York in February will yield results. The diocese has met twice in person to negotiate with a creditors committee that represents abuse victims. Judge temporarily blocks 36 clergy abuse claims, citing threat to Buffalo Diocese bankruptcy case A federal bankruptcy judge has temporarily blocked three dozen Child Victims Act cases against area Catholic parishes and schools from moving forward. We are still at the initial stages where I think were all optimistic that well make further progress, said Ilan D. Scharf, lead attorney for the creditors committee. Friction in Rochester That optimism might be short-lived if the Rochester Diocese case is any guide. Rochester was the first diocese in New York State to file for bankruptcy, five months ahead of the Buffalo Diocese. The Rochester Diocese is represented in its bankruptcy by the same lawyers the Buffalo Diocese hired. The official committees of unsecured creditors in both cases also use the same attorneys, as do the committees in both cases that represent Catholic parishes. The Rochester Diocese headed into mediated settlement talks in March 2020. Buffalo Diocese's legal bill in first 6 months of bankruptcy grows to $1.9M More than 30 attorneys in five law firms that charge from $150 to $843 per hour have worked on behalf of the diocese since its Chapter 11 filing. A judge agreed to put all lawsuits against parishes in the Rochester Diocese on hold while the diocese, sex abuse claimants and insurers tried to make a deal that would involve contributions from parishes and other non-debtor Catholic entities, in exchange for a channeling injunction that would release them from liability in state courts. More than two years later, the parties remain at odds. In May, the Rochester Diocese proposed a $148 million settlement for 475 sex abuse claimants and asked the court to extend the stay on litigation against parishes and other entities. Lawyers for sex abuse plaintiffs blasted the offer, saying it was a tiny fraction of the worth of the dioceses insurance coverage, estimated at $2 billion or more, and was made with no input from the creditors committee. Its just an end run. They cut a backroom deal, said attorney Steve Boyd, who represents more than a hundred clients in state court lawsuits against the Buffalo and Rochester dioceses and parishes. Buffalo Diocese, creditors committee oppose letting abuse lawsuits against parishes proceed The committee is supporting the diocese's efforts to stop the Lipsitz Green Scime Cambria law firm from pushing forward with state court litigation while its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case continues. The creditors committee opposed the hold on Child Victims Act lawsuits against parishes in state courts. Judge Paul R. Warren of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Western District denied the dioceses request. The judge also chided the diocese for portraying itself as a victim in the bankruptcy case and leveling a heavy-handed threat against the people who are the real victims here the abuse survivors. The diocese appealed the decision. Plaintiffs may move forward with discovery motions in state courts in the meantime, but Warrens ruling prohibits enforcement of state court judgments against insurance policies with the Rochester Diocese as a named insurer, a feature of many policies held by parishes and schools. A hearing on the dioceses settlement plan, which includes $108 million from insurers and $40 million from the diocese to be put in a trust for abuse victims, is slated for next January, but negotiations could resume at any time prior to then and result in a new proposal. Shielding parishes Buffalo man's testimony 18 years ago paved way for nearly 11,000 Child Victims Act lawsuits William G. Iannaccone tried in 2003 to convince state legislators that allowing child sex abuse victims to sue years after the crimes were committed would help bring justice for victims and accountability to the organizations that allowed the abuses to happen. The question of how much the Buffalo and Rochester dioceses will be able to protect parishes and schools is up in the air following a ruling in December in the bankruptcy case of Purdue Pharma, the makers of the opioid Oxycontin. Bankruptcy courts have long allowed non-debtor subsidiaries to be shielded as part of complex mass tort reorganization settlements, with the third parties typically contributing financially toward the restructuring. But U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon ruled that federal law did not allow the releases that had been granted last fall to members of the Sackler family as part of the Purdue Pharma restructuring. The Sacklers had agreed to provide $4.5 billion toward a settlement of more than 800 OxyContin abuse and overdose lawsuits, in exchange for the liability releases. Purdue Pharma appealed McMahons ruling. It is not clear yet how it impacts Buffalo and Rochester diocese efforts to shield parishes and schools from lawsuits. Without the releases, parishes and schools wont have to contribute to the diocese reorganization plan, but they will be on the hook to defend against any sex abuse lawsuits in which they are named as defendants. Lawsuits identify 230 priests as molesters, including 8 of WNY's most-accused abusers The numbers are a striking rebuke to Buffalo Diocese officials who for decades downplayed the extent of abuse in the area and protected molester priests from prosecution and public accountability. If approved, the proposed Rochester settlement would amount to roughly $311,000 per claimant. The Archdiocese of Sante Fe announced in May that it had reached a deal to pay $121.5 million to 370 victims, about $328,300 per victim An agreed-upon settlement in the Diocese of Camden would set up a trust of $87.5 million, roughly $291,666 per victim. But the Camden deal also would allow victims to sue insurers separately, potentially greatly expanding the amount of compensation. Attorney Jeff Anderson said the Camden plan was a pathway to expedite bankruptcy cases across the East Coast that have stalled in mediation due to what plaintiff lawyers call insurer intransigence. The update on mediation efforts in the Buffalo Diocese came as Bucki approved $2.2 million in additional payments to lawyers and other professionals working in connection with the bankruptcy case. The total cost of the bankruptcy so far exceeds $8 million, according to court papers. That includes what the diocese is spending to defend against a 2020 lawsuit by the New York State Attorney Generals Office. Number of WNY priests accused in Child Victims Act suits grows to 173 Since June, lawsuits filed in Western New York courts accused 33 Buffalo-area priests who previously had not been linked publicly to an abuse allegation. The lawsuit is separate from the bankruptcy. It accuses the diocese and retired bishops Richard J. Malone and Edward M. Grosz of covering up for priests accused of child sex abuse, as well as misuse of charitable funds and failing to properly monitor abusive priests. The lawsuit included a scathing 218-page report on the AGs two-year investigation into the Buffalo Diocese and complete excerpts of files the diocese kept on priests who had been accused of abuse. The diocese is hoping to reach a settlement with the attorney general by the end of July, said lead attorney John D. Goetz, whose firm has billed the diocese $1.2 million for its work, according to court papers. Were on the precipice of finalizing an agreement, Goetz told Bucki at a recent bankruptcy hearing. Goetz said a judge presiding over the case in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York has instructed the two sides to wrap up their negotiations and present a deal to the court by the end of July. A spokeswoman for the Attorney General's Office declined to comment. Maryland, Virginia Governors Respond to Letter From Supreme Court Calling to Protect Justices The governors of Virginia and Maryland responded to a letter from the Supreme Courts top security official calling on them to provide more police resources to prevent protests outside the homes of justices following the landmark ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade. Left-wing protesters have continued to appear outside their homes since the ruling. Over the July 4 weekend, more protesters were seen picketing outside the justices homes, located in suburban areas in Virginia and Maryland. The governor agrees with the Marshal that the threatening activity outside the Justices homes has increased, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin spokesperson Christian Martinez said in a statement after Supreme Court Marshal Gail Curley called on the governor to enforce state law that prohibits demonstrations outside the homes of justices. He welcomes the Marshal of the Supreme Courts request for Fairfax County to enforce state law as they are the primary enforcement authority for the state statute, the statement added, adding that Attorney General Merrick Garland needs to do his job by enforcing federal laws. Every resource of federal law enforcement, including the U.S. Marshals, should be involved while the Justices continue to be denied the right to live peacefully in their homes, according to the statement. However, from the statement, its not clear if Youngkins administration is going to take concrete steps to provide more law enforcement at their homes. Another Response After receiving Curleys letter on Friday night, a spokesman for Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan responded by saying that Garland needs to act. Pro-abortion activists protest in Portland, Ore., on June 24, 2022, following the Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. (John Rudoff/AFP via Getty Images) Two months ago, Governor Hogan and Governor Youngkin sent a letter calling on Attorney General Garland to enforce the clear and unambiguous federal statutes on the books that prohibit picketing at judges residences, Hogan spokesman Michael Ricci wrote on Twitter. A month later, hours after an assassination attempt on Justice Kavanaugh, the Department of Justice finally responded, declining to enforce the laws. The spokesman was referring to an incident involving 26-year-old Nicholas Roske, a California man who was arrested at Justice Brett Kavanaughs home last month and allegedly told officials that he was plotting to kill the justice because he would support overturning Roe v. Wade and support expanding Second Amendment protections. Now a different federal official is writing to us with conflicting information, his statement continued. Had the marshal taken time to explore the matter, she would have learned that the constitutionality of the statute cited in her letter has been questioned by the Maryland Attorney Generals office. Hogan has instructed Maryland State Police to further review law enforcement options after the letter was sent, Ricci said. Federal law stipulates that its illegal to attempt to influence a judges ruling or interfere with their duties. But the Department of Justice has, so far, failed to take action against the constant protests outside the homes of Republican-appointed justices including Clarence Thomas, Amy Coney Barrett, and Kavanaugh. The demonstrations, meanwhile, come amid rampant vandalism and arson attacks against churches, pregnancy centers, and pro-life groups. Some left-wing extremist groups have said they will carry out more attacks if their demands arent met. Last weekend, dozens of people were arrested across the U.S. following the Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe. A woman buys food from a shop next to a fenced off business area and residential compound that has been locked down due to a COVID-19 outbreak on June 16, 2022 in Beijing, China. (Kevin Frayer/Getty Images) Over Half of South Korean Companies in China Seek to Reduce Operations or Withdraw: Survey Over half of South Korean companies are preparing to either reduce or withdraw businesses from China over its stringent zero-COVID measures, according to a recent survey. Meanwhile, some 40 percent of the respondents urged the South Korean government to intervene by informing the Chinese regime of their losses and providing solutions. In mid-June, the Shanghai branch of the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) surveyed 177 South Korean companies in China on the effects of Beijings zero-COVID policy on their businesses and their plans. The survey results, published on June 27, showed that 88.1 percent of the companies reported [significant] damage or negative impact on their businesses. While 97.4 percent responded that their sales decreased in the first half of this year, 31.4 percent said their sales fell by more than 50 percent compared to the same period last year. Regarding their plans in China, 55.3 percent of the companies said they were considering business reduction, suspension, withdrawal, or relocation, 24.8 percent said they would reduce their business in China, 11.1 percent said they would start investing outside of China, 8.0 percent said they would withdraw businesses from China, 7.6 percent said they would temporarily suspend their business in China, and 3.85 percent said they would transfer relevant business back to South Korea. On the other hand, 35.9 percent of respondents said they have no countermeasures and are maintaining their existing business plans, while only 7.3 percent said they would expand their business in China. When the companies were asked what support they would want from the Chinese regime, 20 percent said they wanted more transparency and predictability in the countrys COVID-19 measures, while 18.2 percent and 17.9 percent said they would want subsidies and reduced taxes and rents from the regime. Stacked containers line a shipping port in Gwangyang, South Korea, on June 14, 2022. (Kim Dong-ju/AP) Straightforward Diplomacy In addition, 40.4 percent urged the South Korean government to conduct straightforward diplomacy and inform the Chinese regime of their losses and work out a solution. Meanwhile, 76.8 percent believe Beijings COVID-19-clearing policies will continue until the end of this year or beyond. The Director of KITAs Shanghai branch, Shin Sun-young, who was in charge of the survey, said it is necessary for the South Korean government to intervene diplomatically and help the Korean companies in China. Shin added that most foreign-funded companies in China are experiencing the same difficulties and losses. Therefore, it is also a good solution for foreign-funded companies to jointly seek out a resolution from the Chinese regime. The United States and Europe have also conducted similar investigations. In early June, the American Chamber of Commerce Shanghai surveyed 133 members about their investment plans in China. The results showed that 25 percent of consumer and service companies, and 20 percent of manufacturing companies, have scaled back their investment plans, with only one company expressing its intention to increase investment in China. Another report published in May by the European Union Chamber of Commerce indicated that 23 percent of European companies expressed willingness to withdraw from China, more than double the number of companies considering such a move in early 2022, reaching a 10-year high. Mark Ridley-Thomas speaks during a public event at New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles on March 31, 2019. (Rachel Luna/Getty Images) Ridley-Thomas Criminal Trial Moved to November LOS ANGELESThe federal criminal trial for suspended Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas on bribery and conspiracy charges has been delayed until November. Ridley-Thomas, who was suspended from the council following his indictment in October, faces trial along with former dean of the University of Southern California School of Social Work Marilyn Flynn. The pair were initially scheduled for trial in downtown Los Angeles on Aug. 9, but U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer this week issued an order setting a Nov. 15 trial date. The defendants are charged in a 20-count indictment alleging a secret deal whereby Ridley-Thomaswhen he was a member of the county Board of Supervisorsagreed to steer county money to the university in return for admitting his son, Sebastian Ridley-Thomas, into graduate school with a full-tuition scholarship and a paid professorship. Flynn allegedly arranged to funnel a $100,000 donation from Ridley-Thomass campaign funds through the university to a nonprofit to be operated by his son, a former member of the state Assembly. The donation prompted an investigation by the U.S. Attorneys Office in Los Angeles that remains open, prosecutors said. In exchange, the indictment contends, Ridley-Thomas supported county contracts involving the School of Social Work, including lucrative deals to provide services to the county Department of Children and Family Services and Probation Department, as well as an amendment to a contract with the Department of Mental Health that would bring the school millions of dollars in new revenue. Both defendants have strongly denied any wrongdoing and promise evidence will clear their names. Ridley-Thomas has held elected office for more than three decades. Fisher indicated this week that she would likely deny a defense request to order separate trials for Ridley-Thomas and Flynn. Protestors carry a banner march through the streets during a rally in support of abortion rights in the central business district of Sydney, Australia, on July 2, 2022. (MUHAMMAD FAROOQ/AFP via Getty Images) Roe v. Wade Precedent Did Not Address the Real Needs of Women: Think Tank CEO The push to legalise abortion has failed to address the real needs of women and instead, promoted abortion as necessary for womens participation in society, argued the chief executive of an Australian independent think tank. The comment comes one week after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling to restore the ability of state governments to make decisions on abortion, and uphold a Mississippi law that makes most abortions illegal after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Australias Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on June 27 weighed in on the contentious matter, calling the overturn a setback for women and their right to control their own bodies and their lives. But Rachael Wong, CEO of Womens Forum Australia, which conducts research on issues affecting women, argued that the opposite is true and that it was Roe itself that was the step back for womens rights. Ready access to abortion has stalled progress for womens rights and welfare by removing the incentive to address the underlying issues that drive them to seek abortion in the first place, she told The Epoch Times. Some of the issues remaining unaddressed include a lack of financial or emotional support, unaffordable housing, inflexible study or workplace arrangements, and domestic violence, Wong pointed out. Wong, who is also an adjunct lecturer at Notre Dame Universitys School of Law, added that as a result, women continue to struggle with outdated and inequitable systems not designed to support them or their children during pregnancy and motherhood. This in turn has fed the lie that abortion is necessary for womens equal participation in society and that children are an obstacle to womens success and flourishing. In a commentary on Womens Forum on June 26, Wong noted that Roe v. Wade was a politically motivated decision that interpreted a right to abortion in the U.S. Constitution where one doesnt exist, and led to the U.S. having some of the most permissive abortion laws in the world. Protesters gather outside Supreme Court in a rally against the June 24 decision that repealed the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, in Washington, on June 25, 2022. (Nathan Worcester/The Epoch Times) Roe v. Wade Decision Revives Debate in Australia The overruling of Roe v. Wade has sparked protests in the United States and Australia. In the first week of July, thousands of people marched through Australias big cities including Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Adelaide, and Brisbane, holding placards with slogans like our bodies our choice and forced birth is a tool of white supremacy. While Australia doesnt have a right to abortion entrenched in law, all Australian states have decriminalised abortion, with Victoria and Queensland legalising abortion up to birth, as well as sex-selection abortion. The number of abortions has been rising in the country, with an estimated 73,800 abortions taking place in 2018. In South Australia, 95 percent of all abortions are elective and performed for mental health reasons; 4 percent owe to fetal abnormality and 1 percent are performed for medical reasons. Metropolitan residents account for 83 percent of all abortions in the state. Protestors carry placards march through the streets of the central business district during a rally in support of abortion rights in Sydney, Australia, on July 2, 2022. (Muhammad Farooq/AFP via Getty Images) Wong told The Epoch Times that with the current focus on abortion, now is a good time to counter the anger and fear felt by many women, and to open up a compassionate, constructive dialogue about this issue. She said that Australians should unite to better support women facing unintended pregnancies so that they never feel as if abortion is their only choice, which unfortunately is too often the case. Wong hoped the Roe v. Wade overturn could result in a positive cultural shift in terms of how the U.S. treats pregnant women and their unborn children, which she hopes may have flow-on effects in Australia. A combine harvester gathers wheat in a field near the village of Hrebeni in Kyiv region, Ukraine, on July 17, 2020. (Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters) Russia Imposes Ruble Restriction on Countries Buying Wheat and Sunflower Oil Russia, facing sanctions from the West for its invasion of Ukraine, will now export grains to other nations only in exchange for rubles. In addition to grains, the Russian government has added sunflower oil and extracted meal to the list of export items to be paid in rubles. A resolution to this effect was adopted on Friday. Russia is the largest exporter of wheat in the world and a major supplier of sunflower seeds. The government resolution also extends a provision to pay for exported sunflower oil and meal duties in rubles until Aug. 31, 2023. As part of this payment mechanism, the base price for calculating wheats export duties has been set at 15,000 rubles ($263) per ton. According to the Russian Minister for Agriculture, Dmitry Patrushev, Moscows grain harvest for the year could reach 130 million tons, which would be enough to meet the needs of the domestic market and ensure export potential. Our [agricultural] products will be on foreign markets, but only in those countries that are friendly to us, that do not create hurdles and difficulties for us, he told reporters in mid-June, according to RT. Meanwhile, Ukraine continues to be unable to export much grain as its maritime grain export routes have been blocked by Russia. Before the war, Ukraine used to export up to 6 million tons of grain per month. But the maritime blockade cut down exports to just 300,000 tons in March and around a million tons in April. In an interview with Reuters, Ukraines Agriculture Minister Mykola Solskyi predicted Russias invasion would create a global shortage of wheat for at least three seasons by keeping away much of Ukraines wheat from markets. EU Wheat Production The Russian decision comes amid concerns about the European Unions wheat production. According to a report published by agriculture consulting firm Strategie Grains in June, the EU is forecast to produce around 5 percent less wheat in 2022 than last year. Wheat production in Franceaccounting for around 18 percent of total European productionis expected to decline by over 5 percent this year. Combined with spells of extreme heatthe mercury having risen well above seasonal averagesthis weather took a negative toll on the condition of all cereal crops in Europe, during the period of critical yield formation phases, the report said, according to The Wall Street Journal. On July 1, the EUs executive cut down the blocs 2022/23 soft wheat (common wheat) production to 125 million tons, down from 130.4 million tons projected a month prior. In 2021/2022 the bloc produced 130.1 million tons of soft wheat. Smoke rises over the remains of a building destroyed by a military strike, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Lysychansk, Luhansk region, Ukraine, on June 17, 2022. (Oleksandr Ratushniak/Reuters) Russia Says Its Forces Fully Control Luhansk Region in Ukraine KYIVRussia said it had taken full control of the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk on Sunday after capturing the final Ukrainian bastion of Lysychansk, the city where Kyiv said it had withdrawn to save the lives of its troops. The regions capture, a major Russian war aim, is a political victory for the Kremlin after weeks of slow advances and shifts the battlefield focus to neighboring Donetsk region, where Kyiv still controls substantial territory. After pulling back from northern Ukraine and the capital Kyiv in the spring, Russia has concentrated its military operation on the industrial Donbas heartland that comprises the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, where Moscow-backed separatist proxies have been fighting Ukraine since 2014. Russia says it is capturing Luhansk region in order to give it to the self-proclaimed Russian-backed Luhansk Peoples Republic whose independence it recognized on the eve of the war. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu informed President Vladimir Putin that Luhansk had been liberated, the defense ministry said, after Russia earlier said its forces had captured villages around Lysychansk and encircled the city. Ukraines military command said its forces had been forced to retreat from the city. The continuation of the defense of the city would lead to fatal consequences. In order to preserve the lives of Ukrainian defenders, a decision was made to withdraw, it said in a statement on social media. Ukrainian officials, who say references to liberating Ukrainian territory are Russian propaganda, had reported intense artillery barrages on residential areas. In a statement on the Telegram messaging app, Luhansks regional governor, Serhiy Haidai, also confirmed Ukraines withdrawal after heavy fighting. No betrayal here! When you writesurrendered, gave up, abandoned, think first and foremost about the price of advancing towards our victory, about the fighters who defended the city, some at the cost of their own lives, Haidai wrote. West of Lysychansk in Donetsk region, at least six people were killed when the Ukrainian city of Sloviansk was hit by powerful shelling from multiple rocket launchers on Sunday, local officials said. Kharkiv Strikes Russias defense ministry also said on Sunday it had struck the military infrastructure of Kharkiv, Ukraines second largest city in the northeast, where a Reuters reporter said Ukrainian forces had been building fortifications after nightly shelling. Outside a school in Kharkiv, some residents threw debris into a large crater created by an early morning rocket strike while others got help repairing damaged houses. The wife was lucky that she woke up early in the morning because the roof fell exactly where she had been sleeping, one resident, Oleksii Mihulin, told Reuters. About 70 kilometers (44 miles) from Kharkiv on the Russian side of the border, Russia also reported explosions on Sunday in Belgorod, which it said killed at least three people and destroyed homes. The sound was so strong that I jumped up, I woke up, got very scared and started screaming, a Belgorod resident told Reuters, adding the blasts occurred around 3 a.m. Moscow has accused Kyiv of numerous attacks on Belgorod and other areas bordering Ukraine. Kyiv has never claimed responsibility for any of these incidents. Rescue specialists work at the site of a destroyed residential building after blasts in Belgorod, Russia, on July 3, 2022. (Alexey Stopichev/BelPressa/Handout via Reuters) Military Base Hit Ukraine said its air force had flown some 15 sorties in virtually all directions of hostilities, destroying equipment and two ammunition depots. In the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol, Ukrainian forces hit a military logistics base with more than 30 strikes on Sunday, the citys exiled mayor Ivan Fedorov said. A Russian-installed official confirmed that strikes had hit the city. Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports. Ukraine has repeatedly appealed for an acceleration in weapons supplies from the West, saying its forces are heavily outgunned. Speaking on a visit to Kyiv, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government would provide Ukraine with additional armored vehicles, as well as tightening sanctions against Russia. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told broadcaster ARD that Germany was discussing with its allies security guarantees for Ukraine after the war, though it was clear these would not be the same as if someone were a member of NATO. Chinese leader Xi Jinping gives a speech on the 25th anniversary of the city's handover from Britain to China on July 1, 2022. (Selim Chtayti/Pool/AFP via Getty Images) Scholars Criticize Xis Hong Kong Handover Anniversary Speech, Saying It Distorted the Facts Chinese leader Xi Jinpings speech in Hong Kong on the 25th anniversary of the citys handover from Britain to China on July 1 has received criticism from scholars, who say Xi has distorted the facts. Xi gave a speech after he officiated the swearing-in ceremony of Hong Kongs new leader John Lee on Friday. During the speech, Xi mentioned the challenges Hongkongers have faced and overcome in the past few yearswhich shows Hong Kong has now risen from the ashes. Xi said the one country, two systems framework with Hong Kong was successful under the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) comprehensive jurisdiction. The one country, two systems, which was agreed to by the UK and China upon Hong Kongs handover, allows the city to have its own laws and government. The United States, the UK, and others have accused the CCP of undermining the freedoms and autonomy promised to Hong Kong for 50 years. Hong Kong in recent years has been pulled under much tighter control by the CCP. After months of pro-democracy protests in the city in 2019, the CCP and Hong Kong authorities drafted a national security law that was then used to arrest scores of activists, media figures, and democracy supporters; introduced a more patriotic curriculum in schools; and revamped election laws to keep opposition politicians out of the citys Legislature. Dr. Benson Wong Wai-kwok, a former assistant professor at the Baptist University of Hong Kong, now living in the UK, questioned whether Xi knew what he was talking about and asked is Hong Kong reborn again? Wong questioned: Was Hong Kong reborn because of the national security law you impose on us? Or is it the fact that the national security law clamps on everyday people so tightly, that anyone would rather leave than be in a hell hole? Wong also said that there has been no evidence of new foreign investors coming to invest in Hong Kong. Foreign investors have lost their interest in spending or keeping money in Hong Kong, due to political deterioration. Everything has been collapsing, including human rights and civil rights, and Hongkongers rights are all plunging into the dark ages, he said. Taiwan-based commentator of current affairs Stephen Siu Yeuk-yuen also voiced his concerns. There will be no one country, two systems after 2047, he said, as it will only be the one country, and all systems will be completely under CCP control. The Associated Press contributed to this report. South Korea Will Join NATO Summit Despite Beijings Threats: PM South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has said it would be a lack of courtesy for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to oppose President Yoon Suk-yeol taking part in a NATO summit in Madrid. If it is necessary for our security, we should go, Han told reporters on June 28 during a dinner meeting. It would be a lack of courtesy for China to say do it or dont do it. It is not in line with mutual respect. Addressing a question on how South Korea should conduct diplomacy with China when the CCP opposes Yoons attendance at the NATO summit, Han said that South Koreas position is very clearthe China-South Korea relationship will be developed on the basis of mutual benefit and mutual respect. There have been concerns that China may retaliate with economic measures but if the country does so, we should call it out as inappropriate, Han told reporters. We shouldnt discard our principles, which are more important, just to prevent [such retaliatory action]. He also said he believes that economic retaliation by the CCP against South Korea is unlikely because the division of labor between China and South Korea is very mature. Although South Korea relies on China for 25 percent of its exports, we do not think that these export products will be impacted [as a result of the CCPs dissatisfaction,] he added. When asked if South Korea will hold firm to these diplomatic principles if it again suffers retaliation, as it did for deploying the THAAD system, Han replied adamantly: Of course! U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said of Chinas opposition to South Koreas participation at the upcoming summit, China doesnt get a veto on what meetings the South Koreans attend and associate themselves with. And this isnt about an Asian version of NATO, he said during a June 23 press conference. Subsequently, Han said of Kirbys comments, I think thats the right thing to say. Just like the CCP, North Korea has also reacted with hostility to Yoons intentions for the NATO summit, accusing the United States of trying to establish an Asian NATO and berating South Korea for holding the dark hand of the United States. Pyongyangs mouthpiece, the Korean Central News Agency, threatened on June 29 that South Korea will suffer a huge loss and face a security crisis if it attends the summit. Han said that under the Yoon administration, South Korea will show North Korea its deterrence capabilities and be more realistic about the dangers the regime actually poses. Sometimes, we will display what we are capable of as deterrence against its nuclear threats Over the past few years under the previous administration, many were worried about its naive thoughts about peace with North Korea, Han said. This administration wont be the same. The Mighty Gorsuch Versus the Administrative State: Quotes From West Virginia v. EPA Commentary The power of the administrative state to destroy liberty and propertyto blast through legislation, science, and judicial oversightwas never more on display than in the last two and a half years. One would hope that the deep bureaucracies would have learned their lessons on how not to respond to a new pathogen. There is no evidence they have. Regardless, the real problem is much deeper. It has to do with the status of the administrative state as the effective governing apparatus of the United States. Its not Congress and not the President. Its the vast and permanent bureaucracy of 432 agencies and 2.9M bureaucrats who are unreachable by any standard of personnel management. Dealing with this problem absolutely requires that we get back to fundamentals on what kind of society we want and what is the role of government. These issues are newly alive, and have come up with a Supreme Court decision in West Virginia vs. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA had long imposed an expansive view of its discretion under the Clean Air Act. The court said no: the EPA has been acting illegally all along. This decision echoes a similar federal court decision in Florida concerning the CDCs mask mandate. The court said the CDC is acting illegally. Just because the EPA is tasked with certain acts of administration doesnt mean it can do whatever it wants in service of the goal. We would not expect the Department of Homeland Security to make trade or foreign policy even though doing so could decrease illegal immigration, said the main opinion. Clearly we have a problem that cries out for a mighty rethinking of everything. Just such a statement has been made in the concurring opinion of Justice Neil Gorsuch. Here are some choice sections: But no less than its rules against retroactive legislation or protecting sovereign immunity, the Constitutions rule vesting federal legislative power in Congress is vital to the integrity and maintenance of the system of government ordained by the Constitution. It is vital because the framers believed that a republica thing of the peoplewould be more likely to enact just laws than a regime administered by a ruling class of largely unaccountable ministers. The Federalist No. 11, p. 85 (C. Rossiter ed. 1961) (A. Hamilton). From time to time, some have questioned that assessment. And right here, following great quotations from the Federalist Papers, Gorsuch adds a devastating footnote, one of the best Ive read in modern court documents. It concerns the legacy of President Woodrow Wilson. Check it out: For example, Woodrow Wilson famously argued that popular sovereignty embarrasse[d] the Nation because it made it harder to achieve executive expertness. The Study of Administration, 2 Pol. Sci. Q. 197, 207 (1887) (Administration). In Wilsons eyes, the mass of the people were selfish, ignorant, timid, stubborn, or foolish. Id., at 208. He expressed even greater disdain for particular groups, defending [t]he white men of the South for rid[ding] themselves, by fair means or foul, of the intolerable burden of governments sustained by the votes of ignorant [African-Americans]. 9 W. Wilson, History of the American People 58 (1918). He likewise denounced immigrants from the south of Italy and men of the meaner sort out of Hungary and Poland, who possessed neither skill nor energy nor any initiative of quick intelligence. 5 id., at 212. To Wilson, our Republic tr[ied] to do too much by vote. Administration 214. Ouch. So much for the Founding Father of Progressivism! Gorsuch continues. But by vesting the lawmaking power in the peoples elected representatives, the Constitution sought to ensure not only that all power [w]ould be derived from the people, but also that those [e]ntrusted with it should be kept in dependence on the people. Id., No. 37, at 227 (J. Madison). The Constitution, too, placed its trust not in the hands of a few, but [in] a number of hands, ibid., so that those who make our laws would better reflect the diversity of the people they represent and have an immediate dependence on, and an intimate sympathy with, the people. Id., No. 52, at 327 (J. Madison).Today, some might describe the Constitution as having designed the federal lawmaking process to capture the wisdom of the masses. See P. Hamburger, Is Administrative Law Unlawful? 502503 (2014). Admittedly, lawmaking under our Constitution can be difficult. But that is nothing particular to our time nor any accident. The framers believed that the power to make new laws regulating private conduct was a grave one that could, if not properly checked, pose a serious threat to individual liberty . As a result, the framers deliberately sought to make lawmaking difficult by insisting that two houses of Congress must agree to any new law and the President must concur or a legislative supermajority must override his veto. Can I get a cheer? Wow. Permitting Congress to divest its legislative power to the Executive Branch would dash [this] whole scheme. In a world like that, agencies could churn out new laws more or less at whim. Intrusions on liberty would not be difficult and rare, but easy and profuse. See The Federalist No. 47, at 303 (J. Madison); id., No. 62, at 378 (J. Madison). Stability would be lost, with vast numbers of laws changing with every new presidential administration. Rather than embody a wide social consensus and input from minority voices, laws would more often bear the support only of the party currently in power. Powerful special interests, which are sometimes uniquely able to influence the agendas of administrative agencies, would flourish while others would be left to ever-shifting winds. Finally, little would remain to stop agencies from moving into areas where state authority has traditionally predominated. Fascinating: this sounds exactly like the world weve lived in since lockdowns! He continues with a history lesson, citing all the important law papers and books. With the explosive growth of the administrative state since 1970, the major questions doctrine soon took on special importance . In the 1960s and 1970s, Congress created dozens of new federal administrative agencies. Between 1970 and 1990, the Code of Federal Regulations grew from about 44,000 pages to about 106,000. Today, Congress issues roughly two hundred to four hundred laws every year, while federal administrative agencies adopt something on the order of three thousand to five thousand final rules. Beyond that, agencies regularly produce thousands, if not millions, of guidance documents which, as a practical matter, bind affected parties too. Finally: And while we all agree that administrative agencies have important roles to play in a modern nation, surely none of us wishes to abandon our Republics promise that the people and their representatives should have a meaningful say in the laws that govern them . When Congress seems slow to solve problems, it may be only natural that those in the Executive Branch might seek to take matters into their own hands. But the Constitution does not authorize agencies to use pen-and-phone regulations as substitutes for laws passed by the peoples representatives. In our Republic, [i]t is the peculiar province of the legislature to prescribe general rules for the government of society. Because todays decision helps safeguard that foundational constitutional promise, I am pleased to concur. To be sure, such high philosophy and clear thinking on representative democracy does not on its own dismantle the beast, but this case did rule against the EPA just as previous decisions have ruled against the CDC. Its a great start. More than that, the Court seems finally to have gained clarity on the real problem, the complete distortion of the system established by the Constitutions framers in favor of an indefensible dictatorship by the administrative state. If this is where American jurisprudence is headedall in reaction to the utter shock that came with the lockdowns and mandateswe have every reason for long-term optimism. From the Brownstone Institute Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. Rescue specialists work at the site of a destroyed residential building after blasts in Belgorod, Russia, on July 3, 2022. (Alexey Stopichev/BelPressa/Handout via Reuters) Ukrainian Missile Strike on Russian City Kills Several People: Kremlin Russian officials on Sunday claimed Ukraine fired a missile at the Russian Belgorod region, killing several people and injuring more. The governor of Russias Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, confirmed the casualties to Russian state-backed media, saying that air defenses were also triggered. Some of the air defense systems were able to intercept the alleged Ukrainian missiles, causing debris to fall on a residential building, according to Russias Defense Ministry. Last night, from 03:00 to 03:30 a.m. Moscow time, the Kyiv regime carried out deliberate strikes using Tochka-U ballistic missiles with cluster munitions and Tu-143 Reis drones against residential areas of Belgorod and Kursk, where there are no military facilities, the Ministry of Defense said, reported state media. The missile attack was purposefully planned and carried out against the civilian population of Russian cities, the official statement added. Gladkov told RT that several apartment buildings and three-dozen smaller houses were damaged in the incident. Belgorod is located about 30 miles from the UkraineRussia border. The Epoch Times could not independently verify Russias claims. Defense Ministry spokesman Lt. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said that Ukrainian forces also allegedly sent two Tu-143 Reys drones that were loaded with explosives toward the city of Kursk, which is close to the border. Both drones were destroyed, he said, adding that Ukrainian forces targeted Russian areas with no military strikes in the overnight, cross-border salvo. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Full Control It comes as Russia said Sunday that it now controls Ukraines eastern Luhansk region, after capturing the final Ukrainian holdout of Lysychansk, although Ukraine has yet to comment after reporting heavy fighting there. Since 2014, portions of Luhansk and Donetsk have been held by pro-Russian separatists. After fierce Ukrainian resistance prevented Russian from seizing the capital Kyiv after its Feb. 24 invasion, Moscow turned its focus to taking full control of Luhansk and Donetsk provinces in Ukraines eastern Donbas region. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu informed President Vladimir Putin that Luhansk had been taken over, the defense ministry said, after Russia earlier said its forces had captured villages around Lysychansk and encircled the city. The minister said Russian forces and their allies in the area had gained full control over the city of Lysychansk. The developments on Sunday come days after Russian forces allegedly fired missiles at a shopping center full of civilians, according to the Kyiv government. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claims roughly 1,000 citizens were in the shopping area when the attack was carried out, with reports saying that at least 18 people were killed and more were injured. Reuters contributed to this report. KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russian forces pounded the city of Lysychansk and its surroundings in an all-out attempt to seize the last stronghold of resistance in eastern Ukraine's Luhansk province, the governor said Saturday. A presidential adviser said its fate would be decided within the next two days. Ukrainian fighters have spent weeks trying to defend the city and to keep it from falling to Russia, as neighboring Sievierodonetsk did a week ago. Over the last day, the occupiers opened fire from all available kinds of weapons, Luhansk Gov. Serhiy Haidai said Saturday on the Telegram messaging app. A river separates Lysychansk from Sievierodonetsk, and Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, said during an online interview late Saturday that Russian forces had managed for the first time to cross the river from the north, creating a threatening situation. He said they had not reached the center of the city, but control over Lysychansk would be decided by Monday. Volodymyr Nazarenko, the second in command of the Svoboda battalion who was part of the June 24 retreat from Sievierodonetsk, said the Russians had methodically leveled the city. He described how Russian tanks targeted one building after another, moving on after each one was destroyed. So they use these tactics where barrages of ammunition are used to destroy the city and turn it into a burnt-down desert, Nazarenko said from the relative safety of Bakhmut, a city to the southwest. He also said Russian troops obliterated any potential defensive positions with constant artillery and burned down forests to prevent trench warfare." Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk are the two provinces that make up the Donbas, where Russia has focused its offensive since pulling back from northern Ukraine and the capital, Kyiv, in the spring. Pro-Russia separatists have held portions of both eastern provinces since 2014, and Moscow recognizes all of Luhansk and Donetsk as sovereign republics. Syria's government said Wednesday that it would also recognize the independence and sovereignty of the two areas and work to establish diplomatic relations with the separatists. In Slovyansk, a major Donetsk city still under Ukrainian control, four people died when Russian forces fired cluster munitions late Friday, Mayor Vadym Lyakh said on Facebook. He said the neighborhoods that were hit didn't contain any potential military targets. The leader of neighboring Belarus, a Russian ally, claimed Saturday that Ukraine fired missiles at military targets on Belarusian territory several days ago but all were intercepted by the air defense system. President Alexander Lukashenko described it as a provocation and noted that no Belarusian soldiers are fighting in Ukraine. There was no immediate response from the Ukrainian military. Belarus hosts Russian military units and was used as a staging ground for Russia's invasion. Last week, just hours before Lukashenko was to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russian long-range bombers fired missiles on Ukraine from Belarusian airspace for the first time. Lukashenko has so far resisted efforts to draw his army into the war. But during their meeting, Putin announced that Russia planned to supply Belarus with the Iskander-M missile system and reminded Lukashenko of how dependent his government is on economic support from Russia. Lukashenko on Saturday also claimed that two Belarusian truck drivers were killed in Ukraine. Ukraine said the truckers were at a gas station when it was hit by a Russian airstrike in March, but Lukashenko claimed the organs were cut out of their bodies to hide evidence that they were shot. Elsewhere in Ukraine, investigators combed through the wreckage from a Russian airstrike early Friday on residential areas near the Ukrainian port of Odesa that killed 21 people. Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Iryna Venediktova said the investigators were recovering fragments from missiles that struck an apartment building in the small coastal town of Serhiivka. They also were taking measurements to determine the trajectory of the weapons and "the specific people guilty of this terrible war crime, she said. Larissa Andruchenko said she was in the kitchen making tea at about 1 a.m. when a blast blew the doors open. At first she thought the propane gas tank had exploded, and called her husband to the kitchen. And right then the lights went off and it was nightmare. The two of us are in the kitchen with glass flying, everything was flying," she said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said three anti-ship missiles struck an ordinary residential building, a nine-story building housing about 160 people. The victims of Friday's attack also included four members of a family staying at a seaside campsite, he said. 'I emphasize: This is deliberate direct Russian terror, and not some mistake or an accidental missile strike," Zelenskyy said. The British Defense Ministry said Saturday that air-launched anti-ship missiles generally don't have precision accuracy against ground targets. It said Russia likely was using such missiles because of a shortage of more accurate weapons. The Kremlin has repeatedly claimed that the Russian military is targeting fuel storage sites and military facilities, not residential areas, although missiles also recently hit an apartment building in Kyiv and a shopping mall in the central city of Kremenchuk. On Saturday, Kremenchuk Mayor Vitaliy Maletskyy said the death toll in the mall attack had risen to 21 and one person was still missing. Ukrainian authorities interpreted the missile attack in Odesa as payback for the withdrawal of Russian troops from a nearby Black Sea island with both symbolic and strategic significance in the war that started with Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. Moscow portrayed their departure from Snake Island as a goodwill gesture to help unblock exports of grain. In other developments: The director of a charity helping the family of a British man captured in eastern Ukraine said Dylan Healy was detained on April 25 at a Russian checkpoint in the south of the Zaporizhzhia region. Dominik Byrne, director of operations at Presidium Network, told The Associated Press that Healy is an aid worker and has no connection either to the Ukrainian or the British military. Healy is among at least five foreigners, including four Britons, being held by separatists, who accuse them of being mercenaries fighting for Ukraine. Three have been sentenced to death. The charges against Healy were announced Friday. Follow AP's coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine What Have Fourth of July Shortages Got to Do With China? Commentary The United States is running low on numerous products, including dairy produce, gas, motorcycles, maple syrup, pet food, and potatoes. Now its time to add fireworks to this ever-growing list. Every true-blooded American knows that a Fourth of July celebration simply isnt possible without fireworks. As Bloomberg recently reported, the skies over a scattering of Western U.S. cities will stay dark for the third consecutive Fourth of July. Why? Unlike the celebrations (or lack thereof) of 2020 and 2021, which were directly impacted by COVID-19, 2022s celebrations will suffer because of a shortage of fireworks. Fourth of July is when family and friends gather to celebrate the countrys independence. They gather around the barbeque, enjoy some good food, and finish the evening with a firework display. In Phoenix, however, according to local authorities, Fabulous Phoenix Fourth, Light Up the Sky at the American Family Fields and After Dark in the Park will all be canceled this year due to supply chain issues affecting access to fireworks. Phoenix is not alone. The Arizonian cities of Tempe and Chandler wont have firework displays either. Meanwhile, in College Park, Maryland, city officials recently announced they cant guarantee the usual 4th of July show due to a lack of supplies. One of those supplies happens to be fireworks. People watch the fireworks display on the National Mall during the Fourth of July festivities in Washington on July 4, 2019. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images) Digging Deeper Americans are united by their love of fireworks. In 2019, for example, Americans spent a total of $1 billion on these minor explosives. Where do the fireworks come from? Well, like so many other products, they come from China. The United States number one competitor produces 90 percent of the worlds fireworks. To be even more specific, as Julie Heckman, executive director of the American Pyrotechnics Association, told NPR: Ninety-nine percent of the backyard consumer fireworks come directly from China, and 70 percent of the professional display fireworks are manufactured in major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. There was a time, as the NPR piece noted, when a majority of the fireworks used by Americans were made by U.S. companies. Sadly, those days are gone, long gone. The firework shortage is a symptom of a much deeper, far more serious issue. Walter Block, a well-respected American economist, recently noted that besides the shortage of fireworks, the United States is also running low on aluminum, avocados, bicycles, canned vegetables, chlorine, Christmas trees, computer chips, infant formula, peanut butter, and toilet paper. I could go on. No, really, I could. But you get the point. Although the war in Ukraine is certainly playing a role in the shortages, its not enough to explain why the United States is in such a desperate way. As Block noted, Americans have experienced war before. Theyve also experienced pestilence, disease, bad weather and government regulations before. However, not since the end of World War Two has massive shortages disrupted the economy to anything like the degree we are presently experiencing, he wrote. Ukraine is just one piece of a larger, perplexing puzzle. Lets take some products from Blocks rather extensive list. What country produces the most bicycles? You guessed it, China. The communist nation also produces more computer chips (one of the items in short supply) than the United States. China is also the worlds largest producer of toilet paper. Americans consume the most amount of peanut butter in the worldapproximately 7 pounds of creamy and crunchy goodness per person each yearbut China is the worlds largest producer of peanuts. Although its still possible to have Fourth of July celebrations without fireworks, its impossible to have peanut butter without peanuts. Whats my point? The United States used to be the king of self-sufficiency. There was a time when important products were made in America. Again, though, those days are gone. In all likelihood, theyre never coming back. Thats because, today, China is the worlds manufacturing superpower, and the United States is its number one customer. In fact, of all the 195 countries in the world, the United States is now the top importer of goods. Even in relatively stable times, theres a lot to be said for self-sufficiency. In times of genuine crises, howeverwith the ongoing war, fears of a global recession, etc.self-sufficiency is an absolute must. Dependency breeds desperation and dependency on an arch rival breeds existential dread. China has become the worlds supermarket, and the United States is now its top customer. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. WFO BOSTON Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, July 2, 2022 _____ SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING The National Weather Service in Boston/Norton has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for... Southwestern Hartford County in northern Connecticut... * Until 615 PM EDT. * At 536 PM EDT, a severe thunderstorm was located near Thomaston, or 9 miles northwest of Wolcott, moving southeast at 40 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts and nickel size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Expect damage to trees and power lines. * Locations impacted include... New Britain, Bristol, Southington, Berlin and Plainville. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building. Large hail and damaging winds and continuous cloud to ground lightning is occurring with this storm. Move indoors immediately. Lightning is one of nature's leading killers. Remember, if you can hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck by lightning. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SLOVYANSK, Ukraine (AP) A group of young off-duty Ukrainian soldiers gathered at a military distribution center to enjoy a rare respite from the fighting that has again engulfed their fractured home in eastern Ukraine. As they shared jokes and a pizza, artillery explosions could be heard a few kilometers away a reminder of the looming battle that threatens to unfold here in the city of Slovyansk, which was occupied by Russian proxy fighters in 2014. Everyone knows that there will be a huge battle in Slovyansk, said one of the soldiers, who could not be named for security reasons. Now, eight years after their city was last occupied, the war has returned. Slovyansk could become the next major target in Moscow's campaign to take the Donbas region, Ukraines predominantly Russian-speaking industrial heartland. Russia's defense minister said Russian army forces and a separatist militia on Sunday captured the city of Lysychansk and now controlled all of eastern Ukraine's Luhansk province. Slovyansk, located 70 kilometers (43 miles) to the west in Donetsk province, came under rocket attacks Sunday that killed an unspecified number of people, Mayor Vadym Lyakh said. Another soldier interviewed earlier by The Associated Press, a 23-year-old accountant who joined up when the invasion began, said Ukrainian forces simply do not have the weapons to fight off the superior arsenal of the approaching Russian army. We know whats coming he said with a sad smile. These soldiers were still teenagers when pro-Russian separatists captured and held the town for three months. The brief occupation in 2014 terrorized Slovyansk, where dozens of officials and journalists were taken hostage, and several killings took place. Fierce fighting and shelling broke out when the Ukrainian army laid siege to the city to recapture it. Actually, the war never left Slovyansk. It didnt leave peoples heads said Tetiana Khimion, a 43-year-old dance choreographer who converted a fishing store into a hub for local military units. On the one hand, it is easier for us because we know what its like. On the other hand, it is more difficult for us since weve been living like this for eight years in a suspended condition. Slovyansk is a city of splintered loyalties. With a large retired population, it is not uncommon to hear older residents express sympathy towards Russia or nostalgia for their Soviet past. There is also distrust of the Ukrainian army and government. After a recent shelling of his apartment block, one resident named Sergei said he believed that the strike was launched by Ukraine. Im not pro-Russian, Im not pro-Ukrainian. I am somewhere in between he said. Both Russians and Ukrainians kill civilians everyone should understand that. On Thursday, a group of elderly residents couldnt hide their frustration after a bomb blast slashed open their roofs and shattered their windows. Ukraine "says they are protecting us, but what kind of protection is this? asked one man, who did not provide his name. They kneel to that Biden may he die! exclaimed his neighbor, Tatyana, referring to U.S. President Joe Biden. After 2014, Khimion said, it became easier to know who is who in Slovyansk. Now you can easily see: These people are for Ukraine, and these people are for Russia." She said not enough was done after 2014 to punish people who collaborated with Russian proxies to prevent a repeat of the situation. That is why we cannot negotiate, we need to win. Otherwise it will be a never-ending process. It will keep repeating she said. The mayor of Slovyansk reflects the city's new trajectory. Taking his cues from Ukraine's wartime leader, President Volodymyr Zelensky, he has decorated his office with Ukrainian flags, anti-Russian symbols, portraits of national poets even a biography of Winston Churchill. But before 2014, Lyakh was part of a political party that sought closer ties with Russia. He said while pro-Moscow sentiment in the city has faded - in part because of the horrors witnessed in 2014 - there are still people who are waiting for the return of the Russian troops. As the front line moves closer, attacks on the city intensify. Three-quarters of its pre-war population has fled, but the mayor said too many residents are still in Slovyansk, including many children. He encouraged them to evacuate while he spends his days coordinating humanitarian aid and strengthening the citys defenses. Lyakh said he cannot allow himself to relax, even for a few minutes. It is emotionally difficult. You see how people are dying and being harmed. But nevertheless, I understand that this is my job and that nobody but myself and the people around me can do it. More and more, Lyakh is among the first responders at the scene of bombardments. Associated Press journalists following the mayor recently witnessed what authorities described as a cluster bomb attack on a residential area. One person was killed and several others wounded. The mayor says that shelling now occurs at least four or five times a day, and the use of cluster munitions increased in the last week. Although he remains optimistic that Ukrainian forces can keep the enemy at bay, he is also clear-sighted about his options. Nobody wants to be captured. When there is an imminent danger of the enemy troops entering the city, I will have to go he said. One morning last week, Lyakh paid a visit to an apartment building that was shelled overnight. Most of the windows were blown out, doors were broken wide open and a power line severed. The same building was bombed in 2014, leaving a gaping hole on the sixth floor, and many residents suffered broken bones. Andrey, a 37-year-old factory worker who has lived in the building for 20 years, recalled the bombing and occupation. He said separatist forces did and took what they liked. People in his circle have different opinions about Russia. Those who have suffered understand what this Russia world means: It means broken houses, stolen cars and violence he explains. There are those who miss the Soviet Union, who think we are all one people, and they do not accept what they see with their own eyes. In the eight years since the separatists retreated, he said, life markedly improved in Slovyansk. The statue of Vladimir Lenin that once stood in the central square has been removed. Water and power supplies were renovated. New parks, squares and medical facilities were built. Civilization was returned to us, Andrey said. At a military distribution hub where they go to unwind, the young soldiers talk wistfully about their lives before the invasion. I had a great car, a good job. I was able to travel abroad three times a year, said the former accountant, who plans to stay in Slovyansk with the others to defend the city. How can we let someone just come and take our lives away from us? Khimion's husband is on the front lines, and she put her teenage daughter on a train to Switzerland as soon as the invasion began. I have been deprived of everything a home, husband, child what should I do now? she asks. We are doing everything we can to stop (the offensive), to keep it to a minimum ... But to be afraid is to abandon this place. At the entrance to the city, a monument bearing Slovyansks name is riddled with bullet holes from 2014. It has been painted over several times. It now bears the national colors of Ukraine, and a local artist has painted red flowers around each perforation. Residents of Slovyansk wonder some with hope, many in fear if the sign will soon be painted yet again, in the red, white and blue of the Russia flag. ___ Valerii Rezik contributed to this story. ___ Follow the APs coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine While performing in Afronation Portugal 2022, Grammy-winning Afrobeats legend Wizkid declares he has no issue with anybody and he loves all his contemporaries including fellow megastars in persons like Davido and Burna Boy. Wizkid made the revelation mid-performance in the programme at The Algarve. Portimao, Portugal where he was one of the headlining acts. Wizkid has been one of the artists suing for unity and love across the African music industry and he once again called for one Africa and love amongst superstars on the continent. "I got love for Burna Boy. I got love for Davido" Wizkid declared to thousands of fans who showed up at the festival to watch Afrobeats' finest exports. Well-meaning music fans, stakeholders, and perhaps even Wizkid will be hoping that his open declaration of love for Burna Boy and Davido will curb the online toxicity displayed by radical fans who are bent on defending megastars who for all intents and purposes don't need it. No one in the world can deny the reality that religious polarization is a real problem in Nigeria. As such, All Progressives Congress (APC) and even labour party Christians across the country are opposed to Muslim-Muslim presidential types of candidacies, and Tinubu especially is caught in this dilemma. Psychologically, one must be sympathetic to the Christian community as they call for a religious and ethnic balance, and to do otherwise is a grand mark of insensitivity. But here is a bitter reality that Nigerian Christians cannot ignore, in Nigerias political affairs, the north is indispensableand it has always been because it has more population and more votes. Unlike Peter Obi, Bola Tinubu, like Atiku Abubakar of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), are Muslims, but from different regions, and as perception has it among Nigerians, Tinubu is more popular among the political leaders, and even among the voting population nationally. I do not belong to either PDP or APC, nor do I know any of these men. I am only here to give a psychological picture of potential good leadership in the African settings. Lets look at the national perception that sees the current Muslim-Christian presidential make-up where President Muhammadu Buhari is seen as a tribalized person, as evidenced by top government appointments mainly of Hausa/Fulani Muslim background. In Nigeria, Christians should ask themselves, with the current Muslim-Christian presidency in place, how has it made the country progressive, given the mass insecurity and the huge problems of the economy everywhere. The impact of more votes is felt in the North, and Tinubu, who is more popular among the powerful, knows this, although not necessarily better than Atiku and Obi, should not be mainly judged and looked at by the southern and northern Christians through the lens of religious politics. In a country like Nigeria, Tinubu finds himself in a reality where political power and influence, especially in his party, lies more in the north, so he deserves sympathy as it is not easy. But there is a major requirement that needs to be placed on him. If Tinubu is going to pick a running mate from the northern Muslim leadership, make sure the person is known for their multicultural openness, problem-solving ability, and multi-faceted competency skills and experience. By national perception, that man is Kashim Shettima. Both Tinubu and Obi need a man like Shettima, the former Borno State Governor, currently a federal Senator, who is liked by all across the nation, by both the poor and the rich. He is known as an achiever during his eight years as Borno State governor. He is known for his courage, loyalty, friendliness, and compassion. Shettima is known for facing difficult and risky tasks with his commitment, transparency, and competence in all he touches. Across Nigeria media, he is known for believing in the spirit of democratic governance, one that follows due process, avoids misuses of power, and believes in merit instead of tribalism or religiosity when it comes to institutional matters. Shettima's banking, business, corporate, and even academic records will all lead to better economic leadership and responsibility for the nation. As an economist, an agriculturist, and a political tactician, he could help any president utilize resources in such areas as education, industrialization, job creation, health, electricity, and food production. In the area of security, as a governor, he effectively managed challenges arising from the Boko Haram insurgency and worked out a plan with the National Security Adviser that led to the establishment of youth volunteers called the Civilian JTF. Shettima will always be remembered for being one of the original strategists during President Goodluck Jonathan's presidency who cried out in a rising voice warning that the assault of Boko Haram should be seen as an attack on the country and not just Borno state, where he was a governor. If he was taken seriously by previous national administrations, the on-going destruction from terrorists would be managed better. Shettima's leadership credentials and skills have led to various recognitions within Nigeria and internationally. He is well respected by the media for his boldness, honesty, and good manners. He believes in people with experience and leadership skills, a judgement he expressed about Tinubu before and during the presidential primaries. Even Tinubu admitted that some party stalwarts ganged-up against his presidential bid. Shettima will follow Tinubus footsteps, who no one can deny brough immense contributions to the State of Lagos and worked towards developing democratic government in Nigeria. Nigerians need national stability and real progress. Nigeria requires experienced and dynamic leaders who understand the country's dynamics. Shettima is part of that dynamic minds. With the lens of institutional psychology, let the likes of Tinubu or Obi govern the nation as a Chief Executive Officer (CEO), the one who is responsible for the nations overall success. As the nations CEO with a "hands-on" role, leading and executing the long-term strategy, ensuring the longevity and success of the country. From the angle of institutional psychology, Tinubu, who will presidentially act as a CEO, and Shettima, as the Vice President, or Chief Operations Officer (COO) will actively pursue services such as education, healthcare, agriculture, housing, justice, and technology and see that they are provided to the needy, especially with no distinction of ethnicity or region of origin. A CEO and COO who will not act as an authoritarian leader, who will not reduce press and political freedoms and who will not preside over an undemocratic nation. The country can be on a journey to unity and progress via a style of governance unyielding to corruption and divisive talk. For Nigerians who are rightly concerned about character and personality, Shettima fulfills that worry. No one can accuse him of being tribally discriminatory in his relationships with any Nigerian or of having extreme attitudes toward wealth, power, and fame, making him a better sole mate to any potential president. Shettima is the type that could provide sound planning along with the potential president for national unity. From his history, he will be the type to denounce destructive tribalistic approaches to government appointment, and will avoid nepotism, which is responsible for a lot of ills such as underdevelopment, corruption, violence, and rigging of elections. As a moderate mind, he is likely not to exploit tribal loyalty to advance personal gain, ethnic gain, narrow interests, patronage, and cronyism. What Nigerians need now, whether they are Christians, Muslims, or traditionalists, are leaders with exceptional character and skills that are critical to Nigeria's development. Leaders with a clear understanding of the issues at stake in Nigeria; leaders with respect for the truth; leaders with a sense of justice; leaders with a comprehension of the crisis in the nation; and leaders with a firm commitment to the people. Just being a Christian or a Muslim will not make one a better national leader. John Egbeazien Oshodi, who was born in Uromi, Edo State in Nigeria to a father who served in the Nigeria police for 37 years, is an American based Police/Prison Scientist and Forensic/Clinical/Legal Psychologist. A government consultant on matters of forensic-clinical adult and child psychological services in the USA; Chief Educator and Clinician at the Transatlantic Enrichment and Refresher Institute, an Online Lifelong Center for Personal, Professional, and Career Development. He is a former Interim Associate Dean/Assistant Professor at Broward College, Florida. The Founder of the Dr. John Egbeazien Oshodi Foundation, Center for Psychological Health and Behavioral Change in African Settings In 2011, he introduced State-of-the-Art Forensic Psychology into Nigeria through N.U.C and Nasarawa State University, where he served in the Department of Psychology as an Associate Professor. He is currently a Virtual Behavioral Leadership Professor at ISCOM University, Republic of Benin. Founder of the proposed Transatlantic Egbeazien Open University (TEU) of Values and Ethics, a digital project of Truth, Ethics, and Openness. Over forty academic publications and creations, at least 200 public opinion pieces on African issues, and various books have been written by him. He specializes in psycho-prescriptive writings regarding African institutional and governance issues. Prof. Oshodi wrote in via [email protected] By Azernews By Vugar Khalilov Baku will host an international conference to debate fluctuations in the level of the Caspian Sea on July 5, Azernews reports. Organized by the Azerbaijani Ecology and Natural Resources Ministry, the conference will focus on the theme of "Caspian Sea level fluctuations, forecast and adaptation measures in the face of climate changes," the report added. According to Umarya Taghiyeva, head of the National Hydrometeorology Service, the Caspian Sea level fluctuations and the causes for its fall, the preparation of regional adaptation measures, and the expansion of joint cooperation will be discussed at the conference, which will be attended by specialists from the Caspian countries, representatives of international organizations, and foreign experts. Taghiyeva added that discussions on the results of the assessment report presented by the intergovernmental expert group at the 56th session of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) of the Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bonn (June 2022) will be held. Furthermore, there will be a discussion on the increase in climate change rates over the previous decade and the future fluctuations, she added. The head of the service noted that there are various medium and long-term forecast scenarios regarding the level fluctuations of the Caspian Sea. From this perspective, the selection of a more realistic scenario, as well as the issue of defining cooperative activities in the application of a regional approach in the formulation of the Caspian Sea Adaptation Plan, will be discussed. KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russia claimed control Sunday over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of its grinding war. Ukraine's General Staff of the military reported that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk in Luhansk province, but the president said the fight for the city was ongoing. If confirmed, Russia's complete seizure of Luhansk would provide its forces a stronger base from which to press their advance in neighboring Donetsk province and bring them one step closer to achieving one of President Vladimir Putins major goals: capturing the entire Donbas. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin that Russias troops, with members of a local separatist militia, have established full control over the city of Lysychansk and now hold all of Luhansk, according to a ministry statement published Sunday. As is typical with such descriptions, the Russian statement characterized the victories as the liberation of the Luhansk Peoples Republic. Separatists in Luhansk and Donetsk, which make up the Donbas and have significant Russian-speaking populations, declared independence from Kyiv in 2014, and Russia formally recognized their self-proclaimed republics days before its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian and Russian forces have fought fiercely for Lysychansk in recent days after neighboring Sievierodoentsk fell last week. On Sunday evening, the General Staff of Ukraine's military confirmed on social media that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk to preserve the lives of Ukrainian defenders. Earlier, however, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy said Kyiv's forces were still battling Russian soldiers on the citys outskirts in a very difficult and dangerous situation. We cannot give you the final judgment. Lysychansk is still being fought for, Zelenskyy told a news conference in Kyiv, while noting that territory can move quickly from one side to the other. Russian forces maintain an advantage in the area, he acknowledged, calling it a Ukrainian military weak spot. The capture of Lysychansk would give the Russians more territory from which to intensify attacks on Donetsk as they drive their campaign in the Donbas, a region of mines and factories where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Ukrainian forces since 2014. If Russia prevails in the Donbas, Ukraine would lose not only land but perhaps the bulk of its most capable military forces, opening the way for Moscow to grab more territory and strengthen its ability to dictate terms to Kyiv. Already, Russian forces have concentrated rocket attacks on the sizable Ukrainian-held city of Slovyansk in Donetsk. New attacks were reported in the city Sunday. At least six people were killed, regional government spokeswoman Tatyana Ignatchenko told Ukrainian TV. Kramatorsk, another major city in the Donetsk region, also came under fire, the regional administration said. Far from the fighting in the east, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday visited a town near the capital that was severely damaged early in the war. Albanese called the destruction in Irpin devastating." "These are homes and these are livelihoods and indeed lives that have been lost here in this town, he said. Elsewhere, the exiled mayor of the Russia-occupied city of Melitopol said Sunday that Ukrainian rockets destroyed one of four Russian military bases in the city. Attacks were also reported inside Russia, in a revival of sporadic apparent Ukrainian strikes across the border. The governor of the Belgorod region in Western Russia said fragments of an intercepted Ukrainian missile killed four people Sunday. In the Russian city of Kursk, two Ukrainian drones were shot down, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Kursk regional governor Roman Starovoit said the town of Tetkino, on the Ukraine border, came under mortar fire. Ebel reported from Prokovsk, Ukraine. Associated Press journalist Maria Grazia Murru contributed from Kyiv. Follow AP's coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine The Vice Chancellor of Crescent University, Abeokuta, Prof. Ibraheem Gbajabiamila has been applauded for his presentation of masterclass to diploma students of Theatre Arts and Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN). The lecture, hosted by the department of mass communication and themed " Film Narratives and Projection of Meaning in Yoruba Movies" was aimed at cross-fertilization of knowledge in different fields. A professor of virology, Prof. Gbajabiamila explained that he was attracted to drama, films, music and cinematography as a research student and later an academic at the University of London when activities of African practitioners from Yoruba extraction, particularly, conferences on critique of "Orin Ketekete" by Ebenezer Obey, "Aye" by Ogunde and "Orun Mooru" by Moses Olaiya alias Baba Sala caught his attention. Lauding the activities of Yoruba theatre film icons like the late Hubert Ogunde, Duro Ladipo, Kola Ogunmola, Moses Olaiya, Tunde Kelani, Ade Love, Ishola Ogunsola and many others, he said Yoruba film industry evolved from Egungun Alarinjo, Travelling Theatre Troupes, radio performance of plays, television performance of plays, celluloid film makers and video film makers. In his SWOT analysis of Yoruba film industry, Prof. Gbajabiamila pointed out that "Yoruba is in the realm of endangered languages" and charged practitioners to start producing Yoruba films not laced with code-mixing. Describing the Yoruba culture and language as "a serious enterprise", Prof. Gbajabiamila said he was fascinated that the Yoruba culture was widely studied and embraced by Europeans. It is interesting to unveil that the vice chancellor has an impressive digital library of music and films and follows the activities of the Yoruba genre. In his appreciation note, the Head, Department of Mass Communication, Dr Kola Adesina thanked the vice chancellor for delivery of "an engaging, informative and enriching masterclass and demonstrating his deep research interests in Yoruba music, history of Yoruba theatre and need for more professionalism in the Nollywood industry. "Professor Gbajabiamila was able to simplify and analyse the highly cerebral works of Professors Chris Watterman, Karin Barber and David Crystal in language development and decline", Adesina has said Iconic Phuket expat Sam Wilkinson passes away A memorial event for Sam Wilkinson, well known across the island for playing his guitar at high-end restaurants and as a writer, will be held in Rawai in December. Community By The Phuket News Sunday 3 July 2022, 11:00AM For more than 15 years Sam, his full name Anthony Jerome Wilkinson, travelled to all corners of the island playing at resorts large and small, his face and voice carrying his simple beautiful message of what it was like to live in Phuket. During his years on the island, Sam wrote innumerable restaurant reviews for many respected dining publications. He also worked a stint as an editor at The Phuket Gazette and later contributed as a writer to The Phuket News. Sam passed away at Marie Curie Hospice in his home town of Liverpool in England on June 5 after a brief battle with cancer. Although it was already noticeable that Sams health had started waning, in total it was only two months from diagnosis to death. He was 66 years old. Since his passing the number of messages posted online of condolences, support and tributes to the wonderful character that Sam was have been too many to count, testament to how many lives of people living in Phuket, and many regular returning visitors, he had touched with his engaging vivacity. He was a loving force of nature. To all the beautiful people at Marie Curie Hospice in Liverpool who cared for our dad Sam Wilkinson until his last breath...words cannot express our appreciation for everything you did and continue to do for those in need. May you be as blessed as we were to have you caring for us in the final days, hours and minutes, wrote Collette Edouard, Sams daughter who lives in Phuket, where she co-founded HeadStart International School. He was lovingly cared for by my warrior of a sister Joy Dove, family members and the beautiful human beings at Clatterbridge Hospital and Marie Curie Hospice in Woolton. If you think there are no more good people in the world, think again. These people are heroes in my books, she added. Dad took his last breath at 10.47pm with Joy and I at either side of him. We played him his favourite Jimi Hendrix, Van Morrison, Beatles and John Mayer songs as we read all the messages that his friends and family sent in the days leading up to his death, Collette wrote. From being diagnosed with advanced pancreatic and liver cancer in April to passing in June, we had precious little time to revisit the places of dads youth and relive his happy memories here in England, but we tried our best! Collette added, posting a collection of photos of Sam so that you can experience the beautiful time that we spent together in dads final days. Rest in peace dad. Youve left a legacy of strong, brave and kind children and grandchildren. You are gone but not forgotten. And in true Liverpool spirit remember that youll never walk alone. Let your free spirit fly with the angels, never to suffer again. Details of the memorial event, during which Sams ashes will be scattered at his desired location in Rawai, where he lived for many years, will be announced when they become available. Anyone seeking information regarding attending the memorial in December can email Collette at cedouard@headstartphuket.com Phuket Opinion: Private negotiations PHUKET: Any foreigner using a visa agent to help facilitate their applications at Phuket Immigration got a bullet warning this week as the waters broke over more than 100 foreigners were caught out with visa agents taking the money and failing to provide the visa extensions, namely extensions to permits to stay, they promised to provide. opinionimmigrationtourism By The Phuket News Sunday 3 July 2022, 09:15AM Image: Phuket Immigration Phuket Immigration has so far made no announcements about how they are dealing with the problem other than calling the foreigners in to discuss their situation and, maybe, come up with a solution. After all, private negotiations is how they roll. Phuket City Police Chief Col Sarawut Chuprasit has vowed to prosecute visa agents who have deceived tourists. However, I would like to emphasise that tourists must be aware of how long they are allowed to stay in Thailand, and when their visa is about to expire they have to go to Immigration in person and apply to have their visa extended, Col Sarawut repeated in response to formal complaints against visa agents being filed at Phuket City Police Station. That is true, but mainly only for tourists. That statement remember, coming from regular police, not Phuket Immigration Chief Col Thanet Sukchai does not account for any officers found involved in the problem, as if that is not possible. Where Phuket Immigration comes unstuck is the 90-day reporting, with many of the foreigners involved long exceeding their 90-day reporting deadline. One foreigner involved, very reluctant to come forward for fear of being deported for breaching the 90-day reporting requirement, was more than a year late in reporting their whereabouts. (Note: See end of this article.**) Either Phuket Immigration knew of the longstanding breach, and the expiration of the permit to stay, and did nothing about it, or the 90-day reporting requirement is pointless and achieves nothing. Shifting the focus to tourists only also does not account for all the long-term expats, some with Thai families, others with businesses, and others more living and working here with their children enrolled in local schools. According to the Immigration Bureaus main website, the Application must be made in person requirement applies only two main categories of foreigners applying for an extension to stay: Visa Extension - In the case of business necessity, for example, the applicant must stay to carry out work for a company or partnership Visa Extension - In the case of tourism purposes The following is the list of visa extension types where the requirements listed do not state that the Application must be made in person: Visa Extension - In the case of a teacher, professor, or expert in a government educational institution Visa Extension - In the case of a teacher, professor, or expert in a private educational institution Visa Extension - In the case of study in a private educational institution Visa Extension - In the case of being a family member of an alien who has been permitted a temporary stay in the Kingdom for study in an educational institution (according to Clauses 2.8 or 2.9 hereof) Visa Extension - In the case of being a family member of a Thai national Visa Extension - In the case of being a family member of a Thai resident Visa Extension - In the case of retirement (See full list here.) Phuket Immigration, and now with the assistance of Phuket City Police, pretending that they had no idea that so many foreigners had been rendered illegal by any visa agent that works so closely with local immigration officers beggars belief. The whole situation smacks of a breakdown in the relationship, financial or otherwise, between the visa agents involved and the immigration officers those agents usually work with. Something has changed, while holding many foreigners to ransom without their passports. Right now it seems Phuket Immigration is making efforts to make the problem go away as quickly and quietly as possible. After all, no one needs a closer look at the relationship between Phuket Immigration officers and visa agents, do they? ** The most recent notice posted by Phuket Immigration explaining the penalties for failure to comply with the 90-day reporting requirement was posted on Feb 14 this year. The notice made no mention of deportation. The notice, in English, in full read: Notification of staying in the Kingdom over 90 days Montreal, CA (H4T1V6) Today Rain likely. High near 27C. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall may reach one inch.. Tonight Thunderstorms this evening, then cloudy with rain likely overnight. Low 20C. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Observations about some compelling primary elections on Tuesday: The victories of Democrat Kathy Hochul and Republican Lee Zeldin in gubernatorial primaries left no doubt about the sentiment of their respective parties. The wins were overwhelming in multi-candidate fields. And they validated the choices of party leaders, who demonstrated that political organizations still matter. Those organizations motivated their members to vote for endorsed candidates. One year ago, democratic socialist India Walton posed major questions when she won the Democratic primary for mayor of Buffalo: Was the party really that far left? Would socialists eventually control the Democratic Party in New York? Mayor Byron Browns convincing victory as a write-in general election candidate last November helped retire those questions. Now, Hochuls statewide victory makes the same statement as she easily dispatched the left-leaning Jumaane Williams. Still, Williams garnered 20% of the vote, and the bet here is that he is not going away. Life goes on for Republican Harry Wilson, who opened his wallet, dropped $11 million on a run for governor, and finished last. Oh, well. But it also says something for people like Wilson who can afford trying to make a difference. Takeaways from hearing Hochuls acceptance speech in Manhattan soon after the polls closed: She will campaign vigorously against recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions striking down New Yorks concealed carry law and overturning Roe vs. Wade. Hochul will not travel that route without extensive polling to fuel her fire. Takeaways from Jerry Zremskis Wednesday story on Zeldins speech in Baldwin, Long island: He will continue to hammer away at the states rising crime rate and population exodus, blaming it all on Hochul. And oh, yes he will constantly refer to his opponent as Cuomo-Hochul, linking her to the former governor chased from office last August. On Thursday, Zeldin predicted he will win Erie County. It was a bold statement, especially after Hochul had just captured Erie with 84% of the Democratic vote, in a county dominated by Democrats, and where Hochul has lived almost all her life. If his prediction proves true in Hochuls home turf, Zeldin will be the next governor of New York. Dont tell any of that to state Democratic Chairman Jay Jacobs, who predicts a crushing defeat for Zeldin. At the end of the day, he gets 30%, maybe 40%, of the vote, he said Wednesday. Erie County Democratic Chairman Jeremy Zellner is ecstatic about Tuesdays results in Erie County with justification. His risky move to lure Melissa Hartman out of the GOP and then run as Democratic candidate for county clerk paid off. The Eden supervisor demolished Democrat/Republican hybrid Mickey Kearns 63%-36% in the Democratic primary. And its fair to say there is no love lost for Kearns over at Democratic Headquarters. Kearns, however, has been through this before. He has a habit of winning on the Republican line. Zellner also brought it home in Erie County for Hochul, recalling Carl Paladino-esque numbers of 2010 when the then-GOP candidate for governor took his home county of Erie by a stunning 94-6% tally in the Republican primary. Speaking of Paladino and looking ahead to his bid to succeed Chris Jacobs in Congress, he launched new ads for radio and TV on Thursday that proclaim the 23rd District as Carl Country, label him one of us, and declares he has never accepted liberal nonsense (a favorite Paladino word). After Nick Langworthy, his Republican primary opponent and state GOP chairman, counts proceeds from his big fundraiser held on Tuesday, expect to see and even more ads in a highly competitive race. Quote of the Week comes from Chairman Zellner, who very much likes the idea of helping elect a governor from Buffalo. He could not help on Wednesday but recall Hochuls early days as a headquarters volunteer. Its the first time an Erie County Democratic Committee intern will be the party nominee for governor. EDWARDSVILLE The Madison Countys Judiciary Committee has unanimously approved placing an advisory referendum on the Nov. 8 ballot dealing with the subdivision of the 3rd Judicial Circuit. Madison County States Attorney Tom Haine, who has been fighting the issue in the courts, presented the resolution which was approved with little discussion. The full county board must approve the plan for the referendum to appear on the November ballot. It has no binding effect, but it allows people to voice an opinion, Haine said. This spring Illinois modified judicial subcircuits in Cook County and creating subcircuits in some downstate counties, including Madison County. While the law does not impact other judicial circuits until the 2024 election cycle, it singled out Madison County for implementation in the 2022 election cycle. The primary, including three 3rd Circuit Judicial races, was Tuesday. At last week's committee meeting, Madison County Board Member Mike Babcock, R-Bethalto, asked if the proposed referendum would fix the problem. Haine compared the referendum to a Second Amendment Sanctuary resolution county voters passed in November 2018. On Tuesday, judicial candidates in four primary races were unopposed; candidates in two, both Democrats, ran as write-ins. The unopposed candidates will appear on the Nov. 8 ballot; the two write-ins must wait until the results are officially counted to see if they received enough votes to qualify for the ballot. The new state law also set up a system where the first three judges elected must come from one subcircuit, which is heavily Democratic; then then next three from a second subcircuit, which is split. The third subcircuit, more heavily Republican, will only have two judges and residents would be unable to vote in a judicial race for about 10 years, according to county officials. The Illinois law was criticized as being highly partisan and hastily done with limited chance for debate. The original bill was introduced February 2021 by state Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville and sponsored by former state Sen. Rachelle Crowe, D-Glen Carbon, who has left the state legislature to become a U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois. On Jan. 5 the bill was amended by Senate President Dan Harmon, D-Oak Park, completely throwing out the old language and inserting the new proposal. The bill was approved along party lines and signed two days later by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. In February a circuit court judge in Sangamon County initially granted a temporary restraining order halting implementation of the law, but later ruled against the county and other plaintiffs. Oral arguments on an appeal of that ruling were heard June 22 in the 4th District Appellate Court. The case is still pending. Job Title: Global Finance Officer Organisation: Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e.V. / Johanniter International Assistance Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda (may be required to travel to the respective Country Offices) Country office: Global Support Unit Reporting to: Global Finance Coordinator (first line supervisor) Global Finance Manager (second line supervisor) Receives technical advice from: Global Finance Manager Gives technical advice to: Country Office Finance Staff Standing in for: Global Finance Coordinator, Global Finance Manager Replaced by: Global Finance Coordinator About US: Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e.V. is a German Christian non-governmental organisation, dedicated to excellence in the field of first aid, ambulance service, social service programmes and other projects in the medical and social field. The Federal Headquarters are based in Berlin, Germany. Johanniter International Assistance is the operational unit for humanitarian aid, development co-operation and emergency relief, implementing and supporting mostly health projects worldwide. Job Summary: In order to deliver Johanniters 2027 strategy, Johanniter wants to strengthen its operational processes and systems across the organization, the GSU and more so the Global Finance aims to strengthen country offices as 1st level of control of their operational business with GSU functioning as a 2nd level of control for operational support. The Global Finance Officer will support the above by being responsible for reviewing all support documents for country transactions across all Johanniter programmes. S/he will provide 2nd level of control and compliance. They will ensure the compliance and completeness of the support documents which are uploaded into the 4JUH platform and to assist Country Offices, with capacity development and training. This will require attention to detail in Country voucher verification and the ability to perform qualitative analysis of conformity to Johanniter policies and guidelines as well as ensuring that country programmes comply with donor requirements. S/he will provide assistance to Country Offices and their partner (where applicable) to be account-able for their responsibilities, to ensure that effective financial and logistics principles and protocols are in place. The Global Finance Officer will support the Global Finance Coordinator in providing all round financial management, support to GSU Finance and non-finance staff and helping to maintain day to day financial operations for the Unit. Key Duties and Responsibilities: Review monthly closing checklists, with reconciliations prepared by each country office to ensure completeness On the monthly basis, control quality of vouchers uploaded on 4JUH, and propose corrections/amendment, whenever required Review of all country office vouchers and ensuring compliance with JUH Finance guidelines Review all booking lists against vouchers on monthly basis, ensuring expenditures are booked under their respective budgets, and propose corrections/amendment whenever required Participate in maintaining quality in all aspects of Johanniter Financial Management On monthly basis, regularly update voucher checking progress document and quality progress of all country offices Regularly update vouchers checking trackers (COs progress) and share with GSU Finance Coordinator Manage GSU bank account and petty cash (UGX,USD, EUR): Prepare payment slip ( cover sheet, internal receipt etc.) and ensure all payments request are approved prior to payment Prepare excel cashbook and upload in Sun System as well as cash reconciliataion Assist in doing monthly balance sheet reconciliations for the GSU and ensuring that any reconciling items are cleared on time Upload GSU monthly closing documents and vouchers on 4JUH Qualifications, Skills and Experience: The ideal applicant must hold a Relevant Bachelors Degree from a recognized university (preferably in Accounting and Finance with a minimum of 4 years working experience in Accounting in an INGO set-up Qualification in Accounting, Finances or Business Administration from recognized university Minimum of four years of accountancy experience, with at least 3 years of having worked in INGO. Knowledge of accounting software (SUN) Desirable: A minimum of four years of experience working preferably with International NGOs or project development Experience of donors financial reporting requirements Experience of German donors Good knowledge of procurement procedures Skills and Competencies: Essential: Excellent attention to detail at all times Excellent computer skills particularly excel and Microsoft office in general Good analytical and reporting skills Excellent interpersonal and communication skills Strong ability to be able to manage and prioritize multiple tasks Desirable: Experience in multi-cultural environment, Knowledge of SUN Systems Accounting software Experience of institutional donor compliance Experience in multi-cultural environment Level II CPA What we offer Remuneration: average Salary of UGX 4m to 5 million depending on experience & qualification Other benefits: Medical cover GPA 13TH Cheque How to Apply: Applications for this position (including a cover letter, CV, professional references contacts of three former supervisors as well as job certificates if available) should be sent to: hr.gsu@thejohanniter.org Please indicate GSU-Global Finance Officer, In the subject line of your e-mail and in the application mention your earliest date of availability. Only complete applications will be considered and only short-listed candidates will be notified. Please note: This Job Description is dynamic and can be adapted. The employee is obliged, apart from the above cited tasks, to fulfil, on demand by his/her supervisor, other tasks that belong by its character to the post or are necessary due to operational needs. Deadline: Friday 11th July 2022 For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com or find us on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline Westerly, RI (02891) Today Isolated thunderstorms during the morning. Cloudy skies this afternoon. High 78F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to cloudy skies after midnight. Low around 70F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 60%. 'Trussst in me': Like Kaa, the devious snake in The Jungle Book, insurers are accused of preying on customers' trust For the past six months, I've been digging my tentacles into the insurance industry's prickly underbelly. A weird mental image? Yes, but bear with me there's method in my madness. In a nutshell, I've been trying to assess whether the industry is playing fair over new rules imposed upon it by the country's financial regulator. Rules principally designed to ensure loyal customers who religiously renew their home or car policy without a fuss are no longer ripped off by greedy insurers. That they get a fair deal on a par with the prices new customers pay, are not paying a 'loyalty' premium for failing to shop around every year, and are no longer being exploited by firms they trust. The more I have dug, the more frustrated I have got. I know in my heart that some insurers are not adhering to the new regime, but proving it beyond doubt is nigh impossible. Insurance companies are slithery organisations, brilliant at defending their own business interests and superb at denying wrongdoing. 'You're not comparing like with like, Mr Prestridge,' they tell me when I show them evidence that an existing customer has still been able to get cheaper insurance from them as a new customer something the rules are meant to stop. 'Jeff, Mr Jones got a cheaper quote as a new customer because he failed to disclose a smashed windscreen claim five years ago.' Hmm. 'Jeffrey, Mrs Biggins was able to obtain a better deal as a new customer because she got a quote using a different business channel from the one she used when first joining us.' Really? How utterly confusing. Excuses, excuses and more excuses they're excellent at coming up with them. Slippery as a snake. Yet it seems my persistent prodding of the industry's underbelly is beginning to bear fruit. Last week, the Financial Conduct Authority told me it had asked insurers and insurance brokers between 60 and 100 of them, I understand to prove to them that they are no longer discriminating against loyal customers. Some of the companies targeted in its probe are those whose business practices I have questioned in recent months. Others are believed to have been included as a result of letters from MPs (on behalf of constituents), correspondence sent directly to the FCA by angry policyholders and appeals by consumer groups. The FCA even congratulated us on the work we have done this year (see below), a rare accolade which I will gladly take to my grave. Hurrah. OK, not a giant step forward, but it's progress. Regulator's praise for us as it turns up the heat on rogue firms This is what the Financial Conduct Authority told us about its work and our campaign: 'We are pleased to see some early, positive signs about the effectiveness of our reforms in tackling the loyalty premium in general insurance. But, we do recognise that while real renewal costs are down across the industry, there will be instances where costs have increased for some customers. We are determined that our new regulations will stamp out bad practice against loyal customers and require firms to attest annually that they are acting in consumers' best interests or face serious consequences We are in the process of testing data from insurers of various sizes to make sure that they are meeting their obligations to get rid of the discrimination against loyal customers, along with understanding where increases do occur that they are fair, in proportion with macro-economic conditions and changes in operating costs. We will take decisive action where we uncover evidence that our regulation has been deliberately ignored or that companies are unable to show they have acted in the interest of their customers. We are thankful for the market intelligence provided to us by various parties, including The Mail on Sunday, along with many customers, which has greatly assisted us when conducting this industry assessment. We are determined that our new regulations will stamp out bad practice against loyal customers and require firms to attest annually that they are acting in consumers' best interests or face serious consequences.' THE BACKDROP OF 'A LOYALTY PENALTY'... The new regime governing the pricing of car and home insurance has been a long time coming. Indeed, it took some super campaigning from the likes of the marvellous Citizens Advice and this newspaper to prompt the Financial Conduct Authority into action. Previously, insurers adopted dual pricing on car and home cover. Loyal customers were bizarrely penalised for staying with an insurer year in, year out with ever higher premiums. Yes, penalised, not rewarded. Perverse? Yes. But that's insurance for you. Never trust an insurer. Why the penalty for loyalty? It wasn't a result of these customers always making claims, but because insurers knew they were loyal and they had a pretty good idea that nine times out of ten they wouldn't bat an eyelid if their premium increased at renewal. New FCA rules mean that insurers shouldn't charge loyal customers higher premiums than new ones for home and car insurance - but some believe they are still being charged more These loyal customers, many elderly, trusted their insurer to do the right thing by them. How wrong they were. Who says loyalty pays? This fleecing of loyal customers enabled insurance companies to go aggressively after new business a financial yardstick used by City analysts to judge the success (or otherwise) of individual companies. Some of the fat profits made from loyal policyholders were used by insurers to offer cut-price cover to new customers. In some instances, it meant a 30 to 40 per cent price difference between the cost of cover for a customer of six or seven years standing and someone buying the identical plan as a new policyholder. According to Citizens Advice, home insurance companies made 100 per cent of their profits from the loyalty penalty. Five years ago, I wrote a series of articles on the heavy price loyal customers were paying for their car and home insurance. Readers contacted me in their hundreds to complain that their loyalty had been financially abused. It was an apposite campaign which drew praise from all quarters. I even won an award a year later at the prestigious British Journalism Awards. Ironically, the award was sponsored by an insurer, albeit one that supported the idea of treating all customers fairly. Then, in September 2018, Citizens Advice submitted a 'super complaint' to competition regulator the Competition & Markets Authority, calling for it to investigate the 4billion-a-year 'loyalty penalty' not just in insurance, but also across the mortgage, savings, mobile phone and broadband markets. The CMA agreed with the charity's concerns, triggering the FCA's intervention in the insurance market. ...AND WHERE WE SHOULD BE NOW From the start of this year, insurers have been banned from quoting existing customers a higher premium for renewing their home or motor insurance policy than they would pay as a new customer. The FCA says its new rules will save loyal customers 4.2billion in premiums over the next ten years. Six months into the new regime, it points to statistics indicating that car insurance premiums fell overall by five per cent in the first quarter of this year as evidence that its rules are working. For the record, these were figures compiled by the Association of British Insurers (I don't doubt their veracity, but I point out the source because I thought you might be interested). Yet when we have written on the new rules in January and last month we have been overwhelmed with correspondence from policyholders who don't believe the insurance market of 2022 is any better than 2021. Car insurance premiums fell 5% in the first quarter of this year, according to the Association of British Insurers - but many policyholders don't believe the insurance market has changed For them at least, premiums are still rising, even though some (not all) are loyal customers. We have also heard from numerous policyholders who have bought cheaper cover (or been offered it) by posing as a new customer when it was time to renew their insurance. This simply shouldn't happen in the new world of insurance, but the regulator has given insurers so many get out of jail free cards on this crucial issue that it's virtually impossible to identify clear rule-breaking. For example, insurers are allowed to vary quotes for identical cover according to how a policy is bought direct, through a broker, a price comparison website, online or over the phone. This enables some policyholders to get cheaper quotes from their provider than the offered renewal premium by buying through a different sales channel to the one they used originally. Last week, we presented the FCA with a dossier of correspondence from MoS readers on the issue of car and home cover pricing. It included at least 11 examples of potential rule breaking all of which have (understandably) been vigorously contested by the insurance companies involved. We know the FCA has looked at these cases and we believe some of them have been taken into account by the regulator in assessing which companies to focus on in terms of checking whether they are complying with the rules. The FCA has told the MoS that it is not frightened to impose heavy fines on persistent rule breakers even suspend them from doing new business. Strong words. But, my suspicion is that insurers are currently running rings round it. As one reader put it to me: 'Insurance companies are using this [the new rules] to feather their own nest.' The former head of the Army, Lord Dannatt, is spearheading an audacious plan to snap up a crucial manufacturing plant closed by its US owner. Dannatt is fronting a group of UK-based investors to acquire CF Industries' factory in Ince, Cheshire, which could save hundreds of jobs and help protect Britain's carbon dioxide supplies. Plan: Lord Dannatt is fronting a group of UK-based investors to acquire CF Industries' factory in Ince, Cheshire CF Industries produces 60 per cent of Britain's CO2 supplies as a by-product of agricultural fertiliser production. The gas is crucial in packing and preserving fresh food and salads. A threat to permanently close Ince and its sister factory at Billingham, Teesside in October last year forced Ministers to intervene with a bailout worth tens of millions of pounds. But CF Industries announced the permanent closure of its Ince plant last month, blaming cost pressures. It will channel all its UK production through Teesside. A spokesman for Dannatt said talks are at a 'sensitive stage'. CF Industries said it has 'spoken with several parties' but discussions have not yet 'appeared likely' to secure the plant's future. Europe faces a 'severe recession' if Russia cuts off gas exports to the continent, a leading think tank has warned. The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) said a deep recession would be a 'near certainty'. Russia's state energy company Gazprom has already cut exports through the NordStream pipeline by around 60 per cent. Crisis: Russia's state energy company Gazprom has already cut exports through the NordStream pipeline by around 60 per cent Planned maintenance this month is seen as an opportunity for Putin to shut it down. CEBR forecasters said: 'Putin seems intent on forcing the hand of European states, convinced that stopping gas exports will hurt Western countries more than it will cost Russia.' This would lead governments to shut down industrial sites. The CEBR estimates the risk of a recession in Europe this winter at 40 per cent. The UK uses a smaller portion of its gas to power industry and would be insulated from the impact of a shortage. The suspected shooter in the May 14 Tops supermarket massacre faces charges that include state and federal hate crimes. Such charges can be controversial, but it is important to legally acknowledge the role of hatred in crimes of violence. The term hate crime goes back to the '60s civil rights era with roots in post-Civil War legislation but as years passed, the nation realized that those laws needed to be expanded. The landmark 2009 legislation by Congress, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, defined a hate crime as an incidence of violence motivated by the actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability of the victim. Shepard was a gay university student who was tortured and beaten in Wyoming in 1998. He died from his injuries in a hospital. Byrd was murdered by white men who dragged him behind a pickup truck for three miles in Jasper, Texas, also in 1998. The Shepard/Byrd federal legislation is all the more important because many states do not include gender, sexual orientation, and/or disability and four states have no hate crime legislation at all. Some lawmakers initially questioned how a hate crime ending in loss of life is different from a murder thats not designated a hate crime. When the Shepard/Byrd bill was debated in 2009, Republican Congressman John Boehner said violent attacks were already illegal regardless of motive and that the measure might create a class of thought crimes. In New York, Assembly lawmakers attempting to pass hate crime legislation faced similar opposition in the State Senate, finally succeeding in 2000, after 11 years of failure. Many on the conservative side of the political spectrum are hesitant to admit at least in public that racism and hate are still very much with us. But enacting laws that define some of the darkest acts people are capable of, and ascribing them to motivations that are both abhorrent and provable, help to codify what must be faced and if possible defeated by a democratic nation. As Boehner commented, it is a scary path, but those paths are often the most important to travel. We agree with Judy Shepard, Matthew Shepards mother, who has stated that No single law can solve the complex problem of hate violence or undo the centuries of racism, homophobia, transphobia, anti-Semitism, bigotry and violence that are woven into the fabric of American history. Wed also cite Southern Poverty Law Centers explanation of the particularly heinous nature of hate crimes: Hate crimes physically wound and may effectively intimidate other members of the victims community, leaving them feeling terrorized, isolated, vulnerable and unprotected by the law. Designating these acts as what they are can allow targeted penalties, increased support for victims and their families and protection for vulnerable communities. The designation can also help law enforcement and other entities better understand what theyre dealing with, and of urgent importance recognize how to prevent these tragedies before they happen. This essential step includes micro- and macro- strategies. In the big picture, many organizations that study hate crimes stress the importance of investing in vulnerable communities that are commonly the subjects of hate violence. Those efforts can include such basic measures as raising the minimum wage, expanding affordable housing programs and employment opportunities and generally strengthening the social safety net. Its also recommended that all schools, workplaces and government agencies offer multicultural and conflict resolution training and other violence mitigating programs. Western New Yorkers saw the need for that at Buffalos McKinley High School earlier this year. Finally, education, communication and collaboration are key to addressing root causes and acting on early warning signs. Thats the strategy of the multidisciplinary team approach now being set up in New York, county by county, with a central goal of intervening against hate-motivated violence. These threat assessment and management teams one has just been started in Erie County are led by law enforcement but also include school districts, large employers, mental health professionals, social services, faith-based organizations and many other entities. Monroe Countys team, started in 2019, has already intervened in more than 30 cases. The idea is to divert troubled people before they hit the point of no return and, ideally, before law enforcement involvement is even necessary. By now, hate-motivated violence, including targeted white supremacist violence, is all too familiar a scourge throughout the United States. There are often warning signs before it happens as there was with the Tops shooting and its essential to recognize them, connect the dots and intervene before tragedy strikes. Hate crime legislation acknowledges the ugliness in society, but its important not to look away. Through vigilance, and the use of every tool in every professional agencys toolbox, its possible to interrupt hate. Whats your opinion? Send it to us at lettertoeditor@buffnews.com. Letters should be a maximum of 300 words and must convey an opinion. The column does not print poetry, announcements of community events or thank you letters. A writer or household may appear only once every 30 days. All letters are subject to fact-checking and editing. Russias defence minister says Moscows forces have taken control of the last major Ukrainian-held city in Ukraines Luhansk province. Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin that as a result of successful military operations, the armed forces of the Russian Federation, together with units of the Peoples Militia of the Luhansk Peoples Republic, have established full control over the city of Lysychansk, according to Russian news agencies. Blasts kill 3 in Russian border city, Ukraine hits base in the south At least three people were killed and dozens of homes damaged by blasts in the Russian city of Belgorod near the Ukraine border, the regional governor said on Sunday, while Ukrainian forces struck a Russian military base in occupied southern Ukraine. Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported several explosions in the city of nearly 400,000, some 40 km (25 miles) north of the border with Ukraine. At least 11 apartment buildings and 39 houses were damaged, including five that were destroyed, Gladkov said on the Telegram messaging app. The sound was so strong that I jumped up, I woke up, got very scared and started screaming, a resident of the city told Reuters, adding the blasts occurred around 3 a.m. (0000 GMT) The missile hit residential buildings about 20 metres from my house, the resident said. All the windows in our house were shattered, the doors came out of alignment. Senior Russian lawmaker Andrei Klishas accused Ukraine of shelling Belgorod and called for a stern response. The death of civilians and the destruction of civilian infrastructure in Belgorod are a direct act of aggression on the part of Ukraine and require the most severe including a military response, Klishas wrote on Telegram. Moscow has accused Kyiv of numerous attacks on Belgorod and other regions bordering Ukraine since Russias Feb. 24 invasion. Ukraine has not claimed responsibility but has described the incidents as payback and karma for Russias actions. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine and Reuters could not independently verify the Russian accounts. In the Russian-occupied southern Ukraine city of Melitopol, Ukrainian forces hit a military base with more than 30 strikes on Sunday, the citys exiled mayor said in a video address on Telegram. The base had been taken out of action, Ivan Fedorov said. A Moscow-installed official said several private residential houses near the airfield were damaged. Shells fell on the territory of the airfield. There were no casualties, Evgeny Balitsky, head of the Russia-installed council in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, wrote on Telegram. The General Staff of Ukraines Armed Forces said its air force had flown some 15 sorties in virtually all directions of hostilities. About 20 units of enemy equipment and two field ammunition depots were destroyed. Reuters could not immediately verify the accounts. Thousands of civilians have been killed and cities levelled since Russia invaded in what Ukraine its Western allies say is an unprovoked war of aggression. Russia denies targeting civilians in what President Vladimir Putin calls a special military operation to demilitarise and denazify its neighbour. CITY ON FIRE Russia is focussed on driving Ukrainian forces out of Luhansk and Donetsk provinces in the Donbas, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Kyiv since Russias first military intervention in Ukraine in 2014. Ukrainian troops describe intense artillery barrages on residential areas, especially around Lysychansk, the last holdout city in Luhansk. The Russians are strengthening their positions in the Lysychansk area, the city is on fire, Luhansk Governor Serhiy Gaidai said on Telegram. They attacked the city with inexplicably brutal tactics. Rodion Miroshnik, ambassador to Russia of the pro-Moscow self-styled Luhansk Peoples Republic, told Russian television, Lysychansk has been brought under control, but added: Unfortunately, it is not yet liberated. Russian media showed video of Luhansk militia parading in Lysychansk streets waving flags and cheering, but Ukraine National Guard spokesman Ruslan Muzychuk told Ukrainian television the city remained in Ukrainian hands. Now there are fierce battles near Lysychansk, however, fortunately, the city is not surrounded and is under the control of the Ukrainian army, Muzychuk said. Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports. RIVER CROSSED Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said Russian forces had finally crossed the Siverskiy Donets river and were approaching the city from the north. This is indeed a threat. We shall see. I do not rule out any one of a number of outcomes here. Things will become much more clear within a day or two, he said. The more Western weapons come to the front, the more the picture changes in favour of Ukraine. Ukraine has repeatedly appealed for more weapons from the West, saying its forces are heavily outgunned. Troops on a break from the fighting in Konstyantynivka, a market town about 115 km (70 miles) west of Lysychansk, said they had managed to keep the supply road to the embattled city open despite Russian bombardment. We still use the road because we have to, but its within artillery range of the Russians, said one soldier as comrades relaxed nearby, munching on sandwiches or eating ice cream. The Russian tactic right now is to just shell any building we could locate ourselves at. When theyve destroyed it, they move on to the next one, he said. Far from the eastern fighting, Russia said it had hit army command posts in Mykolaiv near the vital Black Sea port of Odesa, where the mayor on Saturday had reported a number of powerful explosions. The Russian occupiers are launching systematic rocket attacks in the direction of Mykolaiv, Ukraines general staff said on Sunday. Ukrainian authorities said another missile slammed into an apartment block near Odesa on Friday, killing at least 21 people. A shopping mall was hit on Monday in the central city of Kremenchuk, killing at least 19. SOURCE: REUTERS Times Union SCHENECTADY The Daily Gazette will not print a newspaper on Independence Day. In an announcement at the top of Satuday's newspaper, the Gazette said it would forgo Monday's newspaper "in observance of the holiday." The newspaper said its online e-edition will be free Monday. While Donald Trump isnt president now (but could be again), he is proof that U.S. presidential elections have long lasting consequences. It was Trump who appointed Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court that recently overturned Roe v. Wade and of course makes it easier to carry guns almost anywhere. This onslaught by the U.S. Supreme Court against the rights gained over time for many Americans is only going to get worse. I bet if the present U.S. Supreme Court had its way, they would rule if a person cant afford medical care, they cant receive attention. Let them suffer and die. Perhaps the court will rule that Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare are unconstitutional. I wouldnt be shocked or surprised what will come next from this clearly politically compromised and corrupted court. I am beginning to wonder how much our checks and balances of preventing any of the three branches of government-executive, legislative and judicial from having too much power is enough to prevent America becoming overall authoritarian like Russia and China. In the end, the overall blame for the current assault on U.S. democracy, peoples rights and sense of ones safety must fall on American voters. We tend to vote mostly about money and economic considerations but what a candidate stands for simply cant be ignored, dismissed or overlooked by voters again. The Supreme Courts latest rulings just werent surprising. If the voting population reelects Trump or one of his minions in 2024, expect a country where rights will end up only for the powerful few. As said, elections really have consequences. This must be a wake up call for the American electorate. If the lesson isnt soon learned, it will be our fault when more rights are taken away and democracy too is long gone. Marcus Costello Kenmore Thinkstock Images/Getty Images KENT Two men arguing in a westbound lane of Interstate 84 were hit and killed by another vehicle traveling on the highway early Saturday morning, State Police said. Troopers said Mark H. Hall, 38, of Holmes and Fabian A. Tirado, 22, of Wappinger, stopped in the westbound lanes of I-84 and exited their vehicles due to a road-rage altercation. Above: Pupils of Gaelscoil Chluain Meala couldnt wait to taste the cake made by Meadhbh Purcell to mark the official opening of their new school building by Paidi O Lionaird, TG4 (back, second from left). Also included are Caoimhin O hEaghra from An Foras Patrunachta (back, right), principal Karen Mhic Gearailt and Sean O Ciardha, chairperson of the board of management. Front, from left: Peadar O Beaglaoich, Aaron O Conchuir, Maitiu O Beaglaoich, Juniper Nic Fionnain, Anna Ni Chonchuir, Eoin De Londras, Caleb Kerton and Noah O Cathain. Pictures: John D Kelly Ca bhfuil ar scoil nua (where is our new school) was a question often posed during the long campaign to secure a permanent home for Gaelscoil Chluain Meala. The question was finally answered on a warm afternoon last week, 28 years after the school had been established, when the schools new state of the art building at Upper Irishtown was officially opened by Paidi O Lionaird, TG4. The conclusion of the long wait for a permanent home since the primary school opened its doors for the first time in 1994 was celebrated in some style. Pupils sang, danced and played music and glowing tributes were paid to members of past and present school communities, many of whom were present, for helping the dream become a reality. The 176-year-old building, which was previously the site of the offices of South Tipperary County Council, has been transformed into a multi-million euro school that is now home to 232 pupils, 12 teaching staff and two special needs assistants (SNAs), as well as five ancillary staff. Almost 500 pupils have graduated from Gaelscoil Chluain Meala over the years and the school also has a vibrant naionra, or pre-school. Karen Mhic Gearailt, principal of Gaelscoil Chluain Meala promised that they would savour this historic day. She said they had to look back and acknowledge what had brought them to this momentous occasion, as she paid tribute to past and current staff, parents councils and boards of management, as well as the schools patron, An Foras Patrunachta. She said she was so grateful that the first group of parents, many of whom returned to attend the ceremony, and the first principal Treasa Nic Dhiarmada had the vision for a gaelscoil in Clonmel. People who had visited the building said there was no way it would be ready in time but they had underestimated the determination of those involved. Ms Mhic Gearailt said they had met with hurdles and challenges along the way that had helped define their collective ability to succeed. It is really encouraging that the Irish language is so popular in this area and that students will get the opportunity to learn through Irish. We look forward to welcoming many new families into our wonderful new school, she added. Above: Rince na hOscailte was performed by pupils in Rang 5 at the official opening of Gaelscoil Chluain Meala Paidi O Lionaird, who performed the official opening, recalled visiting Hearns Hotel in Clonmel as a 25-year-old red head from west Cork when meetings were held to establish a gaelscoil. At the time he was a development officer with Gaelscoileanna, an umbrella body that helped set up Irish-speaking schools throughout the country, and which is now called Gaeloideachas. He recalled that 45 pupils began attending the school in 1994. He described what the parents of the pupils who started at the school 28 years ago had done as quite extraordinary, and said they had united to get the best for their children. This had set the ball in motion and after that the heavy lifting had been done by people like Sean O Ciardha, chairperson of the board of management since the schools foundation. You had stood steadfast and held your ground and had a beautiful new building in the centre of Irishtown. He said the children were receiving the very best in education but school was a lot more than that, and was a place where children were rounded and developed. And it was brilliant that they were bilingual - its no load, said Mr O Lionaird. The wheel came full circle when Eve Ni Choigligh, a past pupil who is now a teacher at the school, made a presentation to Paidi O Lionaird. Coincidentally, Ms Ni Choigligh made a presentation to Micheal O Muircheartaigh at the official opening of the school on March 10 1995. Above: Pupils from the infant classes performed some songs and verses at the official opening of Gaelscoil Chluain Meala. From left, Grace Ni Laighin, Charlie OhUaine, Ruadhan Henckert and Saorla Tailliui Caoimhin O hEaghra, General Secretary of An Foras Patrunachta, said the lives of so many children and families had been enriched by Gaelscoil Chluain Meala. They had been given an education, as well as the great gift of the Irish language. The families whose children had been the first to attend the school deserved great recognition, because they had entrusted their childrens education to a group of gaelgoiri who didnt have a building. He recognised the roles played by Sean O Ciardha and first principal Treasa Nic Dhiarmada. The role of first principal was, he said, a daunting one in setting up a new entity and new educational facility, and ensuring that it would thrive and flourish. Above: A presentation was made to Treasa Nic Dhiarmada by the board of management in appreciation of the work she did as the first principal of Gaelscoil Chluain Meala. From left, Sean O Ciardha, chairperson of the board of management, Caoimhin O hEaghra, Ard Stiurthoir, An Foras Patrunachta, Treasa Nic Dhiarmada, Paidi O Lionaird, TG4 and Karen Mhic Gearailt, Priomhoide, Gaelscoil Chluain Meala He congratulated current principal Karen Mhic Gearailt and her staff on their great work, and he thanked parents for choosing and supporting the school over the years. Demand for places in gaelscoileanna has never been greater, said Mr O hEaghra. This excellent new building will cater for the growth in Irish medium education locally. Parents are aware more than ever of the extra benefits immersion education provides students perform better academically, find it easier to learn a third language and benefit from greater employment opportunities. An Foras Patrunachta schools educate 17,000 students and our schools are open to everyone. Our aim is to provide an excellent education through the Irish language to every child in Ireland who wants it, he stated. Sean O Ciardha, chairperson of the board of management since the schools foundation, said that the Gaelscoil had a history of excellent educational provision since 1994. Every member of the board of management, staff and cohorts of parents had a role to play in achieving this outcome. He thanked all businesses and members of the community who had supported the school over the years and stated that without the ongoing team efforts of staff, parents and board members, today would not have happened. The school was blessed by Canon Billy Meehan, Parish Priest of St Marys parish in Irishtown. The school was built by Tom OBrien Construction, Waterford and the architect was Russell Moffat of Butler Moffat Architects, Cork. Two women have been found dead and a retired police department employee has been charged with second-degree murder in their killings following a lengthy weekend standoff As we noted last night, this next part of Summer will determine a great deal about life going forward in Kansas City. Right now this cowtown is keeping pace with a record increasing in killing over the past 2 years . . . Unofficially, this is the 74th homicide so far this year compared to 75 at this time last year - KC's 2nd highest killing total in its history. Here's the first report . . . Homicide 11300 blk Spring Valley Rd This morning right at midnight officers were dispatched to a residence in the 11300 Block of Spring Valley Rd. on a shooting call. On arrival officers were directed to a vehicle in front of a residence there. Inside the vehicle officers located the victim, an adult female, who appeared to have been shot and was unresponsive. Officers rendered aid and summoned EMS to the scene. EMS declared the victim deceased at the scene. The caller advised they heard the sound of gunshots outside and looked out and saw the victim had been shot. Detectives and Crime Scene Investigators are canvassing for witnesses and processing the scene for evidence. If anyone was in this area and saw anything they are asked to call the Homicide Unit directly at 816-234-5043, or the TIPS hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS. There is a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to an arrest in this case. ############################# Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . . Woman dies after overnight shooting in Kansas City, Missouri KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A woman has died in an overnight homicide in Kansas City, Missouri. Just after midnight, the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department was called to the 11300 block of Spring Valley Road on a reported shooting. The caller told police that they heard the sound of gunshots and saw the woman had been shot once they looked outside. Woman dies after overnight shooting near Spring Valley Road KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City Police Department is investigating a deadly overnight shooting that left one person dead. Officers were called to the 10300 block of Spring Valley Road on a shooting call. The caller told police that they heard gunshots just after midnight and looked outside and saw the woman had been shot. Developing . . . There's surprising buy-in here from elected officials, rising stars and women throughout the Kansas City Metro . . . This news is important to witness in order to understand where KCMO might stand amid an increasingly divisive discourse. Check the list of speakers, ANOTHER HARD TIME AHEAD FOR THE PLAZA & bold statements about the future of democracy ahead of the midterms elections . . . 5,400+ Kansas Citians to participate in WE ARE NOT FREE, JULY 4TH RALLY KANSAS CITY, Mo. (July 4th, 2022) On Monday, July 4th at 11 AM, Kansas Citians will be participating in the We Are Not Free Freedom March at the Mill Creek Park on the Plaza here in Kansas City. Stacy Henderson, lead organizer, will be leading this effort alongside Mayor Quinton Lucas and Justice Horn, lead organizer of the 2020 Kansas City Black Lives Matter Movement and Candidate for the Jackson County Legislature-District 1. There are currently 5,400+ Kansas Citians RSVPed to go via Facebook event and that link can be found below. The current speaker line-up is the Welcome, the Kansas City Indian Center, Jessica Piper (Candidate for the Missouri House), Ayaan Muse (Activist), Crissy Dastrup (Candidate for City Council - 4th District), Ashley Aune (State Representative from the Northland), Maurisha Minter (Activist), Becca Kutch (Will share personal story/experience), MJ Jone (Activist), Councilwoman Melissa Robinson (3rd District Councilwoman and with the Black Health Coalition), Bianca Alonzo (will share personal experience and story), Stacy Lake (Candidate for Jackson County Executive), Tiffany Buckley (will share personal story/experience), Jill Cockson (will share personal story/experience), Chenille Moore (will share personal story/experience), Emily Weber (State Representative representing Midtown), Ashlee Kent (will share personal story/experience), Moment of silence, and then Stacy Henderson (Lead organizer will end it out). This will then transition to the freedom march portion of the program being led by activists as well. The march will end at 5 PM CST. Facebook event link: We are not free. Freedom march Mill Creek Park Come rally and peacefully protest with us for reproductive freedom on Americas day of freedom! Abortion rights are human rights and we must stand up for everyone this effects. This is a safe space, open to all to let your voices be heard, no matter your background. We will meet at Mill Creek Park to rally and march along 47th street through the plaza. The land will be blessed by the Kansas City Indian Center as the rally begins and well hear from our indigenous community leaders. Mayor Lucas and Justice Horn will be in attendance. **If you would like to speak please DM us** Volunteers show up at 10:30am 11am-1pm rally 1:15pm to 3pm march down 47th street 3pm march ends Things to Bring: -Water -Black, white or green clothing (black for lack of rights, white for freedom of expression and green for abortion rights) -Protest signs -Your stories and voices! We will meet by the fountain closest to 47th street where the rally will begin. We need volunteers for specific stations -Water station -Poster making ############## Developing . . . For late night denizens we give a nod to groundbreaking pr0n diva Angela along with pop culture, community news and top headlines. Check TKC news gathering . . . Exploring The Love Below Kansas City underground: How to explore the hidden locations beneath our streets This story was first published in KCUR's Creative Adventure newsletter. You can sign up to receive stories like this in your inbox every Tuesday. You've heard about the subterranean chamber beneath the land near Worlds of Fun, right? No? Spending Cash On Bad Decisions What is an abortion fund? How these groups help people pay for abortions in MO and KS You may be hearing more about "abortion funds" following the June 24 Supreme Court decision on Roe v. Wade and the swift enactment of Missouri's trigger ban law. But what is an abortion fund, and what do they do? Meet New Friends KC Pet Project shelter filled back up after 300 pets arrived this week 285 pets have come to the KC Pet Project in the last week and the kennels are filling up, forcing the shelter to waive adoption fees for this year's Red, White, and Woof event. Local Biz Offers Vacay To Start McCownGordon entices employees with a new benefit: 28-day sabbatical - Kansas City Business Journal As companies compete to hold onto talent, Kansas City-based McCownGordon Construction has launched a sabbatical program to entice workers. McCownGordon calls it "rejuvenation leave," and the benefit took effect Jan. 1. Eligible employees get an extra 28 paid work days off. It applies to all full-time associates, both field and office. BBQ Bi-State Competition Food & Wine says KC's burnt ends are the best thing to eat in Missouri. But Kansas? Food & Wine drew from its editors' extensive travel and passion for food to come up with a new list of "The One Thing You Have to Eat in Every State." For Missouri, the publication picked burnt ends from such Kansas City spots as Arthur Bryant's Barbeque: "there's still nothing quite like your first burnt ends sandwich, an unholy mess of bark and meat and sauce. Angela Answers . . . Porn star secrets revealed: X-rated actors answer probing questions Porn stars laid bare. Some of the world's most famous adult actors are exposing themselves in a very different way - speaking out about how their kinky careers have adversely impacted their personal lives. The X-rated rompers were probed on the Australian TV series "You Can't Ask That," which went to air Down Under on Wednesday. Prez Biden Tests Price Controls Biden tweets demand for gas stations to 'bring down' prices, gets praised by Chinese state media President Biden is telling companies that are "running gas stations" to "bring down" their prices because "this is a time of war and global peril." "My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril," Biden tweeted on Saturday. Veep Against SCOTUS P0wnz Harris compares overturning Roe to legacy of US government 'trying to claim ownership over human bodies' | CNN Politics Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday drew a connection between the Supreme Court overturning the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling to the legacy of the US government "trying to claim ownership over human bodies" during an appearance at the Essence Festival in New Orleans. Election Redux Disputed POLITICO Playbook: Growing doubts about Trump and Biden in '24 MORE DOUBTS ABOUT THE FRONTRUNNERS - It's going to take a long time to process the events of June 2022. Two monumental storylines unfurled last month that will shape politics for the foreseeable future: the Supreme Court's transformational decisions on guns, climate regulation and abortion and the Jan. Flack Finds Favor Again Kellyanne Conway Has Found Her Way Back Into Trump's Heart When Donald Trump and Kellyanne Conway finally connected over the phone following the release of her 500-plus page memoir, " Here's The Deal," Trump's 2016 campaign manager had a simple question for the former president: "Door-stopper or show-stopper?" For most Trump aides, that sort of question would have only further strained their relationship with the president. Stop Pretending They Can Win Zelenskiy adviser concedes last eastern Ukraine bastion could fall KYIV/KONSTYANTYNIVKA, Ukraine, July 3 (Reuters) - Fighting intensified for Lysychansk, Ukraine's last big bastion in the strategic eastern province of Luhansk, as an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy conceded the city could fall. Blasts also rocked the Russian city of Belgorod, near the border with Ukraine, the regional governor said early on Sunday. Home Team Double Down Royals blow it in the ninth, fall to Tigers 4-3 Despite holding a lead into the ninth inning, the Royals bullpen coughed it up and allowed the Tigers to come back and win 4-3. The loss moves the Royals to 1.5 games back of Detroit for fourth place in the AL Central. Kansas City got off to a hot start in the top of the first. Kansas City's Classiest Shares Her Day My Essentials: Jennifer Janesko - In Kansas City Artist. Jewelry Designer. Entrepreneur Stop by the Crossroads Hotel or a local restaurant and there's a good chance you'll see the mark artist Jennifer Janesko has left on Kansas City through the art on display. The Kansas City native creates what she calls "abstract landscapes" using modern figurative and abstract art in her Kansas... Slight Weekend Warm Up Sunday will be partly sunny, highs in the 80s Spotty rain showers are possible through 9 p.m. Saturday. Some showers will linger into Sunday morning, otherwise it will be partly cloudy with highs in the upper 80s. The Fourth of July and most of next week will be hot with highs in the low and mid-90s and heat indices above 100 degrees. Harry Styles - As It Was was the song of the day and this is the OPEN THREAD for right now. Cheney: Jan. 6 panel could make multiple criminal referrals of Trump FILE PHOTO: U.S. House Select Committee holds public hearing to investigate the January 6 Attack on the United States Capitol, in Washington (Reuters) -The congressional panel investigating last year's attack on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump's supporters could make multiple referrals to the Justice Department seeking criminal charges against the former president, its vice chair Liz Cheney said. Cheney, in an interview aired on Sunday on ABC's "This Week" program, also said the department does not need to wait for the House of Representatives select committee to make a formal recommendation of charges to take action against Trump. Asked whether the committee's hearings have demonstrated that Trump needs to be prosecuted, Cheney said, "Ultimately, the Justice Department will decide that." Cheney, one of two Republicans on the Democratic-led panel, said that "we'll make a decision as a committee" about whether to make a formal criminal referral to the Justice Department recommending charges against Trump. "The Justice Department doesn't have to wait for the committee to make a criminal referral. There could be more than one criminal referral," Cheney said. Criminal charges have never been brought against a sitting or former U.S. president. Asked what it would mean for the country if President Joe Biden's Justice Department brings charges against his predecessor, Cheney said, "I have greater concern about what it would mean if people weren't held accountable for what's happened here." Cheney has criticized Trump's conduct before, during and after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by his supporters in their failed bid to prevent Congress from certifying Biden's 2020 election victory, including an incendiary speech immediately preceding the riot. "I think it's a much graver constitutional threat if a president can engage in these kinds of activities and, you know, the majority of the president's party looks away - or we as a country decide, you know, we're not actually going to take our constitutional obligations seriously," Cheney said. Story continues "And if you just think about it from the perspective of what kind of man knows that a mob is armed and sends the mob to attack the Capitol and further incites that mob when his own vice president is under threat, when the Congress is under threat," Cheney added. Cheney, whose father Dick Cheney served as vice president from 2001 to 2009, also said she has not yet decided on a possible run for the presidency in 2024 even as she faces a Republican primary challenge in her re-election bid this year for her House seat representing Wyoming. Trump has not yet announced whether he will seek the presidency again in 2024. "A man as dangerous as Donald Trump can absolutely never be anywhere near the Oval Office ever again," Cheney said. A representative for Trump did not immediately reply to a message seeking comment. Trump has denied responsibility for the Capitol attack but has said he would pardon those involved if he again becomes president. Cassidy Hutchinson, a former top aide to Trump's then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, delivered bombshell testimony to the panel last week about Trump's conduct on the day of the riot. Hutchinson testified that Trump tried to grab the steering wheel of his presidential limousine when his security detail declined to take him to the Capitol to join his supporters. She also said Trump dismissed concerns that some supporters gathered for his speech before the riot carried AR-15-style rifles, instead asking security to stop screening attendees with metal-detecting magnetometers so the crowd would look larger. Additional witnesses have come forward since Hutchinson's testimony, Representative Adam Kinzinger, the other Republican on the committee, said on Sunday. "Every day, we get new people that come forward," Kinzinger told CNN's "State of the Union" program, adding: "There will be way more information, and stay tuned." (Reporting by Tyler Clifford in New York; Editing by Will Dunham) Ukrainian defenders have successfully repulsed Russias assault near Prudianky, The enemy launched an air strike near such settlements as Mospanove and Hrakove. Russian troops attempted to conduct assault operations near Mazanivka in the Sloviansk direction but had no success. The relevant statement was made by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook as of 06:00 a.m., July 3, 2022, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. In the Volyn and Polissia directions, there are no signs of creating enemy offensive groups. According to the available information, a rotation of units of the Belarusian Armed Forces started in Brest Region. The air defense system is being enhanced with the units of the Eastern Military District of the Russian army. In the Siverskyi direction, Russian troops continue to guard the Ukrainian-Russian border in enhanced mode. The enemy opened fire on Ukrainian defense forces and civil infrastructure near Sumy Regions Bachivsk and Vovkivka from the territory of Russia. In the Kharkiv direction, Russian troops are defending the previously captured frontiers. The enemy launched artillery strikes on such settlements as Ruska Lozova, Peremoha, Verkhnii Saltiv, Zamulivka, Volobuivka, Milova, Protopopivka, Pytomnyk, Prudianka and Nortsivka. Ukrainian defenders successfully repulsed an enemy assault near Prudianka. Meanwhile, Russian troops launched an air strike near Mospanove and Hrakove. In the Sloviansk direction, Russian occupiers are holding the defense. They used tanks, mortars, cannon and rocket artillery to open fire near such settlements as Dibrovne, Mazanivka, Krasnopillia, Sukha Kamianka, Virnopillia and Maiaky. The enemy repeatedly attempted to conduct assault operations near Mazanivka, but Ukrainian defenders repulsed an attack and forced them to retreat. Russian troops are using electronic warfare systems. In the Donetsk direction, Russian occupiers are focusing efforts to gain a foothold near Lysychansk and Verkhniokamianka. They conducted offensive operations near Bilohorivka but failed and retreated. In the Bakhmut direction, Russian troops opened fire near Novoluhanske and Travneve. The enemy launched an air strike near Pokrovske. Russian invaders are attempting to conduct offensive operations near Spirne. Battles are underway. In the Avdiivka, Kurakhove, Novopavlivka and Zaporizhzhia directions, Russian occupiers opened fire on Ukrainian positions near such settlements as Pisky, Nevelske, Novomykhailivka, Novodanylivka, Poltavka, Bilohiria, Olhivske and Kamianske. The enemy is conducting assault operations in order to improve their tactical position near Spartak. In the Southern Bug direction, Russian troops are focusing efforts to prevent the Ukrainian forces from advancing in potential offensive directions. The enemy regularly opened fire with cannon and rocket artillery. Russian invaders launched an air strike near Ivanivka. In the Mykolaiv direction, Russian occupier are systemically launching missile strikes. In the north-western part of the Black Sea, Russias naval group continues to blockade Ukraines sea routes and conduct reconnaissance. Two enemy missile ships carrying Kalibr sea-based cruise missiles are ready to strike from the Black Sea. Meanwhile, Ukraines aviation worked across all directions on the front, i.e. in Mykolaiv Region, Zaporizhzhia Region, Kharkiv Region, Donetsk Region and Luhansk Region. Ukrainian air forces completed about 15 group flight missions, having destroyed about 20 Russian military equipment units and two field ammunition depots. Ukrainian forces continue to successfully complete rocket and artillery fire missions. The enemys total losses are yet to be updated. mk The Ukrainian Armed Forces killed about 35,970 Russian soldiers between February 24 and July 3, including 100 in the past day alone. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said this in a Facebook post, according to Ukrinform. Ukrainian defenders also destroyed 1,584 (+2) Russian tanks, 3,744 (+7) armored fighting vehicles, 801 (+1) artillery systems, 246 (+0) multiple launch rocket systems, 105 (+0) air defense systems, 217 (+0) warplanes, 187 (+1) helicopters, 654 (+1) operational and tactical level UAVs, 144 (+0) cruise missiles, 15 (+0) warships/boats, 2,618 (+4) other vehicles and tanker trucks, and 64 (+3) pieces of special equipment. The enemy suffered the greatest losses in the past day in the Kramatorsk and Bakhmut directions, the General Staff said. Russian-backed officials plan to hold a referendum on the Kherson region joining Russia by autumn 2022. The UK Ministry of Defense said this in its latest intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine, Ukrinform reports. "Russian-backed officials have said they will hold a referendum on Kherson Oblast joining the Russian Federation by autumn 2022. Russia is likely prioritizing a pseudo-constitutional vote in an attempt to legitimize its control of the region," the ministry said. According to the update, despite the arrest of Kherson Mayor Ihor Kolykhaiev on June 28, 2022, widespread armed and peaceful resistance continues across occupied areas. "Kherson is the region which has been brought under the new Russian occupation most comprehensively since February. Finding a constitutional solution for the occupation is likely a priority policy objective for Russia. It will highly likely be prepared to rig voting to achieve an acceptable result," the ministry said. The Ukrainian military destroyed one more tank of Russian invaders in the east of Ukraine. The Operational Command North said this in a Telegram post, Ukrinform reports. "In the steppes of Donbas, an enemy tank met soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. 1:0 in favor of Ukraines Armed Forces. Believe in your defenders. Believe in Ukraine," the report says. As Ukrinform reported, as of July 3, Russia lost about 35,970 personnel in Ukraine. Ukrainian defenders also destroyed 1,584 (+2) Russian tanks, 3,744 (+7) armored fighting vehicles, 801 (+1) artillery systems, 246 (+0) multiple launch rocket systems, 105 (+0) air defense systems, 217 (+0) warplanes, 187 (+1) helicopters, 654 (+1) operational and tactical level UAVs, 144 (+0) cruise missiles, 15 (+0) warships/boats, 2,618 (+4) other vehicles and tanker trucks, and 64 (+3) pieces of special equipment. iy Russian defense firms turn down orders to repair military equipment that was damaged in Russian invasion of Ukraine. Thats according to the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Ukrinform reports. The conflict between the Russian military leadership and top management of defense factories is increasingly making it impossible to deploy new armored combat vehicles to the warzone, military intelligence reports. In the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, Ukraines defenders have already destroyed more than 40% of combat-ready tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, and armored personnel carriers of Russian occupation forces representing their southern military district. The damaged equipment is supposed to be restored at special repair factories. Before the damaged equipment is delivered to repair plants, it gets completely dismantled, while spare parts and units are sold or exchanged for alcohol. In some cases, only charred bodies of BMPs and tanks make it to repair factories. At the same time, Ukrainian intelligence reports, chiefs of repair companies instructed their staff not to accept the incoming equipment. The reason behind their stance is the lack of components and insufficient funds paid by the military for the work already completed. "The command tried to address the issue by deploying field repair brigades, which were supposed to operate in close proximity to the combat zones. However, corruption and greed for profit among the Russian military leadership brought the attempt to naught," intelligence analysts stressed. As Ukrinform reported earlier, as of July 3, the Russian army lost in the war with Ukraine 35,970 servicemen, 1,584 tanks, 187 helicopters, 3,744 armored combat vehicles, 2,618 trucks and tankers, and much more military equipment. Slovakia is planning to send MiG-29 fighter aircraft and tanks to Ukraine, whereas the Czech Republic will provide assistance to Slovakia in patrolling its territory until it receives U.S.-made F-16s instead of the aircraft transferred to Ukraine. The Prime Ministers of Slovakia and the Czech Republic, Eduard Heger and Petr Fiala, said this live on the Czech Republic's CT24 channel on Sunday, Ukrinform reports. Heger said that Bratislava will transfer its MiG-29s to Ukraine and also mentioned the possibility of sending tanks to Ukraine. "But I don't want to go into details, because Ukraine also asked us not to detail information about this equipment," Heger said. He recalled that Bratislava in June asked Prague to protect the country's airspace until it receives F-16 fighter jets, the delivery of which is being delayed. Heger noted that the Czech Republic will need military support from its Czech counterparts throughout the year. Fiala, in turn, emphasized that his country will provide such assistance to its Slovak neighbors, and Czech planes will patrol Slovakia's airspace from September. "We will help Slovakia until it has new planes at its disposal. And we expect that someone will also help us if we have problems," Fiala said. He stressed that the West should provide weapons to Ukraine so that it can fight for its independence and European security. "They are also fighting for us," Fiala said. If necessary, the Czech Republic is ready to participate in the training of Ukrainian soldiers, he added. Australia is one of the top countries providing assistance to Ukraine to fight Russia's invasion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this at a joint meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Kyiv on Sunday, July 3, according to an Ukrinform correspondent. "Australia supports our state and the international legal order. It provides significant assistance to Ukraine, including defense assistance. Australia is one of the top countries in terms of its volume. Our defenders highly appreciated the Australian Bushmaster armored personnel carriers and other specific assistance from Australia," Zelensky said. He briefed the Australian prime minister on the situation at the front and Ukraine's capabilities in resisting the Russian invaders. Zelensky also called for strengthening international cooperation in order to "break the aggressive potential of the Russian Federation" and step up sanctions pressure on the aggressor. The head of state said that with its aggression against Ukraine, Russia created threats that are felt today in all regions of the world. According to Zelensky, he and Albanese discussed, among other things, the food crisis caused by Russian and ways to solve it. In addition, Zelensky offered Australia to take part in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine, announcing its "willingness to join the implementation of the project." Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has accused Ukraine of firing missiles at military facilities on his countrys territory. He said the missiles were intercepted by Belarusian air defense systems earlier this week. Without providing any evidence of the alleged attack, Lukashenko a close ally of Russian leader Vladimir Putin called the act a provocation. Thank God, the Pantsir anti-aircraft systems managed to intercept all the missiles launched by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lukashenko said in comments that appeared on his presidential website on Saturday and were also published by state-run news agency Belta. He added that there were no soldiers from Belarus currently fighting in Ukraine. The Ukrainian military did not immediately respond to CNNs requests for comment on Lukashenkos claims. One of Russias closest allies Formerly under Soviet control until declaring its sovereignty in 1990, Belarus remains one of Russias closest allies and has played a key role in its invasion of Ukraine despite Lukashenko saying previously his country was being dragged into the war. Russian troops launched the invasion on February 24 crossing into Ukraine from Belarus after months amassing along Ukraines border. In the first days of the assault, Russian Tu-22 Backfire bombers used Belarusian airspace to launch coordinated cruise missile attacks on targets within Ukraine, and NATO officials told CNN in March that the vast majority of Russian air operations in Ukraine are launched from Belarus. As recently as last week, six Russian Backfire bombers flying over Belarusian airspace launched 12 Kh-22 cruise missiles which hit targets in Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy Oblast, according to Ukraines Air Force Command. Russian President Putin has said that sanctions and unprecedented political and social pressure from the West are speeding up his countrys reunification plans with Belarus. Meanwhile, the governor of the Russian city of Belgorod which lies near to the Ukrainian border said at least three people had been killed and dozens of residential buildings damaged by explosions early on Sunday morning. Story continues Among the injured were a 10-year-old child, Vyacheslav Gladkov said in a Telegram post. The blast also destroyed five houses and damaged 11 apartment buildings and 34 private residential houses, he said. Gladkov said the cause of the explosions was being investigated and that the regions air defense systems had presumably worked. Russian officials have repeatedly accused Ukraine of mounting cross border attacks usually on fuel depots and military installations claims Ukrainian government agencies say are intended to stoke anti-Ukrainian sentiment. Ukrainian officials have yet to comment on reports of the blasts. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the head of the President's Office, has responded to the Kremlin's statements about the resumption of negotiations, providing a list of conditions under which Ukraine is ready to sit down at the negotiating table again. Podolyak wrote this on Twitter, Ukrinform reports. "Ceasefire. Z-troops withdrawal. Returning of kidnapped citizens. Extradition of war criminals. Reparations mechanism. Ukraine's sovereign rights recognition. The Russian side knows our conditions well. Peskov's boss may not worry: the time will come and we will record them on paper," he said. Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov earlier said that Ukraine "must understand Russia's conditions, agree to them, sit down at the negotiating table, and sign a document." There is no threat of an attack from Belarus now, but it cannot be ruled out in the future. That's according to Vadym Denysenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian interior minister. "Mobilization exercises in Belarus. So far, it does not mean that a mass mobilization campaign has begun in Belarus and the Belarusian army has started moving its forces to the Ukrainian border. At the moment, it is not the case, but unfortunately, we cannot rule out that such decisions may be made after some time. As of now tomorrow or the day after tomorrow there is no threat of an attack," he said. According to Denysenko, the self-proclaimed Belarusian president, Lukashenko, is in a situation when sociological studies show that about 80% of Belarusians do not want a war with Ukraine. On the other hand, Lukashenko is economically completely dependent on the Russian Federation. "His speech today showed that he is incredibly scared. He is incredibly disturbed about something, he says things that Putin would like to hear, but at the same time, he did not say that if necessary, his army will start fighting," he said. On July 3, Lukashenko said that Belarus supports Russia and is building a "union state" with the Russian Federation. According to him, a "unified grouping of armed forces" was created long ago in the union of Belarus and Russia, and the participation of Belarus in Russia's "special operation" was determined by him a long time ago. The words "collapse", "deficit" and "poverty" will describe life in Russia while it wants to be a terrorist state. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this in a nightly video address, Ukrinform reports. "The Russian economy found itself in the biggest crisis in the last 50 years. The world severs ties with Russia. The words "collapse", "deficit" and "poverty" will be the description of Russian life as long as this state wants to be a terrorist state," Zelensky said. He added that Russia lost more than 35,000 soldiers, "and this is a conservative estimate." "What is all this for? For the sake of insane propagandists to be able to show a Russian or Soviet flag on the ruins somewhere in their broadcasts... There is simply no other answer," he said. Zelensky noted that "it is clear to everyone in the world and, I am sure, to all the sane people in Russia itself that Ukraine will win." "It's only a matter of time. It is a matter, unfortunately, of the losses we suffer, primarily of people. It is a matter of modern weapons, which we must get and will definitely get," he said. Photo: President's Office The Cabinet of Ministers has terminated the powers of Denys Sharapov, a member of the supervisory board of Ukroboronprom State Concern. This is stipulated in governments resolution No.523-r as of June 24, Ukrinform reports. "According to Article 5 of the Law of Ukraine On the peculiarities of management of state-owned objects in the defense and industrial complex, to terminate the powers of Denys Oleksandrovych Sharapov, a member of the Supervisory Board of State Concern Ukroboronprom, the document reads Sharapov was appointed as a member of the Supervisory Board of Ukroboronprom in December 2021. He serves as deputy defense minister. iy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk arrived in the city of Lugano (Switzerland) to discuss with European politicians a "Marshall Plan" for Ukraine. Stefanchuk reported on his visit via Facebook, as seen by Ukrinform. "Switzerland, Lugano. We are starting the process of rebuilding Ukraine. I'm sure it will be a great recovery thanks to the economic assistance from our friends," the Rada Speaker wrote. Stefanchuk is sure that Ukraine will have its own "Marshall Plan," according to which the Ukrainian people, together with the whole world, will rebuild everything that was destroyed by the aggressor. The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada reported that he had already held 62 meetings with European politicians regarding the need to grant Ukraine the status of a candidate for European Union membership. "Meetings regarding the Marshall Plan will begin tomorrow. I will not lose momentum in this direction either," Stefanchuk said. As reported, on July 4-5 in the city of Lugano (Switzerland), the Conference on the Restoration of Ukraine will be held, where the project of the relevant plan will be presented. On July 2, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine will present its national perspective on reconstruction at a special conference in Switzerland. Photo: Facebook/Stefanchuk.Official Australia will additionally give Ukraine $100 million in military and technical support, as well as 14 armored personnel carriers and 20 Bushmaster armored vehicles. The relevant statement was made by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. In general, Australia has already provided $390 million in aid to Ukraine. The total number of Bushmaster vehicles handed over to Ukraine will reach 60. According to Albanese, Ukraine will also receive additional military equipment and drones from Australia as requested. In addition, the Australian side will continue to provide support for Ukraines border guard troops, namely provide them with better equipment, improve the level of cyber security and control over the border. mk There are currently no cities in Ukraine that could be considered fully safe so people live in constant tension. Thats according to Ukraines First Lady Olena Zelenska, who spoke with Italys Porta a Porta, Ukrinform reports. "Currently, no place in Ukraine is 100% safe. Missiles fly over us, unfortunately, also hitting residential buildings," Zelenska stated. The First Lady warned against believing claims that it is quiet and safe in all Ukrainian cities, except those near the frontline, debunking them as cynical Russian propaganda. In fact, the first lady added, Ukrainian adults and their children go to bed every day, not knowing whether they will wake up tomorrow because a Russian missile can hit them at any time, as happened the other day in Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Kyiv. The President's spouse was asked by journalists whether she is afraid of dying. "It seems to me that everyone has this (the fear of dying - ed.). I have always been afraid of people who are not afraid of dying. Its just wrong. It is against human nature. If youre not afraid of your own death, youre not afraid of other peoples deaths either. It seems to me that this is the difference between us and the Russians. Its the fact that we suffer for each of our dead and value each life, while they throw their soldiers into this war without counting them. They don't value them. And although they outnumber us so much, our spirit is stronger, so we retain hope, said Zelenska. She emphasized that the possibility of a Russian invasion had been discussed more than once, but until the last moment she could not believe that a neighboring nation could do such a thing to Ukrainians. Zelenska added that after February 24, many colleagues and friends offered their help, including to move to their place, but she refused. "You know, sometimes being in the eye of a tornado is somewhat calmer than watching it from the outside. I guess I'm more relaxed here. And I've never regretted not going anywhere because I really wouldve been too restless. I feel calmer here," she said. The First Lady emphasized that nowadays, it is very difficult for Ukrainians in a moral sense because every day, before going to bed or after waking up in the morning they read the news in order to understand where the missiles hit this time and whats the death toll. NEW YORK Chris Pratt portrays a Navy SEAL in his new Amazon series The Terminal List, and is surrounded on camera and behind-the-scenes by former members of the U.S. military. In the 2013 movie Zero Dark Thirty, Pratt played one of the Navy SEALs who helped kill Osama Bin Laden. For that role, he shadowed Jared Shaw, a real Navy SEAL, whom he now counts as one of his very best friends. He was in my wedding, said Pratt. The two also lived together before he moved in with now-wife Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt. Shaw introduced Pratt to the book The Terminal List by Jack Carr, a story about a Navy SEAL named Jack Reece, whose platoon is ambushed in a covert operation. When Reece returns home, he begins to question both his memories of what happened and the world around him. Pratt loved the book so much that he optioned it with Antoine Fuqua directing the first episode and serving as a co-executive producer alongside Pratt and others. Shaw was added as an associate producer and also has a role in the show. The team hired real special ops members to appear in a major combat scene in the first episode that sets the series in motion. It also employed former members of the military behind-the-scenes in a variety of roles. Pratt said he wanted The Terminal List, which made its debut Friday, to have a layer of authenticity that many Hollywood productions featuring special ops dont have. Action films over time have turned Navy SEALs into superheroes. I think when actual SEALs watch that stuff, theyre like, Nah, thats Hollywood [expletive]. By enlisting former special ops as technical advisors, Pratt said they could say, Hey, guys, thats not what that should look like. You have to do it again. The goal was to try to honor that community and make this for that community, So theyd watch us and go, Wow. Thats actually very accurate. Beyond realism, Pratt says it makes sense to enlist former military to work on Hollywood productions. They wake up and look for work to get done, he said. I love that transition for people getting out of the service and joining the film and television industry. Its a really great place for them. Its very similar in a chain of command. You have departments, and you have initiatives that come down from the top. We had props department people, we had wardrobe people, we had hair and makeup people, we had extras, location people, we had actors, writers, producers who were former military. Carr has written four other books about the Reese character, and Pratt said hes game to continue the story on screen. If that happens, he will make sure to continue to hire former armed service members. They fit great, he said. Its also a point of pride for Pratt to help Shaw realize a personal dream of going into showbiz. He had questioned whether attempting a career in Hollywood was realistic. It was very serendipitous that we met. [Shaw] had been an actor in high school. ... I was like, Hey, dude. You know, I love this sort of bubble that I live in. And I know that in part, its created by men and women who pick up a gun and grab their boots and their uniform, and they go to work ... You bought our freedom and I appreciate that. I said, Its time to maybe enjoy some of the spoils of his service ... Jump into the film and television industry. Its thriving. Its booming. And we need you. Electrical utility providers have solidified plans for where and when theyll kill customer power to prevent sparking forest fires. Companies typically rush to restore power as soon as possible when outages are detected in their grids. But now increasing scrutiny puts the onus on providers to not spark forest fires. Broadly, Oregonians can expect utility providers to shut off power anywhere overhead lines can be knocked down during dry, hot and windy conditions and spark fuels like dry trees and brush. Each utility provider sets its own threshold for shutting off specific power lines, dependent on fire and weather forecasts and terrain and vegetation density. Oregons electrical regulatory board asked providers in 2021 to detail how theyll proactively shut off power ahead of the conditions that have led to historically lethal and destructive fires that have burned millions of acres and destroyed thousands of buildings since 2020. Utilities argued in the Public Utilities Commission rulemaking process that shutoffs can hamper customers abilities to pump water, call 911 or open garage doors, making emergency situations like forest fires even more fraught. PUC in its rules states shutoff is a tool of last resort. Oregon PUC required the states three large, private, investor-owned providers to submit their conditions for proactive de-energization outlined in public safety power shutoff plans. Pacific Power that serves urban customers in Benton and Linn counties was among those that submitted plans, a requirement of temporary rules in 2021 that were made permanent in May. Customer-owner funded power cooperatives were to include shutoff plans in more comprehensive fire mitigation plans, due to the state in July. Customers in the rural mid-Willamette Valley are served by Philomath-based Consumers Power Inc., a co-op that approved its shutoff plan June 28. Sloviansk, Ukraine, July 2 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Jul, 2022 ) :Fighting raged for the strategic Ukrainian city Lysychansk on Saturday, as Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said his army had intercepted missiles fired on his territory by Kyiv's forces. Ukraine denied claims by Moscow-backed separatists who said they had encircled Lysychansk, the last major city in the Lugansk area of the eastern Donbas region still in Kyiv's hands. Lysychansk is located across the river from neighbouring Severodonetsk, which Russian forces seized last week. The city's capture would allow Russian forces to push deeper into the Donbas, which has become the focus of their offensive since failing to capture Kyiv. "Fighting rages around Lysychansk... The city has not been encircled and is under control of the Ukrainian army," Ruslan Muzytchuk, a spokesman for the Ukrainian National Guard, said on Ukrainian television. Earlier in the day, Andrei Marochko, a spokesman for the separatist forces, told the TASS news agency: "Lysychansk is completely encircled." Lukashenko on Saturday accused Ukraine of "provoking" neighbouring Belarus, saying his army intercepted missiles fired at his country by Ukrainian forces "around three days ago". The claim came one week after Ukraine said missiles struck a border region from Belarus, a long-term Russian ally that supported the February 24 invasion. But Lukashenko denied any involvement, which would represent an escalation of the conflict. "As I said more than a year ago, we do not intend to fight in Ukraine," he was quoted as saying by state news agency Belta on Saturday. Newark, NJ United States Marshal for the District of New Jersey, Juan Mattos, Jr., and Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, the Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, jointly announce the location of one of New Jerseys Most Wanted Fugitives. Anthony Mota, a fugitive on New Jerseys Most Wanted list for outstanding state charges including murder, kidnapping, racketeering, arson, possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose, and theft by extortion, has been located by a team of New Jersey State Police Detectives, U.S. Marshals, and Task Force Officers from the New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force (NY/NJRFTF), and District of New Jersey. On December 12, 1997, Mota allegedly kidnapped an adult male in New York City and transported him to New Jersey where he was held for ransom. Over the next four days, Mota and others bound and tortured the victim until they received a ransom amount of $23,000 from the victim's family. Shortly thereafter, the victim was taken by Mota to an area along Interstate 280 in Harrison, NJ and shot in the head and neck which resulted in his death. Mota then placed the victims body in another vehicle where it was lit on fire. On October 1, 1998, Mota was officially indicted on the charges to include a federal violation for Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution. Throughout the course of the investigation, the New Jersey State Police Fugitive Unit, the United States Marshals Service, and the NYPD Major Crimes unit made extensive efforts to locate and arrest Mota following the indictment but were unable to successfully locate him. Investigators believed Mota had fled the United States to his native country of the Dominican Republic but were still unable to locate him. In 2021, New Jersey State Police Detectives and Deputy U.S. Marshals assigned to the NY/NJ RFTF, along with Deputy U.S. Marshals assigned to the U.S. Marshals Dominican Republic Foreign Field Office, developed information that Mota may be residing in Nizao, Dominican Republic. Multiple interviews conducted in the Dominican Republic and the United States revealed that Mota was living under the alias Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez, and started a new family in the Dominican Republic. It was further learned in June 2021, Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez, died of an apparent heart attack in the Dominican Republic. During the 25-year investigation, investigators collected DNA evidence from various sources to assist in identifying Mota. In April of 2022, a New Jersey State Police Detective, Deputy U.S. Marshal, and New Jersey State Police Forensic Anthropologist traveled from New Jersey to Nizao, Dominican Republic to participate in the exhumation of Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez and collect DNA samples which were then hand-carried back to the New Jersey State Police Forensic Anthropology Lab in Hamilton, NJ. On June 3, 2022, the New Jersey State Police Office of Forensic Sciences received the result comparisons for the DNA. These results confirmed what New Jersey State Police Detectives had believed, Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez was, in fact, New Jersey's Most Wanted Fugitive, Anthony Mota, thus signifying the closure of this quarter-century old case. Once it was determined that Mota fled from New Jersey, it was imperative that the U.S. Marshals deploy every asset available in order to help assist the New Jersey State Police Fugitive Unit to bring the suspect of this heinous crime to justice, said Juan Mattos Jr., United States Marshal for the District of New Jersey. This is another prime example of how collaborative efforts among the U.S. Marshals Service, state law enforcement agencies, and our foreign field offices can work cohesively to end a fugitives journey. This investigation is a testament to our relentless pursuit to not only locate one of New Jerseys most wanted fugitives, but our dedication to bring closure to the family of the victim that has suffered all these years, said Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. With our local and federal partners, including the United States Marshals Service, we remain committed to using all of our resources and technology at our disposal to bring New Jerseys most wanted fugitives to justice. The NY/NJ RFTF became operational in April of 2002. With Memorandum of Understandings with over 80 federal, state, or local agencies and five fully operational offices in the New York/New Jersey area, the NY/NJ RFTF has made an extraordinary impact on the investigation and apprehension of the region's most dangerous and violent fugitives. Additional information about the U.S. Marshals Service can be found at http://www.usmarshals.gov. #### Americas First Federal Law Enforcement Agency Rescue teams work to save residents at a bombed building in Kyiv (AFP or licensors) Pope Francis renews his appeal for peace in Ukraine, and calls on the international community to step back from confrontational rhetoric. By Devin Watkins Let us continue to pray for peace in Ukraine and throughout the world. Pope Francis offered that invitation at the Angelus prayer on Sunday, adding that the world needs peace. He said peace cannot be based on the balance of arms or mutual fear, saying such a strategy would turn the clock back by seventy years. I appeal to the Heads of Nations and International Organizations to react to the tendency to accentuate conflict and confrontation. Overcoming confrontational rhetoric The Pope said the war in Ukraine should haveand still couldbecome a challenge for wise statesmen capable of building a better world for future generations through dialogue. With Gods help, this is always possible! However, added Pope Francis, nations need to turn from a paradigm in which the world is divided among conflicting powers and toward a world united in mutual respect. A Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again, authorities said. Akron police released video Sunday of the pursuit and killing of Jayland Walker, 25. The mayor called the shooting heartbreaking while pleading for peace and patience from the community. It was not yet clear how many shots were fired by the eight officers who were involved in the shooting, but Walker sustained more than 60 wounds. An attorney for Walker's family said Walker was on the ground while officers continued to fire. Demonstrators marched through the city and gathered in front of the Akron justice center after the video was released. NAACP President Derrick Johnson said in a statement that Walkers death "was murder. Point blank. Officers attempted to stop Walker's car early Monday for unspecified traffic and equipment violations, but less than a minute into a pursuit the sound of a shot was heard from the car and a transportation department camera captured what appeared to be a muzzle flash coming from the vehicle, Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said. That changed the nature of the case from a routine traffic stop to now a public safety issue," he said. A few minutes later the car slowed and Walker emerged from the still-moving vehicle wearing a ski mask and fled on foot, police said. A handgun, a loaded magazine and a wedding ring were found on the seat and a casing consistent with the weapon was later found at the point where officers believed a shot came from the vehicle. After an unsuccessful attempt to use stun devices, the foot chase continued to a parking lot, at which point a crescendo of bullets can be heard. Mylett said he has watched the video dozens of times and Walker's actions are hard to distinguish, but a still photo seems to show him going down to his waist area" and another appears to show him turning toward an officer. He said a third picture captures a forward motion of his arm." Each officer independent of each other related that they felt that Mr. Walker had turned and was motioning and moving into a firing position," he said. Mylett said an officer firing at someone has to be ready to explain why they did what they did, they need to be able to articulate what specific threats they were facing ... and they need to be held to account. But he said he is withholding judgment on their actions until they give their statements, and he said the union president has told him that all are fully cooperating with the investigation. Police said more than 60 wounds were found on Walker's body but further investigation will be needed to determine exactly how many rounds the eight officers fired and how many times Walker was hit. Officers provided aid, and one can be heard saying he still had a pulse, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, Mylett said. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost vowed a complete, fair and expert investigation" and cautioned that body-worn camera footage is just one view of the whole picture." The officers involved in the shooting have been placed on paid administrative leave, which is standard practice in such cases. Walkers family is calling for accountability but also for peace, their lawyers said after the city released video of the shooting. One of the attorneys, Bobby DiCello, said police handcuffed Walker before trying to provide first aid. How it got to this with a pursuit is beyond me, DiCello said, adding that Walkers family doesnt know why he fled from police. Walker was grieving the recent death of his fiancee, but his family had no indication of concern beyond that, DiCello said. He wasnt a criminal, DiCello said. He obviously was in pain. He didnt deserve to die. DiCello called the burst of police gunfire excessive and unreasonable. I hope we remember that as Jayland ran across that parking lot, he was unarmed, DiCello said. He said he doesnt know whether the ring found near the gun belonged to Walker. he Midwestern U.S. city of Akron, Ohio, is bracing Sunday for residents reaction to the release of police body camera footage of the shooting of a young Black man. Police attempted to stop 25-year-old Jayland Walker last week for a traffic and equipment violation. They chased him briefly in his car and then Walker left his car and ran. According to reports, he was shot at least 60 times by the police. Bobby DiCello, the attorney for Walkers family told the Beacon Journal newspaper that the video is brutal, and Walkers body was riddled with bullets. The Rev. Roderick Pounds, a pastor at a local church, who has seen the video also told a group of protesters Friday that Walkers body was riddled from his face down to his knees. Walkers shooting is one of the latest killings by police officers of Black men. The killing of George Floyd, who was African American, by a white police officer in Minneapolis in 2020, who pressed his knee on Floyds neck for several minutes, spurred global demonstrations. Australia is fighting to contain an outbreak of tiny parasitic mites that kill and spread viruses to European honeybees. The varroa destructor was first found at a port in the state of New South Wales but has been detected in hives 100 kilometers away. Parts of eastern Australias bee industry have been put into lockdown. Australia is one of the few countries to have remained free of the varroa mite but its strict border biosecurity controls have been breached. The parasitic mite, which is the size of a pinhead, was detected at the port of Newcastle, north of Sydney, more than a week ago and has spread to other hives in the state of New South Wales. Containment zones are in place around known infestations, and both professional and amateur beekeepers are forbidden from moving hives, bees or honeycombs. Hundreds of hives containing thousands of insects have been destroyed so far. Victoria, Queensland and South Australia have temporarily banned bee products from neighboring New South Wales. Tim Jackson, the chief executive of Almonds Australia, an industry body representing growers, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that he hopes it is not too late to eradicate the destructive pest. It is a biosecurity disaster. It is the almond industry and a lot of industries worst nightmare. The varroa mite attaches itself to the bee and then, with drone bees, gets transported around to other hives and it sucks the life out of bees essentially and causes significant damage to the hives. In fact, it will kill the hives if there is no treatment done. So, the bees are pretty dormant at the moment. So, we have got an opportunity now and in the next two or three weeks to really get on top of this and run a circle around - perimeter around - our damaged area, he said. Experts say varroa mite numbers build up over time, eventually killing honeybee nests and hives if chemical treatments are not used. The loss of bee colonies damages the production of honey and the pollination of crops that supply about one-third of the foods humans eat. The pests have been found in much of Asia, Europe, the United States and South America. Australia has previously eliminated isolated varroa mite outbreaks in Victoria in 2018 and on three occasions in Queensland between 2016 and 2020, but the current infestation is far more widespread. It threatens to cost Australias honey and food production industries millions of dollars and could have global ramifications. Australia is a major supplier of queen and hive bees to North America, the Middle East and Japan. China's foreign minister called for Myanmar's junta to hold talks with its opponents Sunday during his first visit to the country since the 2021 coup that plunged it into turmoil. Beijing is one of the Myanmar military's few international allies, supplying arms and refusing to label the power grab that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi's government as a coup. Foreign Minister Wang Yi said China expects all parties in Myanmar to "adhere to rational consultation" and "strive to achieve political reconciliation. Wang also told counterpart Wunna Maung Lwin that "China sincerely hopes that Myanmar will be politically and socially stable," according to a statement on the foreign ministry's website. In Beijing's highest profile visit to Myanmar since the putsch, Wang is attending a foreign ministers' meeting with representatives from Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam attending. His comments follow a junta spokesman indicating last week that talks between the military and ousted leader Suu Kyi to resolve the chaos were "not impossible. Myanmar's spiraling civil violence has sparked concern from its neighbors, with a regional envoy visiting to try to kick-start talks between the army and its opponents. And with Western governments imposing sanctions following the coup and a violent crackdown on dissent, the isolated junta has turned increasingly to allies including China and Russia. In May, a powerful Myanmar ethnic rebel group with close ties to China called for the junta to engage in dialogue with the opposition to end the escalating violence, which has seen Chinese business interests attacked. Beijing said in April it would help safeguard Myanmar's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity "no matter how the situation changes. The skies over a scattering of Western U.S. cities will stay dark for the third consecutive Fourth of July as some major fireworks displays are canceled again this year some over wildfire concerns amid dry weather and ongoing drought conditions, while others say enduring pandemic-related staffing and supply chain issues are to blame. China produces most of the professional-grade fireworks that shoot up into the air and produce colorful, dazzling bursts in various shapes. The shortage doesn't lie in manufacturing, said Julie Heckman, executive director of the American Pyrotechnics Association, but in congestion at U.S. ports. Across the western half of the country, cities are halting the displays because of the threat of wildfire. Flagstaff, a city in northern Arizona, will carry out its annual Independence Day parade through the city's historic downtown, but a new laser light show will replace the standard pyrotechnic display. Three large wildfires skirted the mountainous city this spring alone, prompting hundreds of people to evacuate, closing a major highway and destroying some homes. "The decision was made early because we wanted people to be able to make plans with their families," said Flagstaff city spokesperson Sarah Langley. Many local jurisdictions have banned the use of fireworks amid a punishing drought, even with an early start of the annual rainy season that has led to flooding in the U.S. Southwest. Fireworks are always prohibited in national forests. A popular fireworks show in the northern San Joaquin Valley that in pre-pandemic times brought tens of thousands of people to Lake Don Pedro, California, also was canceled because of drought concerns, including the lake's projected low level. "The safety of our guests and being good stewards of the land entrusted to us are our highest priorities," the Don Pedro Recreation Agency said in a statement. Lompoc on California's central coast and Castle Rock in Colorado canceled their pyrotechnic displays over worries about wildfires. Still, an Independence Eve fireworks show with live music by the Colorado Symphony is planned July 3 at Denver's Civic Center Park. In New Mexico, the most destructive wildfire season in modern history won't stop that state's major cities, including Albuquerque and Santa Fe, from holding Fourth of July fireworks displays under fire department supervision. The Southgate Mall in Missoula, Montana, canceled its annual Fourth of July celebration and fireworks show without giving a reason. Elsewhere in the U.S., some North Carolina towns canceled displays after a recent fireworks-related explosion killed a man on a small farm and a large cache of fireworks were destroyed in a related fire. In Minneapolis, a fireworks display over the Mississippi won't be held because of staff shortages and construction at a nearby park. Those who plan to light up consumer-grade fireworks like bottle rockets, firecrackers and ground-level fountains at home can expect to pay more for them. The American Pyrotechnic Association estimates that costs are up 35% across the industry. Fire officials in some cities worry that the cancelations of community displays could prompt some people to ramp up their use of consumer-grade fireworks. "We are typically worried about exposure of sparks and fire to homes and dry brush," said Phoenix Fire spokesperson Capt. Evan Gammage. "We get so many calls around this time of year." Georgians staged a new mass rally Sunday demanding that the government resign over its failure to formally secure candidacy for membership of the European Union. The Black Sea nation has been in the grip of mass protests since EU leaders decided in late June to defer Tbilisi's application for membership, pending sweeping political reforms. The biggest demonstrations in decades, which saw at least 120,000 people take to the streets June 20, are being organized by leading pro-democracy groups and supported by opposition parties. On Sunday evening, more than 35,000 demonstrators gathered outside the Georgian parliament, blocking traffic at the main thoroughfare of the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, according to an AFP correspondent at the scene. Waving Georgian and EU flags, demonstrators sang the national anthem as many held placards that read "We are Europe. "Our demonstration is focused on the historic goal of Georgia's European integration," one of the rally organizers, prominent writer and civil activist Lasha Bugadze told the crowd. "The government's reaction to our constructive, peaceful, non-violent protests has been totally inadequate," he said. The ruling party has accused the opposition of "plans to overthrow the authorities by organizing anti-government rallies. On Facebook, the rally's organizers earlier called on Bidznia Ivanishvili, founder of the country's ruling party, to "relinquish executive power and transfer it, in a constitutional manner, to a government of national accord. A new cabinet "will carry out the reforms required by the EU, which will automatically bring us the status of an EU membership candidate, the statement said. Ivanishvili, a former prime minister and Georgia's richest man, is widely believed to call the shots in the country despite having no official political role. Last month, the European Parliament passed a non-binding resolution to impose personal sanctions on Ivanishvili for his "destructive role" in Georgia's political and economic life. He insists he has retired from politics. One of the demonstrators, surgeon Nika Gorgaslidze, 45, said: "Ivanishvili controls, from behind the scenes, the government, parliament, courts, media. Such a political system is undemocratic, it's incompatible with Georgia's goal of becoming an EU member." Another demonstrator, 19-year-old student Marina Sanodze, said: "Our protests will not stop until we have a new government which will carry out the necessary reforms and will bring us closer to the EU membership." Georgia applied for EU membership together with Ukraine and Moldova, days after Russia invaded Ukraine Feb. 24. On June 23, EU leaders granted formal candidate status to Kyiv and Chisinau but said Tbilisi could only become an official candidate once outstanding issues were addressed. EU leaders nonetheless "recognized Georgia's European perspective," a move that President Salome Zurabishvili hailed as "historic. Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has said his government is "mobilized" to meet EU requirements on time "so that we get candidate status as soon as possible. The deferral of Georgia's candidacy became a foregone conclusion after the European Commission the EU's executive arm said June 20 that Tbilisi must implement a number of reforms by the end of 2022 before it was put on a formal membership path. The EU conditions include ending political polarization, improving freedom of the press and the courts, electoral reforms and "de-oligarchization. "They (Georgians) have a clear path.... When these criteria are met, the candidate status will be granted automatically," the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said June 23. The ruling Georgian Dream party's government has faced mounting international criticism over perceived backsliding on democracy, seriously damaging Tbilisi's ties with Brussels. Plans to join NATO and the EU are enshrined in Georgia's constitution and, according to opinion polls, are supported by at least 80% of the population. Hundreds of Sudanese protesters demanding an end to military rule took to the streets of the capital Khartoum and its suburbs for a fourth straight day Sunday, witnesses said. A violent crackdown by the security forces during mass rallies on Thursday killed nine people, the deadliest day for several months in the long running protests of a military takeover last October led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. Recent protests have seen crowds burn tires and barricade roads with bricks, with security forces using live bullets, firing barrages of tear gas canisters and using powerful water cannons, according to medics and the United Nations. Demonstrators demand a restoration of the transition to civilian rule that was launched after the 2019 ouster of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir, which the coup derailed. "We will continue this sit-in until the coup is overturned, and we have a fully civilian government," demonstrator Muayyad Mohamed told AFP in central Khartoum. The death toll from protest-related violence has reached 114 since last year's coup, with the latest fatality recorded Saturday when a demonstrator died from wounds sustained at a June 16 rally, according to pro-democracy medics. 'We will not compromise' "We will not compromise until the goals of our revolution are realized," said Soha, 25, another protester, who gave only her first name. "We are here in the street demanding freedom, peace, justice, a civil state and the return of the military to the barracks." The coup plunged Sudan further into political and economic turmoil which has seen rising consumer prices and life-threatening food shortages. On Sunday, witnesses reported a heavy deployment of security forces on the streets of Khartoum, including both army vehicles as well as those of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a feared paramilitary unit commanded by Burhan's deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo. The RSF incorporated members of the Janjaweed militia, which was accused by rights groups of atrocities during the conflict that erupted in 2003 in the western region of Darfur. More recently, the RSF has been accused of taking part in crack downs on protesters marching against the army. The international community has condemned the recent bloodshed, with the United Nations' rights chief urging an independent probe into Thursday's violence. The UN, African Union and regional bloc IGAD have tried to facilitate talks between the generals and civilians, which the main civilian factions have boycotted. On Friday, the three bodies jointly condemned the violence and "the use of excessive force by security forces and lack of accountability for such actions, despite repeated commitments by authorities." Iran's top diplomat condemned on Saturday Israel's latest airstrike on Syria and criticized recent threats from Turkey about another planned incursion by Ankara into northern Syria. Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian's remarks came at the start of his visit to Syria, where he was expected to discuss mutual relations and regional affairs with top Syrian officials. Iran has been one of Syrian President Bashar Assad's strongest backers, sending thousands of fighters from around the region to help his troops in Syria's 11-year conflict. The war has killed hundreds of thousands and displaced half the country's prewar population of 23 million. Amirabdollahian's visit came hours after Israel carried out an airstrike on a coastal Syrian village near the border with Lebanon, wounding two people, according to state media reports in Syria. Turkey buffer zone Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recently said he's planning another major military cross-border incursion into Syria to create a 30-kilometer (19 mile) deep buffer zone along the border with Turkey, promising to battle U.S.-allied Syrian Kurdish fighters for the territory. Erdogan's attempt in 2019 to create the buffer failed, though Turkish troops are deployed inside Syria following previous incursions to prop up anti-Assad Syrian opposition fighters. Ankara views the U.S.-allied Syrian Kurdish fighters as terrorists allied with Kurdish insurgents within Turkey's borders. "We understand the concerns of our neighbor Turkey, but we oppose any military measure in Syria," Amirabdollahian said, adding that Iran is trying to resolve the "misunderstanding between Turkey and Syria through dialogue." Amirabdollahian met later Saturday with Assad, who told the Iranian envoy that Turkey's "pretexts to justify its aggression in Syria are false, misleading and have nothing to do with reality." Assad's office also quoted the president as saying that Turkey's military presence in Syria violates international law. Analysts have said Erdogan is taking advantage of the war in Ukraine to push his own goals in Syria. Turkey agreed this week to lift its opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO, saying the Nordic nations had agreed to crack down on groups that Ankara deems national security threats, including the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, and its Syrian extension. Turkey has demanded that Finland and Sweden extradite wanted individuals and lift arms restrictions imposed on Ankara after Turkey's 2019 military incursion into northeast Syria. Israeli airstrikes Amirabdollahian condemned Israel for striking Syria. The Saturday morning attack was the first since a June 10 airstrike on the international airport in Damascus caused significant damage to the airport and rendered its main runway unusable. The airport was closed for two weeks for repairs before flights resumed June 23. Syria's state news agency SANA said Israeli warplanes flying over northern Lebanon fired missiles toward several chicken farms in the village of Hamidiyeh, south of the coastal city of Tartus. The attack happened a few kilometers (miles) north of the border with Lebanon. SANA said two people, including a woman, were wounded and that there was material damage. Over the years, Israel has staged hundreds of strikes against targets in Syria but rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations. Israel says it targets bases of Iran-allied militias, such as the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group, which has fighters deployed in Syria fighting on the side of Assad's government forces and ships arms believed to be bound for the militias. The June strike on the Damascus International Airport strike marked a major escalation in Israel's campaign, further ratcheting up tensions between Israel on one side, and Iran and Hezbollah on the other. Israel's caretaker Prime Minister Yair Lapid held his first Cabinet meeting Sunday since taking over as leader, promising a functional government despite the political instability that is sending Israel to its fifth elections in less than four years. Lapid, sitting next to his predecessor power-sharing partner Naftali Bennett, also warned that Israel would take any step necessary to defend itself after it shot down three unmanned aircraft launched by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Lapid took over last week as prime minister as part of an agreement forged last year that created the coalition government. Bennett led it initially but stepped down following a series of defections and legislative defeats. Parliament dissolved itself, triggering new elections and handing power to Lapid. Israel will head to the polls again on Nov. 1, when Lapid will seek to convince voters to adopt his centrist vision and deny former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was ousted last year after more than a decade in power, a chance to return to lead the country. Bennett will not run in November. In the coming months our goal, of this whole table, is to run the government as if there is no election campaign. The citizens of Israel deserve a functioning government at any given moment, Lapid said. Lapid faced his first challenge Saturday, when Hezbollah launched its unmanned aircraft toward an area where an Israeli gas platform was recently installed in the Mediterranean Sea. The move appeared to be an attempt by Hezbollah to influence U.S.-brokered negotiations between Israel and Lebanon over their maritime border, an area that is rich in natural gas. Hezbollah continues its path of terrorism, undermining Lebanons ability to reach an agreement on the maritime border. Israel will continue to protect itself, its citizens and its assets, he said. Lapid, who served as foreign minister under Bennett, will use his months as caretaker leader to prove to Israelis that he is prime minister material. He travels to Paris this week for meetings and then next week hosts U.S. President Joe Biden, a potential preelection boost. The upcoming election, as in the previous four, will likely be a referendum on Netanyahu's fitness to lead at a time when he is on trial for corruption charges. He denies wrongdoing, but several political parties have refused to join a government led by him, complicating efforts to form coalitions and end the political turmoil. The Israeli military on Saturday said it shot down three unmanned aircraft launched by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah heading toward an area where an Israeli gas platform was recently installed in the Mediterranean Sea. The launch of the aircraft appeared to be an attempt by Hezbollah to influence U.S.-brokered negotiations between Israel and Lebanon over their maritime border, an area that is rich in natural gas. In a statement, the Israeli military said the aircraft were spotted early on and did not pose an "imminent threat." Nonetheless, the incident drew a stern warning from Israel's caretaker prime minister, Yair Lapid. "I stand before you at this moment and say to everyone seeking our demise, from Gaza to Tehran, from the shores of Lebanon to Syria: Don't test us," Lapid said in his first address to the nation since taking office on Friday. "Israel knows how to use its strength against every threat, against every enemy." Israel earlier this month set up a gas rig in the Karish field, which Israel said is within part of its internationally recognized economic waters. Lebanon has claimed it is in disputed waters. Hezbollah issued a short statement, confirming it had launched three unarmed drones toward the Karish field on a reconnaissance mission. "The mission was accomplished, and the message was received," it said. Israel and Hezbollah are bitter enemies that fought a monthlong war in the summer of 2006. Israel considers the Iranian-backed Lebanese group its most serious immediate threat, estimating it has some 150,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel. The U.S. last week said that mediator Amos Hochstein had had conversations with the Lebanese and Israeli sides. "The exchanges were productive and advanced the objective of narrowing differences between the two sides. The United States will remain engaged with parties in the days and weeks ahead," his office said in a statement last week. The two countries, which have been officially at war since Israel's creation in 1948, both claim about 860 square kilometers of the Mediterranean Sea. Lebanon hopes to exploit offshore gas reserves as it grapples with the worst economic crisis in its modern history. On Saturday, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati told reporters that Lebanon received "encouraging information" regarding the border dispute but refused to comment further saying Beirut is waiting for the "written official response to the suggestions by the Lebanese side." Israel is to conduct a ballistics test on the bullet that killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, the Israeli army said Sunday, a day after the Palestinian Authority handed the bullet to U.S. experts. Army spokesman Ran Kochav's comment on army radio came after the PA gave the green light for the Americans, but not the Israelis, to examine the bullet that killed Abu Akleh during an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank. A Palestinian official, who requested anonymity, told AFP the Israeli comment raised questions about whether the PA could "trust the Americans." Speaking to army radio, Kochav said: "The test won't be American, the test will be an Israeli test with an American presence. "We are waiting for the results, if we killed her, we'll take responsibility for it, and will be sorry for it. We are also sorry when people that are not involved are killed by Palestinian gunmen," he also said. Israel's army was not immediately available to provide further explanation of Kochav's remarks, including whether an Israeli ballistics test was already underway. Palestinian sources in Ramallah have said they expected the test to be conducted at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. Abu Akleh, a Palestinian American, was wearing a vest marked "Press" and a helmet, was covering an Israeli army operation in the Jenin camp in the northern West Bank on May 11 when she was killed. The official Palestinian investigation found that the Qatar-based television channel's star reporter was killed after being hit by a bullet just below her helmet. It found that Abu Akleh was killed with a 5.56-mm armor-piercing round fired from a Ruger Mini-14 rifle. Investigations by the United Nations, as well as several journalistic probes, have found that the shot that killed Abu Akleh was fired by Israeli forces. Despite those findings, Israel has maintained that she may have been hit by stray Palestinian gunfire. The army has also said "that Ms. Abu Akleh was not intentionally shot by an IDF soldier." One of the key lawmakers investigating the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol last year says that if the Justice Department concludes that former President Donald Trump fomented the mayhem to block Congress from certifying his 2020 reelection loss it should not hesitate to prosecute him. Congresswoman Liz Cheney, the vice chairperson on the panel investigating the insurrection and a vocal anti-Trump Republican, acknowledged to ABC News that the prosecution of a former U.S. president would be unprecedented and difficult for an already politically divided country. But the Wyoming Republican said that not prosecuting Trump, if it were warranted, would be a "much graver constitutional threat" for the United States. Trump, a Republican, lost to Democrat Joe Biden, but to this day claims that vote-counting irregularities cost him a second four-year term in the White House. In an interview last Wednesday that was broadcast Sunday on the This Week show, Cheney said that if a president can engage in these kinds of activities, and the majority of the president's party looks away; or we as a country decide we're not actually going to take our constitutional obligations seriously, I think that's a much, a much more serious threat" than prosecuting him. "I really believe we have to make these decisions, as difficult as it is, apart from politics. We really have to think about these from the perspective of: What does it mean for the country?" she said. "There's no question that he engaged in high crimes and misdemeanors. I think there's no question that it's the most serious betrayal of his oath of office of any president in the history of the nation. It's the most dangerous behavior of any president in the history of the nation," she said. Asked whether the committee could make a referral to the Justice Department for prosecution of Trump and others, Cheney said, "Yes," while adding that the Justice Department "doesn't have to wait" for the panel to act. She said the committee could issue "more than one criminal referral, including for possible witness tampering by former Trump aides trying to influence witnesses to stay loyal to Trump as he weighs a campaign to try to reclaim the presidency in the 2024 election. The Justice Department is in the midst of an ongoing wide-ranging investigation of the riot but has not said it is specifically targeting Trump. Cheney offered her thoughts a day after she led two hours of questioning Tuesday of Cassidy Hutchinson, a former top aide to Trumps last White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows. Hutchinson, 25, gave an explosive behind-the-scenes account of Meadowss and Trumps actions before and during the January 6, 2021, storming of the Capitol by about 2,000 Trump supporters. She told lawmakers how Trump became angrier and more volatile as the reality of his election loss set in and he realized that despite his private and public entreaties, former Vice President Mike Pence would not agree to upend the election outcome and send the results in several key states Trump narrowly lost back to their state legislatures so they would name electors supporting Trump to replace those legitimately chosen to vote for Biden in the Electoral College. She testified that Trump was told ahead of a rally near the White House before the riot at the Capitol unfolded that some of his supporters were armed and equipped with body armor and yet urged them to fight like hell to upend the election outcome. She said that a Meadows aide told her that Trump was angered that his Secret Service security detail would not drive him to the Capitol where his supporters were massing before storming into the Capitol. In one moment disputed by the Secret Service, Hutchinson said Trump tried to grab the steering wheel from a security agent and demanded he be driven to the Capitol. As some of the rioters chanted Hang Mike Pence! she said Meadows told her that Trump approved of the sentiment, saying his No.2 in command deserved to be hanged. Some unknown Trump supporters had erected a gallows on the National Mall within eyesight of the Capitol. Trump has worked to disparage Hutchinsons testimony, posting on social media that "I hardly know who this person ... is, other than I heard very negative things about her. "She is bad news!" he added. In the ABC interview, Cheney said she was "absolutely confident" about Hutchinsons testimony, saying, She's an incredibly brave young woman."In the United States, presidents are effectively chosen in separate elections in each of the 50 states, not through the national popular vote. Each states number of electoral votes is dependent on its population, with the biggest states holding the most sway. The rioters who stormed the Capitol tried to keep lawmakers from certifying Bidens eventual 306-232 victory in the Electoral College. At the heart of Trumps effort to stay in power was an audacious plan espoused by a key Trump lawyer, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and conservative lawyer John Eastman, to get legislatures in states Trump narrowly lost to appoint new electors supporting him to replace the official ones favoring Biden. While the House committee cannot bring criminal charges, the Department of Justice is closely monitoring the hearings to determine whether anyone, Trump included, should be charged with illegally trying to reverse the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. No U.S. president has ever been charged with a criminal offense after leaving office. Trump has often derided the nine-member House of Representatives panel investigating the riot at the Capitol and attacked its witnesses who have painted a highly unfavorable account of his postelection pressure campaign to stay in office against repeated findings of his own key aides, including former Attorney General William Barr, that there was no evidence of fraud sufficient to overturn the election outcome. The investigative panel is comprised of seven Democrats, Cheney and another vocal Republican critic of Trump, Congressman Adam Kinzinger. Cheney said, "I think you will continue to see in the coming days and weeks additional detail about the president's activities and behavior on January 6 last year. In one of the hearings set for later this month, the committee is exploring how Trump watched the riot unfold on television for more than three hours while rejecting pleas from aides and his elder daughter, Ivanka, a White House adviser to him, to publicly urge to rioters to leave the Capitol. More than 800 of them have been arrested and more than 300 have pleaded guilty to an array of criminal charges or been convicted at trials and handed prison terms of a few weeks to more than four years. London Saturday celebrated the 50th anniversary of its first Pride parade, marking half a century of progress in the fight for equality and tolerance but with warnings that more still needs to be done. Several hundred people took part in the first march July 1, 1972, just five years after homosexuality was decriminalized in the U.K. Fifty years on, more than 600 LGBTQ+ groups danced, sang and rode floats along a similar route to the original protest, in the first Pride since the coronavirus pandemic, watched by huge cheering crowds. London Mayor Sadiq Khan told reporters the event, which organizers said was the "biggest and most inclusive" in its history, was a celebration of community, unity and progress. But he said it was also a reminder of the need to "campaign and never be complacent" and the need for "an open, inclusive, accepting world." "We saw this time last week an attack in Oslo just hours before that parade, where two people lost their lives and more than 20 were injured," he said. "So, we've got to be conscious of the fact that there's still a danger to this community of discrimination, bias and violence." Khan's predecessor as mayor, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, said it gave him "the greatest pride to lead a country where you can love whomever you choose to love and where you can be free to be whoever you want to be." The 50th anniversary was a "milestone," he said, paying tribute to the bravery of those who did it first. Peter Tatchell, a veteran gay rights campaigner who took part in the 1972 march, said some from the original event have boycotted the modern-day sponsored version as "depoliticized and commercialized." Campaigning In 1972, "Gay Pride," as it was then known, was a demand for visibility and equality against a backdrop of lingering prejudice, discrimination and fear among many gay men and women about coming out. In the 1980s, Pride became a focal point for campaigning against legislation by prime minister Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government against the "promotion of homosexuality" in schools. It also helped to raise awareness and support for people with HIV/Aids. Now, with the rainbow flag of inclusion and tolerance spread ever more widely over the spectrum of human sexuality and gender, Pride in London is more celebration than protest. Tatchell said that despite victories such as same-sex marriage, "we are still fighting to ban LGBT+ conversion practices which seek to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity." "We're still fighting to secure trans people's right to change their legal documents with ease by a simple statutory declaration. And of course, we are standing in solidarity with a global LGBT+ movement," he told AFP. Julian Hows, now 67, was at the first march. He said, "progress is always incremental," criticizing curbs on LGBTQ+ rights around the world. "We have to be vigilant. The price of liberation and to keeping people's human rights intact is vigilance," he added. Visibility Padraigin Ni Raghillig, president of Dykes on Bikes London, a motorcycle club for gay women, said the event retained part of its original campaigning spirit. "It's still important, I think, to at least once a year to be out and about, and to say, 'we're here, we're queer, and we're not going shopping,'" said Ni Raghillig, astride a Harley Davidson. Among those marching was a contingent from Ukraine, who criticized homophobia in Russia. This year's Pride saw warnings for people with monkeypox symptoms to stay away, after public health officials said many cases in the U.K. were reported among gay and bisexual men. LGBTQ+ campaign group Stonewall said everyone had a part to play to stop the spread of monkeypox, which is passed through close contact regardless of sexual orientation. Police in Nigeria say they have rescued 77 people, including children, from a church basement in the southwestern state of Ondo. Reports say some of the people had been in the Whole Bible Believers Church for as long as six months and had been convinced they would soon witness the second coming of Jesus Christ. While some of the people are reported to have been kidnapped, others came freely. One young woman told Punch, a Nigerian publication, that she had decided to join the church because my parents were leading me away from God and I want to make heaven. Authorities conducted the raid on the church after complaints from parents. The pastor and other members of the church have been arrested, police said. The leader of an extremist Norwegian anti-Islamic group was in a spectacular car chase and collision Saturday, minutes after burning a Quran on the outskirts of Oslo. Norwegian police said they arrested two people, including the driver of a car accused of deliberately ramming the SUV of Lars Thorsen, leader of the radical group "Stop the Islamization of Norway" (SIAN). The five passengers in the SUV were slightly injured, with one requiring hospital treatment, police said. A video posted on Facebook showed Thorsen and other activists first drove to Mortensrud, a suburb of Oslo with a large Muslim community. The handful of activists then placed a burning Quran in the middle of a small intersection, initially managing to push back local people who tried to put out the flames. An angry crowd gathered, including one woman who grabbed the charred book before climbing into a gray Mercedes. The SUV of the anti-Islam activists, painted in camouflage livery, then left the scene. But seconds later, it was overtaken by the Mercedes, which first hit it lightly and eventually hit it at speed, overturning the vehicle. The whole episode was filmed by someone following the car. The incident came a week after a gunman killed two people and wounded 21 others in central Oslo. Norway's domestic intelligence service has described the attack as "an act of Islamist terrorism." Scandinavian far-right anti-Islam activists have made a specialty of burning Qurans in neighborhoods with large Muslim populations in recent years. Tropical Storm Colin has weakened as it moves over eastern North Carolina, just as U.S. residents are preparing their July Fourth celebrations. The National Hurricane Center reports there are no coastal warnings or watches in effect. The Center advises, however, that gusty winds are still possible over the Outer Banks Sunday morning. Scattered showers and thunderstorms could impact coastal North Carolina Sunday, according to the Center, but most locations will receive less than two centimeters of additional rainfall. The Hurricane Center, however, has warned that swells are still affecting portions of North Carolinas coast and could possibly cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions through Sunday evening. A senior U.N. official for Libya on Saturday condemned the storming of the parliament's headquarters in the east of the oil-rich country as part of protests in several cities the previous day against the political class and deteriorating economic conditions. Hundreds of protesters marched in the streets of the capital, Tripoli, and other Libyan cities Friday, with many attacking and setting fire to government buildings, including the House of Representatives in the eastern city of Tobruk. "The people's right to peacefully protest should be respected and protected but riots and acts of vandalism such as the storming of the House of Representatives headquarters late yesterday in Tobruk are totally unacceptable," said Stephanie Williams, the U.N. special adviser on Libya, on Twitter. Friday's protests came a day after the leaders of the parliament and another legislative chamber based in Tripoli failed to reach an agreement on elections during U.N.-mediated talks in Geneva. The dispute now centers on the eligibility requirements for candidates, according to the United Nations. Libya failed to hold elections in December, following challenges such as legal disputes, controversial presidential hopefuls and the presence of rogue militias and foreign fighters in the country. The failure to hold the vote was a major blow to international efforts to bring peace to the Mediterranean nation. It has opened a new chapter in its long-running political impasse, with two rival governments now claiming power after tentative steps toward unity in the past year. The protesters, frustrated from years of chaos and division, have called for the removal of the current political class and elections to be held. They also rallied against dire economic conditions in the oil-rich nation, where prices have risen for fuel and bread and power outages are a regular occurrence. Protesters also rallied Saturday in Tripoli and several towns in western Libya, blocking roads and setting tires ablaze, according to livestreaming on social media. There were fears that militias across the country could quash the protests as they did in 2020 demonstrations when they opened fire on people protesting dire economic conditions. Sabadell Jose, the European Union envoy in Libya, called on protesters to "avoid any type of violence." He said Friday's demonstrations demonstrated that people want "change through elections and their voices should be heard." The U.S. ambassador to Libya, Richard Norland, urged Libyan political leaders and their foreign backers to work for a compromise to hold elections. "It is clear no single political entity enjoys legitimate control across the entire country and any effort to impose a unilateral solution will result in violence," he warned on Twitter following a call with Mohammad Younes Menfi, head of the Libyan presidential council. Libya has been racked by conflict since a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. The country was then for years split between rival administrations in the east and west, each supported by different militias and foreign governments. Peter Brook, one of the world's most innovative theater directors who perfected the art of staging powerful drama in bizarre venues, has died aged 97, his publisher said Sunday. The British director used the world as his stage mounting productions ranging from challenging versions of Shakespeare through international opera to Hindu epic poems. Brook put on plays in gymnasiums, deserted factories, quarries, schools and old gas works in towns around the world. His 1970 Stratford production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream," played all in white and with a huge, garlanded swing, secured his place in the annals of theater history. According to Le Monde, Brook - who had been based in France since 1974 - died in Paris Saturday. A statement from his publisher confirmed his death Sunday. Although Brook was regarded with awe in theatrical circles, he was less well known among the wider public because of his refusal to bow to commercial taste. He left Britain to work in Paris in 1970. He often shunned traditional theatrical buildings for the empty space" which could be transformed by light, words, improvisation and the sheer power of acting and suggestion. I can take any empty space and call it a stage, he wrote in his ground-breaking 1968 book The Empty Space. His quest for inspiration took him as far afield as Africa and Iran and produced a variety of original improvised plays marked by his eye for detail and challenging approach. Born in London March 21, 1925, his father was a company director and his mother a scientist. He left school at 16 to work in a film studio and then went to Oxford University and took a degree in English and Foreign Languages. In 1970 he transferred from Britain to work in Paris, founding the International Center of Theater Research which brought together actors and designers of many different nationalities. Brook continued working into his 90s. "Every form of theater has something in common with a visit to the doctor. On the way out, one should always feel better than on the way in," he wrote in his 2017 book Tip of the Tongue. Funeral Announcements A daily list of current funeral annoucements as heard on KXRA 1490 AM/100.3 FM News Updates The daily news, sports, and events delivered daily from Voice of Alexandria. Sports Update This current sports headlines delivered daily from Voice of Alexandria. Upcoming Events This email is the events of the area delivered daily from Voice of Alexandria. Breaking News The big news. Sent only as it happens. By Trend Uzbekistan intends to assist in the reconstruction of the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, First Deputy Director of the Institute for Strategic and Regional Studies under the President of Uzbekistan Akramjon Nematov said at the conference of official analytical centers of the member countries of the Organization of Turkic States, which is held in the city of Shusha, Trend reports. "Uzbekistan fully supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. We plan to be one of the first countries in the Turkic world to build a modern school in Fuzuli," he said. Colosseum tackles touts hoarding tickets to rip off tourists. Rome's Colosseum has introduced new tickets with the name of each individual visitor in an effort to stamp out the widespread practice of touts reselling tickets to unsuspecting tourists at exorbitant prices. From now on every ticket for the 'Full Experience Underground and Arena' and the 'Luna sul Colosseo' night tours will contain the names of each visitor, under new rules brought in by the Colosseum Archaeological Park. In the event that tickets do not match the visitor's identity document, access to the Colosseum will be denied and refunds will not be guaranteed. The move was welcomed by Italy's deputy culture minister Lucia Borgonzoni who described it as a "fundamental step in the fight against touting", adding that it could "serve as a model for Italian art cities afflicted by the problem". Parco Archeologico del Colosseo director Alfonsina Russo hailed the "historic" measure, taken in conjunction with Rome police, stating that everyone "has the right to enjoy our heritage, availing of our tickets and our services, at no additional cost." Photo credit: Lithuaniakid / Shutterstock.com. Comment on this story Comment Gift Article Share This is one of a series of interviews by Bloomberg Opinion columnists on how to solve the worlds most pressing policy challenges. It has been edited for length and clarity. Romesh Ratnesar: Immigration is an issue that continues to generate heated political and scholarly debate. Youre the co-author, with Ran Abramitzky, of a new book, Streets of Gold, which uses the power of big data to provide an economic history that challenges some of the conventional wisdom about the US immigrant experience. People have studied the economic impact of immigration in America for a long time. Whats different about the way in which you approached this topic? Leah Boustan, professor of economics, Princeton University and co-author, Streets of Gold: Americas Untold Story of Immigrant Success: Originally, Ran and I wanted to be able to put together data for every immigrant who came to the US at any time. We didnt achieve that goal, but we tried our best given the technology thats available now. Its especially hard to find data on immigrants and immigrant families from the Ellis Island period, around the start of the 20th century, but we were able to benefit from recent advances in digitizing historical census records. If you want to go and search your own family members, you can now buy a subscription to Ancestry.com and access all of those underlying data sets. Once we realized we could find records for hundreds of millions of immigrants, we started scraping Ancestry.com to try to get at some of the data in a more automated fashion. We eventually got in trouble with [the company] for doing that, but when they realized we were just academics interested in learning more about immigration history, they started working with us. And so as a result, we got access to millions of historical records that are all in the public domain. Advertisement At that point, we tried to follow individuals in the US as they lived their lives. So we might pick an immigrant who arrives at Ellis Island at the age of 20. Using the census data, we can take a look at, you know, did he get married? Who did he marry? Did he move to another part of the country? Did he have kids? Did his occupation change? That sort of thing. Weve built some algorithms to allow us and other people to follow individuals across the different census periods and then compare the past to the present. What we really are adding to the picture is a much more comprehensive data set for the past. RR: So what did the data tell you that was missing from previous studies of immigration in the US? LB: We wanted to look at the economic mobility and economic success of immigrants. Of course, people have been asking this question for at least a century: how did the immigrants who arrived in the US during the Ellis Island period fare when they first arrived and how did their earnings grow as they spent more time in the country? The conventional answer had been that immigrants from the Ellis Island period arrived earning less than the US-born, but within 15 years, completely caught up to and surpassed the earnings of the US-born. And its based on that premise that weve developed the impression that somehow immigrants who came to the US from Europe 100 years ago were especially talented or had unusual perseverance or grit or a knack for risk-taking. But it turns out thats completely wrong, because it was based on faulty data. Advertisement RR: This is one of the major findings in your book that the rags to riches myth about first-generation European immigrants is just that, a myth. Why is this significant? Wont that deflate the more optimistic case for immigration if people discover that, well, it turns out the rags to riches thing isnt actually true? LB: Not necessarily. Just because the immigrant generation themselves, the people who made the journey to the United States, do not go from rags to riches does not mean that immigrant families are not ultimately quite successful. Much of the mobility that immigrant families experience is in the second generation. These are the children of immigrant parents. Most of them are born in the United States; some were born abroad but arrive as young kids. These are children who are educated in US public schools. They learn English very early in life. And those children do remarkably well, both today and in the past. So I dont think that being more careful about the rags to riches myth necessarily deflates our optimism, but it does put it onto a longer time horizon. We need to be thinking in terms of generations instead of in terms of 10 to 15 years. The second thing is that, either implicitly or explicitly ,many politicians are comparing immigrants today to immigrants in the past. We have good data for immigrants today. We see that while there certainly is some earnings growth and closing of the earnings gap with the US-born as immigrants go through their career, its not complete. Even when immigrants retire, theyre still earning less than the US-born. And so if were comparing the kind of nostalgic view to the facts on the ground today, it would seem to give credence to the idea that somehow the immigrants were attracting to the US today are not as high quality or as talented. And people who have that impression are more likely to say, well, maybe we should slow down on immigration or cut the number of immigrants that arrive. Advertisement RR: Did you find that the success of second generation immigrants is fairly universal? Are there some groups that that continue to struggle over several generations and maybe never really catch up? LB: The short answer is that its true across the board, for many different countries. If you think about the fact that immigrants earn less than the US-born today, then that means the children of immigrants are on average going to be raised in households that are poor. But if you look at their children and their childrens children, for the most part theyve completely caught up to the US-born. So in particular, you can pick out Mexico, Haiti and Jamaica, as two or three big sending countries where the parents earn a lot less than the US-born. The children continue to earn less on average, but the gap has closed tremendously. If the gap is, you know, 50% or 60% for the parents, its 5% or 10% for the kids. Then you can make the apples-to-apples comparisons. So, on average, children of immigrants are raised in poor families. But what if we take two families that have similar income levels, and in one case, the parent is US-born and in the other case, the parent is foreign-born what happens? In that case, for the 45 sending countries that we could get access to in the modern data, we find that for 42 of those 45 sending countries the children of immigrants achieve more economic success in adulthood than the children of US-born parents who were raised in similar households with similar income levels. Thats true for children whose parents were born in Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, a lot of the countries in Latin America and Central America that raise alarm bells today. We find that the children of immigrants from those countries surpassed the earnings of the children of US-born parents who were raised at similar income levels. Advertisement RR: Politically, were kind of stuck in this kind of stalemate on immigration policy, with both sides operating at two extremes. Is there any reason to be optimistic about the possibility for comprehensive and sensible immigration reform? LB: Im an economic historian, so my job is to scale out to focus on the changes that have occurred in the US over the past 150 years. Thats what gives me the most sense of optimism. In our book, we turned to the data to try to figure out how attitudes towards immigrants evolved over the past 150 years. We dont have public opinion polling that far back in time, but we do have access to all the speeches that were ever given on the floor of Congress. And that gives us some window into what the electorate was thinking. So we classified the speeches and found there were 200,000 speeches that were immigration related. Then, using machine learning and computing, we were able to classify those 200,000 as either pro- or anti-immigration. And what we found is that for, lets say, the first 60 to 70 years in our data, from 1882 to World War II, speeches about immigration were almost uniformly negative, across both parties and all regions. Americans hated immigrants from 1880 to 1945. But these days, if you go to the Gallup polls, 75% of Americans say that immigrants are good for the country. So there has been a major cultural shift. Advertisement And we can pinpoint from this congressional record data that the shift took place very quickly, between the end of World War II and 1960. It turns out that there were a few key presidents who got on the bully pulpit and started to make the case that immigrants are good for America not only are they good for America, but they are America. That we ourselves are a nation of immigrants. You had Truman, then Kennedy and then LBJ making this case. And they were successful in changing the attitudes of the average American by saying immigrants helped build the country, they fought patriotically in World War II, and in fact they are us. So I take hope from that moment, because I see that there was cultural and attitudinal change within a very short period of time. RR: One thing that many folks on the pro-immigration side argue for is a skills-based system the idea being that we need do more immigrants, but the priority should be people with specialized skills that industry needs. Do you think thats the right approach? LB: We certainly need to expand high skilled immigration. But we also try to make the case that we should not be afraid of low-skilled immigration, to the extent that the labor market needs low-skilled workers, primarily in agriculture but also landscaping, child care, elder care, restaurant work. I think some people are concerned that well, OK, we might need someone temporarily for this year or the year after, but we dont necessarily want their families to stay. What will happen with their kids? And thats why the new evidence on the second generation on the children of immigrants is really important. If we had a number of low-skilled immigrants arrive and their children were sort of consigned to only being able to hold low-skilled jobs, then we might be in a situation where immigrants would make up a sort of permanent underclass. But were not seeing that. Instead, were seeing that the children of immigrants really rise. Advertisement RR: What did you learn about your own family in doing this work? Did learning more about your own familys immigrant story change some of your assumptions? LB: Well, the idea that the rags to riches arc doesnt always take place in the first generation is exactly true for my family. My great-grandparents were the immigrant generation. And they held the same occupation with the same low earnings level throughout their life in the United States they basically had a small mom-and-pop dollar store, sort of one step up from people who pushed carts selling odds and ends, much like street vendors today. Its the second generation so that would be my grandfather who did substantially better. My grandfather was one of eight siblings; his six older siblings didnt have the experience of being able to finish high school and go to college but he and his younger brother became a doctor and a lawyer. And that was sort of typical of the second generation: they had moved up from their parents, and some had done remarkably well. RR: Were heading into the Fourth of July weekend at a time when a lot of people have doubts about the strength of our democratic institutions. People are losing faith in democracy and our ability to sustain the American experiment. The end of your book provides an upbeat antidote to that pessimism. How can immigration strengthen American democracy? Advertisement LB: Surveys consistently find that immigrants are more patriotic and are more supportive of American institutions than US born Americans. Theyre more likely to believe in the presidency and in Congress, and less likely to be skeptical or cynical. We end the book by saying theres really nothing more patriotic than a naturalization ceremony. My co author, Ran, is an immigrant. He and his wife have gone through that experience themselves. And so I often turn to my immigrant friends who have a more optimistic and hopeful view of where America is headed. RR: So if you want to feel good about America, maybe invite some immigrants to your 4th of July barbecue. LB: Yeah, exactly. Almost all of us have some immigrants that we know in our own lives. And so ask your friends, neighbors, co-workers about their experience and what was it like to come to the US and what drew them here. Maybe youve known these folks for years, but never asked them about their immigrant experience. And that might be a fun thing to do. Advertisement This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. Romesh Ratnesar is a member of the editorial board covering national security, education and immigration. A former senior State Department official in public diplomacy, he is author of Tear Down This Wall: A City, a President, and the Speech That Ended the Cold War. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion 2022 Bloomberg L.P. GiftOutline Gift Article Comment on this story Comment Gift Article Share The OPEC+ group of oil producers has completed its mission to restore all the oil it removed from the market during the depths of the Covid-19 pandemic at least on paper. But dont expect it to disappear just yet. Share with The Post: Whats one way youve felt the impact of inflation? ArrowRight The group of 23 oil-exporting countries met virtually on Thursday well, those who could log into the room did, some were apparently unable to join the call and agreed to add back in August the final tranche of the 9.7 million barrels a day of supply that they agreed to cut back in April 2020. So thats it. Job done. The meeting followed the pattern of its recent predecessors, notable only for its brevity. If you thought the ministers might take a minute to worry about a world teetering on the brink of recession, with fuel prices in many consuming countries hitting new highs, youd be wrong. Advertisement The outcome raising the combined production limit of the 20 members that have targets by 648,000 barrels a day had been widely signaled since the previous gathering in early June. The fact that they have no hope of adding back that much supply doesnt seem to matter. The groups actual production is so far removed from its target, that any notional change to that goal is wholly irrelevant. Combined output by those same 20 countries Iran, Libya and Venezuela were granted exemptions from output cuts because of their individual circumstances was more than 2.6 million barrels a day short of their goal in May, according to data from OPEC. The group hasnt been able to pump as much as it promised for more than a year, and it has been falling further behind almost every month. The impact of sanctions and the shunning of Russian crude by some European buyers has had an impact on the countrys production, which was down by more than 800,000 barrels a day in May, compared with February. Advertisement But Russia isnt the only country unable to pump as much as its allowed. Only two members of the OPEC+ group met or exceeded their production targets in May. Nigeria and Angola, Africas two biggest producers, were able to extract only three-quarters of the crude they were permitted. So whats the future of the group now that it has notionally restored all the output it cut? Dont expect it to dissolve. For all its irrelevance to actual supplies, even the non-OPEC producers, such as Russia, Kazakhstan, Mexico and Malaysia, appear to be in it for the long haul. And why not? Membership doesnt cost them anything, unlike their OPEC counterparts. As one delegate put it to me several months ago when I asked what benefit he saw in OPEC+ membership, gaining access to the OPEC analysts is like having a free consultancy on tap. Add to that the fact that membership gives a seat at the table with some of the worlds biggest oil exporters, as well as a voice, even if only a small one, in determining output policy. Advertisement And with every non-OPEC member pumping at capacity, output targets arent a constraint on production. President Joe Biden will ask the Gulf Arab countries to open the taps wider when he visits the region later this month, but that neednt trouble the rest of the group, as their taps are already open as wide as theyll go. So for now, things will continue as they have been. There may be little point in the ministers gathering every month after they sort out their next step in early August, but perhaps there has been little point in them meeting all year. More From Bloomberg Opinion: Can Saudi Aramco Meet Its Oil Production Promises?: Javier Blas Why Youll Probably Get Covid (Again) Soon: Therese Raphael Erdogan Missed a Big Opportunity With NATO: Bobby Ghosh This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. Julian Lee is an oil strategist for Bloomberg First Word. Previously, he was a senior analyst at the Centre for Global Energy Studies. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion 2022 Bloomberg L.P. GiftOutline Gift Article Comment on this story Comment Gift Article Share Rather as the US is an outlier among developed countries in equating freedom with gun ownership, Germany is almost unique in defining liberty as the absence of speed limits on the autobahn. That mentality, however, is now slamming into the imperative to save energy, which is in turn part of the Wests common effort to resist the warmongering of Russian President Vladimir Putin. In Europe, only the Isle of Man keeps Germany company in eschewing categorical highway limits. But driving on the curvy roads of a windswept island is hardly the same as surviving in the fast lanes of the worlds most obsessive car culture. Heres what driving on the autobahn is like for me, an average dad in an aging minivan trying to get the people whining in the back row to their next potty break. The other day, I was coasting in the right lane but briefly had to venture into the middle and left lanes in Germany you never, ever, pass on the right. Advertisement I checked my rearview mirror, which showed only tiny dots in the distance basically empty highway. Seconds later, I was in the left lane, going 130 kilometers per hour (about 80 mph), and looked in the mirror again. Three Porsches were suddenly on my tail, each a cars length apart, all signaling left and flashing high beams to bully me out of the way and back into the slow lanes. In an otherwise bureaucratized, over-regulated and rules-obsessed society, limit-less autobahns have come to symbolize the last remnants of freedom. At least they play that role for about half of Germans. That demographic skews male and conservative-libertarian. Politically, its represented by the center-right, including the Free Democrats, one of the junior partners in Germanys current government. They made autobahn freedom a condition for joining the coalition. The other half of the country mostly considers autobahn racing self-indulgent, dangerous and crazy. And yet its surprisingly hard to argue that the absence of speed limits kills more people. Germany has relatively few traffic deaths compared to other countries, and the fatalities that do happen occur mostly on rural roads that have speed limits. Advertisement But theres also that other line of argumentation, having to do with wasted energy. Owing to the laws of physics, driving faster requires a lot more fuel. In an era of climate change, that counts against speeding. In a time of war, it does so twice over. Putins war machine requires Russia to be a petro-state. He uses his countrys coal, oil and natural gas in two ways. One is to earn money to pay his army. The other is to make other European countries, including Germany, dependent on his pipelines, and thus vulnerable to blackmail. Hes already turned off the gas to Bulgaria, Poland, Finland, the Netherlands and Denmark, and throttled it to Germany and other countries. Germanys energy minister, Robert Habeck, warns that Putin may shut off the pipelines completely, and has declared the second of three stages in an emergency plan that could end in rationing. Advertisement Salvation, if it exists, will come from all of society conserving energy, Habeck suggests. Hes asked people to take shorter, cooler showers, which makes sense. So does turning down the air conditioning in summer and the thermostat in winter, to take the train instead of flying, and to cancel unnecessary trips altogether. And why not dry your laundry in the sun when it shines? The list of other tricks is long. But lowering speed limits is at the top. Its the first of ten suggestions by the International Energy Agency, based in Paris, to reduce oil consumption. In Germany, of course, that means rekindling the old controversy about introducing a limit in the first place. The average speed on German autobahns in 2019 was 125 kph (as I said, Im average). The German Environmental Agency reckons that introducing a limit of 100 kph (about 62 mph) on autobahns, as well as lowering the limit from 100 to 80 kph on rural highways, would save 6.4 million tons of carbon dioxide and many lives, especially on those rural roads. Greenpeace, an environmental lobby, estimates that this would reduce German oil imports by about 2.5%. Advertisement Is that a lot or a little? Here politics take over again. About 57% of Germans now favor a temporary speed limit. The Free Democrats would certainly put up a fight, and have to be seen to do so by their supporters. But they should remember that theyre also asking their coalition partners, the Greens and the Social Democrats, to reconsider their ideological aversion to nuclear power. In a time of war, everybody has to keep an open mind. My own instincts happen to be liberal (in the classical sense, not the American). Ive always taken short showers and recently made them even shorter and I didnt need Habeck or a law to convince me. By the same token, Im now driving more slowly, too, and would be happy if other people voluntarily did the same. But if it takes a statute, so be it. We must hope that at some point in the future well get all the energy we need from the sun, wind and oceans, so we can stop polluting our atmosphere and funding petro-dictators such as Putin. Until then, the best we can do is to change our lifestyles sometimes a little, other times a lot. The Ukrainians are fighting for freedom with their very lives. Were being asked to decelerate. Its not too much to ask. Advertisement More From Other Writers at Bloomberg Opinion: Europe Must Declare a War Economy: Andreas Kluth Many Winters Are Coming. Start Saving Energy Now: Javier Blas Well Need Sanctions and Stamina to Defeat Putin: Clara Ferreira Marques This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. Andreas Kluth is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering European politics. A former editor in chief of Handelsblatt Global and a writer for the Economist, he is author of Hannibal and Me. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion 2022 Bloomberg L.P. GiftOutline Gift Article The endorsement illustrates the division in the party between Trump supporters who value loyalty to him over all else and those who want to move on from endlessly litigating the 2020 election. Your morning rundown of the latest news from overnight and the stories to follow throughout the day. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. It would be easy to imagine that a book by Geraldine Brooks entitled Horse, charting both the real and imagined story of Lexington, the greatest racehorse and sire in American history, might simply be a paean of praise for a truly extraordinary equine, and that for the horse lovers among us, that would be enough. But Brooks, who has brought us so many complex and rich novels over the years A Year of Wonders, the Pulitzer prize-winning March, People of the Book and Calebs Crossing uses Lexington as the backbone of a multi-themed novel that segues from the past to the present. A cast of widely different characters connect to the great racehorse, while Brooks grapples head on with the thorny subject of racism, which surely remains one of the most troublesome aspects of American history and society. Geraldine Brooks fleshes out all her characters. Credit:Randi Baird How are all these parallel lives woven into the rich tapestry of this novel? The story begins in 2019, when Theo Northam, a PhD art history student, picks up an old oil painting of a racehorse from his neighbours rubbish pile. The woman, whose husband has recently died, provides an early sign of the discomforting undertow of Horse, as the Nigerian-born Theo, son of two diplomats, reflects on how the couple were made uncomfortable by the presence of a black man in their neighbourhood. The short chapter leads us to Jess, an Australian-born osteologist with the Smithsonian Institute, who is asked by her director if she can locate the skeleton of a racehorse that an English academic is flying over to look at. Then, quicker than a five-furlong dash, were back in Kentucky in 1850, and the young slave known as Wakefields Jarret his name changing throughout the book until he finally becomes himself, Jarret Lewis is in charge of Dr Wakefields most temperamental mare, Alice Carneal, who is about to give birth to the bay foal that will rewrite the racing record books. Built between 1873 and 1918, these seven hotels in Colorado offer visitors a piece of history alongside modern amenities. Step back in time to the Old West in Durango, enjoy traditional afternoon tea in Denver and more. Thanks for reading our live coverage of flooding across Sydney and NSW. Heavy rainfall is expected again throughout Monday and will resume our live updates in the morning. Heres the main things you need to know tonight: The Bureau of Meteorology have issued major flood warnings for the Hawkesbury and Nepean rivers. Moderate flood warnings are in place for the Georges and Colo rivers, and a severe weather warning have been issued for metropolitan, the Illawarra , Hunter , southern parts of the Mid-North Coast , and parts of the Central Tablelands . , , southern parts of the , and parts of the . The NSW SES have issued more than 40 evacuation orders in Sydneys south, west and north, leaving around 32,000 people facing evacuation. Residents are being urged to monitor for updates throughout Sunday night and Monday. If you are in an area with an evacuation order or warning in place, you can seek shelter at one of the following six evacuation centres: Cabra-Vale Diggers Club - 1 Bartley Street, Canley Vale NSW. Narellan Child Family and Community Centre - Queen Street, Narellan NSW. Gymea Tradies - 57 Manchester Road Gymea NSW. Richmond Club - 6 East Market Street Richmond NSW. North Richmond Community Centre - 33 William Street North Richmond NSW. Castle Hill RSL Club - 77 Castle Street, Castle Hill 2154 in Sydneys south, west and north, leaving around 32,000 people facing evacuation. Residents are being urged to monitor for updates throughout Sunday night and Monday. If you are in an area with an evacuation order or warning in place, you can seek shelter at one of the following six evacuation centres: Transport for NSW is urging commuters to avoid non-essential travel on Monday as wild weather impacts the states public transport system. Many buses and trains have already been heavily affected, and buses replaced ferries to and from Manly due to extreme weather. If you do need to use public transport, plan ahead to avoid disruptions. on Monday as wild weather impacts the states public transport system. Many buses and trains have already been heavily affected, and buses replaced ferries to and from Manly due to extreme weather. If you do need to use public transport, plan ahead to avoid disruptions. More rain and wild weather is forecast for Monday. Damaging winds and rainfall up to 100 mm are forecast for Sydney, while Penrith could receive between 100 and 150 mm on Monday alone. Wild surf conditions are expected to continue, making coastal activities such as rock fishing, swimming and surfing particularly hazardous. Remember to visit the NSW SES website for information about what to do if you are in an area threatened by flooding. For emergency help in floods and storms, call the NSW SES on 132 500. In life-threatening situations call triple zero (000) immediately. We will continue our live coverage in the morning. Until then, stay safe and stay across any emergency updates for your area. Good night. As Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and French President Emmanuel Macron exchanged smiles and back slaps this week, Foreign Minister Penny Wong capped off a charm offensive through the Asia-Pacific with selfies in the Malaysian city of her birth. Between them, the pair have blitzed through a dozen or so countries in their first 40 days in office, with their reception by world leaders at times marking a notable contrast with the previous government. In Singapore, Defence Minister Richard Marles attendance at a dinner alongside his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe led to a one-on-one meeting the first ministerial contact between the two countries in almost three years. The new governments ascension to office has coincided with a busy diplomatic calendar, as well as heightened geopolitical tensions in Europe stemming from Russias invasion of Ukraine, and Chinas increasing assertiveness, especially in the Asia-Pacific. This is the first reason for the blur of activity we are now seeing. The government judges such repairs are both necessary and urgent. Consider the building sense in recent weeks that the pandemic might be continuing a little more than we had all hoped. Against that background, Mark Butlers announcement last week of a speedy review into Australias approach to vaccines is the prudent response. Imagine if, after all its howling, Labor simply repeated Scott Morrisons mistakes? But it is prudent, too, for a government that does not want to be distracted from its other aims by a crisis it could prevent. Which is the second reason: as far as the government is concerned, such repairs are the necesssary precursor to so much of what it actually wants to do: the things that will really take time. It is worth remembering, in this context, that Albanese has always argued his agenda was larger than it seemed. I dont think thats quite right. Many of the solutions the Labor opposition proposed were very deliberately contained. But if you look instead at the agenda in terms of the problems Labor implicitly promised to fix which is what voters often hear, however restrained the language politicians use then the agenda is huge. Imagine delivering a successful referendum on the Uluru Statement from the Heart, getting aged care and childcare onto reasonable footing, and maintaining the required momentum on climate change to deliver more than the inadequate target for emissions reduction Labor has set itself: its a lot. Third, the governments time is limited. It is easy to mistake the early period of government as salad days. You are busy, but three years stretch out ahead. You believe there is time to learn. But there isnt, really. The decisions being made now about the structure of the public service, the personnel involved in reform processes and the founding assumptions that shape the reviews you are commissioning will dictate much of what is possible later. Also, the reality of elections means that we are, at most, two-and-a-half years away from the unofficial start of the next campaign. Loading Together, these mean the government lacks the luxury of sequencing. It would be lovely to engage in repair, followed by review, followed by considered action. What we are witnessing right now is all three, mixed in together. Right now, the different energies of the Albanese government make sense. It is acting both quickly and steadily. The apparent contradictions are compatible. In previous eras, the political challenge would be to segue to the next phase, of steady change alone, and lengthy conversations with the voting public about necessary reforms. But then perhaps that is just another deceptive dream of snapback, as though the past is a destination we can still reach. In Ghislaine Maxwell: The Making of a Monster, a three-part documentary beginning on Channel 4 in the UK on Tuesday, the former managers of Epsteins Caribbean estate explain that Maxwell had been given the task of finding him a never-ending conveyor belt of massage therapists the younger, the better. Maxwell just made sure that he got his massages, they recall. Come hell or high water, she made sure he was happy. For the first few months, Rhodes massaged Maxwell. Then, having apparently passed muster, she was taken to Epstein. Maxwell walked her to his room, repeating again that whatever happens during the massage, you keep to yourself. Inside, Maxwell stripped, reclothed herself, and then left after which Rhodes massaged Epstein. Following that bizarre introduction, the session passed quite normally, she remembers. In fact, he wanted to help her. Epstein told Rhodes that enabling people to achieve their dreams was kind of my thing, adding that he would fly her to New York to meet record label executives. He duly did and, when they returned to the Caribbean, she gave him another massage. This time, she was made to rub his nipples as he masturbated. Rhodes struggles now to talk about what went on, still taken aback by the first in a series of such encounters, and why she couldnt just jump off the rollercoaster Maxwell set her on. Being sworn to secrecy worked as an effective isolation tool, leaving her too fearful to seek help, and believing that she had done something wrong to be treated in that way. Now 20 years on, aged 45, she can see that because of [Maxwell], I was abused by him. She was calculated and manipulative every step of the way. There is no question, she says, that Maxwell knew exactly what she was getting all these women girls into, and she did it with joy; with the joy of what that power brings to her. And thats just disgusting. It is evident how raw the abuse has left her, prompting a silence that lasted until two summers ago, when she saw a documentary about Epsteins paedophile island on Netflix. She was staying with her family in the Midwest and told them what had happened. Then, another two weeks down the line, she came clean to her husband. I felt such shame, and embarrassment of myself, never really having dealt with it at that point. And never having had anybody say, this wasnt your fault, you didnt do this because these were predators. You are a victim. I hadnt heard that yet. Rhodes, who went on to tour with Fleetwood Mac, says she is tired of living in fear. I want to make this my story, not have this story own me, she says. Loading Its a mentality that lawyer Sigrid McCawley has heard repeated many times in the eight years since she first began representing Epsteins victims, several of whom were in the courthouse in New York as the sentence of 20 years in prison for Maxwells role in a high-society sex-trafficking ring was announced. I dont think for survivors of abuse, theres ever much closure, McCawley says. But I do think theres relief in knowing that they fought the fight. McCawley, who appears in the documentary and also litigated in Virginia Giuffres civil suit against Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, says her clients have gotten a lot of peace from the fact that Ghislaine will be in prison for the rest of her life. She believes that, regardless of privilege, the ruling sends a message that if you engage in that kind of conduct, you will be held responsible. Still, it is not over: the lawyer says the US authorities must do more to bring others involved in the Maxwell trafficking ring to justice. In court, the 60-year-old daughter of disgraced media tycoon Robert Maxwell was always obstructionist half-answering questions with an air of entitlement that suggested I know presidents. I know princes. And I should not be bothered with these kinds of allegations, according to McCawley. Even now, its very clear to me that she does not accept responsibility for her crimes. She never apologised directly for what she did, something McCawley believes will count against Maxwell if she appeals against her sentence. For Rhodes, a resolution is further off. On first hearing Maxwells sentence, she says she felt sick to my stomach. Its not like a good, solid 65 or 55 or 45 [years]. I feel like she got off very lightly. As for the prospect of Maxwell trying to reduce her sentence through the courts, Rhodes is horrified. Youre in jail, for so many reasons ... and you still think youre right? she says, incredulous. Go to hell. It will take time for the wounds to heal, if they ever do, and for Rhodes to feel ready to talk to other victims. And to tell her daughter, 11, what she has been through. Rhodes now both sings and teaches singing, beginning and ending sessions with each group of children chanting the same mantra three times: Im worthy, Im confident and I love myself. This way, she believes, she is safe in that knowledge that they will have that to fall back on for the rest of their lives, no matter what terrible circumstances might arise. If she can instil that bravery in them, Im winning, she says. Im not a victim; Im helping to empower other people. National Sexual Assault, Family & Domestic Violence Counselling Line: 1800 737 732. Lifeline: 13 11 14. The London Telegraph. Rupert Murdoch told his fourth wife, former supermodel Jerry Hall, that their marriage was over by email, according to reports. Hall, who celebrated her 66th birthday on Saturday, was said to have been devastated by the message in which she was instructed to only contact the 91-year-old media mogul via lawyers in future. Rupert Murdoch and Jerry Hall at their wedding in London in 2016. Credit:Facundo Arrizabalaga On Friday (US time), Hall, who lived with Mick Jagger for 22 years, filed divorce papers in California citing irreconcilable differences with Murdoch. The couple have been married for six years and Murdoch said he was the happiest man in the world at their wedding in London in March 2016. As Dantes Pizza closed its location at a Dothan mall last year, it could have easily been the end of the family restaurant. The restaurant business is hard work, after all. When news got out that owner Raffaele Clemente would be closing his eatery, the response from loyal customers inspired the family. It brought tears to my dads eyes for sure, said Osvaldo Ozzie Clemente, who now helps his father run the restaurant. After spending 35 years in the food court of Wiregrass Commons Mall, Dantes Pizza found new life in its location at 4177 Montgomery Highway in Dothan the same complex as Thai House, Bradshaws Jewelers, and Kyoto Sushi. A ribbon cutting was held in November, just a few months after the restaurant closed in the mall. Dothan, Raffaele Clemente said, has shown the family business a lot of support over the years, and the Clemente family has always tried to support Dothan and the Wiregrass. Its been a blessing, he said. Dantes Pizza had been in Wiregrass Commons Mall since 1985. Over the years, Raffaele Clemente saw young customers become parents bringing their own children for a slice of pizza. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, Wiregrass Commons Mall shut down for about a month. When the mall reopened, foot traffic remained slow and business was tough. After a rent dispute with the malls corporate owner, the Clemente family eventually made the decision to close Dantes. Today, Dantes Pizza features a mix of benches and chairs not far from the order counter covered in blue-green tile. A framed map of Naples, Italy, hangs along a wall full the small decorative tiles and framed photographs. A cartoon drawing of Raffaele Clemente serves as the restaurants new logo and is on the door as you enter. Its a quaint dining scene compared to the massive mall food court Dantes once called home. A screen behind the counter recently played a video of an assortment of Italian dishes being prepared at Dantes pizza, spaghetti and meatballs, ravioli, and lasagna. Dantes still offers pizza by the slice. The new location has allowed the family to expand the menu adding dishes the family loves to eat at home such as spaghetti with clams (Spaghetti alle Vongole) or mussels in white wine sauce (Cozze in Bianco) dishes that just didnt work in a mall setting. We pride ourselves in giving Dothan an authentic while its not fine dining in the sense of an atmosphere because it is very casual its 100% the best, most authentic Italian food in Dothan for sure, said Ozzie Clemente, who grew up in the restaurant along with his two brothers and sister. After serving in the Marine Corps for four years, Ozzie returned to Dothan to help his parents after his father had a heart attack. Eventually, Ozzie went on to start a career at Dothan Volkswagen where he is the finance manager. He comes in to the restaurant as he can to help his father, who turns 70 this month. In the beginning, Dantes Pizza was a small chain of restaurants with locations at malls in Alabama and Mississippi. Italian-born Raffaele Clemente worked in distribution. When the family-owned company wanted someone to open a Dothan restaurant, Clemente expressed his interest. After managing the Dothan store, Clemente took out a loan and bought the business. It was the ultimate immigrant American dream of finding success. Sure, it might be a stereotype the Italian guy opening up a pizza shop, but its one that helped him raise four children, Ozzie Clemente said. As Raffaele Clemente got older, he slowly closed other locations and focused on the restaurant in the Dothan mall. While theres only one Dantes Pizza at the moment, Ozzie said the family is not opposed to branching out again when the time is right. Over the years, Dantes had a number of local franchise sites around the Wiregrass as well as Panama City Beach, Florida. All were operated by Clemente family members. Anyone who is tied to the Clemente family has worked at Dantes at some point or another, Ozzie Clemente said. Dantes Pizza is open from 5-9 p.m. on Mondays. On Tuesday through Saturday, the restaurant is open 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-9 p.m. Visit dantespizza.net for more information. Allentown, PA (18103) Today Humid with limited sunshine. Scattered showers and thunderstorms, most widespread later in the afternoon. Watching for heavy downpours and possible localized flooding. May be dry for much of the morning/ midday.. Tonight An evening shower or thunderstorm; otherwise, mostly cloudy and muggy. There might be some clearing late. NEW ORLEANS President Joe Bidens administration on Friday proposed up to 10 oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico and one off the Alaska coast over the next five years going against the Democrats climate promises but scaling back a Trump-era plan that called for dozens of offshore drilling opportunities including in undeveloped areas. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said fewer than 11 lease sales or even no lease sales at all could occur, with a final decision not due for months. New drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts would be blocked, after being considered under Trump. President Biden and I have made clear our commitment to transition to a clean energy economy. Today, we put forward an opportunity for the American people to ... provide input on the future of offshore oil and gas leasing, said Haaland, whose agency oversees drilling on federal lands and waters. The proposal brought immediate backlash from both environmentalists who accused Biden of betraying the climate cause and oil industry officials and allies, who said it would do little to help counter high energy prices. Gasoline prices averaged $4.84 a gallon on Friday, a strain on commuters and a political albatross for Bidens fellow Democrats going into the midterm elections. That has left the White House scrambling for solutions, including Bidens call last week for suspension of the 18.4 cents a gallon federal gas tax. The Interior Department had suspended lease sales in late January because of climate concerns but was forced to resume them by a U.S. district judge in Louisiana. The Biden administration cited conflicting court rulings about that decision when it canceled the last scheduled lease sales in the Gulf and Alaska during the previous offshore leasing cycle. That prior five-year cycle, a program adopted under former President Barack Obama, expired on Thursday. There will be a months-long gap before a new plan can be put in place. The oil industry and its allies say the delay could cause problems in planning new drilling and potentially lead to decreased oil production. Theres unlikely to be an offshore lease sale until well into next year, said Frank Macchiarola, senior vice president of the American Petroleum Institute, the industrys top lobbying group. And, he said, administration officials went out of their way to say there might not be any lease sales at all. Its very important for the administration to send a signal to the global oil markets that the United States is serious about increasing supply ... for the long term, he said, repeating a longtime claim by industry officials and Republicans that ties uncertainty over oil supply to high prices. Biden in recent weeks has criticized oil producers and refiners for maximizing profits and making more money than God, rather than increasing production in response to higher prices as the economy recovers from the pandemic and feels the effects of Russias invasion of Ukraine. The leasing announcement was a bitter disappointment to environmentalists and some Democrats who rallied around then-candidate Biden when he promised to end new drilling in federal lands and waters. The proposal comes a day after the administration held its first onshore lease sales, drawing $22 million in an auction that gives energy companies drilling rights on about 110 square miles (285 square kilometers) in seven western states. The sales came despite the administrations own findings that burning oil and gas from the parcels could cause billions of dollars in potential future climate damages. Our public lands and waters are already responsible for nearly a quarter of the countrys carbon pollution each year. Adding any new lease sales to that equation while the climate crisis is unfolding all around us is nonsensical, said House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona. Cynthia Sartou, executive director of the environmental nonprofit Healthy Gulf, called the lease-sale plan a huge loss for Gulf residents, American energy policy and the global climate. Moderate Democrat Joe Manchin, who chairs the Senate energy committee, welcomed the proposal as a chance to get our leasing program back on track. While Americans everywhere are suffering from record high gas prices and disruptions in the global oil market caused by (Russian leader Vladimir) Putins senseless war in Ukraine, the Department of the Interior hasnt held any successful offshore lease sales since November 2020, the West Virginia lawmaker said. Under the Trump administration, Interior officials had proposed 47 sales, including 12 in the Gulf of Mexico, 19 in Alaska and nine off the Atlantic coast that were later withdrawn. Trump lost the 2020 election before the proposal was finalized. The current format of holding Gulf-wide sales was put in place under Obama because of dwindling interest in offshore leases. Prior to that there had been decades of regional sales. Fridays announcement opens a 90-day public comment period, then a final plan must be submitted 60 days before it goes into effect. The government held an offshore lease auction in the Gulf of Mexico in November that brought $192 million in bids. A court canceled that sale before the leases were issued. Haaland has said previously that the industry is set with the amount of drilling permits stockpiled and at its disposal. She testified during a House hearing in April that the industry has about 9,000 permits that have been approved but are not being used. Oil production has increased as the economy recovers from the coronavirus slowdown, but its still below pre-pandemic levels. Energy companies have been reluctant to ramp up production further, citing a shortage of workers and restraints from investors wary that todays high prices wont last. Major oil companies reported surging profits in the first quarter and sent tens of billions of dollars in dividends to shareholders. Athan Manuel of the Sierra Club said delaying offshore sales until next year is an important step toward protecting communities and climate, and we urge the administration to finalize a plan that commits to no new offshore drilling leases, period. If you know of local business openings or closings, please notify us here. PREVIOUS OPENINGS AND CLOSINGS Air Products and Chemicals Inc.'s chosen warehouse developer, Prologis Inc., will have to wait until July 13 for a final decision by Upper Macungie Township's zoning hearing board on 2.61 million square feet of warehouses. Chubby's of Southside Easton has added Krispy Krunchy Chicken to its offerings and name. Curaleaf Holdings Inc., which operates in the U.S. and Europe, will open a medical-marijuana dispensary at 1801 Airport Road, Hanover Township. Habitat for Humanity, which has "ReStores" that sell new and lightly used furniture, has leased 30,000 square feet at the South Mall. Nat Hyman's bid to convert an old warehouse at 938 Washington St. in Allentown into 48 apartments did not win zoning hearing board approval this week after neighbors said more housing would make an on-street parking shortage worse. Members 1st Federal Credit Union opened a new branch this week at 5605 Hamilton Blvd, Trexlertown. It's one of five planned for the Lehigh Valley. A Turkish restaurant has relocated from one downtown to another, taking its fresh ingredients and cozy atmosphere from Nazareth to 200 Main St., Tatamy. The Tennessee Titans have chosen Allentown-based Shift4 Payments to handle payments at Nissan Stadium. Wells Fargo Bank held ribbon-cutting at its downtown Allentown branch at 740 Hamilton St. The Wiz Kidz outlet at the Madison Farms residential/retail development in Bethlehem Township will hold a grand reopening and ribbon-cutting at noon on July 15. Bad Biscuit Company, which offered breakfast with scratch-made biscuits, freshly baked pastry and local, small-batch artisan coffee, said it will cease operations at 16 Columbia Ave. in Reading after its July 1 hours. FastBridge Fiber has announced it will build an all-fiber cable network that will offer ultra-fast internet in the Reading area. Hamid Chaudhry has said he no longer plans to move forward with pursuing a food truck park he previously proposed on the site of the former Sheetz convenience store and gas station in Exeter Township at 6600 Perkiomen Ave. (Route 422 East). The Maxatawny Township Planning Commission has OK'd a proposal for a Mavis Discount Tire store in the Kutztown Road shopping center that features a Giant supermarket. Valentino's Italian restaurant has gotten Maxatawny Township's approval to remain open when the state transportation department takes one-third of its parking lot to build a traffic roundabout at the intersection of Route 222 and Long Lane. Pocono Mountain Harley-Davidson, under new ownership, will hold a "Grand Re-Opening Bash" July 9 and July 10 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sauce West End plans to open in a former Rita's Italian Ice, just off Route 209 across from the Tractor Supply store in Brodheadsville. The Surgery Center of Pottsville, which offered medical procedure services for 16 years in Cressona Mall. will close June 28. Wells Fargo has closed its branch office in Langhorne, near the intersection with Maple Avenue. The latest PrimoHoagies location in New Jersey held a grand opening at 1930 State Route 57, Hackettstown. A new Tractor Supply Co. store in Warren County will have its grand opening in the former Toys 'R' Us store in Pohatcong Plaza on July 9. Hunter Pocono Peterbilt plans to move Pocono Township operations to Stroudsburg. Coal Winery and Kitchen at 81 Broad St., Bethlehem, has closed as its owner searches for a new location for the business, according to its Facebook page. Lowhill Township supervisors approved a 312,120-square-foot commercial warehouse and distribution center on a 43.4-acre tract on the west side of Route 100, south of the Kernsville Road intersection. The Mint Gastropub at 1223 W. Broad St., Bethlehem, announced that it has temporarily closed to undergo a merger with a "well-known restaurant group" from Bethlehem. The Slatington Farmers Market opened its 28,000-square-foot showroom, which includes space for 53 vendors, as well as a 4,000-square-foot event space. St. Luke's University Health Network opened a new pediatric inpatient unit next to the eight-bed pediatric intensive care unit at St. Luke's University Hospital Bethlehem. 25th Asian House opened at the location of the former Tin Tin Chinese restaurant in the 25th Street Shopping Center in Palmer Township. The Chick-Fil-A in Broadcasting Square shopping center in Spring Township was razed to make way for a new, expanded facility for the popular chicken sandwich restaurant. Plans for drive-thru locations of a Chipotle and a Starbucks at the intersection of Ivy League Drive and Kutztown Road were rejected by Maxatawny Township planners. Cumru Township plannes reviewed preliminary plans for NorthPoint-Morgantown Commerce Center, a 738,720-square-foot warehouse to be built on 75.2 acres at Morgantown Road (State Route 10) and Freemansville Road. Kutztown University has plans to expand its historic Poplar House to 13,161 square feet with an addition around its side and back, but keep the 129-year-old structure intact. A wine store and beverage outlet could be coming to a new two-unit building along the commercial strip of Blakeslee Boulevard Drive East in Lehighton, Carbon County. ChristianaCare, a Delaware health care organization, has announced it will buy the former Jennersville Hospital in West Grove, Chester County. Garden of Health Inc. celebrated the opening of the food bank's new warehouse at 201 Church Road, North Wales, in Montgomery County. Silverline Trailers Inc. opened its first location in Pennsylvania and in the Northeast at 223 Porter Road, Pottstown, where it sells utility, cargo, dump, equipment and car hauler trailers. A new smoothie and bowl restaurant, Sips & Berries, opened at 285 Maple Ave., Harleysville, in Montgomery County. Terrain on the Parkway offers 160 new 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom apartments at 1625 Lehigh Parkway East in Allentown. Lehigh Valley native Don Wenner is moving his real estate investment and finance firm DLP Capital from Bethlehem to Allentown at 835 W. Hamilton St. While Wells Fargo has been the leader in closing banks lately, it will hold a ribbon-cutting for its new downtown Allentown office at 740 Hamilton St. on June 30. If you're in the market for sterling silver jewelry, minerals and semi-precious gemstones, C& I Minerals is now operating at the South Mall at 3300 Lehigh St. in Allentown. The Allentown-based utility company PPL Corp. bought a major Rhode Island utility. Ownership at Martellucci's Pizzeria in Bethlehem has changed, but Paul and Donna Hlavinka and their family are running the pizza place at 1419 Easton Ave., just as it has been operated for 49 years. Dr. Jacob Kasprenski's new Kasprenski Family Eye Care opened at 1088 Howertown Road, Catasauqua. Josie's New York Deli in downtown Easton closed early in the COVID-19 pandemic, but a June 13 Historic District Commission meeting approved a request for a new sign at its building at 14 Centre Square. Zekraft cafe has opened its second location in the Easton Silk Mill in Easton. The first Zekraft restaurant was opened in Bethlehem. The restaurants' menus change frequently, with a focus on local ingredients. Manta Massage at 319 Main St., Emmaus, will hold its grand opening on July 10 starting at 11 a.m. The former Iron Lakes Country Club, constructed in the late 1950s and early 1960s, will operate at 3625 Shankweiler Road in North Whitehall Township under its new name, The Club at Twin Lakes. Prologis, a titan in the logistics industry, will own and operate three warehouses proposed in Upper Macungie Township at the former Air Products headquarters campus at 7201 Hamilton Blvd. Lehigh Valley Health Network ceremonially opened its first Carbon County hospital a $78 million, 100,578-square-foot facility at 2128 Blakeslee Boulevard Drive East in Mahoning Township. Pocono Township commissioners voted to accept Swiftwater Solar's preliminary final plan for the $111 million, 80-megawatt field on a private 644-acre site on top of Bear Mountain that would include about 200,000 solar panels. Firetree Ltd. wants to expand its in-patient rehab operation at the former Sands Ford auto dealership at 440 N Claude A Lord Blvd. (Route 61), Pottsville. A Dunkin' in Schuylkill County located at 400 Terry Rich Blvd., St. Clair, has become just the fourth location of the donut and coffee chain to go entirely digital. The Conservatory music school in Bucks County will close after 34 years, and school officials say the COVID-19 pandemic is the cause. The nonprofit, located at 4059 Skyron Drive, Doylestown, will close June 30. A Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and Arby's will be built on the site of the former Ahart's Market on Route 22 in Phillipsburg, New Jersey. Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce offices and the Unity Bank Center for Business & Entrepreneurship will be located at 119 Main St., Flemington. Honeygrow opens Quakertown location, next to Chipotle on Route 309, on June 3. Dunkin' reopens remodeled restaurant at 1174 MacArthur Road in Whitehall Township Muse Modern Med Spa at 325 Fifth St. in Whitehall Township will hold a grand opening June 4. Around Again, a consignment store, opened at 154 S. Main St., Phillipsburg Steak and Steel Hibachi, a restaurant in the works at 44 W. Walnut St., Bethlehem, still plans on opening late this summer. Take It Outdoors Recreation Hub has moved to a spot along the Schuylkill River Trail at Riverfront Park in Pottstown, Montgomery County Pedego Electric Bikes has a new outlet in Lambertville, N.J. at 13 N. Union St. Amanda Vachris has opened a new Keller Williams Real Estate office at 15 St. John St. in Schuylkill Haven. Easton's new West Ward Market will open Wednesday and be open on Wednesday's through the summer from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. The market, created by the Greater Easton Development Partnership, will sell fresh produce on 12th Street, next to Paxinosa Elementary School. Ciao Sandwich Shoppe is adding a second location, this time on College Hill in Easton. Ciao plans to open at 325 Cattell St. in late summer. Ciao already operates in downtown Easton at 12 N. Third St Ma's Crepes and Cakes will hold a grand opening and ribbon-cutting June 16 at 46 W. Broadway, Jim Thorpe. The celebration starts at 5 p.m., with the ribbon cutting at 5:45 p.m. Bethlehem's Back Door Bakeshop will reopen as a wholesale operation at 7 E. Church St. in the city's historic district. The business was open for nine years as a retail outlet at Broad and Center streets, before announcing in March that it would close the storefront April 3 and "go back to its origins as a wholesale business." The Beef Baron on Catasauqua Road in Bethlehem is closed indefinitely for renovations The Brothers That Just Do Gutters are opening a new location in Allentown at 1302 N. 18th St. St. John Chrysostom Academy, an Orthodox school serving grades 1-9 starting this fall, held a grand opening at its St. Francis Center, Bethlehem, campus. Easton Commons, a shopping center anchored by Giant Foods at 2920 Easton Ave., Bethlehem Township, has a new name: The Shops at Bethlehem. Carbon County is getting a taste of Brazil at Uai Brasil BBQ at 315 Lehigh Ave. in Palmerton. The Keystone Pub in Bethlehem Township, at 3259 Easton Avenue, has reopened after a lengthy and expensive renovation. The Trading Post Depot opened at 401 Northampton St., Easton. The rustic furniture store makes custom tables for dining rooms, desktops, conference centers and more. The Easton area has a new gym: Homemade Fitness at 444 Cedarville Road in Williams Township. Il Gaetano Ristorante opened at its 665 Columbus Ave., Phillipsburg, location. Ciao! Sandwich Shoppe to open second location on College Hill in Easton, replacing The Kettle Room Rene and Grisellies Benique have opened Ezekiel 47 Cafe at 10 S. Fifth Ave., off Fifth and Penn avenues, in West Reading. Alter Ego Salon and Day Spa in Emmaus is holding a grand opening Sunday, May 22, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a ribbon cutting at noon. Origen Latin Fusion has opened at the site of the former Tomcat Cafe in Sinking Spring, Berks County. Sellersville Senior Residences will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony May 24. The Bucks County affordable-housing community for adults 55 and older has 50 apartments, with eight allocated for people with behavioral health needs. The House and Barn in Emmaus has opened its Shed outdoor dining and cigar bar area. The House and Barn is at 1449 Chestnut St. in Emmaus. Realtor Amanda Vachris and the Schuylkill Chamber of Commerce will hold a ribbon cutting at Vachris's new Keller Williams Real Estate office at 15 St. John St., Schuylkill Haven, at 4 p.m. on May 24. Il Gaetano Ristorante will hold a grand opening on Friday, May 20, at 5:30 p.m. The 665 Columbus Ave., Phillipsburg. First Commonwealth Federal Credit Union will hold a grand opening at its new headquarters in Trexlertown, 6126 Hamilton Blvd., on May 18. Vinyl Press Signs & Graphics has relocated within Emmaus. The new site is 15 S. Second St., not far from the former Sixth Street location. Pedro's Cafe in Emmaus to close SV Sports (formerly Schuylkill Valley Sports) to close Quakertown location Flemington DIY will host a Grand Re-Opening on May 14 at 26 Stangl Road, Flemington. The celebration will kick off at 10 a.m. Elpedios Ristorante at Seipsville opened at 2912 Old Nazareth Road in Easton. The restaurant is open Wednesday through Sunday. Uai Brazil opened at 315 Lehigh Ave, Palmerton, offering both a seated or buffet option. Colombian Mex Restaurant opened at 107 E Union Blvd in Bethlehem, offering traditional Colombian cuisine. Precision Ink opened at 161 W Berwick St. in Easton. King Wing opened a location in Bethlehem at 129 E. Third St., serving wings and sandwiches. Reading, PA (19601) Today Humid with limited sunshine. Scattered showers and thunderstorms, most widespread later in the afternoon. Watching for heavy downpours and possible localized flooding. May be dry for much of the morning/ midday.. Tonight An evening shower or thunderstorm; otherwise, mostly cloudy and muggy. There might be some clearing late. Celebrated theatre director Peter Brook has died aged 97. Brook worked on dozens of seminal productions across his career, both with the RSC during its infancy and alongside the Royal Opera House, where he served as director of productions. He picked up a variety of awards including a Tony, an Emmy, an Olivier and the Europe Theatre Prize. In 1970 he founded the International Centre for Theatre Research, working out of Paris to deliver internationally revered stagings of classics and new texts. One of his most commended contributions to theatre was his oft-cited text The Empty Space, a formative interpretation of the way in which theatre is made that has been the handbook for many directors since. It was also the basis for the Empty Space Peter Brook Award annual prize, which was given for the last time in 2017. Perhaps Brooks' most well-known individual work is his 1970 staging of A Midsummer Night's Dream, presented on an empty white set where metaphor presided over the material. The cast for the production included Ben Kingsley, Frances de la Tour, Sara Kestelman and Alan Howard. Many have seen this as one of the most influential Shakespeare revivals of the last century. Brook last spoke to WhatsOnStage in 2018, when his production of The Prisoner ran at the Edinburgh International Festival and National Theatre, saying "the most depressing thing about theatre today is excessive seat prices." The West End will dim its lights for two minutes for Brook on Monday (4 July). The profit was 2.5 times higher than the target set by the Ministry of Education and Training and the highest earnings in the publisher's history. In previous years, the publisher's after-tax profit hovered between VND120-150 billion a year. A recently released business report says the publisher printed more than 164 million textbooks last year, exceeding the annual target by about 40 percent. Its earned total revenues of VND1.8 trillion, over 97 percent of which came from book publishing. The company had a return on equity (ROE) of 39.9 percent and a return on total assets (ROA) of 17.9 percent. The publisher's seven subsidiaries also reported profits totaling VND46 billion. Another factor in the improved performance was the increase in textbook prices. In the 2020-2021 school year, the prices of textbooks were two to four times higher under the new general education program. The publishing house explained that prices went up because the cost of all four components - the number of books in one set for each grades, the cost of organizing the manuscript, the cost of materials and the cost of marketing increased significantly. Textbooks are not currently on the list of items priced by the State, but by enterprises that have to declare their prices to the Ministry of Finance. Publishers are solely responsible by law for the correctness and suitability of their pricing structures. The education ministry had asked the publisher to review the entire process of compilation, printing and distribution to reduce the prices of textbooks. Following this, a 3-9 percent reduction was made over the original declaration. VATICAN CITY (AP) Pope Francis greeted members of the Congolese community in Rome, borrowing words from their native languages Sunday to wish them peace and joy during an especially vibrant ceremony at St. Peters Basilica. Faithful wait for the arrival of Pope Francis to celebrate a mass for the Congolese community, in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Sunday, July 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) VATICAN CITY (AP) Pope Francis greeted members of the Congolese community in Rome, borrowing words from their native languages Sunday to wish them peace and joy during an especially vibrant ceremony at St. Peters Basilica. Francis, 85, was supposed to make a July 2-7 pilgrimage to Congo and South Sudan. But the trip was called off last month due to persistent knee pain that has caused the pope to use a wheelchair or a cane in recent weeks. His itinerary for the since-postponed trip would have had him in Congo on Sunday, celebrating Mass at the airport in the capital, Kinshasa. Instead, some 2,000 Congolese or descendants of people from Congo joined the pope in Mass at the Vatican. They clapped when Francis began his homily by speaking a few words in Congo's languages. Faithful attend a mass for the Congolese community presided by Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, Sunday, July 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) Prayers by the faithful were recited in Swahili, Lingala, Tshiluba and Kikongo, the countrys four official languages. "A Christian always brings peace, Francis said, reflecting the theme of reconciliation he planned to thread through his Africa pilgrimage. The colorful clothes and vibrant singing of the congregants made for a sharp contrast with the often somber attire and chants of clergy, nuns and rank-and-file faithful at many basilica ceremonies. A day earlier, Francis sent a video message to the people and leaders of Congo and South Sudan that exhorted them to forge new paths of reconciliation, peace and development. He expressed disappointment that he couldn't travel this month but promised to visit as soon as possible. In his Sunday homily, the pontiff renewed his encouragement. The Free Press | Newsletter Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. "Today, dear brothers and sisters, let us pray for peace and reconciliation" in Congo, Francis said. He described he country, which is one of the world's poorest despite a wealth of natural resources, as "so wounded and exploited." The Catholic Church played a role in the establishment of democracy in Congo and has advocated for human rights there. The church deployed about 40,000 election observers to monitor the 2019 vote that brought Felix Tshisekedi to the presidency in what was Congos first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since independence from Belgium in 1960. At the end of Mass, a nun, Rita Mboshu Kongo, addressed the pontiff in Italian, thanking him for his concern for Africa, wishing him good health and saying that Congo's people were waiting for him to visit with open arms. Francis, leaning on his cane, hobbled a few steps to his wheelchair, and an aide wheeled him out of the basilica as the faithful waved and sang joyfully. ___ This version has been updated to correct the spelling of Congo's capital to Kinshasa. RCMP in northern Manitoba say the province's Independent Investigations Unit has been notified after a shooting involving police left a man with serious injuries. RCMP in northern Manitoba say the province's Independent Investigations Unit has been notified after a shooting involving police left a man with serious injuries. The Free Press | Newsletter Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Police say in a news release that the detachment in Shamattawa, over 700 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, responded to a report Saturday afternoon about a male walking on a road carrying a gun. They say officers immediately began patrolling the area, and during their patrols, they heard several gunshots and headed toward them. The release says they located the 22-year-old suspect outside of a residence, and an interaction occurred with the officers that resulted in shots being fired. Police say the suspect, who is from the community, sustained serious injuries and was taken to the nursing station. No officers were injured. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 2, 2022. The Supreme Courts latest climate change ruling could dampen efforts by federal agencies to rein in the tech industry, which went largely unregulated for decades as the government tried to catch up to changes wrought by the internet. FILE - Lina Khan, nominee for Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission, speaks during a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, April 21, 2021. The Supreme Courts latest climate change ruling could dampen efforts by federal agencies to rein in the tech industry, which went largely unregulated for decades as the government tried to catch up to changes wrought by the internet. Under Chair Khan, the FTC also has widened the door to more actively writing new regulations in what critics say is a broader interpretation of the agencys legal authority. (Graeme Jennings/Washington Examiner via AP, Pool, File) The Supreme Courts latest climate change ruling could dampen efforts by federal agencies to rein in the tech industry, which went largely unregulated for decades as the government tried to catch up to changes wrought by the internet. In the 6-3 decision that was narrowly tailored to the Environmental Protection Agency, the court ruled Thursday that the EPA does not have broad authority to reduce power plant emissions that contribute to global warming. The precedent is widely expected to invite challenges of other rules set by government agencies. Every agency is going to face new hurdles in the wake of this confusing decision," said Alexandra Givens, the president and CEO of the Center for Democracy and Technology, a Washington-based digital rights nonprofit. But hopefully the agencies will continue doing their jobs and push forward." The Federal Trade Commission, in particular, has been pursuing an aggressive agenda in consumer protection, data privacy and tech industry competition under a leader appointed last year by President Joe Biden. Biden's picks for the five-member Federal Communications Commission have also been pursuing stronger net neutrality protections banning internet providers from slowing down or blocking access to websites and applications that dont pay for premium service. A former chief technologist at the FTC during President Donald Trump's administration said the ruling is likely to instill some fear in lawyers at the FTC and other federal agencies about how far they can go in making new rules affecting businesses. The court basically said when it comes to major policy changes that can transform entire sectors of the economy, Congress has to make those choices, not agencies, said Neil Chilson, who is now a fellow at libertarian-leaning Stand Together, founded by the billionaire industrialist Charles Koch. Givens disagreed, arguing that many agencies, especially the FTC, have clear authority and should be able to withstand lawsuits inspired by the EPA decision. She noted that Chief Justice John Roberts, who wrote the opinion, repeatedly described it as an extraordinary" situation. Givens is among the tech advocates calling for Congress to act with urgency to make laws protecting digital privacy and other tech matters. But she said laws typically stay on the books for decades, and it's unrealistic to expect Congress to weigh in on every new technical development that questions an agency's mandate. We need a democratic system where Congress can give expert agencies the power to address issues when they arise, even when those issues are unforeseen, she said. The government literally cant work with Congress legislating every twist and turn. Empowered by Congress in the 1970s to tackle unfair or deceptive" business practices, the FTC has been in the vanguard of Bidens government-wide mandate to promote competition in some industries, including Big Tech, health care and agriculture. A panoply of targets include hearing aid prices, airline baggage fees and product of USA labels on food. Under Chair Lina Khan, the FTC also has widened the door to more actively writing new regulations in what critics say is a broader interpretation of the agencys legal authority. That initiative could run into stiff legal challenges in the wake of the high court decision. The ruling could call into question the agencys regulatory agenda leading it to either tread more cautiously or face tougher and more expensive legal challenges. Khan "hasnt really been someone who pursues soft measures, so it may be a damn-the-torpedoes approach, Chilson said. University of Massachusetts internet policy expert Ethan Zuckerman said it would be hard to gauge any potential impact of the courts ruling on existing tech regulation. That's partly because theres just not that much tech regulation to undo," he said. He said one target could be the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a bete noire for many conservatives. Big companies such as Facebook parent Meta could also potentially appeal tough enforcement actions on the idea that federal agencies weren't explicitly authorized to regulate social media. Were in uncharted territory, with a court thats taking a wrecking ball to precedent and seems hell-bent on implementing as many right-wing priorities as possible in the shortest possible time, Zuckerman said. The ruling could dampen the appetite for agencies like the FTC to act to limit harm from artificial intelligence and other new technologies. It could have less effect on new rules that are more clearly in the realm of the agency imposing them. Michael Brooks, chief counsel for the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety, said the ruling isnt likely to change the governments ability to regulate auto safety or self-driving vehicles, although it does open the door to court challenges. For instance, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has clear authority to regulate auto safety from a 1966 motor vehicle safety law, Brooks said. The Free Press | Newsletter Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. As long as the rules they are issuing pertain to the safety of the vehicle and not anything thats outside of their authority, as long as its related to safety, I dont see how a court could do an end run around the safety act, he said. Unlike the EPA, an agency with authority granted by multiple, complex laws, NHTSAs "authority is just so crystal clear," Brooks said. NHTSA could have problems if it strayed too far from regulating safety. For example, if it enacted regulations aimed to shift buyers away from SUVs to more fuel-efficient cars, that might be struck down, he said. But the agency has historically stuck to its mission of regulating auto safety with some authority on fuel economy, he said. However, its possible that a company such as Tesla, which has tested the limits of NHTSAs powers, could sue and win due to an unpredictable Supreme Court, Brooks said. ___ Associated Press writers Marcy Gordon in Washington, Frank Bajak in Boston and Tom Krisher in Detroit contributed to this report. GIGI Fallorin of Hugh John McDonald School one of the Winnipeg inner-city schools that participated in the Careers that Fight Climate Change program was recently awarded the 2021 Outstanding Teacher Award by the Science Teachers Association of Manitoba for her innovative approach. GIGI Fallorin of Hugh John McDonald School one of the Winnipeg inner-city schools that participated in the Careers that Fight Climate Change program was recently awarded the 2021 Outstanding Teacher Award by the Science Teachers Association of Manitoba for her innovative approach. Fallorin says the program was an "immersion experience," giving students an opportunity to see "the real-world applications" of their classroom learning and enabled her to reflect and grow. Although an experienced teacher in the Philippines, Fallorin worked in a manufacturing plant after arriving in Canada in 2004, until deciding to invest the time and money in the "after education program" required to teach in Manitoba. "If I can beat the system, I told myself Id better rise up to the challenge," she says. A pilot initiative, Careers that Fight Climate Change gave youth in Winnipegs inner city a unique opportunity to explore careers in climate change through land-based education. Jobb Arnold, associate professor of conflict resolution studies at Menno Simons College of Canadian Mennonite University, created the program after interviewing organizers from Indigenous, non-Indigenous and newcomer communities about their concerns before and after the 2015 federal election. Arnold identified climate change as a "superordinate goal" that could bring people of different identity backgrounds together. Another common desire was employment. "(I was) thinking about, what are some careers that people could tap into that would also start to address these kinds of existential questions of climate change, and how could (we) bring people together to do practical things with these kinds of goals in mind?" Around 20 youth (ages 13 to 17) from opposite sides of the railway tracks participated in the program from September 2017 to June 2018. They came from R.B. Russell, a primarily Indigenous vocational high school, and Hugh John McDonald middle school. A few university students acted as mentors. The group visited various sites of historical importance, including Lower Fort Garry, where Treaty 1 was signed. "I think it was really impactful that people were thinking about what does it mean to have a treaty? What does it mean to be a treaty person? What does that relational dynamic entail?" says Arnold. "(It) grounds the conversation in a real way to a certain place." Another outing was to Shoal Lake 40 First Nation, where they learned the aqueduct built to pump fresh water into Winnipeg also resulted in isolating the local Indigenous community from the mainland. The youth got to put their science skills into action through water testing and participated in a fish fry. During a visit to Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba (IRCOM) House, which provides transitional housing for newcomer families, Arnold said Indigenous students shared the site had previously served as low-income Indigenous housing. Subsequent group discussions reflected on the fact no similar support exists to help Indigenous people from reserves to settle in the capital city. Youth also toured Social Enterprise Centre to explore alternative pathways to education and employment. Shaun Loney, social entrepreneur and 2022 Winnipeg mayoral candidate, defines social enterprises as "disruptive" non-profit businesses combining kindness and compassion with tools of entrepreneurship. "We believe the work were doing is really Canadas defining issue connecting the people who most need to work with the work that most needs to be done," says Loney. Students were introduced to BUILD Inc., co-founded by Loney, which helps people with multiple barriers to employment in the North End gain work experience in trades over six months while installing insulation in low-income housing areas. Participants also gain access to skills development opportunities, such as drivers training and financial literacy. Youth also encountered Aki Energy, another initiative Loney co-founded and which he says has now installed $15-million worth of geothermal energy or "ground source heat pumps" on Indigenous land while employing Indigenous people. "I felt (the school groups) hope for a better world, that there were business models that could bring about the economic change and the social change and environmental change that is needed in our city," says Loney. According to Fallorin, the youth gained an appreciation for Indigenous cultural traditions of paying respect to the land. Many are now in Grade 12, but keep in touch with her. "Some are thinking of going into agriculture, which is kind of unheard of for many of the millennials." The Free Press | Newsletter Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Funding from CMU covered the core land-based activities of the Careers that Fight Climate Change pilot. Additional funding from collaborators at the University of Manitobas community service learning department helped facilitate community-based partnerships and staff support. After Arnolds application for further funding through a Social Science and Humanities Research Council Connect Grant in 2017 was unsuccessful, the program ended in June 2018. Busy with caring for his first child and co-ordinating a masters program in peace and collaborative development since, Arnold has not sought further funding for the initiative. He has, however, continued to be involved in other experiential land-based learning initiatives, such as the course for the Canadian School of Peacebuilding he co-taught this spring at Sandy Saultaux Spiritual Centre. He is now exploring funding possibilities for a new project, aiming "to integrate student learning alongside collaborative development while building sustainable relationships between diverse groups in very different settings, from urban spaces to more rural and Indigenous communities." Arnold says in the current local and global context, "there is a need for greater collaborations that engage both students and communities in response to a range of interdependent challenges." This story was written for the Winnipeg Free Press Reader Bridge as part of a partnership with New Canadian Media Boulevard Fine Meats & Deli bills itself as a traditional, full-service butcher shop with a twist. What sort of twist, you might ask? Well, one of the most popular offerings at the Southdale locale, inconspicuously tucked inside a strip mall at 49 Vermillion Rd., is a culinary version of a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. Cara Potenza, who runs the aromatic, 2 1/2-year-old locale with her sisters Cari and Cori, credits head butcher Norm Howat for coming up with their hot-selling bacon shots, which individually consist of a thick slice of garlic sausage cloaked in bacon and topped with cream cheese. Not only do individual shots pack a punch owing to a smattering of diced jalapeno in the cream cheese, theyre good for you, too, Potenza says with a wink. "I swear, Norm is more a scientist than he is a butcher, in that hes able to reverse engineer anything, just by looking at a picture of it," she says of Howat, who came out of retirement two years ago at age 68 to teach the sisters everything he knows, and then some. "He enjoys watching all these southern barbecue shows in his spare time and the next thing we know, we have something unique like bacon shots on special." ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Boulevard co-owners (and sisters) Cara Potenza, left, and Cori Bodz, right, with butcher Norm Howat. Cara, Cori and Cari no, they arent triplets; their parents just werent overly creative when it came to naming kids, Potenza says with a laugh were raised on a farm in the southeastern part of the province, near Piney. Growing up, they were counted on by their mom and dad to do everything from driving a tractor to feeding livestock to birthing cattle. That is, when they werent exploring their entrepreneurial side by running a Kool-Aid stand serving "all four people in Piney," Potenza says, chuckling again. One by one, the three of them moved away from home shortly after turning 18 Potenza lives in West St. Paul with her husband and their 14-year-old son, while both her sisters reside in Lorette but the strong work ethic their parents instilled in them remained. ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS In addition to brats, burgs and steaks, Boulevard Fine Meats stocks locally made condiments and snacks. That commitment to an honest days work didnt go unnoticed. In 2015, Potenzas father-in-law, Pasquale Potenza, who helped found the highly successful Aura Hair Group after immigrating to Canada from Italy with little but the shirt on his back, took Cara aside. He informed her if she and her sisters ever wanted to start a business of their own, he would happily back them, 100 per cent. Pasquale didnt live long enough to see Boulevard Fine Meats come to fruition he died in 2017, two years before the shop opened in December 2019 but his daughter-in-law says it was his unbridled support that gave them the confidence they needed, to leave steady, secure jobs to work for themselves. ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Fresh cuts on display at Boulevard Fine Meats. To honour his memory, a black-and-white chalk mural on the wall directly behind the deli counter boasts a signpost labelled "Pasquale Boulevard," among other images. (If youre scratching your head over why its called Boulevard Meats despite not being situated on Lakewood Boulevard, Southdales main drag, its simply because one of the available buildings they viewed when they were shopping for a location was on a boulevard in Bridgwater. The word stuck with them when it came time to choose a name.) The same way she heaps praise on Howat for the aforementioned bacon appetizers, Potenza cites him again as the reason their venture survived a tumultuous first year. Their original butcher left to pursue other interests a couple months after they opened, she says, just before COVID turned the world upside down. Business remained steady, what with restaurants being closed for dine-in, which in turn caused more people to prepare meals at home, but their profit margin was "horrible," given all their certified Angus beef was being brought in from Alberta. ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Freshly made sausages hang in the Southdale shop. "Norm had been in the biz for over 50 years and completely turned things around," she explains. "He has connections throughout the province and immediately started bringing in local (meat) only. Plus he was doing all the butchering himself, not just cutting like we had been doing, which saved us a ton of money and, price-wise, allowed us to compete with the big guys, like Sobeys." Another plus was slowly transforming the shop into what Potenza refers to as a "butcher boutique" selling meat, sure, but also Manitoba-produced favourites such as Smak Dab mustard, De Lucas pizza sauce and Utoffea chocolate. Additionally, Potenzas mother-in-law, who is also Italian, was only too happy to share her time-tested family recipes with the sisters, for the sake of offering customers pre-made meals they could toss in the freezer and heat up at their convenience. One problem: because Dina Potenza could prepare her lasagna and chicken parmigiana blindfolded, she had to sit down with a pen and paper to figure out exactly how much of this or that spice she used, so staff could properly replicate her technique in the on-site commercial kitchen. ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The store is a butcher boutique, selling Manitoba-made sauces, condiments and snacks alongside the meat. Besides the usual suspects ribs, steaks, brisket, brats Boulevard Fine Meats is also home to something called pig wings. Years ago, Potenza and her husband Vince were holidaying in Brainerd, Minn., when they spotted a food truck advertising the oddly named delicacies, which, they soon learned, are cut from the animals shank, with a thin single bone attached: a pork popsicle, if you will. The "wings," smoked and slathered in barbecue sauce, were "the greatest thing wed ever eaten," she enthuses, and when they returned to Winnipeg, they searched high and low for something similar, without success. Last summer she asked Howat if he knew what she was talking about. He didnt, but after watching a few YouTube videos, he was able to render the pig wings exactly as described. ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Jacqueline McNeil stocks the cooler with packaged meats. "We started offering them as a special a couple times a month, and boom, not only were people driving here from all over town, but other butcher shops in the city began making pig wings, too," Potenza says. "One of my sisters got mad but I told her, hey, when places like (Red River) Co-op are copying you, you must be doing something right." The Free Press | Newsletter Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Going forward, Potenza and her sisters are supremely interested in discovering what a "real" year in business looks like. While an operation like theirs is largely weather-dependent when its hot and dry out, theyd better have lots of pre-made patties and footlongs in the freezer; cold and gloomy means soups and stews they remain unsure what a slow or busy week truly looks like. "Its probably the same for any business that got its start during COVID; you have nothing to compare last years sales to, because so many variables were involved," she says, pausing to let her sister know shell be there in a sec to help her fill an order for a fully-dressed charcuterie board. ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Boulevard Fine Meats & Deli is a full-service butcher shop whether you need kubasa or something a little more unusual. "Mind you, we plan on being here for a long time to come, so I guess well find out soon enough, right?" Boulevard Fine Meats and Deli is open Tuesday to Sunday; closed Mondays for the summer. David Sanderson writes about Winnipeg-centric restaurants and businesses. david.sanderson@freepress.mb.ca KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russia claimed control Sunday over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of Moscow's grinding war. A Ukrainian serviceman changes his position at the frontline near Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Saturday, July 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka) KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russia claimed control Sunday over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of Moscow's grinding war. The General Staff of Ukraine's military reported that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk in Luhansk province, but the president said the fight for the city was still raging on its outskirts. If confirmed, Russia's complete seizure of Luhansk would provide its troops with a stronger base from which to press their advance in the Donbas, a region of mines and factories that President Vladimir Putin is bent on capturing in a campaign that could determine the course of the entire war. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin that Russias troops, with a local separatist militia, have established full control over the city of Lysychansk and now hold all of Luhansk, according to a ministry statement published Sunday. As is typical with such descriptions, the Russian statement characterized the victories as the liberation of the Luhansk Peoples Republic. Separatists in Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk, which make up the Donbas and are home to significant Russian-speaking populations, declared independence from Kyiv in 2014 and their forces have battled Ukrainian troops there ever since. Russia formally recognized the self-proclaimed republics days before its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. In this photo provided by the Luhansk region military administration, damaged residential buildings are seen in Lysychansk, Luhansk region, Ukraine, early Sunday, July 3, 2022. Russian forces pounded the city of Lysychansk and its surroundings in an all-out attempt to seize the last stronghold of resistance in eastern Ukraine's Luhansk province, the governor said Saturday. A presidential adviser said its fate would be decided within the next two days. (Luhansk region military administration via AP) Ukrainian and Russian forces fought fiercely for Lysychansk in recent days after the neighboring city fell last week. On Sunday evening, the General Staff of Ukraine's military confirmed on social media that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk to preserve the lives of Ukrainian defenders. Earlier, however, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy said Kyiv's forces were still battling Russian soldiers on the citys outskirts in a very difficult and dangerous situation. We cannot give you the final judgment. Lysychansk is still being fought for, Zelenskyy told a news conference in Kyiv given alongside Australia's visiting prime minister. He noted that territory can move quickly from one side to the other. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, center, listens to a translator, during his visit to Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, July 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty) Russian forces maintain an advantage in the area, he acknowledged, calling it a Ukrainian military weak spot. The capture of Lysychansk would give the Russians more territory from which to intensify attacks on Donetsk. In recent weeks, Russian forces were thought to hold about half of Donetsk, but it's not clear where things stand now. If Russia prevails in the Donbas, Ukraine would lose not only land but perhaps the bulk of its most capable military forces, opening the way for Moscow to grab more territory and strengthen its ability to dictate terms to Kyiv. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, center, checks vehicles damaged by Russian shelling, during his visit to Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, July 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty) Since failing to take Kyiv and other areas in northern and central Ukraine early in the war, Russia has focused on the Donbas, unleashing fierce shelling and engaging in house-to-house combat that devastated Lysychansk, neighboring Sievierodonetsk and nearby villages. Few details emerged from either city during the battles, which decimated their populations as people were killed or fled. Already Russian forces appeared to be pushing their advance in Donetsk, concentrating rocket attacks on the sizable Ukrainian-held city of Slovyansk, where at least six people were killed, regional government spokeswoman Tatyana Ignatchenko told Ukrainian TV. Kramatorsk, another major city in the Donetsk region, also came under fire, the regional administration said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, right, and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese take part in a press conference, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, July 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty) Far from the fighting in the east, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday visited a town near the capital that was severely damaged early in the war. Albanese called the destruction in Irpin devastating." "These are homes and these are livelihoods and indeed lives that have been lost here in this town, he said. Meanwhile, the exiled mayor of the Russia-occupied city of Melitopol said Sunday that Ukrainian rockets destroyed one of four Russian military bases in the city. The Free Press | Newsletter Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Attacks were also reported inside Russia, in a revival of sporadic apparent Ukrainian strikes across the border. The governor of the Belgorod region in Western Russia said fragments of an intercepted Ukrainian missile killed four people Sunday. In the Russian city of Kursk, two Ukrainian drones were shot down, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Kursk regional governor Roman Starovoit said the town of Tetkino, on the Ukraine border, came under mortar fire. ___ Ebel reported from Prokovsk, Ukraine. Associated Press journalist Maria Grazia Murru contributed from Kyiv. ___ Follow AP's coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) A gunman opened fire inside a busy shopping mall in the Danish capital Sunday, killing three people and critically wounding three others, police said. A view of an armed police officer inside the Field's shopping center, in Orestad, Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, July 3, 2022, after reports of shots fired. (Olafur Steinar Gestsson /Ritzau Scanpix via AP) COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) A gunman opened fire inside a busy shopping mall in the Danish capital Sunday, killing three people and critically wounding three others, police said. A 22-year-old Danish man was arrested after the shooting, Copenhagen police inspector Sren Thomassen told reporters, adding there was no indication that anyone else was involved in the attack, though police were still investigating. Gun violence is relatively rare in Denmark. Thomassen said it was too early to speculate on the motive for the shooting, which happened in the late afternoon at Fields, one of the biggest shopping malls in Scandinavia and located on the outskirts of the Danish capital. When the shots rang out, some people hid in shops while others fled in a panicked stampede, according to witnesses. It is pure terror. This is awful, said Hans Christian Stoltz, a 53-year-old IT consultant, who was bringing his daughters to see Harry Styles perform at concert scheduled for Sunday night near the mall. You might wonder how a person can do this to another human being, but its beyond beyond anything thats possible. People evacuated from the Field's shopping center run, in Orestad, Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, July 3, 2022, after reports of shots fired. (Olafur Steinar Gestsson /Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Thomassen said the victims included a man in his 40s and two young people, without giving details. Several others were injured, three of them critically, he said. He said police received the first reports of a shooting at 5.37 p.m., and arrested the suspect 11 minutes later. Thomassen described the suspect as an ethnic Dane, a phrase typically used to mean someone is white. Danish broadcaster TV2 published a grainy photo of the alleged gunman, a man wearing knee-length shorts, a vest or sleeveless shirt, and holding what appeared to be a rifle in his right hand. He seemed very violent and angry, eyewitness Mahdi Al-Wazni told TV2. He spoke to me and said it (the rifle) isnt real as I was filming him. He seemed very proud of what he was doing. People evacuated from the Field's shopping center gather outside, in Orestad, Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, July 3, 2022, after reports of shots fired. (Olafur Steinar Gestsson /Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the Scandinavian country had been hit by a cruel attack. It is incomprehensible. Heartbreaking. Pointless, she said. Our beautiful and usually so safe capital was changed in a split second. Images from the scene showed people running out of the mall, and TV2 posted a photo of a man being put on a stretcher. After the shooting, an enormous contingent of heavily armed police officers patrolled the area, with several fire department vehicles also parked outside the mall. A woman and children flee the Field's shopping center after a shooting, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, July 3, 2022. Danish police said Sunday that several people were shot at a Copenhagen shopping mall, one of the largest in Scandinavia. Copenhagen police said that one person has been arrested in connection with the shooting at the Fields shopping mall, which is close to the city's airport. Police tweeted that several people have been hit, but gave no other details. (Olafur Steinar Gestsson/Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Laurits Hermansen told Danish broadcaster DR that he was in a clothing store at the shopping center with his family when he heard three, four bangs. Really loud bangs. It sounded like the shots were being fired just next to the store. The shopping center is on the outskirts of Copenhagen just across from a subway station for a line that connects the city center with the international airport. A major highway also runs adjacent to the mall. Organizers called off the Harry Styles concert, which had been scheduled at the nearby Royal Arena, by order of police. An ambulance and armed police outside the Field's shopping center, in Orestad, Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, July 3, 2022, after reports of shots fired. Danish police say several people have been shot at a Copenhagen shopping mall. Copenhagen police said that one person has been arrested in connection with the shooting at the Fields shopping mall on Sunday. Police tweeted that several people have been hit but gave no other details. (Olafur Steinar Gestsson /Ritzau Scanpix via AP) On Snapchat, Styles wrote: My team and I pray for everyone involved in the Copenhagen shopping mall shooting. I am shocked. Love H. The royal palace said a reception with Crown Prince Frederik connected to the Tour de France cycling race had been canceled. The first three stages of the race were held in Denmark this year. The reception was due to be held on the royal yacht that is moored in Soenderborg, the town where the third stage ended. The Free Press | Newsletter Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. In a joint statement, Queen Margrethe, her son Crown Prince Frederik and his wife, Crown Princess Mary, said: We do not yet know the full extent of the tragedy, but it is already clear that more people have lost their lives and that even more have been injured. The situation calls for unity and care, they said in a statement. The shooting came a week after a mass shooting in neighboring Norway, where police said a Norwegian man of Iranian origin opened fire during a LGBTQ festival, killing two and wounding more than 20. It was the worst gun attack in Denmark since February 2015, when a 22-year-old man was killed in a shootout with police after going on a shooting spree in the capital that left two people dead and five police officers wounded. ___ Ritter reported from Unterseen, Switzerland. Columbus Area Historical Society 1972 Within two weeks William Wendts dream of having an art gallery in Columbus came true. Wendt, an art teacher at Columbus High School together with the Columbus Art Association, opened The Gallery at 115 North Ludington Street. The idea behind the project was service not profit. Its purpose was to make art available that is not mass produced. The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad Company filed an application to remove the depot in Fall River and change the agents hours to On Call basis. 1982 Plans were being finalized for the 4th of July celebration. The 1982, parade Grand Marshall was Earl Withuhn. New this year, was a $2 admission charge to enter the Firemans Park grounds. A number of special discounts were available. Mrs. Dorothy Robbins, Fall River, was selected as the Columbus Public School District teacher of the year. Dorothy was a fourth grade teacher at the school. 1992 The second and third floor apartments were nearly completed and available in the Whitney building. The apartments were available for residents aged 62 or older. The Whitney Building was a project of the Columbus Downtown Development Corporation with many local people and businesses donating to the project. The annual 4th of July celebration included two special events, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of David Lee Crosby, was scheduled to perform in the park, and the 1st Brigade Band, a band reenacting the Civil War era and playing Civil War instruments, music, while wearing uniforms. 2002 Two burglaries occurred at the Cenex Co-Op convenience store, located on Park Avenue in Columbus. Cigarettes, gloves, and lottery tickets worth $309 were taken along with $269 in cash. The Columbus Police Department quickly took five suspects into custody. Tony Stout-Verdier, Joe Fahrenkopf, and Shawn Swaagman spent their summer traveling and performing with the Capital Sound Drum and Bugle Core. Follow us on Facebook at Columbus, WI Area Historical Society, or email museumcahs@gmail.com. The Columbus WI Area Historical Society is looking for a new home for its museum. If anyone has ideas on where to locate, contact Peter Kaland, society president. Seven people have been detained in Dong Nai Province for illegally sending around 200 people to Cambodia to work. Vong Phat Chuong, 36, and six of his accomplices were arrested by police in the southern province Saturday for questioning in connection with brokering illegal exit from Vietnam. Chuong came to know a man named Thanh in Cambodia through social media who asked him to find workers for his company. For every person he sent, Chuong was to receive VND300,000 ($12.87). Chuong and his accomplices then tricked people online by telling them they would go to Tay Ninh for a job with high salaries, but sent them over the border to Cambodia and handed over to Thanh instead. Since the beginning of this year, they managed to send around 200 people in this manner. An investigation is ongoing. BEIJING, July 2 (Xinhua) "I would like to borrow a pair of wings from the crane to soar up to the sky," Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday quoted the poem by Meng Jiao in Tang Dynasty (618-907) when delivering a speech during a trip to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Xi cited the line when addressing the meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland and the inaugural ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to encourage Hong Kong to create a splendid feat. In the speech, Xi said that China's national rejuvenation has become a historical inevitability, and the successful practice of "one country, two systems" in Hong Kong is an important part of this historic process. Xi said that with the strong backing of the motherland and the solid guarantee provided by "one country, two systems," Hong Kong will surely create a splendid feat on the journey ahead toward the second centenary goal of building China into a modern socialist country in all respects, and will share the glory of the Chinese nation's rejuvenation together with people in the rest of the country. (Source: Xinhua) There are many lakes around the world that are drying up. This is a huge problem, because not only does it affect the environment, but it also affects the people and animals that rely on the lake for their livelihood or sustenance. Here is a list of three lakes that are in danger of disappearing completely. First, Why Are Lakes Drying Up? Great Salt Lake- Image Credit Urvish Prajapati via Unsplash Across the region, lakes are drying up due to a combination of drought, increased demand for water, and changing precipitation patterns. In the last two decades, over two hundred small lakes have dried up in the United States. This trend is likely to continue as the climate continues to warm. The western United States has been in a prolonged drought for over a decade. This has led to less water available for lakes. Also, as populations have grown, so has the demand for water. This has led to more water being withdrawn from lakes for consumptive uses such as irrigation and domestic use. Finally, changing precipitation patterns are also playing a role in the decline of lakes. As the climate warms, there is less snowfall in the mountains. This means that less water is available to feed into lakes during the spring and summer months. Consequences Of Our Lakes Drying Up Lake- Image Credit Ruston Jones via Unsplash The drying of lakes has far-reaching consequences. Lake ecosystems are complex and provide many benefits to humans and wildlife. As lakes dry up, these benefits are lost. Fish populations decline as their habitats disappear. Wetland habitats are lost as well. These habitats are important for migrating birds and other wildlife. The loss of lakes also impacts people who live in nearby communities. Lakes provide recreation opportunities such as fishing, swimming, and boating. They also attract tourists which can boost local economies. As lakes dry up, these benefits are lost. Lakes In The US That Are Drying Up Lake Mead, Nevada, and Arizona Lake Mead- Image Credits DeltaOFF via Shutterstock Lake Mead, the biggest reservoir in the United States, is drying up. The effects of this are far-reaching and threaten the stability of the entire Southwest region. Lake Mead provides water to nearly 20 million people in Arizona, Nevada, and California. It also generates hydroelectric power for millions more. The Colorado River, which feeds Lake Mead, has been in a state of drought for over a decade. The river basin has seen below-average rainfall for 16 consecutive years. As a result, lake Mead has lost over 30 percent of its total volume. If the current trend continues, the lake will be dry within two decades. The consequences of this would be catastrophic. The loss of such a major source of water would devastate communities and cause widespread economic hardship. Hydroelectric power plants would be forced to close, costing thousands of jobs. And the ecological damage would be irreversible. Great Salt Lake, Utah Great Salt Lake- Image Credit Bella Bender via Shutterstock The reason for the Great Salt Lake drying up is because the lake's tributaries have been diverted for irrigation and other uses. This has caused the water level to drop by about four feet since 2016. The lake is now at its lowest level since 1847. The shrinking of the Great Salt Lake has serious consequences. The lake is a vital part of the local ecosystem and provides a habitat for many species of birds and fish. The loss of water also hurts the local economy, as the lake is a popular destination for recreation and tourism. The good news is that there are efforts underway to try to save the Great Salt Lake. One proposal is to build a pipeline that would bring water from the Bear River into the lake. This would help to replenish the water that has been lost. Walker Lake, Nevada Walker Lake- Image Credit James Mattil via Shutterstock The once vast and deep lake is now a shadow of its former self, and scientists believe that it could be completely dry within the next few decades. The reasons for the lake's decline are many, but the main one is simple: there's not enough water flowing into it to replace what's being lost through evaporation. And as the climate continues to warm, that evaporation is only going to increase. There are other factors at play too, including the fact that Walker Lake is located in a "basin" - meaning that it doesn't have an outlet to another body of water. This means that all of the inflowing water has nowhere to go but evaporate. The decline of Walker Lake is a tragedy, not just for the local community but for the ecosystem as a whole. The lake is home to native fish species that are now at risk of extinction, and its loss would be a devastating blow to the area's biodiversity. But it's not all doom and gloom! There are things that can be done to slow the lake's decline, including working to reduce evaporation by planting trees around the shoreline. And even if the lake does eventually dry up completely, it could one day be restored - albeit with a lot of hard work and dedication. In Summary Lakes drying up is a huge problem all over the world, including in the US, and its happening faster than we thought it would. If you want to help out, share this article with your friends and family, or leave a comment below with your tips on how we can save these lakes! A Florida county is under quarantine due to the discovery of invasive giant African land snails. Pete Arredondo, left, had been elected to the city council just weeks before the May 24 school massacre. Over 200 students and businesses attend inaugural engineering/digital expo at new Skills Factory Over 200 students, businesses and visitors descended on Coleg Cambria Deeside for a cutting-edge celebration of skills and engineering. The inaugural Digital Manufacturing Skills Expo was held at Medru The Skills Factory and welcomed the cream of UK industry. Among them were companies such as Universal Robots, Manchester Metrology, Alpha 3 Manufacturing, KUKA, Innovative Physics, Broetje Automation, RARUK Automation, Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC Cymru), Croft Additive Manufacturing Ltd, WHM-Robotics, Omnia-NW Ltd, Mark 3D Ltd, V360 Group, Wittenstein, Measurement Solutions Ltd, ALRAD Instruments and Metlase Ltd. Organised in partnership with Nu-Tech Exhibitions and Events, the Open University and Bangor University, the free programme showcased Industry 4.0 the fourth industrial revolution and Smart Technology. Nigel Holloway, Cambrias Director of Business Solutions, said: It was a fantastic day with so many leading names in attendance. From an academic, business and technology perspective it was well-received, and we hope this will be the first of many expos to be held at Cambria in the years ahead. There were also demonstrations, interactive workshops, technical presentations, technology transfer and networking throughout the day. Dr Daniel Roberts, Medru Liaison Officer for Bangor Universitys School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering, said: It was great to see so many delegates and exhibiters attending this event with a fantastic range of equipment on display, demonstrating how companies can become Industry 4.0 ready. Nu-Tech Managing Director Lisa Jones-Taylor added: It was brilliant to have so many big names at the Skills Factory, demonstrating their innovative Industry 4.0 capabilities and sharing knowledge and best practice with their peers thanks to everyone who attended. Visit www.cambria.ac.uk for more news and information from Coleg Cambria. Readers of the Travel + Leisure magazine have included Vietnam's Da Nang, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in the list of "Top 10 Cities In Southeast Asia" under "Asia's Best Awards 2022." The list released by the American magazine late last month, based on votes collected from readers around the world between January and April this year, ranks Da Nang, Hanoi and HCMC in third, fifth and eighth place, respectively. Bangkok, boasting great hotels, delicious food and a bustling nightlife, topped the list. Vietnam's Phu Quoc and Con Dao were ranked fourth and 10th in the "Best Islands in Southeast Asia" category. Thailand's Phuket topped this list with riders citing plenty of unique accommodations, outdoor activities and attractions to explore. Vietnam's General Statistics Office (GSO) says the country welcomed 602,000 foreign arrivals in the first half of this year, around 7 percent of the pre-pandemic level in 2019. The country targets receiving five million foreign tourists this year, around 30 percent of 2019 figure. If you are between 18 and 30 years old, speak good English and are interested in the topics of reconciliation and bridge-building and want to develop your leadership skills, you are invited to take part in the annual ROM meeting! This year ROM will be taking place August 6-20 in Trebinje, Bosnia & Herzegovina. This new location was chosen in order to make it more accessible for participants from all over the Balkans. Trebinje is at the southernmost tip of BiH, making it much closer to Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo, and Macedonia, and it is also only a 30min drive from the Dubrovnik airport, connecting it with the rest of Europe. If you are interested in participating, please contact ROM Director Bojan Ruvarac and you will receive further details: ruvarac@forumlr.org Today, the United States celebrates its birthday: 246 years since the original 13 North American colonies declared their independence from Great Britain. For much of that time, the North American continent, and later the United States, was seen as a land of opportunity, where people could start anew, make their fortunes and be beholden to no one. Some came to escape persecution for their religious or political beliefs, such as the Puritans that settled todays Massachusetts in 1620. But the earliest settlers who in 1607 founded Jamestown, North Americas first permanent colony, as well as the majority of those who came to America over the next four centuries, did so in hopes of improving their financial situation and building a better life. As far as the British government was concerned, colonies existed to enrich the British Crown and state. This was the age of mercantilism, an economic policy that sought to increase a nation's wealth through exports. British colonists were prohibited from any form of manufacturing, limited to selling raw materials and purchasing finished products exclusively from Britain. British imports, on the other hand, were increasingly more heavily taxed, until the colonists rebelled. With the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, the American colonies proclaimed their intention of separating from the British monarchy. When the seven-year war of American Independence ended with the colonists victory, so did mercantilism. This allowed for the development of manufacturing and opening of new markets for trade. In turn the economy grew, offering locals and newcomers an opportunity to improve their lives. That said, not everyone benefitted equally from the changes brought by the Revolution. Most of the gains went to white men. Women and enslaved African Americans made great contributions to the Revolution. Without them, the fight may very well have been lost. Yet the Revolutionary war did not end slavery, as many of the enslaved expected, nor did it result in full legal rights for women. It took another 80 years for slavery to be abolished, and another 40 after that before women could vote. Nonetheless, with the end of British rule and the birth of the United States, a pathway to freedom for all was laid, a window began to open. In the words of the author of the Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson, The equal rights of man, and the happiness of every individual, are now acknowledged. MEGA It seems that Amber Heard is trying to find a way to avoid appealing her defamation trial against her ex-husband Johnny Depp. The "Aquaman" actress is asking a judge to toss the jury's verdict and grant her another trial due to a lack of evidence and an alleged fake juror. Amber Heard Wants A Re-Do Against Johnny Depp... Due To An Alleged Imposter Juror MEGA Over a month ago, a seven-person jury in Fairfax, Virginia, ruled that Heard had committed defamation in her 2018 Washington Post op-ed, where she declared herself a survivor of domestic violence. The jury awarded the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor $15 million dollars in damages - $10 million dollars in compensatory damages and $5 million dollars in punitive damages. The $5 million dollars was later reduced to $350,000 dollars - the maximum allowed under Virginia state law. Heard was also awarded $2 million dollars out of her $100 million dollar countersuit after the jury found that one of Depp's attorneys had committed defamation when he called her abuse claims "a hoax." MEGA According to TMZ, the "Zombieland" actress wants a judge to dismiss the jury's verdict and start over. Earlier this week, Heard's legal team filed new legal documents in Virginia, asking a judge to either set aside the jury's ruling for Depp, dismiss the complaint, or order a completely new trial. Heard's legal team is arguing three main points, the first of which was that Depp's legal team didn't have enough evidence to prove that the statements in her op-ed damaged his career, even though a jury decided that they had. MEGA The second argument is along similar lines as the first: they argue that Johnny Depp's career was already in jeopardy due to showing up late on set, among other allegations, and that Heard shouldn't be held responsible for that. Her legal team also claims that Depp's lawyers failed to prove that she acted "with malice" when she wrote her op-ed, adding that Depp's legal team failed to prevent evidence that Heard didn't believe what she wrote in her op-ed. Story continues In other words, a jury can't find defamation in a true statement, and Heard's legal team argues that Heard believes everything she wrote was true and that she truly was a victim of abuse. They are also mentioning yet again that Heard never mentioned Depp by name in the op-ed, so they don't understand how a jury could rule that she had defamed him. Biggest Allegation Yet: Heard's Legal Team Says One Member Of The Jury Was An Imposter MEGA In one of the strangest twists in the highly-publicized defamation trial between Amber Heard and Johnny Depp, Heard's legal team is arguing that one of the members of the jury summoned to court is not actually the person who showed up. They allege that the court didn't do its due diligence in vetting its members. On paper, Juror #15's records show that they were born in 1945. Apparently, Heard's legal team has been doing their own research on each member of the jury, and they concluded that this person is much younger than that, and might have been born in 1970. As such, they want the courts to investigate this further. If it turns out that the person summoned to court was not actually the person summoned to the jury, it does present a strong argument to dismiss the jury's verdict and start the trial all over again. MEGA It should be noted that this latest legal document is not an appeal. As The Blast previously reported, Amber Heard has to post the $8.3 million dollars that she owes Depp in order for an appeal to be considered. It remains to be seen if "The Rum Diary" actress actually has enough money to post an appeal. As TMZ noted, a judge has yet to rule on her latest filing or comment on the possibility of an imposter juror. One of Depp's attorneys, Ben Chew, said that he actually expected this move from Heard's legal team, but noted nothing "substantive" in her motion. MEGA It should be noted that one male juror has already come forward to talk about how they reached a decision in the defamation case under anonymity. They also countered the argument posed by Heard's attorney, Elaine Bredehoft, saying they were influenced by the #JusticeForJohnnyDepp hashtag on Twitter. The anonymous male juror said that he, and many other members of the jury, do not actually have a Twitter account and stayed away from trial coverage while online. His full statements can be read here. East Alabama residents came out on Saturday in support of women's reproductive rights within Etowah County, hosting a march that allowed them to peacefully oppose the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, a landmark case in 1973 that granted abortion rights. "We are here because abortion is healthcare, and you're not going to take away my right to choose just like you would take away others' rights," said march organizer Tabatha Vaughn. "We no longer have full rights in Alabama, and we want people to know we aren't going down easy." The Women's Reproductive Health Rights March began at 6 p.m. at the YMCA on Broad Street, which allowed marchers to make the walk up to Gadsden City Hall and back. Many marchers chanted and carried handmade signs in support of the movement, with sayings and chants such as "Stars and stripes and women's rights" and "My body, my choice!" The Knapp family alongside signs at the March for Women's Reproductive Rights in Gadsden. "I have a 16-year-old daughter, and I worry about her not having rights to her own body," said Jennifer Knapp, who brought her family from Oxford, "We came in from Calhoun County and they did not have anything planned there, so we decided to come here and share our voices." "I wanted to be able to protect our rights," added Sherri Dejong, another participant. "If we don't stand up now, who knows where this will go." Some of the goals set out by the march, according to Vaughn, included letting lawmakers know that those fighting to protect abortion rights will not go down without a fight. "We are not fighting for our rights anymore. We are fighting to get them back," she explained. "It's about time that people realize that their beliefs do not dictate everybody else." Dr. Jazma Dobbins, the keynote speaker at the March for Women's Reproductive Rights. The march also featured keynote speaker Dr. Jazma Dobbins, owner of Gadsden Pelvic Rehab. "Approximately 38% of my patients in pelvic rehab today are victims of sexual assault at some point in their lives," she said. "If a pregnancy is the result of that assault, she has to carry that pregnancy to term because of Alabama's trigger laws that are already in effect." Story continues Vaughn added that Alabama's abortion laws are the "most restrictive" out of all the states, with many people not knowing that they have already went into effect. "They were voted on in 2019 and blocked in court because they are the most restrictive in the country. And they are not going to stop there. They are coming for your right to privacy and contraception and the right to be a free American." Terica West alongside her daughter with signs at the March for Women's Reproductive Rights Dobbins explained that the protest "wasn't even about children," but the right to body autonomy. "It's about the right to do what we will with our own bodies, and it's about equal body autonomy," she said, "We deserve that. These decisions should be made heavily by the woman and not by the attorney general." Some local political candidates came out to show support for the march, including Democratic candidate for U.S. House of Representatives Rick Neighbors. "It's these people here that brought me out to this march," he said. "The Supreme Court has made a horrible decision to roll back the idea of liberty over 200 years. I'm glad these folks are willing to stand up, and I wanted to help be a voice with them." Dobbins said abortion was not a political issue when the Roe v. Wade decision was handed down, citing that the Southern Baptist Convention is on record in 1977 saying it was in support of it in many states, which was not repealed until the 1980s. A marcher and her sign at the March for Women's Reproductive Rights. "It has not always been political and polarized," she said. "The media and the political machines have caused this. It's about women's bodies and our right to body autonomy." Ultimately, Vaughn hopes the march causes people in Gadsden and surrounding communities to become encouraged and educated. ""We want to spread the word," she said, "and I hope that other people see and hear that." Organizers hope to hold another rally in late August that includes pro-choice political candidates from all major political parties. Marchers with signs at the March for Women's Reproductive Rights. This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: East Alabama residents march for women's reproductive rights Ms. Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean joined forces to perform a handful of Fugees classics at the 2022 Essence Festival. The surprise reunion occurred during Wyclefs unannounced set at New Orleans Caesars Superdome on Friday (July 1). Midway through his performance, Hill stepped out for a solo rendition of Killing Me Softly before being joined by her Fugees bandmate on How Many Mics, Fu-Gee-La and Ready or Not. More from Billboard The Fugees, including bandmate Pras, last performed together during a surprise pop-up concert in New York as part of a Global Citizen event in September 2021. The brief show marked the groups first show since 2006. The beloved hip-hop trio had planned on embarking on a 12-date international reunion tour this year to celebrate the anniversary of their landmark 1996 album, The Score, but the trek was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. We anticipate and understand disappointment but our anniversary tour will not be able to happen. The continued Covid pandemic has made touring conditions difficult, and we want to make sure we keep our fans and ourselves healthy and safe, the Fugees said in a statement. An idea sparked to honor and celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Score but we see now it may not currently be our time for revisiting this past work. The Score, the Fugees second and final studio album, hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and scored hits with Killing Me Softly, Fu-Gee-La and Ready or Not. The collection also won the Grammy for best rap album and another for best R&B performance by a duo or group with vocals for Killing. After splitting in 1998, the Fugees reunited in 2004 for Dave Chappelles Block Party concert film, came back together the next year for a 12-minute medley to open the 2005 BET Awards and played their final show in Feb. 2006 at a free gig for fans in Los Angeles. Story continues Watch a portion of Hill and Wyclefs Essence Festival reunion here. Click here to read the full article. As we gather to celebrate Independence Day, its a good time to reflect on how our most fundamental freedoms have served this nation well. Its an even better time to think about what would happen if those liberties were taken away. Sadly, the latter doesnt take much imagination in 2022. Your closest video screen will show you scenes of Russian troops pummeling Ukraine with the support of a majority of the Russian people. The Russian public has been told that their country is doing noble work ferreting out Nazis and that the West is engaged in its usual persecution of Russia and its people. Surveys say most Russians believe it. In times of war, people always want to see their government as the good guys, but its still a little hard to grasp how that many people can be so thoroughly misled. Thats the power of the Vladimir Putin playbook. The Russian president quickly and with little opposition eliminated the freedoms of speech and press. First, Putin bandied around allegations of fake news, undermining domestic news media that had far more latitude than their Soviet Union counterparts. Then he coordinated a plan with the national legislature to pass a law imprisoning those who lied about the war, including even calling it a war. Russian media of integrity had to close up shop, and international journalists in Russia had to temper their reporting. An elderly Ukrainian woman looks on after Russian shelling in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, June 29, 2022. That left the internet as the one avenue for Russians to learn the truth about their countrys misdeeds. Putin then banned social media outlets and sharply limited access to international news sites. In short order, the Russian people were isolated, left to believe the lies of their government. It took just weeks for Putin to wipe out freedoms of press, speech and dissent. Could anything like that ever happen in the United States? As unlikely as it may seem, there are some areas of concern. After all, over the past 60 years, certain presidents from both parties have been known to mislead the public about the purpose and progress of wars. And the use of fake news claims to evade responsibility began with politicians in this country, only to be adopted by totalitarian leaders around the globe. Story continues Today there are active efforts to overturn New York Times v. Sullivan, the 1964 Supreme Court decision that made investigative reporting viable in the United States. And there are many politicians, again of both parties, who want to control how private social media companies are run. Do I believe that America could fall victim to something resembling the Putin playbook? No. But its also no longer unthinkable. Its not a coincidence that the first step would-be dictators take is to shut down the press. That eliminates questions and accountability, both of which are anathema to those who abuse power. There are some today who choose not to be informed, saying the media are biased. Well, there are tens of thousands of media outlets in this country, including manipulative cable channels, partisan sites that masquerade as news providers and those sites that would entice us with clickbait. But there are also many core news organizations of integrity, including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, PBS and the very newspaper youre reading right now. Theyre the ones we need to support with readership and subscriptions. From the very beginning of this nation, Americans understood the importance of a free press aggressively reporting on people in power. In an era when newspapers were fiercely partisan and unfair, that first generation of citizens still insisted on journalists being protected by the First Amendment. That shouldnt surprise us. After all, the model was right there in 1776 in the document we celebrate this week. The Declaration of Independence called out King George III, reporting a list of injustices perpetrated by the mother country against its colonies. We had unalienable rights, it said, and they were being violated. Americans were no longer going to put up with this long train of abuses and usurpations. That is the same spirit with which Americas free press has exercised its duties since 1791. Abolitionist newspapers took on slavery, suffragist papers focused on injustices against women and news organizations spanning centuries have reported on scandals, corruption and racial injustice. We live in a highly polarized time, when its easy to dismiss the views of those with whom we disagree and deride those who publish the facts we dont want to acknowledge. We have to take care, though, that our internal political wars dont turn us away from the core principles contained in the Declaration of Independence. We remain a free people and need to be vigilant in protecting our rights and documenting the abuses in people in power, not just when the other guys party is in office. Thats the real spirit of 76. Ken Paulson, a former editor-in-chief of USA TODAY, is the director of the Free Speech Center, a non-partisan and non-profit center based at Middle Tennessee State University. Ken Paulson, a former editor-in-chief of USA TODAY, is the director of the Free Speech Center, a non-partisan and non-profit center based at Middle Tennessee State University. www.freespeech.center. JOIN THE CONVERSATION Send letters to the editor (up to 200 words) or Your Turn columns (about 500 words) to letters@tallahassee.com. Please include your address for verification purposes only, and if you send a Your Turn, also include a photo and 1-2 line bio of yourself. You can also submit anonymous Zing!s at Tallahassee.com/Zing. Submissions are published on a space-available basis. All submissions may be edited for content, clarity and length, and may also be published by any part of the USA TODAY NETWORK. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: The Spirit of 76: Protecting us against the Putin Playbook | Ken Paulson The Glades Barn at Home of William Davidson near Old Fort Disguised as an old woman, and riding horseback, she went from her home near the Catawba River (in North Carolina) to the Fort at Ninety-Six, South Carolina. The message (she carried) was, Hold out, more men are coming, wrote Catherine Rebecca Carson in 1934 of her ancestor Ruth Davidsons folkloric journey, which was said to have aided the Patriot cause during the Revolutionary War. Despite some discrepancies in the historic record in verifying 18th century ages and dates, many historians and genealogists believe that Ruth Davidson also played a central role in one of the most notorious early settlement stories in Western North Carolina history - a story passed down through the generations in which another strong-willed teenager, Liza, carried a child to safety on a similarly heroic journey. The first known written version of this earlier story, as told by Robert Brank Vance Davidson in 1870, reads: Our granduncle, Samuel Davidson, was killed by the Indians about the year 1776. He had worked his horse all day and turned him out to grass at night. Next morning he walked out to get his horse, and had not been long gone until his wife heard the sound of a rifle shot: and, taking the alarm, she snatched up her infant daughter, Ruth, and leaving the path, she made her way across the Blue Ridge about twenty miles to (Davidsons Fort) on its eastern slope. A negro woman left about the same time, and made her way back to the fort along the path. Though not much has been discovered relating to the identity of Samuels wife - she may have been Mary Smith, a sister of his friend, Daniel Smith - more has been uncovered related to the life of the other woman living with Samuel at the time of his death, the negro woman he enslaved. Her name does not appear in the written record until her ancestor, Johnny Baxter, gave an interview identifying her in the 1980s. He recalled, My grandmother on my mothers side was an indentured slave, and was held by the Davidson family. Her (grand)mother was also held by the Davidsons and was with Samuel Davidson and his family when he was scalped by the Indians. Story continues In a subsequent interview Baxter spoke again of his great-great-grandmother. Her name was Liza and in Baxters telling, Liza was a strong-willed teenager who saved Mary and Ruth Davidson by dragging them down the mountain, off the main trail and under the cover of darkness, to safety within the walls of Davidsons Fort (present-day Old Fort, North Carolina). As a tribute, Baxters family named a child after the heroic Liza every generation. Once the women arrived at the fort, several men, including Samuels twin brother, William, and his friend, Daniel Smith, organized an avenging party. They scaled the mountain, located Samuels body, buried him a shallow grave, and found and murdered a number of Cherokee men they found nearby. At this time, the Swannanoa Gap - the main pathway between Davidsons Fort and the mountaintop where Samuel Davidson was killed in present-day Swannanoa - was a busy thoroughfare as colonists attempted to push farther west into Cherokee territory and Cherokee people resisted this encroachment. During the summer of 1776, Cherokee men had attacked several white settlements, killing 37 people. In retaliation, on Sept. 1, 1776, General Griffith Rutherford and 2,500 men left Davidsons Fort and traveled up the Swannanoa Gap - the same path taken by the Davidson family as they attempted to settle Western North Carolina - burning 36 Cherokee villages farther west and leaving no homes, crops, or livestock unscathed. Despite his early demise and likely illegal encroachment on Cherokee territory, Samuel Davidson has long been celebrated as the First White Settler of Western North Carolina, as his grave marker declares. Samuel Davidson grave During the dedication of the stone marker in 1913, another of Samuel Davidsons ancestors, historian Forster Sondley, told a similar story of Davidsons death. The basic details were much the same as Robert Davidsons had been in 1870 except Sondley - and the marker - date Samuels death to late 1784 instead of 1776. This 12-year discrepancy between the two versions of the story is significant not only because treaties between the colonists and the Cherokee did not open the Swannanoa Valley to legal settlement until 1785, but also because Ruth, who was said to be an infant or young child when her father was killed, had been 16 years old by the time she was said to have ridden in disguise to Ninety-Six, South Carolina, in 1781. Adding more credence to the earlier date of Samuels death, Robert Davidson also recalled that, About fifteen years ago (in 1855) Mack Gudger, plowing a field near where Samuel Davidson was killed by the Indians, found a polished stone on which is rudely cut D. S. 1775, and on the opposite side S.D. These letters are supposed to stand for Daniel Smith (Samuels closest friend) and Samuel Davidson. Gudger gave me the stone. Hugh Davidson is now in possession of this stone, which he values highly. In Sondleys 1913 version of the story, the letters S. D. were cut in a pine tree which stood at the head of (Samuel Davidsons) grave; and (his nephew) Samuel W. Davidson always kept these letters freshened, in order that they might not become obscured by the accretion of moss or the growth of the tree. When Samuel W. Davidson died in 1858, the pine died and rotted away. For the intervening half century, Samuel Davidsons grave was seemingly unmarked. Prior to Samuels death, his twin brother William had built a log home on the Catawba River about 4.5 miles from Davidsons Fort. Known as The Glades, it was at this home in which Mary and Ruth - and to a lesser extent, Liza, who remained enslaved - found refuge after Samuels death and, potentially, the home from which Ruth would leave on horseback carrying an important message during the Revolutionary War years later. The Glades as it appeared c1950 after many additions. The section on the left is the original home. By May 1780 the British had won several important battles in South Carolina and were planning to invade North Carolina. After British and Loyalist forces pushed into North Carolina in late 1780, General Nathanael Greene took over command of the southern army and began reorganizing the troops in Virginia. By 1781 another British force threatened the backcountry of South Carolina and Greene needed to send a communication to the American troops there. Greenes message arrived at The Glades, where North Carolinas Patriot forces often held meetings under the direction of William Davidson. When 16-year-old Ruth heard of the need for a courier, she proposed that she take the message as she felt it unlikely that they would suspect a woman of carrying militarily-important intelligence. Ruth rode more than 100 miles alone over rough terrain and successfully delivered the missive to the Patriot troops in South Carolina. These detached troops now knew that Greene and hundreds of Patriot troops were headed their way to offer assistance. From May 22 until June 18, 1781, Greene staged a siege of the loyalist forts at Ninety-Six. Though Greene failed to take the fort, this battle proved to be a first step in Greenes campaign to retake the Carolinas, which was ultimately essential to an American victory in the Revolutionary War. In 1785, the United States and Cherokee signed the Hopewell Treaty. As a result, the Cherokee ceded more land to the colonists, including the land between present-day Black Mountain and East Asheville, which contained Samuel Davidsons final resting place. It was then that Samuel Davidsons extended family and the people they enslaved journeyed up the mountain and settled not far from Samuels grave near the confluence of the Swannanoa River and Bee Tree Creek, and formed the first white settlement in western North Carolina. It was known as the Swannanoa Settlement. It is likely that Liza traveled with William Davidsons family as they made their way to settle near Bee Tree Creek. Her daughter and granddaughter, according to Baxter, were also enslaved by the Davidson family. In 1838, Sophronia S. Burgin Davidson, a granddaughter of William Davidson, turned 21. Her father, John Burgin, gifted her five of the people he enslaved, including Eliza and Tom Lindsey, who may have been the great-grandparents of Johnny Baxter. Baxter recalled, My grandmother, Eliza, was born on one of the Davidson plantations in 1839. She stayed with the Davidsons until she purchased her freedom in order to marry a man by the name of John Henry, who had purchased his freedom from the Henry family. And, in the few existing primary documents recording the names of enslaved people in the Swannanoa area prior to the end of the Civil War, it shows that on May 25, 1862, the congregation of Berea Baptist met at the water and baptized Eliza a servant of Mrs. S.S. Davidson. Berea Baptist Church Diary, May 25, 1862, entry recording Elizas baptism. After gaining her own freedom, Eliza moved to live with her husband, John Henry, in the Chunns Cove area of Asheville. Johnny Baxter remembered of his grandparents, John Henry was deeply involved in the anti-slavery movement, his home was part of the underground railroad system. My grandmother was very helpful in the operation of their station as she was an expert cook. ... She died in 1945 at the age of 106 years. Ruth Davidsons life and the lives of her children took a different trajectory. According to Robert Davidsons 1870 account, The infant, Ruth, grew up and married James Wilson; and some time in the present century they settled in Williamson County, Tennessee, where their descendants now live, a highly respected family. Davidson family genealogists tend to agree that Ruth Davidson Wilson was also the teenage Patriot who rode to Ninety-Six. As a married woman, Ruth settled down and became the mother of at least nine children. She and her husband also enslaved at least 33 people including Patsy, Peggy, Newson, Rebecca, John, Fanny, George, Catherine, and Berry. Ruth died in 1826. Ruths children married and went on to own large plantations of their own. Her daughter, Rebekah, for instance, married Joseph McDowell Carson in 1808 and moved into his 42-room mansion at Green River Plantation near Rutherfordton. On her wedding trip from Tennessee to North Carolina her household goods and slaves followed in a baggage wagon. Patsy Mammy, one of the slaves who came with her, was for years (the) cook at Green River, remembered Catherine Rebecca Carson in 1934. We still have some of her recipes she used, the favorite being Apple Cake. Anne Chesky Smith is the executive director of the Western North Carolina Historical Association in Asheville. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: WNC History: Revolutionary journeys of 2 young WNC women By Trend On July 3, Shusha, the cultural capital of Azerbaijan, is hosting a conference of think tanks of member and observer countries of the Organization of Turkic States organized by the Center for Analysis of International Relations, Trend reports. In addition to the Azerbaijani side, the conference is attended by officials of the organization, leaders and representatives of the think tanks of the member countries - Turkey, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as Hungary, which is an observer country. LAS VEGAS (AP) Call it a form of long COVID, but more than two years after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, student enrollment at the College of Southern Nevada is down some 25% from the fall of 2019. Not only that, but the falloff seemingly has not bottomed out, with enrollment today down 5.5% compared with last fall, CSN officials said. Weve realized that the largest population of students that have made up this decline are underserved, under-resourced students, James McCoy, the schools vice president of academic affairs, told the Las Vegas Sun. Higher education may not as a result of the pandemic, as a result of the economy become a priority for some students, McCoy said. The College of Southern Nevada has the largest enrollment among Nevada universities, with almost 34,000 students in 2022. But it is seeing fewer students enrolling straight out of high school, which is why it is ramping up efforts to reach those students, according to officials. What is happening at CSN is emblematic of whats been going on at colleges and universities across the country. In U.S. undergraduate programs, enrollment has declined by 1.4 million throughout the pandemic, according to a report released by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Spring 2022 saw a drop of nearly 662,000 students, a 4.7% decrease from the same period the previous year. Public institutions accounted for the majority of the decline, losing 604,000 students including 351,000 from community colleges, according to the report. In total, community colleges have lost over 827,000 students from the start of the pandemic. I thought we would start to see some of the declines begin to shrink a bit this term, said Doug Shapiro, the centers executive director. I am surprised that it seems to be getting worse. For the spring 2021 semester, enrollment at Nevada colleges and universities dropped by 4.7%, then another 2% a year later. At Nevada State College, enrollment had been on the rise until spring 2022. The school had 7,287 students enrolled as of fall 2021, but going into fall 2022, it is looking at 7,215. Only about 34% of that group returned from last year, a retention rate that dropped from the previous years 54%. Our students are facing a variety of challenges, and some of those students are more impacted than others in terms of what those challenges mean, said Tony Scinta, executive vice provost at Nevada State College. Financial pressures are among the top reasons for the decrease in enrollment, as some students are holding off on their education to pursue work, Scinta said. Each semester, students pay almost $200 per credit in mandatory fees, which can add up to roughly $600 for a three-credit class. That doesnt include the $150 Special Building fee for students taking more than three credits, a $25 per-credit fee for distance learning, and any fee for special courses which can vary depending on the class. A 12-unit semester for students can cost more than $2,000. The school has taken a number of steps to boost enrollment, including offering more scholarships and grants, as well as other financial aid, he said. At the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, enrollment had been steadily rising since 2017 but dipped by about 400 undergraduate students in 2021, officials said. The campus reported nearly 26,000 students in fall 2020. Anytime we see declines in our student admissions or enrollment, its cause for concern, said Kate Korgan, senior vice provost of academic affairs. First-generation students and those facing financial struggles may be the least likely to return, especially considering the financial stress the COVID-19 pandemic caused. We have been quite intentional about making sure that students who have the fewest financial resources and are at the greatest financial risk of not being able to stay in school have received pretty tremendous support, Korgan said. UNLV has also stepped up its recruitment efforts, including conducting more virtual admissions sessions, officials said. We feel really good overall about where weve landed. It feels like were moving into something that looks like a new normal, Korgan said. A "no swimming" sign is seen near Ocean Beach on Fire Island in Islip, N.Y., Thursday, July 19, 2018, after two children were bitten in the leg in possible shark attacks. Seth Wenig/Associated Press A man may have been bit by a shark off a Long Island beach on Thursday, officials said. The injury came amid an increase in shark sightings in New York that began last summer. Officials are implementing more shark patrols, but experts stress the risk of an attack is very low. New York City officials are escalating efforts to patrol for sharks after an uptick in sightings and a possible attack at a beach on Long Island, despite assurances from experts that shark attacks pose an exceedingly low risk. The Nassau County Police Department said Thursday a 57-year-old man was swimming in the ocean at Jones Beach, a barrier island off the southern coast of Long Island. Police said the man sustained a laceration on his right foot while swimming. Medics later identified the injury as a possible shark bite. Nassau County police said they would implement increased patrols on beaches over the Fourth of July weekend. Jones Beach in particular is one of the most popular summer destinations for New Yorkers, attracting more than 6 million visitors every year. Shark attacks are extremely rare everywhere, but especially in New York. Still, since last summer there has been an increase in shark sightings off New York beaches. Sharks were spotted on numerous occasions feeding on schools of fish yards from the shore and in close proximity to swimmers, resulting in temporary closures of some beaches. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman held a press conference on Friday to announce an increase in police shark patrols for the summer, ABC7 reported. The patrols include efforts by boat, helicopter, and drones, as well as hourly sweeps along the shoreline. Still, experts continue to stress that shark attacks are exceptionally rare. "The danger to people is infinitesimal," Hans Walters, a scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society's New York Aquarium, told The New York Times. He added that there is no evidence of an increase of sharks in New York's waters and that recent fears are "very overblown." Read the original article on Insider In this Aug. 17, 2020, photo, inmate firefighters - notable by their bright orange fire gear compared to the yellow worn by professional firefighters - prepare to take on the River Fire in Salinas, Calif. The California Senate on Thursday, June 23, 2022, rejected a proposal to ban involuntary servitude as punishment for a crime after Gov. Gavin Newsoms administration warned it could cost taxpayers billions of dollars by forcing the state to pay inmates who work while in prison a $15-per-hour minimum wage. A proposed amendment in Californias constitution that would outlaw involuntary servitude as a punishment for crime failed to pass the state senate. As the Associated Press notes, California Gov. Gavin Newsoms administration argued that paying prisoners a $15-per-hour minimum wage would cost taxpayers billions. Currently, prisoners can make as low as 8 cents an hour. While the 13th Amendment outlaws slavery, California law allows involuntary servitude to punish someone for a crime. Inmates lack the same protections regular workers have regarding minimum wage and benefits. Prisons can also enforce discipline for refusing to work, including reduced privileges like limits on visits, telephone calls, and time out of their cells. Read more Assemblymember, now state Senator Sydney Kamlager introduced the Assembly Constitutional Amendment 3 (ACA 3), the California Abolition Act, in 2020. The state assembly passed the amendment with a 59-0 vote in March. As Kamlager notes, she ran out of time and supporters when the amendment fell seven votes short of the two-thirds margin it needed in the Senate. Voters in states like Louisiana, Oregon, and Tennessee will decide on similar provisions in the November elections. From the Associated Press: One of the challenges weve had is people are conflating policy with a moral argument about taking out words that are historical, that are loaded, that are remnants of a slave past and that were implemented in ways that made people less human, Kamlager said in an interview. The American Civil Liberties released a report calling for incarcerated workers to be paid fairly, adequately trained, and able to gain transferable skills. Former California State Prison inmate Samual Brown had to clean and disinfect prison cells during the height of the pandemic even while having asthma. While serving a 24-year attempted murder conviction, Brown worked several jobs, including porter, dishwasher, and hospital janitor, paying .75 cents an hour. Story continues As his comments to Cal Matters show, he could not change his job despite his medical condition. From Cal Matters: Long-missing Alexander Hamilton letter put on public display AP A letter written by Alexander Hamilton, believed to be stolen decades ago, is on display. The letter was believed to be stolen by a worker at the Massachusetts state archive. The letter resurfaced when an auctioneer reported it stolen to the FBI after a family attempted to sell it. After an intense legal battle, the letter was returned to the Commonwealth Museum in Boston. A letter written by Alexander Hamilton in 1780 that was believed to be stolen is on display at the Commonwealth Museum in Boston, The Associated Press reported on Sunday. The letter was long-believed to be stolen and sold by a "kleptomaniacal cataloguer" between 1938 and 1945 from the Massachusetts state archive, per the AP. The letter warned Massachusetts General, William Heath, of a British threat to french troops in Rhode Island. "We have just received advice from New York through different channels that the enemy are making an embarkation with which they menace the French fleet and army," Hamilton wrote in the letter, according to the AP. "Fifty transports are said to have gone up the Sound to take in troops and proceed directly to Rhode Island." The AP said the letter resurfaced several years ago by an auctioneer in Virginia who contacted the FBI. The auctioneer received the letter from a family who wanted to sell it. According to the Associated Press, the letter was estimated to sell for as much as $35,000. A legal battle would soon follow. The estate of the person who possessed the letter had claimed it was purchased legally and belonged to them. However, the AP reported that last October a federal appeals court ruled that it belonged to the state. The letter will now be featured as part of the Commonwealth Museum's annual July Fourth exhibit, state officials told the AP the first time the public is getting a chance to see it since it was returned to the state after a lengthy court battle. Read the original article on Insider North Korea on Sunday accused the US of trying to create a Nato-like military alliance in Asia as it criticised the country for a recent agreement on strengthening military cooperation with South Korea and Japan. Claiming that the three allies cooperation has prompted it to reinforce its own military capability, North Korea cited the long-standing hostility with the three as the reason behind its nuclear programme. The prevailing situation more urgently calls for building up the countrys defense to actively cope with the rapid aggravation of the security environment of the Korean Peninsula and the rest of the world," said the North Korean foreign ministry in a statement. Last week, the US, South Korea and Japan met on the sidelines of a Nato summit, and underscored the need for strengthened military cooperation in a bid to counter nuclear threats from North Korea. "The chief executives of the US, Japan and South Korea put their heads together for confrontation with (North Korea) and discussed the dangerous joint military countermeasures against it including the launch of tripartite joint military exercises," they said in a statement. President Joe Biden added that he was deeply concerned about North Koreas continued ballistic missile tests and apparent plans to conduct a nuclear test. South Koreas president Yoon Suk Yeol said the allies trilateral cooperation was of particular importance in the face of North Koreas advanced nuclear programme. Japans prime minister Fumio Kishida added that joint anti-missile drills will play a role in deterring North Koreas threats. Pyongyang, which sees US-led military exercises in the region as an invasion rehearsal, slammed Washington for spreading rumours about threat from North and claimed that this is being used as an excuse for attaining military supremacy over the Asia-Pacific region. "The prevailing situation more urgently calls for building up the countrys defences to actively cope with the rapid aggravation of the security environment," a North Korean spokesperson was quoted as saying by KCNA. Story continues The recent Nato summit proves that the US intends to contain Russia and China by the militarisation of Europe and forming a Nato-like alliance in Asia, claimed North Korea. It also warned that the reckless military moves of the US and its vassal forces could have dangerous consequences such as a simultaneous nuclear war in both Europe and Asia-Pacific. US officials have in past have said that Washington has no hostile intentions towards Pyongyang, as they urged it to return to disarmament talks without any preconditions. North Korea has rejected these overtures, saying it will focus on buttressing its nuclear deterrent unless the US drops its hostile policies towards the country, in an apparent reference to US-led economic sanctions and military training with South Korea. Additional reporting by agencies Major whiskey brands like to tinker with their formula when coming up with new series and collections. Often this is more of a gimmick than anything else, a marketing tool that uses some minor change in mashbill or maturation to supposedly yield a new flavor, and ultimately to get you to buy more whiskey. So it was with a sizable grain of salt that I approached the new Redbreast Kentucky Oak Edition, the first in the Irish whiskey brands American Oak Series. Redbreast has already given us some variations on its age statement lineup of tried-and-true pot still Irish whiskey, like the Lustau and PX Editions which focused on the effects of sherry cask maturation. Kentucky Oak, however, brings things back to the bourbon barrel, and the resulting whiskey is quite good, and more importantly very different from the Redbreast you have tried before. Redbreast is renowned for its heavy sherry influence, said master blender Billy Leighton in a prepared statement. This can often mean that its ex-bourbon counterpart is overlooked, even though Kentucky white oak barrels, which have previously held bourbon, are central to the Redbreast DNA. The base whiskey does indeed have that DNAtriple-distilled pot still Irish whiskey, made from a mashbill of malted and unmalted barley, matured in American oak bourbon barrels and Spanish Oloroso sherry butts. But the whiskey is then placed into a set of virgin oak barrels that have been lightly toasted and charred for an additional three to seven months, the same type in which bourbon would be aged. 63 casks were shipped to the Midleton Distillery outside of Cork, each one made of wood from Elk Cave Farm, an oak tree farm in Kentucky that employs sustainable methods to ensure both the quality of the wood and its future availability. The whiskey is non-chill filtered, and bottled at a higher 101 proof, perhaps another bourbon nod given how strongly associated that proof is with Wild Turkey (although Redbreast is owned by Pernod Ricard, Wild Turkey by Campari). Story continues More from Robb Report The effects of the virgin oak finish on this whiskey are pronounced and quite lovely. The nose has layers of vanilla, sandalwood and fresh green apple, with a hit of alcohol that doesnt burn much given the high ABV. Theres also a bit of orange that lingers. On the palate, the classic red berry and spice notes from the sherry casks are reduced, supplanted by rich flavors of toffee, caramel, creme brulee and a strong oakiness that particularly pops on the finish. This bottle isnt cheap, but I would absolutely consider making an Old Fashioned with this whiskey, and the 101 proof means that it can certainly stand up to a large ice cube. So yes, this is essentially a cask-finished Irish whiskey, like so many other cask-finished Irish whiskeys. But the story behind the liquid comes across in flavor translation, and this oak-forward, bourbon-style, pot still Irish whiskey is a bottle worth hunting down. If you still have your doubts, try the Kentucky Oak Edition side-by-side with regular Redbreast and see for yourself just how much this whiskey has been transformed. Score: 97 Buy Now: $120 What Our Score Means 100: Worth trading your first born for 95 99 In the Pantheon: A trophy for the cabinet 90 94 Great: An excited nod from friends when you pour them a dram 85 89 Very Good: Delicious enough to buy, but not quite special enough to chase on the secondary market 80 84 Good: More of your everyday drinker, solid and reliable Below 80 Its alright: Honestly, we probably wont waste your time and ours with this Every week Jonah Flicker tastes the most buzzworthy and interesting whiskeys in the world. Check back each Friday for his latest review. Best of Robb Report Sign up for Robb Report's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Click here to read the full article. Photo Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/Getty From the outside, it is a remarkably plain three-bedroom home in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Nicknamed The Peanut, it is 15 years old, fronted with brick, and within shouting distance of the Tuscaloosa Nazarene Church. If that house of prayer isnt of interest, there are at least another 19 within 4 miles. The Peanut is notable because of its ownersall 251 of them. Together, they pooled their funds this year to buy, and then rent, the $215,000 property, putting in as little as $100 apiece. The deal was facilitated by Arrived Homes, a startup that has raised more than $160 million in funding and debt financing, including two infusions from Jeff Bezos personal investment arm, Bezos Expeditions, and at least one from Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and Salesforce billionaire Marc Benioffs investment fund. Its goal is to give retail investors access to the lucrative rental market, mimicking the institutional investors that have spent tens of billions of dollars snapping up properties across the countryand which have massively disrupted the home-buying landscape in the process. Arrived Homes is still small, but judging by its war chest it has plans to become a major player. In May, after the company posted a new batch of homes on its platform, prospective investors crashed the website; the company said it received 100 times the site traffic it had projected. Weeks later, another half-dozen of its homes reportedly sold out in eight minutes. Other companies, such as Roofstock, Fundrise, Fintor, and Fractional, are operating with variations of the same model. But what looks like a win for retail investors may pose a big issue for the average American who wants to buy a home, and for the renters who send in their lease checks to a faceless startup or profit-seeking investorpotentially making it harder to address problems with an actual human. While the rental industry is opaque and hard to study, there are reasons to think that investor owners might be more interested in short-term profits, more apt to charge [the] maximum rents possible, less likely to scrutinize purchases, and less engaged in day-to-day management of buildings, said Professor Ingrid Gould Ellen, faculty director at the NYU Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy. Story continues And Arrived is scaling up as the housing market is already mired in an affordability crisis. Low inventory (fueled at least in part by institutional buyers) and a flurry of activity during the pandemic have helped drive prices to record highs. YIMBYs Could Solve the Affordable Housing Crisis, if They Werent So Busy Being Trolls In Tuscaloosa, for instance, the price for a single-family house has skyrocketed 40 percent over the past five years, according to Zillow data cited by Arrived. Increasingly, there are signs that home-buying has begun shifting from a vehicle for accruing generational wealth to a sexy asset class for Wall Street and the technology class. There is some worry that these kinds of purchases are going to crowd out the homeowners that are trying to purchase homes, Ellen said, though she noted that single-family home rentals are not a new phenomenon. What really has changed, she said, is the financial scale of the buyers. In a statement, Arriveds CEO and cofounder Ryan Frazier defended the companys business model. Our primary goal is to open up the real estate market for those who might not otherwise have access to it, he said, arguing that average investors now have the wealth-building potential that was previously only available to the rich and powerful. Several thousand investors on its platform now own property for the first time, he added. Bezos firm did not respond to requests for comment. Wall Street started hoovering up single-family homes in the wake of the Great Recession. As ProPublica reported earlier this year, more than 3.7 million households went through foreclosure. Government policies then helped encourage private equity firms to buy up houses en masse, including by letting firms deal directly with Fannie Mae, the federally sponsored mortgage giant. In retrospect, there is debate about whether policymakers should have acted soonerbefore a housing glut existedso that people didn't lose their homes, said Amanda Kass, associate director of the Government Finance Research Center at the University of Illinois Chicago. How I Bought a House and Joined the Foreclosure Generation Large companies, like Invitation Homes and American Homes 4 Rent, eventually consolidated and emerged as rental giants. According to a memo prepared last month by staff of the House Committee on Financial Services, as one example, in the third quarter of 2021, institutional investors bought 42.8 percent of homes for sale in the Atlanta metro area and 38.8 percent of homes in the Phoenix-Glendale-Scottsdale area. The memo also noted that corporate buyers operate disproportionately in areas with significantly larger Black populations than the national average, and that institutional money holds major advantages when buying new property, including closing deals rapidly and entirely in cash. Multiple housing experts emphasized to The Daily Beast that data about institutional landlords is messy and difficult to fully parse. And there is nuance within the numbers. Oren Ziv, assistant professor at Michigan State, noted that higher numbers of rental units could theoretically push rent prices down. Whatever the effect of Wall Streets money, the potential returns are tantalizingas evidenced by the tech startups mirroring its playbook. For now, Arrived Homes and its cohort have barely made a dent in the broader industry. But if they can execute their ambitionsand generate big returns for their venture capitaliststhat will surely change. In the process, Bezoscurrently worth $132 billionwill get a little bit richer, too. Read more at The Daily Beast. Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Note: The post contains a mention of suicide. The craving for deeper connection in our LGBTQ+ friendships is important to many of us, especially since many of our biological families are not accepting of our queerness. And while it can feel isolating to see Instagram pics of other queer folks with their own friend groups, it's crucial to realize that chosen families are not built overnight they take time. Hulu That's why I reached out the BuzzFeed Community and asked my fellow queer folks , "How did you find your chosen family?" The responses were incredibly moving, and it's truly my honor to share them: 1. "My family is the chosen family for a number of people. My mom jokes that theyre all her honorary children and grandchildren. She has seven biological children, so gets our names mixed up frequently and ends up calling us by our number. When we all got our numbers tattooed on us as a joke, so did two of the honorary children who have been a huge part of our family for 35 years and 22 years. It made my mom cry knowing they love her as much as she loves them." lww Hulu 2. "It took years to get to a solid place with my biological family after coming out, and during that time I met someone who became my chosen family. She came in during the middle of my sadness and truly rescued me. Since then, we have become like brother and sister. Shes gay, too, and weve talked about having children together once we get our lives on track and become co-parents. Shes the only true friend that Ive ever had, and more like family than some of my own. We live together, and I wouldnt want it any other way." "If I was straight, we would likely be married." jeremycady Sony Pictures 3. "Honestly in college, I don't think I understood the term 'chosen family' quite yet. Back then, I just called these people my BFFs. But over the years, these friends have literally become my family. As a South Asian person who could never have that relationship with my biological family, the unconditional support is something I didn't even know I was craving. It began with reclaiming holidays my roommates and I held a 'Queerwali' to reclaim all the times that we felt uncomfortable during Diwali (being judged by aunties, etc.). When I first moved to New York, I had very few people here. But through them I met new friends that are queer, trans, and people of color I am honestly shocked, and so, so grateful for my chosen family. They give me solace and peace and comfort in a queer space that oftentimes can feel really, really alienating. I genuinely consider them all my siblings." "Even last year when I broke my leg, they were the ones there supporting me and helping me get back to health." Anonymous, 29, New York Holly Falconer / Getty Images 4. "I carpooled with someone who I consider to be a sort of adoptive brother to middle school cross-country practice, and that's where I met two future members of my chosen family. We all became close when my 'adoptive brother' dated my best friend at the time, helping me reconnect me with my best friend from elementary school who I'd lost touch with because she switched to homeschooling. Them, and a few others in our family, were the people who got me through some of the worst times in my life. One of us describes our little group as 'family with benefits,' and its perfectly accurate. At least six of the nine or so of us are out as queer, and the others have this ally thing down to a tee. I genuinely love all of them, and consider them family just as much as (and some of them more than) my birth parents." area51official Klaus Vedfelt / Getty Images 5. "Nine years ago, my partner and I moved from our small Southern hometown to the San Francisco Bay area. We were both so excited to be in a place that we thought would align more with who we are, and where hopefully we would feel safer to be more open and authentic. I'll admit, it took me longer to get comfy than it took them. Two years into our new life on the West Coast, I was still mostly quiet and private about my queerness. My partner, however, was loud and proud! At a weekend work retreat for their new job, there was a social hour, in which they opened the event by having everyone share a fun fact about themselves my partner enthusiastically announced that we were queer and polyamorous to the entire room. Their openness paid off, as another coworker approached them later that evening to share that they, too, were queer and polyamorous. That fall, we attended a party at their home, where we met the people who became our chosen family." "We eventually moved cities to be closer to them. It's been about six years since then, and our crew is still together. We've done all our holidays together, have taken trips, and celebrated new jobs. We've had marriages, divorces, and even welcomed babies to the family. Throughout it, we've always had each others' backs, even in hard times. I never could have imagined I would build a community like this, one that allows me to feel safe, supported, and loved exactly as I am. We step up to take care of each other, and put in the hard work to get through tough emotional times together." "We share our time, energy, and resources in such a selfless way. I am infinitely grateful for my chosen family. I'd never be as happy and fulfilled as I am today without them." Anonymous, 30, California Maskot / Getty Images 6. "We met 16 years ago in prison. We've been together ever since." Anonymous, 44, South Carolina Kate_sept2004 / Getty Images 7. "It may sound a little strange, but I met my chosen family through my OnlyFans work. With my sex work career, it can be quite hard for me to find people who don't judge me, or want to just get in my pants. I get that many people will be put off that I've had sex with the people who I'm closest to, but I don't see it being that different from feeling like a spouse is part of the family you've created I just don't want to marry my friends, or date them. We may have met through work and collaborating in videos together, so there is some history of physical attraction, but that doesn't dilute how close we are today. It can be isolating as a non-white creator, and that's why I lean on my friends. We support each other. We get each other." "And we don't care that we've seen each other naked. We're comfortable, and our group dynamic works for us." Anonymous, 26, Washington Jessie Casson / Getty Images 8. "I met my chosen family when a friend of mine invited me to a summer retreat trip with his group of friends. They're a group of nerds, 'gaymers', and ravers that I ended up really getting along with. I grew up bouncing from friend group to friend group and not really feeling like I fit in. This was the first group of friends I felt like where I could truly be my nerdy gay self and not feel judged. I was going through one of the darkest moments in my life before meeting my chosen family, and spending time with them really helped me pull through. My chosen family really means everything to me, and I always make an effort to make sure our annual summer retreat trip happens every year." @wtfjessecao Jesse Cao 9. "We don't keep in touch anymore, but for a moment in time, I felt close to the chosen family I met through participating in AIDS/LifeCycle, a 545-mile, 7-day bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to fundraise for HIV/AIDS healthcare and research. The first time I participated, I did it alone. It felt great to be a part of something, but I felt lonely and my body ached. Since my motto is to 'Try everything twice,' I signed up again the following year. And that's the year I met the group of queer folks who I've felt closest to my whole life. I was tent mates with a friend from college, who I'd sort of lost touch with I was happy to reconnect. Through him, I met another rider who I'd seen on a practice ride, and he introduced us both to his four other friends. We stuck together. I laughed so much during our dinners. I remember gossiping and painting each others' nails in the glow of a phone light at night. I'm thankful I met them." "On the fourth night of the ride, they invited me to leave with them to a bar off our camping grounds, and I'm so glad I did. We danced that night away, and it was under the disco light of some dive bar in central California is where I thought to myself, So this is what family feels like. That night, they even gassed me up to approach my ride crush and shoot my shot (he had a boyfriend). I miss everyone from the ride, as I've kind of lost touch with most people over this pandemic. Writing about them makes me want to text them. I hope they're doing well." Anonymous, 29, California Thomas Barwick / Getty Images 10. "Its been eight years since I met my best friends. I was 12 years old, starting at a brand-new middle school. I quickly became friends with a girl on the bus because we had so much in common we looked alike, liked the same things, etc. Two weeks later, I found her Instagram with hearts arranged in a bisexual flag. That started a week of, 'Are you thinking what Im thinking...?' before we finally both came out to each other. In addition to that, I met another girl at school who identified as gay and asexual, and we hit it off instantly. Through her, I met another bi person, who also used she/they pronouns. Their cousin is pansexual and uses they/them pronoun. These people are the love of my life." Anonymous, 20, Oregon Maskot / Getty Images/Maskot 11. "I found my chosen family in elementary school. I knew I was gay, and I came out to them. I knew everything would be fine when they said, 'We know. Happy you told us though!' About two years later, I was outed to my family, and my parents were not the most accepting. I attempted suicide because of what they said. My friends were there for me through it all. A year later, literally every person in our friend group came out as somewhere on the queer spectrum. We have been friends for seven years, and I can't imagine my life without them. I probably wouldn't be here without them." "I love them with everything and more." Anonymous, 18, New York Spiderplay / Getty Images/iStockphoto 12. "It took me a decade to realize it, but my best friends since high school are my chosen family. I was really closeted in high school, and my two friends are the ones who constantly brought me out of my shell. One is a straight woman who was the kind of person who'd go right back to eating their Hot Cheetos after beating the ass of someone talking crap about her friends, while the other is a gay man who helped pave the way for me to come out myself because of how willing he is to be vulnerable. We all met during our freshman year after volunteering to be more involved with the pep rallies, the most important thing about high school. And when I think about who I want to spend the rest of my life with, I don't think about a husband or kids. I think about the three of us." "It's harder for us to keep in touch since we live spread out across the country, but our bond is still there." Anonymous, 31, Texas HBO Max If you're also queer, how did you find the close friends that you now call family? And how long did that journey take? Please, share your stories with us in the comments. Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity. Pride month may be over to, though you can still engage with queer content all-year round check out all of BuzzFeed's posts celebrating Pride 2022 Kevin Valente / BuzzFeed My Fake Boyfriend, a new LGBTQ+ rom-com from BuzzFeed Studios starring Keiynan Lonsdale, Dylan Sprouse, and Sarah Hyland, is now streaming in the US. It melted my cold, gay heart. And, a new LGBTQ+ rom-com from BuzzFeed Studios starring Keiynan Lonsdale, Dylan Sprouse, and Sarah Hyland, is now streaming in the US. It melted my cold, gay heart. Sign up for Prime Video now to watch. Hong Kong ranks as the world's most expensive city for expats, according to a recent study by Mercer, a global consulting firm headquartered in New York. Expat is short for expatriates, those who live outside their native country. The annual survey features data that is based on research done twice per year, and evaluates more than 200 goods and services from categories such as food, housing, personal care and more. Across the world, high inflation is a growing cause of concern for governments, companies, workers and families. Here are the top 10 most expensive places for expatriates to live and work abroad: Central Hong Kong skyline at night, in Hong Kong, China, on October 17, 2021. / Credit: Marc Fernandes/NurPhoto via Getty Images Hong Kong, SAR Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China and has consistently been featured as one of the world's most expensive places to live. Known for its iconic skyscrapers and beautiful skyline view, this business hub will cost expats a good amount to call home. ZURICH, SWITZERLAND - JULY 12: An aerial drone view of the city centre of Zurich, Limmat River, Lake Zurich, and the Grossmuenster Church stand during the coronavirus pandemic on July 12, 2020 in Zurich, Switzerland. Switzerland has largely lifted most of its coronavirus lockdown measures and has so far registered approximately 33,000 infections. / Credit: Christian Ender / Getty Images 2. Zurich, Switzerland This year, Switzerland dominates the top ten, having four cities on the list. Zurich is the most populated city in Switzerland and is known as a global center for banking and finance. GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - JUNE 6: A view of the city as citizens and tourists enjoy the sunny day in Geneva, Switzerland on June 6, 2022. / Credit: Omer Faruk Yildiz/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images 3. Geneva, Switzerland Geneva follows Zurich not only in the category of cost of living, but also as the second most populated city in Switzerland. The city hosts a myriad of headquarters for several international organizations. Public transports. Basel. Switzerland. / Credit: Public transports. Basel. Switzerland. (Photo by: Giovanni Mereghetti/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)/Public transports. Basel. Switzerland. (Photo by: Giovanni Mereghetti/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) 4. Basel, Switzerland Basel is the third most populous city in Switzerland. It is best known for its architecture and has a popular art scene. The city hosts Art Basel, an annual international art exhibition. Photo taken on May 22, 2022 shows a view through the window on a train that runs on the Rhaetian Railway in the Albula/Bernina landscapes in Switzerland. The Rhaetian Railway in the Albula/Bernina landscapes was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2008. / Credit: Zheng Huansong/Xinhua via Getty Images 5. Bern, Switzerland Switzerland technically does not have a capital city, but Bern is considered the de facto capital. The Swiss city features picturesque views and is currently the seat of the country's federal government. Israel, Tel Aviv - 10 March 2018: Skyline of Tel Aviv at the beach seen from the Marina / Credit: Michael Jacobs/Art in All of Us/Corbis via Getty Images 6. Tel Aviv, Israel Tel, Aviv, the coastal city in Israel, is world-renown for its nightlife, beautiful beaches, and having more Bauhaus-style buildings than any other city. Story continues TOPSHOT - The Manhattan skyline is seen at sunrise from the 86th floor observatory of the Empire State Building on April 3, 2021, in New York City. - The Empire State Building, a 102-story Art Deco skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan, opened during the Great Depression on May 1, 1931. / Credit: ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images 7. New York City, U.S. Known as the Big Apple, New York City is America's most populated city by far. While there is no precise count, some experts believe New York is home to as many as 800 languages, making it the perfect place for international travelers, but not necessarily for their pockets, as it ranks eighth on the list, and the most expensive city to live in the U.S. SINGAPORE - APRIL 11: The skytrain rides past the Rain Vortex at the Jewel Changi Airport on April 11, 2019 in Singapore. Officially opening on April 17, Singapore's Changi Airport Jewel includes a 40-meter indoor waterfall contained under a steel-and-glass dome reportedly built for SGD 1.7 billion. / Credit: / Getty Images 8. Singapore The island city-state of the Malay Peninsula ranks in this year's top ten, and has not only become one of the world's top financial centers, but also one of its greenest. According to the government, nearly half of Singapore's land area is under green cover. Japan ,Tokyo City, Akihabara District, Electric town,. / Credit: Japan ,Tokyo City, Akihabara District, Electric town,. (Photo by: Dukas/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)/Japan ,Tokyo City, Akihabara District, Electric town,. (Photo by: Dukas/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) 9. Tokyo, Japan Tokyo, Japan's capital city, has a mix of traditional and ultramodern architecture, with neon-light buildings and historic temples dazzling the skyline. The city also boasts one of the busiest train stations in the world, the Shinjuku Station, which receives an estimated 3.6 million commuters each day. BEIJING, CHINA - JULY 07: Tourists visit the Forbidden City on July 7, 2019 in Beijing, China. / Credit: Visual China Group via Getty Images/Visual China Group via Getty Images 10. Beijing, China The capital city of China, Beijing is located in the northeastern part of the country and is the second-largest city in China by population. Beijing is home to many well-known attractions, such a section of the Great Wall of China, and the Forbidden City. "CBS Weekend News" headlines for Saturday, July 2, 2022 3 officers dead in Kentucky shooting Texas Supreme Court blocks order that resumed abortions Alamy By Arthur Allen | KHN The grinding two-plus years of the pandemic have yielded outsize benefits for one companyPfizermaking it both highly influential and hugely profitable as covid-19 continues to infect tens of thousands of people and kill hundreds each day. Its success in developing covid medicines has given the drugmaker unusual weight in determining U.S. health policy. Based on internal research, the companys executives have frequently announced the next stage in the fight against the pandemic before government officials have had time to study the issue, annoying many experts in the medical field and leaving some patients unsure whom to trust. Pfizers 2021 revenue was $81.3 billion, roughly double its revenue in 2020, when its top sellers were a pneumonia vaccine, the cancer drug Ibrance, and the fibromyalgia treatment Lyrica, which had gone off-patent. Now its mRNA vaccine holds 70 percent of the U.S. and European markets. And its antiviral Paxlovid is the pill of choice to treat early symptoms of covid. This year, the company expects to rake in more than $50 billion in global revenue from the two medications alone. Paxlovids value to vaccinated patients isnt yet clear, and Pfizers covid vaccine doesnt entirely prevent infections, although each booster temporarily restores some protection. Yet, while patients may recoil at the need for repeated injectionstwo boosters are now recommended for people 50 and olderthe requirement is gold for investors. Hopefully, we could be giving it annually and maybe for some groups that are high-risk more often, CEO Albert Bourla told investors this year. Then you have the treatment [Paxlovid] that will, lets say, resolve the issues of those that are getting the disease. President Joe Biden listens as Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla speaks ahead of the 2021 G7 summit. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Just Wednesday, the Biden administration agreed to buy another 105 million doses of Pfizers covid vaccine for the fall booster campaign, paying $3.2 billion. At $30.47 a dose, its a significant premium over the $19.50-a-dose rate the government paid for the first 100 million. The vaccine is being modified to target early omicron variants, but newer variants are gaining dominance. Story continues Because the virus keeps mutating and will be around for a long time, the market for Pfizers products wont go away. In wealthier countries, the public is likely to keep coming back for more, like diners at an all-you-can-eat restaurant, sated but never entirely satisfied. The reliance on Pfizer products at each stage of the pandemic has steered the U.S. response, including critical public health decisions. When last year Bourla suggested that a booster shot would soon be needed, U.S. public health officials later followed, giving the impression that Pfizer was calling the tune. Some public health experts and scientists worry these decisions were hasty, noting, for example, that although boosters with the mRNA shots produced by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech improve antibody protection initially, it generally doesnt last. Since January, Bourla has been saying that U.S. adults will probably all need annual booster shots, and senior FDA officials have indicated since April that they agree. At a June 28 meeting of FDA advisers considering a potential fall vaccination campaign, Pfizer presented studies involving about 3,500 people showing that tweaks to its covid vaccine allowed it to elicit more antibodies against the omicron variant that began circulating last December. But most of the advisers said the FDA should require the next vaccine to target an even newer omicron variant, known as BA.5. That would mean more work and expense for Pfizer, which called on the FDA to enable it to make future changes to the covid vaccine without human trialssimilar to how annual influenza vaccines are approved. If such a process were implemented, responses to future waves could be substantially accelerated, said Kena Swanson, Pfizers vice president for viral vaccines. FDA officials at the meeting did not immediately respond to the suggestion. As societies abandon other efforts to control covids spread, such as mask mandates and physical distancing, Pfizers prospects look even brighter, especially now that the company has brought out the first oral covid treatment, Paxlovid. People are going to get out there, Angela Hwang, president of Pfizer Biopharmaceuticals Group, told investors May 3. We know with all of that, infections are going to increase, and that's the role that Paxlovid can play. A pharmacy manager shows off a package of Pfizer Paxlovid pills. Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune via Getty During a recent investor call, a Pfizer official could spin the recent reports suggesting that the virus can hide from Paxlovid into good news, predicting that, as with the vaccine, patients may need multiple courses. Immunocompromised patients may carry this virus for a very, very long time, Dr. Mikael Dolsten said in the investor call. And we see that area as a real new opportunity growth area for Paxlovid to do very well, where you may need to take multiple courses. Pfizer has spent handsomely to bolster its influence during the pandemic. Since early 2020, it has shelled out more than $25 million for in-house lobbying and payments to 19 lobbying firms, pushing for legislation to protect its products and promote more robust U.S. vaccination programs. Pfizers donations to political candidates in the 2020 cycle were larger than those of any other drug company, totaling about $3.5 million, with the greatest share going to Democrats. Joe Biden got $351,000; Donald Trump just $103,000. Unlike Moderna, Sanofi, Novavax, and Johnson & Johnson, which got billions of dollars in U.S. support, Pfizer did not seek government money to develop its vaccine, saying it would work independently. Pfizer did benefit from $445 million the German government provided to BioNTech, Pfizers partner in developing the vaccine. And, in the end, Pfizer relied substantially on U.S. government logistical support, according to a new book by former Health and Human Services official Paul Mango. Pfizer recorded $7.8 billion in U.S. revenue for its covid vaccine in 2021. The government has options to buy 1.6 billion Pfizer vaccine doses and has so far bought 900 million of them, including 500 million purchased at not-for-profit prices to be donated to poor countries. Pfizers terms in the contracts exclude many taxpayer protections. They deny the government any intellectual property rights and say that federal spending played no role in the vaccines development even though National Institutes of Health scientists invented a key feature of Pfizers vaccine, said Robin Feldman, a patent law expert at the University of California. The agreement could set a precedent, in which another company could cite Pfizers contracts to argue the government has surrendered any rights to an invention, she said. Pfizer Pushes Fourth Shot. But Whats It Really Boosting? The government also has agreed to buy about 20 million five-day courses of Paxlovid for $530 each. Prices for the covid drug and vaccine will go up once the pandemic period is over, Bourla said at a January event, to reflect the cutting-edge technology. Pfizer spokesperson Sharon Castillo declined to respond to specific questions about Pfizers influence on pandemic policy. She released a statement saying that since Day 1 of this pandemic, we have been laser-focused on working collaboratively with all relevant stakeholders to bring to the world two medical breakthroughs. In doing so, we have moved at the speed of science, complied with the strict regulatory processes, and relied on our scientists expertise and manufacturing prowess. There is little question that the company ripped a scientific home run in responding rapidly to meet the medical needs created by the pandemic. It used artificial intelligence to track the spread of the virus and find the best places to recruit volunteers for its vaccine trials and deployed rapid drug-screening tools to develop Paxlovid. Its success with the covid vaccine has raised hopes for a Pfizer vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus, a danger to babies and older adults. The company is also moving toward seeking licensure for shots that protect against Lyme disease and hospital infections. Pfizer had long shunned the vaccine business, with its historically modest financial returns. It dropped out of human vaccine production in the late 1960s after the recall of its disastrous measles vaccine, which sickened scores of children after exposure to the virus caused unexpected reactions with antibodies stimulated by the shot. The company returned to the field in 2009 when it bought Wyeth, which was making a highly effective and uncommonly profitable vaccine against pneumonia and ear infections. Now, Pfizer is a new kind of global powerhouse. In 2021 alone, the company hired nearly 2,400 people. We are a household name right now to billions of people, Bourla said in January. People are trusting the Pfizer vaccines. The companys power worries some vaccinologists, who see its growing influence in a realm of medical decision-making traditionally led by independent experts. During a recent investor call, analyst Evan Seigerman of BMO Capital Markets asked whether the world was kind of walking blindly into recommending boosters so frequently. Data from Israel, which uses only Pfizers vaccine and has provided most of the studies that have led to vaccination booster recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suggests that third and fourth doses of the mRNA vaccines increase antibody levels that quickly wane again. Added boosters saved some lives in the over-60 population, but the data is less clear about the benefit to younger adults. When President Biden in September 2021 offered boosters to Americansnot long after Bourla had recommended themDr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia and a developer of a vaccine for an intestinal virus, wondered, Wheres the evidence you are at risk of serious disease when confronted with covid if you are vaccinated and under 50? Policies on booster recommendations for different groups are complex and shifting, Offit said, but the CDC, rather than Bourla and Pfizer, should be making them. Were being pushed along, he said. The pharmaceutical companies are acting like public health agencies. KHN (Kaiser Health News) is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues. Together with Policy Analysis and Polling, KHN is one of the three major operating programs at KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation). KFF is an endowed nonprofit organization providing information on health issues to the nation. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Wildfire season is starting later this year in Central Washington, and agencies say they are ready Ambassador Phung The Long (R) and President Ignazio Cassis (Photo: baoquocte.vn) During a meeting with the Vietnamese Ambassador, President Ignazio Cassis expressed satisfaction at the fruitful development of relations between the two countries over the past 50 years. He said that Vietnam and Switzerland should further promote all-around cooperation towards pushing the bilateral relations to a new height. The President also shared his special impressions of his visit to Hanoi in August last year, saying he hopes the two sides will continue to strengthen cooperation in all fields in the coming time. The Vietnamese Ambassador affirmed that Vietnam always remembers and appreciates the valuable support the Swiss Government and people have given Vietnam during its struggle for national independence in the past as well as in its national construction and development today. The diplomat promised to make all his effort during his term to help deepen the traditional and cooperative relations between Vietnam and Switzerland./. You are the owner of this article. As Deception Pass turns 100, WA's favorite state park cultivates next generation of 'dreams and memories' Brett Kavanaugh is a serial liar. Its jarring to write that about anyone, let alone a life-tenured justice on the Supreme Court. Yet years of evidence throughout Kavanaughs career show its a fact. And that fact, together with recent years confirmation controversies and Clarence Thomas ethical lapses, is central to understanding why public confidence in the court has dropped precipitously. And that was before the last weeks string of unpopular, precedent-defying decisions against abortion, gun controls and the wall between church and state. Worse for Kavanaugh, the criticism of his credibility is bipartisan. In the latest blow, Maine Sen. Susan Collins, a fellow Republican whose vote was decisive when the Senate confirmed Kavanaugh four years ago, has doubled down on her contention that he misled her when he reassured her that, if confirmed, he would not support overturning the courts half-century-old abortion rights precedent, Roe v. Wade. The ever-cautious Collins would never say lie. Yet the New York Times obtained proof of just that, clearly from the senators office, publishing contemporaneous notes kept by those who sat in on Collins private meeting with then-nominee Kavanaugh in 2018. According to the notes, Collins pressed him hard about Roe. Kavanaugh told her: Start with my record, my respect for precedent, my belief that it is rooted in the Constitution, and my commitment and its importance to the rule of law. I understand precedent and I understand the importance of overturning it. Roe is 45 years old, it has been reaffirmed many times, lots of people care about it a great deal, and Ive tried to demonstrate I understand real-world consequences, he said, and then added, I am a dont-rock-the-boat kind of judge. Now, hearing that, wouldnt you believe that Kavanaugh would vote to uphold Roe? The credulous Collins did, or claimed to. People in both parties, however, those who are pro-abortion rights and anti-, did not believe him. Nor did I. That had much to do with his record as a mendacious political operative. Kavanaughs credibility was widely in doubt long before the he-said, she-said allegations of sexual assault that convulsed the country during his Supreme Court confirmation hearings and nearly killed his nomination. He denied the credible accusations of an assault in high school from Christine Blasey Ford and two reported attacks at Yale, one alleged by classmate Debbie Ramirez and another that Senate Republicans bottled up, for which there was a reputable eyewitness. And Kavanaugh also denied that he ever was a blackout drunk, though numerous Yale classmates came forward to attest, under oath, that he was. In Washington after law school, Kavanaugh quickly became familiar to Democrats as the partisan protege of Kenneth Starr, the independent counsel who investigated Bill and Hillary Clinton in the 1990s. Investigators documents from that time, now at the National Archives, show Kavanaugh sought evidence that Clinton aide Vince Foster was murdered pandering to conspiracists on the right years after he told colleagues that he believed Foster had committed suicide, just as investigators had concluded. Kavanaugh also was widely suspected of leaking anti-Clinton information from a grand jury, though he denied it. When his next boss, then-President George W. Bush, nominated Kavanaugh to the prestigious D.C. Court of Appeals in 2003, Democratic senators blocked his confirmation for three years, until 2006. They were convinced he lied to them during the confirmation process by denying involvement in several White House controversies: policies allowing warrantless surveillance after Sept. 11 and the torture of terrorism suspects, and the selection and promotion of Bushs most right-wing judicial nominees. Kavanaugh also denied any complicity in a Senate scandal Memogate involving a Republican aide whod surreptitiously copied thousands of Democrats emails from 2001 through 2003 and shared them with Bush advisers. Democrats had no proof to the contrary in the mid-aughts, but at the time of Kavanaughs Supreme Court confirmation hearing in 2018, they got some. Republicans, then the Senate majority, grudgingly released Bush White House emails that contradicted Kavanaugh on his role in the controversies hed been asked about in the prior decade. Most damning were the Memogate emails: Many of the emails forwarding Democrats purloined messages listed Kavanaugh as a recipient, often the only one. Yet in 2004, when Democratic Sen. Charles E. Schumer asked Kavanaugh whether hed received memos from internal files of any Democratic members, Kavanaugh under oath said, No. Another time, he testified, Im not aware of the memos. Confronted with contrary evidence in 2018, Kavanaugh conceded receiving the emails but said hed figured the Republican Senate aide got them from Democrats in the normal give-and-take among staffers. As if. What Democratic aide would provide a Republican staffer with the specific questions that Democratic Sen. Patrick J. Leahy planned to ask a Republican judicial nominee at a hearing? Or a 4,000-word Democratic strategy memo? Or an email containing damaging information about a Republican nominee marked for Democrats only? (On the last one, Kavanaugh replied to the Republican aide within minutes, giving him rebuttal talking points for GOP senators.) Still Kavanaugh testified that the messages never raised red flags about their provenance. After Kavanaughs confirmation to the Supreme Court, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. sent scores of ethics complaints about him from lawyers, law professors and others to an appeals court council for review. Most were about his alleged lying under oath. The council soon dismissed them as moot: While the allegations were serious, the council said, justices arent subject to judicial ethics rules. And that helps explain how liars end up on the nations highest court, for life, to determine how the rest of us live our lives. A recent wave of media attention has pointed to a toxic workplace culture in much of the Washington, D.C., political ecosystem. From the viral Dear White Staffers on Capitol Hill, to growing worker dissatisfaction at liberal nonprofits, its become clear that the policy field doesnt always practice what it preaches when it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion. At the same time, we hear story after story of young voters lacking faith in government. In response, the political class continue to scratch their heads about why millennials and Gen Z feel disconnected. But the answer is obvious if we connect these two seemingly separate stories: Our nations most influential political offices, government agencies and policy organizations are unable to effectively advance a more equitable and just society because they themselves are not built equitably or justly. Even with the most diverse Congress in history, its members are still 77% white, 73% male and have an average net worth that is five times the median for U.S. households. Diversity among congressional staff is even worse. Just 8% of committee staff directors, who shape key legislation, are people of color, and only two Senate chiefs of staff are Black. Think tanks and other policy organizations face similar challenges of homogeneity and exclusion. So its no surprise that young people especially young people of color overwhelmingly say that the policy sector does not want to hire people like me, according to a recent survey from Next100 and GenForward. Disaffection with government among young adults is staggering: Only one in five young adults believes government leaders care about them, while nearly half of young Black adults say they dont feel like a full and equal citizen. Less than half of Black and Latinx young adults agree that voting is an effective means to bring about change. As a former senior government official, I saw firsthand that who makes policy matters immensely. Policy choices affect everything from the quality of the air we breathe to the food we eat. When public policies are molded by those with power and privilege, without the input of people most affected by these choices, the outcomes often benefit individuals already at the top. And when their government doesnt look like an increasingly diverse America, Americans tend to be less engaged in the political process further skewing public policy and eroding faith in the government. But there is a silver lining: An overwhelming majority of young adults say they would be more likely to trust government leaders if those leaders came from their own communities. In other words, we need to make the policy sector more inclusive, representative and effective. Fundamentally, the policy sector must reckon with its longstanding exclusionary practices. Unpaid internships, low-paying entry-level jobs, unnecessary credential requirements, and a lack of investment in professional development make it difficult to break into these careers and gain on-the-job experience, especially for people of color and those with lower incomes. Opaque and informal hiring processes that rely on word of mouth enact yet another barrier to those not already in the sector. Some organizations are challenging these practices: Next100 recently compiled a list of best practices of other organizations within and outside of the field, as well as our own, and released a roadmap of concrete actions that policy organizations can use. As the policy sector isnt even working for the young staff who are able to enter it, it certainly cant deliver for the individuals and communities who have been alienated from the policymaking process for generations. The reckoning happening at workplaces across the country, from Amazon warehouses to Starbucks cafes, has now spread to Capitol Hill and other corners of the policy world. With its arrival, the political establishment should acknowledge that many of the forces leading dissatisfied workers to speak out are the same forces leading disconnected voters to sit out. Most of all, the sector needs to take an honest look at its own practices, commit time and money to change and be willing to challenge long-held assumptions of who is qualified to make policy. If policy leaders want to restore faith in government, they should start from within. Toyota has just unveiled the Urban Cruiser Hyryder in India, it's first mass and mid-size Hybrid SUV in India, taking on the giants like Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, as well as the upcoming Maruti Suzuki Vitara (Hyryder-based hybrid mid-SUV). Toyota and Maruti Suzuki has collaborated for the Hyryder and the Vitara and the SUV is being produced at the Toyota's Karnataka plant. Not just the strong hybrid, the Hyryder is also the first SUV to feature an all-wheel drive system in its class. Toyota will be offering the Urban Cruiser Hyryderin four trims namely E, S, G and V trims, with the Strong-hybrid powertrain available on top three variants. Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder 2022 India unveil LIVE updates; Check design, features, engine and more Heres variant-wise features list on the Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder 2022: Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder E Projector headlamps with LED Daytime Running Lamps LED tail-lamps 17-inch steel wheels with wheel-cover Roof-end spoiler Electric folding wing mirrors Black interior theme 4.2-inch TFT display in instrument cluster Front sliding arm rest Tilt and telescopic steering wheel Auto air conditioner Rear AC vents Reclining rear seats Keyless entry and go Dual front airbags ABS with EBD Vehicle stability control (VSC) Hill-hold control Rear parking sensors Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder S In addition to E Crystal acrylic grille (strong hybrid) Black-brown interior (strong hybrid) 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system 7-inch digital instrument cluster (strong-hybrid) Android Auto, Apple CarPlay Alexa and Google assistance 4-speaker sound system Connected car features Cruise control Steering mounted controls Paddle shifters (AT only) Reverse parking camera Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder G In addition to S Full-LED headlamps 17-inch alloy wheels Rear wiper and washer Auto folding outside wing mirrors Chrome window line garnish 9-inch touchscreen infotainment 6-speaker Arkamys sound system Ambient interior lighting Panoramic sunroof (strong hybrid) Head-up display (strong hybrid) Wireless charging (strong hybrid) Side and curtain airbags Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder V In addition to G Roof rails Arkamys surround sound system Leatherette seats Leather-wrapped steering wheel Standard panoramic sunroof Drive modes (AWD) 360-degree camera Tyre pressure monitor (strong hybrid) Hill descent control (AWD) Live TV The U.S. Defense Department does not believe there is any credence to russia saying its retreat from Snake Island [in the Black Sea area of Ukraine] was a gesture of goodwill. The moment of the Ukrainian strike on a pier on the island We view this development as that the Ukrainians were very successful at applying significant pressure on the russians, including by using Harpoon missiles that they recently acquired to attack a resupply ship. When you realize how barren and deserted Snake Island is, you understand the importance of resupply. So, the Ukrainians made it very hard for the russians to sustain their operations there [and] made them very vulnerable to Ukrainian strikes. So, that of course, is why russia left the island," said a senior DOD official, who took questions from the Pentagon press regarding russia and Ukraine. Bayraktar TB2 eliminates enemy equipment He emphasized that as a result, it does make it a lot easier for Ukraine to defend Odesa and in the future to be able to open those sea lanes without russia controlling Snake Island. Thanks to the recent shipments of highly mobile artillery missile systems from the United States, the Ukrainian forces have made good progress in using these longer-range artillery systems, including against russian command posts, the official said. In his turn the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine General Valerii Zaluzhnyi says in his post on his official page on Facebook that it no longer smells of "Russian spirit" on Snake Island. With yesterday's airstrikes, the Russians tried to destroy their equipment, weapons and property on Snake Island. However, traditionally they did not cope with the task. The Armed Forces of Ukraine invaders "helped" to finally evacuate the remnants of their garrison from our island We "helped" the invaders to finally evacuate the remnants of their garrison from our island. It no longer smells of "Russian spirit" there. Everything will be Ukraine! the post states. The post is also accompanied with a video showing how Ukraines military eliminates Russian equipment on the island. According to the video, 2B17M Tornado-G MLRS, a fuel tank, 3 cars, an ammunition warehouse, and fuel and lubricants warehouse were destroyed on Snake Island by Ukrainian military. 2B17M Tornado-G MLRS, a fuel tank, 3 cars, an ammunition warehouse, and fuel and lubricants warehouse were destroyed on Snake Island by Ukrainian military As Defense Express reported Armed Forces of Ukraine have pushed russian forces from Snake Island - russians hastily evacuated the remains of their garrison from the island after the Ukrainian forces successfully completed another stage of their military operation. Africas largest carrier Ethiopian airlines has launched direct flight connectivity between Chennai and Addis Ababa. The flight services will be operated three times a week, Chennai would be the fourth destination for the airline to connect after New Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, a top official said on July 3. "It is the fourth destination for us and the first connecting service after the pandemic. We were able to overcome the challenges in the last three years due to Covid-19 and are now on the growth path," Ethiopian Airlines chief commercial officer Lemma Yadecha Gudeta told PTI after unveiling the service. The service's launch coincides with the 50th anniversary of uninterrupted flight service between Mumbai and Ethiopia, he said. According to him, Ethiopian Airlines besides opening the new route to Chennai, the airline would increase to double daily and ten weekly flights to the cities of Mumbai and New Delhi. Also read: Paris International Airport suffers technical problem, baggage of over 50 percent passengers stuck Gudeta said the company would operate the Boeing 737 on the Chennai-Addis Ababa route and target people taking tourism for medical treatment from Africa to southern parts of the country, students, and south Indians living in Africa. Asked whether the airline was planning to connect other cities with Addis Ababa apart from Chennai, he replied in the affirmative saying Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad were 'under the radar.' Gudeta said the airliner was also planning to connect Colombo, Karachi, and Dhaka on the international routes. Tamil Nadu Minister for Tourism M Mathiventhan through a video message said, "We look forward with the Ethiopian Airlines for any other future plans from Tamil Nadu and there are many people let it be students, businessmen and many patients travelling from Africa to Tamil Nadu for a cost-effective treatment." "I think this flight (between Chennai-Addis Ababa) will really be helpful to all the sectors of people, not only to patients, students, and exporters but also to many other tourists," he said. Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Mesfin Tasew said, "We have been connecting Asia and Africa for 55 years now facilitating trade between the two continents. The addition of Chennai as a fourth passenger destination in India is a testimony of our resilience and unwavering commitment to serve our customers in India. We will continue to serve India with enhanced frequency and more destinations in the future," he said. (With inputs from PTI) Live TV A 63-year-old man and his wife were not allowed to board their flight at the Cochin International Airport in the early hours of Saturday after he uttered the word "bomb" when asked what was in their luggage, police said here. They said the couple, who were going abroad, reached the airport around 1.30 am. As the staff at the check-in counter asked them what was in their luggage, the irked husband said "bomb", triggering a panic, following which airport security was informed. Also read: Spicejet's troubles continue, plane returns to Delhi after smoke detected in cabin mid-air They were handed over to the Nedumbassery police. The man was arrested and later released on station bail, the police said. Live TV New Delhi: We've all had bosses who were unreasonable beyond belief at some point in our lives. They say things that are absolutely nonsensical and occasionally demand respect when they don't deserve it. When someone asks for respect, though, all of that is lost. That's what happened to a worker who revealed a WhatsApp discussion he had with his boss.A Reddit user recently uploaded a screenshot of his WhatsApp conversation with his boss, and the post has now gone viral. Shreyas, a Reddit member, was warned for saying "hello" to his boss on WhatsApp message, according to the screenshot. Read More: FCRA Rules: Govt amends Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, allows relatives to send Rs 10 lakh without disclosing it When Shreyas said 'hello' to the boss, the superior was offended and thought the greeting was 'unprofessional.' It seems that there was either a linguistic barrier or an ego issue. Read More: Post Office Scheme: Want to get Rs 2,500 per month? Here's how much you need to invest Hi Shreyas, my name is Sandeep, the boss says after texting to ask a question. Please dont [use] the word hey. Its offensive for me. If you cant remember my name, simply use Hi.' The boss then asked Shreyas not to use certain phrases in a professional setting, like "dude, man chap, and chick." Unless addressing a large gathering, he considered the phrase "hello" to be unprofessional. In his defense, Shreyas said, Well, considering that we are having a conversation over WhatsApp and not over LinkedIn or a mail chain. I'm just being casual as you are texting me on my personal number. And coming to being professional I'm not the one being offended. In response, the CEO stated that WhatsApp is "no longer a personal area." He stated that the messenger is used for economic purposes and added, "I am not forcing my philosophy on you." If you grasp it, great; if not, you will sooner or later." The post has ignited a debate about professional norms since it was shared online. Several internet users voiced their opinions on the matter. The post received over 53.5K upvotes and 6,600 comments. A user said, Seriously. Hey especially with a colleague/team member with whom you've had ongoing conversations with is more than acceptable, almost preferable, to keep the convo as open as possible. "I'd be calling him 'chap' in every communication," another said. A third user stated that they would write, "'Should I be permitted to greet the warmest welcome to this right and honourable person and extend my compliments to his spouse and close and more distant family and circle of acquaintances, might all their livestock breed well" and such nonsense. Fourth wrote, "I appreciate how unprofessional but emojis are fine." New Delhi: The Centre has amended the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) rules to allow relatives to send more money under foreign funding and to give organisations more time to notify the government about bank accounts for the use of funds received under the "registration" or "prior permission" category. The government has also abolished a requirement that an organization/individual receiving foreign cash declare such contributions on its official website every quarter. Read More: Post Office Scheme: Want to get Rs 2,500 per month? Here's how much you need to invest The new rules, titled Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Rules, 2022, were published in the gazette on Friday by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Read More: Gold price today, July 3: Gold rate remains same; Check gold rate in Delhi, Patna, Lucknow, Kolkata, Kanpur, Kerala and other cities "In Rule 6 of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Rules, 2011, the terms "one lakh rupees" shall be substituted for "ten lakh rupees," and the phrases "thirty days" shall be substituted for "three months," according to the announcement. Rule 6 addresses the possibility of obtaining foreign donations from relatives. It previously stated that "any person receiving foreign contributions in excess of one lakh rupees or equivalent thereto in a fiscal year from any of his relatives shall notify the Central government (details of funds) within 30 days of such receipt." The new law permits relatives to send up to Rs 10 lakh without telling the government. If the sum is exceeded, individuals will have three months instead of 30 days to notify the government. Similarly, the new regulations give people and organisations 45 days to inform the MHA about bank account(s) that are to be utilised for utilisation of such monies, making amendments in rule 9, which deals with application of obtaining'registration' or 'prior approval' under the FCRA to accept funds. This time limit was previously set at 30 days. The Centre has also removed paragraph 'b' from Rule 13, which dealt with declaring foreign funds on its website every quarter, including details of donors, amount received, and date of receipt. Anyone receiving foreign funds under the FCRA will now be required to follow the existing provision of posting the audited statement of accounts on receipts and utilisation of the foreign contribution, including income and expenditure statement, receipt and payment account, and balance sheet, for each fiscal year beginning on April 1st, within nine months of the financial year's close, on its official website or on the website specified by the Centre. The government has replaced the words "fifteen days" with "forty-five days" in clause (e) of sub-rule (2) of rule 9. In the event of a change in bank account, name, address, goals, or key members of the organization(s) receiving foreign cash, the MHA now allows 45 days to notify it, rather than the prior 15-day limit. In a separate letter issued on Friday, the MHA declared five more FCRA offences "compoundable," making 12 such offences compoundable rather than immediately prosecuting the organisations or persons. Previously, just seven FCRA offences were compoundable. "The modifications are being made to ease the compliance load," stated an unnamed senior MHA official. Failure to notify about receipt of foreign funds, establishment of bank accounts, failure to put information on a website, and other FCRA offences have now become compoundable. Previously, offences such as accepting hospitality from a foreign entity without informing, using foreign funds for administrative purposes beyond the legal limit, receiving money in an account other than the one designated for foreign funds, and four others were compoundable. The penalty ranges from Rs 10,000 to Rs 1 lakh, or 5% of foreign funds, whichever is greater. New Delhi: IAS Athar Amir Khan, the second topper of the UPSC 2015 batch and IAS Tina Dabis ex-husband has now decided to marry again. The bureaucrat has shared the news on her Instagram and shared pictures with his new partner Dr Mehreen Qazi. Amir posted the picture with Qazi alongside the hashtag engagement. This comes months after Amirs ex-wife Tina Dabi and IAS Pradeep Gawandetied the knot in an intimate ceremony. The couple got married on April 22. Athar Amir and her first wife Tina Dabi got separated through a mutual divorce last year after being in marriage for two years. Heres the post Athar Amir Khan shared on Instagram Who is Mehreen Qazi, IAS Athar Amir Ali's fiance? Mehreen is a doctor by profession and hails from Kashmir like Athar Amir Khan. She describes herself as a dreamer and achiever on her Instagram profile. According to reports, Mehreen has an MD in medicine and has reportedly been dating Athar for quite some time. Dr Qazi acquired her degrees in medicines from the UK and Germany. Mehreen Qazi is reportedly working Scientific Officer at the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute & Research Centre. According to her social media profiles, Mehreen Qazi describes herself as a disciplined and confident Physician with UK LICENSE and Board Certification in Internal Medicine. As per her profile, Dr Qazi has been working with minority and low-income populations. She is also an expert in surgery for trauma patients. Expert in handling all outpatients and inpatients departments. Tina Dabi marries IAS Pradeep Gawande IAS Tina Dabi and Pradeep Gawande finally got married on April 22 in the presence of just 15-20 relatives and close friends as guests. Tina and Pradeep got married according to Marathi customs. Tina Dabi, a topper of the 2015 IAS batch, and Dr Pradeep Gawande (2013 batch) met for the first time in May 2021. The couple's journey started with friendship. Tina and Pradeep became good friends while working together. Agnipath Recruitment Scheme: The Indian Air Force has started the application process for the Agnipath Recruitment scheme. Interested and eligible candidates can apply for 'Agniveervayu' posts on the official website of IAF at careerindianairforce.cdac.in till July 5, 2022. The Indian Air Force commenced the registration process for Agnipath Recruitment on June 24 and will be concluded on 05 July 2022. The online examination for the Agniveervayu posts will start from 24 July 2022. Agnipath Recruitment Scheme 2022: Important dates Commencement of Application process: June 24, 2022 Last date to Apply for Agniveer in Indian Air Force: July 5, 2022 Online examination date: From July 24, 2022 Agnipath recruitment 2022: Eligibility criteria Candidates must have the following educational qualifications to apply for Agniveervayu posts in Indian Air Force through Agnipath Yojana (a) Science Subjects Candidates should have passed Intermediate/10+2/ Equivalent examination with Mathematics, Physics and English from an Education Board listed as COBSE member with minimum 50% marks in aggregate and 50% marks in English. OR Passed Three years Diploma Course in Engineering (Mechanical/ Electrical/ Electronics/ Automobile/ Computer Science/ Instrumentation Technology/ Information Technology) from a Government recognized Polytechnic institute with 50% marks in aggregate and 50% marks in English in diploma course (or in Intermediate/Matriculation, if English is not a subject in Diploma Course). OR Passed Two years Vocational Course with non-vocational subject viz. Physics and Maths from State Education Boards/Councils which are listed in COBSE with 50% marks in aggregate and 50% marks in English in vocational course (or in Intermediate/Matriculation, if English is not a subject in Vocational Course). (b) Other Than Science Subjects Passed Intermediate / 10+2 / Equivalent Examination in any subject approved by Central / State Education Boards listed as COBSE member with minimum 50% marks in aggregate and 50% marks in English. OR Passed two years vocational course from Education Boards listed as COBSE member with minimum 50% marks in aggregate and 50% marks in English in vocational course or in Intermediate/Matriculation if English is not a subject in Vocational Course. For More details on Agnipath recruitment eligibility criteria aspirants can check the Detailed Notification available here. Agnitpath Recruitment Scheme: Age Limit (a) Candidates born between 29 December 1999 and 29 June 2005 (both days inclusive) are eligible to apply. "In case, a candidate clears all the stages of the Selection Procedure, then the upper age limit as on date of enrolment is 23 years," read the IAF's official notification. Join Indian Air Force: Application Fees for Agnipath recruitment The examination fees is 250/- which has to be paid by the candidates while registering for the online exam. The payment will be made through debit card/ credit card or internet banking. Agnipath Recruitment Scheme 2022: How to apply for Agniveervayu posts Interested and eligible candidates can apply for Agniveervayu posts in the Indian Air Force from today by visiting the official website careerindianairforce.cdac.in. Direct Link To Apply For AGNIVEERVAYU Agnipath recruitment: Selection process Candidates will be selected through Phase I and Phase II examination. Candidates who will qualify Phase I examination will be eligible to appear for Phase II examination. The name of the shortlisted candidates who qualify for the online test, shall have to appear for PFT followed by medical test. "AGNIVEERVAYU will be enrolled in the Indian Air Force under Air Force Act 1950, for a period of four years. AGNIVEERVAYU would form a distinct rank in the Indian Air Force, different from any other existing ranks. Indian Air Force is not obliged to retain AGNIVEERVAYU beyond the engagement period of four years," stated the Indian Air Force. Live TV Guwahati: Every year, around this time, life comes to a complete standstill in Assam, pounded by relentless rain and subsequent landslides and floods, the intensity of which have only been on the rise, leading to increased loss of lives and property. Experts have pointed out that floods in the two river basins of Brahmaputra and Barak have occurred since yore but the unprecedented destruction witnessed in the recent years can be primarily attributed to faulty flood control measures, population pressure, shrinkage of water-bodies, unregulated construction and skewed development strategies. Growing population, construction in flood areas may have affected Assam's flood devastation Environmental scientist Dr Partha Jyoti Das told PTI that the devastating floods in May and June have taken larger swathes under its grip this time, when compared to the last few years, and the toll registered in the early-monsoon deluge has not been this high in the recent memory. "Growing population and construction in flood-prone areas are some of the reasons behind the burgeoning damage in the state. In several places, breach of embankments has caused widespread destruction. Add to that, frequent flash floods leave people with little time to protect life and property," he explained. Flood prediction and warnings do not reach vulnerable population Flood predictions and early warnings do not reach the vulnerable population on occasions, thus giving them no scope for preparatios, the environmentalist said. "Drainage congestion in low-lying areas, which is a result of rapidly changing land use practices, fast pace of urbanisation and expansion of human habitat all around, at the cost of natural waterways, have also intensified the flood situation," Das insisted. The current wave of floods, which the northeastern state is still reeling under, has claimed 174 lives, besides damaging crops across 2,35,845.74 hectares and leaving 90 lakh people in the lurch, according to a spokesperson of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA). Brahmaputra basin among the most flood-prone areas in the world An official of the Water Resources Department noted that the Brahmaputra basin is among the most flood-prone areas in the world, followed closely by the Barak, and with nearly 100 tributaries and sub-tributaries feeding them, the two rivers make 40 per cent of Assam vulnerable to deluge. A series of factors, both natural and anthropogenic, add to the woes, he said. "Highly potent monsoons, seismic activities leading to a change in the course of the river and rise in the river bed, and the unique geo-environmental setting of the rivers, particularly the Brahmaputra basin in the Eastern Himalayas, are some of the reasons why the flood situation keeps deteriorating in Assam," the official added. Assam: What are the reasons behind urban flooding? Urban flooding in places such as Silchar, Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Barpeta, Nalbari and Tinsukia have also laid bare the faults in the drainage system of the state. Drainage congestion and choking of local water bodies, which had earlier served as an outlet for flood waters, are largely responsible for urban flooding, river specialist Pradip Pujari told PTI. Deforestation, hill cutting often add to flood problems Echoing him, Assam University's former professor of environmental science Dr Abhik Gupta said hill cutting and deforestation, along with climate change, compound flood problems. Das said a combination of strategies is being discussed by authorities to find a permanent solution. Water Resources engineers have always advocated the construction of large storage reservoirs but this is fraught with risk, considering the geo-ecological fragility of the region, he maintained. "Non-structural measures like issuance of flood warnings can play an important role in reducing damages. Use of geo-synthetics for fortifying embankments is also being considered as an option," he said. Das, however, asserted that people might still have to put up with floods, at least to a certain extent, despite the adoption of all possible measures to minimise the scourge, as "technological fixes have certain limitations against natural processes". "Reducing vulnerability and enhancing resilience while taking into account the impact of climate change should be at the core of flood management along with the exploration for a feasible technological solution," he added. (With PTI inputs) Live TV New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (July 3) hailed the candidature of National Democratic Alliances (NDA) presidential pick Droupadi Murmu and called it historic, ANI reported. The PMs comments came on the second day of Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) national executive meeting in Telanganas Hyderabad. As per ANI sources, the PM mentioned Murmus humble beginnings and her struggle throughout her life, further asking the party cadre to emphasise the struggle and simplicity of her life among people. Modi also told the members of the BJP national executive that it was an honour for the country to have its first tribal woman president if Murmu is elected in the July 18 presidential polls. "Prime Minister Modi said that despite her struggle throughout life, yet Murmu did not fail to achieve what she stood for. He also said that Murmu throughout her life worked for the upliftment of every section of society," IANS cited sources as saying. Notably, PM along with the top BJP leaders including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Union Home Minister Amit Shah had accompanied Murmu when she filed her nomination on June 24. Earlier, PM Modi had praised the former Jharkhand Governor and said she will make a "great President" when BJP chief JP Nadda announced her as the NDA candidate for the presidential election 2022. Smt. Droupadi Murmu Ji has devoted her life to serving society and empowering the poor, downtrodden as well as the marginalised. She has rich administrative experience and had an outstanding gubernatorial tenure. I am confident she will be a great President of our nation, the PM wrote in a tweet on July 21. Murmu will face the Opposition parties' nominee former Minister of Finance and External Affairs Yashwant Sinha in the upcoming Presidential race. The results for the top constitutional post will be out on July 21. Incumbent President Ram Nath Kovind's term will come to an end on July 24. (With agency inputs) Hyderabad: With Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national executive meeting moving to its second day on Sunday, the key focus will remain on Prime Minister Narendra Modi`s speech and party's political resolution that are expected to be passed unanimously. According to top sources in the BJP, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will propose a political resolution for the party. This resolution will be seconded by Chief Ministers from the BJP-ruled states. Sources told ANI that Assam Chief Minister and North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) Himanta Biswa Sarma and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai will speak on the political resolution. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur is also expected to make a presentation on the situation and the political scenario in the poll-bound state. Also Read: BJP undemocratically, unethically captured another state government: Congress on Maharashtra situation Political resolution expected to highlight electoral successes The political resolution is a vision document that will be passed today where the BJP is expected to highlight its electoral successes in the recent, especially in states like Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur. The party is also expected to laud PM Modi and his leadership for navigating its success in the states which were once alien spots to the BJP political map. Political violence in several states and the larger agenda of the opposition parties in their efforts to malign the reputation of the government and how that needs to be dispelled are also expected to be discussed in the political resolution. During his stint as the BJP president, Amit Shah had a golden run for the party between 2014 and 2020. It was during the regime of Shah when the saffron party saw its biggest political glory winning state after state election. PM Modi to deliver speech to his party cadre From a party which had no inroads in the northeast, Shah as a strategist navigated BJP's electoral victory in key states like Assam, Tripura and Manipur and also made lotus bloom in the states like Haryana and Maharashtra. The biggest highlight of the entire BJP national executive meeting will be the speech of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his party cadre. During his speech, PM Modi is likely to give suggestions on how to work towards strengthening the organisation as well as keep connected to the grassroots. Also Read: BJPs National Executive meet begins in Hyderabad, PM Narendra Modi marks presence He is also expected to throw light on the outreach of some government schemes. PM Modi is expected to take potshots at the Opposition. After the conclusion of the BJP national executive meet, Prime Minister Modi will also address a public meeting at the Parade Ground where more than 35,000 people are expected to be present. This executive meeting which is taking place in Hyderabad has been one after a gap of at least two years because of COVID. The BJP national executive meeting which is to take place every three months last took place in November 2021 in the national capital in a hybrid manner with leaders joining both physically as well as through digital medium. (With ANI inputs) Live TV DDA Recruitment 2022: Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has invited applications for the recruitment of Junior Engineer, Planning Assistant and various other posts in the organisation. The recruitment drive will fill 279 vacancies. Interested and eligible candidates can apply for the posts at the official website of the Delhi Development Authority at dda.gov.in. The application process has begun on June 11 and the last date to apply for the posts is July 10, 2022. DDA recruitment 2022: Important dates Starting of online application- June 11 Last day to apply- July 10, 2022 The online examination is tentatively scheduled to be conducted from September 1 to 30, 2022. DDA recruitment 2022: vacancy details The recruitment drive will fill 279 vacancies out of which 220 posts are Junior Engineer (Civil), 35 posts are for Junior Engineer (Electrical/ Mechanical), 15 vacancies are for the Planning Assistant, 2 posts are for programmer, 6 posts are for Junior Translator, and 1 post is for Assistant Director (Landscape). ALSO READ- Hurry! Last days to apply for Agniveervayu posts in IAF, get direct link here DDA recruitment 2022: Eligibility criteria The eligibility criteria vz. educational qualification, age limit, experience etc. is different for various posts. Students can check the minimum required eligibility for various posts through the Detailed Notification. DDA recruitment 2022: Application fee The application fee for all categories is Rs 1000/- SC/ST/PWD/Ex-servicemen/Female candidates are exempted from paying the application fee. ALSO READ- Agnipath Recruitment 2022: Indian Navy Agniveer registration begins, direct link to apply here DDA recruitment 2022: Here's how to apply Step1: Visit the official website at dda.gov.in Step 2: On the homepage, click on the Jobs tab Step 3: Click on Direct Recruitment 2022: Link for filling up the online application form. Step 4: Register and proceed with the application process Step 5: Entre the required details, upload documents, pay the fee and submit Step 6: Download the application form and take a printout for future reference Live TV Several people were killed in a shooting at a shopping centre in Copenhagen on Sunday, Danish police said, adding they had arrested a 22-year-old Danish man and could not rule out it was an "act of terrorism". Copenhagen police said officers had been sent to Field`s mall in the city after reports of a shooting, and had told people inside the centre to stay put and await assistance. There was currently no indication that other shooters were present, police said. The capital`s main hospital, Rigshospitalet, had received a "small group of patients" for treatment, a spokesman told Reuters. It had called in extra staff, including surgeons and nurses, the spokesman added. Local media published images showing heavily armed police officers at the scene, as well as people running out of the mall. Footage published by tabloid Ekstra Bladet showed one person being carried by rescue workers into an ambulance on a stretcher. Mumbai: Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Sunday said that he will not attend Mumbai's Aarey forest protest due to the scheduled sitting of the State Assembly today, reported ANI. Urging the newly inducted Eknath Shinde Maharashtra Government to scrap the Aarey metro project, Aditya Thackeray tweeted, Since I have to attend the sitting of the State Legislative Assembly today, I will be missing out on the protest for Aarey Forest and the MMRCL land. I humbly urge the new Govt to reconsider its decision. Dont cast the hate for us, on to our beloved Mumbai. This comes as environmentalists and opposition are gearing up for another round of battle over the Metro-3 car shed project, which the new Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra has proposed to move back to Mumbai's Aarey forest, a 1,800-acre area which is often termed as the city's 'green lung'. Sharing the concerns about the Aarey forest project in a series of tweets, Thackeray added, Aarey isnt only about 2700+ trees, it is about its biodiversity that we are seeking to protect in our Mumbai. There are daily sightings of leopards and other smaller species in the carshed spot and around it. Were proud of declaring more than 800 acres as forest around it. Since I have to attend the sitting of the State Legislative Assembly today, I will be missing out on the protest for Aarey Forest and the MMRCL land. I humbly urge new Govt to reconsider its decision. Dont cast the hate for us, on to our beloved Mumbai. (1/n) Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) July 3, 2022 While the carshed work was given a stay by the then CM, Uddhav Thackeray ji, the work on the Line 3 was fully supported to be carried on. The alternate location of Kanjurmarg, disputed by GoI, will fit in depots for metro lines 3,4,6,14 into 1 space, thus saving on cost & time, the tweet further added. Providing solution to the issue, Thackeray tweeted, Line 6 would anyway need a carshed, either at Kanjurmarg (which was originally thought of in 2018) or at Pahadi Goregaon. Having studied both, both are feasible for Line 3 too. Metros dont go to carshed after every trip, they need stabilising lines, that are missing for Line 3. Aarey metro shed forest project: Whats the issue? In 2014, the Metro-3 car shed was first proposed at Aarey by then chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, which was challenged by local NGO Vanshakti in the Bombay High Court, with a plea to prevent the cutting of trees in the area. Fadnavis, who succeeded Chavan, went ahead with the same site. But, green activists had vehemently opposed the cutting of trees in Aarey for the car shed. After the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress alliance came to power in 2019, the then CM Uddhav Thackeray reversed the decision, shifting the Metro-3 car shed to a site in the Kanjurmarg eastern suburb, but it was embroiled in a legal dispute. The Thackeray government had also declared Aarey as a reserved forest. On Thursday evening, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy Fadnavis, in their first cabinet meeting held hours after coming to power, overturned the previous Thackeray-led government's decision (With inputs from agencies) AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday appealed to people to not waste their votes on Congress and ensure that the grand old party does not get a single vote in the upcoming Gujarat assembly elections. He said the Aam Aadmi Party can form the next government in Gujarat if the party bags the votes of those voters who are angry with the ruling BJP but who do not want to vote for the opposition Congress. Addressing a gathering of 7,000 newly-appointed office-bearers of the Aam Aadmi Party in Ahmedabad, Kejriwal said the Congress exists only on paper in Gujarat, while AAP's organisation has become much bigger than the main opposition party "with lakhs of people joining the AAP in a short time". Claiming that a BJP delegation from Gujarat which visited Delhi recently has failed to find any shortcomings in schools and hospitals there, the Delhi chief minister asked office-bearers of AAP to explain to voters the good work done by the party in Delhi and Punjab while seeking their support in Gujarat. "I can say with certainty that today AAP has a much bigger organisation in Gujarat compared to Congress, which has been present in the state for so many years. Congress exists only on paper. It is the party without office-bearers or workers while people are joining AAP in lakhs," he said. Kejriwal also claimed that AAP will become an organisation even bigger than BJP in Gujarat once its booth-level set-up is in place in a month. He claimed the BJP pays people to work for them but AAP workers cannot be bought with money as they are patriots. "Tell voters that there is no point voting for Congress. Last time, people voted for Congress with great hope. But 57 Congress MLAs have left so far (in Gujarat). Ask people to not waste their votes by supporting Congress. Ensure that Congress does not get a single vote in the upcoming elections," he said. Kejriwal said AAP workers should try to persuade those voters to support AAP who are angry with the ruling BJP but do not want to vote for Congress. "They ended up voting for BJP (for the lack of option). If you convince them to support AAP, then nothing can stop us from forming a government in Gujarat," he said. There are also a large number of people who are angry with the BJP, but they do not want to vote for Congress. They hate Congress, but as they have no option they vote for BJP. All such people who are angry with BJP and do not vote for Congress should vote for us, he said. Live TV Mumbai: Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Sunday targeted the Eknath Shinde-led government on the stringent security arrangements in place for rebel Shiv Sena MLAs as they entered the Vidhan Bhavan premises from a nearby luxury hotel. "We have not seen such security before in Mumbai. Why are you scared? Is someone going to run away? Why so much fear," Thackeray said as the Shinde group MLAs reached Vidhan Bhavan in special buses. Pakistani terrorist Mohammed Ajmal Kasab was caught alive during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack in 2008 and hanged to death at Pune's Yerwada central prison, less than a week before the fourth anniversary of the carnage. The four-day-old Shiv Sena-BJP government will face the floor test on July 4 during the Assembly session. Rebel Shiv Sena MLAs who support Shinde returned to Mumbai from Goa on Saturday evening on the eve of the Assembly session and were lodged in a luxury hotel in south Mumbai, where Vidhan Bhavan, venue of the floor test, is located. As many as 50 MLAs who support Shinde, including 39 rebel legislators of the Shiv Sena, on Saturday evening flew to Mumbai from Goa by a chartered flight. Shinde, who had flown to Goa in the morning, accompanied them back. Shinde has the support of 10 legislators of smaller parties and independents and 106 MLAs of the BJP in the 288-member House. Gujarat: A court here has sentenced to life imprisonment an accused in the case of Godhra train carnage in 2002 in which 59 'karsevaks' were killed, which had triggered worst riots in the history of Gujarat. A court of an additional sessions judge at Godhra in Gujarat's Panchmahal district on Saturday awarded life imprisonment to the accused, Rafik Bhatuk, who was arrested in February 2021. He was accused of torching the train returning from 'Ayodhya' The trial against him in the case began after his arrest last year. He was accused of being involved in the case of torching of a train returning from Ayodhya with 'karsevaks' on February 27, 2002, killing 59 of them. This had led to communal riots in the state, in which over 1,200 people, mostly from a minority community, were killed. The 35th accused to be held guilty Bhatuk is the 35th accused to be held guilty by the court in the case so far, special public prosecutor RC Kodekar said. "The judge wished not to be named," he said. A Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Panchmahal police nabbed Bhatuk from a locality in Godhra town in February last year. He had escaped from Godhra after being named an accused in the case and stayed in various cities before returning here. Also Read: Gujarat riots: SC upholds SIT clean chit to PM Narendra Modi, rejects Zakia Jafri's plea Earlier, a special SIT court had convicted 31 people in the case on March 1, 2011. Out of them, 11 were sentenced to death, while 20 were sentenced to life imprisonment. The Gujarat High Court had in October 2017 commuted the death sentence of 11 convicts to life imprisonment, while upholding the punishment awarded by the special SIT court to 20 others. Later, three more persons were sentenced to life imprisonment in the case on two occasions. Live TV HP Police Constable Exam 2022: The Himachal Police conducted the constable recruitment exam for the second time on Sunday amidst tight security measures after the paper got leaked last time it was held on March 27 this year. Over 75,000 candidates have appeared in the examination again, and very stringent security measures were ensured at every examination centre across the state. Flying squads, checking teams, and frisking staff were deployed as a way of preventing applicants from engaging in any unethical means of clearing the assessment. The police headquarters in a statement said that in case any person finds that unfair means are being used before or during the written test, they can immediately approach to the committee, whose contact numbers have also been provided. A government spokesperson said candidates appearing for the test on Sunday will be provided free travel in HRTC ordinary buses by showing admit cards. The constable recruitment examination was cancelled earlier this year as the question paper was leaked and an FIR was registered in the case. The written examination for the recruitment of 1,700 constables was held on March 27 earlier this year. Jammu and Kashmir: The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Sunday said that villagers in the Reasi area of the Jammu division caught two Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists. As per the report, the militants were captured along with heavy arms and ammunition by the locals. In a series of Tweets, the official handle of ADGP Jammu hailed the local villagers for their courage and cooperation with the security forces. Hats off to the courage of villagers of Tuksan, in Reasi district. Two militants of LeT were apprehended by villagers with weapons; 2AK rifles, 7 Grenades and a Pistol. DGP announces a reward of Rs 2 lakhs for villagers, wrote ADGP Jammu. Hats off to the courage of villagers of Tuksan, in #Reasi district . Two #terrorists of LeT apprehended by villagers with weapons; 2AK #rifles, 7 #Grenades and a #Pistol. DGP announces #reward of Rs 2 lakhs for villagers. pic.twitter.com/iPXcmHtV5P ADGP Jammu (@igpjmu) July 3, 2022 Meanwhile, DGP Jammu & Kashmir Dilbag Singh announced a 2 lakh award for villagers and appreciated their courage. In another tweet, the police revealed the identity of the arrested terrorists. They were identified as Faizal Ahmed Dar S/O Bashir Ahmed Dar r/o Pulwama and a categorised terrorist and Talib Hussain S/O Haider Shah R/O Rajauri. Meanwhile, LG J&K Manoj Sinha also appreciated the bravery of villagers and announced awards for them. At least 2AK rifles, 7 Grenades and a Pistol were recovered from the arrested terrorists. "I salute the bravery of villagers of Tukson Dhok, Reasi, who apprehended two most-wanted terrorists. Such determination by the common man shows the end of terrorism is not far away. UT Govt to extend Rs. 5 Lakh cash reward to villagers for the gallant act against terrorists and terrorism, he said. Sharing details about the arrests, Jammu police said that the apprehended militants were among the most wanted terrorists. Rajouri police had very recently recovered a large number of IEDs and had busted a module of LeT recently in which two terrorists of LeT were arrested and Talib Hussain was declared as an absconder and a reward was announced on him. Talib Hussain was in constant touch with LeT terrorist Qasim based in Pakistan and was involved in at least 3 cases of IED blasts in Rajouri district besides civilian killings and grenade blasts. During preliminary questioning, it was revealed that both the terrorists were also in touch with a Pakistani LeT handler Salman. The GTA elections have just concluded. Now the wind is blowing in the hills in favour of Anit Thapa group. In this situation, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval suddenly visited Darjeeling. He reportedly landed at Bagdogra airport on Saturday and left for Makaibari in Kurseong.There has been a lot of excitement around his visit in the hills. However, a section of the political circles in the hills say Ajit Doval is accompanied by his family. So this trip can be personal. However, there is still no official word on Doval's visit. He was received by Darjeeling MLA Niraj Zimba at Bagdogra airport on Saturday. According to sources, Ajit Doval is on a five-day visit to the hills. However, it is not yet known whether his visit is private or official. Even the political circles in the hills are in the dark about the administrative programme of the National Security Advisor. But suddenly there has been speculation around the National Security Advisor's visit to the hills. The GTA elections (GTA elections) have just concluded in the hills. This election was held after 10 years. Out of the 45 seats, a total of 27 seats have been won in this election by Anit Thapa's party Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha. And just after the election was over, Ajit Doval set foot in the hills. Speculations have started around his visit. According to sources, Doval is on a five-day tour of the hills. Whether his visit is private or official is not yet known. Nothing is known about the National Security Adviser's administrative program. However, with his family members accompanying the National Security Advisor, a section of the political circles in the hills say that since he has family with Ajit Doval, the visit could also be personal. On the other hand, in the wake of landslides in Manipur, 3 martyrs of 107 Territorial Battalion were honoured with full state honours in the Bagdogra Bangdubi army camp. Last respects were paid to the martyred jawans with a gun salute. The chiefs of several battalions of the army paid their last respects to the jawans. Apart from this, they were also paid homage by Siliguri District Magistrate, Darjeeling MLA Niraj Zimba and Trinamool Congress district president Papia Ghosh. And in the midst of all these incidents, there has been speculation around the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval's sudden visit to the hills. Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Sunday urged the newly inducted Eknath Shinde Maharashtra Government to scrap the Aarey metro project. Aditya Thackeray tweeted, "Since I have to attend the sitting of the State Legislative Assembly today, I will be missing out on the protest for Aarey Forest and the MMRCL land. I humbly urge the new government to reconsider its decision. Don`t cast the hate for us, on to our beloved Mumbai." His tweet came in the wake of environmentalists and opposition voicing concerns over the Metro-3 car shed project, which the new Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra has proposed to move back to Mumbai`s Aarey forest. The Aarey forest is a 1,800-acre area which is often termed the city`s `green lung`."Aarey isn`t only about 2700+ trees, it is about it`s biodiversity that we are seeking to protect in our Mumbai. There are daily sightings of leopards and other smaller species in the car shed spot and around it. We`re proud of declaring more than 800 acres as the forest around it," added the former Maharashtra Minister in another tweet. Further sharing concerns over the Aarey forest project, he said, "While the car shed work was given a stay by the then CM, Uddhav Thackeray ji, the work on the Line 3 was fully supported to be carried on. The alternate location of Kanjurmarg, disputed by GoI, will fit in depots for metro lines 3,4,6,14 into 1 space, thus saving on cost and time. Line 6 would anyway need a car shed, either at Kanjurmarg (which was originally thought of in 2018) or at Pahadi Goregaon. Having studied both, both are feasible for Line 3 too. Metros don`t go to car shed after every trip, they need stabilising lines, that are missing for Line 3." According to Aaditya Thackeray, the `badly planned project will destroy Mumbai`s Aarey forest`."This is about sustainable development and better planning. This is about Mumbai`s development and we staying here instead of being handed over a badly planned project that destroys our Mumbai`s Aarey Forest," added Thackeray. Live TV Maharashtra: The rebel Maharashtra Shiv Sena MLAs and Independents, who were earlier taken to Goa from Guwahati hotel, were on Saturday taken to a grand hotel in South Mumbai amid massive security as they returned to the city from Goa in a special flight in the night, PTI reported quoting Mumbai police said. As many as 50 MLAs, who supported the Eknath Shinde camp, including 39 rebel legislators of the Shiv Sena, were transferred to the Mumbai hotel. They flew to Mumbai in a chartered flight. Shinde, who had flown to Goa in the morning, accompanied them back. The Maharashtra rebellion was triggered after Eknath Shinde with other MLAs to oust the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA alliance. Their flight landed at the Mumbai airport around 8 pm nearly 50 minutes after it took off from Dabolim airport in Goa. A posse of police personnel was deployed along the route between the airport and the starred hotel in south Mumbai to ensure the smooth movement of buses carrying the MLAs escorted by Mumbai Police, officials said. Traffic was halted for some time when the buses left the airport. The chief minister travelled in one of the buses carrying the MLAs, officials added. A special two-day session of the state legislature will begin on Sunday which will see the election for the post of Assembly Speaker as well as a floor test of the new government. Eknath Shinde to prove majority this week Eknath Shinde on Thursday took oath as the new Maharashtra Chief Minister, while BJPs Devendra Fadnavis became the Deputy CM of the state. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has convened a Special Session of the Maharashtra Assembly on July 3-4 where a `vote of confidence' in the new government on Monday (July 4), according to officials. The Shinde group has claimed the support of around 40 Shiv Sena MLAs plus 10 independents and others, besides the Bharatiya Janata Party`s 106 MLAs, well above the required 145 mark in the 288-member house. (With IANS inputs) In a major blow to the Uddhav Thackeray faction a day before the crucial trust vote of the Eknath Shinde-BJP government, the newly-appointed speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly on Sunday night removed Shiv Sena MLA Ajay Chaudhary as the legislative party leader. A letter issued by the office of Speaker Rahul Narvekar reinstates Shinde as the Shiv Sena's legislative party leader and also recognises the appointment of Bharat Gogawale from the Shinde camp as the chief whip of the Sena, removing Sunil Prabhu, who belongs to the Thackeray faction. The Shiv Sena said the decision will be challenged in court. The letter addressed to Shiv Sena rebel MLA and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde stated that the Maharashtra Vidhan Bhavan administration had received a letter from his faction on June 22 objecting to Shinde's removal as the group leader of the Shiv Sena Legislative Party by the party chief Uddhav Thackeray. The letter issued by the office of Speaker Rahul Narvekar on Sunday night stated that after discussing the legalities of the matter, the Speaker rejects the appointment of Sena MLA Ajay Chaudhary as the group leader of the legislative unit of the party. The letter, a copy of which is with PTI, reinstates Shinde as the leader of the House of Shiv Sena and also recognises the appointment of Bharat Gogawale as the chief whip of the party, replacing Sunil Prabhu. The development comes as a major setback to the Thackeray faction comprising 16 MLAs who will be bound by the whip to be issued by Gogawale for Monday's trust vote. If these 16 MLAs refuse to follow the whip, they may face disqualification. Reacting to the development, Shiv Sena chief spokesperson and MP Arvind Sawant said they will challenge this "unconstitutional" decision in court. Former Secretary General of Lok Sabha P D T Acharya has given directives that the party leader (chief) has the right to appoint the group leader of the legislative unit of that party. How can you say that (Eknath Shinde) is the (legislative) party leader?" "We will challenge this decision in court. This is highly unfortunate. The decision is taken on Sunday late night which speaks volumes about how it must have been taken," said Sawant. He alleged that the decision amounts to trampling the Constitution and democratic norms. "The BJP is marching towards autocracy," Sawant added. Ousted Shiv Sena group leader Ajay Chaudhary said the new Speaker did not even conduct any hearing over the objections of both sides. "When my name was proposed for the Shiv Sena group leader's post, it was signed by Shiv Sena MLAs Dada Bhuse and Sanjay Rathod. They both later joined the Shinde camp. How can the speaker ignore these facts? When my appointment was recognised by acting speaker Narhari Zirwal, how come the newly-appointed speaker Rahul Narvekar can intervene?" he asked. Earlier in the day, Rahul Narvekar of the BJP was elected Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly on the first day of its special session. Narvekar, who polled 164 votes, defeated Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena candidate Rajan Salvi, who got 107 votes. The Speaker's post was lying vacant since February last year after Nana Patole of the Congress resigned. Going by the votes polled in the Speaker's election, it seems the numbers are stacked in favour of the Shinde-BJP government for the floor test. The 288-member Assembly has one vacancy due to the death of Sena's Ramesh Latke. Out of the 287 legislators, 271 voted, while three MLAs - two of SP and one belonging to AIMIM- abstained from voting. Of the 12 absentee MLAs, Laxman Jagtap and Mukta Tilak (both BJP) are suffering from serious ailments. Two NCP legislators - Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik- are in jail in connection with different money laundering cases. Four other NCP MLAs did not show up. Two Congress MLAs - Praniti Shinde and Jitesh Antapurkar - also did not attend the session. Mithun Chakraborty will arrive at the BJP's state office in Kolkata. Mithun is coming to Kolkata tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. BJP State President Sukanta Majumdar said, "If his health remains good, he is scheduled to visit BJP State headquarter." Sukanta told the media about Mithun's arrival on Sunday. "I will meet Mithunda at the party office tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Mithun said he would come. If his health remains good, he will come to the office. I'll meet him the next afternoon." Mithun was open about his involvement in the Naxalite movement in his early life. He was also seen to be proud of it. But in 2014, he became a Rajya Sabha MP after being nominated by Trinamool leader Mamata Banerjee. But before the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, Mithun suddenly resigned as a Rajya Sabha MP. By then, speculations had started about his private meeting with Sangh Chief Mohan Bhagwat. After this, Mithun joined the BJP on March 27, 2021, proving all the speculations to be true. After this, Mithun was also seen campaigning for the BJP camp in Bengal. He was also seen delivering a heated speech from the Brigade meeting in Kolkata in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He courted controversy by commenting on the famous Bengali movie's dialogues like 'Ami Jat gokhro, ek Choboley Chobi', 'Marbo ekhane, lash porbe sashane." But after the BJP's defeat in the assembly elections in West Bengal, Mithun was not seen in Bengal's politics. After more than a year, the news of Mithun's arrival has started making noise. He is expected to visit the BJP office and meet party workers. NEET UG 2022: The National Testing Agency (NTA) is expected to release the NEET UG Admit Card 2022 soon. The NTA is likely to release the admit cards for the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test, NEET UG 2022 any time in the next week or by the end of it. Students must note that the tentative timing of admit card release is based upon past trend and an official confirmation is awaited. Students are advised to visit the official website of NTA - nta.ac.in for the latest updates. Once released, aspirants who have applied for the NEET UG 2022 will be able to download their admit cards through the official website neet.nta.nic.in.Candidates must notice that the NTA has already released the Exam City Intimation Slip-on June 29, 2022, on neet.nta.nic.in for NEET-UG 2022 which is scheduled to be conducted on July 17, 2022. NEET UG 2022 Admit Card- Here's how to download Once released, NEET aspirants can follow the steps given below to download the NEET UG 2022 admit card Visit the website neet.nta.ac.in Click on the admit card download card link Log in with your application number and Date of Birth Click on submit, your NEET admit card will be displayed on the screen Download the admit card and take a printout for the exam day This year nearly 18 lakh students have registered for the medical entrance test. The NEET 2022 Admit Card will have details of the examination centre, examination roll number, date of birth, full name etc. Students note that to download the NEET UG Admit Card they will have to login to their respective NEET account by entering their registration number and date of birth. ALSO READ- CBSE Board Results 2022: Official shares 10th, 12th result DATE- Check details Live TV Hyderabad: A day after the Supreme Court came down heavily on suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma for her controversial remarks on Prophet Muhammad, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday said he will discuss the issue at an appropriate platform. Speaking to ANI in Hyderabad where he was attending the BJP national executive meeting, Rijiju said, "First of all, as a Law Minister, it is not proper for me to comment on the judgement as well as the observation made by the Supreme Court bench." Nupur Sharma comment row: Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said, "Even if I do not like the judgement..." "Even if I do not like the judgement or I have a serious objection to the manner in which the observations are made, I would not like to comment," stated the Minister. The apex court made strong verbal observations on Nupur Sharma's comments on a televised debate that actually opened up a can of worms with Nupur facing threats and also having FIRs filed against her across the country. Also Read: Prophet row: Nupur Sharma in TROUBLE... THIS happened in Kolkata The court in its verbal observation came down heavily on Nupur Sharma holding her responsible for the state of violence in India including what happened in Udaipur. Talking about the issue, the Union Law Minister further said, "Reactions are coming, I am getting lots of representations and messages to react on this, but we will discuss the issue at the appropriate forum." As Law Minister, it's not proper for me to comment on judgement & observation by SC bench.Even if I've serious objections...I wouldn't like to comment. Can be discussed at appropriate forum...It's oral observation,not judgement: Law Min Kiren Rijiju on SC remarks on Nupur Sharma pic.twitter.com/Tp31UVljER ANI (@ANI) July 2, 2022 Interestingly, the remarks that Nupur Sharma was responsible for communal flareup across the country, were made in verbal or oral observations and not reflected in the order pronounced by the Supreme Court. "I would not like to make a direct comment or reference on the Supreme Court`s observation. It is an oral observation and not a part of a judgment," Rijiju said. Supreme Court criticised Nupur Sharma for her controversial remarks The Supreme Court on Friday came down heavily on suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma stating that her outburst is responsible for an unfortunate incident in Udaipur, where a tailor was murdered. The apex court further blamed the suspended BJP leader and said that she and "her loose tongue" has set the entire country on fire and she is single-handedly responsible for what is happening in the country and said she should "apologise to the whole country". SC also made a reference to Udaipur incident A bench of Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala slammed Sharma for her statement made during a TV news channel debate and while referring to the Udaipur incident, where two men murdered a tailor, said, "her outburst is responsible for an unfortunate incident." Also Read: Kolkata Police issues Look Out Circular against former BJP leader Nupur Sharma However, the apex court also declined Sharma`s request to transfer to Delhi of all the FIRs registered against her across the country for her controversial remarks on Prophet and allowed her to withdraw her plea from the top court and avail alternate remedies. Last month while speaking on a prime-time TV debate show, Sharma made objectionable remarks against Prophet Muhammad that led to huge protests not just in India but also across several Middle East countries forcing the BJP to suspend her pending enquiry. (With ANI inputs) Live TV Katni: The Madhya Police on Saturday began to probe the incident where pro-Pakistani slogans were raised by a group of people during a victory rally after a Panchayat poll results in Chaka village, ANI reported. According to Madhya Pradesh CSP, Vijay Pratap Singh, a video has gone viral on social media wherein slogans of Pakistan Zindabad can be seen being allegedly raised during a victory procession after local elections in Chaka village of Katni. Around 30-40 people were reportedly involved in sloganeering. A case has been registered and the investigation is on. The police are also probing the veracity of the video, ANI reported. As per Singh, on getting information about the incident, the Madhya Pradesh Police swung into action and registered a case. The police are also investigating the authenticity of the video. "The incident is said to be in village Chaka. Around 30-40 people came to the police station and made a complaint that `Pakistan Zindabad` slogans were raised by a group in panchayat polls and the video was put out on social media. A case has been registered in the matter. We will investigate the matter and take action accordingly, said CSP Singh. In the video, supporters are heard raising slogans of Jeet gaya bhai jeet gaya Pakistan jeet gaya. The incident reportedly took place on Friday night after the counting of votes for the second phase of the Panchayat elections concluded. This comes as the communal tension still prevails across the country after a Hindhu man was brutally beheaded in Rajasthans Udaipur by two Islamist radicals over a social media post supporting Nupur Sharma. The now-suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma made controversial remarks on Prophet Muhammed during a heated television debate. She was later suspended by the party but the remark snowballed into a massive controversy. Meanwhile, both the killers in the Udaipur murder case have been arrested along with other accused. The case is being invested by the NIA. (With ANI inputs) New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (July 3) said people yearn for a "double engine growth" in Telangana, adding that when BJP will come to power in the state, the pace of the development work will increase in every city and village. Speaking at a massive public meeting titled 'Vijay Sankalp Sabha' at Parade Grounds in Hyderabad, Modi said, When BJP's double engine government will be formed in Telangana, development work will be expedited in every city and village of the state. 'Double engine' government is a reference made by BJP leaders for the rule at the Centre and saffron party-led states. Telangana is slated to go to the polls next year. PM Modi said the NDA government at the Centre has tried to bring positive changes in every Indians life. "During the past eight years we tried to bring positive change in every Indian's life. We are working tirelessly on how to make people's lives easier, and how to take the fruits of development to every person and region, PTI quoted him as saying. Telangana | When BJP's double engine govt will be formed in Telangana, development work will be expedited in every city and village of the state: PM Modi at a rally in Hyderabad pic.twitter.com/8HRyyZZd4K ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 Praising the state's art and culture, the PM said, "People of Telangana are known for their hard work. The state's people have a lot of talent. Telangana is also known for its history and culture, its art and architecture are a matter of pride for all of us." "In other states too, we have seen that the double-engine govt of the BJP has led to increasing trust of people in it. Even in Telangana people are paving the way for BJP's double-engine government," he added. PM Modi said in his rally that during the past 8 years of his government at the Centre, several policies have been launched for the welfare of the poor, Dalit, backward, and tribal people. "That's why people from all sections of society have increased trust in our govt and its policies," the PM said. The BJP organised its two-day national executive meeting on July 2 and 3 in Hyderabad keeping in mind the love of the people of Telangana for the party, the PM said at 'Vijay Sankalp Sabha'. Earlier today, BJP said in a statement adopted at its national executive meeting that the TRS government in Telangana has become "a symbol of dynastic and corrupt politics". Union minister Piyush Goyal said at a press conference citing the statement that the K Chandrashekar Rao-led government said Telangana was formed after saffron party's struggle and youth's sacrifices, but in "the last eight years, the TRS government completely dashed the expectations of the people". (With agency inputs) New Delhi: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who faces a crucial vote of confidence on Monday (July 4), said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shahs decision to accord him the top post despite BJP having more numbers has "opened the eyes of many". In his first address as the Maharashtra CM on the floor of the state Assembly, Shinde said a "BJP-Shiv Sena government" has taken charge of the state which is based on the beliefs of party founder Balasaheb Thackeray, ANI reported. Everyone knows that Devendra Fadnavis had 115 members with him. I had only 50. Still, he, PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah made me CM despite having numbers with them. This decision of the BJP has opened the eyes of many," he said. "Now a BJP-Shiv Sena government has taken charge, based on the beliefs of Balasaheb Thackeray. Till date, we had seen that people change sides from Opposition to the government but this time leaders of government went to the Opposition," the new Maharashtra CM added. Eknath Shinde made the remarks after BJP candidate Rahul Narwekar was elected as the Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly with 164 votes in support and 107 against him. He defeated Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance's nominee Shiv Sena MLA Rajan Salvi for the Speaker post. Narwekar (45) is the youngest ever Assembly Speaker in the country, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis noted. The new Assembly Speaker is the son-in-law of NCP leader Ramraje Nimbalkar, chairperson of the Maharashtra Legislative Council. The two-day special session of the 288-member Assembly began at Vidhan Bhavan in south Mumbai at 11 am on Sunday. The newly formed Eknath Shinde-led government will face a vote of confidence on Monday. The House has one vacancy owing to the death of Shiv Sena's Ramesh Latke. (With agency inputs) Less than four months after the Aam Aadmi Party`s (AAP) sweeping victory in the Punjab Assembly elections, the Bhagwant Mann government will have its first Cabinet expansion on Monday evening with five new ministers, including second-time legislator Aman Arora, likely to be inducted. With their induction, the total strength of the council of ministers will rise to 15, including the Chief Minister. There, still, will be eight vacancies. The government has sent a letter to Governor Banwari Lal Purohit for seeking time for the oath-taking ceremony on Monday, an official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told IANS. The legislators to be included are Fauja Singh Sarahi from Guru Harsahai, Inderbir Singh Nijjar from Amritsar (South), who was the protem Speaker, Anmol Gagan Mann from Kharar, Chetan Singh Jauramajra from Samana, and Arora from Sunam. In an unprecedented action, Health Minister Vijay Singla was sacked from the state Cabinet on May 24 and arrested on corruption charges with Chief Minister Mann saying his government has zero tolerance towards corruption. Live TV Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar called for a meeting on Sunday to discuss the trust vote when the Eknath Shinde government would need to prove its majority. NCP is also eyeing the post of the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly and the names of candidates will be discussed in the meeting later today. "NCP chief Sharad Pawar has called a meeting of the party later today. Two topics to be taken up for discussion - trust vote and the leader from the party who will be chosen as the Leader of Opposition," NCP leader Jayant Patil told mediapersons here. Eknath Shinde`s 10-day rebellion against Shiv Sena brought down the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. The political crisis in Maharashtra ended with Shinde taking over as Chief Minister and BJP`s Devendra Fadnavis as deputy chief minister. The Eknath Shinde camp, which had stayed mostly in Guwahati during the revolt, had said that Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are Shiv Sena`s traditional rivals. They had earlier urged Uddhav Thackeray to stitch a "natural alliance" with the BJP. Meanwhile, in a first win for the BJP and the Shinde camp, Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Rahul Narwekar was elected as the Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on Sunday. Narwekar received a total of 164 votes in support and 107 against him. The post of the Speaker went vacant in the Assembly after Congress` Nana Patole resigned from the office in February 2021, to take charge as the party`s state unit chief. In the absence of a Speaker, Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal was playing the part of an acting Speaker in the House. In the two-day special session of the Assembly that began today, the Shinde-Fadnavis government will have to prove its majority on the floor of the House on Monday in a Vote of Confidence. New Delhi: Amid photos of Maharashtra Governor feeding sweets to newly-anointed Chief Minister Eknath Shinde going viral, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday (July 2, 2022) took a potshot at Bhagat Singh Koshyari and said that he has seen some "qualitative changes" in the governor's treatment of public representatives. While speaking in Pune, Pawar said, "I saw the swearing-in ceremony of Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis on television. He (the governor) fed them 'pedha' (sweet) and greeted them with a bouquet. It seems there are some qualitative changes in him". Recalling the swearing-in ceremony of leaders of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) after the 2019 Maharashtra assembly polls, the former Union Minister said, "I was present there. Koshyari had objected to some prospective ministers taking oath mentioning the names of some icons or public figures. He even pointed at me at that time and asked them to take the oath only as per the format". "However, when Eknath Shinde took the oath on Thursday, he mentioned the names of the late Balasaheb Thackeray and the late Anand Dighe, "but Koshyari didn't object this time," Pawar said. The veteran leader also reacted sharply over the role of the governor and the relations between his office and the state government. "The decision of the state council of ministers is always binding on the governor. The MVA government had recommended a list of 12 persons to be nominated as members of the Legislative Council from the governor's quota. However, he never approved the list. It has been said that he would take quick decisions with the new government formed in the state," Pawar said. "This is clearly in contradiction to his own oath while assuming the office. A governor should be neutral while treating the people of varied political backgrounds," he added. Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde was on Thursday sworn in as the 20th chief minister of Maharashtra, while BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis took oath as the deputy chief minister. Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari administered the oath of office to Shinde and his deputy Fadnavis at the Raj Bhavan in South Mumbai. Administered the oath of office and secrecy to designated Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Eknath Shinde jee and Deputy Chief Minister Shri Devendra Fadnavis jee at a brief oath taking ceremony held at Raj Bhavan. pic.twitter.com/btJdmWTuOX June 30, 2022 (With agency inputs) On July 1, the Register of Destruction is launched in Ukraine. With its help, homeowners whose houses and apartments were damaged as a result of hostilities and enemy shelling will be able to apply for compensation using the Diya application. At the same time, the question of what the restored houses of Ukrainians will be like, taking into account the new realities and requirements for the housing stock after the war, remains no less important. The Open4business portal discussed these issues with Igor Stakovichenko, an expert in the field of construction and real estate. The introduction of the Register of Destruction will greatly simplify the procedure for compensating for damages for affected citizens. In fact, such a registry will bring together all the data on the destruction in the country. This will be very useful both for the state of Ukraine and for individual citizens when receiving compensation from the aggressor through international legal institutions, the expert noted. As for the new technologies that will be used in the construction of housing, here Stakovichenko recommends first of all to focus on the needs of society. What most people want from a new home, whose homes have been destroyed by the war, is reliability and security. The presence of equipped bomb shelters, convenient evacuation routes, autonomy these are the criteria without which it is difficult to imagine post-war architecture, Igor Stakovichenko stressed. In his opinion, a good option would be the restoration and development of numerous recreational areas, some of which were abandoned even before the war. Stakovichenko believes that many Soviet-built sanatoriums and boarding houses, which have been practically not used for all the years of independence, can become a good platform for building eco-friendly settlements with autonomous service, since most of the communications have already been connected to them. Environmental friendliness and high technologies during construction will also become the hallmark of post-war architecture in Ukraine. Projects such as zero energy houses, or even mini-power houses, which are now being widely implemented in the EU, will also be popular after the war, the expert added. At the same time, Igor Stakovichenko sees no special prospects for aggressive development in the central areas of large cities, which was practiced before the war. Multi-apartment residential complexes in large cities will certainly continue to be built, but whether there is a buyer for such housing is already a question. I think many have already revised or will reconsider their views on comfortable housing as a result of the war, the expert concluded. TBSE Result 2022: Tripura Board of Secondary Education, TBSE is expected to release the TBSE Result 2022 soon. As per media reports, the Tripura Board Result for Classes 10th and 12th is expected to be declared on 7 July. Once released, students would be able to check their results on various websites online. The TBSE Result 2022 would be made available on the official website - tbse.tripura.gov.in. The results would also be released on the official results portal of the state on tbresults.tripura.gov.in. Similar to CBSE, CISCE and HPBOSE, the Tripura Board, TBSE also conducted the final exams for students in two terms. The results for the TBSE 10th 12th Term 2 Exams are expected to be released soon. TBSE Result 2022: Websites to check your result tbse.tripura.gov.in tripuraresults nic tbresults.tripura.gov.in tbse.in results.nic.in TBSE Result 2022: Steps to check TBSE 10th, 12th Result 2022 - Follow the given steps to check www.tbse.tripura.gov.in 2022 below: - Go to the official website, tbresults.tripura.gov.in. - On the home page, click on the Tripura Board 10th, 12th result 2022 link. - Enter registration number and roll number. - Click on the Show result button - The online TBSE result 2022 for Class 10 and 12 will get displayed. - Save and keep it safe for future reference. Tripura Board conducted the TBSE Term 2 Madhyamik exams from April 18 to May 6, 2022. The TBSE HS Term 2 exams were initially supposed to be conducted from April 25, 2022 to May 23, 2022. However, the date sheet was revised by the board and the HS exams were conducted from May 2 to June 1, 2022 instead. The Term 1 TBSE Result was announced on February 28, 2022 for both Madhyamik Class 10 and HS Class 12 students. ALSO READ: Punjab board class 10th result to be out on THIS DATE Mumbai: The four-day-old Shiv Sena-BJP government will face the floor test on July 4 during the special two-day session of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly that began in Mumbai on Sunday (July 3, 2022). The election for the post of the Speaker of the House will also take place on Sunday. Sena MLA and Uddhav Thackeray loyalist Rajan Salvi is the candidate of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress combine for the Speaker's election. He is pitted against first-time BJP legislator Rahul Narvekar. Rebel Shiv Sena MLAs who support Shinde returned to Mumbai from Goa on Saturday evening on the eve of the Assembly session and were lodged in a luxury hotel in south Mumbai, where Vidhan Bhavan, the venue of the floor test, is located. Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde and other MLAs of his faction arrive at the State Assembly in Mumbai. pic.twitter.com/3nHgTLFRUy ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 NCP chief Sharad Pawar claimed that Narhari Zirwal, the deputy Speaker, can perform officiating Speaker's duties even though a no-confidence motion is pending against him. The post of Speaker is vacant since February last year after Nana Patole of Congress quit. As many as 50 MLAs who support Shinde, including 39 rebel legislators of the Shiv Sena, on Saturday evening flew to Mumbai from Goa by a chartered flight. Shinde, who had flown to Goa in the morning, accompanied them back. Eknath Shinde has the support of 10 legislators of smaller parties and independents and 106 MLAs of the BJP. Maharashtra Legislative Assembly: What is the party position in the 288-member House? Following is the party position in the 288-member House: Shiv Sena 55, NCP 53, Congress 44, BJP 106, Bahujan Vikas Aghadi 3, Samajwadi Party 2, AIMIM 2, Prahar Janshakti Party 2, MNS 1, CPI (M) 1, PWP 1, Swambhimani Paksha 1, Rashtriya Samaj Paksha 1, Jansurajya Shakti Party 1, Krantikari Shetkari Party 1, and Independents 13. There is a vacancy due to the death of Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke in May. Two NCP members - Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Food and Civil Supplies Minister Chhagan Bhujbal - have tested COVID-19 positive, while two other party legislators - Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik - are currently in jail. Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction seals legislative party office in Vidhan Bhavan Meanwhile, ahead of the two-day special session of the Maharashtra Assembly beginning on Sunday, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction sealed the legislative party office in the Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai. A white paper was stuck with plastic tape on the closed doors of the Sena legislative party office in the Vidhan Bhavan, with a message in Marathi written on it saying, "The office is closed as per instructions of the Shiv Sena legislative party." New Delhi: Condemning the recent killings in Rajasthans Udaipur and Maharashtras Amravati, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday (July 3) said instead of pointing fingers, the governments and people should work together to normalise the situation. "The country cannot progress like this. There needs to be peace in the country, everybody should stay together. I have condemned it in strong words, and I condemn it again and hope the accused are arrested at the earliest and given exemplary punishment so that others dare not commit such an act," PTI quoted him as saying. On being asked who he thinks is responsible for these murders, the Delhi CM said, "Finger-pointing won't do. What is required is for all the governments and people to come together to normalise the situation." Kejriwals statement comes in the wake of the brutal murder of a tailor, Kanhaiya Lal, on June 28 in Udaipur and the killing of a chemist, Umesh Kolhe, in Amravati on June 21. According to the police, the common thread between the murders was social media posts and messages by the two victims supporting suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma who created a stir with her objectionable remarks against Prophet Mohammad. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is currently investigating both cases. In the Amravati murder case, Sheikh Irfan Shaikh Rahim alias Irfan Khan, the alleged mastermind of chemist Umesh Kolhe's murder, has been remanded in police custody till July 7, a senior official said on Sunday. While an NIA court on Saturday remanded in 10-day police custody the four people arrested in connection with the brutal murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur. Arvind Kejriwal on Gujarat Assembly elections 2022 The Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener is on a two-day visit to Gujarat, where Assembly elections are expected later in the year. Expressing confidence in AAPs victory in the upcoming Gujarat Assembly polls, Kejriwal said people were tired of the 27-year rule of the BJP. "People are fed up with the BJP's 27-year rule. The BJP believes the Congress cannot replace it. Even when people reposed trust in Congress during the last polls and voted for its candidates, many quit and joined the BJP, which, therefore, is full of arrogance," he added. (With agency inputs) Bareilly: A school headmaster in Uttar Pradesh`s Bareilly district has been suspended for allegedly pelting stones at female teachers, following a scuffle. The headmaster, Khurshid Ali, has been accused of secretly making videos of female teachers while Ali has alleged that the teachers were working on their laptops instead of teaching children. The incident took place in Saidpur Primary school in Faridpur and a video clip of the incident has gone viral on social media. Ali told the media that he was making the video to present it as proof to senior school officials. According to the women teachers, when they protested against the headmaster secretly making a video, the latter became angry. The headmaster started abusing and fighting with the women teachers and then pelted stones at them. He even tried to snatch away their mobile phones. The school children were a witness to the entire incident. Later, the female and male teachers of the school submitted a complaint along with the video of the incident to Basic Shiksha Adhikari after which action was taken against the headmaster. New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday (July 2, 2022) slammed Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and alleged that the TRS chief "runs away" whenever Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the state. In an apparent reference to Rao not receiving PM Modi at the Hyderabad airport on Saturday when he arrived in the city to attend the BJP's national executive meet, the party's Telangana president Bandi Sanjay Kumar said that "when the tiger comes, foxes run away". "Whenever Modi Ji comes, there is no answer as to why he (Rao) is running away, why he is fearing, why he does not want to meet (Modi)," he said. It is an entirely different feeling to attend the @BJP4India National Executive Committee meeting in my city and witness the likes of Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji, BJP President Shri @JPNadda ji and the eminent leaders of the party.#BJPNECInTelangana #TeamModiInTelangana pic.twitter.com/4i3x6M2h8X Bandi Sanjay Kumar (@bandisanjay_bjp) July 2, 2022 Modi was received at the airport by Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, state Animal Husbandry Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav and others. Welcome to Telangana Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji. We are all excited to hear your pearls of wisdom at @BJP4India National Executive Committee Meeting at HICC.#BJPNECInTelangana#TeamModiInTelangana https://t.co/o21jumekDu Bandi Sanjay Kumar (@bandisanjay_bjp) July 2, 2022 K Chandrasekhar Rao, popularly known as KCR, has not received PM Modi at least on two occasions in recent times when the latter visited the state. People fed up with TRS 'misrule' Bandi Sanjay Kumar also said that the people of Telangana are fed up with the "misrule" of the TRS government and looking for a change. "You (Rao) have increased power bills, bus charges, property tax, and all. People are fed up with your misrule. That's why they are looking for a change. We will put an end to your 'naya Nizam' rule," Kumar told reporters in Hyderabad. Kumar, a Lok Sabha member, expressed confidence that a BJP government will be formed in Telangana in the Legislative Assembly elections next year. KCR has insulted not individual but institution by not welcoming PM Modi Union minister Smriti Irani also hit out at K Chandrashekar Rao and said that him not welcoming Narendra Modi on his arrival in Hyderabad is an insult not to the individual but to the institution of prime minister. Addressing a press conference at the BJP national executive meeting in Hyderabad, she said that it is a usual practice and part of the protocol that a chief minister welcomes the prime minister on arrival in his or her state. Union Minister Smt. Smriti Irani addresses a Press Conference in Hyderabad, Telangana. #BJPNECInTelangana https://t.co/5l6DxaXIdM July 2, 2022 "The prime minister has given a clarion call for cooperative federalism and in the last eight years met all leaders and deferred to them with respect as is validated by 'maryada'. That KCR has disrupted what has been a constitutionally federal protocol reflects on him," she said. BJP's National Executive Meet Day 2: Key focus on PM Modi's speech, party's political resolution With BJP national executive meeting moving to its second day on Sunday, the key focus will remain on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech and the party's political resolution that are expected to be passed unanimously. According to reports, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will propose a political resolution for the party. This resolution will be seconded by Chief Ministers from the BJP-ruled states. With Party colleagues at the National Executive meeting in Hyderabad. @BJP4India pic.twitter.com/pbDFz3zn7f Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 2, 2022 The biggest highlight of the entire BJP national executive meeting will be the speech of Prime Minister Modi to his party cadre. During his speech, he is likely to give suggestions on how to work towards strengthening the organisation as well as keep connected to the grassroots. (With agency inputs) Rahul Narwekar, a first-time MLA, was elected as the Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on Sunday, defeating Shiv Sena candidate Rajan Salvi. The post of the Speaker was vacant after Congress` Nana Patole resigned from the office in February 2021, to take charge as the party`s state unit chief. In the absence of a Speaker, Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal was playing the part of an acting Speaker in the House. The Speaker elections were held after Eknath Shinde, who led a rebellion to bring down the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, took oath as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra on June 30. The new Maharashtra Cabinet has called a special session of the state assembly for two days-- July 3 and July 4.Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that Narwekar is the "youngest speaker" in the country. Interestingly, Narwekar`s father-in-law Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar, a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) member is the Chairman of the state Legislative Council. "Rahul Narwekar is the youngest Speaker of the Assembly, not only in Maharashtra but across the country... He is the son-in-law of the Legislative Council Chairman who is from NCP, Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar. So Assembly Speaker is Rahul Narwekar, the son-in-law and Legislative Council chairman, Ramraje Naik Nimbalakar is the father-in-law," Fadnavis added. The new Speaker was associated with the Nationalist Congress Party and Shiv Sena in the past. Narwekar (45), a sitting MLA from Colaba, left Shiv Sena in 2014 to contest the 2014 Lok Sabha polls from Maval constituency as a NCP candidate. However, he suffered defeat but was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Council and remained its member till 2019. He contested the Assembly elections from the Colaba seat on BJP`s ticket and emerged victorious. Narwekar (45) received a total of 164 votes in support and 107 went to Shiv Sena candidate`s account. During the Speaker elections, 12 members were absent and 3 legislators abstained from the voting. In the two-day special session of the Assembly beginning Sunday, the Shinde-Fadnavis government will have to prove its majority on the floor of the House on Monday in a Vote of Confidence. Hyderabad: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday offered prayers at Shri Bhagya Laxmi Mandir in Hyderabads Charminar. Video released by news agency ANI shows Adityanath performing Arti and other rituals at the temple accompanied by other party workers and aides. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath reached Hyderabad on Saturday to attend the National Working Committee meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party. National Executive Committee (NEC) kicked off on Saturday t discuss the future course of action for the upcoming elections. The party lauded the Union government`s Agnipath scheme among other resolutions. Watch the video here! #WATCH | Telangana: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and BJP leader Yogi Adityanath offers prayers at Shri BhagyaLaxmi Mandir, Charminar in Hyderabad. pic.twitter.com/VskBaSBRYE ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 After leaving for Hyderabad, Adityanath tweeted, "Departed from Lucknow today to attend the two-day national executive meeting of the BJP being held in Hyderabad while cherishing many sacred memories of Sanatan culture." UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya tweeted, "The lotus (BJP) will definitely bloom in the Telangana assembly elections in 2023." Maurya also shared a picture of UP Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak with him from Hyderabad on Twitter. In the Hyderabad meeting, many important issues, including the Lok Sabha elections to be held in 2024 are likely to be discussed. Uttar Pradesh BJP spokesperson Harishchandra Srivastava told PTI that National Working Committee members from all over the country have participated in the Hyderabad meeting and prominent people of Uttar Pradesh have also gone there. He said the organisational plans of the state can be discussed in this meeting in view of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. On Sunday, Prime Minister Modi will also address a public meeting at the Parade Ground where more than 35,000 people are expected to be present. This executive meeting which is taking place in Hyderabad has been one after a gap of at least two years because of Covid-19. (with inputs from agencies) NEW DELHI: Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt has been making headlines ever since she announced her preganancy with husband Ranbir Kapoor. After completing a schedule of for her first Hollywood film 'Heart Of Stone' alongside Gal Gadot in UK, Alia began shooting for her next venture 'Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani'. Recently, a photo of her alongwith her co-star Ranveer Singh had gone viral on the internet. Sharing the photo on social media, Karan wrote, "I found Rocky and Rani!" The 29-year-old recently made an appearance in the first official trailer of chat show 'Koffee With Karan' shared by Karan Johar. Looking at the trailer, it appeared that Alia was accompanied on the show by her 'Gully Boy' co-star Ranveer Singh. On Sunday, Alia took to Instagram and shared a set of pictures of her look from the show. The 'Highway' actress is seen wearing a pink-coloured bodycon dress with stylish cuts. The dress had red hearts printed on it. Alia left her hair open, wore red pumps and posted several pictures posing in different angles. Sharing this picture, Alia wrote, "how I sipped some koffee this year." Apart from her super-gorgeous look, Alia was also seen flaunting a huge engagement ring on her finger. Her fans can't keep calm after noticing the diamond ring on her finger. Take a look: On the work front, Alia will next be seen in 'Brahmastra: Part One Shiva', alongside Ranbir, Karan Johar's directorial venture 'Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani' and "Darlings', which marks her debut as a producer. Written and directed by Ayan Mukerji, 'Brahmastra' will be released in theatres on September 9, 2022. On the other hand, 'Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani', a romantic-drama film is scheduled for theatrical release on February 10, 2023. NEW DELHI: Bollywood actress Janhvi Kapoor, who made debut in Bollywood industry in 2018 with Shashank Khaitan, is one of the most loved actresses in the current generation. The 25-year-old often drops photos and videos on social media and keeps her fans entertained. Janhvi was recently in Amsterdam where she was having the time of her life with family and friends. The actress on Sunday gave a sneak peek of her fun-filled trip to her fans. She shared a series of pictures on her Instagram but what caught everyone's attention was the picture of the actress enjoying a meal with Ajay Devgn and Kajol's daughter Nysa Devgn. Janhvi is popular for her bold fashion choices and so does Nysa. Even though Nysa is yet to make her acting debut, she enjoys huge popularity on social media and is widely loved. In a series of pictures shared on social media, Janhvi is seen wearing denim dungarees and a crop top in one. In one of the photos, she is seen twinning with Nysa Devgan as they are posing with two other friends in a restaurant. Sharing these pictures, Janhvi wrote, "lost in Amsterdam". Earlier, she had shared a picture of her enjoying a boat ride during the shoot of her upcoming film 'Bawaal'. Taking to Instagram, the 'Dhadak' actor shared a story which portrayed her enjoying a serene boat ride with her co-star Varun Dhawan's wife, Natasha Dalal along with a couple of friends. Janhvi had her hair tied back and donned a white top while Natasha wore a black outfit, keeping her brown hair loose. The group selfie shared by assistant director Sonia Kanwar was reshared by Janhvi. All the four people in the boat were spotted with smiles. "JK's boat party! She planned this for days!" captioned Kanwar with a high five emoji. Janhvi Kapoor was last seen in the horror-comedy 'Roohi' opposite Raj Kumar Rao and Varun Sharma. Currently, she is making news for her upcoming movie 'Bawaal'. Helmed by Nitesh Tiwari, the movie will also star Varun Dhawan and will mark Janhvi's first collaboration with Varun. The drama film is scheduled to hit the big screens on April 7, 2023. Besides, she will also be collaborating with Rajkummar Rao for the second time in 'Mr and Mrs Mahi' and will also be seen in Boney Kapoor's production 'Mili' with Sunny Kaushal and Manoj Pahwa. Recently, the first look of 'GoodLuck Jerry' was released and it has created a lot of hype, and fans are eagerly waiting to see Janhvi Kapoor in a new avatar. The film is directed by Sidharth Sengupta and written by Pankaj Matta. It also stars Deepak Dobriyal, Mita Vashisht, Neeraj Sood and the late Sushant Singh. It is scheduled to release on Disney+Hotstar on July 29. Live TV Egypt is expected to spend EGP 55 billion in annual diesel subsidies during the fiscal year FY 2022/23 after the governments Wednesday decision to raise diesel prices for the first time in 30 months by EGP 0.5 per litre, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has said. Egyptian and US air forces conducted air drills with the participation of multirole combat aircraft from both sides at an Egyptian military airbase, a statement by the Egyptian military spokesman said. Egyptian cinema is seeing notable success during this years Eid El-Adha season, with dozens of millions reportedly collected by the box office by three new commercial releases. The latest in a litany of horrors in Ukraine came this week as Russian firepower rained down on civilians in a busy shopping mall far from the front lines of a war in its fifth month. The timing was not likely a coincidence. While much of the attritional war in Ukraines east is hidden from sight, the brutality of Russian missile strikes on a mall in the central city of Kremenchuk and on residential buildings in the capital, Kyiv, unfolded in full view of the world and especially of Western leaders gathered for a trio of summits in Europe. Were the attacks a message from Russian President Vladimir Putin as the West sought to arm Ukraine with more effective weapons to bolster its resistance, and to set Ukraine on the path to joining the European Union? Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko suggested as much when missiles struck the capital on June 26, three days after EU leaders unanimously agreed to make Ukraine a candidate for membership. It was maybe a symbolic attack as the Group of Seven leading economic powers and then NATO leaders prepared to meet and apply further pressure on Moscow, he said. At least six people were killed in the Kyiv strike, which pummeled an apartment building. The former commanding general of U.S. Army forces in Europe, retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, went further in connecting the attack and the meetings. The Russians are humiliating the leaders of the West, he said. A day after the Kyiv attack, as G-7 leaders met in Germany to discuss further support for Ukraine during their annual summit, Russia fired missiles at a crowded shopping mall in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk, killing at least 19 people. The timing of both attacks appeared to be juxtaposed with the European meetings of U.S. President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron, all supporters of Ukraine. Defying the evidence, Putin and his officials deny that Russia hit residential areas. Putin has denied that Russian forces targeted the Kremenchuk mall, saying it was directed at a nearby weapons depot. But Ukrainian officials and witnesses said a missile directly hit the mall. It was hardly the first time that bursts of violence were widely seen as signals of Moscows displeasure. In late April, Russian missiles struck Kyiv barely an hour after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a news conference with visiting U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. This says a lot about Russias true attitude toward global institutions, Zelenskyy said at the time. Kyivs mayor called the attack Putins way of giving the middle finger. The Russian president recently warned that Moscow would strike targets it had so far spared if the West supplied Ukraine with weapons that could reach Russia. If Kyiv gets long-range rockets, Russia will draw appropriate conclusions and use our means of destruction, which we have plenty of, Putin said. On Friday, a day after Russian forces made a high-profile retreat from Snake Island near the Black Sea port city of Odesa following what Ukraine called a barrage of artillery and missile strikes, Russia bombarded residential areas in a coastal town near Odesa and killed at least 21 people, including two children. While Russias messaging can be blunt and devastating, Ukraines signals under Zelenskyy have focused daily on seeking to amplify Moscows cruelty to a world that day by day risks becoming weary of the war. If interest fades, the concerted support seen at global summits could fade, too. and with it the urgency to deliver the heavier weapons that Ukraine craves. Zelenskyy tends to pair pleas for more help with reminders that all of Europe ultimately is at stake. He described the mall attack as one of the most daring terrorist attacks in European history. For all of Ukraines indisputable suffering, it was a bold statement of some hyperbole in the context of extremist attacks with mass deaths in Paris, Nice, Brussels, Madrid and London in this century alone. For Zelenskyy and Ukraine, the underlying demand cannot be reiterated enough: provide more heavy weapons, and faster, before Russia perhaps makes irreversible gains in the eastern industrial region of the Donbas, where street-by-street fighting grinds on. In his nightly public addresses, Zelenskyy also makes sure to capture the traumatic toll on everyday life in Ukraine, appealing well beyond global leaders to the wider world. This week, he accused Russia of sabotaging peoples attempts to live a normal life. Images of the shopping malls smoking debris said the rest. Search Keywords: Short link: By Trend Uzbekistan aims to strengthen cooperation with Azerbaijan in the industrial sector, First Deputy Director of the Institute for Strategic and Regional Studies under the President of Uzbekistan Akramjon Nematov said, Trend reports. He said this during the conference of official analytical centers of member countries of the Organization of Turkic States, which is being held in Azerbaijans liberated Shusha. "We are now deepening industrial cooperation. At the moment, it is planned to implement joint projects for the assembly of both cars and trucks," he added. Russian forces are pounding the city of Lysychansk and its surroundings in an all-out attempt to seize the last stronghold of resistance in eastern Ukraine's Luhansk province, the governor said Saturday. Ukrainian fighters have spent weeks trying to defend the city and to keep it from falling to Russia, as neighbouring Sievierodonetsk did a week ago. The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces took control of an oil refinery on Lysychansk's edge in recent days, but Luhansk Gov. Serhiy Haidai reported Friday that fighting for the facility continued. ``Over the last day, the occupiers opened fire from all available kinds of weapons,'' Haidai said Saturday on the Telegram messaging app. Luhansk and neighbouring Donetsk are the two provinces that make up the Donbas region, where Russia has focused its offensive since pulling back from northern Ukraine and the capital, Kyiv, in the spring. Pro-Russia separatists have held portions of both provinces since 2014, and Moscow recognizes all of Luhansk and Donetsk as sovereign republics. Syria's government said Wednesday that it would also recognize the ``independence and sovereignty'' of the two areas and work to establish diplomatic relations with the separatists. In Slovyansk, a major Donetsk city still under Ukrainian control, four people died when Russian forces fired cluster munitions late Friday, Mayor Vadym Lyakh said on Facebook. He said the neighbourhoods that were hit did not contain any potential military targets. Elsewhere, investigators combed through the wreckage from a Russian airstrike early Friday on residential areas near the Ukrainian port of Odesa that killed 21 people. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said three anti-ship missiles struck an apartment building in the small town of Serhiivka, The victims of Friday's attack also included four family members at a coastal campsite that took a hit as well, he said. 'I emphasize: this is a deliberate direct Russian terror, and not some mistake or an accidental missile strike,`` Zelenskyy said. The Kremlin has repeatedly claimed that the Russian military is targeting fuel storage sites and military facilities, not residential areas. Ukrainian authorities interpreted the missile attack as payback for the withdrawal of Russian troops from a nearby Black Sea island with both symbolic and strategic significance in the war that started with Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. Moscow portrayed their departure from Snake Island as a ``goodwill gesture'' to help unblock exports of grain. Search Keywords: Short link: Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg affirmed to his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry his country's support to Egypt's right to its share of the Nile River waters as the pair exchanged views on the Grand thiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) dispute in a meeting in Cairo on Sunday. The flow of the Nile waters is not a concern of one country but rather all countries through which the river runs, Schallenberg said adding that "the Nile River should not be controlled by one state." Schallenberg made his statement during a joint press conference with Shoukry after a meeting in Cairo, where they discussed boosting bilateral ties as well as regional and international issues of common interest including GERD. Shoukry said Egypt is keen on briefing Austria, as a member of the European Union (EU), on Egyptian stances regarding the GERD issue. He expressed hopes that Austria will be able to convey the Egyptian view on the long-running issue to the EU. Egypt and Sudan have been negotiating with Ethiopia for almost a decade now to reach a legally binding and comprehensive agreement on filling and operating GERD, which Addis Ababa started building on the Blue Nile in 2010. Egypt, which relies mainly on the Nile for water, fears that a unilateral operation of GERD and filling its 74 billion cubic metre reservoir will negatively impact its water supply, while Sudan is concerned that GERD will harm the flow regulation to its own dams and their safety. Ethiopia, which had unilaterally completed the first and second filling of the dam, announced that the first turbine of GERD has begun generating power in February. Ethiopia has announced plans to implement the third phase of filling starting in August despite the absence of accord on regulations of filling and operation with Egypt and Sudan. Negotiations among the three countries collapsed in April 2021 and since then, all attempts to revive them had failed. Irregular migration Talks also included issues of terrorism and irregular migration. Shoukry said that since 2016, Egypt has succeeded in preventing boats carrying illegal migrants from departing from its shore. The country hosts more than 6 million migrants from Arab and African countries, who are treated as Egyptians and enjoy all services. Shoukry said that Egypt has exerted great efforts in cooperation with the European Union to provide a suitable framework to limit illegal migrants from Egypt. Since 2016, Egypt has stepped up efforts to deal with irregular migration, setting legislative framework to combat smuggling of migrants. In 2016, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi launched the first national strategy to combat irregular migration in addition to Law 82 of 2016 penalising and criminalising all forms of migrants smuggling as well as combating activities of those involved in such acts. The penalties of committing, attempting to commit, or being involved in smuggling migrants include strict imprisonment and a fine ranging from EGP 200,000 to EGP 500,000. In 2022, the country toughened the law, forcing those accused of committing crimes of smuggling or aiding in smuggling of migrants to pay a fine equivalent to the amount they profited from the operation. Russian-Ukrainian crisis The Egyptian and Austrian foreign ministers discussed the consequences of the Russian-Ukrainian war and the global food crisis. Answering a question during the presser regarding the impact of the global grain crisis in Egypt and North Africa, Shoukry stated that the crisis has impacted the entire world not only Egypt. He added that Egypt is the worlds largest importer of grains and was mainly depending on Russia and Ukraine. However, he said that the country obtains sufficient grain stocks and has contracted to import shipments from other countries. Shoukry also highlighted that the global hike in grain prices adds burden to the state budget, expressing hopes of "cooperation, even partially, within the framework of UN efforts to secure Ukranian and Russian ships carrying wheat" to the importing countries. Shoukry stressed that the issue of food security should be addressed seriously, stating that Egypt is communicating with all parties to reslove the crisis and regain stability in Ukraine. The top Egyptian diplomat emphasised that the economic reform program has helped the country in dealing with consequences of the coronavirus pandemic and Russian-Ukrainian war. Shoukry warned that if the war continues, additional risks would ensue noting that Egypt is working with partners to find solutions for the Russian-Ukrainian crisis and regain the world's security and stability. COP27 Schallenberg stressed that climate change is a world issue, adding that Austria is looking forward to cooperating with Egypt regarding the UN climate change conference (COP27) that Egypt will host, on behalf of Africa. Egypt is scheduled to host COP27 in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh in November with ambitions to build on the outcomes of COP26 in Glasgow and support global efforts in mitigating and adapting to climate change. Egypt has also pledged to speak up for aspirations of African and developing countries to cope with climate change, including through securing required finances in this regard. Earlier in June, during the Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development held in Cairo, Shoukry said that Egypt will coordinate with all African countries to set a clear map on global and regional levels to tackle climate change in addition to allocating financial resources. Egypt will also focus on the green recovery agenda and support Africas efforts to contain the impacts of the ongoing challenges, Shoukry said. He urged the international community to meet its obligations for Africa, the least contributor to the climate crisis with only three percent of global carbon emissions. Search Keywords: Short link: West African leaders on Sunday lifted financial and trade sanctions they imposed on Mali's military regime, accepting the junta's date for a March 2024 return to civilian rule, a delegate at a regional summit said. Heads of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had gathered to assess efforts to secure timetables and other guarantees for restoring civilian rule in Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso. Mali underwent coups in August 2020 and May 2021, followed by Guinea in September 2021 and Burkina Faso this January. Fearing contagion in a region notorious for military takeovers, ECOWAS has imposed tough trade and economic sanctions against Mali, but lesser punishments against Guinea and Burkina. "It's done," one delegate at the ECOWAS summit told AFP. "We have decided to lift economic and financial sanctions against Mali." ECOWAS in January imposed a trade and financial embargo on Mali after its military government unveiled a scheme to rule for five years. The sanctions have badly hit the poor and landlocked Sahel state, whose economy is already under severe strain from a decade-long jihadist insurgency. After months of bitter talks, the Malian authorities on Wednesday approved a plan to hold presidential elections in February 2024. The vote will be preceded by a referendum on a revised constitution in March 2023 and legislative elections in late 2023. The ECOWAS mediator in Mali, former Nigerian leader Goodluck Jonathan, visited the country last week. A member of his entourage told AFP Mali had made "enormous progress". Mali's top diplomat Abdoulaye Diop on Friday said the recent political developments were moving the country towards a lifting of the sanctions. Guinea transition 'unthinkable' Burkina Faso -- another Sahel country caught up in jihadist turmoil -- and Guinea have so far only been suspended from the bodies of the 15-nation bloc but could face harsher sanctions. Burkina's junta has proposed a constitutional referendum in December 2024 and legislative and presidential elections in February 2025. Visiting Ouagadougou for the second time in a month on Saturday, ECOWAS mediator Mahamadou Issoufou praised junta leader Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba and his government for their "openness to dialogue". The timetable to enable a return to civilian rule and the situation of deposed leader Roch Marc Christian Kabore were also discussed, said the former president of Niger. Political parties allied with Kabore denounced the junta's plans on Friday, saying they were not consulted in advance. The situation appears more complex in Guinea, whose junta has refused an ECOWAS mediator and announced a 36-month transition -- a period that African Union chairman and Senegalese President Macky Sall has described as "unthinkable". ECOWAS avoided ruling on sanctions at a June 4 meeting and instead gave itself another month to negotiate. Guinea this week has led a diplomatic offensive to assuage the concerns of regional leaders. The country's post-coup prime minister Mohamed Beavogui on Saturday met the United Nations' special representative for West Africa and the Sahel, Mahamat Saleh Annadif. The government said it wanted to reassure its ECOWAS "brothers" of its commitment to undertaking a peaceful and inclusive democratic transition. Guinea's military regime met the main political parties on Monday, but they have made their participation in the dialogue conditional on the nomination of an ECOWAS mediator. Search Keywords: Short link: The second edition of the military diplomacy course for foreigners held in Egypt were concluded on Sunday, Armed Forces Spokesman Gharib Abdel-Hafez said. The course included 68 officers from 26 countries in Africa, Europe, Asia and North America who had been nominated to work in the positions of military diplomatic representation and their wives, the spokesman said. The Egyptian Military Intelligence held the course in cooperation with relevant Armed Forces bodies along with the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development (EAPD), the Administrative Control Authoritys National Anti-Corruption Academy and Al-Azhar, according to the spokesman. A celebration was held at the conclusion of the course and was attended by a number of military commanders, representatives from the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and ambassadors and military attaches of a number of countries. A documentary played during the celebration showed the activities during the course, which have contributed to developing the participants' skills in the field of diplomatic work and topics of national security and international crises management, the spokesman said. The course, held in accordance with the instructions of the Minister of Defence Mohamed Zaki, also included field visits to a number of tourist destinations and military areas. Search Keywords: Short link: A joint committee of specialists in Red Sea protectorates and Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Association (HEPCA) is investigating the deaths of two female swimmers after a shark attack off the Red Sea resort Sahl Hashish south of Hurghada city, Egypts Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad said on Sunday. Fouad directed the committee to identify reasons and circumstances behind the attack, and gather reliable information to be analyzed according to global investigation protocols of shark attacks on humans. The ministrys statement did not indicate the womens nationalities. However, AP reported on Saturday that a 68-year-old Australian woman died in Hurghadas Nile Hospital on Friday, quoting a health official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The news agency did not mention a second victim at the time. Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafy halted all activities at the incidents scene with no time frame mentioned, according to a statement by the ministry. In the meantime, AP stated in its report that the governor decided on Saturday to close beaches from Sahl Hasheesh to Makadi Bay for three days, including ceasing activities of fishing boats in Hurghada. The Ministry of Environment sent its deepest condolences to the victims families, asserting that the noted committee is currently investigating reasons behind the presence of a shark at the location of the victims. Shark attacks have been relatively rare in Egypts Red Sea coastal region in recent years. In 2020, a young Ukrainian boy lost an arm and an Egyptian tour guide a leg in a shark attack. In 2018, a shark killed a Czech tourist off a Red Sea beach. A similar attack killed a German tourist in 2015. In 2010, various shark attacks killed a European tourist and maimed several others off Sharm El-Sheikh in the Sinai Peninsula across the Red Sea from Hurghada. This latest attack comes while Egypts tourism sector struggles to recover from the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war as the country heavily relies on tourists from both countries. During the second half of 2021, Egypts tourism sector had picked up momentum thanks to the return of Russian tourists to Sinai in August and high-profile events such as the glitzy Pharaohs Golden Parade in Cairo in April, in addition to the opening of the Avenue of the Sphinxes in Luxor in late November. According to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Egypt received 3.5 million tourists during the first six months of 2021, garnering revenues of $3.5 to $4 billion, which are almost equal to all revenues gained in 2020 when the sector had begun to recover following setbacks caused by COVID-19. In April, UKs Daily Mail news website selected Egypt as one of the best touristic destinations for the spring and summer of 2022, coming in second place on a list of top holiday destinations. In the same month, Tripadvisor, the world's largest travel guidance platform, named Cairo the second most trending destination in the world and the ninth best destination for city lovers in 2022. Search Keywords: Short link: El-Mandara beach located on the Mediterranean coast is ready to welcome the visually impaired with new passages and access signs, according to the official Facebook page of Alexandria governorate on Saturday. Alexandria Governor Mohamed El-Sherif inaugurated on Saturday the beach for the visually impaired, allocating an area for it at the People of Determination beach in Mandara. This beach comes as a continuation of efforts made by the Governorate of Alexandria to provide best services for people of determination, in order to achieve principles of community integration and create a decent life for them, El-Sherif said during the opening. It is noted that the designated part of the beach for the blind at the People of Determination beach contains paths in the seawater with entries that aid movement and swimming by identifying signs through touching markers and under close supervision of follow-up teams. According to recent statistics issued in 2020 by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), there are nearly 20 million Egyptians with special needs nationwide. In May 2022, the Senate reconvened to discuss legislative amendments for the fund regulation law for supporting the disabled (Law 200/2020), which was drafted and submitted by majority party Mostaqbal Watan (The Nation's Future). In December 2021, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi directed the government to establish a special fund for Egyptians with special needs during a Differently-Abled event in Cairo that was held in celebration of the International Day for Disabled People. El-Sisi asked Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, the Senate, and the House of Representatives to draft legislation that would allow donations to the fund. In October, the House of Representatives approved a legislative amendment that toughens penalties for people bullying the disabled. Search Keywords: Short link: Head of Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Church Pope Tawadros II congratulated on Sunday President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, state officials and Islamic leaders ahead of Eid El-Adha, which starts this year on 9 July. "I extend to your Excellency and to all our beloved Muslims the deepest heartfelt congratulations on the occasion of the blessed Eid El-Adha," Pope Tawadros said in a message to El-Sisi. The pope prayed to God to support the president in achieving further success in developing Egypt and countering the different challenges facing the nation. Pope Tawadros also congratulated Al-Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed El-Tayyeb on Eid, wishing him success in continuing the "enlightening role of spreading awareness, the values of tolerance and the culture of peace, citizenship and coexistence." The pope extended Eid greetings to Minister of Religious Endowments Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa and Grand Mufti Shawki Allam. He also sent congratulatory messages to Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Speaker of the House of Representatives Hanafy El-Gebaly, Speaker of the Senate Abdel-Wahab Abdel-Razek, Minister of Defence and Military Production Mohamed Zaki and Minister of Interior Mahmoud Tawfik. Muslims in Egypt will celebrate the four days of Eid El-Adha, which are public and private holidays, from 9-12 July. Muslims across the world celebrate Eid Al-Adha by slaughtering sheep, cows, camels or goats and giving meat to the poor, and feasting during family gatherings. Amid a significant drop in coronavirus infections in Egypt over the past months, the Ministry of Religious Endowments announced on Sunday allowing Eid prayers at large mosques and outdoor spaces for men, women and children. The Eid El-Adha prayers of the Islamic year 1443 will be held early Saturday morning around 5:26am in Greater Cairo with slight differences in time in other governorates. In Eid El-Fitr, which took place in May, the religious endowments ministry allocated 600 outdoor spaces at large mosques nationwide for millions of worshippers, ending a ban on outdoor Eid prayers, since the start of the pandemic in 2020. Search Keywords: Short link: The newly formed 19-member board of trustees of Egypt's national dialogue will hold its first meeting on Tuesday, marking the beginning of the dialogue between political forces called for by the president in April. The meeting will be held at 1pm at the headquarters of the National Training Academy (NTA), said Diaa Rashwan, general coordinator of the dialogue and head of the Journalists' Syndicate, in a statement on Sunday. During the meeting, the board will review details and schedule of the dialogue activities, take required decisions on them and disclose them to the public opinion, Rashwan said. This aims to ensure public engagement in the dialogue through various direct and electronic means, Rashwan explained. A press conference for Egyptian and foreign media outlets will be also held following the board's meeting, ensuring the processes transparency and making sure that updates are immediately available to the public, Rashwan noted. He stressed that this right will be guaranteed for the public throughout the events and activities of the dialogue. Rashwan has previously affirmed that the country will hold its first sessions of the national dialogue during the first week of July. In a dialogue with the press on Tuesday, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said the state has launched the national dialogue between all intellectuals, syndicates, and political forces. He added that only one faction is exempted from the dialogue, in reference to the terrorist-designated Muslim Brotherhood group. El-Sisi explained that this faction had rejected his proposal in July 2013 to hold early elections to resolve the crisis after people protested against them and instead, resorted to "warring." If one [chooses] warring then there is no common ground for dialogue and discussion, the president stressed. El-Sisi called for the dialogue during the annual Egyptian Family Iftar banquet on 26 April for all political forces without any exceptions or discrimination." Various political parties and forces have welcomed the step and expressed willingness to join the dialogue. Rashwan has affirmed that no one will be excluded from the presidential call for national dialogue except those who have blood on their hands or carried out terrorism or violence. Late in June, the administration of the national dialogue announced a diverse board of trustees that include parliamentarians, journalists, professors and officials. In remarks to media, Rashwan said the dialogues board of trustees will be in charge of the coordination process of the multi-directional, multi-stage dialogue and will take final decisions on the dialogues preliminary results to be submitted to the president. Rashwan has affirmed that the dialogue will be conducted within a framework of freedom of opinion and discussions by well-informed experts. Invitations have been sent to hundreds of Egyptians inside and outside the country, Rashwan said last month, noting that the dialogue has not been rejected by any of the political forces. Those willing to join the dialogue can submit their requests at the National Youth Conferences website. The dialogues administration is also receiving proposals and inquiries via WhatsApp at 01025521555 - 0109388883. The dialogue comes amid steps taken by the country to advance its human rights situation as part of the National Strategy for Human Rights launched in September. Search Keywords: Short link: Israel is to conduct a ballistics test on the bullet that killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, the Israeli occupation army said Sunday, a day after the Palestinian Authority handed the bullet to US experts. Army spokesman Ran Kochav's comment on army radio came after the PA gave the green light for the Americans, but not the Israelis, to examine the bullet that killed Abu Akleh during an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank. A Palestinian official, who requested anonymity, told AFP the Israeli comment raised questions about whether the PA could "trust the Americans". Speaking to army radio, Kochav said: "The test won't be American, the test will be an Israeli test with an American presence. "We are waiting for the results, if we killed her, we'll take responsibility for it, and will be sorry for it. We are also sorry when people that are not involved are killed by Palestinian gunmen," he also said. Israel's army was not immediately available to provide further explanation of Kochav's remarks, including whether an Israeli ballistics test was already underway. Palestinian sources in Ramallah have said they expected the test to be conducted at the US embassy in Jerusalem. Abu Akleh, a Palestinian American, was wearing a vest marked "Press" and a helmet, was covering an Israeli occupation army operation in Jenin camp in the northern West Bank on May 11 when she was killed. The official Palestinian investigation found that the Qatar-based television channel's star reporter was killed after being hit by a bullet just below her helmet. It found that Abu Akleh was killed with a 5.56 millimetre armour-piercing round fired from a Ruger Mini-14 rifle. Investigations by the United Nations, as well as several journalistic probes, have found that the shot that killed Abu Akleh was fired by Israeli forces. Despite those findings, Israel has maintained that she may have been hit by stray Palestinian gunfire. The occupation army has also said "that Ms. Abu Akleh was not intentionally shot by an IDF soldier". Search Keywords: Short link: A Palestinian teenager died on Sunday after being shot by Israeli occupation forces in the occupied West Bank a day earlier, Palestinian medical sources said. The 17-year-old was identified as Kamel Alawnah by the Palestinian health ministry, which said he "succumbed to wounds from live fire by the occupation (Israeli army) in the abdomen and hand in Jenin". A Palestinian medical source told AFP that Alawnah was wounded in Jaba, a village in the Jenin governorate of the northern West Bank. The Israeli military said in a statement on Sunday that "a suspect hurled a Molotov cocktail" at its troops near Jaba on Saturday. "The soldiers responded with live fire toward the suspect," the army added. "A hit was identified." Forty-nine Palestinians have been killed since late March across Israel and the Palestinian territories; civilians, attackers and suspected militants among them. They include Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who according to the United Nations was killed by Israeli army fire while covering a military raid in Jenin. Israeli occupation forces have been carrying out near-daily raids in the West Bank, including in and around Jenin. Search Keywords: Short link: By Trend At the initiative of the Latvian side, Deputy Prime Minister Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Mukhtar Tileuberdi held a phone conversation with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia Edgars Rink?vi?s, Trend reports citing Kazinform. The ministers discussed the prospects of bilateral economic cooperation, including in the field of trade, transport and logistics, air transport, information technology, green economy, food industry. Rink?vi?s expressed interest in further strengthening close cooperation with our country, and also congratulated on the 30th anniversary of the national diplomatic service. The parties exchanged views on topical issues on the global and regional agendas. An avalanche set off by the collapse of the largest glacier in the Italian Alps killed at least six people and injured eight others Sunday, an emergency services spokeswoman said. The glacier collapsed on the mountain of Marmolada, the highest in the Italian Dolomites, near the hamlet of Punta Rocca, on the route normally taken to reach its summit. The disaster struck one day after a record-high temperature of 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) was recorded at the glacier's summit. "An avalanche of snow, ice and rock hit an access path at a time when there were several roped parties, some of whom were swept away," emergency services spokeswoman Michela Canova told AFP. Six people had been confirmed dead and eight were injured, she added. Two of the injured were taken to hospital in Belluno, another in a more serious condition was taken to Treviso and five to Trento. "The total number of climbers involved is not yet known," said Canova. She did not specify the nationalities of the victims, but Italian media reported that foreign nationals were among them. Helicopters were scrambled to take part in the rescue and to monitor the situation from the air. Rescuers in the nearby Veneto region of northeast Italy said they had deployed all their Alpine teams, including sniffer dogs. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi expressed his "sincerest condolences" to the victims and their families on Twitter. Further collapses feared Images filmed from a refuge close to the incident show snow and rock hurtling down the mountain's slopes and causing a thunderous noise. Other footage shot by tourists on their mobile phones showed the greyish avalanche sweep away everything in its path. The mountain rescue team released images showing rescuers and helicopters at the scene to take victims from the valley to the village of Canazei. Their task was made harder because the bodies were trapped under a layer of ice and rock. A team of psychologists was on hand to support relatives of the victims. Experts quoted by the Corriere della Sera daily said they feared further collapses of ice. Massimo Frezzotti, a science professor at Roma Tre University, told AFP the collapse was caused by unusually warm weather linked to global warming, with precipitation down 40 to 50 percent during a dry winter. "The current conditions of the glacier correspond to mid-August, not early July," he said. Glacier specialist Renato Colucci told the Italian agency AGI that the phenomenon was "bound to repeat itself", because "for weeks the temperatures at altitude in the Alps have been well beyond normal values". The recent warm temperatures had produced a large quantity of water from the melting glacier that accumulated at the bottom of the block of ice and caused it to collapse, he added. The Marmolada glacier is the largest in the Dolomites mountain range, which is part of the Italian Alps and situated on the northern face of Marmolada. The glacier, nicknamed "the queen of the Dolomites", feeds the Avisio river and overlooks Lake Fedaia in the autonomous Italian province of Trento. According to a March report by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), melting ice and snow is one of 10 major threats caused by global warming, disrupting ecosystems and infrastructure. The IPCC has said glaciers in Scandinavia, central Europe and the Caucasus could lose between 60 and 80 percent of their mass by the end of the century. The traditional way of life of people such as the Sami in Finland's Lapland, who raise reindeer, has already been affected. Thawing permafrost is also hampering economic activity in Canada and Russia. Search Keywords: Short link: A group of young off-duty Ukrainian soldiers gathered at a military distribution center to enjoy a rare respite from the fighting that has again engulfed their fractured home in eastern Ukraine. As they shared jokes and a pizza, artillery explosions could be heard a few kilometers away _ a reminder of the looming battle that threatens to unfold here in the city of Slovyansk, which was occupied by Russian proxy fighters in 2014. ``Everyone knows that there will be a huge battle in Slovyansk,'' said one of the soldiers, who could not be named for security reasons. Now, eight years after their city was last occupied, the war has returned. Slovyansk could become the next major target in Russia's campaign to take the Donbas region, Ukraine's predominantly Russian-speaking industrial heartland, if Moscow captures Lysychansk _ the last remaining Ukrainian stronghold in Luhansk province, 70 kilometers (43 miles) to the east. Another soldier, a 23-year-old accountant who joined up when the invasion began, said Ukrainian forces simply do not have the weapons to fight off the superior arsenal of the approaching Russian army. ``We know what's coming'' he said with a sad smile. These soldiers were still teenagers when pro-Russian separatists captured and held the town for three months. The brief occupation in 2014 terrorized Slovyansk, where dozens of officials and journalists were taken hostage, and several killings took place. Fierce fighting and shelling broke out when the Ukrainian army laid siege to the city to recapture it. ``Actually, the war never left Slovyansk. It didn't leave people's heads'' said Tetiana Khimion, a 43-year-old dance choreographer who converted a fishing store into a hub for local military units. ``On the one hand, it is easier for us because we know what it's like. On the other hand, it is more difficult for us since we've been living like this for eight years in a suspended condition.'' Slovyansk is a city of splintered loyalties. With a large retired population, it is not uncommon to hear older residents express sympathy towards Russia or nostalgia for their Soviet past. There is also distrust of the Ukrainian army and government. After a recent shelling of his apartment block, one resident named Sergei said he believed that the strike was launched by Ukraine. ``I'm not pro-Russian, I'm not pro-Ukrainian. I am somewhere in between'' he said. ``Both Russians and Ukrainians kill civilians _ everyone should understand that.'' On Thursday, a group of elderly residents couldn't hide their frustration after a bomb blast slashed open their roofs and shattered their windows. Ukraine ``says they are protecting us, but what kind of protection is this?'' asked one man, who did not provide his name. ``They kneel to that Biden _ may he die!'' exclaimed his neighbor, Tatyana, referring to U.S. President Joe Biden. After 2014, Khimion said, it became easier to know ``who is who'' in Slovyansk. ``Now you can easily see: These people are for Ukraine, and these people are for Russia.`` She said not enough was done after 2014 to punish people who collaborated with Russian proxies to prevent a repeat of the situation. ``That is why we cannot negotiate, we need to win. Otherwise it will be a never-ending process. It will keep repeating'' she said. The mayor of Slovyansk, Vadim Lyakh, reflects the city's new trajectory. Taking his cues from Ukraine's wartime leader, President Volodymyr Zelensky, the mayor has decorated his office with Ukrainian flags, anti-Russian symbols, portraits of national poets _ even a biography of Winston Churchill. But before 2014, he was part of a political party that sought closer ties with Russia. Lyakh said that while pro-Moscow sentiment in the city has faded in past years _ in part because of the horrors witnessed in 2014 _ there are still ``people who are waiting for the return of the Russian troops.'' As the front line creeps ever closer, attacks on the city intensify. Three-quarters of Slovyansk's pre-war population has fled, but the mayor said there are still too many people here, including many children. He encourages them to evacuate. He spends his days coordinating humanitarian aid and strengthening the city's defenses. More and more, he is among the first responders at the scene of bombardments. The Associated Press followed Lyakh and recently witnessed what authorities described as a cluster bomb attack on a residential area. One person was killed and several others wounded. The mayor says that shelling now occurs at least four or five times a day, and the use of cluster munitions has increased in the last week. Although he remains optimistic that Ukrainian forces can keep the enemy at bay, he is also clear-sighted about his options. ``Nobody wants to be captured. When there is an imminent danger of the enemy troops entering the city, I will have to go'' he said. Lyakh said he cannot allow himself to relax, even for a few minutes. ``It is emotionally difficult. You see how people are dying and being harmed. But nevertheless, I understand that this is my job and that nobody but myself and the people around me can do`` it. One morning last week, Lyakh paid a visit to an apartment block that had been shelled overnight. Most of the windows in the building were blown out, doors were broken wide open and a power line severed. The same building was bombed in 2014, when the shell left a gaping hole on the sixth floor, and many residents suffered broken bones. Andrey, a 37-year-old factory worker who has lived in the building for 20 years, recalls the bombing and occupation. He said separatist forces ``did and took what they liked.'' People in his circle have different opinions about Russia. ``Those who have suffered understand what this `Russia world' means: It means broken houses, stolen cars and violence'' he explains. ``There are those who miss the Soviet Union, who think we are all one people, and they do not accept what they see with their own eyes.'' In the eight years since the separatists retreated, he said, life has markedly improved in Slovyansk. The statue of Vladimir Lenin that once stood in the central square has been removed. Water and power supplies were renovated. New parks, squares and medical facilities were built. ``Civilization was returned to us'' Andrey said. At the military distribution hub, the young soldiers talk wistfully about their lives before the invasion. ``I had a great car, a good job. I was able to travel abroad three times a year,'' said the former accountant, who plans to stay in Slovyansk with the others to defend the city. ``How can we let someone just come and take our lives away from us?'' Khimion's husband is on the front lines, and she put her teenage daughter on a train to Switzerland as soon as the invasion began. ``I have been deprived of everything _ a home, husband, child _ what should I do now?'' she asks. ``We are doing everything we can to stop (the offensive), to keep it to a minimum ... But to be afraid is to abandon this place.'' At the entrance to the city, a monument bearing Slovyansk's name is riddled with bullet holes from 2014. It has been painted over several times. It now bears the national colors of Ukraine, and a local artist has painted red flowers around each perforation. Residents of Slovyansk wonder _ some with hope, many in fear _ if the sign will soon be painted yet again, in the red, white and blue of the Russia flag. Search Keywords: Short link: Two Russian airplanes were set to depart Bulgaria on Sunday with scores of Russian diplomatic staff and their families amid a mass expulsion that has sent tensions soaring between the historically close nations, a Russian diplomat said. Filip Voskresenski, a high-ranking Russian diplomat, told journalists at the airport in Bulgaria's capital Sofia he was among the 70 Russian diplomatic staff declared ``persona non grata'' last week and ordered to leave the country before Monday. Bulgaria's expulsion decision was announced by acting Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who took a strong stance against Russia after it invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Petkov, who lost a no-confidence vote on June 22, has claimed Moscow used ``hybrid war'' tactics to bring down his government. Petkov has said that Russia will retain 43 of its employees after the expulsion and noted that Bulgaria has just 12 diplomatic staff in Moscow. ``Anyone who works against the interests of Bulgaria will be called to go back to the country from which they came,'' he said. On Friday, Russian Ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova issued Bulgaria an ultimatum to reverse its decision and threatened that Moscow would fully sever diplomatic ties. ``I intend to urgently raise before the leadership of my country the issue of the closure of the Embassy of Russia in Bulgaria, which will inevitably lead to the closure of the Bulgarian diplomatic mission in Moscow,'' she said in a statement. The expulsion, which has severely strained diplomatic ties, is the greatest ever number of Russian diplomats expelled by Bulgaria, which has European Union and NATO membership. Bulgaria has strongly backed the West's sanctions against Moscow since it launched its war on Ukraine more than four months ago. The European Union, which Bulgaria has been a member of since 2007, responded to Russia's ``unjustified threat'' and said it ``stands in full support and solidarity with Bulgaria.'' In late April, Russia cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria after officials refused a Moscow demand to pay gas bills in rubles, Russia's currency. Bulgaria's defence minister was also ousted in early March for referring to Russia's war as a ``special military operation,'' the Kremlin-preferred description. Search Keywords: Short link: President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi attended on Sunday the inauguration of the first phase of the countrys first light rail trail (LRT) and its starting point the Adly Mansour Interchange Station which will connect the New Administrative Capital (NAC) with the rest of the countrys cities and governorates. The first stage of the LRT comprises 12 stations, including Adly Mansour, Badr City, the Culture and Arts City in the NAC, and New Obour, Minister of Transportation Kamel El-Wazir said during the inauguration event. President El-Sisi took the train from Adly Mansour Interchange Station to Badr City Station. Upon the completion of the three phases of the LRT, the service will cover a distance of 103.3 kilometres with the ability to accommodate up to one million commuters daily through 19 stations connecting several districts nationwide. Furthermore, Each LRT train carriage can accommodate up to 300 passengers, with a total capacity of 1,300 passengers, El-Wazir told El-Sisi. He also noted that the train tracks are secured by barbed wire fencing in both directions. The 1.1 million square metre central Adly Mansour station, the largest in the Middle East, includes seven transport modes namely the Cairo-Suez Railway Line, Cairo Metros third line, the LRT, the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) System, and the SuperJet buses that run along three lines nationwide. The station was built as part of the countrys efforts to upgrade its transportation sector and encourage citizens to depend on environmentally friendly means of mass transportation, El-Wazir said, adding that the station includes four electric transportation modes. The station, which is named after the countrys former interim president Adly Mansour (2013-2014), includes a full-service transportation complex and a commercial investment zone on a total area of 15 feddans. El-Wazir said the LRTs carriages offer a high level of railway security for commuters and feature WiFi services and on-board displays. The LRT is a sustainable means of green mass transportation since it runs on electricity instead of diesel. The 22 trains of the LRT also include seats allocated for people with special needs, stressing that all the LRTs stations are configured to facilitate access and movement for people with disabilities. Furthermore, the minister noted that each train carriage includes seven surveillance cameras, as well as a telephone that can be used in the event of an emergency. In addition to being linked to various means of transportation in Adly Mansour Interchange Station, the LRT will also intersect with Egypts under construction monorail at the Arts and Culture Centre Station in the NAC, along with Egypts first high-speed electric railway at an interchange station on the Cairo-Sokhna Highway. The LRT is being constructed by the Ministry of Transportation and a consortium of 20 Egyptian companies along with 20 Chinese companies for supplying trains and systems. The LRT Project is meant to serve new cities, including Obour, Shorouk, Badr, Mostakbal, 10th of Ramadan, and the NAC. El-Wazir also clarified that a train will be departing from the Adly Mansour Interchange Station every three to five minutes, noting that the duration of the trip from the main station to the NAC will take no longer than 45 minutes. In terms of ticket pricing, rides lasting three stops on the LRT will cost EGP 15, increasing by EGP 5 for every three-stop threshold passed thereafter, with rides lasting 12 stops the total number of stations that have been finalised out of the 19 costing EGP 35. The minister noted that a unified ticket will be made for all means of transportation at Adly Mansour Interchange Station. Meanwhile, the LRTs SuperJet bus station which is built on a total area of 1.5 feddans includes a garage that can house up to 24 buses, including four electric buses that can accommodate up to 5,000 passengers, Chairperson of SuperJet Sabri Ayoub told El-Sisi during the tour. He added that all the electric buses in the SuperJet station are fully produced by Egyptian companies, with a total of 60 percent of them made up of local components. In his briefing, El-Wazir added that Cairo Metros Third Line starts from Adly Mansour Interchange Station, encompassing Rod El-Farag Axis in the north and Cairo University in the south with a total length of 41-42 kilometres, including 34 stations to commute 1.5 million passengers. El-Sisi also gave directives on Sunday to start the experimental operation of the Safaa Hegazi Metro Station on the third line after El-Wazir announced the conclusion of work on the third phase of the line. The Zamalek Metro Station was re-named the Safaa Hegazy Metro Station as a tribute to the renowned TV presenter who died in 2017. Search Keywords: Short link: Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Sunday that the recent tension in Libya is a sign that a big sector of the Libyan people is dissatisfied with the continuous of the crisis there and the suspensions of the political and electoral track. Hundreds of protesters took to streets in several Libyan cities on Friday against the political class and deteriorating economic conditions. The protests came a day after the leaders of the parliament and another legislative chamber based in Tripoli failed to reach an agreement on elections during UN-mediated talks in Geneva. In a press conference on Sunday with his Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg following a meeting in Cairo, Shoukry said Egypt supported the UN mediated Libyan national dialogue, which brought together the country's two rival camps, and the decisions made then, but such decisions are now inapplicable after missing the timeframe agreed upon The timeframe should have been met and respected, Shoukry told reporters during the conference. Libya's presidential elections were due to be held in December 2021, but were adjourned over differences between rival factions on laws governing the elections and the eligibility of presidential candidates. Shoukry also offered assurances that the Libyan Presidential Council and House of Representatives have legitimacy that should be respected. Egypt's top diplomat said Egypt is exerting great efforts to guarantee a solution to the crisis without military action, noting that the Libyan issue is of concern to Egypt due to the neighbourly relations and the binding ties between both countries. Cairo has hosted several rounds of the UN talks as well as the Libyan 5+5 military commission meetings meant to restore the unity of the Libyan military institution, shore up the ceasefire across the country and discusses means of the withdrawal of mercenaries and foreign fighters from Libyan territory. Shoukry emphasized the importance of putting all difference aside and withdrawing all foreign fighters, and reach an inter-Libyan consensus that would lead to legislative and presidential elections soon. Schallenberg agreed with Shoukry saying the latest deterioration in Libya reflect a state of dissatisfaction and disagreement among of the Libyan people, stressing the importance of achieving peace and stability in the oil rich country. Libya has been wrecked by conflict since a NATO-backed uprising toppled and murdered longtime president Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The country has for years been split between rival administrations in the east and west, each supported by different militias and foreign governments. Search Keywords: Short link: The World Bank's board approved creation of a fund meant to finance investments in strengthening the fight against pandemics. The fund will support prevention, preparedness and response (PPR), with a focus on low- and middle-income countries, the bank said in a statement. "The devastating human, economic, and social cost of Covid-19 has highlighted the urgent need for coordinated action to build stronger health systems and mobilize additional resources," it said. The World Bank added that the fund, which it aims to open later this year, was developed under the leadership of the United States, Italy and Indonesia as part of their G20 presidencies, and with broad support from the G20. It will be used in a number of areas, including disease surveillance, with more than $1 billion in commitments already announced. "The World Bank is the largest provider of financing for PPR with active operations in over 100 developing countries to strengthen their health systems," World Bank President David Malpass said in the statement. The so-called financial intermediary fund (FIF) will provide financing to "complement the work of existing institutions in supporting low- and middle-income countries and regions to prepare for the next pandemic," the World Bank said. The World Health Organization is a stakeholder in the project and will provide technical expertise, its president Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. US President Joe Biden said more than 1 million Americans and millions of people around the world have lost their lives to Covid-19, underscoring the importance of boosting investment in pandemic preparedness. "When it comes to preparing for the next pandemic, the cost of inaction is greater than the cost of action," Biden said in a statement late Thursday. "Investing in preparedness now is the right thing and the smart thing to do." In a separate statement earlier in the day, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called the fund "a major achievement that will help low- and middle-income countries be better prepared for the next pandemic." "Even as we continue to work to end Covid-19, today's decision by World Bank shareholders will help bolster capacity to prevent, detect, and respond to future pandemics," she said. A spokesperson for the World Bank told AFP that if the Covid-19 pandemic is still ongoing when the fund is implemented, it could be used to provide support against the current as well as future pandemics. Search Keywords: Short link: KYODO NEWS - Jul 3, 2022 - 12:00 | All, Japan, World A major multinational naval exercise led by the U.S. Navy has been launched in the Pacific with 25 other nations participating amid growing U.S.-China tensions. U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific region including Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines are participating in the biennial Rim of the Pacific exercise, regarded as the world's biggest naval training starting from Wednesday, according to the U.S. Navy. The exercise, known as RIMPAC, started at a time China is maintaining military pressure on Taiwan. Beijing views the self-ruled democratic island as part of its territory to be reunified and is asserting its territorial claims more aggressively in the East and South China seas. The U.S. Congress urged President Joe Biden to invite Taiwan to the drill under the National Defense Authorization Act for the fiscal year through September 2022 which was enacted last December. But he held off on such a move apparently to avoid any further escalation in tensions with China. China took part in RIMPAC in 2014 and 2016 but has not done so since 2018 when U.S.-China relations worsened under the administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump, with disputes ranging from trade and technology to human rights issues in Hong Kong and the far-west Xinjiang Province. Some European countries including Britain, France and Germany are also among the participants. The nations have been stepping up engagement in the Indo-Pacific, with Britain dispatching a carrier strike group led by the Queen Elizabeth last year, and France and Germany as well as the Netherlands also sending naval vessels to the region the same year. While Russia's invasion of Ukraine made European countries more united, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization specifically named China as a challenge for the first time in policy guidelines on Wednesday. "We are making a statement about our commitment to work together, to foster and sustain those relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of the sea lanes and the security of the world's interconnected oceans," U.S. Third Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Michael Boyle, also the commander of the RIMPAC exercise, was quoted as saying by the U.S. Navy. As the drill runs through Aug. 4, 38 surface ships, four submarines, nine national ground forces, more than 30 unmanned systems, about 170 aircraft and over 25,000 personnel "will train and operate in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California," the U.S. Navy said in a release. From Japan, the Maritime Self-Defense Force's carrier Izumo and destroyer Takanami were dispatched to the exercise along with units of the Ground Self-Defense Force. "By participating in RIMPAC, we'll improve tactics, enhance cooperation with the United States and other like-minded nations, and show our unity toward a free and open Indo-Pacific," Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said Tuesday prior to the start of the drill, referring to a vision promoted by Tokyo and Washington in a veiled counter to Beijing. In the previous RIMPAC in 2020, only 10 nations including Japan took part due to coronavirus pandemic restrictions, and the period was shortened to about two weeks. In 2018, 26 countries joined. Related coverage: Japan guarded U.S., Australian military assets 22 times in 2021 China-Russia flotilla displays "show of force": Japan defense chief U.S.-led naval drill in Pacific starts without China KYODO NEWS - Jul 3, 2022 - 14:43 | All, Japan Tokyo marked a record ninth straight day of temperatures above 35 C on Sunday as high pressure systems covering the Japanese archipelago kept the heat wave going, the weather agency said. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the mercury hit 35.3 degrees in central Tokyo just after noon, breaking the previous record of eight straight days of high temperatures set in 2015 from July 31 through Aug. 7. Sano, Tochigi Prefecture, recorded a temperature of 36.2 C by noon, while Fukushima, northeastern Japan, and Kasama, Ibaraki Prefecture, logged 35.6 C. The agency has issued advisories over the heat, urging people to drink water frequently and take measures against heatstroke and heat exhaustion. Related coverage: Japan in energy-saving period for 1st time in 7 yrs amid heat wave Power plant halted as Tokyo handles power crunch, record June mercury Mercury climbs to 40.2 C in Japan, national record for June KYODO NEWS - Jul 3, 2022 - 22:14 | All, Japan KDDI Corp., a major Japanese telecom company, said Sunday it has finished work to restore services to up to 39.15 million mobile connections that have been affected by a network disruption for around two days, in what has been viewed as the industry's most serious outage to date. But the "au" mobile brand operator stopped short of saying when its connections will fully recover after the failure not only prevented its users from making calls and getting online but also impacted such areas as banking, transmission of weather data, parcel deliveries and network-connected cars. Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Yasushi Kaneko said in an ad hoc press conference he believes the disruption should be classified as a "serious incident." KDDI, which is currently verifying its network, completed work to resume services in eastern Japan around 5:30 p.m. after most of its customers in the western part of the country were gradually regaining wireless access. The company had prioritized restoring services to users in western Japan, with work completed at 11 a.m., due to an approaching typhoon. Holding a press conference, KDDI President Makoto Takahashi apologized over the disruption, which began at around 1:35 a.m. Saturday, and said he would consider compensating individual and corporate users. KDDI Corp. President Makoto Takahashi (R) bows in apology for the nationwide disruption of the company's mobile network at a press conference on July 3, 2022, in Tokyo. (Kyodo) "This is the largest outage in the history of our company," Takahashi said. KDDI said a problem occurred while replacing its switching system for voice calls during regular maintenance, with repair work triggering a concentration of traffic that led the company to reduce user access. During that time, another system experienced a chain reaction of failures which further prolonged the connection difficulties. The recent string of issues at major Japanese mobile carriers is "extremely regrettable," Kaneko said as he acknowledged that KDDI's outage was on a larger scale than NTT Docomo Inc.'s nationwide disruption last October. Reiterating his call for carriers to keep in mind that cell phones are an important part of social infrastructure, Kaneko said appropriate steps would be taken to deal with the matter, hinting at the issuance of an administrative order. The disruption that continued for an unprecedentedly long time caused numerous inconveniences. Passengers were briefly unable to use IC rechargeable cards on buses traveling in the Tokyo metropolitan area, while a regional bank said automated teller machines located outside its branches also could not be used. The network problem has also affected its low-cost UQ Mobile brand and its lower-priced "povo" wireless customers, as well as smaller rivals leasing connections from the telecom company, such as Rakuten Mobile Inc. As of March, KDDI was providing around 62 million mobile connections, with individual contracts for the au, UQ Mobile and povo brands accounting for about 31 million. KDDI Corp. President Makoto Takahashi explains the nationwide disruption affecting the company's mobile network at a press conference on July 3, 2022, in Tokyo. (Kyodo) Japan's telecommunications business law stipulates that the government can classify a problem as a "serious incident" if 30,000 people or more who subscribe to services capable of dialing emergency numbers, such as 110 or 119, are affected for an hour or longer. In October last year, Japan's largest mobile carrier by subscribers, NTT Docomo, suffered a system failure and was subsequently issued with an administrative order to prevent a recurrence. The disruption, lasting around 29 hours and affecting at least 12.9 million users, was labeled a serious incident by the communications ministry. SoftBank Corp., the country's third-largest mobile carrier by subscribers, in December 2018 also suffered an outage which affected around 30.6 million users. Its phone and data services were restored in around four and half hours. Related coverage: KDDI mobile customers across Japan hit by prolonged network troubles Over 10 mil. mobile users affected by NTT Docomo's system failure in Oct. Major disruption hits SoftBank mobile service in Japan President of the New Zealand China Friendship Society Dave Bromwich is pictured in Havelock North, New Zealand, June 9, 2022. (Xinhua/Guo Lei) WELLINGTON, July 1 (Xinhua) -- President of the New Zealand China Friendship Society (NZCFS) Dave Bromwich has spoken highly of the achievements of the Communist Party of China (CPC), using the word "service" to describe the relationship between the CPC and the Chinese people. "The government is the people. The people are the government. It is a mutual relationship. If using one word to describe my feeling about the CPC and the government of China, I very quickly came up with one word and I haven't been able to replace it, and the word is service. Why service? Because China has developed so fast and taken all of its population with it," Bromwich told Xinhua in a recent interview. According to Bromwich, the main reasons for the Chinese people's great support for the government and the CPC are the success they have achieved in advancing the livelihood of the people and a sense of pride the people feel towards their country's achievements. He said the key human rights issues are enough food to eat, adequate housing and the right to education. "For those three key areas, China has done an amazing job." Recalling his first trip to China 31 years ago, Bromwich said "I remember the first trip I did from Shanghai to Guangzhou was 33 hours. Its just so fast now and has made the lives of the people so much more comfortable. It's a very rapid development." As this year witnesses the 50th anniversary of New Zealand-China diplomatic relations and the 70th anniversary of the NZCFS, Bromwich highlighted three key points in fostering bilateral relations in the future: education of younger generation, sustainable business relations and illustration of a Chinese perspective rather than a Western interpretation of China from the media. "It is the media in the West who is really responsible for a lot of the misinformation and the distrust of China as a nation. That's the point I think where the difficulties lie," he said. Bromwich has spent nearly 10 years in China since 1996. Most of his experiences were related to cooperatives and rural community development projects in remote areas in Southwest and Western China. He was elected as president of the NZCFS in 2013. "My experience in China has given me a great understanding of where China is today, where she has come from and how she has developed," Bromwich said. "At the same time, the most rewarding part of my work is through tours to introduce China to the outside world, to know the real communities, from the village people who we've worked with, to provincial level partners, a real introduction, a real China," he said. By Trend Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan Azizbek Madmarov met on Friday with Chinese Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Du Dewen, Trend reports citing Kabar. During the meeting, views were exchanged on topical issues of the current agenda of the Kyrgyz-Chinese cooperation, the press service of the Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry said. The sides noted the expediency of giving an impetus to bilateral relations through high-level visits. Azizbek Madmarov noted the active dynamics of interaction on the construction project of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railroad, and stressed the importance of accelerating the feasibility study of the project. In addition, the deputy minister drew attention to the need for practical implementation of grant projects for the construction of the Bypass Chui Canal, as well as avalanche protection structures as part of the North-South road construction project. Ambassador Du Dewen noted the support of the Chinese side for these projects, which are important for the socio-economic development of Kyrgyzstan. PHNOM PENH, July 2 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) on Saturday praised the Cambodian government for appealing donations from the private sector and the Cambodian Red Cross to support landmine clearance. Donations from patriotic well-to-do Cambodians for landmine clearance have poured in since Friday at the appeal of Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen. The UNDP said in a statement that the demining action is more than just clearing contaminated land, and it is about people and societies and their prospects for a dignified and prosperous life. "Today, throughout Cambodia, almost 1 million people are still at risk, living and working in contaminated areas where mines and explosive remnants of war continue to kill, injure, and traumatize communities," the statement said. It added that the war-left landmines have severely impeded the country's recovery and development and constrained livelihoods in rural communities. "This support will accelerate the humanitarian-development-peace nexus by removing landmines that compromise socio-economic and psychosocial wellbeing and return safe land to communities for productive use, creating pathways for recovery efforts which enable social, economic, and environmental benefits," the statement said. It added that the UNDP stands ready to continue supporting the Cambodian government and the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority and looks forward to seeing the results of this great accomplishment. "The UNDP urges the continued participation of development partners and the private sector, as a key actor in national development, in the pursuit of a Mine Free 2025, the 2030 Agenda and the imperative to Leave No One Behind," the statement said. Cambodia is one of the countries worst affected by mines and explosive remnants of war (ERWs). An estimated 4 million to 6 million landmines and other munitions have been left over from three decades of war and internal conflicts that ended in 1998. According to the Yale University, between 1965 and 1973 the United States had dropped some 230,516 bombs on 113,716 sites in Cambodia. Ly Thuch, first vice president of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, said mines and ERWs have killed and injured nearly 65,000 people in the Southeast Asian nation since 1979. From 1992 to April 2022, Cambodia had cleared 2,379 square km of landmine/ERW contaminated land, destroying over 1.1 million anti-personal mines, more than 26,000 anti-tank mines and almost 3 million ERWs, he said, adding that nearly 7.5 million people have benefited from the mines-cleared land. "Despite this remarkable achievement, the country still needs to clear the remaining 736 square km of land contaminated by mines by 2025," Thuch said during a meeting with donors in May. People welcome the berthing of the first ship at the Lekki Deep Seaport under construction in Lagos, Nigeria, on July 1, 2022. The vessel, ZHEN HUA 28 departing from China's Hong Kong, delivered on Friday three ship-to-shore cranes and 10 rubber-tired gantry cranes that will help in the evacuation of cargoes from vessels to the shore. The Lekki Deep Seaport, constructed by the China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC), is the largest seaport in Nigeria, and one of the biggest in West Africa. It is designed to have the capacity to handle a significant volume of liquid and dry bulk un-containerized cargoes. (CHEC/Handout via Xinhua) ABUJA, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday welcomed the successful berthing of the first ship at the Lekki Deep Seaport, the country's first deep seaport under construction in Lagos, the country's economic hub. The vessel, ZHEN HUA 28 departing from China's Hong Kong, delivered on Friday three ship-to-shore cranes and 10 rubber-tired gantry cranes that will help in the evacuation of cargoes from vessels to the shore, Buhari said in a statement by his media advisor Femi Adesina. The Nigerian leader congratulated all stakeholders in the maritime sector on the feat, saying that his approval of four new seaports in the country, including the Lekki Deep Seaport, was hinged on growing the economy. According to the statement, the decision is also aimed at creating massive job opportunities, foreign investment inflows, and trade facilitation. The Lekki Deep Seaport, constructed by the China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd, is the largest seaport in Nigeria, and one of the biggest in West Africa. It is designed to have the capacity to handle a significant volume of liquid and dry bulk un-containerized cargoes. The current state of the seaport's construction which is nearing full completion will make the operationalization of the facility a reality before the end of the year, Buhari said, reassuring Nigerians of his commitment to sustain investments in these new assets. The nation's maritime and aquatic resources are critical to the livelihoods of Nigerians and the government will spare no effort in successfully harnessing the potential of the sector, the Nigerian leader added. Photo taken on July 1, 2022 shows the berthing of the first ship at the Lekki Deep Seaport under construction in Lagos, Nigeria. The vessel, ZHEN HUA 28 departing from China's Hong Kong, delivered on Friday three ship-to-shore cranes and 10 rubber-tired gantry cranes that will help in the evacuation of cargoes from vessels to the shore. The Lekki Deep Seaport, constructed by the China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC), is the largest seaport in Nigeria, and one of the biggest in West Africa. It is designed to have the capacity to handle a significant volume of liquid and dry bulk un-containerized cargoes. (CHEC/Handout via Xinhua) BEIJING, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday made an address at the meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland and the inaugural ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The speech by Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has elaborated the significance of adhering to the "one country, two systems" principle, and drawn a blueprint for a brighter future of Hong Kong, experts and professionals worldwide have said. A BETTER CHANCE AT DEVELOPMENT "Since its return, Hong Kong, amid China's monumental reform and opening-up efforts, has been breaking new ground, functioning as an important bridge between the Chinese mainland and the rest of the world. As a result, it has made irreplaceable contributions to our country's economic miracle marked by long-term, stable, and rapid growth," Xi said in his speech at the meeting. Stephen Perry, chairman of Britain's 48 Group Club, said "China has, along with Asian nations, the best potential growth -- 30 percent of world growth comes from China." As part of China, Hong Kong has a very important role to play, Perry said, noting that the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area "will be the leading region in China." Pui Jeng Leong, a media veteran in Brunei, said that he was impressed by Xi's speech at the celebration, adding that over the years, he has found that Hong Kong people are getting better at speaking Mandarin, and their recognition of the motherland is growing stronger. Backed by the large mainland market and linked to international capital, Hong Kong's political, economic, social and business environment has further improved, laying a solid foundation for the city's future development, he said. The Chinese president noted in his speech that "Be it the global financial crisis, the COVID-19 epidemic, or social unrest, none of them have stopped Hong Kong from marching forward." Selcuk Colakoglu, director of the Turkish Center for Asia-Pacific Studies, said despite all the challenges, Hong Kong's social vitality and average life expectancy now rank among the highest in the world, and "Hong Kong's status as an international financial, trade and shipping center has been consolidated and enhanced." For Cavince Adhere, a Kenya-based international relations scholar, political stability is the foundation of progress. He said that by adopting the Hong Kong National Security Law and improving the city's electoral system, Hong Kong's stability has been further guaranteed. This provides a strong platform for the city's greater integration with the rest of China, thus a better chance for Hong Kong's sustainable growth, said Adhere. LONG-TERM ADHERENCE TO "ONE COUNTRY, TWO SYSTEMS" Stressing that "one country, two systems" "serves the fundamental interests of not only Hong Kong and Macao, but also the whole country and the nation," Xi said in his speech that "There is no reason for us to change such a good policy, and we must adhere to it in the long run." Echoing Xi's words, Masood Khalid, former Pakistani ambassador to China, said Hong Kong's economic achievement and the fact that it is becoming comprehensively intergrated with both the Chinese mainland and the international market are a testament to the success of the implementation of "one country, two systems." Citing the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as examples, the former ambassador said that the central government of China has carried out a series of infrastructure projects for Hong Kong, from which the people of Hong Kong have benefited. Referring to "one country, two systems" as "a policy without precedent," Robert Lawrence Kuhn, chairman of the Kuhn Foundation, said President Xi has demonstrated the central government's "ringing endorsement" for "one country, two systems." Xi has made it clear that Hong Kong will continue to make "contributions to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and that Hong Kong's future is bright," said Kuhn. A BRIGHTER FUTURE "I can confidently say I have witnessed the development of Hong Kong's business sector," said Dewan Saiful Alam Masud, president of the Bangladesh Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce Hong Kong, told Xinhua. President Xi's speech offered both encouragement and reassurance to Hong Kong, he noted. "With the valuable support from the central government, I am certain that valuable opportunities for Hong Kong people and businesses will emerge, hence allowing Hong Kong to make positive strides towards emerging as an even stronger and more appealing business hub," Masud said. "I'm optimistic about the future of Hong Kong," said Andrey Karneev, head of the School of Asian Studies at Russia's Higher School of Economics. While retaining its speciality, Karneev said, Hong Kong will gradually discover new spheres of development, and could become a global art or design hub. Sharing Karneev's point of view, Yaroslav Lissovolik, program director of Russian think tank Valdai Discussion Club, described Hong Kong's development over the past 25 years as "very successful." "Hong Kong has not only developed into a global financial center, but also a center attracting international talent," Lissovolik added. BEIJING, July 3 (Xinhua) -- The remains of more Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) martyrs killed in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea will be returned to China from the Republic of Korea (ROK) in September, China's Ministry of Veterans Affairs said Sunday. It will be the ninth repatriation of the remains of CPV martyrs following the signing of a handover agreement between the two countries. Between 2014 and 2021, the remains of 825 soldiers were returned to China from the ROK, according to official figures. China and the ROK have agreed that both sides will work with each other to properly handle the handover work and further deepen exchanges in this regard, the ministry said in a statement. Almost 200,000 CPV soldiers were confirmed killed in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea, with most buried on the Korean Peninsula. Two lion cubs rest at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) A macaque baby rests in its mother's arms at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) Macaque babies are pictured at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) A chimpanzee baby is seen at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) A bar-headed goose chick rests in groves at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) Two brown bear cubs rest with their mother at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) A Sichuan golden snub-nosed monkey baby plays with its mother at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) A ring tailed lemur baby eats fruits at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) Photo taken on July 2, 2022 shows a chimpanzee baby and its mother at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) Two lion cubs rest at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) A ring tailed lemur baby eats fruits at Beijing Zoo in Beijing, capital of China, July 2, 2022. A total of 201 animal cubs of 43 species in Beijing Zoo have started to meet the public recently. (Xinhua/Li Xin) Greek Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Christos Stylianides (L) welcomes a Romanian firefighter in Athens, Greece, on July 2, 2022. A group of 28 Romanian firefighters was welcomed by Greek authorities in Athens on Saturday during the launch of a European pilot program for forest protection against fire this summer, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) ATHENS, July 2 (Xinhua) -- A group of 28 Romanian firefighters was welcomed by Greek authorities in Athens on Saturday during the launch of a European pilot program for forest protection against fire this summer, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. Under the program, a total of 200 firefighters from six countries across Europe (Bulgaria, France, Germany, Romania, Norway and Finland) will be positioned in Greece this July and August to assist in fire protection efforts and exchange know-how with their Greek colleagues, according to an e-mailed press release of the Ministry for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection. The program is implemented through the European Civil Protection Mechanism in the wake of last year's destructive wildfires in Greece, which scorched over 100,000 hectares of forestry and farmland and damaged nearly 2,000 houses and businesses. Romanian firefighters also participated in fire extinguishing efforts in Greece last year. Addressing an event held at the Hellenic Fire Academy in Athens on Saturday, Greece's Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Christos Stylianides said: "We thank you for coming to our country in a difficult summer to give a helping hand and demonstrate with actions that European solidarity is not a theoretical idea, but tangible." Greece suffers from wildfires every summer due to high temperatures and arsonists. In 2018, 102 people died in the coastal resort of Mati, near Athens, in Greece's worst-ever fire disaster. Firefighters from Romania are seen around their vehicles in Athens, Greece, on July 2, 2022. A group of 28 Romanian firefighters was welcomed by Greek authorities in Athens on Saturday during the launch of a European pilot program for forest protection against fire this summer, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) Firefighters from Romania are seen in front of their vehicles in Athens, Greece, on July 2, 2022. A group of 28 Romanian firefighters was welcomed by Greek authorities in Athens on Saturday during the launch of a European pilot program for forest protection against fire this summer, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) Firefighters from Romania attend a welcome ceremony held by Greek government in Athens, Greece, on July 2, 2022. A group of 28 Romanian firefighters was welcomed by Greek authorities in Athens on Saturday during the launch of a European pilot program for forest protection against fire this summer, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) A firefighter from Romania attends a welcome ceremony held by Greek government in Athens, Greece, on July 2, 2022. A group of 28 Romanian firefighters was welcomed by Greek authorities in Athens on Saturday during the launch of a European pilot program for forest protection against fire this summer, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) JERUSALEM, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Israel's interim Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Sunday pledged to run a functional government despite another round of political instability that triggered new elections. In the first cabinet meeting since Lapid took office as interim prime minister on Friday, he sat next to his predecessor Naftali Bennett. The two rotated on Friday under a power-sharing deal they agreed upon in June 2021, after their ideologically diverse eight-party coalition government collapsed only a year after it took office. "Our goal in the coming months will be to manage the government as if there were no elections ... This is what I expect from my fellow ministers," Lapid told the ministers at the beginning of the meeting. "This government will continue to act for the good of the citizens," he said, adding "we will make decisions, we will take actions, and we will continue to increase the economic, diplomatic and security strength of Israel." Lapid encountered his first security challenge as prime minister on Saturday. Three drones, identified by the Israeli military as belonging to the Lebanon-based armed group Hezbollah, approached the airspace over Israel's territorial waters, near the recently built Karish natural gas platform. An Israeli fighter jet and a Navy missile cruiser intercepted the drones, the Israeli military said in a statement. Lapid said Israel would take the necessary measures to thwart threats and defend itself, its people and its assets. Lapid also noted that Hezbollah is still pursuing terrorism, which makes it more difficult for Lebanon to settle an agreement on a maritime border (with Israel). Lapid will serve as the country's interim prime minister until a new government is formed after the elections scheduled on Nov. 1. The parliament, or Knesset, voted to dissolve itself last week after the coalition lost its majority in the parliament, sending Israelis to the ballots for the fifth time in less than four years. Lapid is expected to embark on his first diplomatic journey as prime minister on Tuesday, traveling to Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron. In mid-July, he will host United States President Joe Biden, whose Middle East trip includes stops in Israel and Saudi Arabia. BEIJING, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities have released an action plan to facilitate the digitalization of the consumer goods industry as the country moves to boost the integration of the digital and real economies, and create and meet consumer demand. China aims to achieve notable improvement in the integration and application of digital technologies in the consumer goods industry by 2025, according to the plan jointly released by five government departments, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. The further integration and application of digital technologies would help improve the supply of consumer goods, expand industrial chains, enhance the industry's added value, and encourage enterprises to strengthen digital innovation in research and development and in their core competitiveness, the ministry said. The proportions of consumer goods companies that have digitalized their management and operations, been equipped with digital tools for research, development and design, and introduced e-commerce to their businesses should all exceed 80 percent by 2025, according to the plan. China also aims to foster 200 demonstration factories for smart manufacturing in sectors such as textiles and apparel, home appliances, consumer electronics, food and medicine during the plan period. It also aims to cultivate 50 demonstration cities that will achieve remarkable digitalization progress, product variety, quality and branding. The plan specified 10 tasks to enhance product variety and quality and create brands, such as developing "internet-plus-consumer products" that improve people's well-being, promoting personalized and flexible production to reshape product development and production modes, and accelerating the establishment of a quality tracking system. A staff member introduces a tractor to a visitor during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) A visitor takes pictures of a cotton picker during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) Visitors are seen on a cotton picker during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) Visitors look at cotton automatically packed by a cotton picker during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) Visitors are seen on a cotton picker during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) A staff member introduces a plough machine to a visitor during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) Visitors look at a tractor during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) Visitors learn about a plant protection drone during a regional agricultural machinery expo in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 3, 2022. A regional agricultural machinery expo is held at Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi from July 3 to 5. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) GUANGZHOU, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-seven people were missing after a floating crane sank in waters off the coast of south China's Guangdong Province on Saturday morning, according to the provincial maritime search and rescue center Sunday. As of 12 p.m. Sunday, 38 rescue vessels had been dispatched and rescue aircraft made 14 trips to search for the missing people, covering an area of 700 square nautical miles where waves were three to four meters high. At 3:50 a.m. Saturday, the floating crane of an offshore wind farm project was found via monitoring system to be in danger after its mooring chain broke while it was taking shelter from typhoon Chaba in waters near the city of Yangjiang. The floating crane sank later. Three people were rescued at about 12 p.m. Saturday and 27 others fell into water and were missing, according to the provincial maritime search and rescue center. Chaba, the third typhoon of the year, made landfall in the coastal area of Maoming City, Guangdong, at around 3 p.m. Saturday. Search and rescue efforts are still underway. By Trend Uzbekistans President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has imposed a state of emergency in Karakalpakstan region, which is facing unrest, from July 3 to August 2, Presidential Spokesman Sherzod Asadov said on Saturday, Trend reports citing TASS. "The state of emergency was declared from 00:01 July 3, 2022 to 00:00 August 2, 2022 by a presidential decree, in order to ensure security of citizens, protect their rights and freedoms, restore law and order in the Republic of Karakalpakstan," he wrote on his telegram channel. Medical workers from the mainland arrive in Macao, south China, July 3, 2022, to assist the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government in carrying out mass testings. A total of 90 people in Macao tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, of which 47 were confirmed cases while the others were asymptomatic. In addition, 650 medical workers from the mainland have arrived in Macao to assist the SAR government in carrying out mass testings. (Xinhua/Cheong Kam Ka) MACAO, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Two women aged 94 and 100 have died after testing positive for COVID-19 in China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) , according to the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Center of Macao on Sunday. They were the first deaths related to COVID-19 reported in Macao. Both of them had had chronic diseases, the center said. A total of 90 people in Macao tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, of which 47 were confirmed cases while the others were asymptomatic. As of Saturday, 784 people had tested positive in the latest outbreak in the Macao SAR since June 19, with 467 of them being asymptomatic, the center said. In addition, 650 medical workers from the mainland have arrived in Macao to assist the SAR government in carrying out mass testings. Three rounds of mass testing have been arranged for the coming week, the center added. Medical workers from the mainland arrive in Macao, south China, July 3, 2022, to assist the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government in carrying out mass testings. A total of 90 people in Macao tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, of which 47 were confirmed cases while the others were asymptomatic. In addition, 650 medical workers from the mainland have arrived in Macao to assist the SAR government in carrying out mass testings. (Xinhua/Cheong Kam Ka) Medical workers from the mainland arrive in Macao, south China, July 3, 2022, to assist the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government in carrying out mass testings. A total of 90 people in Macao tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, of which 47 were confirmed cases while the others were asymptomatic. In addition, 650 medical workers from the mainland have arrived in Macao to assist the SAR government in carrying out mass testings. (Xinhua/Cheong Kam Ka) Medical workers from the mainland arrive in Macao, south China, July 3, 2022, to assist the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government in carrying out mass testings. A total of 90 people in Macao tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, of which 47 were confirmed cases while the others were asymptomatic. In addition, 650 medical workers from the mainland have arrived in Macao to assist the SAR government in carrying out mass testings. (Xinhua/Cheong Kam Ka) Medical workers from the mainland arrive in Macao, south China, July 3, 2022, to assist the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government in carrying out mass testings. A total of 90 people in Macao tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, of which 47 were confirmed cases while the others were asymptomatic. In addition, 650 medical workers from the mainland have arrived in Macao to assist the SAR government in carrying out mass testings. (Xinhua/Cheong Kam Ka) Chinese and Egyptian workers pose for photos with a light rail transit (LRT) train at the Badr station of the LRT during a trial running, in Cairo, Egypt, on July 3, 2022. (Xinhua/Sui Xiankai) CAIRO, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Egypt's first electrified light rail transit (LRT) system jointly built by Chinese and Egyptian companies started its trial run on Sunday. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi took the first ride of the LRT at its inauguration ceremony, which was also attended by Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Liao Liqiang. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi (R) and Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly take a ride of the light rail transit (LRT) train while attending the inauguration of the country's first electrified LRT system, in Cairo, Egypt, on July 3, 2022. (Egyptian Presidency/Handout via Xinhua) The LRT project is the fruit of a 1.24-billion-U.S. dollar contract signed in August 2017 between Egypt's National Authority for Tunnels (NAT) and the consortium of China Railway Engineering Corporation and AVIC International Holding Corporation (CREC-AVIC INTL Consortium). The rail project connects the New Administrative Capital (NAC) being constructed east of Cairo with surrounding distant new cities and districts including El-Salam City, 10th of Ramadan City, El-Obour City, Badr City and El-Shorouk City. A light rail transit (LRT) train travels during a trial running past the Central Business District (CBD) of the New Administrative Capital (NAC) being constructed, east of Cairo, Egypt, on July 3, 2022. (Xinhua/Sui Xiankai) Egyptian Transport Minister Kamel el-Wazir said the first phase of the LRT contains 22 trains and will serve 360,000 passengers daily. The 12-station alignment of the LRT starts from the huge Adly Mansour central station, a transportation hub east of Cairo, and ends at the NAC, including seven bridges, three tunnels, two substations and one depot. Photo taken on July 3, 2022 shows the interior of the Adly Mansour station, a starting station of the light rail transit (LRT), in Cairo, Egypt. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa) The LRT project is divided into several phases, covering a total distance of about 103 kilometers with 19 stations. The current phase that is being inaugurated today covers a distance of about 70 kilometers with 12 stations. The future phases would include a south extension that covers a distance of around 18.5 kilometers with four stations and a north extension that covers about 16 kilometers with three stations, the transport minister pointed out. Around 20 Egyptian and 15 Chinese companies took part in the execution of the project, according to the minister. Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Liao Liqiang (3rd, L) talks with Chinese and Egyptian workers on a light rail transit (LRT) train at the Badr station of the LRT, in Cairo, Egypt, on July 3, 2022. (Xinhua/Sui Xiankai) "The project was financed by China, adopted Chinese technology and equipment, and was jointly implemented by Chinese and Egyptian enterprises," Liao said, adding that all participants worked hard to keep the progress of construction while fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chinese enterprises also provided training for young Egyptian technicians to support the construction and maintenance of the project, Liao added. An Egyptian light rail transit (LRT) train driver, who have been trained by China, operates a LRT train staring from the Badr station of the LRT during a trial running, in Cairo, Egypt, on July 3, 2022. (Xinhua/Sui Xiankai) Mohamed Nosir, who was behind the wheel in the trial run, used to train at Nanjing Vocational Institute of Railway Technology in 2018. "Many friends always asked me when they could take this rail to work. They are looking forward to its opening," Nosir told Xinhua. "The light rail is very comfortable and stable, and the speed is faster than the subway." Hassan Mahdy, professor of transport and roads at Cairo-based Ain Shams University, said that the LRT is very important as it links the new cities east of Cairo, including the NAC, with all districts of Greater Cairo. He added that "the project is also a nucleus for further Egyptian-Chinese projects in the transportation industry and the localization of transportation technology in Egypt. "It is positive for both sides, as it's a required service in Egypt and I believe the Chinese side is keen to transfer its relevant technologies and to expand the market for its transportation products. So, it's a win-win project," the Egyptian professor told Xinhua. WELLINGTON, July 3 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand reported 4,924 community cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, said the Ministry of Health in a statement. The seven-day rolling average of community case numbers in New Zealand now sits at 6,895. The ministry also reported 424 current hospitalizations, including seven cases in intensive care units (ICU) or high dependency units (HDU), and eleven deaths of COVID-19 on Sunday. In addition, there were 165 new cases that have recently traveled overseas, according to the ministry. New Zealand has reported 1,350,328 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. New Zealand is currently under the orange settings of the COVID-19 Protection Framework, where there is no limit for gatherings. COPENHAGEN, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Several people were killed and injured in a shooting attack in a shopping center in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, and one suspect was arrested, said Copenhagen Chief Police Inspector Soren Thomassen at a press conference on Sunday evening. It was at around 17:30 local time that the police received reports of shootings in the Field's shopping center in Amager area of southern Copenhagen, according to Thomassen. The chief inspector said "Several people were killed and injured in the shooting, and a 22-year-old Dane was arrested outside the shopping mall shortly after police arrived." But he did not give a specific number of people killed. Thomassen also said that the police cannot rule out the possibility of a terror attack so far. The police have launched a massive manhunt operation in the whole Zealand region, the southernmost administrative region of Denmark. "There is a massive operation going on. It is not only in Copenhagen, it is the whole of Zealand. We are also in dialogue with the police across the country," said Thomassen at the press briefing. Meantime, the municipality of Copenhagen has activated its emergency response after the incident. "The crisis response team in the Copenhagen municipality has been called in. We are ready to help if the Copenhagen Police requests it," said Sophie Haestorp Andersen, Mayor of Copenhagen. COPENHAGEN, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Police confirmed on Sunday that a shooting attack occurred in the afternoon at the Field's shopping center in Copenhagen's Amager neighborhood, injuring several people, On suspect was arrested. "One person has been arrested in connection with the Fields shooting. We are currently unable to provide any further information on the identity of this person," said the Copenhagen Police on Twitter. Meanwhile, the police have cordoned off the area surrounding the Field's and are attempting to comprehend the situation. Earlier, the police confirmed that several people were shot in the scene. "Several people hit by shots in Field's. Everyone should stay away," said Copenhagen Police on Twitter. The Field's shopping center opened in 2004 and is the second largest shopping mall in Denmark. NEW YORK, July 2 (Xinhua) -- New York State Governor Kathy Hochul on Friday signed into law a bill restricting concealed carry weapons in response to a recent ruling by the Supreme Court that overturned the state's longstanding licensing restrictions. Individuals will face criminal penalties if they carry concealed weapons in sensitive locations like airports and other public transit, educational institutions as well as Times Square. The law also makes "no carry" the default for private property including bars, restaurants, shops or grocery stores, unless deemed permissible by property owners. The U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down a century-old New York State law requiring gun owners to have probable cause in order to carry a concealed weapon. Elected officials in New York vowed to protect public safety and the local legislature passed the bill on Friday in an extraordinary session to soften the blow of the Supreme Court ruling in the case of New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. The law will take effect on Sept. 1 and an appeals board will be established for the applicants whose license or renewal is denied or revoked. However, the new legislature could face legal challenges from gun rights advocates, as some Republican lawmakers argued it violated the constitutional right to bear arms. The Israeli military is utilising its new technology that will help them to detect objects and even people behind solid walls with the help of Artificial Intelligence. The Xaver 1000 is part of a 'see-through walls' family of products that can provide real-time information, which could be a game-changer in military applications. It is developed by an Israeli imaging solutions company called Camero-Tech. The technology was first revealed to the wider world for the first time at the Eurosatury 2022 exhibition held in Paris earlier this week. The company claims that the Xaver 1000 can penetrate through the most common building materials and that it requires minimal training to use thanks to its simple user interface. On the companys website, it describes the piece of hardware as an 'Essential system for Military, Law Enforcement, Search & Rescue teams and Intelligence units, operating in various situations including hostile urban and disaster environments'. "The system creates an unprecedented situational awareness 3D visual picture, providing a clear operational advantage and the ability to 'step into the known'," it says. It can display images in a clear-enough resolution for the user to identify whether a person behind the wall is seated, standing or lying down. Even if an individual has been motionless for a prolonged period of time, the AI-assisted tech will still pick them up, Camero-Tech added. According to Shephard Media, The 10.1inch touchscreen display requires very little training to be operated, Only the Israeli military will be able to make use of its proprietary technology, although the device has piqued the interest of countries around the world. CEO and founder of Camero Amir Beeri said, The XaverTM 1000 determines the most suitable approach to ensure successful life-saving missions in a variety of operational scenarios, such as hostage rescue situations, He further added, [It] is a true game-changer for special forces and law enforcement teams conducting urban and rural operations that require reliable information regarding hidden live objects," Maruti Suzuki to Deploy Strong Hybrid Technology Step towards Self-Reliance in Defence Technologies: DRDO Google to auto-delete sensitive data from its users' location data Katni: Slogans of Pakistan Zindabad were raised on the victory of the sarpanch in Chaka gram panchayat elections in the district. In fact, after voting for the post of sarpanch in the Chaka gram panchayat of Katni, candidate Raheesha Wajid Khan won. In this case, it is being told that after the victory, Raheesha Wajid Khan reached his home. At the same time, the activists present here raised the slogans of Wajid Bhai Zindabad and some people raised the slogans of Pakistan Zindabad. In fact, now after the victory, the video of Pakistan zindabad slogans is going viral on social media. Let you all also know that after the victory of the post of sarpanch in the gram panchayat Chaka adjacent to the city, suddenly there was a complaint about the slogan of Pakistan Zindabad. At the same time, the local people say that there should be a high-level investigation into this video. Let us also tell you all that some people of Chaka saw the video of the slogan of the so-called Pakistan Zindabad, then gathered at the Kuthala police station and raised slogans of Pakistan Murdabad and lodged a complaint. In this case, it is alleged that the supporters of the winning candidate Rahisa Begum raised the slogans of 'Pakistan Zindabad.' On the issue, CSP Vijay Pratap Singh said that Sachin Paroha of village Chaka and about 30 to 40 people had come and complained that after the victory of Rahisa Wajid Khan in the election of sarpanch, slogans of Pakistan Zindabad were raised and this has happened with the support of Raheesha. In this case, the police have said that the investigation is going on and strict action will be taken after the investigation. Crack in mountain during mining at midnight, many people buried in the debris Jobs in Hindustan Fertilizers, Apply Soon IAS Athar Amir is going to have 2nd marriage, know who is that beauty Kabul: The Islamic terrorist organization Taliban has been in the news day by day. In the eyes of the Taliban, there is no respect for another religion and it has committed slaughter in the name of religion. Now the Taliban is interfering in India's case. In fact, the Taliban has said about Nupur Sharma's controversial statement on the Prophet, "She should not get forgiveness.'' The Taliban has backed the Indian Supreme Court's statement that "Nupur Sharma's controversial statement has ignited a fire in India." In fact, the Supreme Court, while criticizing Nupur Sharma's statement, had also dismissed the petition in which he had filed a petition for the transfer of all cases to Delhi. At the same time, the Taliban has now said that it agrees with the Indian Supreme Court that Nupur Sharma's statement has ignited the fire in India. At the same time, the Taliban has further said that 'Nupur Sharma should not get forgiveness for insulting the Prophet'. Justice Surya Kant of the Supreme Court of India had said that Nupur Sharma's 'loose tongue' has created all the trouble and she should apologise to the nation for her actions. However, many people say that after the supreme court's strong remarks, it seems that under the guise of that comment, an attempt is being made to defend the accused involved in the Udaipur Kanhaiyalal murder case. At the same time, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah has also issued a statement in this regard. In a tweet posted in Urdu, Zabiyullah said, "The Supreme Court of India has said that Nupur Sharma and her loose tongue have set the entire country on fire, and it should apologise for her remarks on the Prophet of Islam.'' Apart from this, the Taliban spokesman also demanded that Nupur Sharma should not be pardoned and that she should be hanged. The Taliban also used a hashtag with it, which means the blasphemy envoy was rejected. Mayor candidate got 'Hanumanji' printed in the poster, BJP attacked 'Draupadi Murmu will be India's first tribal woman president...': PM Modi Aditya Thackeray's first post after Uddhav's resignation, said this Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff has been in the industry for 8 years but he has made a special place in the hearts of people with his action. At the moment, Tiger Shroff is working on his movie 'Ganpat' and the shooting of which has been completed soon. Now the news is coming that Tiger Shroff has joined hands with director Shashank Khaitan. Media reports say that Shashank Khaitan and Tiger Shroff are coming together for an untitled project and the shooting of this movie has already started in Portugal in August. Some reports also say that 'Portugal is the most perfect location for movie shooting. There is also tax exemption, local crew pool, rental companies and strong production support.' Shashank Khaitan is expected to go to Portugal after completing the shooting of the film 'Govinda Naam Tera.' The report further said, "Shashank Khaitan plans to go to Portugal after shooting for Vicky Kaushal and Kiara Advani's video. Many action and chase sequences and some romantic songs of this movie are going to be shot in a 3-week schedule. The rest of the schedule is scheduled to be completed in India and other countries.'' No actress's name has been finalized for the movie yet, but the name of Shraddha Kapoor and Janhvi Kapoor is being said to be at the forefront. The movie will be produced by Karan Johar. Earlier, Tiger Shroff had worked in Dharma Productions 'Student of the Year 2'. This will be the first time that Tiger Shroff and Shashank Khaitan are going to work in a movie. You will be crazy to see Dimpy, sister of Guddu Bhaiya of Mirzapur Aditya Roy Kapur's film doing wonders at the Box Office for the 2nd day in a row Salman Khan's statement on Aishwarya Rai's allegations 27 missing after floating crane sinks in south China Xinhua) 10:27, July 03, 2022 GUANGZHOU, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-seven people were missing after a floating crane sank in waters off the coast of south China's Guangdong Province on Saturday morning, according to the provincial maritime search and rescue center Sunday. At 3:50 a.m. Saturday, the floating crane was found via monitoring system to have had dragged anchor and was in danger after its mooring chain broke while it was avoiding typhoon Chaba in waters near the city of Yangjiang. The floating crane had sunk, according to the provincial maritime search and rescue center Rescue helicopters, rescue vessels and merchant vessels nearby have been mobilized to search for the missing people, said the center. Three people were rescued at about 12 p.m. Saturday and 27 others fell into water and were missing, the center said. Search and rescue efforts are still underway. (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji) By Trend On July 2, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev arrived in Nukus, press secretary Sherzod Asadov said, Trend reports citing Kun.uz. The head of state held a meeting with deputies of Jokargy Kenes, representatives of the older generation and activists of Karakalpakstan. Taking into account the fact that the process of discussing amendments and additions to the Constitution is still ongoing, and also on the basis of studying the opinions expressed by the residents of Karakalpakstan, the President outlined the need to preserve the current versions of Articles 70, 71, 72, 74, 75 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan without changes. On June 1, some citizens unscheduled marches around Nukus, after which they gathered on the territory of the central dekhkan market and organized an illegal demonstration. Udaipur: A major revelation has been made in the investigation of the Kanhaiyalal murder case in Udaipur, Rajasthan. Two Maulanas Riyasat Hussain and Abdul Razzaq from Udaipur had sent the murder convict Muhammad Gos to Pakistan for training in Daawat-e-Islami. Along with Gos, Waseem Attari and Akhtar Raza also went to Pakistan. The NIA has arrested the three. According to sources, two maulanas and two advocates are also involved in the murder conspiracy, they have also been arrested. It is being said that there was a meeting of the criminals in which Riyaz Attari took the responsibility for killing tailor Kanhaiyalal. Riyaz, Mohammad Gos, Asif and Mohsin attended the meeting. Just 500m away from Kanhaiyalal's shop, a conspiracy was hatched to kill in Mohsin's shop and Asif's room in the neighbourhood. The four criminals in the murder case of Tailor Kanhaiyalal were produced before the NIA court on Saturday. Police had already arrested two criminals Riyaz, and Mohammad Gos, involved in the murder. Both the criminals shared the video of the murder. Subsequently, the Rajasthan ATS arrested two other criminals Mohsin and Asif on Friday. Riyaz had prepared Asif and Mohsin to join him in the incident by radicalizing them. Asif and Mohsin were involved in the planning of Kanhaiyalal's assassination to the making of weapons. Riyaz and Mohammad Gos were already in the lane where Kanhaiyalal's shop was located. In Udaipur, when some people started supporting the controversial statement, Riyaz and Mohmad Gos decided to do something big. Kanhaiya seemed to be a simple victim and since earlier Riyaz and Mohammad Gos used to come to Kanhaiya's shop and were aware of that street, and they carried out the murder. IAS Athar Amir is going to have 2nd marriage, know who is that beauty Udaipur murder case: Kanhaiyalal's killers beaten up by mob in court, watch video 'In name of Islam for 1400 years..,' Senior advocate's statement on SC's remarks on Nupur Sharma Home Business Govt to open a new company to construct the Budhigandaki hydropower project on its own Kathmandu, June 29 The government has decided to open a new company to construct the ambitious Budhigandaki hydropower project on its own. A cabinet meeting held on Tuesday endorsed the Energy Ministrys proposal to establish a public company and generate investments. Energy Minister Pampha Bhusal says the government will begin the construction work in the next fiscal year which begins in mid-July. The 1,200-megawatt project, if successful, will be Nepals biggest hydropower company. In the mid-2010s, the estimated cost of the project was Rs 311 billion (approximately USD 2.593 billion). Now, the government wants to calculate the cost again considering changes in the market prices of construction materials since then. In November 2017, the Sher Bahadur Deuba-led government decided to cancel the contract signed with the China Gezhouba Group Company. The government, then, had announced to construct the Budhigandaki project on its own. However, following the parliamentary elections the next year, new prime minister KP Sharma Oli had decided to give it back to the Chinese company. With the new decision, the Chinese company will again lose the project contract. Home Politics Nepal yet to inform the US of its withdrawal from the State Partnership Program Kathmandu, July 3 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the government of Nepal is yet to inform the United States government that it has decided to withdraw from the controversial State Partnership Program (SPP). In a press meeting in Kathmandu on Sunday, the ministrys spokesperson Sewa Lamsal said the ministry had already received a copy of the cabinet decision about the withdrawal but it was still studying the matter in detail. We also need to find out what had happened in the past, she said, After that, the government will issue a letter via the diplomatic channel at an appropriate time. Because the ministry was not involved in correspondence initially, it is taking more time to take stock of the developments, according to her. Previously, the Nepal Army had written to the US Embassy in Kathmandu requesting the State Partnership Programme (SSP). The government last month decided to withdraw from the project after a draft of the agreement leaked by the media exposed the possibility of the US troops staying in Nepal for an indefinite period, inviting criticism from stakeholders. By Jorgelina do Rosario LONDON (Reuters) - From a $360 million project to expand Zambia's international airport in Lusaka to a $1.4 billion city port in Sri Lanka's capital of Colombo, China is the missing piece in the puzzle of a number of debt talks under way in developing markets. The second-largest economy and the biggest bilateral creditor in the world is a dominant lender to many smaller, riskier developing nations. But Beijing has kept a low profile, not only on lending conditions but also on how it renegotiates with borrowers in distress. That became more evident after the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Many economies buckling under economic strain are seeking debt relief. Now, the pressure is rising on China to take a more active role in helping strained economies overhaul their debt burdens. Leaders of the Group of Seven rich democracies on Tuesday called on China specifically when urging creditors to help countries. Poorest countries face $35 billion in debt-service payments to official and private sector creditors in 2022, with over 40% of the total due to China, according to the World Bank. But analysts say the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank premise of fair burden-sharing in debt relief talks could set them on a collision course with China, putting the prospect of comprehensive debt restructurings into question. "Chinese 'Belt and Road' money is everywhere so we will see this over and over in sovereign debt restructurings," said Dennis Hranitzky, head of sovereign litigation at law firm Quinn Emanuel. According to Beijing, the Belt and Road Initiative unveiled in 2013 is a platform for international cooperation in infrastructure, trade, investment and financing linking China with other parts of Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. China's foreign ministry and central bank did not respond to requests for comment. Zambia and Sri Lanka are test cases on how fast debt talks evolve. Both also need to restructure with overseas bondholders and hammer out IMF programmes. Story continues "China's engagement on debt talks is not in the hands of the IMF nor governments," said Polina Kurdyavko, head of emerging markets at BlueBay Asset Management in London. "Bringing China to the negotiating table in a timely manner could be the biggest challenge in the upcoming debt restructurings." OPACITY Chinese lending is mostly extended by state-controlled agencies and policy banks and is often opaque. A working paper of the National Bureau of Economic Research in the United States found half of the 5,000 loans and grants extended to 152 countries from 1949 to 2017 have not been reported to the IMF or the World Bank, despite China being a member of both multilaterals. "Opacity is a recurrent problem with some of these Chinese loans," said Matthew Mingey, senior analyst with Rhodium Group, adding China had stricter confidentiality clauses on its commercial loans. Data compiled over three years by AidData, a U.S. research lab at the College of William & Mary, found terms of Chinese state-owned banks' loans require borrowers to prioritise them for repayment. Examinations https://www.cgdev.org/publication/how-china-lends-rare-look-into-100-debt-contracts-foreign-governments of 100 Chinese loans with 24 low- and middle-income countries showed - when compared to those of other bilateral, multilateral and commercial creditors - demands for an unusual level of confidentiality, in some cases, "even the fact of the contract's existence", the study led by Georgetown Law professor Anna Gelpern found. Where China has agreed to ease debt burdens, details are often unclear. The plethora of Chinese lenders also adds to complexity, though Export-Import Bank of China and the China Development Bank feature most heavily. "When it comes time to renegotiate, individual Chinese banks may not necessarily have an idea of what other Chinese banks are doing," said Mingey. GLACIAL Progress has often been slow. Zambia is seeking relief on $17 billion of external debt after becoming the first COVID pandemic-era default more than two years ago. Some of the slow progress is due to China's lack of experience with tricky debt restructurings, people familiar with the matter say. Sri Lanka's talks are moving faster, with the IMF confirming it is on track for a new programme. China's approach, though, is not yet clear. Meanwhile, some 60% of low-income countries are in, or at high risk of, debt distress, according to the IMF https://blogs.imf.org/2022/04/07/restructuring-debt-of-poorer-nations-requires-more-efficient-coordination. Seventeen smaller emerging economies have seen premium investors demand to hold their debt soar to levels effectively shutting them out of international markets. That number is higher than during peak-COVID-19 or the 2008 global financial crisis. In late 2020, the Group of 20 launched a Common Framework to bring creditors such as China and India to the negotiation table along with the IMF, Paris Club and private creditors. Along with Zambia, Chad and Ethiopia have applied to restructure under this new, yet-to-be tested mechanism. But the framework also "has added a bureaucratic layer to the already complex debt restructuring process" that could discourage other countries from joining, said Patrick Curran, senior economist at Tellimer. (Reporting by Jorgelina do Rosario; Additional reporting by Ryan Woo in Beijing and Karin Strohecker in London; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell) Robert Azzi Not long ago a loved one wrote to me "... our country is being torn to shreds ... and this is a time for gratitude that we had decades of a more hopeful time." I agreed. Last night, as I began work on a new column, they wrote again that they were "... so gratified by Cassidy Hutchinsons testimony yesterday that [they] actually felt there is hope for this country. We need to work hard at it, though!" I agree. Cassidy Hutchinsons testimony was a flicker of light teasing us from the darkness that has been descending upon our nation; testimony to the sixth in a series of hearings convened by the House Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6 attack made all the more remarkable as it was articulated by a patriotic 25-year-old Republican woman who had interned both for Sen. Ted Cruz and Congressman Steve Scalise, both unrepentant supporters of former President Donald Trump. Cassidy Hutchinson is a 2018 college graduate, and young Republican, who once described to a reporter that she was brought to tears when she learned, as a first-generation college student, that shed been accepted to a White House internship. She is a former White House aide and Assistant to former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows a position that placed her fully within the corrupt and treasonous vortex that threatened America's very existence. She never imagined, I am sure, that after giving two hours of testimony to the House Committee that still will have driven a stake through the heart of unreconstructed insurrectionists and seditionists with her measured and courageous retelling of what was roiling Trump's White House at a time of national peril. "When hearing Rudy's [Guilliani] take on January 6th, and then Mark [Meadows]' response," she told us, " ... that evening was the first moment that I remember feeling scared and nervous for what could happen January 6th." That a young woman, anxious to serve her nation, should be placed in a position where she would feel vulnerable, scared, and nervous for speaking truth to power is unforgivable. Story continues That a young woman who had come to Washington to be aneffective leader in the fight to secure the American dream for future generations, may need security because she had the courage to speak to preserve a nation, is unfathomable. "As an American, I was disgusted," Hutchinson testified. "It was unpatriotic, it was un-American. We were watching the Capitol building get defaced over a lie." Unconscionably, that the nation needed to wait until June 28, 2022 to learn that Donald Trump directed his supporters to the Capitol even after being informed some of them had weapons, is criminal. "They aren't here to hurt me; take the 'effing' mags [magnetometers] away ... Let my people in they can march to the Capitol from here." Today's reality is that the United States of America as we celebrate Independence day weekend nearly lost it all 18 months ago and it's still not secure today. After the presidential election of 2020 America has endured over 18 months of Republican-supported voter-fraud claims that were profoundly false, malicious, and destabilizing; a coup-plot to overturn the election; pleas for presidential pardons; and plans to assassinate lawmakers and then-Vice President Pence; all facilitated by weak, cowardly, mostly white men too narcissistic and hungry for power and profit to protect the nation. Be alert: It's not over yet. On the other hand there is something serendipitous, perhaps, in the timing of these revelations; of Hutchinson's testimony witnessed in proximity to the Fourth of July. On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass, initially invited to give a speech on July 4th, chose instead to speak to the Ladies Anti-Slavery Society of Rochester, New York, on July 5, the anniversary of a 1827 march by 4,000 African-Americans to celebrate the end of slavery in New York State. In a speech that has come to be known as "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July," Douglass, after acknowledging the courage and great aspirational visions embedded in the Declaration of Independence ratified on July 4, 1776 said that much more needed to be done so that all citizens can enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." "Fellow-citizens," Douglass continued, "above your national, tumultuous joy, I hear the mournful wail of millions! whose chains, heavy and grievous yesterday, are, to-day, rendered more intolerable by the jubilee shouts that reach them." Heavy chains yet to be lifted. "I wouldn't fly the flag on the Fourth of July or any other day," Jackie Robinson said in a 1969 interview with The New York Times. "When I see a car with a flag pasted on it, I figure the guy behind the wheel isn't my friend." Heavy chains yet to be lifted. Today, 246 years after ratification, 170 years after Frederick Douglass, 53 years after Jackie Robinson, that day has not yet come, the day has not yet come because those heavy chains are yet to be lifted. Burdened still with heavy chains, many Americans, myself included, overwhelmed by news of expanded funding for religious schools, approval of maps designed to disenfranchise people of color and minority communities, denials of women's rights and the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the stigmatizing of LGBTQIA+ peoples not only wonder whether America will make it to its 250th but whether it will ever fully embrace the aspirations embedded in the Declaration of Independence. "O, let my land be a land where Liberty Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath, But opportunity is real, and life is free, Equality is in the air we breathe." - Langston Hughes Robert Azzi, a photographer and writer who lives in Exeter, can be reached at theother.azzi@gmail.com. His columns are archived at theotherazzi.wordpress.com. This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Azzi: Listen to Cassidy Hutchinson and 'mournful wail of millions' (Bloomberg) -- Chinese developer Shimao Group Holdings Ltd. missed payment on a $1 billion dollar note due Sunday, its first default on a public bond after months of mounting stress. Most Read from Bloomberg Shimaos delinquency is among the biggest dollar payment failures so far this year in China and the firm has about $5.5 billion in outstanding offshore bonds. The luxury builders bonds have priced in deep levels of distress since the beginning of the year, with most notes falling to record lows of below 15 cents on the dollar after the firm missed repayment on a private note. Shimao, whose landmark projects include a five-star hotel built into an abandoned quarry, was once considered largely immune to the sweeping crackdown that has engulfed larger peers like China Evergrande Group and Sunac Group Holdings Ltd. The countrys 14th-biggest developer by contracted sales has faced mounting worries about its financial health since late last year, with stress in the industry taking it toll on a widening set on players. The contagion has spread from Evergrande to Sunac and now Shimao, said Kristy Hung, a Bloomberg Intelligence analyst. That raises our concerns that the extent of the debt crisis is beyond any market watchers imagination. Shimao also hasnt made principal payments involving some other offshore debts and has been in discussion with creditors while trying to reach amicable resolutions, it said in a Hong Kong exchange filing. If it cant, creditors may have the right to demand acceleration of repayment and take enforcement actions, according to the company. There is no grace period for the principal on the firms $1 billion dollar bond, according to the notes offering circular seen by Bloomberg News. The builder is among the largest real-estate debt issuers in China. Story continues Shimaos announcement of a default rather than an extension plan proposal shows the companys weak financial situation to meet its debts payment schedule and the necessity for an overall debt restructuring plan, said Ting Meng, senior Asia credit strategist at ANZ Bank China. The default was well expected after the firm missed a dollar private bond payment and delayed onshore debt payments, she added. Due to market uncertainties over debt refinancing and generally challenging operating and funding conditions, the group experienced negative developments on its credit ratings and the occurrence of principal nonpayments under certain of its offshore indebtedness, Shimao said in its filing. The company said in a separate statement its sold nearly 20 more property projects to raise money. It also expects to be able to accelerate cash inflow from property sales as the property market shows signs of rebound. New-home sales rose an estimated 31% in June from May in 30 key Chinese cities, according to China Real Estate Information Corp. Meanwhile, Shimao has appointed Admiralty Harbour Capital Ltd. as its financial adviser and Sidley Austin as its legal adviser to help assess its capital structure, liquidity and options, the builder said in its exchange filing. Shimao said it hasnt received any notice of repayment acceleration from its creditors, but has obtained written support from the majority of its dual-currency term loan lenders. The lenders also expressed they dont intend to take any enforcement action at this stage regarding the financing, according to the filing. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2022 Bloomberg L.P. (Bloomberg) -- Ukraine pulled its troops from Lysychansk, ceding control of a key city in the Luhansk region to Russia as President Vladimir Putins troops come closer to their goal of capturing the province. Most Read from Bloomberg Extending the citys defense would have led to fatal consequences in the face of Russian advantages in artillery, aviation, ammunition and personnel, Ukraines general staff said. Russia earlier declared full control of the city, advancing its goal of taking over Ukraines entire Donbas region. Explosions in Belgorod, Russia, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the Ukrainian border, killed three people and damaged dozens of buildings overnight. Russia blamed Ukraine for the latest in a series of incidents in the border region. Ukraine is set to present a national rebuilding plan that could mobilize hundreds of billions of euros. (See RSAN on the Bloomberg Terminal for the Russian Sanctions Dashboard.) Key Developments Ukraine to Unveil Massive Rebuilding Plan Even as War Bogs Down Putins Media Blitz on Africa Food Crisis Sparks Alarm in Europe Germany Risks a Cascade of Utility Failures, Economy Chief Says JPMorgan Sees Stratospheric $380 Oil on Worst-Case Russian Cut The Great European Energy Market Bailout Is Only Getting Started On the Ground With Lysychansk in hand, Russia is switching its focus further west into Donetsk. Moscows forces shelled Kramatorsk with multiple rocket launch systems on Sunday for a second day, its mayor said. Nearby Slovyansk saw intense shelling, its mayor said. A spokeswoman for Donetsk said six people had been killed and 15 wounded there. Russian defense officials blamed a Ukrainian Tochka-U missile for explosions in Belgorod, north of the Ukrainian border. Russia is attempting to blunt a counteroffensive by Kyivs forces in the Mykolaiv area, Ukrainian officials said. Story continues (All times CET) Russian Warship Sails Near East China Sea Disputed Isles, NHK Says (5:35 a.m.) A Russian Navy vessel joined a warship from China in sailing near East China Sea islands on Monday morning, Japanese public broadcaster NHK said citing government officials. Japan earlier expressed grave concerns to Beijing over one of its warships on Monday passing near the uninhabited islands -- known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China -- that are at the center of a territorial dispute between Japan and China. Read more: How a Few Tiny Islands Put Japan and China in Dispute: QuickTake In May, Russian and Chinese warplanes conducted a joint drill near the airspace of US allies Japan and South Korea, in a show of power by the long-time partners that came as President Joe Biden wound down an Asian trip to seek support over Putins invasion of Ukraine. Australia to Ban Russian Gold Imports (1:40 a.m.) Australia will prohibit imports of Russian gold, joining partners including Canada, Japan, the UK and the US in a measure that will reduce Russias ability to fund its war, Prime Minister Anthony Albaneses office said in a statement following his visit to Kyiv on Sunday. Plans for the four Group of Seven countries to ban imports of new Russian gold were announced before last weeks summit of G-7 leaders in Germany. Australia isnt part of the group. Scholz Says Putin Capable of Long War (7:45 p.m.) Putin will be able to continue with the war really a long time, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in comments broadcast Sunday. The conflict will end when Putin understands that he will not be successful with the idea to conquer part of the territory of his neighbor, Scholz said in an interview on CBSs Face the Nation, recorded during last weeks NATO summit in Madrid. Russia Takes Lysychansk, Key Element in Push to Control Donbas (6:30 p.m.) After heavy fighting for Lysychansk, the Defense Forces of Ukraine were forced to withdraw from their occupied positions and lines, Ukraines armed forces said in an update. In order to save the lives of Ukrainian defenders, the decision to leave was made. The news came hours after Russias Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin on Sunday that Moscows troops had captured the last major city still held by Ukraine in Luhansk province, according to Russian state media. Ukraine initially denied the claim. The capture puts Russia closer to its goal of controlling of Ukraines Donbas region, comprised of Luhansk and Donetsk. Ukrainian forces spent weeks defending Lysychansk and neighboring Sievierodonetsk, on the opposite bank of the Siversky Donets river, from which they withdrew in late June. Russian Vessel Denied Entry to Turkish Port, Tass Says (5:20 p.m.) A Russian-flagged vessel carrying grain loaded from Berydansk, an Azov Sea port in Ukraine under Russian occupation, has been denied entry to Karasu in Turkey, Tass reported, citing a person it didnt identify. The status of the vessel is unclear. Russias Ria Novosti news service cited a Turkish customs official saying the vessel had been detained temporarily. The Ukrainian chief prosecutors office had earlier asked Turkey to detain the Zhibek Zholy and confiscate its cargo, saying the 7,000 tons of grain loaded last week had been stolen by Russia. Australian PM Offers New Aid During Ukraine Visit (5:05 p.m.) Australia will provide Ukraine an additional A$100 million of military support, including drones and equipment for border guards, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in Kyiv. Australia also will deliver 14 armored personnel carriers and 20 Bushmaster protected mobility vehicles, Albaneses office said in a statement. Albanese met President Volodymyr Zelenskiy after visiting three towns near the capital ravaged by Russias occupation in the spring, including Bucha. Zelenskiy said the pair discussed the food crisis, provoked by Russia along with the need for more sanctions on Moscow and economic support for Ukraine. Putin Isnt Ready for Peace Talks, Kirby Says (3:56 p.m.) President Putin has shown no indication that hes interested in negotiated talks to end the war with Ukraine, said John Kirby, a senior National Security Council spokesman at the White House. Ukraines president gets to determine how victory is decided and when and on what terms, Kirby said on Fox News. And were going to continue to make sure that he can succeed on the battlefield so that he can succeed at the table. Zelenskiy, he said, will tell you that the time is not now for those discussions. Ukraine Cant Get NATO-Level Guarantees: Scholz (3:30 p.m.) Germany is in talks with allies about the security guarantees it can offer Ukraine once Russias war ends, said Chancellor Scholz -- but not being a member of the NATO alliance means there are limits. What is clear is that this will not be the same as if someone were a NATO member, Scholz said in an interview with public broadcaster ARD on Sunday. There it is clear that no matter what happens, we will defend the Baltics with our own troops. This is now being carefully prepared in the diplomatic sphere for the day that we hope to see soon, which is when the war is over, Scholz said regarding the security guarantees. Israeli Court Lifts Quota for Ukrainians (2:40 p.m.) Israels High Court of Justice ruled the government isnt authorized to restrict the number of Ukrainians who can enter the country on short stays of up to three months. While citizens of Ukraine arent generally required to obtain a visa, the Interior Ministry, due to the war, had set a limit of 5,000 entries. The quota was in addition to Ukrainians of Jewish descent who are eligible for Israeli citizenship, and those with Israeli relatives, who could enter in unlimited numbers. Czechs to Deploy Air Force to Protect Slovakia (2:29 p.m.) Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said his government will approve an air force deployment to help protect neighboring Slovakia, a fellow NATO member. Slovakia, which borders Ukraine, requested the mission in June after it decided to stop using Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets and a delivery of 14 US-made F-16s was delayed. Zelenskiy Says Rebuilding Plan to Create New Basis for Our Life (9:12 a.m.) President Zelenskiy said the rebuilding plan that Ukraine plans to unveil in Lugano, Switzerland, starting Monday will be reconstruction in the broadest sense of the word. It is necessary not only to restore everything that the occupiers destroyed, but to create a new basis for our life, for Ukraine -- safe, modern, convenient, barrier-free, Zelenskiy said Saturday in his nightly address to the nation. That requires by attracting international opportunities, he said. The plan runs about 2,000 pages, according to people familiar with the outline. European Union officials have said the EU will contribute the bulk of financial assistance, which could surpass 500 billion euros ($523 billion). UKs Truss Warns Against Poorly Designed Peace Agreement (9 a.m.) UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said anything short of a clear victory for Ukraine would allow Russia to regroup and attack again. We cant allow ourselves a new Minsk agreement, she told the French weekly Journal du Dimanche. Ukraine needs a clear victory that gives it back its security. All of the allies agree on that goal. EU Officials Discuss New Sanctions Authority: FT (8:30 a.m.) Senior officials in Brussels are in talks on the creation of an EU-wide sanctions authority with enforcement powers similar to the US Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control, the Financial Times reported. Another option would be to give increased power to the EUs planned Anti-Money Laundering Authority, the newspaper said. The goal would be to address uneven enforcement of sanctions across the blocs 27 member states. Europe Alarmed by Putin Media Blitz on Africa Food Crisis (8 a.m.) European governments have been alarmed by a Russian disinformation campaign that seeks to deflect criticism that Putins war with Ukraine risks leaving millions of people in Africa facing famine. Moscows diplomats have persistently push the narrative that Western sanctions, rather than Russian blockades, have caused food shortages in Africa -- and EU and UK officials say the message is gaining traction. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2022 Bloomberg L.P. The Northern Neck Vegetable Growers Association has announced the 2022 NNVGA scholarship winners. Winners of the four-year scholarship program are Ashley Upshaw of West Point, Kelsey Moss of Callao and Makaia Haight of Mechanicsville. Upshaw, awarded a $4,000 scholarship, graduated from King William High School in 2021 and is a sophomore at Virginia Tech. She is an agribusiness major and hopes to be an agricultural lender with the goal to eventually manage and expand her familys farm. Moss, awarded a $3,000 scholarship, graduated from Northumberland High School in 2020 and is a junior at RandolphMacon College. Kelsey is majoring in economics and chemistry and would like to pursue a career as an agricultural policy writer or an agricultural chemist. Haight, awarded a $1,000 scholarship, graduated from Atlee High School in June and will attend Virginia Tech to major in animal and poultry sciences with plans to pursue a career as a veterinarian. Winners of the two-year scholarship program at $1,000 each are Henry Howard of Fredericksburg and Bryce Self of Warsaw. Howard graduated from homeschool in December 2021 and currently attends Montana State UniversityNorthern. He is an agricultural mechanics technology major and plans to pursue a career as an agricultural mechanic. Self graduated from Rappahannock High School in 2021 and currently attends Virginia Tech. He is an applied agricultural management major in the two-year agricultural technology program. Self plans to return to the Northern Neck area after graduation and hopes to operate his own farm in the future. The NNVGA is a producer group representing the vegetable industry in eastern Virginia. The organization sponsors educational activities for growers and other agricultural endeavors including the scholarship program to promote the industry in the region. For more information about the scholarship program or the NNVGA, call Virginia Cooperative Extension in Westmoreland County at 804/493-8924. Spotsylvania County Public Schools paid just under $2,000 for security at a School Board meeting in April and is regularly paying more for meeting security than in previous years. The division also paid more for general legal representation the first quarter of this year than in the first quarter of the preceding three years. One deputy from the Spotsylvania Sheriffs Office is scheduled to be present at each meeting, according to Sheriffs Office spokesperson Troy Skebo, yet the board has requested additional security to be present at seven out of the 15 meetings held through June 13. Two deputies were present at the Jan. 10, Jan. 18, Feb. 14, March 7 and March 28, and six deputies were present at the April 11 and June 13 meetings, Skebo said. Skebo said the cost per deputy was $55 per hour until June 1 of this year, at which time the rate structure changed to $55 per hour until 10 p.m. and $110 per hour thereafter. The April 11 meeting, which lasted for about six hours, not including the closed session, would have cost the school division at least $1,980 under the old rate structure. The June 13 meeting, which lasted for just under five hours, not including the closed session, could have cost the same or more under the increased rates. The total cost of meeting security for the first half of this year was about $8,000, as compared to about $2,800 the first half of 2021, when only one deputy was scheduled per meeting. Skebo said the School Board requested two deputies per meeting for the second half of 2021, when parents were advocating fiercely against a mask mandate, tense School Board campaigns were underway and comments from board members about burning books ignited controversy. Most of the meetings between July and December in 2021 had between four and eight deputies present, Skebo said, and 13 deputies were present at the Dec. 13, 2021 meetingwhich occurred after a Facebook page posted about burning books at the next School Board meeting. The division is also paying more in legal fees this year. Sands Anderson, the Richmond law firm providing legal representation to the School Board, charged a total of $41,240 for services provided in January, February and March. Thats about $6,500 more than the school division paid Parrish, Snead, Franklin and Simpsonits contracted law firm through December 2021for legal representation in January, February and March of 2021, almost $23,000 more than it paid for the same three months in 2020 and $13,500 more than in 2019. Sands Andersons January 2022 invoice was for $10,699, the February invoice was for $16,788 and the March invoice was for $13,753. The invoices, which the Free LanceStar obtained in redacted form through a Freedom of Information Act request, contain at least 30 references to emails and phone calls with School Board Chair Kirk Twigg and other board members. The 2021 invoices from Parrish, Snead, Franklin and Simpson do not include any references to phone calls or emails with board members. Instead, most of attorney Jennifer Parrishs billable hours involved working with school division staff. Parrish submitted a retirement from services letter on Oct. 22, 2021, ending her contract with Spotsylvania County Public Schools effective January 2022. Sands Anderson attorney Brad Kings services do not include representing the board in the lawsuit brought by the Edwards Law Firm earlier this year, which alleges that Twigg and board members April Gillespie, Lisa Phelps and Rabih Abuismail violated Virginias Freedom of Information Act several times during the boards Jan. 10 meeting. Attorney Jeremy Capps is representing the board members in that case. The cost is covered by the boards insurance. No parent wants the words in memory of listed in front of their childs name, but Angela Pope hopes a vehicle dedicated to her daughter will save other families from the pain hers experienced. Lauren Pope was 26 when she died after snorting heroin laced with fentanyl, a synthetic opioid and powerful painkiller. Police told her parents, Angela and Jake Pope of Spotsylvania County, that it looked like someone left her in a bathroom by the way the young woman was positioned. Had she received Narcan, a nasal spray to reverse the effects of opioid overdoses, Angela Pope wonders if her firstborn would still be alive. She often thinks about the way her daughters life ended, as well as how things changed dramatically in her mid-teens. The once-bubbly and busy runner and cheerleader was about 15 when her mother said she fell into the wrong crowd and started using drugs. An unwanted pregnancy and abortion followed, and her mother suspects possible sex trafficking or gang violence. But she just doesnt know because months would pass without a word from her child. I sit and dwell on it, she said, and theres nothing thats going to change the situation so I have to try to do something positive with it. The Popes said they were honored when Zoe Freedom Center, a faith-based recovery program in Spotsylvania, recently launched a Mobile Harm Reduction Unit, or Narcan van, in memory of Lauren Pope. Lauren was the first client at Zoe, and co-founder Dana Brown helped get her into a recovery program. After Brown spoke at her funeral, she and her husband, Mark, the centers co-founder, talked about a mobile unit that would regularly dispense boxes of Narcan to individuals and businesses. The Browns promised the Popes it would bear Laurens name. The Narcan van made its debut on a recent Saturday as Zoe Freedom Center volunteers met in Fredericksburg and canvassed the downtown area, passing out goodie bags and materials about the centers free services, including counseling and peer support groups. They also asked people if they would put Narcan in their first-aid kits. Some businesses wanted a box for each kit in the building, others declined the offer. The center plans to return to downtown, visit hotels along U.S. 1 and set up regular routes and distribution times when it has enough volunteers. Based on past experience, Dana Brown believes the same divine guidance that helped Zoe get off the grounda month before the pandemic startedwill get their mobile unit out on a regular course. I feel like were gonna have enough volunteers to do at least a once-a-week route, probably within a month, she said. Were excited about being able to meet the needs on a routed, time-based schedule so people in the community who need our help know when were coming. And theres plenty of need, said Sherry NortonWilliams, a prevention specialist with the Rappahannock Area Community Services Board. For five years, shes led REVIVE! training on how to recognize and respond to an opioid emergency using Narcan, the brand name for the chemical naloxone. RACSB offers regular virtual trainings and twice-a-month distributions when people whove completed the class can pick up free Narcan. More than 2,000 people have been through the program since 2017including many who then trained othersand NortonWilliams has noticed an increase this year in the demand for Narcan. In the past, maybe half of those trained picked up their Narcan at a separate distribution site. This year, more than 8 of every 10 people trained have gotten it. We are seeing more lives being lost, NortonWilliams said, not because there are necessarily more drugs on the street but because of what they contain. Its about fentanyl being in everything or possibly being in everything. People are realizing the medicine cabinet is not necessarily the problem. Its the illicit substance people are getting their hands on. Last year, 81% of the fatal overdoses in the Fredericksburg region, from Culpeper to the Northern Neck, involved fentanyl, according to the Virginia Department of Health website. The state hasnt reported any 2022 statistics yet, but Dana Brown said shes hearing about increasing numbers of overdoses from local police officers. While in her office off Bragg Road, Brown showed a graphic from the Journal of American Medical Association, showing the number of fatalities involving fentanyl among adolescents. Nationwide, 253 young people between the ages of 10 and 19 died in 2019 from overdoses involving fentanyl. The death toll climbed to 680 in 2020 and shot up to 884 in 2021. Brown believes many of those who overdosed probably thought they were getting something else from a friend, maybe Adderall or Percocet. Adderall is used to treat hyperactivity but has become widely misused by high school and college students who want to pull all-nighters and cram for exams or write lengthy term papers, according to American Addiction Centers. Likewise, Percocet is a common pain pill, but can become lethal when laced with fentanyl. Thats starting to happen more and more, Dana Brown said. This is why (Narcan) is so important. Having this in your first-aid kit will give you the only tool that you can possibly have to save your childs life. NortonWilliams hopes people who receive Narcan will never need to use the treatment on loved ones but she often finds the opposite is true. I cant tell you how many times Ive had a person walk up to a table at an event or pick up a second dose because they already used the first one or it had expired, she said. I had one gentleman in a training program whos overdosed seven times. Shes trained workers in local shelters, convenience stores and national parks on how to administer Narcan. The free online class, REVIVE!, takes about 60 minutes, and NortonWilliams and others at RACSB will offer training to businesses and organizations. Those interested can contact her at 540/940-2325 or snorton@rappahannockareacsb.org. By Sabina Mammadli A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Azerbaijani Ministry of Health and the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers) Organizations of Azerbaijan in Baku on July 1, Azernews reports. The document was signed by Minister of Health Teymur Musayev and Vice President of National Confederation of Entrepreneurs Vugar Zeynalov. The MoU will cement cooperation between the state and private sector and contribute to its further development. Public-private partnership A total of 15 million medical services were provided in the public and private sectors of Azerbaijan from January through May 2022, Board Chairman of the Azerbaijani State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance Zaur Aliyev said. The remarks were made during public discussions on "Business Prospects in Healthcare Sphere on July 1. Noting that significant reforms have been carried out in the country over the past 10 years, Aliyev specified that the possibilities of private medicine and the legal framework regulating its activities have been expanded. We are working in the field of partial transfer of mandatory health insurance to the private sector. In this direction, we held relevant meetings in Turkiye and got acquainted with the experience of this country," he noted. He also pointed out that in Azerbaijan the state gives support to private clinics with the provision of relevant equipment. "Within just five months of 2022, 45 tenders for the purchase of medical equipment were held in the country. Small and medium businesses' representatives were the winners of these tenders," the official added. Speaking at the conference, Health Minister Teymur Musayev noted that public-private partnership in the field of healthcare and business is one of the promising sectors for the further development of medicine. According to Musayev, the private healthcare sector in Azerbaijan is rapidly growing and developing. "Nearly 1,400 business entities operate in the area of medicine in Azerbaijan. State support for the private sector contributed to the growth of their number," he noted. Furthermore, the minister added that the private sector also favors the development of education in the field of medicine. He noted that today, most graduates of medical universities work in private clinics, and to ensure the quality of provided medical services the state conducts appropriate control. Similarly, Board Chairman of Small and Medium Business Development Agency Orkhan Mammadov said that Azerbaijani SMBDA has successful experience in creating sub-sectors in the medical field. "The agency, together with Gill Med LLC, based on a public-private partnership model, supported the creation of enterprises in Gobu settlement and Zangilan region (Aghali village) for the production of medical textiles, sterile surgical kits, and overalls, Mammadov said. Further, he added that these enterprises manufacture outerwear and overalls for medical staff and patients, sterile surgical and dental kits, medical masks, medical gowns, headwear, and several other medical textile products. Since this project is focused not only on business but also on the social sphere, 90 percent of the employees of enterprises are citizens from vulnerable groups of the population," the official added. Monkeypox During the same event, the health minister also informed that Azerbaijan has become one of the first countries to apply to the World Health Organization to obtain tests for the detection of the monkeypox virus. According to Musayev, these tests have already been officially transferred to the head of the WHO office in Azerbaijan. "They will be delivered to Azerbaijan in the next two to three days," he added. Further, he added that no cases of monkeypox have been detected in Azerbaijan. Noting that the virus is transmitted through close contact between a healthy person and an infected person, he stressed that it has its specific symptoms and is detected based on the results of laboratory tests. The minister also said that it's not planned to conduct vaccination against monkeypox in Azerbaijan. "This follows the strategy of the World Health Organization and there is currently no need for a monkeypox vaccine," he added. No specific measures related to monkeypox are envisaged at the border crossing points of Azerbaijan either. "Azerbaijan completely follows these decisions and recommendations," Musayev said. COVID-19 Additionally, the health minister informed that phase III clinical trials of the Turkish-manufactured Turkovac COVID-19 vaccine have commenced in Azerbaijan. He noted that the results achieved so far are positive. "We'll be making a full statement after getting the lab test results conducted by Turkiye," Musayev said. Later, he noted that Azerbaijan successfully continues the process of vaccination against COVID-19. According to him, 90 percent of risk group citizens have already been vaccinated. These people even received a booster dose of the vaccine. I am glad that the civil responsibility of our citizens is at a high level. According to the statistics of vaccination of the population in total, this figure is about 74 percent, Musayev highlighted. Further, Musayev noted that there should be taken necessary measures for the autumn season by the WHO recommendations as the coronavirus brings new surprises every time. We can talk about the end of the pandemic if we will go through the autumn season without a significant increase in COVID-19 cases," Musayev added. The minister noted that people often attend mass events in summer, and there is a relative increase in the number of COVID-19 cases and added that currently, the epidemiological situation in Azerbaijan is stable. "There are practically no complications. The number of hospitalizations is quite low to date, the epidemiological situation is under full control. Appropriate steps will be taken if there is any significant increase in COVID-19 cases," Musayev said. Talking on the matter, the SMBDA chairman stressed that the first days of the COVID-19 pandemic showed the dependence of our country on the supply of most needed medical supplies. According to him, high duties on imported goods lead to an increase in the cost of services. "We consider it necessary to take support measures to replace the import of medicines, medical equipment, and other drugs into the country, to stimulate the production of these products by local entrepreneurs, Mammadov said. Moreover, he noted that it is proposed to introduce progressive PPP (Public Private Partnership) models, and the development of benefit mechanisms, taking into account the fact that this area is science-intensive and financially intensive. Registration of products imported into the country by entrepreneurs sometimes leads to large losses of time. The period of testing products in the relevant laboratories leads to its deterioration, additional loss of time, and other costs, he added. Then Mammadov proposed optimizing interdepartmental coordination and stimulating the creation of private laboratories in this regard. IT HAPPENS at least once a semester. My students and I will be discussing a contested political issuesay, affirmative action or capital punishmentand someone will ask, Professor, what does history say about it? My answer is always the same: History can inform our contemporary debates, but it cant resolve them. It tells us how people in other times and places acted and thought. But they lived then, and we live now. So we need to figure things out for ourselves. Alas, thats a lesson the Supreme Courts conservative majority seems to have forgotten. In two decisions last week, on guns and abortions, the justices pretended that the past can give us singular answers to divisive present-day questions. Thats an almost childlike caricature of what my discipline does. And no serious historian would endorse it. Lets start with Clarence Thomas rambling opinion in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen, which struck down New York states concealed-carry law. Thomas used the word history 95 times, citing example after example to demonstrate how deeply gun ownership rights are embedded in the American past. But as Justice Stephen Breyer noted in his dissent, we also have a long history of gun restrictionespecially in the frontier West, which was anything but wild when it came to firearms. The mission of the concealed deadly weapon is murder, declared James Hogg, governor of Texas in the late 1800s. To check it is the duty of every self-respecting, law-abiding man. Texas was one of 10 states that passed laws against concealed weapons in the 19th century. Thomas does acknowledge those regulations in his opinion but claims they were outliersand irrelevant ones, at that, because so few people lived in the West. But as historian Saul Cornell has shown, all of Americas biggest citiesincluding New York, Chicago and Philadelphiarestricted concealed weapons in the 19th century, via outright bans or permit requirements. Does that prove that such laws are wise or necessary now? Of course not, any more than the examples that Thomas cites prove the need to protect individual gun rights. As my students could tell youif theyve been listening at allthe fact that something happened yesterday doesnt tell us whether it should continue today. But the same fallacy appears in the Supreme Courts decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, which struck down the constitutional right to abortion established by Roe v. Wade in 1973. Writing for the majority, Justice Samuel Alito invoked history 67 times. Whereas Thomas used history to show the deep roots of gun rights, however, Alito scoured the past to demonstrate the absence of abortion rights. An unbroken tradition of prohibiting abortion on pain of criminal punishment persisted from the earliest days of the common law until 1973, Alito asserted. Theres just one problem with that statement: Its false. Until the mid-1800s, most laws on the subject prohibited abortion only after the quickeningthat is, after a pregnant woman could feel her fetus moving. Alito knows that, too, which is why he cited a single 1732 indictmentthats right, just onedescribing a pre-quickening abortion as pernicious. Then he skipped quickly to the late 19th century, when full-on abortion bans began. Like Thomas, in short, he cherry-picked the history that served his purposes and ignored the history that didnt. If Thomas and Alito submitted their opinions as research papers in my class, I would praise them for locating so many sources in support of their points of view. Then I would ask them to write second drafts, which included the equally voluminous evidence that contradicts their ideas. That would make them less certain of their righteousness, as history always does. And if you think otherwise, youre doing it wrong. Despite what the Supreme Court majority might imagine, the past speaks in many different voices. Thats why we need to listen to all of them, instead of limiting ourselves to the ones we want to hear. At least 19 people were killed and a dozen injured when a passenger bus slid off the road into a mountain ravine during a heavy rain in southwest Pakistan. Mahtab Shah, an official in the Shirani district of Balochistan Province, said there were 35 passengers on the bus and that rescue workers were on the scene. Shah said the bus had been traveling from Islamabad to Quetta and that all the passengers were men. He added that some of the injured were in serious condition and the death toll could rise. Deadly road incidents are common in Pakistan because of poor infrastructure, badly maintained vehicles, and reckless driving. Last month, 22 people were killed when a bus toppled into a ravine in another part of Balochistan Province. Based on reporting by AP and dpa Bahrain Real Estate Investment (Edamah) is inviting bids to develop a 20,717-sq-m plot at Hidd within Muharraq Governorate of the kingdom for a mixed-use investment project. The land is strategically located near new waterfront developments such as Diyar Al Muharraq and Dilmunia, and overlooks Arad Highway opposite Bahrain International Airport. Edamah is the real-estate arm of the sovereign wealth fund of Bahrain. Incorporated in 2006 to manage and expand an assorted portfolio of real estate in Bahrain, Edamah has established itself as one of the kingdoms leading property developers. Meanwhile, Edamah said it was also seeking bids for the development of six more plots with a total area of 5,618 sq m at Askar within Southern Governorate for a mixed-use investment project. It is strategically located near Khalifa Town housing project and offers a clear view of King Hamad Highway.-TradeArabia News Service Clear Lake walleye enthusiasts are enjoying an amazing year. Ever since the ice went out in early spring, anglers have been treated to steady bites and hefty limits. Catch rates remained high through May and June. And as we plunge into mid-summer, it appears as if the Walleye Fest has no intention of winding down. When last weeks summer heat wave moved into the region, the bite only accelerated as temps soared into the high 80s. For anglers who enjoy setting the hook, it was an incredible event. Right now, it seems as if a fast moving cold front is about the only thing that will shut walleyes down, and they bounce back from that within a day or two. Although warm weather fishing enthusiasts may be finding their fastest action during first light and last light, walleyes are being taken throughout the day. A good example occurred last Saturday, when my brother Sterling and I didnt hit the water until mid-morning which, by walleye standards, is considered to be a pretty late start. Settling atop a shallow water patch of rock, we decided to give the stony terrain a quick try before moving on. Opting to go light, we tied on a couple of 1/16-ounce jig heads tipped with some large and lively leeches. Despite our late start, bright sunlight, and shallow water our first hits were quick in coming. During the next two hours, we boated a total of 17 walleyes, all keepers except for one 13-inch exception. Our catch also included three slot fish all caught by my brother -- measuring up to 22-inches. Amazingly, the bite was steady enough that we never drifted from our original location. All of our fish were caught in about five feet of water, and the walleyes were still hitting when we quit a little before noon. Not all walleyes are being taken from boats. Some anglers are choosing to probe the shallows on foot. Surprisingly, their shallow water catch rates equal, and sometimes exceed, what boat fishers are bringing to the dock. I know one angler, for example, who has consistently taken home three-fish limits of walleyes and released dozens of others -- during six of the past seven outings. Most of the fish he keeps are in the 14-inch to 16-inch range and are being taken in as little as 2 feet of water. The only downside, he notes, is that he has not landed a single slot fish -- at least so far. Speaking of slot fish, Clear Lakes newest walleye rule has been a major change in angling regulations. The goal of the new walleye slot limit is to bolster future hatchery production by protecting vital brood stock. Since natural reproduction of walleyes is insignificant in Iowa, the fishery is almost entirely dependent upon the success of spring egg collection and subsequent stockings of hatchery produced fry and fingerlings. Historically, Clear Lake anglers enjoyed decades of liberal, five walleye daily limits. Then, in a move that was largely political, a 14-inch minimum length was established in 1987. The next major change occurred in 1991 when, in response to increasing pressure on the fishery, the daily limit was reduced from five walleyes to three. The new protective slot limit provides some dramatic changes. Although the daily limit remains set at three walleyes, minimum length restrictions have been removed. For the first time ever at Clear Lake, anglers must immediately release all walleyes measuring from 17- to 22-inches in length. Fish in the 17- to 22-inch class fall into the protected slot. Releasing those walleyes will allow egg producing brood fish to survive. For those desiring to catch a lunker, anglers are still allowed to take one walleye exceeding 22-inches per day. Designed to benefit the long-term health of the fishery, Clear Lakes walleye slot limit is based on proven science. It has succeeded in other walleye fisheries, and it will work in Clear Lake. Dihad Sustainable Humanitarian Foundation has signed a deal with Axios International to assist those in need of medicines globally as part of the Forevercare initiative. The landmark agreement lands in connection with the UAEs approach for humanitarian efforts that aims in providing treatment to patients in need via sustainable solutions and ensure stability of charitable work in the medical field. The agreement stipulates that the cooperation with Axios International is intended to exchange expertise in the humanitarian field between the two parties and to spread awareness regarding the importance of providing medicine to countries in need. It is also designed to provide medicines, medical supplies, and humanitarian aid through its network of specialists in the field. Improving access to healthcare Dr Abdul Salam Al Madani, Roving Ambassador for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean for the GCC and Chairman of Dihad Sustainable Humanitarian Foundation, stated: This agreement comes as an effort by Dihad to strengthen formal and fraternal ties between various humanitarian and health sectors through the Forevercare Initiative, which provides medicine, medical supplies, and many other forms of humanitarian assistance to countries annually all over the world. Our aim is to improve access to innovative treatment and medicines for low-income communities around the world, especially for those who cannot afford treatment for their illness. He added: This agreement will also help identify the challenges facing the medical and pharmaceutical sectors in general, and work to find appropriate solutions and advanced mechanisms of action in accordance with global standards, which is an excellent example of partnerships between different sectors that shows a joint commitment towards enhanced patient care. This will help to provide wider access to innovative medication for those who are affected, and ultimately giving them greater hope for a better life. Quality standards Anas Nawfal Al Saffarini, Senior Director, Greater Mena at Axios International, said: This reflects the Axios commitment to meeting the needs of patients around the world with efficient speed and the highest quality standards. We believe in the importance of joining forces to build distinguished partnerships that benefit everyone. The Forevercare Initiative, which collects medicines and medical supplies from companies and pharmaceutical manufacturers to provide them to countries in need, was launched during the 18th edition of the Dubai International Humanitarian Aid & Development Conference & Exhibition Dihad, and helps to further cultivate the UAEs imprint in all humanitarian fields and enhance the aspects of interdependency and cohesion in the international community. Forevercare is in cooperation with the Dubai International Pharmaceutical & Technologies Conference & Exhibition Duphat, and in partnership with the Waterfalls Initiative for Continuous Education from the UAE to the World.-- TradeArabia News Service Ironically, it was the ambitious reach of NASA's Viking spacecraft that set back the exploration of Mars for so many years. As proffered by such enthusiastic visionaries as Carl Sagan, the question that Viking would answer seemed not to be whether Mars was home to life but to what kind. Would it be bacteria? Algae? Lichen? Or other, more complex forms? The two landers carried suites of astrobiological life detection apparatuses that were marvels to behold: tiny growing chambers packed with nutrients to awaken ancient Martian spores, radioactive tracers to identify the metabolic activities of microbes, and chemical analysis systems to identify the expected respiratory byproducts. Alas, save for some narrowly held dissenting opinions, no interpretation of the data supported the existence of viable life forms on Mars. Instead, the probes found an atmosphere so harshly oxidizing that biotic matter, as then understood, could scarcely survive. And so, like a rebuffed suitor retreating across the room to collect his composure, the American exploration of space was left hunting for new directions to explore. Mars was dead. But time heals all shame and the allure of the red planet could not long remain at bay. It took a series of events to bring Martian exploration back into the limelight. The discovery of extremophiles, forms of life here on Earth that existed in conditions previously considered completely inhospitable to any biological process, combined with a new understanding of the limitations of Viking's sensors (which, it turned out, had been somewhat oversold in an effort to secure backing for the missions) to awaken the possibility that life could still exist on Mars, albeit perhaps in forms we would scarcely recognize. The competitive spirit of the Reagan presidency then provided the necessary political will to return to Mars, for the Russians had suffered no shame from the American frustration and were then pursuing an ambitious program of Martian exploration. These factors combined to bring about the launch of Mars Observer, a mission almost as grandiose as Viking had been. Technical shortsightedness caused the Mars Observer craft to explode while preparing to enter orbit around Mars. But by then the spirit was relit and a sequence of missions, some humble and some ambitious, some successful and some not, flew throughout the late 1990's and into the new millennium. Today's goals are less dramatic. No surefire detection of life is promised or looked for. Instead, a methodical tracing of the biologic, climatologic, and geologic history of Mars is slowly expanding our understanding of our close planetary neighbor. This systematic exploration may even one day progress to a reexamination of the great question that has haunted man's imagination for centuries: Is there life on Mars? 1 : Based on the information in the passage, which of the following best characterizes the results of the Viking missions? a) A methodical understanding of the biologic, climatologic, and geologic history of Mars. b) Undisputed proof that no life could possibly exist on Mars. c) Widely disputed and inconclusive results regarding the biological potential of Mars. d) A general belief that life, as then recognized, was unlikely to exist on Mars. e) Widespread enthusiasm towards continued Martian exploration. 2: The passage discusses which of the following as a reason why the Viking landers failed to detect signs of life on Mars? a) Their life detection apparatus was not designed to detect traces of the sort of life now believed to exist on Mars. b) Subsequent investigations proved that there was no life present for them to detect. c) The Viking landers only surveyed two small areas of the planet and might have missed locations more favorable to biological activity. d) The instruments were not as sensitive as originally claimed and, if life on Mars does exist, it may do so in a form they would not have correctly identified. e) The Viking landers could only identify complex forms of life such as bacteria and algae. 3 : Which of the following would most effectively and accurately title this article? a) Viking and Mars Observer - Two Studies in Hubris b) Back to the Red Planet, One Step at a Time c) Beat the Russians! d) Astrobiological Possibilities of Martian Extremophiles e) Moving On - Why Space Exploration Must Abandon a Dead Mars 4. According to the passage, the competitive spirit of the Reagan presidency played what role in the exploration of Mars? a) It provided political impetus to move forward with the launch of the Viking Landers. b) It ensured the flight of a sequence of missions from the late 1990's through the new millennium. c) It led to the opposition of Russian efforts to explore Mars. d) It was like a rebuffed suitor retreating across the room. e) It contributed to the launch of the Mars Observer mission. a) A methodical understanding of the biologic, climatologic, and geologic history of Mars.b) Undisputed proof that no life could possibly exist on Mars.c) Widely disputed and inconclusive results regarding the biological potential of Mars.d) A general belief that life, as then recognized, was unlikely to exist on Mars.e) Widespread enthusiasm towards continued Martian exploration.a) Their life detection apparatus was not designed to detect traces of the sort of life now believed to exist on Mars.b) Subsequent investigations proved that there was no life present for them to detect.c) The Viking landers only surveyed two small areas of the planet and might have missed locations more favorable to biological activity.d) The instruments were not as sensitive as originally claimed and, if life on Mars does exist, it may do so in a form they would not have correctly identified.e) The Viking landers could only identify complex forms of life such as bacteria and algae.a) Viking and Mars Observer - Two Studies in Hubrisb) Back to the Red Planet, One Step at a Timec) Beat the Russians!d) Astrobiological Possibilities of Martian Extremophilese) Moving On - Why Space Exploration Must Abandon a Dead Marsa) It provided political impetus to move forward with the launch of the Viking Landers.b) It ensured the flight of a sequence of missions from the late 1990's through the new millennium.c) It led to the opposition of Russian efforts to explore Mars.d) It was like a rebuffed suitor retreating across the room.e) It contributed to the launch of the Mars Observer mission. ROCKINGHAM COUNTY Quick decisions by EMS workers, life-saving medical calls and good teamwork had sirens blaring and scanners crackling with action Thursday morning during a mock emergency drill by county emergency and hospital staffers. Firefighters, EMS workers and 911 operators for Rockingham County worked with medical staff at Annie Penn Hospital in Reidsville and Rockingham Community College to stage the drill, an annual practice designed to prepare workers for myriad potential disasters. The highly detailed drill, conducted in real time with designated actors portraying the injured, simulated a scenario in which a vehicle carrying hazardous material crashed. The exercise gave emergency personnel the opportunity to practice triage the act of prioritizing medical care for the most needy, and more. Firefighters analyzed the type of hazardous material at the mock crash site, its potential for harm to the immediate and extended community, and decided how to contain it. RALEIGH Movie sequels are almost always worse than the original films. Notable exceptions, such as this summers Top Gun: Maverick, merely prove the rule. For every Empire Strikes Back, theres a Highlander 2: The Quickening, Halloween Kills, and Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol. If efforts to enact a voter-identification requirement in North Carolina were a motion-picture franchise, the current box-office bomb would be titled something like Carolina ID 5: Voters Against Democracy. Its baldly implausible plot is that self-styled defenders of democracy have gone to court to overturn a voter ID requirement added to the state constitution by a voter referendum. Let the will of the majority prevail, warns one of the supposed protagonists, and that will destroy democracy! As I have argued many times, an overwhelming preponderance of evidence shows little-to-no effect of ID requirements on voter turnout. In other words, progressives are mistaken when they claim such rules constitute voter suppression. By the same token, conservatives are mistaken when they claim voter fraud would be rampant without ID requirements. (If true, imposing such a requirement should significantly reduce the number of ballots cast. But thats never happened.) In reality, the types of misbehavior to which voter IDs pose a barrier or deterrent impersonation fraud, most obviously, but also residency fraud are rare but hardly nonexistent. Although nearly all electoral outcomes involve margins far too large to be determined by fraud, a handful of illegal votes could be decisive in some local races or extreme circumstances. As long as requirements are clearly stated and citizens without an ID receive state assistance to get one, the policy is reasonable. Its modest benefits, in the form of public confidence in elections and greater convenience for those previously lacking IDs, easily surpass its modest costs. Such arguments should have settled the matter years ago. In 2013, the General Assembly enacted an election-law bill that included voter ID among its provisions. Republican Pat McCrory, then governor, signed it into law. Progressive plaintiffs sued in federal court. They lost at the trial court. U.S. District Judge Thomas Schroeder concluded that however debatable the bills merits might be, there was no evidence of discriminatory intent or other violations of federal laws or constitutional provisions. The plaintiffs appealed. In 2016, a three-judge panel of the Fourth Court of Appeals tossed aside Schroeders findings of fact itself a rare and questionable act and famously proclaimed that the bills provisions target African Americans with almost surgical precision. I bet youve heard that phrase many times since. But it never had any basis in fact. And it should never have been the last word. McCrory, House Speaker Tim Moore, and Senate leader Phil Berger assumed that the state would appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. They had every reason to expect and subsequent decisions in other cases have buttressed their expectation that the Supreme Court would have overturned the Fourth Circuit and allowed North Carolinas voter ID rule to take effect. Roy Cooper defeated McCrory to become governor. He and his Democratic replacement as attorney general, Josh Stein, surely agreed with the Republicans that the state would likely prevail on appeal. So they sabotaged North Carolinas case. They refused to appeal. Moore and Berger tried to do it themselves, using their own counsel, but the justices were apparently unsure who was representing whom and declined to accept it. Cooper and Stein have never received the scorn they deserve for their misbehavior. Nevertheless, I also hold the U.S. Supreme Court responsible for failing to sort the matter out properly back in 2017. Fortunately, theyve now done so in yet another installment in the franchise perhaps Carolina ID 6: Disorder in the Court by issuing this month an 8-1 decision affirming Moore and Bergers right to hire legal representation on the states behalf in yet another voter ID case. The justices should have accepted that argument back in 2017. It would have saved us from some truly dreadful sequels. NC Amazon workers wary of new rule GARNER Amazon is barring off-duty warehouse workers from the companys facilities, a move some say can hamper union drives. The notice of the new policy, which was announced late last week, says the off-duty rule will not be enforced discriminatorily against employees seeking to unionize. But organizers say the policy itself will hinder their efforts to garner support from co-workers. Under the policy, employees are barred from accessing buildings or other working areas on their scheduled days off, and before or after their shifts. On our days off, we come to work, and we engage our co-workers in the break rooms, said the Rev. Ryan Brown, an Amazon warehouse worker in Garner whos aiming to organize his workplace like fellow employees did recently in New York. This was a direct response to that, to try to stop organizing by any means necessary. Man, woman found dead at Davie home MOCKSVILLE A man and woman have been found dead at a Davie County home for reasons that arent altogether clear. Recently, deputies with the Davie County Sheriffs Office were sent to the residence because of a 911 call. The caller told dispatchers that someone was shooting at her, the sheriffs office said, adding that a dispatcher heard a loud disturbance over the phone. After that, the phone line was open but no one was responding. When deputies reached the home, they found a 29-year-old man dead in the front yard and a 23-year-old woman dead inside the home. Two children were found in the home unharmed. Family says video shows man murdered by police officer CONCORD Attorneys are claiming that body-camera footage shows a Cabarrus County police officer shoot an unarmed man five times, pause to call dispatch, and then shoot him again. Attorneys for Brandon Combs mother, Virginia Tayara, said they were in utter disbelief after being shown video of the February shooting last week. Concord police had initially described the shooting as a physical confrontation at a car dealership where Combs, a 29-year-old white man, was trying to steal a truck. But Tayaras attorneys say the footage shows that no struggle ever occurred between Combs and Officer Timothy Larson before the officer opened fire. Instead, they said it shows a short foot chase that ended when Combs got into the drivers seat of Larsons police SUV. He murdered him. He shot him in cold blood, Tayara said. Wire Reports DMCC, a flagship free zone and Dubai government's authority on commodities trade and enterprise, has reported its best ever performance in the first half, registering 1,469 new companies for the first six months of 2022, up 19% over last year. In June alone, DMCC welcomed 323 new businesses to its Free Zone and business district, the best monthly performance since its inception. It is now home to over 21,000 businesses. DMCCs persistent growth was driven by strong demand from international markets including Europe, China, and India, demonstrating Dubais continued commercial appeal and the ease of setting up and doing business at the free zone. Growth was also buoyed by continued interest in the DMCC Crypto Centre, and high volumes of trade for a range of commodities, predominantly diamonds, tea, and coffee. Executive Chairman and CEO Ahmed Bin Sulayem said: "DMCC is constantly striving to further enhance Dubais status as a hub for doing business across the globe. This ethos has enabled us to grow from zero to over 21,000 member companies in the space of just two decades." "By providing a hyper-connected community for trade and constantly striving to improve our services, we will continue to work with our member companies towards new growth in the years to come," stated Bin Sulayem. "With our facilities and services truly representing the centre of global commodities trade, DMCC continues to be a core partner to its members, having a significant positive impact on the emirates thriving economy," he added. Chief Operating Officer Feryal Ahmadi said: "Surpassing yet another record is a proud moment for everyone at DMCC it reflects their hard work and dedication to making DMCC the worlds premier business district. Now home to over 21,000 companies, our sense of purpose and duty to each member has never been stronger." "Throughout the remainder of the year, we will continue to invest in talent, sustainability, and innovation to ensure efficient delivery of our ambitious strategy, providing a leading environment for businesses to trade and connect with the world," noted Ahmadi. DMCC continued to promote Dubai as a prime destination for FDI, conducting roadshows in six key markets including UK, Spain, Turkey, Poland, Brazil and Colombia, highlighting the opportunities on offer in the emirate. The outreach programmes proved to be highly effective, with 40% of new companies in H1 originating from Europe and South America, said the statement from DMCC. China and India continue to be crucial target markets for DMCC, comprising a combined 20% of new members in 2022 so far. According to DMCC, the volume of diamonds traded through the UAE reached a total of $11 billion in the first quarter, up 36% from the same period last year. The polished segment saw an 80% increase in trade value, with rough diamond trade simultaneously increasing 20% year-on-year. Already the worlds largest rough diamond trading hub, Dubai is currently looking to become the leading hub for rough and polished combined, it added.-TradeArabia News Service The Smyth County native died in 1904 in Kentucky. However, her image as a young girl continues to live on and is getting extra care now thanks to conservators in Richmond. Anna Chastain was born in the Saltville area and lived in the county until she was about 8 years old when her family moved to Kentucky. While the details are limited, Betsy White, William King Museum of Art director, knows that she returned to Abingdon for her education, likely at one of the communitys private schools. During that time, the prolific portrait artist Samuel Shaver painted Chastain. Experts who have evaluated the painting believe the girl was 10 to 12 years old when the painting was done, likely between 1845 and 1850. Samuel Shaver was the nephew of Michael Shaver, who served on Abingdons town council and worked as a silversmith, jeweler, blacksmith, and even a dentist. White researched the Shavers for her book Backcountry Makers: An Artisan History of Southwest Virginia & Northeast Tennessee. In an article for A! Magazine for the Arts, White wrote, Samuel was only 22 when he utilized this Abingdon connection to place an ad alongside one of his uncles in Abingdons Virginia Statesman newspaper announcing himself available as a portrait and miniature painter. Samuel Shaver became well known as portrait painter of children, business tycoons, military leaders and politicians, White said. She believes Chastains family must have had some measure of wealth to afford having her painting done and sending her away for school. The museum has had Chastains portrait in its collection since 2002, but didnt know it was a Shaver painting, White said. She noted that he rarely signed his work. However, the museum was looking for a painting of a child to hang in the childrens bedroom of the Fields-Penn House, an 1860 Greek Revival style home on Abingdons Main Street that operated as a museum. There, White said, the painting hung over the mantelpiece and everyone loved Anna. When the painting was moved to the main museum, White said, it was recognized as Samuel Shaver work. The museum had it evaluated by experts with the Tennessee Historical Society, who confirmed it was one of his paintings. Samuel Shaver did most of his work in Tennessee. Now, the William King Museum of Art has received the 2021 Richmond Conservation Studio Grant for the conservation of the portrait. White explained that the grant isnt for a certain amount of money but whatever work is needed to preserve the painting. Samuel Shavers later paintings, like this one, featured a background landscape. After years of soot and dust are removed, White said, Who knows what theyre going to find. At the museum, she said, they joke that Anna has been sent to the spa. When she comes back, White said, it will be in all her glory. However, it could be up to a year before she returns. White said the Richmond Conservation Studio is much in demand and the work to restore a painting is painstaking. When they do bring Anna home, White said, shell go into William Kings permanent collection gallery and the museum will likely hold a reception for her homecoming. For the grant and this very special piece of art, White said, Were just delighted. The Conservation Grant is a joint project of the Richmond Conservation Studio and the Virginia Association of Museums. Rebecca Guest, Membership & Development Manager of the association, said in a press release, VAM is thrilled to once again work with the Richmond Conservation Studio on this exciting project. Congrats to the William King Museum of Art for being selected as the 2021 Conservation Grant recipient. While not a great deal is known about Chastain, White noted that she did marry and became the mother to five children. Anna Chastain Haynes died in 1904. William King Museum of Art is open seven days a week with free admission. For information on exhibitions or events, visit williamkingmuseum.org or call 276-628-5005 William King Museum of Art is at 415 Academy Drive, off West Main Street or Russell Road, in Abingdon. LONG VIEW The Town of Long View announced the promotion of Justin Reid to the position of major / Deputy Police Chief of the Long View Police Department. Maj. Reid will serve as second in command to Chief T.J. Bates and assist with operations oversight within the organization. Reid will also oversee training, staffing needs, and compliance with legislative mandates. Reid brings more than 12 years of law enforcement experience with a combined six years of supervisory experience to the position. Reid has been employed by the Long View Police Department for two years, serving in a supervisory role, primary field training officer, training coordinator, and K-9 handler (K-9 Luca). Reid is also a general law enforcement instructor, Taser instructor, Glock Advanced Armor, and AR-15 Armor. Prior law enforcement service includes 10 years of service at the Lenoir Police Department. Reid has an associate's degree of science in biology from Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute. Additionally, he was awarded the Advanced Law Enforcement Certificate from the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education Training Standards Commission. "I look forward to Maj. Reid's continued leadership within our organization," Bates said. "His leadership skills, knowledge, and communication skills are well regarded by all members of the organization. I am confident Maj. Reid will continue to positively impact our community and law enforcement organization in his new leadership role." "I'm honored to be appointed to the position of deputy chief," Reid said. "I look forward to my continued work with the citizens of Long View, the employees of the town, and the amazing officers of the police department. I will continue to do my part to ensure Long View is a safe and enjoyable community for all of its residents and visitors." The Western Piedmont Council of Governments (WPCOG) assisted the Town of Long View with the search process. The WPCOG received 16 applications for the position. The WPCOG is a regional planning, service, and economic development agency that is owned by and serves the 28 local governments in Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, and Catawba counties. From June 30, Ukraine began exporting electricity to Romania at a capacity of 100 MW, Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal announced. "Today, from 1 a.m., such exports went in the direction of Romania. The initial volume is 100 MW," he wrote on his Telegram channel on Thursday. He noted that in the first day alone, the state-owned company Ukrenergo earned UAH 10 million by selling access to the interstate cross-section for export, and potentially Ukraine could earn more than UAH 70 billion a year from this. "The export potential of Ukrainian electricity to Europe is up to 2.5 GW. Under this scenario, the state will be able to receive more than UAH 70 billion a year," Shmyhal said. The prime minister stressed that the energy visa-free regime with the EU, which began in March this year, gives its very visible and practical result, and the energy sector will become one of the drivers for the recovery of the Ukrainian economy, as it has already become a driver for integration into the EU. According to the data on the ENTSO-E website, physical exports from Ukraine to Romania are made on June 30 with a flat schedule of 100 MWh. Health Minister of Moldova Ala Nemerenco has said that one employee of Moldovan rehabilitation center for children in Serhiyivka, Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky district, Odesa region, was killed and five employees injured as a result of Russia's missile attack on the town on Friday morning. "The Health Ministry has a rehabilitation center for children in Serhiyivka. It is a restored health improvement facility with good conditions. Children with health problems from Moldova have an opportunity to receive medical rehabilitation services on the Black Sea coast. Unfortunately, its work was suspended for the time of pandemic. And once we have started planning to resume its work, the war broke out," she said on Facebook. The center suffered minor damaged during the attack, the minister said. "Regrettably, we have been informed that five employees of the center suffered injuries and one [employee] was killed. All of them lived in the building which was hit by the bombing. These peaceful people made days of Moldovan children better, they took care of their rehabilitation with big love and devotion. We wish them to get well soon. We offer our deep condolences to the family of our decease colleague," the minister said. About 120 abortion rights supporters protested Saturday in downtown Winston-Salem, where candidates running for public office in November urged them to vote in the election to maintain the legal status of abortions in North Carolina. The demonstrators gathered in Winston Square Park on North Marshall Street, a week after about 1,000 abortion rights supporters protested throughout downtown Winston-Salem. Both events were held after the U.S. Supreme Courts June 23 ruling that eliminated constitutional protections for abortions. Winston 4 Peace, a local social justice organization, staged the rallies. The courts ruling means that legislators in North Carolina and other states will be in a position to shape the future of abortion access. Abortions are still legal in North Carolina. Democrat Carla Catalan Day, who is running for the N.C. House District 74 seat in Forsyth County, told the rallys participants that their votes are needed to maintain womens bodily autonomy in North Carolina. When I chose to become a mother and bring my daughter into this world, I knew I had a big responsibility, Catalan Day said. Real family values mean that you will protect your futures, your legacys right to your own bodies. The Supreme Court basically said that we are no longer the boss of our bodies, Catalan Day said. Abortion opponents are relying on abortion-rights supporters not to vote in the November elections, Catalan Day said. Democrat Dan Besse, who is running for an at-large seat on the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners, told the crowd that Republican politicians and abortion opponents know that young people are angry about the courts ruling. Besse, 67, said he was an 18-year-old high school student in January 1973 when the Supreme Court handed down its landmark Roe vs. Wade decision, granting women a constitutional right to abortion. Besse described the five justices on the Supreme Court who voted to overturn the Roe vs. Wade precedent as legal extremists. A minority of the U.S. population believe they have the right to impose their religious dogma on everyone, Besse said. Ultimately, they won the power to stack the court. Tammy Thurm, a Democratic candidate for the District 5 seat on the Greensboro City Council, told the demonstrators that they have an opportunity to make a difference in the November elections. Candidates running for local and state offices need the votes of young people, Thurm said. The courts conservative majority will likely roll back other civil liberties such as same-sex marriage, she said. State Rep. Amber Baker, D-Forsyth, who is running for re-election, said Republican legislators are prepared to pass bills that will restrict or ban abortion in North Carolina. Voters need to elect at least nine more Democrats to the N.C. House to prevent that from happening, Baker said. Hailey Grubbs, a rally participant, told the crowd that she is a daughter of a single mother. The men who tell women what to do with their bodies are the same men who will leave their wives and children, Grubbs said. State treasurer Dale Folwell isnt running for anything at least not yet but he is campaigning hard in what appears to be a personal crusade against North Carolinas major nonprofit hospitals. Hes been making the rounds to speaking to civic groups, doing interviews and generally bending ears wherever he can find them. Neither a stranger to controversy nor afraid to brawl, Folwell has sharpened his rhetoric he repeatedly uses the word cartel to describe big hospital systems in a near obsessive bid to try and lower the cost of providing health care to more than 1 million state employees and retirees. Along the way, Folwell is gleefully poking the proverbial bear in the form of very pointed criticism of Atrium Health, the Charlotte-based conglomerate that joined with Wake Forest Baptist Health in a way that will resonate with a lot of lifelong locals. I said it yesterday, Ill say it today, and Ill say it tomorrow, he said. Atrium is the leader of the cartel. I know a lot of smart people (who are) worried about Baptist being in transition. Winston-Salem, at the end of the day, will be Ross Johnsoned. Long memories F. Ross Johnson, who died in 2016, came to Winston-Salem in 1985 when Nabisco Brands was sold to the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. for $4.9 billion during the height of a greed fueled mergers and acquisitions frenzy. Johnson, for youngsters, relative newcomers and anyone not deeply familiar with the long history of Reynolds Tobacco, was the CEO of Nabisco Brands when that ill-fated, ill-advised and just plain weird marriage turned the town on its head. After being named CEO of RJR Nabisco, Johnson labeled Winston-Salem bucolic as part of his justification for moving the company headquarters to Atlanta. Many lifelong locals Dale Folwell, a graduate of West Forsyth High, definitely qualifies have neither forgiven nor forgotten. That history is part of the reason why civic-minded residents are warily eyeballing Atrium, its ties to Charlotte and the decision to open a second campus of the Wake Forest University Medical School there. That and incentives offered by the city of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County worth up to $75 million is causing angst in some quarters. The No. 1 thing you hear about Atrium and starting a medical school in Charlotte is what we stand to lose to another community, said Tom Fredericks last week after a lunch meeting of the Twin City Kiwanis Club. Piedmont Air and RJ Reynolds (RJR-Nabisco) went to Atlanta. We lost Wachovia to Wells Fargo. I think the worry is real. Atrium, for its part, is well aware of that sentiment and is working to allay such concerns. A spokesman for Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist pointed last week to some $3.4 billion pledged over the next 10 years to local operations, including the medical school campus and the hospital. The lions share would be $2.8 billion in spending, which would include building a new care tower, an enhanced emergency department and a new eye center. Atrium Health also has promised $600 million to advance Wake Forest University School of Medicines academic mission. We are confident that our combination with Atrium Health is beneficial for our patients, our faculty and staff and the communities we serve, wrote Joe McCloskey, a spokesman for Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist in an email. We know health care delivery, research and medical education will be improved, and our local and statewide economy will see very positive effects. Still, in a community with a long memory and our history with the wholesale relocation of Wake Forest College in the 1950s its difficult, if not impossible, to wonder whether Winston-Salem might be cast aside at some point for the allure of big city Charlotte. Making a splash A significant part of Folwells time recently has been devoted to the newest front of his battle with big hospitals. He followed a national splash in the pages of The Washington Post after the treasurers office released a report highly critical of the states biggest nonprofit hospitals for taking pandemic relief money by conducting more interviews with in-state news outlets and taking speaking engagements with civic organizations. He repeated some of his most incendiary lines about the big nonprofit health-care systems as well as talking points aimed at people who worry about access to and the cost of quality health care. I always say when you need the right word you go to the dictionary or the Bible, Folwell said. (Large hospital systems) are a cartel. By Websters definition, that means they restrict competition and arrange prices for a product that people would rather not consume. The report released by the treasurers office, which used experts at Johns Hopkins University as consultants, noted that Atrium Health received $719 million from the federal government out of the $178 billion Congress pumped into the national health-care system at the onset of the pandemic. Atrium has $12 billion in the bank, Folwell said. (People) need to know that they didnt get that by developing software. They made $12 billion on the backs of people whod rather not be there. He noted the pandemic relief money, along with an increase in the prices of medical services, investments and the stock market, helped Atrium post more than $1 billion in surplus revenue an accounting designation used in the nonprofit health-care sector that regular folk might see as profit. Along the way, Atrium Health pulled off two mergers during the pandemic, is working on third and boosted last year the compensation of CEO Eugene Woods to $9.8 million. The rich got richer, Folwell said. The main thing is that this is the biggest transfer of wealth in this generation. Its coming from citizens and going to multi-billion corporations disguised as nonprofits. It affects low-income people the most. That prompted Folwell (and allies) to look at charity care provided by nonprofit hospitals and call for more while leveling new criticisms about the weaponization of credit scores and increasing bankruptcy filings caused by the accumulation of medical debt. Legislative approval of House Bill 169, a measure that would require hospitals to offer income-based financial aid to patients and limit the way large health-care providers (and debt collectors) can go after unpaid bills, would be a step in the right direction, Folwell said. Credit scores determine what you pay for a cell phone and liability insurance for the car you drive, he said. It helps you get the benefit of the doubt when renting an apartment and what youll pay for a mortgage. And it keeps some people from applying for essential jobs. Atrium Health, to the surprise of no one, responded quickly to the treasurers report and Folwells criticisms. Its troubling that health systems like Atrium Health are being attacked while we are still caring for communities that are recovering from the pandemic, reads a statement issued last week. The reality is the $719 million in provider relief funds we have received covers less than half of the adverse $1.55 billion financial impact we have incurred as a result of the pandemic. Long campaign The report about pandemic relief funds follows other high-profile campaigns Folwell has waged since being elected treasurer in 2016. Those include an ongoing fight with nonprofit hospital systems over transparency in the price of health care services and pushing the Legislature to lift requirements for health-care providers to obtain certificates of need from the state before building new facilities or expanding service options. An appendectomy can cost between $4,000 and $40,000 depending on where you go and what insurance card you pull out of your wallet, Folwell said. Its the only place I know where people make purchasing decisions without knowing up front what it costs. Its crazy. Requiring certificates of need, Folwell said, restricts competition and keeps prices artificially high. In his lunchtime talks, interviews and impromptu discussions, Folwell will often point to personal experience. One example he cites came after a motorcycle crash hes a longtime aficionado of all things on two wheels in West Virginia in which he suffered a broken arm. I told them I was uninsured, and they got me out of there in five hours, he said. If I had pulled my state employees health care card I just knew Id have been there for three days. As for his hometown and Atrium Healths role in operating the former Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and Atrium executives, Folwell has leveled some of his sharpest rhetorical elbows. This is the second or third (hospital system) that (Atrium CEO) Gene Woods tried to marry in the last four years, Folwell said. And why did he have so much interest in Baptist Hospital or UNC Health Care? Because it has a med school attached to it. And that med school, the Wake Forest University School of Medicine, is poised to have that gleaming second campus in uptown Charlotte. Folwell has also taken aim at Woods compensation bump. Atrium Health has noted correctly that none of the pandemic relief money was spent on executive salaries; federal law barred spending rescue funds on salaries exceeding $197,000. The fact is that there (are) a few executives who made the decision to sell Winston-Salem out to the cartel, Folwell said. Atrium, in its statement, chose not to clap back in the same caustic manner. We are very fortunate that our organizations leaders and independent governing board have insisted on financial stability and strength to weather storms like the pandemic, Atrium Health said in a statement. This financial stability has allowed us to invest in research, new technologies and state-of-the-art facilities including a new school of medicine campus to provide the highest quality of care at the lowest possible cost for the communities we are privileged to serve. Still, Folwell remains unapologetic about the fights hes picked or the manner in which hes waging them. You have to shock people into listening to whats going on, he said. Winston-Salem police arrested four men and a woman Saturday after officers saw and chased a vehicle that had been stolen during a carjacking last week, authorities said. Investigators have connected the suspects to five robberies that happened in the city since June 23, police said. One of those incidents was the armed robbery June 26 of a Sheetz convenience store in the 2900 block of Fairlawn Drive. On Saturday, officers attempted to initiate a traffic stop at 1:56 p.m. on the suspects vehicle, but its driver refused to stop, Winston-Salem police said. Officers pursued the vehicle, but their chase ended on U.S. 421 South. A short time later, the suspects in the vehicle committed a larceny at a business in Kernersville, police said. As the suspects returned to Winston-Salem, officers saw the vehicle on Old Greensboro Road and attempted to stop it. The driver again refused to stop, which resulted in a brief chase by the officers, police said. The vehicle stopped in the area of East Fifth and East Fourth streets, police said. The vehicles occupants ran from the scene, but police arrested them. Jose Luis Beltran-Aguilera, 20, is charged with robbery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of fleeing to elude arrest, resisting a law enforcement officer, possession of marijuana, careless and reckless driving and other offenses, police said. Investigators also have linked Beltran-Aguilera to a carjacking that happened June 26 in downtown Winston-Salem, police said. A man brandishing a knife forced a woman out of her car in the parking deck at 455 N. Church St., police said, taking the womans car but not injuring her. Beltran-Aguilera is charged with robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection with the case. The woman told police that she had walked to her car around 3:11 p.m., got inside and was closing the door when a man approached and positioned himself in a way that prevented her from closing the door. The man pulled out a knife and told the woman to get out of her car. She complied, and the man got inside and drove off, police said. Regarding Saturdays incident, Darrion Malik Cuthbertson, 29, is charged with common law robbery, felony larceny, two counts of possession of a stolen vehicle and other offenses, police said. Rayquain Lugene Danzy, 20, is charged with common law robbery and felony larceny, police said. Ayana Briasia Smith-Daniels, 20, is charged with common law robbery and felony larceny, police said. Kevin Dwight Miller, 48, is charged with resisting a law enforcement officer, police said. Beltran-Aguilera, Miller, Cuthberson, Danzy and Smith-Daniels were taken to the Forsyth County Jail with various bonds set for them, police said. The Supreme Court has long been defined by its chief justice, hence the Warren Court, the Rehnquist Court, as well as other notable examples throughout history. But the current Supreme Court no longer bears the nom de plume Roberts Court, named for Chief Justice John Roberts. With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, along with rulings on guns and voting rights, the current court is dominated by justices who hold to an originalist or strict constructionist doctrine and have thus flagrantly become an extension of the Republican Party agenda. What was known as the Roberts Court effectively came to an abrupt end with the confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Though Roberts embraces a conservative agenda, he sought to achieve conservative goals within the guardrails of the institution. But the other five conservatives on the court show no interest in such restraints, thereby marginalizing the chief justice. The Supreme Court, whether liberal or conservative, has always been a political body. It was designed that way per the Constitution. But one cannot divorce the perceptions of the current court as a political body from the political manner in which the 6-3 conservative majority was achieved. From the failure to grant Merrick Garland a hearing in the last year of the Obama administration to fast-tracking Justice Barretts confirmation days before the 2020 election, the current court is composed with five of its six conservative justices put forth by presidents who were elected to office without enjoying majority support from the American people. The courts conservative application of originalism, which is a judicial interpretation of the Constitution that aims to follow how words were understood or intended at the time it was written or strict constructionism a form of judicial interpretation that offers the Constitution should be applied as it was written are incongruent with the realities of the 21st century. It is, in my view, an intellectual farce that attempts to conceal its philosophical opposition to a changing America. The doctrines of originalism and strict constructionism, to which the six conservative justices adhere to varying degrees, are at odds with a nation committed to the civic virtue of liberty and equality. Can America remain dynamic when jurisprudence at the highest level seems conveniently wedded to a stilted 18th century interpretation? Over the decades, a portion of the public discourse has bemoaned so-called legislating from the bench, a term that defines a type of judicial activism whereby the judge exceeds his or her prescribed authority by making decisions that theoretically are the domain of the legislative branch. Though portrayed as a commitment to the notion of checks and balances and the separation of powers, legislating from the bench is often a cheap parlor trick to simply offer ones disagreement with a particular judicial ruling. Consider when the Roberts Court gutted Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act in Shelby County v. Holder. Chief Justice Roberts, in his majority opinion, did not cite the 14th or 15th Amendments to the Constitution as the rationale, but rather offered a sociological explanation that times had changed. Justice Antonin Scalias majority opinion in Heller v. DC, which effectively made the Second Amendment about individual gun rights, did not offer an originalist perspective, but literally offered Scalias own rewording of the original text to reach his conclusion. How is this not legislating from the bench, if that is indeed a thing? Moreover, isnt originalism an unrealistic orthodoxy that interprets the Constitution by surmising the intent of an 18th century gentry class that applied full citizenship to roughly 16% of the population? Justice Alito offered in the majority opinion that overturned Roe v. Wade, The inescapable conclusion is that a right to abortion is not deeply rooted in the nations history and traditions. Because of the dynamic nature of the American narrative, nothing is deeply rooted until it is. Alitos supposition suggests that only the worldview of the framers of the Constitution is deeply held in American history only the rights of the original vaunted 16% would be deeply rooted in the nations history and traditions. In marginalizing the chief justice, the courts most recent term demonstrates there are five justices less concerned about the Constitution and institutional norms than in supporting a particular political doctrine to the adoration of the Republican Party. Bahrains cooperation with leading organisations in the information and communication technology (ICT) field, including Microsoft, has played a pivotal role in achieving national goals and backing digital transformation, said an expert. The renewal of the strategic partnership with Microsoft would contribute to facilitating the countrys transition to the digital era, and would enhance efforts to maintain the continuity of providing services with the same efficiency and quality while improving economic growth and the lives of citizens and residents in Bahrain, said Mohammed Ali Al Qaed, Chief Executive of Bahrains Information and eGovernment Authority (iGA). Bahrain is a pioneer in digital transformation in the Middle East and North Africa region. The kingdom is always an early adopter of advanced technology and cloud computing services. This supported governments work and enhanced its quality and outputs, enabling it to leverage the many advantages provided by technology, and provided a wide scope to support the kingdoms efforts at digital transformation and business development in various fields, he told a workshop organised by iGA and Microsoft on the latest innovations with the participation of Chief Information Officers and managers representing various government agencies in Bahrain. New capabilities This event is an important opportunity to showcase the new capabilities that will be achieved through this partnership, he said. The workshop is in line with the recent renewal of the strategic partnership between the government of Bahrain, represented by iGA, and Microsoft to support national efforts and accelerate the pace of digital transformation in the kingdom. During the event, Al Qaed shared the details of the partnership between Bahrain government and Microsoft. These will contribute, through the easy and smooth use of technology to improving services through the use of information technology, as well as providing a package of training programme, he said. Workshops for employees of government agencies will also help to refine and develop national competencies working in the technology sector in the government. Unprecedented potential Sheikh Saif bin Hilal Al Hosani, General Manager of Microsoft Bahrain and Oman, said: Microsoft has always been devoted, in the context of its well-established relationship with the government of Bahrain, to fulfil its commitments in promoting the kingdoms use of advanced technologies and stimulating the launch of innovative initiatives and projects. The step to renew the partnership comes in line with these endeavours, as we realise that advanced technologies such as cloud computing, Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things provide unprecedented potential and open new horizons for economic growth and the provision of advanced services. We look forward to fulfilling our duty in this partnership to support the government to take advantage of these opportunities. During the workshop, iGA reviewed the details of the contract with Microsoft, where it clarified the procurement mechanism and best practices that ensure the full benefit of the benefits that the contract brings to government agencies. End Point Manager In addition to highlighting its team's efforts and support to ensure business continuity and maximum benefit from the services provided, the authority also reviewed its experience with the End Point Manager (Intune) cloud computing service, which is presents the best leading practices in managing users' devices from computers and smartphones to work the necessary updates and improvements to operating systems and applications. This, in turn, contributes to raising the level of protection and security, saving entities time and effort. Moreover, Microsoft reviewed its leading cloud services such as Azure, Azure Marketplace and Power Platform, which would support the government of Bahrain in providing its citizens with services, modernising infrastructure, and enhancing cloud computing security and compliance standards. The company also made recommendations on best measures and practices to improve the digital experience and reinvent the way services are delivered to citizens and residents. 80,000 licences for employees The agreement includes more than 80,000 licences for employees of government agencies, in addition to providing second and third level technical support throughout the day and many workshops. The agreement also includes activating cloud computing services within the Microsoft 365 software package, as well as creating a platform for each party that includes virtual applications and programs that facilitate the flow of operations and raise the level of data security.-- TradeArabia News Service Dana Davenport poses products for a TikTok she hopes will go viral body bars, lotion bottles and fragrant candles, all stacked and centered. Then she adds a trendy song. Tosses in a few hashtags, too. Sometimes her co-workers make videos of themselves mixing soap or crumbling bath bombs. Other times, theyll lip-sync songs and perform funny bits, aiming to keep viewers from scrolling past. Davenport crafts her content for Aria Rose Bath Co., a skin care shop in south Lincoln with pastel-pink walls and floor-to-ceiling greenery. In addition to packaging products and assisting customers, shes responsible for filming videos and taking photos thatll harmonize with social media algorithms. An Instagram post might seem trivial, but Davenport knows it can make or break a business. Between herself, the shops owner, Dee Bronson, and two other employees, the business dedicates 40 hours to its social media each week. Aria Rose tries to post at least a couple times a day, whether thats a peppy video or a pretty snapshot, and they always make sure to interact with their followers comments and messages. If they didnt, nobody would know who they were. In our age, if you are not on top of social media, it is very, very hard to be known, Bronson said. We have customers come in all the time, and they're like, Oh, I follow you on Instagram, or, We saw your stories. Plus, Bronson and Davenport said, their followers expect more output than they did even a few years ago. As internet users are spending more time on social media, the demand for content has skyrocketed. According to the Pew Research Center, roughly half of 18- to 29-year-olds say theyre online almost constantly. One-third of adults of all ages say the same thing. For business owners such as Bronson, that means its time to fire up the ring lights and get filming. Or in some cases, get dancing. Its easier to build a loyal fan base and become known when things spread so quickly, Bronson said. If youre lucky, you may just become an overnight sensation. To create a successful video, Davenport follows a two-part recipe: pepper in people and add a dash of bright colors. Bonus points if you can score a few laughs from viewers. You need to constantly switch up what youre doing, Bronson said. Its something you always need to keep up with and check up on. A little way from Aria Rose Bath Co., Morgan Dondlinger is prepping her set. Her videos feature the sights and sweetness of (402) Creamery. Photos of waffle cones with cinnamon snickerdoodle and almond brittle scoops flood the businesss Instagram grid. It stops just short of letting followers experience the smells in the room. Dondlinger, a recent Nebraska Wesleyan University grad, was hired by (402) Creamery owner Tyler Mannix to do marketing full-time. She spends her days taking photos of smiling employees and filming spoons stirring ice cream toppings. Mannix said that before Dondlinger was hired, he would post haphazardly. It was more of a when he remembered thing than a priority, but he wanted someone who could spend the time carefully crafting shots and figuring out what would drive business. Mannix said hes noticed a difference in traffic. She does a good job with it, he said. She can dedicate a lot more time to pictures or better captions or thought-provoking comments. (402) Creamerys customer base is pretty social-savvy already, so Mannix knew he needed to keep up. Dondlinger uses high-resolution cameras, lights and backdrops to shoot her sugary subjects. Dondlinger said social media has taken the reliability of word-of-mouth marketing and brought it to new heights. While non-media marketing moves at turtle speed, online interactions gain traction quickly. Businesses can build a customer base almost instantaneously. I think it's important to know how to create content that's always new and fresh and exciting something that catches people's attention and makes them stop scrolling, Dondlinger said. But for small businesses that are one-man shows, that means the owner wears an extra hat on top of everything else. Paige Newby, owner of Moon & Back Jewels, said the majority of her free time is spent creating media content for her business. Newby crafts specialty jewelry, mostly out of clay. To make her products, she rolls clay slabs on her table, swirling colors together before cutting out shapes and baking them. Her phone catches the entire scene. People love seeing the process, she said. For Newby, Instagram is her most profitable platform. Its hard for her to say exactly why, but TikTok reaches people from across the globe with ease, while Instagram seems better for businesses that want to latch onto a specific community. Facebook is dwindling, but its presence is still significant. Even though juggling social media posts and jewelry-making can be overwhelming, Newby said its no longer an option for small businesses, especially new small businesses, to stay silent on social platforms. I have several friends who had started out kind of newer, and then because a TikTok went viral, or because an Instagram Reel went viral, they skyrocketed, she said. Followers don't always equate to business sales, but they have grown a lot more. Less-media conscious business owners are having to hire younger marketers to do that kind of work. Newby, 27, said young social media managers are able to figure things out by trial and error or from them already spending a majority of their leisure time online. Newby found her social media groove by playing around with different ideas and seeing what works and what flops. With her needing to make more content than she did even a few years ago, she makes sure to take constant snapshots, giving little glimpses into her clay-crafting world. She fills packages for an Instagram post. Her hands cradle finished earrings on TikTok. With every business and everything that you do, 100% of what you put into it is what you're gonna get back, Newby said. OMAHA -- Around Lewis Klanderud, nobody stayed a stranger for long. It didnt matter if you were training alongside him in the Philippines for post-World War II occupation duty, a fellow patron at The Nifty Bar, his longtime haunt in Benson, or a nurse in an Omaha hospital during the last week of his life. He was very kind. He would be a friend to anybody he met, said Susan Adamson, Klanderuds daughter. He died June 25 at age 97. Klanderud grew up on a farm in rural Cedar County and graduated from Wynot High School. He joined the Army in March 1945. After boot camp, he returned to Nebraska to marry his sweetheart, Lucille DePue just as the Japanese surrendered to end World War II. So Klanderud was trained as an engineer and sent to Okinawa which had been destroyed in the last major land battle of the war to help rebuild roads on the island. Adamson said he enjoyed his training in the Philippines. He met a lot of wonderful Filipino people, she said. Klanderud was discharged in late 1946, moving to Council Bluffs and later to Hartington. The couple had a son and three daughters. He passed the civil service exam in 1952 and moved to Omaha. For years he worked on a mail train that ran from Omaha to Cheyenne, Wyoming, part of a crew that picked up mail from small towns along the way and sorted it en route. He also did a lot of odd jobs, Adamson said. He was good at carpentry. He did a lot of painting. After trucks replaced mail trains in the 1960s, Klanderud worked for the post office in finance. He retired in 1984 but continued to take part in a coffee group for mail train retirees. Klanderud loved fishing. Every year he and some buddies would take a lengthy fishing trip in Canada, and then he would return and host a fish fry for extended family. He also enjoyed taking his wife and children on camping trips across the West in a pop-up trailer. He was a big family person, Adamson said. Klanderud was active in the American Legion and VFW, and was selected to the Forty and Eight Club, an honor society that was a Legion offshoot. He also participated in the Heartland Honor Flights, an effort in 2008-09 that allowed hundreds of World War II soldiers to visit Washington. Although his sight gradually faded because of macular degeneration, Adamson said he continued to fish until the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. And his mind remained sharp. Last week, in the hospital, he was talking to all the nurses, she said. He wanted to know where they were from. He was asking about their lives. Services were held June 29 at St. Paul United Methodist Church, where Klanderud was a longtime member. He was buried at Hillcrest Memorial Park next to Lucille, who died in 2006. He was also preceded in death by his sisters, Dorothy and Marguerite; his son, Tim; and infant granddaughter, Hayley Fausset. He is survived by his daughters, Keri Comfort, Susan Adamson and Judy Fausset; six grandchildren; and 13 great-grandchildren. What today is known as the University of Nebraskas East Campus has had several names through the years The State Farm, Ag Campus, Culver Farm and The Farm. What is usually forgotten is that the agriculture college was not originally located on Holdrege Street but came into being on what is todays Innovation Campus north of the main campus original four-square-block site. East Campus today is far removed from the days when it was simply The Farm, having spawned two high schools, several professional colleges and perhaps the finest television and communications facility in the Midwest, in addition to its role with the universitys School of Agriculture. The Land Grant Act of 1862 gave states federal land to establish colleges to teach ... agriculture and the mechanical arts. Thus, when the Nebraska Legislature chartered the University of Nebraska in 1869, it established a college of agriculture. In 1871, the universitys regents appointed Samuel Thompson as professor of the theory and practice of agriculture and instructed him to visit existing eastern universities to determine whether Nebraska should provide an experimental agriculture program or teach the essentials of a model farm concept. Without a clear answer to Thompsons challenge, the following year, the regents accepted two sections of saline land from the state, interestingly located in the area of todays Innovation Campus, for a model farm. $1,000 was also allocated for improvements, though some of the funding was returned, unspent. A few lectures were given but the farmland was described as not particularly desirable, and while a few hogs were actually even housed in University Halls basement, there were no regular students enrolled in agriculture. A plan was then devised to sell the two sections of land, using the funds to purchase the 320-acre Moses Culver farm three miles east of the city for $55 an acre or $17,600. The farm, which contained five acres of timber trees, 350 fruit trees, a barn and a good stone house of 10 rooms, was acquired in 1874 while few farmers in Nebraska had but little faith in book farming. The first agriculture class, with 15 students enrolled, began in the 1874-75 school year with classes in University Hall. The students, who boarded at the farm, drove back and forth in a lumber wagon, boarding the horses in a downtown livery barn for 25 cents a day. Harvey Culbertson, the only fourth-year student in 1875, became the agriculture colleges first graduate, though there was no graduation ceremony. Culbertson later became an acting professor in the college at a salary of $400 and superintendent of the farm at $600, where he oversaw moving the piggery from Holdrege Street to west of the orchard. While agriculture was still not considered a learned profession, a majority of Nebraskans seriously questioned the model farm concept and the State Journal even doubted the utility of an agriculture college. The agriculture college became a part of the Industrial College in 1877, and finally again becoming an independent college in 1884. In 1883, only three graduates completed the course, and in 1885, a plan to actually separate the College of Agriculture from the University of Nebraska failed. In 1887, the federal Hatch Act, partially written by University of Nebraska Professor Charles Bessey, passed and gave the federal government the power to allocate money as well as land to universities. Bessey immediately solicited and received funds to establish an experimental station at the university. In 1898, Bessey also proposed moving the entire university to the University Farm. In the mid-1890s, partially because many of those who might be interested in registering in the agriculture college had not graduated from high school, a new and separate school completing grades 9 through 12 was established by the regents. The School of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts opened with 15 students, with the published goal of putting brains into farming. Initially, classrooms were on the downtown campus. But with the completion of the Dairy Building and Agriculture Hall on the southwest corner of the concourse, the school moved entirely to The Farm. Women were also invited to enroll in the 1906-07 school year as classes in home economics were added. Chancellor Burnett wrote in 1908 that about 20% of all the students in the university are now in the School of Agriculture. The peak enrollment in the high school came in 1913-14 with 513 students, but as 12-year high schools became universal across the state and the Agriculture High School developed on the Curtis campus, the universitys Lincoln farm campus high school closed in 1929. Citing the cost of maintaining two Lincoln campus locations and the high cost of acquiring land in downtown Lincoln for expansion of the original campus, and despite the advantage of removing students from downtown distractions, the 1911 proposal to consolidate both locations to Holdrege Street was again broached. Though passed in the state Senate, it failed in the House, and ultimately failed in a 1914 statewide election, with the two-campus university surviving. In 1923, the original Culver house on the agriculture campus was razed. The name of the farm location was officially changed to East Campus in 1964. Other university functions, including the Colleges of Dentistry and Law, as well as the 1969, $3.4 million Terry Carpenter Telecommunications Building and Barkley Speech-Language and Hearing Center were completed. Most experimental farm functions moved to land east of Havelock and 8,000 acres of land acquired from the former Mead Ordnance Plant, resulted in the Farm Campus identity completely changing. Today, even the nickel ice cream cone from the Holdrege Street Dairy Building is but a memory, though an expanded Dairy Store lives on. A Nebraska man was killed and another was injured in a single-vehicle crash in Mills County, Iowa. At some point late Friday night or early Saturday morning, a 2002 BMW 325 was traveling east on 221st Street west of 210th Street near Pacific Junction, Iowa, according to a report from the Iowa State Patrol. The driver, 28-year-old Dane Carlson of Plattsmouth, failed to navigate a curve and drove off the road, according to the patrol. The vehicle rolled multiple times before coming to rest in a ditch. A passerby saw the vehicle in the ditch shortly after 6 a.m. Saturday and called police. Carlson was declared dead at the scene, according to the patrol. Passenger Steven Elliot, 33, also of Plattsmouth, was taken to CHI Creighton University Medical Center-Bergan Mercy in Omaha via LifeNet medical helicopter. His condition is unknown. Both men were wearing seat belts, according to the patrol. Pacific Junction is located 6 miles east of Plattsmouth. A second Racine man faces an attempted homicide charge for allegedly shooting a 16-year-old on March 20 on Racine's north side in what authorities are calling "an attempted execution" that was captured on video. The Racine Police Department believes the shooting is a case of mistaken identity, with the shooters believing the teenager was a Northside For Life gang member even though he is not actually affiliated with any gang. Police also have asserted that the March 20 shooting was intended to be in retribution for the March 13 killing of 14-year-old Eugene Henderson. According to court documents, both of the men charged in the March 20 shooting were wearing clothing in tribute to Henderson when they were arrested and police asserted that those charged believe the NFL gang was responsible for Henderson's death. Ezra Miller Accused of Violent Behavior , by 2 More Women. 'The Guardian' reports one woman claims to have been choked by Miller outside of a bar in Iceland in 2020. I think, Its just fun and games but then it wasnt. All of a sudden, [theyre] on top of me, choking me, still screaming June 27-July 1 This list is not comprehensive. Municipalities are listed as they appear on the criminal complaint. Suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. To see mugshots of the accused, visit journaltimes.com/gallery. Additional information about the complaints can be found at: journaltimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts. Allen K. Agnew, 1600 block of Austin Avenue, Racine, carrying a concealed weapon, possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18. Samone D. Atterberry, 1000 block of College Avenue, Racine, substantial battery (use of a dangerous weapon), criminal damage to property (use of a dangerous weapon), misdemeanor bail jumping. John P. Ballard, 700 block of Monroe Avenue, Racine, sex offender (fail/update information), misdemeanor bail jumping. Dejon Pierre Blade, Oshkosh, felony bail jumping, operate motor vehicle while revoked. Donteeno K. Burris, 800 block of 8th Street, Racine, misdemeanor bail jumping. Keene W. Charles, Brooklyn, New York, felony personal ID theft (financial gain), misdemeanor theft (false representation less than $2,500), obstructing an officer. James D. Curtis, Milwaukee, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, misdemeanor bail jumping. Vincent E. Daniels, Waukesha, threat to a law enforcement officer, obstructing an officer, disorderly conduct. Maurice G. Davis Jr., 2200 block of Mead Street, Mount Pleasant, possession of a firearm by a felon, attempting to flee or elude an officer, obstructing an officer. Joe D. Espinoza Jr., 2400 block of Durand Avenue, Racine, negligent handling of a weapon, resisting an officer, carrying a concealed weapon, misdemeanor bail jumping. Jessie L. Ford, Milwaukee, operating a motor vehicle while under the influence (1st offense, with a minor child in the vehicle). Kelly M. Green, 29000 block of Washington Avenue, Rochester, misdemeanor battery (domestic abuse assessments), disorderly conduct (domestic abuse assessments). Richard Dean Hittman Jr., 1500 block of 11th Avenue, Union Grove, misdemeanor bail jumping. Melissa A. Holewinski, 3100 block of 92nd Street, Sturtevant, delivery of methamphetamine (possession with intent to deliver/distribute a controlled substance on or near a school), maintaining a drug trafficking place, misdemeanor bail jumping. Nicole M. Hurt, 2200 block of 65th Street, Kenosha, fraudulent use of a credit card. Casimir E. Kielbasa, 1500 block of Willow Road, Sturtevant, possession of child pornography. Jonathan C. Knutson, 9200 block of Hulda Drive, Sturtevant, operating a motor vehicle while under the influence (5th or 6th offense, general alcohol concentration). Efrain (aka Balderes Perez) Valverde Isabel, 1600 block of East Street, Racine, strangulation and suffocation (domestic abuse assessments), felony bail jumping (domestic abuse assessments), misdemeanor battery (domestic abuse assessments). Joseph M. Lakvold, 300 block of North Memorial Drive, Racine, possession of narcotic drugs, possession of THC, felony bail jumping. Christopher N. Lindeke, 800 block of College Avenue, Racine, 1st degree sexual assault of a child under age 12. Deshon L. Martin, 1500 block of Maple Street, Racine, possession with intent to deliver narcotics, possession with intent to deliver/distribute/manufacture THC (less than or equal to 200 grams). Christian E. Matavka, 2900 block of Four Mile Road, Racine, misdemeanor battery (domestic abuse assessments), criminal damage to property (domestic abuse assessments, use of a dangerous weapon), disorderly conduct (domestic abuse assessments, use of a dangerous weapon). Brian K. Matheson, 600 block of Foxtree Circle, Burlington, second degree sexual assault (hate crime), disorderly conduct. Ted D. McGruder, 100 block of Seventh Street, Racine, resisting an officer, disorderly conduct (domestic abuse assessments), third degree sexual assault (domestic abuse assessments). Zisirtike Z. McMillian, Sun City, Arizona, possession of a firearm by a felon, carrying a concealed weapon. Zhariana A. McNeal, 6200 block of 53rd Street, Kenosha, possession with intent to deliver/distribute/manufacture THC (less than or equal to 200 grams), possession with intent to deliver cocaine (between 1-5 grams), possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia. Joseph D. Melnik, 800 block of Blaine Avenue, Racine, burglary of a building or dwelling, misdemeanor theft. Michael A. Mosley, 1300 block of Rapids Drive, Racine, repeated sexual assault of a child, incest, sexual exploitation of a child, causing a child under 13 to view/listen to sexual activity. Zachary J. Nelson, 2500 block of Green Street, Racine, misdemeanor battery (domestic abuse assessments), felony bail jumping, disorderly conduct (domestic abuse assessments). Chaunte D. Ott, 3600 block of Spring Street, Racine, disorderly conduct. Devvin D. Person, 1600 block of Superior Street, Racine, possession of THC, felony bail jumping. Jerome L. Phillips, 1200 block of Villa Street, Racine, possession with intent to deliver/distribute/manufacture THC (less than or equal to 200 grams). Rommel S. Pinner, 2800 block of Durand Avenue, Racine, resisting an officer, obstructing an officer. Davon L. Price, 2300 block of 21st Street, Racine, possession of THC. Travis (aka Daryl Scott) A. Rasmussen, 6800 block of 14th Avenue, Kenosha, manufacture/deliver cocaine (less than or equal to 1 gram), maintaining a drug trafficking place, deliver fentanyl (less than or equal to 10 grams), manufacture/deliver cocaine (between 1-5 grams), deliver designer drugs (less than or equal to 3 grams). Zachary X. Reynolds, 600 block of DeKoven Avenue, Racine, third degree sexual assault, underage sexual activity (sexual intercourse with a child age 15 or older, actor under age 19). John H. Richmond Jr., 3700 block of 10th Avenue, Racine, burglary of a building or dwelling, misdemeanor battery, disorderly conduct. Baby-Joe A. Rodriguez, 3800 block of Cheyenne Court, Racine, possession with intent to deliver narcotics, possession with intent to deliver/distribute/manufacture THC (less than or equal to 200 grams), carrying a concealed weapon, possession of drug paraphernalia. Michael Saldana, 6900 block of 27th Avenue, Kenosha, operating while intoxicated causing injury, possession of a controlled substance, operate motor vehicle while revoked. Jennifer L. Schmitt, 1700 block of Blaine Avenue, Racine, lewd and lascivious behavior, disorderly conduct. Lamine K. Haynes Seck, 1500 block of Carlisle Avenue, Racine, operate motor vehicle while revoked, misdemeanor bail jumping. Nyje R. Siller, 1400 block of Douglas Avenue, Racine, possession with intent to deliver narcotics, operating a motor vehicle without owners consent, possession with intent to deliver/distribute/manufacture THC (less than or equal to 200 grams), possession of drug paraphernalia. Brian (aka George Lawrence) V. Smith, 200 block of Ohio Street, Racine, possession of narcotic drugs. Dajession X. Steel, 5000 block of 26th Avenue, Kenosha, second degree recklessly endangering safety, obstructing an officer, criminal damage to property, possession of THC, felony bail jumping. John E. VanHara, 700 block of Lake Avenue, Racine, escape, obstructing an officer, violation of nonsecure custody order. Araceli Vazquez, Greenfield, fraud against financial institution (between $500-$10,000). Edwin Ali Vazquez, 1400 block of Carlisle Avenue, Racine, possession of THC. Robert A. Velazquez, Hammond, Indiana, possession with intent to deliver/distribute/manufacture THC (less than or equal to 200 grams), carrying a concealed weapon, possession of drug paraphernalia. Damonte D. Walker, Milwaukee, possession of THC, possession of drug paraphernalia, felony bail jumping. Joseph D. Walker, 100 block of Ervin Place, Racine, possession of a firearm by a felon (firearm mandatory minimum enhancer), possession of THC, carrying a concealed weapon. Ian Raymond Wallin, Merrill, Wisconsin, operate motor vehicle while revoked (4th+), misdemeanor bail jumping. John M. Ziolkowski, 5000 block of Indian Hills Drive, Mount Pleasant, battery to emergency medical care providers, disorderly conduct. David F. Zuchowski, 3200 block of Indian Trail, Racine, pointing a firearm at another (domestic abuse assessments), disorderly conduct (domestic abuse assessments, use of a dangerous weapon). Emmet J. Zywiec, Wonder Lake, Illinois, false imprisonment (domestic abuse assessments), misdemeanor battery (domestic abuse assessments), criminal damage to property (domestic abuse assessments), disorderly conduct (domestic abuse assessments). CORRECTION: This story initially misstated the home municipality of the suspect. It is now correct. MOUNT PLEASANT A Mount Pleasant man allegedly had multiple images of child pornography, some of which had children as young as 3-5. Casimir E. Kielbasa, 33, of the 1500 block of Willow Road, was charged with 10 felony counts of possession of child pornography. According to a criminal complaint: On June 21, 2021, an investigator with the Mount Pleasant Police Department executed a search warrant on a residence in the 1500 block of Willow Road for a sexual assault alleged to have been committed by Kielbasa. Multiple electronics were seized as evidence including two HP laptops and an iPhone 6S Plus belonging to Kielbasa. On May 3, an investigator was advised the forensic analysis of Kielbasa's electronics was complete. On one device was a video of a known child victim who was naked. On another device were Google searches for "photos of women rape victims" and "pictures of murder victims." It also showed Kielbasa visiting human trafficking sites as well as multiple pictures of child pornography, some of which contained children between the ages of 3-5. Kielbasa was given a $50,000 cash bond in Racine County Circuit Court on Friday. A preliminary hearing is on July 6 at the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave., online court records show. MUSKEGO When the Emperor Was Divine is a 2002 historical novel by Julie Otsuka about a Japanese-American family from California that was incarcerated at a Utah internment camp during World War II. Otsukas real-life familial ancestors were included with about 127,000 U.S. residents two-thirds of whom were United States citizens sent to camps established during the war due to unfounded fears about a West Coast Japanese spy network. Otsuka wrote the book as a way to better understand her family history. In my own family, there was a lot of silence, so I really felt like there was so much that was unspoken, and I wanted to know what the real story was, Otsuka said. She did not expect the book to be widely read, much less studied in classrooms. I had no idea that it would eventually be taught in schools, Otsuka said in an interview last week with a reporter. Its all been very surprising to me, the life that this book has had. Most recently, Emperor was considered for an advanced 10th-grade class at Muskego High School approximately one-fourth of the schools students are Racine County residents but was not approved by the school board. In the past 20 years, Otsuka has traveled the country and spoken to students and teachers who read the book. She has heard from students who had grandparents incarcerated at camps, pupils who learned about internment camps via her book, and students who had never read a book featuring characters who looked like themselves. The novels themes are still relevant, and Otsuka said teachers told her it has often resulted in excellent conversations. The book has led to a lot of productive discussions about prejudice and intergenerational trauma, reparations, as well as questions of literary style, Otsuka said. Otsuka believes the book remains timely. Given the level of hatred that so many Asian Americans are experiencing now in this current moment, I think its really more important than ever that students learn about our countrys racist past and that the legacy of Japanese American incarceration is not forgotten, she said. According to a national survey by AAPI Data released in March, one in six Asian American adults reported experiencing a hate crime in 2021, up from one in eight in 2020. That rise has been partially blamed on anti-Asian sentiments connected to the COVID-19 virus originating in China, despite the absurdity of blaming someone of Asian descent in the U.S. for having anything to do with the still unconfirmed origins of the virus that has been linked to more than six million worldwide deaths. The nonprofit organization Stop AAPI Hate recorded 6,273 hate incidents against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in 2021, an average of 523 incidents per month. That is up from March 19 to Dec. 31, 2020, when 4,632 hate incidents occurred, an average of 493 per month. Otsuka lives in New York City and has not ridden the subway in a year out of an abundance of caution. The city has seen numerous incidents of violent attacks against Asian Americans since the pandemic began. These include the death of Michelle Go, who was pushed in front of a train in January, and an 89-year-old woman who was set on fire in July 2020. Many of us are fearful every time we step out onto the street, Otsuka said. Indeed, a May Pew Research Center survey reported that 21% of Asian Americans say they worry daily or almost daily that they might be threatened or attacked because of their race or ethnicity, 51% say they worry sometimes and 18% say they worry rarely. Among people who worry rarely or more often, 36% say they have altered their daily schedule or routine in the past 12 months due to worries that they might be threatened or attacked. Otsuka said the idea that balance is needed when discussing Japanese American incarceration during World War II plays a role in making Asian Americans feel unwelcome. Its this kind of thinking, that Japanese Americans or Asian Americans are somehow other, that is also responsible for Asian Americans, in this moment, feeling very uncomfortable and targeted, Otsuka said. The Burlington Area School District is being sued by an area woman for closing a meeting that had become unruly and restarted the meeting without members of the public present. Muskego-Norway is facing a community petition after its school board didnt approve a book about the World War II-era internment of Japanese people in the U.S. for an English class for unclear reasons. In February, Racine Unified was one of an untold number of school boards nationwide facing a bizarre threat from a community member who wanted to file claims against the school boards surety bonds, even though that was a legal impossibility. Those are three local examples of many that are parts of a growing phenomenon led by adults from across the political spectrum who feel they are being shut out of decision-making about whats going on inside their communitys schools. While these situations are unavoidable for those who attend and watch school board meetings, and unavoidable for the public officials whose email addresses and phone numbers are public, its almost impossible to tell how much of a difference the efforts are making in increasing transparency, protecting young people from harm or even influencing education in classrooms. Area issues More than 200 Muskego community members have signed a petition opposing a school board decision not to approve a novel about a Japanese American familys experience in a World War II internment camp. We earnestly support the teaching of this book in the classroom, and we believe that rejecting this book will mark a severe decline in the quality of education and curriculum discussion in this district, the petition states. On June 13, the Muskego-Norway School Board Curriculum Educational Services Committee returned the book When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka to the school districts Curriculum Planning Committee, which had recommended the book for an accelerated 10th grade English class. There is a chance the book could return to the committee, but community members believe it will not and the book based on the authors ancestors experience of being interned during World War II in the American West for nothing other than their ethnicity wont be taught at Muskego High School this upcoming school year. Board members claimed the novel, which is based on the authors family, is one-sided, diverse, oppressive and was selected from a list of potential titles that was too short. Lawrence Hapeman, a 2021 graduate from Muskego High School, wrote the petition. When Hapeman heard about the committees decision not to approve the book, he was frustrated. It felt, and continues to feel, a little bit surreal that this is happening here, Hapeman said. Its easy when it happens in other school districts to be like, Oh, thats happening in some other town. Now its here. Community members also sent a letter to the school board asking the committee to explain its reasoning for not approving Emperor. The letter also asked board members to listen to community concerns and learn from subject matter experts. Our request is simple: Reopen the conversation, the letter states. First, allow for all concerned members of this community to ask any questions they have and say their piece. Then, as a board, open yourselves up to learning from authors, scholars and institutions about Japanese American history, incarceration and culture. It is unclear if the school board will shift direction at all. The situation in the Muskego-Norway School District, which draws about one-fourth of its students from northwestern Racine County, is the latest example of area residents making their voices heard to school boards. Burlington In June, Burlington parent Adrianne Melby filed a complaint alleging that the Burlington Area School District board violated Wisconsins open meetings law in an August 2021 meeting. If it is determined that the Burlington Area School Board violated the law, the seven board members could be fined up to $300 each. During that meeting, Melby and others in a group of adults opposed to mask mandates in schools became unruly, shouting ceaselessly at the school board. In a split vote, the board decided to adjourn before regathering minutes in an undisclosed location within Burlington High School. The group of adults had searched for board members through the schools halls before being stopped by police officers. East end of the county In late February, a Racine Unified School District parent in favor of an optional mask policy threatened to file claims against RUSDs surety bonds; claims never ended up being filed as the district does not take out individual bonds on its employees or board members. Surety bonds are often carried by government bodies, including schools, as a form of liability insurance if an employee commits a crime such as embezzling money. Typically, only school districts can file the claims, but parents who read misinformation online across the country believe they can, too. The threat of claims against RUSD was one of likely dozens if not hundreds of similar threats in school districts across the U.S. this year and last year, and virtually all of them were baseless claims. Forbes described the attempts as a new sort of tactic deployed by folks on the far right fringe. Raymond In early February, Raymond School in central Racine County removed three books from its library. Two of the books, Speak and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, were removed by the district administrator following a board meeting during which a concerned parent read several passages. Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, is a novel about a 13-year-old girl who becomes mute after a sexual assault. Even without the novel being assigned to young students, the school district administrator moved to taking the book off of the shelves. Anderson recognized that raising children is hard and some parents may not want their children to read her book. But, she said, the buck stops when it comes to removing books from circulation. One of our (countrys) foundations is that we tolerate people who are different than we are, Anderson told a reporter. That means that if a book makes you uncomfortable, dont read it and tell the teacher you dont want your child to read it. Otsuka, author of When the Emperor Was Divine, shared a similar sentiment. She said her novel is not trying to make readers uncomfortable but is inviting them to experience life from someone elses perspective. Discomfort is definitely not a bad thing, Otsuka said. I dont think the purpose of education is to keep us feeling comfortable. My book is talking about fictional characters who hopefully have a very vivid presence on the page that students can relate to I dont think that thats necessarily an uncomfortable experience. I think its really an experience of empathy and compassion. Future indications In Muskego, community members said they were not aware of books previously being sent back by the school board, and they fear it could become more common. Im really afraid that this is an indication of whats to come, said Allison Hapeman, school district parent. Allison Hapeman, who is Lawrence Hapemans mother, has three children in the school district and is worried how actions like the school board rejecting Emperor could impact their education. Hapeman said everyone she has spoken to, regardless of political affiliation, is concerned with the book not being approved. This is not a liberal-conservative issue, she said. I have not heard one community member who is OK with what the board is doing. Ann Zielke, a school district parent, fears the committees action could have a chilling effect on school district employees who make book recommendations. Teachers have enough to deal with, Zielke said. They dont want to get pulled into this, so then Im concerned theyll be editing at every step of the process, and then everything that makes it to the board will be sort of a whitewashed version of what it should be. Allison Hapeman said books about historical wrongs like Japanese internment should make people feel uneasy. By limiting discussion of the issue, she feels the school board is restricting students education. Its concerning to me, because its not even about this book in particular, Hapeman said. Its that we are rejecting books because its making people uncomfortable in ways that they should feel uncomfortable Its not about indoctrination. Its not about teaching students what to think. Its about presenting them with real life things that have happened and saying, What do you think about it? To deprive our students of that kind of engaging discussion is just antithetical to public education. UAEs Memoire Jewellery made its mark on its debut appearance at the Jewels of Emirates Show, drawing a large number of visitors to a showcase of hundreds of pieces of ornaments, diamonds and gold jewellery. Visitors to the 3rd edition of the show at the Expo Centre Sharjah were captivated by Memoire's display because of their precise designs, clear geometric forms, and finest gold and diamonds. The collection included innovative sets of internationally designed necklaces, earrings, bracelets and diamond rings. Saeed Ghanem Al Suwaidi, CEO of Memoire Jewellery, said the Jewels of Emirates Show is regarded as a distinct platform aimed at enhancing the gold and jewellery industry locally and promoting UAE brands and companies. The show offers the company a significant opportunity to showcase its finest items as well as market its unique and original designs, which were well received by visitors. Timeless Memories "On its debut appearance the company launched its latest brand, Timeless Memories. The collection included a variety of the finest gold and jewellery sets of high quality and international designs," he added. Furthermore, what distinguishes Memoire's featured collection is its extensive reliance on 18K pure gold, gemstones, and diamonds manufactured in Italy, Turkey, and Hong Kong. Memoire Jewellery intends to launch an online platform as well as three branches at Sharjah Airport, Rahmania Mall, and Sharjah Cooperative Society, Al Qarain Branch, in order to reach the broadest segment of customers in the UAE.-- TradeArabia News Service YORKVILLE Racine County government is looking to spend more than $380,000 before the end of the year to create 12 positions to support people in crisis. One position would support those facing violence, while the other 11 would support those experiencing mental health crises. Improving mental health services has long been central to the platform of Racine County Executive Jonathan Delagrave since he was first elected in 2015. These proposals could be the next big step in that. The agenda for a special joint meeting of two county committees, scheduled for Wednesday, July 6, was released Friday. Violence The agenda is led by a request to allocate $79,727 for a new Violent Crime Reduction Coordinator through a new project for Voices of Black Mothers. Voices of Black Mothers United is a national nonprofit, and it is led locally by loved ones of people who died from gun violence. The group is working hand-in-hand with local governments and law enforcement to address violence in the Racine area. Mental health Racine County is also looking to up staffing in its SAIL program. According to the county, SAIL is a short-term crisis stabilization center for Racine County adult residents having a mental health crisis. SAIL operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. SAIL offers 13 beds available to community residents. While at SAIL, individuals will be closely monitored for safety and linked to resources to address their mental health crises. This service is free to residents of Racine County. The agenda for Wednesdays meeting includes creating multiple new positions: Four community service providers. One community service supervisor. Five crisis professionals. One crisis supervisor. For those 11 positions, the county is looking to allocate $304,219. Recent tragedy A Racine man, Malcolm James, died June 1, 2021, in the Racine County Jail after being arrested four days prior as he was experiencing a mental health crisis; James had called 911 after setting his own apartment on fire. James had twice been taken to Ascension All Saints Hospital because of his crisis, but was returned to the jail after each hospital visit. He stopped breathing when, after officers entered his cell because he had been hitting his head against the wall and tased him, multiple officers pressed their weight on James as other officers tried to remove Taser prongs from his back. No charges were filed for the death. What happened to the asylums? And should we bring them back? | Part 1 of series For people having mental health crises, theres often no place for them to go. Thats why they end up in jail so often more often than they end up getting actual, long-term help. The Racine County Sheriffs Office cast doubt on the medical examiners conclusion of asphyxia, writing in a release that the medical examiners conclusion was not based on physical signs but solely on a review of the video, taken from body cameras of the officers who put James into the restraint chair. Outside experts brought in by the Racine County District Attorneys Office, including one connected to a network of known pro-police witnesses, disputed the medical examiners conclusion and instead blamed the death on a possible heart attack linked to James weight and heart issues. The situation brought wider attention to how few mental health beds there are remaining in the United States, leading to many (if not most) people experiencing mental health crises who come in contact with police ending up in jail rather than receiving treatment. Policy experts who weighed in on the case have said James case highlights the U.S. need for more investment in mental health facilities, rather than incarceration facilities. Its a common fact that incarceration exacerbates mental illness, Elizabeth Sinclair Hancq, director of research with the Virginia-based Treatment Advocacy Center, told The Journal Times last year. As we approach July 4th, the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade. A legal, political, and cultural thunderbolt has rocked our society. In elation or fury, Americans are divided into two seemingly irreconcilable universes. The divide may deepen. Heated debates and social unrest dominate, leading to our nations sacred founding day. The Fourth of July celebrates shared values of freedom and equality, unity and togetherness as Americans. It is also an occasion to reflect upon how we have become who we are throughout nearly 250 years in the land of the free and the home of the brave. Individuals, families, and communities have meaningful reasons to gather together and celebrate during the Fourth of July week. However, given cultural and social divisions, the question is what to celebrate as a nation this Independence Day. In 1973, Roe v. Wade was a major American experiment that determined how life is defined. Known as 410 U.S. 113, the Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution protects pregnant womens liberty to choose whether to end pregnancies, energizing the pro-choice side. Heated debates and intensified confrontations followed. With the June 24 overturning of Roe, the pro-life side was triumphant. Across 50 years, debates contested limits to abortion rights, who decides legality, and how religion and politics should play roles. Since 2010, the scales have tipped toward pro-life legal success, resulting in the overturning of Roe this summer. Post-Roe, two opposing forces in the American Experiment continue to collide. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell praised the decision that millions of Americans have spent half a century praying, marching and working toward todays historic victories for the rule of law and for innocent life. While conservatives cheered the decision, President Biden called it a realization of an extreme ideology and a tragic error by the Supreme Court. For liberals and many women, Friday, June 24, 2022, was catastrophic, signaling a loss of an enshrined constitutional right. Women now have fewer rights to their bodies, pedaling backward in time. As the two opposing forces engage, there seems little hope for negotiation. According to the University of Chicago, in 1977 38% of U.S. adults approved of abortion rights under any circumstances if women want it, increasing to 51% by 2018. Pew Forum asks about all or most cases, raising support for abortion rights to about 60% among U.S. adults, unchanged since 1995. Many Americans support some restrictions. Only 37% approve a ban in all or most cases. In the American Experiment, democracy can be messy as it has to be tested and contested politically, thus often ineffective in channeling public will toward governance. The 2010 tidal wave Tea Party election placed Republicans in perpetual control of over two dozen state governments. The appointment of three Supreme Court justices by Donald Trump, and, approved by Congress, sealed the fate of Roe, more than religion or culture wars alone. Shared values during and after World War II gave way to a culture deeply divided over race, voting rights, guns, abortion, immigration, sexual identity, and more. The American Experiment began with the Declaration of Independence. While we hold these truths to be self-evident, there have always been more than just one truth. Democratic institutions and processes allow competing truths to make history and shape culture. There have been the Patriots and the Loyalists in the American Revolution, the Civil War Unionists and Confederates, abolitionists and slavery institutions, civil rights activists and oppressive forces in the 1960s, womens equal rights advocates and patriarchal defenders in the 1970s, and, since 1973, the struggle over abortion. In the fray, we have a chance to contest our core values. As we approach July 4th, our nation is again at a crossroads. It is worth celebrating that we are still one nation, bonded together around the belief in freedom and democracy, even when divisions tear at our patch-quilt, straining those core ideals. 1. Yes. After what happened in Uvalde, its important to have that level of security. 2. Yes. The district should start a program to recruit and train qualified officers for the job. 3. No. With 50 KISD campuses, the additional cost to taxpayers would be unacceptable. 4. No. It would be too hard to achieve. Just keep the current practice of rotating officers. 5. Unsure. Its hard to say without knowing how such a program would be instituted.. Vote View Results KEARNEY Janet Stoeger Wilke refers to Calvin T. Ryan Library as neutral territory. Unlike some buildings on the University of Nebraska at Kearney campus, the faculty and staff who work there arent focused on a specific academic area. They support everybody. Were not just advocating for the chemistry student or the English student or the business student, she said. Were advocating for all of them by helping them get the information they need. Its the same way with faculty. Were working to provide access to the resources they need. For someone who values higher education and lifelong learning, it was the perfect place to spend the final 34 years of her career. I really love this place, said Wilke, who retired Thursday after 15 years as library dean. Its brought so many opportunities to me and my family. ROAD TO KEARNEY A Nebraska native, Wilke grew up on a small farm along the Middle Loup River near Rockville in Sherman County. She attended a one-room schoolhouse through sixth grade before graduating from Centura Public Schools. Her parents didnt have a lot of money, but Wilke and her three siblings were determined to attend college. She watched her mother struggle when their father got sick when she was in the eighth grade and realized she needed to gain the skills necessary to take care of herself and her future family. I did not want to end up like that, Wilke said. Initially undecided about her long-term plans, Wilke slowly gravitated toward libraries and the broad range of topics she could explore. I kind of latched onto that, she said. That was really interesting to me. Wilke earned a bachelors degree in sociology and masters degree in education from Chadron State College and worked as a school media specialist in Superior for one semester, which was long enough to learn shed probably prefer postsecondary education over K-12. After marrying her husband Colin, a Columbus native, Wilke worked in the library at Doane College in Crete for five years. While her husband continued working in Crete, she moved eight hours away to pursue a masters degree in library and information science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Wilke graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1985 and spent the following three years at Wichita State University before another opportunity surfaced. UNK, known then as Kearney State College, was looking for a reference librarian and Kearney Police Department also had an opening Colin was interested in. We did want to come back and be by family eventually. We just did it a little sooner than we thought we might, Wilke said with a smile. Theyve never regretted the decision. Weve really enjoyed Kearney, Wilke said. Its a very active, vibrant place and its a wonderful community to raise a family in. UNK CAREER Professionally, the decision to remain in Kearney couldnt have worked out any better. I didnt come here expecting to end up being the dean, Wilke said, but thats exactly what happened. Wilke rose through the ranks at Calvin T. Ryan Library, joining the staff there in 1988 and holding positions such as head of the curriculum/non-book department and director of the Regional Instructional Materials Review Center while it was in operation. In spring 2003, when an illness forced then-Dean Mike Herbison to step down, Wilke was asked to lead the library on an interim basis. However, her children were 10 and 7 at the time and her mother was battling cancer, so Wilke was hesitant to say yes. Mike convinced me that I should do this, she said. Even though its going to be hard, he said you really need to do this. With support from staff and administration, Wilke served as interim dean for a year before returning to her role as curriculum librarian and later associate dean. Two years later, she was called upon again following the resignation of Dean Larry Hardesty. This time, though, she never gave up the title. Wilke served as interim dean for nine months and was selected to oversee library operations on a permanent basis in March 2007. Her guidance over the past 15 years has brought both stability and significant change to Calvin T. Ryan Library. She led the development of the Learning Commons, working with the Division of Student Affairs to bring the Writing Center and Peer Tutoring into a partnership with the library to better support student academic success. More recently, the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity and Honors Program relocated to the library to facilitate collaboration. Wilke also initiated the digital repository, an online resource where scholarly and creative work produced at UNK is stored and shared, and the university archives and special collections grew and gained prominence during her time as dean. In 1985, the Nebraska Library Commission gave the UNK library its Nebraska Archive of Childrens Books, and the collection has continued to expand. We now have a really good research collection of juvenile literature here, probably the largest in the state of Nebraska, said Wilke, noting that this hidden resource spans three centuries. Wilke and her family endowed a speaker series with the University of Nebraska Foundation to bring juvenile literature scholars to campus. Additionally, she played a key part in the development of the Open Educational Resources initiative, which promotes the use of free and reduced-cost learning materials at UNK, and worked with library deans across the NU System to formalize the University of Nebraska Consortium of Libraries, which has significantly expanded access to resources for UNK students and faculty. Shes also been heavily involved in the planning of a multimillion-dollar renovation project that will modernize the 59-year-old campus library. I think weve made some real progress, she said. Weve steadily moved forward as an academic library. None of these accomplishments would be possible without the 22 people who worked alongside her, she added. If you have the right staff, you can do about anything, Wilke said. Theyre the key to a good library. We have a really dynamic group of people with the current expertise that we need here at UNK, and they all have student success as a top priority. Thats why Wilke feels comfortable retiring right now. Her husband Colin retired in 2019 after 37 years in law enforcement and their children, Lydia and Stuart, live in Denver and Kansas City. She wants to spend more time with them, preferably at the vacation getaway she and Colin are building along the Middle Loup River near Thedford. Having grown up on the river, I always wanted to get back, she said. Summer is always a good time to catch up on interesting books. Here are three recently published Nebraska-based books: - The Women Who Built Omaha: A Bold and Remarkable History, by Eileen Wirth, 234 pages, published by Bison Books, May 2022, $22 During the 1930s the Federal Writers Project described Omaha as a mans town, and histories of the city have all but ignored women. However, women have played major roles in education, health, culture, social services and other fields since the citys founding in 1854. In The Women Who Built Omaha, Eileen Wirth tells the stories of the citys women including Susette Bright Eyes LaFlesche, who translated at the trial of Chief Standing Bear; Mildred Brown, an African American newspaper publisher; Sarah Joslyn, who personally paid for Joslyn Art Museum; Mrs. B of Nebraska Furniture Mart; and the Sisters of Mercy, who started Omahas Catholic schools. Omaha women have been champion athletes and suffragists as well as madams and bootleggers. They transformed the citys parks, co-founded Creighton University, helped run Boys Town, and so much more, in ways that continue today. - Under Prairie Skies: The Plants and Native Peoples of the Northern Plains, by C. Thomas Shay, 312 pages, published by Bison Books, July 2022, $29 C. Thomas Shay asks and answers the question, What role did plants play in the lives of early inhabitants of the northern Great Plains? Since humans arrived at the end of the Ice Age, plants played important roles as Native peoples learned which were valuable foods, which held medicinal value and which were best for crafts. Incorporating Native voices, ethnobotanical studies, personal stories and research techniques, Under Prairie Skies shows how, since the end of the Ice Age, plants have held a central place in the lives of Native peoples. Eventually some groups cultivated seed-bearing annuals and, later, fields of maize and other crops. Throughout history, their lives became linked with the land, both materially and spiritually. - Dirt Persuasion: Civic Environmental Populism and the Heartlands Pipeline Fight, by Derek Moscato, 252 pages, published by University of Nebraska Press, June 2022, $60 The book examines a watershed moment in U.S. environmental politics: The fight over the Keystone XL Pipeline. The complex interplay of resources extraction industries with grassroots environmentalism and advocacy has transformed the role of activists in the contemporary public sphere. Bold Nebraskas years-long fight against pipeline company TransCanada provides a compelling case study. Dirt Persuasion sheds light not only on the activism practices of social movements but also on the changing environments in which such actions are deployed. Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night can delay mail, they say, but modern technology can. As I write this, my mail is lost somewhere between here and northern New Mexico. Shortly before I moved away from Kearney June 3, I submitted an online change-of-address form at USPS.gov. Six days later, when I hurried back to Kearney after that New Mexico gig flopped, my mail refused to follow. The problem, according to USPS.gov, is that I moved to a religious-affiliated guest ranch in New Mexico. The USPS website said thats a private facility, and USPS wont forward mail addressed to private facilities. Puzzled, I sought help at the Kearney post office. A postal worker filled out a form canceling my request to forward mail to New Mexico, but nothing happened, so I got on the USPS website and filled out my own change-of-address form, instructing Uncle Sam to forward mail originally sent to Kearney right back to Kearney, but the suspicious website kicked me off. Maybe my mail is coming by mule, like my furniture. I returned to Kearney so quickly that, like a boomerang, I slid into my former Hub job and my former apartment in the blink of an eye. Not so for my furniture. It languished somewhere in a moving van and didnt show up until Id been back for 16 days. That meant 16 days of sleeping on a single bed Id snagged at a yard sale. Sixteen days of eating off paper plates on a borrowed card table. Sixteen days of reading by a lamp Id grabbed at Goodwill. Sixteen days of growing frustration. Finally, last Sunday, the mover texted and said hed be there Monday. He said final payment for the move was due at that time in the form of cash, a cashiers check or a postal service money order. Monday morning, I went to my bank and got a cashiers check for that final amount, but he never showed up. Tuesday afternoon, the movers corporate office called and said the mover would come at 4 p.m. Wednesday, but he could not accept cash or a cashiers check. He would take only a U.S. Postal Service money order or some unfamiliar online payment that he urged me to email right now. He warned that unless I paid up front, Id never see my furniture again. I refused to be bullied. I didnt trust that online site. I told him that Id waited 16 days for this furniture, theyd blown me off on Monday and that Id give them a money order, period. In a huff, the clerk stormed off to talk to a supervisor. In the end, he said hed accept a money order. Wednesday morning, I returned to my bank and voided the cashiers check. I dont understand, the kindly cashier told me as she processed a certified check I could give the post office for the money order. Cashiers checks are the safest way to make payment, even safer than a money order. Off I went to the post office, but it refused to accept that certified check. It could take only cash. That meant Id have to go back to my bank a third time, void this check, get the cash and drive back to the post office. As I turned to go, the postal worker said, But we do take debit cards. Huh? A simple debit card? I pulled my debit card out of my wallet. Within minutes, I tucked that money order safely inside my purse and headed home. An hour later, the mover showed up, but when I handed him the money order, he balked. He stared. He picked up his cell phone, called his supervisor and headed outside for a private conversation. I was furious. What else did he demand? A hog, two bulls and two bottles of Dorothy Lynch salad dressing? At last, he came back in and got to work. Finally, 27 days since my furniture left for New Mexico, it was back. Wednesday night, at last, I slept in my own bed. I feel like Dorothy returning to Kansas. Ive been welcomed back like the Prodigal Son. Now if I could get my mail, Id be resettled for good. In the midst of a viral pandemic, its hard to think of viruses as anything but a plague on humanity. In reality, viruses hold real promise as a treatment for cancer. This summer, Viterbo University senior biology student Kaitlin Schiferl is conducting research to assess the promise of viral cancer treatments. An Elk Mound native, Schiferl is one of 16 Viterbo students selected for the universitys Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program. SURF students are paired with faculty mentors, 12 of them this summer, who help the students write research project proposals and then supervise their experiments. Schiferl is working with Luke Bussiere, an assistant professor of biology who came to Viterbo last year after completing his doctoral degree work at Iowa State University. Bussieres doctoral thesis focused on understanding the interaction between mammalian orthoreovirus and cancerous tissue to better understand what tumor types and environments that would be most promising for viral therapy. The idea of viral cancer therapy actually goes back to the 1890s, when doctors encountered a cancer patient who contracted an influenza infection. In the wake of the viral infection, doctors discovered that the patients leukemia went into remission. Its not heard about a lot, but to be fair, people have known about this for a long time, Bussiere said. What we realize now is viruses love cancer. They love replicating in tumors. The beauty of using the mammalian orthoreovirus is the virus very rarely results in any disease in people, but it has been shown to be deadly to some tumors. Clinical trials have been running for about 15 years on the reovirus, Bussiere noted, and viral therapy using a form of the herpes virus has been approved in the United States for treatment of skin cancer. Reovirus treatment has been shown to kill some tumors, and recently it has been shown to suppress the hypoxia inducible factor 1-alpha (HIF-1-alpha) that makes tumors aggressively grow. One big question, though, is whether the viral therapy also could prevent metastasis, the spreading of the cancer to other areas of the body, which is stimulated by accumulation of HIF-1-alpha. When a tumor is just in one location, your odds are usually pretty good, Bussiere said. Our research is looking at if the reovirus doesnt kill the tumor, can it at least inhibit spread. Viterbos SURF program pays Schiferl a stipend to work 20 hours a week on the research project, which involves cultivating breast cancer cells, infecting them with the reovirus and testing them for evidence of downregulation of two specialized proteins that cancer cells produce to help them metastasize. The hypothesis is if we detect a decrease in the RNA encoding both of those proteins, it could inhibit the spread of cancer, Schiferl said. If the reovirus treatment does reduce the proteins, the next step will be to determine whether it hampers the creation of blood vessels to feed the cancer. The blood vessels are the highway for cancers to spread, Bussiere said. It has been hard but rewarding work for Schiferl, who also is working this summer as a certified nursing assistant in the oncology department at Gundersen Health System. Shes had to learn new skills for conducting the research, including advanced microscopy and the care and feeding of a cancer cell line, as well as learning the theoretical underpinnings of how viruses and cancer cells work. Schiferls research could well be useful to those conducting viral cancer therapy clinical trials. Down the line, this could lead to saving lives. I think its exciting. I dont think enough students take advantage of these kind of research opportunities, said Schiferl, who will be a senior in the fall and plans to go on to graduate school to become a physician assistant. Its really a great experience that helps you grow and develop a deeper understanding. Samaco Marine & Powersports Company has celebrated the launch of the long-awaited Ducati bikes in Saudi Arabia after becoming its official distributor. The launch came in response to the desire of motorcyclists in Saudi Arabia, who love adventure and have a passion for advanced motorbikes. Mohamed Ibrahim Sharbatly, CEO of Samaco Marine & Powersports, said: "Ducati is one of the motorcycle industry's best-known brands and continues to develop day after day while preserving its unique Italian character in the streamlined design and remarkable performance, as well as using cutting-edge technologies." He added: "As part of its research into the motorcycle market in Saudi Arabia, Samaco decided to become Ducatis distributor after discovering a high demand for the motorcycles in Saudi Arabia. The partnership will provide a full range of Ducati bikes to its customers, as well as after-sales services, spare parts, and accessories."-- TradeArabia News Service After surviving growing pains, funding shortfalls and a pandemic, the Scenic Mississippi Regional Transit (SMRT) bus is celebrating 10 years of success in 2022. It provides a needed, affordable transportation service to workers, students, elderly and disabled residents, and visitors in Crawford, La Crosse, Monroe and Vernon counties. The service has changed over the years, but SMRTs dependability and affordable, one-way $3 fare remains constant. A daily, fixed-route bus system, SMRT serves four counties and 14 cities and villages. Buses range in size from 12-26 passengers, are wheelchair accessible with bike racks, and have Wi-Fi service. Four routes operate from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays, stopping at more than 25 bus stops. How SMRT Started The concept of a rural, fixed-route commuter bus originated in 2010 when the city of Prairie du Chien planner attended a Crawford County Transportation Coordinating Committee meeting with a problem and a potential answer. Employers needed workers and a daily commuter bus connecting Prairie du Chien with the city of La Crosse was viewed as a solution. When transportation committee members from Vernon and La Crosse counties got involved, the vision grew. Using a state feasibility grant, the three county governments, their aging units (now Aging and Disability Resource Centers), and service providers began exploring the concept of a regional commuter bus service. When the study determined the concept could work, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation provided cost-share grants for buses and operational costs. The state support continues today. Transportation grants require a local government sponsor and matching funds. The city of Prairie du Chien agreed to be the sponsor while the Mississippi River Regional Planning Commission took on the task of meeting with local governments, businesses and agencies to secure the necessary, local matching funds. Expansion In 2017, the SMRT bus responded to rising demand and growing popularity by expanding to Monroe County, bringing service to four additional cities and villages. The total population of the SMRT bus service area increased to more than 190,000 people. With the expansion, La Crosse County became the central hub and in 2019, La Crosse County took over as the local government sponsor. The continued financial commitments from the four counties; the cities of Prairie du Chien, Viroqua, La Crosse, Westby, Tomah, Onalaska and Sparta; and area business and educational entities, including Western Technical College, Bremer Bank, Vernon Memorial Healthcare, Mayo Clinic Health System and Gundersen Health System, make SMRT possible. Economic development With 60% of its riders using the service to get to work, SMRT has been instrumental in aiding economic development in the region. Creative programs, particularly with area medical centers, have incentivized employees to use the SMRT bus. As a result, healthcare professionals make up a significant portion of employee ridership. In 2017, the service was recognized by Wisconsin Rural Partners as one of the states top rural initiatives and received the Wisconsin Economic Development Associations Community and Economic Development Award as the states top economic development initiative. The service also offers free transfers between buses, so it is possible to travel from Prairie du Chien to Tomah (a distance of 101 miles) for $3. The SMRT bus also cooperates with La Crosse Municipal Transit to share bus stops, further encouraging public transit ridership and coordination. Ridership and bus drivers What really makes the service successful is its riders and committed bus drivers. In its initial year, the SMRT bus provided approximately 13,000 rides. Prior to the pandemic, usage had grown to more than 21,000 rides annually. In surveys, riders continue to be overwhelmingly supportive, with more than 90% indicating satisfaction with the service. Riders find the service to be cost effective, convenient and relaxing, and they appreciate having the Wi-Fi service on board to be productive while they travel. The bus drivers, employed by Running Inc., are known to be personable and dedicated. The often get to know the riders, who frequently spend 25-50 minutes on the bus on each of their daily one-way trips. As one rider attests the bus drivers are wonderful, they take personal interest in the riders, strive to meet the needs of riders and promote SMRTs mission. Its not uncommon to hear stories such as a bus driver deviating from his route to take an exchange student to the home she was staying at after her ride failed to pick her up at a bus stop. Moving forward SMRT began in the spirit of ingenuity and continues to embrace challenges and change. Driftless area terrain, winter temperatures and long routes make green options challenging to implement, but two electric buses will be added to the fleet later this year and SMRT is committed to making the transition work. Budget constraints have limited its marketing, but a new marketing plan includes the launch of a Facebook page and an expanded social media footprint. The SMRT bus service is unique no one agency, person, community or county is solely responsible for its success. Everyone cooperatively plays a role. In 12 years, SMRT evolved from a planners vision to a bus service that connects workers to jobs, students to schools, patients to clinics, and more importantly, people and communities to one another. ROCHESTER, Minn. Javohn and his dad, Thomas, did not expect such a long and difficult journey. But after two tumors and one year of radiation and chemotherapyit is almost time for Javohn to rejoin his five siblings in Belize. He is a fighter; he is strong, said Thomas. And he has so much joy. When doctors in Belize a Central American country with a population of fewer than 500,000 people discovered a tumor on Javohns brain, they said, Take him to the United States if you want him to live. His first surgery was in Denver and it was successful, but he would need a second surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. After the surgery, doctors recommended radiation treatment for three months. All was well. One year later, during a routine checkup at Mayo Clinic, doctors discovered the brain tumor was gone but he developed a tumor on his skull. Javohn needed eight months of chemotherapy. The treatment plan was hard on his body, particularly his kidneys. But it is almost time to go home. It is rough, Thomas said. This is the first time our family has been apart. But it is something we need to do. When they first arrived in Rochester, they stayed at a hotel because their situation was short-term; when they learned about the additional treatment, they were referred to the Ronald McDonald House of Rochester. I was shocked, said Thomas. I did not expect this hospitality. It is truly a home away from home. It is amazing. Thomas mentioned the volunteers who made them feel welcome, despite it being a different country and culture. And how he can only say thanks to the donors who have provided so much for him and his family. The House has everything we need, Thomas said. It is perfect. It keeps my mind off of the hard things that I am going through, said Javohn. Javohns mom, Doret, and Thomas have taken turns staying at the House and caring for their other children in Belize. One of his brothers, Thomas Jr., has visited as well. But Javohn has not seen his other four siblings, including his twin sister, in nearly one year. I talk to her every day, Javohn said. I miss them all so much. It is always noisy at our house, said Thomas. Javohn and Thomas experienced many firsts during their time in Minnesota, including snow and sub-zero temperatures. It is rare for the temperature to drop below 60 degrees any day in Belize; Rochester was negative-15 degrees on a February day. They said it would be cold, Thomas said. It is different in Minnesota than it is in Belize. But the House provided winter clothing and Mayo Clinic is connected by walkways. We were very thankful. Even though it is summer in Minnesota, Javohn is excited for summer at home. I cannot wait to fish, farm, and work, said Javohn. The family grows its own ground foodplantains, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, watermelon, pumpkins, papayas, bananas, mangoeswhich Javohn enjoys harvesting. Mangoes are currently in season and particularly delicious. Javohn and Thomas are excited to be on the water back home, but they were able to experience fly fishing and ice fishing with a friend in Minnesota. They described the latter as crazy, but fun! This is the most time he has ever spent inside; he is always outside, said Thomas. Javohn will need medical evaluations every three months for the next two years. Each visit should be short in duration. Doctors are currently working on a plan for Javohn to be seen closer to home, but as Thomas said, The Ronald McDonald House is our home. The House kept Javohn alive, Thomas said. NEW YORK (AP) Federal authorities are pushing back on R. Kelly's claims that he was placed on suicide watch as a form of punishment last week after a judge sentenced him to 30 years behind bars for using his fame to sexually abuse young girls. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Brooklyn filed court papers late Saturday saying the disgraced R&B superstar remains on suicide watch for his own safety following a psychological assessment. Kelly's current life circumstances undoubtedly bring emotional distress, Assistant U.S. Attorney Melanie Speight wrote in a court filing. He is a convicted sex offender who has been sentenced to spend the next three decades in prison," she added. "In the immediate future, he faces another federal criminal trial in Chicago for charges related to child pornography. Kelly's attorney filed a lawsuit Friday alleging prison officials placed him on suicide watch at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center solely for punitive purposes and because of his status as a high-profile inmate," adding that Kelly has had no thoughts of harming himself. Nothing occurred during sentencing that came as a surprise to Mr. Kelly, attorney Jennifer Bonjean wrote in the lawsuit. While the conditions of suicide watch may be appropriate for individuals who are truly at risk of hurting themselves, they are cruel and unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment for individuals who are not suicidal. Kelly, 55, didnt give a statement and showed no reaction upon hearing his sentence, which also included a $100,000 fine. The Grammy-winning, multiplatinum-selling songwriter was found guilty last year of racketeering and sex trafficking. He has denied wrongdoing, and he plans to appeal his conviction. Zero Trust concept, a strategic approach to cybersecurity that secures an organisation by eliminating implicit trust and continuously validating every stage of digital interaction, is essential for the oil and gas sector. Rooted in the principle of never trust, always verify, Zero Trust is designed to protect modern environments and enable digital transformation by using strong authentication methods, leveraging network segmentation, and preventing lateral movement, said Hussain Altayeb, Lead, Cyber Security and Governance, Tatweer Petroleum. Cybersecurity deployment is highly essential in the oil and gas sector, given the strategic, economic, and developmental importance of this sector, as well as the need to safeguard its sustainability and to preserve the interests of producers and consumers, he said during his participation in Zero Trust Security Always Verify Forum, held by NGN International, a full-fledged systems integrator and Managed Security Service Provider based in Bahrain. Awareness of cyber security The forum was a part of the NGN Majlis efforts to enhance awareness of cyber security amongst Bahraini institutions and individuals. "With the oil and gas industry moving towards greater digitisation, more efficient cybersecurity technologies are needed to minimise the risk of sensitive data piracy, enable safety remote operations, and protect business-critical data," Altayeb said. The oil and gas industry is no stranger to both covert and overt cyber-attacks. While undergoing digital transformation and adapting to an increasingly remote work culture, this critical infrastructure sector is frequently targeted for geopolitical purposes and financial gain by cybercriminals, company insiders, and nation-states. Thats why implementing Zero Trust concept is crucial to ensure the safety of this essential sector, Altayeb added. Implementing physically Altayeb also affirmed that Zero Trust concept in the oil and gas sector should be implemented physically, as a physical perimeter breach, whether in an oil rig or a corporate office location, can have a disastrous impact. It would lead to perpetrators gaining direct access to critical systems and areas within the location. To avoid this, access to a user should be restricted based on the access rights of the users group. For example, visitors have limited access to common areas, while the IT staff needs access to all server rooms, and so on. As well as protecting data, what is at stake here is preventing any accident with the operation technology system because the absence of any controls in this sensitive sector could result in a major disaster or the destruction of the environment, affecting the reputation and image of the entire country. Security of that sector also ensures services related to aircraft movement, or securing the citizens' need for gasoline, for example, will be unaffected, Altayeb concluded.-- TradeArabia News Service An accent is a way of saying the words in a language that happens among people of one area or region of a country, but not another. Many people who study languages, linguists, predicted in the 1960s that accents would disappear in America. As Americans moved across the country, they said English would become standardized, meaning that it would be spoken the same way everywhere. Schooling, mass media like television and radio, people moving to the United States from other places and increased car and airplane travel would all add to the standardization of English. But sociolinguist William Labov of the University of Pennsylvania says, while some accents in America are disappearing, others are growing stronger. One of these regional accents is Native American English, known as the rez accent. It is spoken in many Indigenous communities in the United States and Canada. The word rez is shortened from the word reservation. Reservations are areas of land in the United States and Canada that are kept separate for Native Americans or Indigenous people to live in. Kalina Newmark is from the Sahtu Region in Canadas Northwest Territories. Her ancestors were called the Dene people, but she does not speak her tribes language of Slavey. My mom can understand and speak it, but she didn't pass it on to us. She learned it from her great-grandmother. My grandmother chose not to pass along the language because she wanted to make it easier for her children when they went to school, Newmark said. Newmark went to Dartmouth College in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The school is known for its Indigenous student population. There, she met other Indigenous students from all over North America. Newmark noticed something very interesting about everyones pronunciation. The English they spoke shared some similar qualities, although they came from different language backgrounds. These especially could be heard during times of socializing. The accent was even present for students who had not learned their ancestral language. Newmark and another student, Nacole Walker, decided to examine the rez accent when they were given a project to study a non-English language. They realized that the rez accent had never been studied before. Walker is a Lakota person from the Standing Rock Reservation in the states of North and South Dakota. She said linguists have studied other forms of English, like African American English, and Chicano English, which is spoken by Mexican Americans. We knew something unique was happening [with indigenous English] and wanted to narrow it down, Walker said. They recorded discussions and interviews with 75 people from different tribes and Nations all over North America. Their findings were published in Language in Society in September of 2016. The Dartmouth team found that Indigenous communities speak different English dialects, but these ways of speaking shared prosody patterns. Prosody describes the music of a language. It includes pitch, how high or low the sounds of the voice are; rhythm, the beat of stressed and unstressed syllables; and intonation, or the changes in pitch when speaking. James Stanford is a sociolinguist at Dartmouth. He guided the students in their study. He said that the most important quality is how the pitch and intonation rises and falls like a song. The feature was named after the character, Thomas Builds-the-Fire, played by Evan Adams from the 1998 film Smoke Signals. The movie was the first to be made and performed by Indigenous people. The group identified another feature that appeared unique to Indigenous populations: the pitch rises at the end of their sentences. Stanford said that in Standard English, speakers usually end their sentences by dropping their pitch levels lower. Indigenous speakers end their sentences with a middle or higher pitch. The final important feature is the timing of the syllables, or the rhythm. Some language experts describe languages like French and Spanish as syllable-timed. Each syllable takes up the same amount of time, Stanford said. English is not syllable-timed. It is stress-timed, meaning that only stressed syllables are said at regular places in speech. The unstressed syllables are shortened. The team noted that the rez accent of English is syllable-timed. Where did the Rez accent come from? Newmark thinks that the rez accent possibly came from different Native tribes interacting in the 1880s when Indigenous peoples were placed on reservations. The Native American and First Nations children were forced into schools and had to speak English. The rez accent also might have had its beginning in the 1950s and 1960s when the US government closed some reservations and sent Native American into cities. The children were forced to speak English and interact with each other. They were all learning English together, said Newmark, and making an English of their own. Twyla Baker is a citizen of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation. She is also president of an indigenous college on the Fort Berthold Reservation in the state of North Dakota. She said that the Rez accent is a form of adaptation. She said that before Native Americans came into contact with Europeans, the tribes connected with each other. They traveled, traded, and built political connections with other tribes. This led to many Indigenous people learning four or five languages. Baker knows that many people think that the rez accent is not correct English. They may even make fun of it. But she wants Indigenous people not to feel bad about who they are, where they come from and how they speak English. I would love for our young people to feel that they are accepted not just in the spaces that they occupy in Indian Country, but when they step off the reservation, Baker added. Im Bryan Lynn. And Im Faith Pirlo. Cecily Hilleary wrote this article for VOA. Faith Pirlo adapted it for Learning English. Quiz - Native Americans Describe the Rez Accent Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz _______________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story indigenous adj. produced, living or existing in a certain place or environment pronunciation n. the way in which a word is normally or correctly said unique adj. unlike anything else interview n. a meeting in which people talk to each other to get information dialect n. a form of a language that is spoken in a particular area and that uses some of its own words, grammar, and pronunciations pattern n. a regular and repeated way in which something happens syllable n. a part a word is naturally divided into when pronounced character n. a person who appears in a story, book, play, movie, or television show feature n. usual quality or important part of something standard n. a level of quality, achievement, etc., that is considered acceptable or desirable adaptation n. the state of adapting or changing What do you think of the rez accent? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. Outside the Ukrainian village of Yahidne are the remains of a small school. The building was partly destroyed in the early weeks of the Russian invasion. The schools abandoned classrooms are unlikely to hold students again anytime soon. It is just one of the many buildings in Yahidne that have been damaged during the war. But Yahidne and other villages are slowly rebuilding. Russian troops retreated from the northern Chernihiv area a few months ago. People are repairing homes; the sound of building tools fills the air. Volunteers from all over Ukraine and other countries are coming to help because there is so much to do before winter begins. Among the workers are a copywriter and a cameraman who have been repairing the roofs of apartment buildings in front of the school. Denys Ovcharenko and Denys Huschyk came from the capital, Kyiv. They joined a volunteer building organization called Dobrobat. The men and 22 other volunteers help the villagers return to their homes as soon as possible. No one in the village plans to rebuild the school yet. Villagers prefer not to talk about the place at all. That is because Russian forces used the school as a base of operations. Most of Yahidnes nearly 400 people spent a month in the schools basement, or underground area. They were held captive to be used as human shields to protect against an attack by the Ukrainian army. Russian troops only rarely permitted the villagers to climb upstairs and go outside. Ten people died in the dark, crowded basement. Survivors blame the lack of fresh air. Russian troops left the village at the end of March. The Dobrobat group plans to repair the roofs of 21 houses in the coming weeks. The volunteers include teachers, athletes and programmers. About 80 percent of them have no experience in construction. Yahidne is just one of the villages in northern Ukraine to have suffered from Russias aggression. And Dobrobat is just one of the groups taking action. A father and son from the Czech Republic decided to spend their yearly family trip in Ukraine this year. Michal and Daniel Kahle see each other for only a few weeks each summer. The son, Daniel, studies in the United States. We wanted to do something meaningful instead of just being tourists, he said. That is how they came to the town of Makariv in the Kyiv area. Many buildings there were destroyed or damaged in the first weeks of the war. The father and son joined the volunteer movement Building Ukraine Together. Since 2014, the group has helped restore damaged buildings in eastern Ukraine. For several days, Michal, Daniel and young people from different parts of Ukraine worked to rebuild the Makariv fire department. Tetyana Symkovych is the volunteer groups coordinator in Makariv. She said, Its a long game. We cannot pause our lives, sit at home and wait for the war to end. Im Dan Friedell. Hanna Arhirova reported on this story for the Associated Press. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. ________________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story roof n. the cover of a building apartment n. a room or set of rooms rented as a home captive adj. taken and held as or as if a prisoner of war shield n. something or someone that protects or defends athlete n. a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports, or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina construction n. the process, art, or manner of building something tourist n. a person who travels for pleasure Afghan official thanks China for aid to quake-affected families Xinhua) 13:35, July 03, 2022 Photo taken on July 2, 2022 shows afghan man carrying China-donated quake relief supplies in Paktika province, Afghanistan. Mawlawi Mansoor, head of Natural Disaster Management Authority of Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province, on Saturday thanked China for sending humanitarian assistance to quake-affected families. (Photo by Sabwoon/Xinhua) BARMAL, Afghanistan, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Mawlawi Mansoor, head of Natural Disaster Management Authority of Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province, on Saturday thanked China for sending humanitarian assistance to quake-affected families. "We are thankful to China for sending assistance particularly tents to the quake-affected people here and I am also hopeful that the neighboring country could help rebuild the ruined houses," Mansoor told Xinhua. Mansoor said his team distributed about 300 tents to the quake victims in Barmal district of Paktika province on Saturday, which are part of 920 pieces of tents and clothes donated by China. Expressing gratitude to China for the humanitarian aid, Karim Khan, an elder of Barmal district, told Xinhua that "the tents can solve our problem temporarily and we need to rebuild our houses before winter" to survive the freezing season. China has pledged 50 million yuan (7.5 million U.S. dollars) in emergency humanitarian aid for quake victims in war-torn Afghanistan. A number of countries, including China, India, Pakistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan, have sent or announced assistance to quake-affected regions in Afghanistan. A devastating earthquake jolted eastern Afghanistan on June 22, which left more than 1,000 people dead and over 1,500 others injured in Paktika and neighboring Khost province. (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji) BEIJING, July 1 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese spokesperson on Friday voiced firm opposition to false remarks on Taiwan made by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. "Taiwan is part of China, and Taiwan compatriots are our brothers and sisters," said Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office. "We have taken actions in accordance with the law to punish separatist forces seeking 'Taiwan independence' and counter external forces' interference, which is a just move to safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity," she said. She made the statement when asked to comment on Stoltenberg's erroneous remarks that "China is threatening Taiwan." Those who spread such false remarks are intended to use the Taiwan question to interfere in China's internal affairs, the spokesperson said. Zhu urged relevant organizations and individuals to redress mistakes, firmly uphold the one-China principle and the basic norm of international relations, and stop sending wrong signals to forces seeking "Taiwan independence." Two suspects were arrested in a stolen vehicle with a stolen firearm, with multiple high capacity magazines, on the Near West Side, close to UW-Madison campus Saturday night. Virena Ousley, 31 of Madison, and Major Lee Ousley, 33 of Milwaukee, were arrested by UW police after they were stopped at the intersection of North Breese Terrace and University Avenue for driving with no headlights on at around 11:30 p.m. Saturday, UW police officer Adam Boardman said in a statement. During the stop, the UW police officer determined the vehicle was stolen, and conducted a search which turned up a stolen firearm and multiple high capacity magazines in the back seat, Boardman said. Ousley, who was allegedly driving the stolen vehicle was arrested on charges of operating a motor vehicle without owners consent, possession of oxycodone, obstructing, and a parole warrant. Lee Ousley was arrested on charges of felon in possession of a firearm, concealing a stolen firearm and multiple active warrants, Boardman said. Two other occupants of the vehicle were released without incident, Boardman said. America cant risk another coup attempt. Congress must clarify and strengthen the process for certifying future presidents so the will of the people is respected. The next vote for president is only two years and four months away. Congress including Wisconsins congressional delegation has no time to waste. The Fourth of July weekend, with its celebration of American ideals, should help steel our leaders to defend democracy. The hearings of the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol have shown with startling detail and firsthand accounts that former President Donald Trump was repeatedly told by top advisers that he lost the 2020 election only for Trump to escalate his reckless and ultimately violent bid to stay in power. Trump pressured Vice President Mike Pence to unilaterally declare Trump the winner of the 2020 campaign by throwing out or replacing Electoral College votes from states such as Wisconsin that narrowly favored President Joe Biden. Trumps lawyers hoped to exploit vague wording in the Electoral Count Act of 1887. The Act requires the vice president to preside over the counting of electoral votes and certify the winner. Shamefully, U.S. Sen Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, was part of Trumps plot. Though Johnson initially denied any involvement in an attempt to deliver false Wisconsin electors to Pence on Jan. 6, the House Committee uncovered text messages showing Johnson did try to help. Pence resisted Trumps pressure campaign, and Pences staff refused to accept a list of bogus electors from Johnsons staff. Pence followed his oath to the Constitution by certifying Bidens 305-232 victory in the Electoral College. He wasnt intimidated by angry mobs chanting Hang Mike Pence! as they stormed the Capitol seeking to stop the peaceful transfer of power. America cant risk a similar attack on our democracy in the future. The Jan. 6 invasion of the Capitol was nothing short of a coup attempt, with Trump encouraging and then refusing to stop the insurrection. He even told top aides that Pence deserved to be hanged, according to House testimony. Congress cant allow such a travesty to repeat. Congress must tighten and clarify the Electoral Count Act of 1887 so its perfectly clear that the vice presidents role in certifying presidential winners is ceremonial, not pivotal. As Pence told senators in the early morning of Jan. 7, after rioters were finally cleared from the Senate chambers: The truth is, theres almost no idea more un-American than the notion that any one person could choose the American president. The presidency belongs to the American people and the American people alone. Pence was a hero. Trump was a villain. Johnson was a stooge. The ongoing House hearings are making that more clear than ever. Congress needs to prioritize swift approval of the updated Electoral Count Act negotiated by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine., Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and others. It would emphatically make the vice presidents actions in overseeing the counting of votes ministerial. It also would increase the threshold for challenging a states electors. Instead of a single member of both houses of Congress having the power to object, 20% of both chambers would have to agree to trigger a challenge. Polling suggests the public is solidly behind this sensible safeguard. Wisconsins congressional delegation should be, too. Our American democracy entering its 246th year may depend on it. Wisconsin State Journal editorial board The views expressed in the editorials are shaped by the board, independent of news coverage decisions elsewhere in the newspaper. STAFF MEMBERS KELLY LECKER, Executive editor SCOTT MILFRED, Editorial page editor PHIL HANDS, Editorial cartoonist COMMUNITY MEMBERS JANINE GESKE SUSAN SCHMITZ NEW YORK The Supreme Court ruling limiting the Environmental Protection Agencys authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants could have far-reaching consequences for the energy sector and make it harder for the Biden administration to meet its goal of having the U.S. power grid run on clean energy by 2035. The nation has been gradually transitioning away from coal to cleaner sources of electricity such as natural gas, solar energy and wind, often because they are less expensive. Most experts dont think the Supreme Court decision in West Virginia vs. EPA will immediately reverse that trajectory. But the ruling could slow the transition to clean energy in the future because it imposes constraints on what the EPA can do without exceeding its legal authority. That is a frightening prospect, say climate experts, who warn of dire consequences as global temperatures and extreme weather conditions steadily rise. Depending how Congress or the courts interpret the courts ruling in the future, it could also change the way other agencies can regulate the power sector. The ruling will also set a tone in policymaking chambers, making it harder to persuade state lawmakers to craft laws to boost renewables, said Sachu Constantine, executive director of Vote Solar, which advocates for laws favorable to solar energy in state legislatures. Without the threat of EPA or federal regulation of climate, without a recognition that carbon pollution is really, truly harmful, it becomes harder to make that argument, Constantine said. It makes it less likely that the risk or the cost of carbon will be directly felt by the utilities, or by other agencies who have control over how much solar we can deploy. And that loss of regulatory risk means they might be less likely to choose solar. The case that the Supreme Court took up, West Virginia vs. EPA, had been filed in response to former President Barack Obamas Clean Power Plan. The Obama plan would have required states to reduce emissions from electricity generation, primarily by shifting away from coal-fired plants. That prospect upset several industries, including coal, and some state attorneys general. They challenged how far the EPA could go to influence the industrys transition away from coal and to cleaner sources. It was sort of a scary prospect that EPA had the authority to close down power plants and build others, said Jeff Holmstead, a partner at Bracewell LLP who served as an assistant EPA administrator in the George W. Bush administration. All the major industry groups opposed that approach because of what they saw as a regulatory overreach. Power companies may still feel the same way, but in the meantime, theyve invested a lot of resources to try to decarbonize. When Congress writes laws, it often leaves implementation details up to regulators such as the EPA. In this case, energy industry officials argued that the EPA had gone too far and overstepped what Congress had intended. The challenge in the West Virginia case sought to diminish that authority. It succeeded. Thursdays ruling means the EPA cannot force states to shift away from coal to cleaner sources such as natural gas or renewables and compel coal plants shut down. One option thats now off the table as a result of the ruling is for the EPA to create a nationwide cap-and-trade system, said Richard Revesz, law professor at New York University. Under that system, a limit is set on how much carbon dioxide can be emitted, and companies can trade with each other to reach those goals. What the court is ruling out are the most effective and cheapest ways of regulating the power sector, Revesz said. Nothing in the ruling would stop Congress from creating a cap-and-trade system, but under the current gridlock and given the filibuster rules in the Senate, its not going to happen, he said. Still, Revesz said, the EPA does have authority to regulate emissions from power plants in other ways. And while the Clean Power Plan never took effect, the nation has been pivoting from coal to cleaner sources such as renewables anyway, often for economic reasons. Many states and large companies have commitments to use clean energy in the near future. Those commitments are driven by shareholders, by the economics of carbon reduction options, said Sue Tierney, a senior advisor at Analysis Group and expert on power markets. Multiple states have carbon reduction commitments, and large electricity users like very large corporations are saying we want 100% clean way earlier than 2050... so theres a whole lot of other forces going on besides EPA regulations at the moment that are driving things in a certain direction. Most major electric utilities have aggressive net-zero goals and commitments to phase out coal plants. Those arent fast enough for some advocates, but its not clear how much faster you can go unless you build the infrastructure to replace them, Holmstead said. The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, a trade association of local electric cooperatives, applauded Thursdays ruling. Coal, natural gas and nuclear plants those are all dispatchable, always-available resources and at the same time, were taking those offline, said the associations CEO, Jim Matheson. In terms of the overall generating capacity in this country, I think it creates greater risk for reliability. An abortion rights group has accused Idaho State Police of assaulting one of its demonstrators who was writing in chalk on a sidewalk in front of the Idaho Capitol. The group was demonstrating Tuesday in support of abortion rights in front of the Statehouse, where an event later that evening was taking place in support of the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade an event that was met by protesters. According to an Instagram post from Wednesday, one of the demonstrators had arrived first at the Capitol and was by herself when she was approached by Idaho state troopers. They told her she couldnt use chalk on the sidewalk, though they did not cite a law, the group said. When the woman continued to write, one of the officers grabbed her arm, which resulted in ripping her shirt and leaving significant bruising on her arm, Kimra Luna, co-founder of Idaho Abortion Rights, told the Idaho Statesman by phone. She wasnt arrested, they did not give her a citation, but they assaulted her, Luna said. They said that they needed to, you know, balance their priorities, and so we asked them, So your priority is to assault a person before giving them a citation? When the group had finished chalking the sidewalk, ISP troopers washed off the sidewalk with hoses, Luna told the Statesman. Shes very shaken up, Luna said. I felt the fact that she continued to chalk even after she was assaulted was her being extremely brave, and, you know, basically showing the police that we will continue to practice our rights to free speech. Who owns the sidewalks by the Capitol in Boise? Idaho law states that it is not an offense under this section for a person to engage in expressive conduct on the public sidewalks using non-permanent, non-toxic chalk in a manner that does not obstruct or interfere with the use of the sidewalks. The rule was rewritten to allow the use of chalk on public sidewalks in 2020, which had previously been illegal for 70 years. When contacted about the incident, Tecia Ferguson, Idaho State Police public information officer, released the following statement to the Statesman via email: ISP Troopers did not arrest or cite anyone yesterday for using sidewalk chalk on the capitol mall complex. ISP Troopers did work to educate several individuals about the IDAPA (Idaho Administrative Code) Rules that apply at the capitol mall complex. The email cited Idaho code regarding the exterior use of state property managed by Capitol Mall Services, which states that users shall not use any material to mark on any surface of the state facilities including chalk, paint, pens, ink, or dye. In terms of whether the sidewalk extending from the Capitol is also managed by Capitol Mall Services, an additional section of the code defines the outermost part of the buildings Jefferson Steps as the hard surface extending between the steps and the public sidewalk along Jefferson Street. Capitol Mall Services Facilities Manager Paul Navarro told the Statesman by phone that although the ownership of sidewalks surrounding nearby buildings can be a gray area, the sidewalk in front of the Capitol is considered the purview of Capitol Mall Services. We dont know what piece of sidewalk were allowed to write on, Luna said. It doesnt even matter. Even if she was writing right on the freaking Capitol with chalk, she should not be assaulted. Complaints about Idaho State Police Luna said she invited the woman to her home following the demonstration. I wanted to make sure that she wasnt left alone at the Capitol, Luna said. I felt extremely unsafe, having her near any of those officers. Luna said they took the woman to the hospital in response to legal advice. The woman was treated and plans to file a report against the Idaho State Police, Luna said. We didnt even have posters, you know, we didnt even have protest posters, Luna said. We were not chanting, we didnt have megaphones, we had nothing. We just had chalk. Several Instagram posts from the same account showed the group participating in similar demonstrations in the past. Idaho Abortion Rights had previously used chalk on sidewalks near the Capitol building to write messages supporting abortion access before Roe v. Wade was overturned, and separate organizations had used chalk in response to the school shooting at Uvalde, Texas. The police never (did) anything to us then, Luna said. They make up their own laws, and they purposely make it vague so they can harm us. Luna said the rules regarding sidewalks are ambiguous, which is something they believe the state and city should address more openly. The police, even when were doing things completely peaceful, not causing any harm, theyre still harming us, Luna said. And I think that that is starting to become blatantly clear that they do not want us to practice our First Amendment rights of freedom of speech. BOISE A regional Planned Parenthood organization is suing Idaho over its trigger law abortion ban, contending the ban violates Idaho residents rights under the state Constitution and that it is so vague that physicians will not know when they can legally help patients who are miscarrying or facing medical emergencies. Dr. Caitlin Gustafson, an abortion provider, joined with Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky in the lawsuit filed in the Idaho Supreme Court on Monday. The Planned Parenthood organization operates two reproductive health care clinics in Idaho and is in the process of opening another just over the state line in Ontario, Oregon. It is abhorrent that we have now entered an era where the delivery of safe essential health care will be criminalized, Gustafson said in a press release. Physicians take an oath to provide the care patients need to keep them safe, so we cannot stand by while the government intrudes on this deeply personal and complex medical decision. The Idaho law, passed in 2020, makes it a felony punishable by up to five years in prison for anyone to perform or attempt to perform an abortion. The law says health care providers can attempt to defend themselves against criminal charges by saying that the abortion was necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant person, or that the pregnant person showed them a police report alleging rape or incest. The law also requires physicians to use the medical method that provides the best opportunity for the unborn child to survive. Specifically, Idahos trigger law requires a judgement from the U.S. Supreme Court, which follows the courts Friday opinion and allows time to allow requests for a potential rehearing. Its not clear when the court will issue its judgement, but its expected fairly soon, starting the clock on Idahos trigger law. Planned Parenthood is asking the states highest court to put the case on a fast track so that it can hear arguments and issue a decision before mid-August. The Idaho Attorney Generals Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden generally declines to comment on pending litigation. Earlier this year Planned Parenthood and Gustafson filed a separate lawsuit over another Idaho anti-abortion law that allows potential relatives of the fetus or embryo to sue medical providers who perform an abortion. That law is on hold while the lawsuit works through the Idaho Supreme Court, and a hearing in the case is scheduled for August. BOISE A U.S. agency responsible for killing wolves and other predators to prevent attacks on livestock has agreed to settle a lawsuit by completing an extensive environmental study on its methods in Idaho. The U.S. Department of Agricultures Wildlife Services also agreed last week not to use poison gas cartridges or fire to kill wolf pups in dens in Idaho until the study is finished at the end of 2024. Wildlife Services last week filed a joint motion with Western Watersheds Project, WildEarth Guardians and Predator Defense in U.S. District Court to settle the May 2020 lawsuit. The environmental groups contend Wildlife Services predator control activities violate environmental laws. The settlement follows a separate 2020 settlement from a different 2016 lawsuit specifically involving wolves in Idaho and also filed by the three environmental groups and two others. That settlement also requires Wildlife Services to complete an environmental impact study on killing wolves in the state with a 2023 deadline. Environmental impact studies are time-consuming and expensive, and its possible, though not guaranteed, that Wildlife Services will combine the two settlement agreements into one environmental impact statement, or EIS. That would have the effect of extending wolf protections made in the 2020 settlement for an extra year. The creation of impact statements include comments from the public. I think this settlement layers on some additional protections for wolves, said Erik Molvar, Western Watersheds Projects executive director. We got some of what we wanted (in the agreement). But, quite frankly, wed like Wildlife Services to get out of the business of killing native wildlife entirely. Wildlife Services on Wednesday didnt immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press sent by email, the agencys preferred communication method. The agency in 2021 killed 39 wolves in Idaho. Fourteen were killed using a helicopter, five with a fixed-wing aircraft, 10 with firearms, nine with foothold traps and one with night vision equipment. The agency also killed about 1,700 coyotes in Idaho in 2021 using various methods. Our goal is to have in the final EIS a thorough analysis of the impact of killing native carnivores, said Lindsay Larris, wildlife program director for WildEarth Guardians. She said prohibitions contained in the settlement should give Wildlife Services time to evaluate the results of killing restrictions. The agreements each have two parts. The first part details what Wildlife Services will consider in the impact statement. The second part restricts agency actions on predator control until the impact statement and whats called a record of decision are finalized. The record of decision will be the agencys plan for moving forward with predator control in Idaho. It could, for example, leave wilderness areas off limits or give the OK for killing predators in them. Notably, the settlements prevent the agency from using cyanide-spraying devices, known as M-44s but called cyanide bombs by opponents, in Idaho at least until the impact statement is completed. The devices look like lawn sprinklers but spray cyanide when triggered by animals attracted by bait. The devices are intended to kill mainly coyotes but have harmed humans and pets, including injuring a 14-year-old eastern Idaho boy and killing his 3-year-old yellow lab in March 2017 near Pocatello. Overall, until the environmental impact statement is done, Wildlife Services now has multiple restrictions on killing wolves and other predators in the state. For wolves, the most recent settlement prevents using poison gas or fire to kill wolf pups in dens. The 2020 settlement has additional restrictions, including a prohibition on Wildlife Services killing wolves in wilderness areas, the Sawtooth National Recreation Area and other public lands areas. The most recent settlement extends the prohibition on Wildlife Services killing in wilderness areas and wilderness study areas in most cases to other predators. Wolves, it is thought, use wilderness areas as bases from which they expand their population. But environmental groups find the killing of wildlife in areas designated as wild places abhorrent. Its particularly egregious to have our government killing wildlife for simply existing in the wild, Larris said. The agreements also preclude Wildlife Services from killing predators to bolster deer and elk populations. The most recent settlement states that the agreement is not an admission of guilt by Wildlife Services or two other agencies named in the lawsuit the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management where Wildlife Services has carried out predator control actions. When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last week, it ostensibly freed states to regulate abortion as they see fit. But that wont be possible if Congress manages to impose one abortion policy on the entire country or if states succeed in applying their own laws beyond their territory. Both power moves are constitutionally dubious. They threaten to undermine or negate the federalist approach that was supposed to convert a winner-take-all national controversy into state-by-state debates that leave room for a diversity of policies based on a diversity of opinions. If Democrats had the necessary votes in the Senate, they would codify a right to abortion that goes even further than the limits that Roe imposed on state legislators. You might wonder where Congress gets the authority to dictate abortion policies across the country. A bill that the House passed last year locates that authority in the power to regulate interstate commerce. Abortion restrictions substantially affect interstate commerce in numerous ways, it says, citing the interstate purchase of equipment and drugs used to terminate pregnancies. Republicans can play this game, too. The 2003 Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, for instance, notionally applies to abortions in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce. As Independence Institute scholar David Kopel and University of Tennessee law professor Glenn Reynolds noted in 1997, that language is baffling to any person not familiar with the Commerce Clause sophistries of twentieth century jurisprudence, since it is not really possible to perform an abortion in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce unless a physician is operating a mobile abortion clinic on the Metroliner. Those sophistries were epitomized by a 2005 decision in which the Supreme Court said the Commerce Clause was broad enough to encompass state-authorized medical marijuana that was never sold and never crossed state lines or even left the growers property. If Congress can regulate this under the Commerce Clause, Justice Clarence Thomas warned in his dissent, then it can regulate virtually anything and the Federal Government is no longer one of limited and enumerated powers. Thomas, who last week joined four other justices in overturning Roe, might nevertheless be skeptical of the federal abortion ban that some Republicans would like to pass. When the Supreme Court upheld the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act as consistent with Roe in 2007, Thomas left open the possibility that the law might not be a permissible exercise of Congress power under the Commerce Clause. Thomas willingness to enforce constitutional limits on the federal governments powers could make him an ally of Democrats who view him as an enemy. But such cross-ideological alliances are not possible as long as Democrats are committed to the absurdly expansive reading of the Commerce Clause on which they rely for much of their agenda. If Congress can force states to allow abortion, it can also prevent them from allowing it. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who also voted to renounce Roe, is another unlikely ally of pro-choice Democrats. In his concurring opinion, Kavanaugh said the constitutional right to interstate travel would preclude states from standing in the way of women seeking abortions in jurisdictions where they remain legal. Neither that constraint nor the general rule against extraterritorial application of state laws has deterred legislators from trying to stop abortions in places that allow them. A 2021 Missouri bill, for example, would impose that states restrictions on all abortions obtained by Missouri residents, no matter where they are performed. Pro-choice states have responded with legislation that aims to frustrate such threats. Those interstate disputes pose complicated issues that will play out in the courts for years. The late Justice Antonin Scalia complained that Roe destroyed the compromises of the past, rendered compromise impossible for the future, and required the entire issue to be resolved uniformly, at the national level. The compromise that Scalia envisioned letting states go their own way on abortion is today threatened by maximalists on both sides of the issue. After a tractor-trailer packed with more than 60 migrants was found abandoned in San Antonio, reporters pressed White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre for a reaction. As of this writing, 53 have been declared dead. En route to Madrid with President Joe Biden, Jean-Pierre rightly called the awful story absolutely horrific and heartbreaking. She then added, The border is closed, which is in part why you see people trying to make this dangerous journey using smuggling networks. On the other side of the political aisle, Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas, blamed Bidens open border policies for the awful toll. These two radically different views on the border represent the national divide, but no one should overlook criminal cartels ruthless treatment of vulnerable people. In essence, Jean-Pierre was putting the administrations situation on President Donald Trumps March 2020 decision to seal the border under Title 42, ostensibly to prevent the spread of COVID-19. After he took office, Biden tried to lift Title 42, but a federal judge issued a ruling that required the administration to enforce the policy. So even though he may not want to, Biden essentially has been ordered to enforce border law. I would argue that his very reluctance sends a signal to wannabe Americans that if they cross the border illegally and theyre not caught, they could stay for years. And if they are caught, they can try again. According to the American Immigration Council, 56% of people encountered by the Border Patrol during Bidens first year in office were expelled under Title 42. As a result, the Council found, Title 42 has increased border crossings in large part by creating a situation where many people expelled back to Mexico make at least one additional attempt to cross the border. Apparently illegal entries are an if-at-first-you-dont-succeed kind of thing. The American Immigration Council also noted that the majority of families that arrived in the United States in 2021 were able to stay in the country while they seek asylum. Thats another incentive to flout the law. Theyve released 1 million illegal aliens into the U.S. since Inauguration Day, Mark Krikorian, executive director of the pro-enforcement Center for Immigration Studies, told me. And yet there are still some border controls. So its not that the border is open; its open-ish. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told Politico that the trailer deaths could present a Uvalde moment, a reference to the bipartisan compromise that passed after the Uvalde, Texas, mass shooting. I dont think so. The U.S. Citizenship Act, which Biden sent to Congress, would open the path to citizenship to immigrants in the country illegally on or before of Jan. 1, 2021. The Democratic House and Senate havent moved it. Jan. 1, 2021 that makes it sound like theres no incentive to come here illegally. But really, its passage would signal to the world that those who didnt make it by that deadline probably can cross the border illegally and wait out the 2021 they defied. I appreciate why they want to be Americans, so much so that some would put their lives in peril by making a dangerous crossing. The best way to prevent more such tragedies is to send the message that in the long run, paying human smugglers wont pay off. This week Im pulling back the curtain to show you how grandly I can mess up. Writing a weekly column is a cycle, and the cycle begins on Monday. Last weeks Sunday column is now on the bottom of your bird cage, and a new blank page awaits. I thought Id found this weeks topic Monday afternoon: The sad, terrible story of the 48 non-Americans found dead in the back of an abandoned big rig near San Antonio after a failed smuggling attempt. They died, along with five others over the next few days, because of the sweltering heat inside the locked and windowless trailer when the driver abandoned them and ran away. My angle? Shortly after the bodies were discovered, Texas Gov. Greg Abbot fired off a tweet blaming President Biden for the deaths due to the administrations deadly open border policies. This was followed by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas tweeting that he was praying for the few survivors. And there was my column. Democrats enjoy mocking Republicans for offering thoughts and prayers after gun shootings which are widely perceived by Democrats as being caused by Republicans, and now Republicans are mocking Democrats after the border deaths which are widely perceived by Republicans as being caused by Democrats. And I was off to the races. The column wrote itself as I mocked the predictable partisanship, in which every tragedy is just an opportunity to score more points for the home team. I even had a great closing line, where I offered my thoughts and prayers to all the political casualties in DC as the mid-terms draw closer. This approach, after all, is my brand. Im the guy who pokes fun at both sides while trying to de-escalate the tension in our cultural and political battles. Nothing makes me madder than seeing someone exploiting a tragedy for their own gain. Which is exactly what I had done. But then on Tuesday morning I heard about the priest whose sad, lonely duty was to try and comfort the survivors in the San Antonio hospitals. And it made me ashamed of how I had exploited the situation myself, with all my zippy phrase-turning and cheap irony. You expect more of me. Lets try again. Ive been thinking about what drives these economic and social refugees to flee their homes and try to find some kind of work in America. As you know, the overwhelming majority are people who just want to keep their heads down, work for a few months or years, and send their money home to support their loved ones left behind. The vast majority of these workers are not living high on the hog. Instead, theyre feeding the hogs, and cows, and chickens, and cleaning up the muck left behind, which, sadly, is work beneath the level of any proud TikTok-posting American. Lets think of a person. Well call him Jesus. Maybe he has a wife and a couple of kids. He probably has parents and in-laws living nearby, along with a few cousins, aunts and uncles. In his Central American town there are no jobs, no opportunities for jobs, and the drug gangs are pressuring family members to join up or face death. So what would Jesus do? Watch his family starve, or maybe lose his sons to the cartels, or his daughters to the prostitution rackets? No. Jesus will do anything for the people he loves. Hell gladly risk his life to save theirs. He wants no trouble with anyone. He just wants to work, and hes not afraid of doing the hard work Americans no longer tolerate. It is not your fault, by the way, that these conditions exist in such close proximity to America. But they do exist, whether you like it or not. And except for the happy accident of your birth, you could be just another Jesus, forced by circumstances to readily sacrifice for the ones you love. Sometimes the Jesuses of the world roll the dice that carries their fateand lose. It happened to 53 of them this week. Its a tragedy, and it demands a bit of respect not exploitation from us, the privileged minority, the armchair judges, the unbelievably favored few. For this Independence Day or any other day for that matter, a retired Army sergeant from McDowell County makes sure to honor the American flag. Retired Sgt. Allen Willis respects the flag he fought for in Afghanistan and Iraq. Willis entered the Army in 1979 with the 82nd Airborne as an aviation mechanic and combat medic. He and retired in 2016 with more than 38 years of service as sergeant first class, according to Leuzette Tweed. Along with his tours overseas, he has continued to serve his community of McDowell County with acts such as flag presentations to fellow veterans on Veterans Day in cooperation with the Marion Moose Lodge. Other times you may see him behind a costume in the many community parades making us all smile, especially the children whom he adores. But recently while visiting the Carraway cemetery in Yancey County where he was remembering his ancestors, retired Sgt. Willis heart sank to his knees when he saw his beloved flag of America blowing in the wind all shredded and torn. As tears swelled in his eyes, he ran to his truck and retrieved a brand new American flag. After attempts to lower the flag for replacement failed, he yanked the pole from the ground with the strength and determination that only a soldier with a purpose could possess, Tweed told The McDowell News. After he repositioned the pole with the new flag, the wind took hold of the Stars and Stripes.it blew as proudly as this soldier stood with pride of his accomplishment. Oh, may all Americans love our flag, respect our flag, and honor what it stands for, said Tweed of Willis. And so many do just that. The Kenyan army killed at least 10 elements of the Al-Shabab terrorist group, who were planning to carry out an attack in the country, the Ministry of Defense announced. The Defense Ministry revealed, in a statement, that members of the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) became aware of the planned attack and immediately launched a security operation in parts of Lamu County, managing to kill individuals described as new recruits of the terrorist group. The gunmen are part of the Jeysh Ayman team led by Maalim Ayman who had planned to carry out attacks at the Lamu-Southern Sudan-Ethiopia port link, KDF said, noting that during the operation, conducted within the vast Boni forest in the coastal Lamu region, the Kenyan military recovered a rocket launcher, assault weapons and various ammunition. One rocket propelled grenade launcher, seven assault weapons, assorted ammunition as well as personal effects were recovered during the operation, the statement said. The KDF said its troops will intensify operations along the Kenya-Somalia border, along with other security agencies and support from local residents to pacify the area in a bid to get rid of al-Shabab terrorists. Security officials were quoted by the Chinese news agency Xinhua as saying that al-Shabab have changed tactics and have resorted to using improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to carry out attacks in parts of coastal and northeast regions. The officials said the militants have been using Boni forest as their hideout and also to launch attacks in the region. The explosive devices strategically planted along the roads near Kenya-Somalia border are slowing down security operations to flush out militants hiding in the vast Boni forest which is near the Somali border, Xinhua noted. In another development, the Somali National Army (SNA) said this Sunday its elite forces Danab killed at least 40 al-Shabab militants during security operations carried out Saturday in the Middle Shabelle region, the central part of the country. During the operation, about 40 militants, including leaders, were killed and several vehicles were set on fire, SNA radio reported. The militants still hold swathes of rural areas in central and southern regions conducting ambushes and planting landmines. Changes to the way Missoulians dispose of garbage could be coming as a result of a new effort to make the region safer for bears. The bears are not really the problem, said Chris Servheen, a member of the Bear Smart working group and former member of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The problem is human behavior. The citys Committee of the Whole on Wednesday plans to designate Missoula as a Bear Smart city. The Bear Smart Community Program out of British Columbia helps communities reduce bear conflicts. Bear Smart members recently completed a Bear Hazard Assessment, which revealed problems with garbage as the No. 1 issue facing Missoulas bear population. Unsecured garbage accounted for 49% of all bear conflict problems in and around the city. Next on the list was bird feeders at 16%, fruit trees, livestock/pet feed at 8% and human food/freezers at 6%. Livestock depredation and lawn/crop/compost each accounted for less than 5% of attractants, and other attractants made up 9%. The Bear Smart working group plans to unveil a human-bear conflict management plan in the next month or two, which could include changes to garbage disposal protocols. A lot of the issue stems from the lack of required garbage pickup in Missoula. Missoula is a pretty laissez-faire community when it comes to garbage, said Servheen. Other communities mandate pickup, pay for it with taxes or require bear-resistant containers, he explained. Those are all solutions Missoula could implement as a result of the human-bear conflict management plan. We want to go beyond just killing the bears and shipping them off somewhere, Servheen said. We want to come up with solutions that prevent the problem from happening in the first place and build public awareness and support for this solution. The possible remedies, however, come with challenges. Bear-resistant containers cost an extra $55 per year compared with their non-resistant alternatives. City Attorney Jim Nugent worried about imposing a bear-resistant container requirement on low-income households. Nugent also explained Missoula faces a difficulty because the city doesnt own its landfill or its two garbage companies, so the city would have to make sure both garbage companies would be mandated to pick up garbage on a regular basis. But perhaps the biggest challenge facing the garbage changes would be gaining public support. Its a very complicated problem and the most important thing is getting buy-in, said City Council Ward 3 Representative Gwen Jones. All these things are solutions and theyre not incredibly complex solutions, but whats required is that people contribute and people be part of the solution, Servheen said. Despite the challenge of garnering public participation in the effort, Servheen said bear conflicts will remain a persistent problem that needs to be addressed in Missoula, particularly in outlying areas. We will always have bears in and around Missoula because we live in bear habitat, he said. BROWNING Keep checking! Bernadine Beyale shouted continuously at her search-and-rescue dogs on Thursday as they foraged along the Two Medicine River, looking for any trace of a missing 3-year-old child. Its been over a year since Arden Pepion vanished from the Two Medicine River area on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. Arden disappeared on April 22, 2021. Since then, assistance from local law enforcement and state officials has been scarce. Search efforts have been led by family friends of Ardens parents. Were staying on track," searcher Belinda Bullshoe said. "Were staying focused. Shes a member of Holding Hope Search and Rescue, a team dedicated to finding Arden. Theyve spent the bulk of the last 14 months looking for the missing girl. While Native Americans compose about 6.7% of the Montana's population, they account for, on average, 26% of the state's active missing persons cases, according to a 2017-to-2019 missing persons report from the Montana Department of Justice. Bullshoe, along with Diana Burd and other Blackfeet community members, routinely put in 11- to 12-hour days, wading through the banks of the Two Medicine River and combing through every possible square foot of the areas thick brush. Pepion was in the care of HaHaax Vielle when she went missing on April 22. Last October, Vielle was sentenced to nine months of house arrest for endangering the child and not exercising the appropriate care for someone of Ardens age. In a May 28 interview with the Missoulian, Vielle said the two had gone to the Two Medicine area near Joe Show East to hang out and so he could practice shooting. He noticed Pepion was missing while he was reloading his gun, he said. After looking around, he saw footprints leading toward the river. Search continues On Thursday, Burd, Bullshoe and their team were joined by a search and rescue group from New Mexico. Beyale is the founder of 4Corners Search and Rescue. She arrived in Browning Wednesday evening after driving up from New Mexico. Her team had search dogs in tow. She learned about Ardens case through one of her team members. Theyre smaller, but their body might be preserved a little longer, Beyale said of searching for children. Shes done about 25 searches with 4Corners, including some for missing kids. It just depends on the type of weather theyre in. About 20 people were a part of Thursdays search. Several came to actively look along the river, while others brought food to show support at the base camp. The trek started in the informal shooting range area where Vielle reportedly took Pepion. Its a gravel pit roughly 20 yards from the river bank, in a wooded area off of Joe Show East Road, 20 minutes southeast of Browning. Burd estimated shes looked there about 25 times. Its inch by inch by inch, she said. You kind of start to go crazy after a while. On Thursday, the shooting range turned up some animal bones along with an adults sweatshirt. The team marks and photographs everything any evidence found could be helpful down the road, or it might assist in another missing persons case. The area is inundated with animal bones something thats frustrating when youre on the lookout for human remains. Facing wildlife, specifically bears, has been one of the main obstacles for searchers, Bullshoe said. We have more bears here now than we did last year, she added. Theyve also encountered three mountain lions. Beyales two search dogs, Trigger and Gunny, ran in and out of the water sniffing the muddy shores, foliage and piles of logs and debris in the water. At one point, one of the dogs pulled animal bones from the river. Beyale expressed frustration that government officials who are trained to do search-and-rescue work weren't out alongside Blackfeet community members. She said she witnessed similar instances across multiple states where shes helped search for missing persons, including in New Mexico and Montana. You have these resources, but theyre not out here, Beyale said. Theyre not helping the boots-on-the-ground people. Last year, Ardens parents, Aaron and Arbana Pepion, said they were frustrated with the Blackfeet Law Enforcement's handling of the case. They pointed to a lack of communication and poor training. They might have good intentions, but they need better training, Aaron Pepion said just a month after his daughter went missing. We want to bring her home. We want our daughter home. The Blackfeet Tribal Council passed a resolution last month aiming to bolster their law enforcement. Former Council Secretary Mark Pollock said about 18 tribal police officers patrol the reservation, which spans 1.5 million acres. But because officers must take time off between shifts, Pollock said sometimes two officers may be responsible for patrolling the sprawling reservation, which is home to more than 10,000 residents. Still, the team isn't giving up hope. Burd said divers are scheduled to come to the river later this month, which hopefully will provide more answers and access to areas difficult for land searchers to reach. No one is mentally prepared to find her, Bullshoe said after the search. SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) Two Russian airplanes departed Bulgaria on Sunday with scores of Russian diplomatic staff and their families amid a mass expulsion that has sent tensions soaring between the historically close nations, a Russian diplomat said. Filip Voskresenski, a high-ranking Russian diplomat, told journalists at the airport in Bulgaria's capital Sofia before the flights left that he was among the 70 Russian diplomatic staff declared persona non grata last week and ordered to leave the country by the end of Sunday. Bulgaria's expulsion decision was announced by acting Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who took a strong stance against Russia after it invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Petkov, who lost a no-confidence vote on June 22, has claimed Moscow used hybrid war tactics to bring down his government. Petkov has said that Russia will retain 43 of its employees after the expulsion and noted that Bulgaria has just 12 diplomatic staff in Moscow. Anyone who works against the interests of Bulgaria will be called to go back to the country from which they came, he said. On Friday, Russian Ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova issued Bulgaria an ultimatum to reverse its decision and threatened that Moscow would fully sever diplomatic ties. I intend to urgently raise before the leadership of my country the issue of the closure of the Embassy of Russia in Bulgaria, which will inevitably lead to the closure of the Bulgarian diplomatic mission in Moscow, she said in a statement. The expulsion, which has severely strained diplomatic ties, is the greatest ever number of Russian diplomats expelled by Bulgaria, which has European Union and NATO membership. Bulgaria has strongly backed the Wests sanctions against Moscow since it launched its war on Ukraine more than four months ago. The European Union, which Bulgaria has been a member of since 2007, responded to Russias unjustified threat and said it stands in full support and solidarity with Bulgaria. In late April, Russia cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria after officials refused a Moscow demand to pay gas bills in rubles, Russias currency. Bulgarias defense minister was also ousted in early March for referring to Russia's war as a special military operation, the Kremlin-preferred description. Stephen McGrath reported from Sighisoara, Romania. In their latest attempt to dismantle public elk hunting throughout the Big Sky State, the United Property Owners of Montana, a group representing wealthy, out-of-state interests and some resident landowners, is suing Montana's Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks and the Fish and Wildlife Commission. Helena Hunters and Anglers, Hellgate Hunters & Anglers, Montana Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Montana Bowhunters Association, Montana Wildlife Federation, Public Land Water Access Association and Skyline Sportsmen's Association have requested to formally intervene in the lawsuit. Our groups reject UPOMs agenda and are committed to defending Montanas elk hunting and management solutions. Here's why: The UPOM lawsuit attacks wildlife management and public hunting. Given UPOM's history, it's hard to believe this is really about managing elk. We've repeatedly pointed to existing solutions and new ideas to address problematic concentrations of elk. But we're met with opposition from the same party crying wolf UPOM dismisses these solutions and demands bull elk tags for landowners as the remedy. In the 2021 legislative session, UPOM pushed bills that would have forced FWP to change from equitably allocated permit hunting to unlimited over-the-counter tags for bull elk, awarded large landowners 10 free non-resident bull tags, and given outfitted hunters 60% of non-resident elk tags. Each of these was largely defeated, leading UPOM to seek other avenues. Later in 2021, UPOM lobbied the commission and FWP to change hunting regulations to allow for unlimited bull elk hunting on private lands while cutting the number of available public land hunting opportunities in half. In early 2022, UPOM again leaned on the commission and FWP to drastically increase the number of bull tags available to landowners, while staying mostly silent on proposals that would have addressed elk distribution issues, like more aggressive and targeted cow elk harvests. During February 2022s commission meeting, new regulations were passed that allowed six months of cow elk hunting in virtually all districts at or above the stated and outdated population objectives. Many of these opportunities are now unlimited for both residents and non-residents alike, and hunters are allowed to take up to three elk per season. But UPOM filed suit, pointing to outdated and socially created elk objective numbers from 2005, to get what they really want: bull elk tags. It appears that their aim is not to address elk concentration issues but rather to benefit monetarily from selling unrestricted opportunity to hunt bull elk. Unfortunately for UPOM, things just dont add up. Consider the district UPOM cites in its lawsuit: Hunt District 417 near Lewistown. UPOM filed suit in Fergus County because theyre challenging FWPs management mainly in that hunting district, but others, too. In that district for the 2022 season, 79 either-sex (bull) permits already are set aside for landowners (by law, 15% of the total number of permits 525). Of these, only 21 were claimed by landowners in the draw. In the very same district UPOM claims needs more bull elk tags for landowners, 74% of bull elk tags reserved for landowners are left unclaimed. (Similar trends emerge in previous years). HD 417 among many others now allows hunters to hunt cow elk with a general tag, plus offers an unlimited number of cow elk tags, valid for five-and-a-half months on both public and private. UPOM is seeking not just bull permits for landowners but bull permits that they then can monetize. Theres a big difference. High-value bull elk permits are what they wanted in the 2021 legislature and what they wanted in the 2022 season-setting process. That's what this lawsuit is really about. While FWP signals they intend to defend themselves, the key leadership positions at both FWP and the commission are politically appointed, making this issue subject to politics and influence. Montanans deserve to have a voice. FWP has shown that they're willing to settle with UPOM and even admitted at a legislative hearing that they were behind the UPOM-supported HB 505, which would have given landowners 10 transferable non-resident bull tags. We don't want this to happen again. Thats why we've asked the judge in Fergus County to let us help defend the publics interest. We have the tools we need to effectively manage elk in Montana. But advancing a false narrative fueled by entitlement and an insatiable appetite, like UPOM is doing, runs counter to Montanas long-held tradition of balancing public and private interests in wildlife. We know what this lawsuit is really about, and were calling bull. On June 12-16, ministers and senior officials from the World Trade Organizations 164 members gathered in Geneva, Switzerland, for the WTOs 12th Ministerial Meeting. It garnered little press attention and achieved little of substance, despite laborious negotiations on a number of pressing topics. Created in 1995, the WTO succeeded the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), a provisional pact which had governed trade, mostly in goods, since 1948. The WTO, as a formal organization, took its place astride the international economic architecture, which also includes the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Wider in scope than the GATT covering trade in goods, services, and intellectual property and possessing a stronger capacity to resolve disputes among members, the WTO was intended to usher in a new era of international trade expansion under rules that would apply equitably to large and small members alike. The WTO also grew to include countries long excluded due to Cold War divides. After 15 years of difficult negotiation, China joined in December 2001. Russia followed in August 2012, with other former East Bloc countries affiliating in various years. Since its inception, the WTO has sadly failed to accomplish any major trade liberalizing agreements, and its dispute settlement function has fallen into disrepair. The WTOs problems stem from changes taking place within member countries, including the United States, and from a growing divide between some of its largest members. Candidate and President Donald Trump, reflecting growing voter disenchantment with international trade and globalization, criticized the WTO as taking advantage of the United States and even threatened to withdraw from the trade body. He also blocked appointment of judges to a key WTO dispute settlement panel. Although President Joe Biden holds more positive views about trade, he likewise has failed to agree to new judges for the appeals body, which now sits rudderless and unable to function. The growing divide between market-oriented members, like America and Europe, and state-dominated economies like China and Russia has added further stress. The WTO is ill-equipped to resolve fundamental differences between economic systems. China under President Xi Jinping has reversed earlier measures liberalizing its economy and trade regime, and now embraces policies sharply at odds with WTO free trade principles. Conflicting interests and attitudes held by India, Russia, and other countries also complicate the WTOs ability to forge consensus on a host of trade issues facing members. The recent ministerial meeting reached agreement on a number of matters, some of which had been under negotiation for decades. Members agreed to reduce certain fisheries subsidies to cut down on harmful overfishing; clarified rules allowing for suspension of patents for life-saving drugs like the COVID vaccine; extended a moratorium on tariffs on electronic commerce, such as e-books; and took modest steps in a few other areas. Members also committed to fix the dispute settlement system by 2024. The ministerials main accomplishment appears to be keeping alive the prospect, however small, of further progress on these issues in the future. But with economies and politics in many member countries battered by COVID-related disruptions, and geopolitical tensions on the rise in many parts of the globe, its difficult to believe that conditions for finding common ground on these and even more contentious matters like climate change will improve in the months and years to come. The WTO and its predecessor, the GATT, have played an important role in setting rules of the road for a broad diversity of member countries for many years and in resolving disputes among them. How effective it can be in the face of the difficult challenges now confronting it remains to be seen. " " They look pretty, don't they? It turns out that these raw diamonds were mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the midst of a rebel uprising. See more diamond pictures Malcolm Linton/ Getty Images In the 2006 movie "Blood Diamond," Leonardo DiCaprio plays a morally questionable diamond smuggler in war-ravaged Sierra Leone. Although the plotline is pure fiction, the movie is based on real events. In the 1990s, a rebel organization called the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) spread a reign of terror across diamond mining villages in Sierra Leone. The RUF committed brutal acts of torture, rape and murder to intimidate the citizens of Sierra Leone and take control of the country's diamond mines. Tens of thousands were killed and tens of thousands more lost limbs to the rebels. Young boys were forcibly recruited and brainwashed to work for roving death squads. Advertisement Meanwhile, some of the diamonds that were mined by slave labor in Sierra Leone were smuggled to neighboring countries and sold to international diamond traders, who either didn't know the source of the jewels or turned a blind eye to their blood-soaked origins. Rebel armies in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola also used diamonds to fund their wars [source: PBS Online NewsHour]. In the late 1990s, an estimated 15 percent of the world's rough diamond production came from regions in conflict [source: PAC]. So-called "conflict diamonds" or "blood diamonds" first came to international attention in the late 1990s via outcry from human rights organizations and the media. In May 2000, several major African diamond-producing countries met in Kimberley, South Africa, to collectively address the controversy. That December, the United Nations passed a resolution supporting the creation of an international diamond certification process that would keep blood diamonds off the market. In November 2002, a coalition of diamond-producing nations, diamond industry representatives and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) drafted the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS), a framework designed to regulate the international rough diamond trade. Seventy-five countries joined the Kimberley Process -- the shortened name for the KPCS -- and vowed to set and follow standards that would prevent the illicit trade of conflict diamonds. Seven years later, critics of the Kimberley Process question whether the KPCS regulations have had any real effect on the flow of illicit diamonds from conflict regions. Partnership Africa Canada (PAC), an NGO that helped draft the KPCS, believes that 20 percent of the world's rough diamond trade is still unregulated and unmonitored [source: PAC]. What does the KPCS require and which countries are defying its efforts? Read on to learn more about the possible return of blood diamonds. " " Most local governments require business owners even online sellers to legitimize their operations by obtaining business licenses. Rawpixel Ltd/ThinkStock In the 1989 remake of the movie "Parenthood," father-to-be Tod remarks to his future mother-in-law, "You know, Mrs. Buckman, you need a license to buy a dog or drive a car. Hell, you need a license to catch a fish! But they'll let any [expletive] be a father" [source: IMDB]. Tod's perception is that licensing is arbitrary it doesn't make much sense. However, when you break it down, licensing makes perfect sense. The word "license" comes from the Latin licentia (freedom, liberty), a cognate of licentem/licere (to be lawful), whose root, leik, means "to offer or bargain" [source: eymonline.com]. A license affirms one's freedom to perform the licensed action. Most local governments require business owners even online sellers to legitimize their operations by obtaining business licenses. Whether you're selling through a marketplace like Etsy or operating an independent website, you're required to abide by your local laws. This often means getting a business license. Depending on what you're selling, you might also need to obtain additional licensing. Furthermore, depending on how you structure your business (sole proprietorship, partnership, or corporation), you might need to obtain certain federal permits. Check your city or county's website for information about the permits required in your area. Advertisement In addition, here are some other things to consider when you're thinking about starting a business that sells things online: If you're operating from home, be sure to check with your city or county zoning and planning agency to see if a home occupation permit is required. If you're operating your online store from an apartment or rented residence, check your lease for any restrictions or rules around operating a home business. Etsy advises its online sellers that they may be obligated to pay sales taxes. If so, you'll need to apply for a sales tax ID number. If you're not sure where to start, the U.S. Small Business Administration offers a useful hyperlinked list of federal and state websites where you can find information about licensing requirements in your area and for your type of business. In addition, companies like Intuit can help you identify and for a fee submit the permits and licenses required for your business area and type. Click over to the next page to learn more about how you can get legit by obtaining a business license. Former Japanese prime minister Yukio Hatoyama has called for more political dialogue between China and Japan and accused the current Japanese government of playing up ideological differences to "encircle" Beijing together with the US. Relations between Asia's biggest economies, already complicated by wartime history and territorial disputes in the East China Sea, have been further strained after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida drew parallels between Russia's invasion of Ukraine and China's increasingly assertive behaviour in Asia. But Hatoyama told the World Peace Forum, an event hosted by Tsinghua University in Beijing, that the Japanese government had escalated the confrontation between the two sides by playing up "differences and values". Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team. As a firm ally of the United States, Japan has played an active role in several US-led multilateral mechanisms - including the Quad, a four-way informal security grouping that also includes Australia and India, as well as the Indo Pacific Economic Framework - the effect of which Hatoyama said was "the de facto encirclement of China". This year marks the 50th anniversary of the normalisation of diplomatic relations between Beijing and Tokyo, and Hatoyama said on Sunday that the US, Japan and China should increase efforts to manage tensions, particularly over Taiwan, which is widely seen as a dangerous potential flashpoint. He said Kishida's comments about China were "totally different from reality" and urged both the US and Japan to reaffirm the one-China policy to avoid the tragedy of war over Taiwan. "I believe between China and the US, especially between US President [Joe] Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, there should be good dialogue going on to assure a consensus on the one-China policy - that is Taiwan is part of China's territory, which should be reaffirmed," he said. Story continues Hatoyama, who was in office between 2009 and 2010 leading a coalition of parties opposed to the usually dominant Liberal Democratic Party, also called for more political dialogue between China and Japan and said such exchanges were "unusual". "It is not surprising that two independent countries have differences, but to use this as a reason for not communicating between leaders, this is foolish and a dereliction of diplomacy," Hatoyama said. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pictured at last month's Nato summit, the first Japanese leader to attend such an event. Photo: Kyodo alt=Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pictured at last month's Nato summit, the first Japanese leader to attend such an event. Photo: Kyodo> He said a mechanism could be established so that the foreign ministers of Japan and China could meet every two or three months, adding: "Even meeting online would be good so that when the atmosphere improves, we can restart our military dialogues. "If usual communication is like this, once the situation escalates, communication between China and Japan will be even more difficult, and I am very worried that a situation, which could have been prevented beforehand, will end up being uncontrollable." Tensions have worsened between China and Japan in the past year as Tokyo has become more vocal in its support for Taiwan - which Beijing claims as part of its territory - and made what Beijing sees as "provocative" moves, such as sending an active defence official to the island. Kishida attended a Nato summit meeting on Wednesday, becoming the first Japanese leader to do so, as the transatlantic alliance seeks to deepen ties with Asia-Pacific partners. Last month, highlighting growing concern about the prospect of Beijing attacking Taiwan, he told the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore: "Ukraine today may be East Asia tomorrow." 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 2022 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2022. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. A Kewanee Police officer suffered several knife-cut wounds after he and another officer tried to disarm an armed man Sunday outside JoJos gas station in Kewanee. Austin Norberg, 33, of Annawan, Norberg appeared in Henry County Court on Monday on charges of Armed Violence with a Category II Weapon, Aggravated Battery to a Peace Officer, and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon by a Felon. Kewanee police said this is the knife that injured an officer responding to an incident last Sunday at joJo's gas station. Kewanee Police said they received a call from JoJos Gas Station, 501 N. Main St., just after 9 a.m. saying that a man had attempted to pay for gas using a stolen check. An officer on the call knew Norberg, even though he reportedly gave police a false name, and the dispatcher informed the officers that Norberg had a valid Henry County warrant for failure to appear on charges relating to Possession of Methamphetamine and Obstructing Justice. Police said that instead of complying with the arrest, Norberg reached for a 5 1/2-inch knife hidden in his waistband. In body camera video that appears on the KPD Facebook, officers can be seen holding Norberg's arms and yelling for him to comply. Instead, the video shows, Norberg, in a seated position, tries to thrust the knife toward his own throat and threatens to kill himself. A Kewanee officer was treated for several knife cuts after responding to an incident Sunday at JoJo's gas station in Kewanee. Police eventually used a stun gun on Norberg and seized the knife, but not before an officer suffered several lacerations to his hand. The officer was treated at OSF St Luke Medical Center where he received 8 stitches for his injuries. Norberg was also transported to OSF St. Luke Medical Center where he was treated and released to the custody of the Henry County Sheriffs Office. A preliminary hearing for Norberg is set for 3 p.m. July 5. Armed Violence is a Class X felony that carries a potential minimum sentence of 10 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. Aggravated Battery to a Police Officer is a Class 2 Felony that carries a potential sentence of 3 to 7 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. Unlawful Possession of a Weapon by a Felon is a Class 2 Felony that carries a potential sentence of 3 to 14 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. This article originally appeared on Star Courier: KPD officer recovers from knife wounds after Sunday arrest goes awry After fighting Medicaid expansion for years, Republican legislative leaders now appear poised to approve it. If that happens, it would mean thousands more people in Burke County would have health insurance. NCDHHS Secretary Kody Kinsley was at Broughton Hospital on June 22 for its Employee Appreciation Day. On Wednesday, NC Senate Bill 408 was referred to the committee on rules and operations of the Senate, after passing a third reading in the state House of Representatives and the Senate. Kinsleys department has until December to come up with a plan for expanding Medicaid to thousands more residents in North Carolina, according to the bill. He will then present the expansion plan on Dec. 15 to a committee made up of six Senate members and six House members. The committee then would vote to make a recommendation to the full membership of both chambers, according to the bill. While it is up to Kinsley and his department to come up with a plan, the bill lays out certain stipulations a plan will have to include. One of those stipulations is that $1 billion in nonrecurring funds goes to address the opioid, substance abuse and mental health crisis in the state using savings from the additional federal Medicaid match available under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the bill says. The bill also calls for the plan to project the savings in the existing Medicaid program from implementing an expansion plan. In addition, the plan should include specific proposals to increase access to preventive care for those enrolled in Medicaid, the bill says. Sitting in a small conference room at Broughton Hospital last week, Kinsley told The News Herald that Medicaid expansion would mean coverage for an estimated 6,000 additional people in Burke County. So who are the people in Burke County who would benefit from Medicaid expansion? Kinsley said it would be people who work in child care or for a business that cant quite afford to provide private health care or those who work in direct support jobs doing in-home care for people. He said many of those who would benefit are working maybe making $15 to $16 an hour but its still not enough to make their bills. It also could be people who are working but arent getting enough hours to qualify for health insurance. Kinsley said the important thing that people need to remember is that those who are uninsured are getting health care but they are going to emergency rooms, which is the most expensive place they could get it and others end up paying for that cost. He said the goal of Medicaid expansion is to get people to the doctor earlier when its cheaper and preventative strategies can make a difference for their health. So its 6,000 people in Burke County that can have access to that kind of care, Kinsley said. Kinsley said those on Medicaid would likely have a small co-pay for a doctors visit. He noted that a lot of patients at Broughton Hospital are uninsured. Medicaid expansion would allow the state to draw down federal money to support the care of those individuals and support the finances of the facility, which helps its staff as well. He said the states Medicaid expansion would mean $4.8 billion in federal funding a year for North Carolina. Currently, the facility cares for those patients without the Medicaid funding. So thats why Medicaid expansion is also good for the bottom line of Broughton Hospital and also another way for us to invest back into the workforce and give them the salary adjustments that we need to give them, Kinsley said. If Medicaid expansion happens in North Carolina, departments of social services will be the place where the potential uninsured would enroll, which would mean a bigger workload for those departments. Kinsley said what is being proposed in the expansion packet is additional funding for departments of social services because of the additional workload expected. The Medicaid expansion also will mean that doctors and substance use counselors who were treating the uninsured for free or on a sliding scale would be able to bill Medicaid, Kinsley said. This is whats been so hard in our fight against addiction and the opioid epidemic is that weve had short term money from the federal government to fight opioids, but what business can run on short term money?, Kinsley said. Businesses need reliable income, they need to be able to plan their finances. If youre running a counseling shop or a substance use disorder group therapy program, you need to be able to hire people. Thats why having that reliable (Medicaid) drawn-down helps us serve folks and also stabilize the health care economy. I just pulled my dads old Thermos off of the back porch to put his now decaf coffee in, to keep it semi-fresh and warm. Its dinged up from his winter trips. The snow machine runs, Ski-doos, Polaris you know, those Alaska snow-gos, aka snow mobiles, not the things that blow manmade snow onto ski slopes in the south. The snow machine mini-trips where he pulled the sled behind the Ski-doo with the Malamute-Husky mixed breeds chained to the sleds side rails. That team he never quite managed to run anywhere but on the river in front of the village. He flew other Bureau of Indian Affairs teachers on moose hunting trips in his Maule M5 single engine plane, because he could transport them to the best hunting grounds and fly them and the carcass and rack back to their respective villages. The summer fishing trips to remote lakes in the Tikchik Lake system in southwest Alaska, sometimes with his children along and one of a slew of the BIA family, other teaching couples we met in the 21 years we lived there. Well, the parents did. I only lived in Alaska close to 13 years. Or sometimes the I just gotta get away from the six females in my one bathroom house bug would hit, and hed escape into the Alaskan skies to just fly, and that Thermos full of stand-a-spoon-up-in-it coffee always seemed to be tucked by his side. My dad had the keys to the school and their toilets as the principal/teacher. All day, he had access to the percolator coffee, just a quick trip down the school hallway and straight across the raised wooden sidewalk to our front door. No thermos needed. Im not sure if he taught more than arts classes when he was my principal. I learned to throw very ugly vases, which promptly collapsed because the clay was too wet, as well as chunky coffee mugs with uncomfortable handles. I think one of my masterpieces exploded in the kiln and took out a bunch of my classmates work. Oops. There are so many memories I have of camping trips with my dad, my sisters (at least one or three, depending on who was in boarding high school or staying with an aunt or my dads cousins ex-wife) and the village boys my dad took along to even out the boy-to-girl ratio. We girls never went camping just with our dad. Wed head downstream on the Kuskokwim River, dodging sandbars and trying not to navigate down the wrong sloughs so we wouldnt have to backtrack. Or up the river, past the villagers fish camps. The Thermos was tucked in between the gunwale and the gas can. My nephew wanted to take my dads Thermos with him when he went to Michigan for aviation mechanic and flight school. I told him he couldnt take my dads, but that Id give him my small but well-traveled Stanley Thermos. It sat in my old Tacoma on the horrific trip from the Pacific Northwest when I moved back from Oregon in 1998. And it moved with me to Mitchell County, then Tappahannock, Virginia before the last three moves back to and around North Carolina, before I settled at the property my sisters and I own out by Lake James. He has yet to earn the rights to the big, ole Stanley Thermos of my childhood memories. Many say that Montana is a great place to raise a family, but a group of parents with the Montana Family Court Awareness Project warn that whatever you do, dont get divorced here. Elizabeth Peterson was divorced for several years before her ex-husband crashed through the door with a new legal maneuver, turning her divorce into a high-conflict custody battle. He accused Peterson of alienating their children against him. The legal tactic, called parental alienation syndrome, is applied in family court when it is believed the childs preferred parent has indoctrinated the child into rejecting the other by using psychological manipulation. The PA theory claims that certain behaviors in the child are indicative of alienation, including when a child sees no redeeming qualities in the rejected parent or the child expresses feelings that are highly critical of the rejected parent. It is important to note that PA claims are often used as a defense against alleged abuse. When used successfully, the court might ignore evidence of abuse and create a parenting plan that only allows the preferred parent to see the child in a supervised visit. In some cases, the court restricts all contact between the child and the preferred parent. Judges then grant full or primary custody to the rejected and abusive parent. While many courts around the country have denounced PA as a viable legal tactic, the use of the pseudo-diagnosis has cropped up in hotspots around the country, particularly in California, New York, and Montana. An unrecognized diagnosis The parental alienation diagnosis has intentionally been excluded from the DSM-5, the classification manual of mental disorders in the United States. The manual, published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA), provides standardized guidance on identifying and treating mental disorders. The DSM-5 has undergone five revisions since its creation in 1952, but parental alienation has not been added due to a lack of empirical or clinical evidence, according to the APA Dictionary. In 2020, the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), the diagnostic manual used by the rest of the world and governed by the World Health Organization (WHO), removed parental alienation from its pages because it is not a health care term. Rather, the term belongs in certain judicial contexts, particularly in family court. The WHO also notes that there is no evidence-based intervention strategy for PA, thus disqualifying it from the ICD-11. The PA tactic started cropping up in Montanas courts around 2002, according to Kyla Hailstone, creator of the Montana Family Court Awareness Project, which advocates for family court reform and for parents who have lost custody of their children due to a PA claim. Since then, self-proclaimed experts have trained local mental health professionals in PA diagnosis, who now testify as expert witnesses in court. These professionals unknowingly contribute and foster an environment for the abuser to have incredible power to escalate their abuse and expose themselves to potential legal action, Hailstone said. A similar pattern played out when the pop-science craze of blood spatter analysis entered courtrooms in 1957 and persisted for more than 45 years despite no scientific evidence to support the theory, according to one ProPublica article. Herbert MacDonell cooked up the forensic technique in his basement, eventually demonstrating his theory to a judge and jury with a vial of his own blood. Even with no scientific evidence to back it up, blood spatter analysis was dubbed reliable enough to be entered into trial. Appellate courts in 36 states started turning to the blood spatter experts trained by MacDonell. The eulogy for microscopic hair analysis came after the nearly two decades of being admissible in court. In 2015, the FBI conducted an investigation into the organization's own microscopic hair comparison unit. The review of 2,500 cases found that errors had been made in 90% of cases. At least 33 people had been sentenced to death due to erroneous statements made regarding hair analysis. The FBI reported that at the time of the investigation, nine of the defendants had already been executed and five died of other causes while on death row. Bite-mark analysis, which links bite marks in flesh to the dentition of the suspect, is yet another forensic discipline that's now dead because of the notable dearth of published, peer-reviewed research, according to the National Library of Medicine. Expert testimony by forensic dentists was admissible for nearly four decades before being brought into question in the early 2000s. Like other previously popular forensic crazes, PA lacks sufficient peer-reviewed and published research to establish scientific validity. Domestic violence PA labeling has been used as a method for dismissing reports of abuse and, in some cases, dismissal of expert child abuse evaluations, according to a study by Joan Meier, professor at George Washington University School of Law. When abuse is alleged in family court, the victim is frequently referred to a psychologist. The problem is that some psychologists responsible for the evaluations have been trained in PA, according to Danielle Pollack, a policy expert who has focused on family court reform. If you allege abuse, theres no exit. Theres no way to get real abuse claims to the light of day because youre channeled into this, Pollack said. Historically, judges in family courts have been skeptical of claims of child abuse, because of sexist tropes that are alive and well in the U.S. I think its a relief for a lot of judges. Alienation provides a tool or an out for decision makers to say he wouldnt really (do that), Pollack said, adding that culturally, the U.S. is far from acknowledging the prevalence and severity of domestic violence. Gallatin County lawyer Jody Palmer works as a family law consultant, and at times has advised her clients against reporting domestic abuse because of the pushback from bad actors in the countys district court. Sometimes I advise my clients, if your kid is being abused, wouldnt you rather be there 50% of the time in order to mitigate (the abuse)? Children only need one good-enough parent to turn out OKthe more adverse childhood experiences the higher chance of being a criminal or having dysfunctional lives, Palmer said. In Petersons case, a Bozeman mother who lost her children over a PA, a police report documenting an assault by her ex-husband and the permanent order of protection that followed was disregarded during the custody battle, according to an affidavit Peterson signed. The physical altercation occurred in 2012 when Peterson told her husband that she was going to file for divorce. His reaction was explosive. It resulted in bruised ribs and a fractured hand. Moments after the attack, her husband called their four children downstairs to see her crumpled on the floor, according to Peterson. During the custody battle, it was recommended that her son, Pahl Johnson, now 19, be evaluated for PA and most likely undergo reunification therapy, court ordered therapy meant to repair the relationship with the rejected parent. But at the time of the custody hearing, Johnson was out of state and was determined to stay there if the alternative meant reunification and living full time, once again, with his father. He wouldnt feed us until we said mom is a whore or something like that to boost his self-confidence, Johnson said, adding that angry outbursts were common. A 30-year-old man would be screaming at us because we didnt do the dishes right. Petersons oldest child, Hannah Johnson, wrote a statement at the end of 2018, describing her time living with her father. It was a dark, confusing, hurtful, neglectful and emotionally dangerous situation for any child to be exposed to, she wrote. Despite the physical and emotional abuse, Petersons ex-husband now has sole custody of their two younger children, and Peterson, labeled as the alienator, has been granted one hour of supervised visitation, which costs her $60 for every session. GAL and CPS Guardian ad Litems (GAL) and Child Protective Services (CPS) workers are supposed to be neutral parties who are there to advocate for the children through a tumultuous period in their lives. But these neutral parties are oftentimes not so neutral and overreach is common. Judges often abdicate their decision-making power to the neutral parties because theyve had the most engagement with the family involved in the divorce, thus judges opt to adopt their position. Phillipsburg resident Dave Kesler was initially granted full custody of his daughter, Kelly, following his divorce. It wasnt long before his ex-wife challenged the decision before the Supreme Court, but lost the appeal. When Kesler made allegations of neglect and abuse against his ex-wife, the Child and Family Services Division decided to initiate an investigation on Kesler instead. Details about Keslers history were included in the findings, which per statute, should have been omitted by the state, according to a findings report by the Office of the Child and Family Ombudsman (OCFO). The report also found that the investigations into the alleged abuse were handled inappropriately. From the investigation, it was concluded that Keslers daughter should be removed from his care because of a son who died by suicide. The kicker is that Ive never had a son, period.Ive never had a son. I have two daughters 20 years and 12 days apart, Kesler said. Neither have died by suicide. The CPS worker on Keslers case eventually removed Kelly on suspicion of PA. Kesler reached out to legislators and the head of CPS, and four days later Kelly was returned with no conditions in place. Officials notified Kesler that a mistake had been made and the CPS worker was no longer involved. The OCFO reported evidence of preferential treatment to Keslers ex-wife. The case was closed, with documents stating the co-parenting had improved, but other issues would be dealt with in the parenting plan. By way of the CPS worker, Keslers files were turned over to Yellowstone County psychologist Dr. Michael Butz, who is often utilized by the Montana Supreme Court in cases of PA. Butz found that Kesler was not engaging in parental alienation, but the report was suppressed in court. CPS then brought on Robert Page, a licensed clinical professional counselor who also advertises forensic consultation services in Great Falls. Pages assessment found PA to be occurring, but could not identify who was engaging in alienating behavior. Witness advocates have submitted statements that Kelly told her attorney that she didnt want to visit her mom anymore, but CPS interpreted the statement as a sign of alienation. Now, CPS has temporary legal custody of Kelly, but she has been placed with her mother. Kesler travels the 556 mile roundtrip from Phillipsburg to Billings regularly for family therapy and supervised visits, but his ex-wife often cancels at the last minute. Legislation In March 2022, President Joe Biden signed into law the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act, which included Kaydens Law, legislation that incentivizes courts to minimize the use of reunification programs and therapies and increase domestic violence education among judges. Kaydens Law was named for Kayden Mancuso, who was murdered by her father in Philadelphia during a court-ordered unsupervised visit when she was 7 years old. Mancusos mother had submitted evidence to the court of the fathers violent history, but still he was granted unsupervised contact with the child. There have been at least eight children murdered by a divorcing or separating parent in Montana since 2008, and 851 cases throughout the country, according to data compiled by the Center for Judicial Excellence. Now its up to individual states to decide if theyll adopt the legislation. Recently, mental health professionals and advocates have testified at the Child Family Health and Human Services Committees to raise awareness of the issue, but conversations about adopting the law have yet to begin. Yellowstone County District Judge Ashley Harada has voluntarily participated in 2021 training provided by the Montana Judge's Association that included training on PA. You need to look closely at (PA claims). It doesnt fit every circumstance. You have to really understand whats happening behind closed doors, Harada said. There are a plethora of reasons that a child may reject a parent in a divorce including hybrid cases in which there may be alienating behaviors from a favored parent but real parenting difficulties in the rejected parent. Terminology is important in these cases, Harada said. Dr. Robert Simon, forensic psychologist out of San Diego, conducted the Montana Judges Association training and provided a packet containing slides from the presentation. Simon states that alienation is very hard to accomplish, especially when a parent has established a secure and quality attachment with a child. And oftentimes in these situations, both parents engage in alienating conduct and both contributed to the breakdown of the relationship. Overall, alienation is surprisingly infrequent given how much attention is given to it, Simon said. For years, decades really, perhaps longer, community leaders, government officials, green NGOs and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) have sought to keep the Gallatin River clean. The river has always been the pride and joy of our community. Many used its reputation as a blue ribbon trout fishery to entice visitors and growth to the area. Perhaps we thought the Gallatin River was impervious to pollution. Maybe that allowed us to take the river for granted. For years it seemed to be the common, if unspoken refrain, lets protect the Gallatin. We now know Initiative 191, the petition to designate portions of the Gallatin and Madison Rivers to be declared Outstanding Resource Water, will not be on the November ballot. Gallatin Wildlife Association (GWA) supported this effort because the quality of the Gallatin River is clearly in jeopardy. We hoped electronic signatures could be used to support I-191 and that supporters of the initiative would fund traditional signature gathering. Neither one happened. GWA knew success was a long shot. We have no shame in admitting that, but we thought it was worth a try. If nothing else, we helped create a discussion. But some opponents presented misinformation when they objected to the initiative. We were not surprised there would be resistance, or by who was doing the resisting. We were surprised at some of the alarmist rationale many put forth. There is not enough space and time to respond to all the falsehoods, but we can respond to some. For one, GWA efforts on the I-191 petition were not organized, nor funded by big out-of-state money. Face it, Bozeman, GWA is an 100% all-volunteer non-profit organization established in 1976 right here in Bozeman. GWA didnt spend one dollar on this petition nor did we receive one dollar from any out of state source for this petition. Secondly, I-191 would not violate the Montana Constitution by taking private property rights without compensation. There is no right to pollute our River. The Montana Constitution provides for the ballot process. This process is about as close to the people having a voice as you can get. People should have recourse when instate or out of state real estate developers exploit the land and politics for personal profit. Big money in power and politics make it hard for the rest of the citizenry to be heard. We also believe the river is not beyond hope, nor beyond returning the river to the near pristine condition it once was. The question is: what are you, what are we going to do about it? Do we care? Apathy is a terrible thing and we see signs of it right here in our community. Apathy must be a factor when only 30% of Gallatin County residents voted in our last midterm primary. Some said this was not the proper means to go about protecting the Gallatin. To that we say, what is the proper means? Many people find fault with ideas being promoted, but they dont offer any of their own. What is the best way to move forward to protect the Gallatin and Madison Rivers? Evidence of degrading water quality in the Gallatin River indicates that the existing rules and agencies to protect the river are not working. I-191 has shone a bright light on the increasing degradation. It is time for state agencies, the Legislature, and the voting public to respond. Recently, DEQ released findings assessing the Gallatin River and found the following: This assessment of the Gallatin River indicates that the river is impaired due to exceeding thresholds for algae in 25 percent of the samples . Excess algae is often caused by an exceedance of thresholds for Total Nitrogen and Total Phosphorus. This proves our point above and why we say the Gallatin River is at an inflection point. GWA is truly interested in applying the best scientific information to resource protection in these dire times of climate change. Our motive is simple: Be a voice for fish and wildlife with a commitment to doing what science suggests to save the planet. Montana citizens should be allowed to take necessary steps to protect what makes this the last best place without being villainized. Chinas top diplomat has arrived on his first visit to Myanmar since the military seized power last year to attend a regional meeting. The government says it's a recognition of its legitimacy while opponents protested it as a violation of peace efforts. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will join counterparts from Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam in a meeting of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation group in the central city of Bagan. The grouping is a Chinese-led initiative that includes the countries of the Mekong Delta, a potential source of regional tensions due to an increasing number of hydroelectric projects that are altering the flow and raising concerns of ecological damage. China has built 10 dams along the upper stretch of the Mekong. The self-proclaimed president of the Republic of Belarus, Oleksandr Lukashenko, said that he had given the order to target government buildings in Kyiv. The dictator announced this during a speech on the occasion of the country's Independence Day . Lukashenko made it clear that he plans to use the Polonaise missile systems. According to him, the reason for the attack on Ukraine could be an attack on Belarusian facilities: the Mozyr Refinery and the Lunynets airfield (since the first days of the invasion of the Russian Federation, it has been actively used by Russian aviation for shelling Ukraine). " A little less than a month ago, I gave the order to the units of the Armed Forces to target, as it is now fashionable to say, the decision-making centers in your capitals... I have been preparing for this for a long time, remember, I told you all the time - "Polonese"... You are completely under the impact of these missiles. And I will not look at who is sitting there in offices or palaces ," the Belarusian dictator voiced his threats. Lukashenko also accused Ukraine of trying to attack Belarus. Such an attempt seems to have been "three days ago". However, according to the version of the self-proclaimed leader of the Belarusians, the missile was shot down by the Pantsir. Lukashenko said that "not a single soldier of Belarus" is fighting against Ukraine. However, earlier he allowed himself to say that Belarus will have to fight for Western Ukraine. Before the invasion of the Russian Federation, Lukashenko declared that he and Putin would do everything so that "Ukraine would be ours" and claimed that the war would last only a few days. Back in 2017, the author of the "Military" Mariner drew attention to the threats to Ukraine that arise as a result of the Belarusian missile program . In recent years, Belarus, in cooperation with China, has created the Polonaise missile complex. TTH: caliber 301 mm firing range of the A200 missile - 200 km (A300 - 290 km ) ) guidance system (inertial + GPS) shooting accuracy of KVO 15-30 m (according to various data) chassis MZKT-7930 8X8 Composition of the complex: 4 launchers (8 launch containers each), on MZKT-7930 8X8 chassis 4 transport and charging machines, on the MZKT-7930 8X8 chassis Battery command post, on the MAZ-6317 chassis Another security technique In 2016, the Polonaise complex passed state tests and was adopted by the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus. It is currently in service with the 336th rocket artillery brigade (Osypovichi). In 2017, the Belarusian military conducted tests of the Polonaise complex with Chinese A300 missiles - with a firing range of 290 km. Such a range allows you to use "Polonaise" at operational-tactical depth of application. Read also: "Zaporizhia avenger" from the National Guard shot down an enemy attack aircraft Su-25 (VIDEO) The SSO of Ukraine received foreign combat buggies (VIDEO) Enemy losses on Ukrainian soil amount to almost 38,500 - General Staff of the Armed Forces Russian occupiers' ammunition is detonated in Nova Kakhovka Over the past day, Ukrainian soldiers eliminated another 160 occupiers: data from the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Soldiers of the 93rd OMBr defeated the occupying tank and BMP-1 near Izyum (PHOTO) Fighters of the SSO "Azov" together with counter-intelligence of the SBU neutralized the enemy BMP North Korea on Sunday lashed out at the US, South Korea and Japan for pushing for more trilateral military cooperation against the North, warning that the move forces Pyongyang to build up its military capabilities, AP reported. "The current situation urgently requires strengthening the country's defenses in order to actively counter the rapidly deteriorating security situation on the Korean Peninsula and in the rest of the world," the North Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement, which did not specify how exactly it will strengthen its military potential. The statement questioned a trilateral meeting between US, South Korean and Japanese leaders on the sidelines of last week's NATO summit, during which they stressed the need for stronger cooperation to combat North Korea's nuclear threats. Russia MOD announces for first time name of commander of East group of special operations in Ukraine Byblos Bank Armenia introduces the premium World Elite Mastercard More than 1,000 heat-related deaths reported in Spain, Portugal so far in July Azerbaijan population exceeds 10mn 629 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia past one week Catholicos of All Armenians travels to US Who gave information about alleged bomb in Armenia First Presidents house? Meteorology official: Armenia heatwave will gradually recede as of Friday World oil prices on the rise State of emergency formally declared in Sri Lanka US hopes oil production will increase after Biden's Middle East visit 792 children born in Artsakh in first half of 2022 Elderly woman killed by alligators after falling into pond in Florida Von der Leyen heads to Azerbaijan hoping to get more natural gas Zelenskyy dismisses security service chief, top prosecutor Armenia political party head resigns UK man, 40, found dead in Italy hotel room No bomb found in Armenia First President's house Mars sued over 'unsafe' Skittles Unknown person reports bomb threat in Armenia's First President house Armenia FM and US Assistant Secretary of State discuss regional security issues Fears of social upheaval growing in Germany Indian authorities announce they made 2 billion vaccines against COVID-19 Israel to increase flights to Asia after Saudi Arabia opens airspace IMF to 'substantially' lower global economic growth forecasts Erdogan expects to hold talks with Putin in Tehran Japan to refuse to set a ceiling on defense spending Negotiations on resumption of Iran nuclear deal coming to end UAE allocates more than $800 million for space program State Department approves $1.5 Billion arms sale Extreme heat wave hits Europe US needs another $3 billion to remove Huawei and ZTE from networks Germany to resume requirement to wear masks in closed public places Air temperature in Armenia to reach 42 degrees Ankara rejects Liz Truss Blinken on meeting of Armenian and Azerbaijani Foreign Ministers in Tbilisi It is in Iraq's interest to continue to insist on rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia G-20 meeting ends without final communique Armenia PM Pashinyan sends congratulatory message to Georgia PM Erdogan and Macron discuss implementation of joint production of air defense systems 2,000-year-old cemetery with giant tombs discovered in Iran Armenias Khachik villagers dont recall any period after 1990s war when Azeris violated ceasefire at such regularity Georgia gets NATO partner status in security operation Mouflons spotted again at Zangezur State Sanctuary of Armenia Crown prince: Saudi Arabia cant increase oil production beyond 13 million barrels per day Scholz: Increased coal, oil use in Germany will be temporary Armenia opposition MP: Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem is in a hurry Vandals desecrate Jewish gravestones in Istanbul Biden: US will not walk away from Middle East More than 30 people die in tribal clashes in Sudan One of most notorious drug lords is arrested in Mexico What did Armenia, Azerbaijan FMs discuss in Tbilisi? Armenia activists stage protest on top of Mount Hatis US, Iraq leaders declare their commitment to strong bilateral partnership between their countries Toivo Klaar: EU supports Armenia, Azerbaijan bilateral decision to hold FMs meeting What did Biden agree upon with Saudi leaders during meeting in Jeddah? Armenia, Azerbaijan foreign ministers Tbilisi meeting concludes European Commission formally proposes ban on Russia gold imports Armenia, Azerbaijan FMs Georgia meeting taking place at Radisson hotel in Tbilisi Armenia ex-President Sargsyan attends Haykyan award ceremony (PHOTOS) Georgia FM comments on Tbilisi meeting of Armenia, Azerbaijan counterparts Heatwave claims 237 lives so far in Spain Armenia military unit medical aid station head died as result of car accident Medical aid station head, 37, dies in hospital after accident in Armenia military unit Armenia, Azerbaijan FMs meeting gets underway in Tbilisi (PHOTOS) Mirzoyan, Garibashvili exchange views on normalization of Armenia-Azerbaijan relations CNN: US, Japan put on show of force amid rising tensions with China, Russia in region G20 finance ministers to not issue final communique due to differences over Ukraine White House: Russian officials visited Iran to inspect drones Ivana Trump dies from accident Armenia Foreign Minister Mirzoyan arrives in Tbilisi Yerevan Mayor appeals to court to prosecute Ishkhan Saghatelyan Israeli fighter jets strike Gaza hours after Biden departed Armenian MOD: Azerbaijani Armed Forces open fire on eastern direction of Armenian-Azerbaijani border Huawei resumes shipments of its gadgets to Russia Previously unknown self-portrait of Van Gogh discovered US, Saudi Arabia agree on stopping Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon Newspaper: Internal troops no longer to be sent to border Newspaper: Internal political intrigues expected in Artsakh Drought reveals ruins of ancient bridge Nero in Rome Biden says he raised issue of Khashoggi's murder in meeting with Saudi Arabia's crown prince Birds falling to the ground in Spain because of heat Opposition says it is preparing declaration recognizing all Pashinyans agreements as null and void Next Resistance Movement rally to be held on 21 July Armenia PM: We have one mission, to ensure safe, prosperous development and independence of Armenia Armenia PM receives US CIA Director William Burns Armenian Security Council secretary meets with CIA director William Burns European Commission to sue Hungary over its law banning homosexual propaganda Armenian patriarch of Jerusalem introduces Armenian history and heritage to Biden Aliyev talks about electricity exports through the Zangezur corridor Rally starts on France Square in Yerevan Azerbaijani president has phone conversation with Turkish counterpart Aliyev again uses threats against Armenia Resistance Movement supporters march through streets of Yerevan Europe surpasses Asia to become biggest consumer of US oil for first time in six years Shell head not ruling out energy rationing in Europe UAE working on appointment of ambassador to Tehran US does not expect Saudi Arabia to immediately increase oil production Japan PM calls for commissioning of nine nuclear reactors in response to power shortages Armenia and Azerbaijan FMs to meet in Tbilisi A Chinese attack on Taiwan is not imminent, but the US is watching "very closely," U.S. General Mark Milley told the BBC. China is clearly developing the capability to attack at some point, but deciding to do so would be a political choice, Gen Mark Milley told the BBC. Recently, there has been a noticeable escalation between China and the United States - Taiwan's most powerful ally. China is sending dozens of warplanes into Taiwan's air defense zone, and the US is sending warships into Taiwan's waters. In May, US President Joe Biden said China was "flirting with danger" by flying its warplanes near Taiwan. Beijing responded by accusing the US of interfering in China's affairs, adding that the country would not hesitate to fight to prevent Taiwan from formally declaring independence. 'Hong Kong will survive a US-China financial war' 'Hong Kong will survive a US-China financial war' Executive Councillor and former head of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Joseph Yam, said on Sunday that he doesnt think the US will wage a financial war against China, but even if it does, its unlikely to afflict Hong Kong. Speaking on a Commercial Radio programme, Yam said the US may be jealous of Chinas rapid development, but even if it wants to besiege the mainland with financial weapons, it has to be mindful of possible backlashes such as the loss of confidence in US dollar. He said Hong Kong might even benefit if the financial dispute between the two countries intensifies. I dont think the biggest economies in the world would detach from each other completely despite all their fights and grudges, he said. If both of them respect One Country, Two Systems, Hong Kong may take up an even more significant role. If China and the US dont have direct capital flow, when mainland companies want to collect fund, there will be different limitations such as requirements on accounting or information disclosure, they will come back to Hong Kong, he said. Yam said while the peg between the Hong Kong currency and the US dollar should stay, the SAR government should consider whether its possible to explore alternative means to use its reserve given the changes in geopolitics. If we continue to put our financial surplus in the exchange fund, which in turn uses the money to buy US debts, it means it is lending Hong Kong peoples money to the US government, he explained. This government is fighting a trade war or possibly a financial war with our country. Could it be possible for the sake of Hong Kongs future for us to set up a new body to develop the Northern Metropolis and invest in Hong Kongs future? We have to think about how to go ahead, he said. "Don't raise your voice Maleeka. You sound like a shrew". "There are no shrews in our mythology Peter. Only Shaktis". That early conversation, a couple of weeks into rehearsals in October 1984, pretty much set the tone for my early relationship with director Peter Brook. I was an innocent, lost in an alien professional theatre world, working in a language that I did not speak. A new mother clutching a five week old baby. Trying to set up home in France's coldest winter in a century. And confronting a theatre director who seemed to need and want me, but also resented the fact that I was an educated and rather well read argumentative Indian. April 1984. I had been following the journey of Peter Brook and his entourage across India, in search for a Draupadi or a Krishna for their epic production of The Mahabharata. I was pregnant, and skinny and yellow with jaundice. One morning I received a telegramme from the French Cultural Attache; "Are you in Ahmedabad? Peter Brook will fly there to meet you tomorrow." Me? He arrived the next morning, with Marie Helene Estienne, his assistant; Jean Claude Carriere, the amazing writer; Chloe Obelansky the designer of the show, and her assistant Pippa. I was dressed in a deep green dress, setting off my yellowness to advantage, my knee length hair, loose. We made small talk in my sitting room. And then he popped the question -- would I audition for Draupadi? Ever since I remember, I have thought Draupadi the only woman in mythology worth her salt. Over the years I had read dozens of versions of the Mahab. And I was being offered the part in this much touted production. Exhilarated, I also panicked. I had just started a publishing company. I was going to give birth. I had organized the largest ever folk festival with 200 dancers from 7 countries. How could I leave? "Can you fly to Paris this week?" No, no I was leaving for New York. "That is alright. My assistant Jean Paul is looking after our production of Carmen at Lincoln Center. Your first audition can be there." Fast forward. There I was. The script sent to me to try and learn the French from the Director of Alliance Francaise, my dear friend Achille Forler, was not the actual script at all. It was all to be improvised. What? And I had been memorizing it for months. With the many accents of French all around me, from Japanese to Senegalese, Peter, with his still very British French, was about the only person I understood. But I was with a group who worshipped him as a guru. And I don't like gurus. I didn't want one. I argued in English -- about the interpretation of characters, about Shaktis and shrews, about his not wanting to seem blood thirsty ("Peter you should have chosen the Ramayana"), about the interpretation of the woman (he was very Anglo Saxon), about nuances. He made it clear soon enough that he preferred me to discuss scenes and my interpretations of characters, in the privacy of his room, so that once convinced, he could present it to the others. He could not understand why, after a 14-hour rehearsal, I wanted not to sit around listening to gyan. Once he said to me that working with me was like working with Princess Margaret ("I didn't know you had worked with her, Peter"). Many times I wanted to run away. I hated it. I didn't want to work with angst and tension. Here was a director telling us that we can never become the character, we can only interpret them, that we can only be story telling heads. Here was a man who used the navarasa as an exercise -- play the scene as a comedy, now play it with disgust; Mallika do the entire scene is gibberish; now you play Yudhishthira. He made me do Noh play voice exercises with the amazing actor Yoshi Oida, as, unlike in Indian films where I was found to have too masculine a voice, he needed my voice deepened as a tragedienne! I spent hours and days grunting and singing in a bended knee position, while Yoshi asked me to bring the voice up from the anus and look at the clouds. He taught me how a character was like an onion, to be peeled till you came to the soul, the emptiness, the shunya. He was cold, and ruthless. And he made me the artist I am. We become close friends later, once the play was a success and I was being commended. On the many occasions when we shared a stage for press conferences at the release of the film and TV productions, he would grin and tell the audience: "And now Mallika will tell you how awful it is to work with me." I met him last in 2018 and accompanied him to see his latest work. He looked the same as he always had, with eyes that went from cold to twinkling. Thank you Peter. The five years spent with you and Draupadi made me the artiste I am. Someone who can hold her own, and who can weave stories that disturb and push one to think. --IANS mallika/pgh ( 896 Words) 2022-07-03-19:32:01 (IANS) India has handed over a 50-bed India-Tajikistan Friendship Hospital (ITFH) to Tajikistan along with the entire complement of medical equipment, medicines, stores and support equipment, including an operation theatre, X-Ray machines, laboratories, critical care ambulances and administrative vehicles, an official said on Saturday. It may be recalled that the ITFH was renovated by the Indian government and inaugurated in October 2014 based on an MoU signed between both sides in January 2013. "The hospital has rendered free-of-cost valuable medical services for the last eight years to the armed forces and civilian populace of Tajikistan based on technical support and financial assistance from the government of India," the official said. Presently, the ITFH has an array of medical specialties including ENT, surgery, gynecology, medicine, pediatrics and dental departments. It has provided medical support to more than 1,00,000 patients over these years, including performing more than 2,000 surgeries in the last two years. A team of Indian Army doctors and medical staff have provided various medical services to Tajik nationals and simultaneously trained numerous Tajik doctors and medical staff. Over 42 tonnes of medicines have been sent to ITFH in the last eight years, said the official. Apart from the ITFH, the Indian government has also provided medical support in other forms to Tajikistan. "India provided two million doses of oral polio vaccine through UNICEF in 2010 after the outbreak of polio in south-west Tajikistan. In March 2018, India gifted 10 ambulances to various regions of Tajikistan," the official said. In May 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, India provided 50,000 HCQ tablets and 100,000 paracetamol tablets to Tajikistan. In 2021, approximately 700,000 Covishield vaccines were supplied to Tajikistan, the official added. --IANS uj/arm ( 294 Words) 2022-07-02-22:58:01 (IANS) Meanwhile, the Covid positivity rate has risen marginally to 4.29 per cent, and the number of active cases stands at 3,268, out of which 2,459 are being treated in home isolation. With 785 patients recovering in the last 24 hours, the total number of recoveries has gone to 19,07,474. With the Covid cases, the total caseload of the city has jumped to 19,37,013 while the death toll has reached at 26,271. The number of Covid containment zones stands at 370. A total of 15,103 new tests -- 10,265 RT-PCR and 4,838 Rapid Antigen - were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the total to 3,91,15,967 while 28,631 vaccines were administered - 1895 first doses, 4,756 second doses, and 21,980 precaution doses. The total number of cumulative beneficiaries vaccinated so far stands at 3,50,73,097, according to the health bulletin. --IANS avr/vd ( 188 Words) 2022-07-03-20:24:03 (IANS) A team of National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials has arrived at Amravati in Maharashtra to probe into the case of murder of Umesh Prahladrao Kolhe, a chemist shop owner who was killed for supporting suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma. Earlier on Saturday, the Ministry of Home Affairs had handed over the investigation of the case to the NIA. The NIA team has collected the CCTV footages. "We will probe whether the accused arrested in the case had any Pakistan connection or not. We will probe it in the same way we are probing the Udaipur incident," an official said. The murder took place on June 21. The police found in the probe that he was killed for supporting Nupur Sharma. "The conspiracy behind the killing, involvement of organisations and international linkages would be thoroughly investigated," said MHA official. Kolhe, 54, was brutally murdered in Maharashtra after he wrote a post in support of Sharma on Facebook. He used to run a chemist shop 'Amit Medical Store' in Amravati. Sanket Kohle, his son had got an FIR registered in this respect with the City Kotwali Police Station. The police after lodging the FIR had arrested Muddasir Ahmed, 22, and Shahrukh Pathan, 25, on June 23. Later on, the police arrested three more accused identified as Abdul Taufiq, 24, Shoaib Khan, 22, and Atib Rashid, 22 on June 25. One Shamim Ahmed Firoz Ahmed is on the run in the matter. "Kolhe posted a message on a WhatsApp group where Muslims who were his customers were also added. They did not like his support to Nupur and killed him," said an official. As per the probe, Kolhe was attacked while he was returning home at around 10.15 pm on June 21 on his two-wheeler, with his 27-year-old son Sanket and his wife Vaishnavi following on another vehicle. --IANS atk/pgh ( 321 Words) 2022-07-02-22:18:02 (IANS) A Delhi court on Saturday rejected the bail plea of Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair in connection with an 'objectionable tweet' allegedly posted against a Hindu deity, and granted his 14-day custody as sought by the Delhi Police. Zubair was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria at the Patiala House Courts on Monday after his four-day judicial custody in the case in which he had allegedly hurt the sentiments of a community through a tweet ended on Saturday. "Since the matter is at the initial stage of investigation and given the overall facts and circumstances of the case and nature and gravity of the offences alleged against the accused, no ground for grant of bail is made out," Sarvaria said while dismissing Zubair's bail plea. He will be next produced before the court on July 16. In another development, the order which was pronounced by the judge on Saturday evening was allegedly 'leaked' by the Delhi Police, triggering a row just after DCP K.P.S. Malhotra informed the media about the dismissal of Zubair's bail plea in the afternoon. Zubair's lawyer Soutik Banerjee alleged that it is "extremely scandalous and speaks of the status of rule of law" in the country at present where the police leak the order to the media even before the judicial magistrate pronounces it. Atul Shrivastava, the newly-appointed special public prosecutor for Delhi Police, opposed Zubair's bail plea, pointing out that the new charges invoked against Zubair are under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 35 of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act. He argued that foreign contributions from Pakistan, Syria and Australia in favour of Parvada Media Foundation, where Zubair is a director, came forth during the investigation for which police custody has been sought. As per the FIR, accused Zubair had used a screengrab of an old Hindi movie which showed an image of a hotel, with its board reading 'Hanuman hotel' instead of 'Honeymoon hotel'. In his tweet, Zubair had written, "BEFORE 2014: Honeymoon Hotel. After 2014: Hanuman Hotel." The Delhi High Court had earlier issued a notice to the Delhi Police on a plea moved by Zubair challenging the Patiala House Courts order allowing his police custody and seizure of his laptop in connection with the alleged objectionable tweet. --IANS atk/jw/arm ( 407 Words) 2022-07-02-22:24:03 (IANS) The Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) on Saturday demanded immediate arrest of suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma over her alleged controversial remarks on Prophet Muhammad. JIH president Syed Sadatullah Husaini said if apology can replace the punishment, then there is no need of courts and prisons in the country. The JIH also demanded action against "the politicians, TV channels and media houses that are fanning hatred in the country". The remarks came at a media briefing held jointly by Husaini and JIH vice-president Mohammad Salim Engineer on Saturday here. However, the apex court in an oral observation on Friday suggested that suspended BJP spokesperson Sharma should apologise to the nation. The JIH leaders said that the Udaipur murder and a series of mob lynching incidents in different parts of the country -- including beating to death of an elderly Hindu on the basis of a mistaken identity in Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh recently -- were interlinked and politicians and media involved in spreading hate were responsible for it. "There should be no double standard in taking action against those involved in promoting hate," Husaini said on the arrest of Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair and allowing former BJP leader Nupur Sharma move freely. He said that there should be no two sets of laws in dealing with accused based on their religious identity. Salim said that it was highly disappointing that Nupur had not been arrested even after a month of her remarks on a TV channel. This, he said, has spoiled the image of India abroad. --IANS avr/pgh ( 268 Words) 2022-07-02-22:28:03 (IANS) A representative of Hurriyat Conference living in Pakistan since 30 years but claiming to be a Kashmiri and a supporter of Kashmirs independence from India, Hamid Lone, is receiving a public backlash for being involved in shady activities, media reports said. Ranging from womanising to corruption, his record of illegal activities hit a new low when he was caught blackmailing a woman to satisfy his lust, Real Kashmir reported. Social activist Maria Iqbal Tarana revealed publicly how Lone calls and stalks young girls. She called him a 'dirty vulture' and said she won't succumb to his blackmails, the report said. Maria has worked extensively for education of rural women in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK). Meanwhile, a premier investigation agency in Pakistan has booked Kashmiri separatist leaders for embezzling funds of nearly Rs 100 crore in a corruption case involving a housing society in Islamabad. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has booked Kashmiri separatist leader Altaf Ahmad Bhat and 15 associates for "fraud, cheating and criminal breach of trust". Bhat is the president of the Central Board of Revenue Employees Cooperative Housing Society (CBRECHS), Real Kashmir reported. Altaf lives on the outskirts of Srinagar in the Bagh-e-Mehtab locality. He is a prominent leader of Hurriyat Conference in Pakistan. The agency has said the accused executed agreements on "exorbitant rates without considering the actual rate of the land", changed the agreement of land use by turning residential plots into commercial plots without paying conversion fee and released payment to actual landowners without physically taking over the land. The FIA has arrested two persons Choudhary Nazir Ahmed, CBRECHS executive member, and Rana Liaqat Ali (landowner). The case was filed on the directions of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. Altaf, who is the brother of Kashmiri separatist leader Zaffar Akbar Bhat, is absconding. Zaffar, a former militant commander and founder of the Salvation Movement, a separatist outfit, has been arrested by the J&K Police for allegedly selling MBBS seats in Pakistan's professional colleges, which are reserved for Kashmiri students, and used the money to allegedly fund violent activities in Kashmir. Zaffar was also questioned by the National Investigation Agency in a terror funding case, Real Kashmir reported. --IANS san/arm ( 377 Words) 2022-07-02-22:52:02 (IANS) The officials of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said that since April, 156 people lost their lives in pre-monsoon and monsoon floods while 18 others died in landslides in different districts of Assam. They said that over 50,714 hectares crop area is still inundated in 1,934 villages in 27 districts while the flood situation is deteriorating due to incessant rains in the state. Over 2.77 lakh men, women and children took shelter in 404 relief camps with the district administrations setting up relief and distribution centres in the flood-hit districts. An ASDMA official said that after visiting the flood-affected districts, two Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCT) on Saturday held a meeting with Chief Secretary Jishnu Barua and other Assam government officials. Senior officials from the Indian Army, Indian Air force, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), NHAI, NHIDCL and FCI also attended the meeting. The Chief Secretary requested the IMCT to submit a report to the Centre so that the state can get more central funds to deal with the flood situation. --IANS sc/arm ( 226 Words) 2022-07-02-23:16:03 (IANS) The US Supreme Court has agreed to hear the redistricting case that could majorly impact the upcoming November 8 elections to the 435-member house of representatives following the 2020 census of reapportionment of constituencies for the mid-terms. On Thursday, the apex court agreed to hear a dispute over redistricting in North Carolina, a case that could have major implications for voting rights across the country and fundamentally change the landscape of election law, feel election analysts. At the centre of the wide-ranging case is the fate of a legal doctrine that allows state courts to check the behaviour of state legislatures. A decision to undermine the courts could empower state lawmakers in disputes over redistricting maps and potentially offer them more freedom to intervene in federal elections, CNN TV network reports. The decision to hear the case is a boon to Republicans, who control the majority of state legislatures, and have seen congressional and state legislative maps struck down by state courts. The so-called "Independent State Legislature" theory, which lies at the centre of the legal nuts and bolts, was also pushed by allies of former President Donald Trump after the 2020 election as part of their bid to effectively overrule the will of voters and potentially replace electors for President Joe Biden with slates selected by Trump allies in state government, says CNN. According to Rick Hasen, an election law expert at the University of California, Irvine School of Law, legislatures have set ground rules for conducting an election, but not acted alone or with the final word. The processes they set in place, as it currently stands, are also subject to intervention and interpretation by election administrators and state courts. "If the Supreme Court adopts this theory, voters would have their rights further eroded by a neutering of state courts' ability to be more protective of voters than federal courts," Hasen said. The appeal was brought by Republicans in North Carolina who challenge congressional maps drawn by state judges that reportedly favour Democrats. The dispute arose after North Carolina gained a seat in the House of Representatives, and the North Carolina General Assembly twice adopted new congressional districting maps. On both occasions, however, the state Supreme Court rejected the maps and finally ordered that the 2022 election go forward with maps drawn by judges. The court held that the General Assembly's maps amounted to partisan gerrymanders and violated provisions of the state constitution, says CNN. "Achieving partisan advantage not commensurate with a political party's level of statewide voter support is neither a compelling nor a legitimate governmental interest," the majority wrote in its opinion. Lawyers for Republican state House Speaker Timothy Moore and state Senate President Pro Tempore Philip Berger asked the Supreme Court to step in to block the lower court ruling on an emergency basis back in March. The court had then declined to step in over the dissent of Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch. Alito, writing for his colleagues, said that the case presented an "exceptionally important and recurring question of constitutional law." "If the language of the Electors Clause is taken seriously, there must be some limit on the authority of state courts to countermand actions taken by state legislatures when they are prescribing rules for the conduct of federal elections," Alito wrote. Justice Brett Kavanaugh concurred with his conservative colleagues that the court should eventually take up the issue of the role of state courts. But he joined the majority in the case at hand, allowing the maps to be used for upcoming election procedures. "This Court has repeatedly ruled that federal courts ordinarily should not alter state election laws in the period close to an election," Kavanaugh wrote. --IANS ashok/pgh ( 641 Words) 2022-07-02-23:18:02 (IANS) The Madras High Court will, on Monday, hear a plea by AIADMK General Council member, M. Shanmugham, seeking to restrain the party from holding the body's meeting on July 11. The court will also take a call on staying the appointment of senior AIADMK leader A. Tamilmagan Hussain as the party Presidium's Chairman. A bench of Justices M. Duraiswamy and Sunder Mohan would also take up the petition filed by Shanmugham on the alleged contempt of court proceedings against senior leaders K. Palaniswami, CVe Shanmugham, D. Jayakumar, Hussain, K.P. Munusamy, and Dindigul Sreenivasan. The petitioner, in a series of sub-applications filed in a pending appeal, told the court that the AIADMK's founding leader M.G. Ramachandran had wanted its supreme leader to always be elected by the primary members of the party and that the bylaws of the party were drafted in this manner. He cited the election of O. Panneerselvam and Palaniswami, jointly elected as the Coordinator and Co-coordinator of the party, respectively, through a single vote process in December 2021. Such election process needs to be ratified in the party General Council held on June 23, the applicant said. Shanmugham, in the petition, said that he had filed a civil suit in the High Court on June 22 when he came to know that there was a plan to pass a resolution in favour of a single leadership in the June 23 General Council meet and sought an interim order restraining the party from passing any such resolution. While a single-judge bench refused to issue an interim order, a division bench, headed by Justice Duraiswamy, restrained the General Council from taking a decision on any new resolution but for the 23 resolutions that had been approved by Panneerselvam. The court heard the petition at the residence of Justice Duraiswamy at 2.30 a.m. on June 23 and passed the order at 4.40 a.m. The petitioner, in the complaint, said that Palaniswami moved a resolution, seconded by Jayakumar and Sreenivasan, to appoint Hussain as the party Presidium Chairman. Shanmugham argued that Hussain, Palaniswami, Sreenivasan, and Jayakumar were guilty of contempt of court as Hussain had announced that the next General Council meeting would be held on July 11. He said that the actions of Hussain were circumventing court orders. The petitioner also sought to restrain the conduct of the next General Council on July 11, punish the AIADMK leaders for contempt, and stay the appointment of Hussain. --IANS aal/vd ( 423 Words) 2022-07-03-19:30:03 (IANS) "India is home to individuals from many different communities, ethnic groups, and religions. The Sanatan faith, which worships the cow as a holy symbol, is practiced by the majority of Indians. Hindus believe cow as a mother," he said. Also, Islam says not to hurt any animals, he added. Ajmal stated: "That is why I appeal to the Muslims not to kill cows during Eid. We strongly object to this practice." He requested the Muslim community to offer the sacrifice using other animals in order to fulfil the religious obligation and avoid hurting the sentiments of others. Darul Uloom Deoband, the country's largest Islamic academic institute had also issued an appeal to avoid sacrificing cows on Eid two years back, said Ajmal. The Assam unit of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind also requested the same. Notably, in Assam, restrictions had been imposed by the state government last year on the sale of beef in areas dominated by non-beef consuming communities and within a 5-km radius of temples and 'satras' formed by the 15-16th century saint-reformer Srimanta Sankaradeva. --IANS tanuj/pgh ( 222 Words) 2022-07-03-21:44:03 (IANS) A merchant exits a tent display of clothing at the 29th African/Caribbean International Festival of Life in Washington Park on July 2, 2022, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune) White tents sprinkled the center field at Washington Park like powdered sugar. Lazy sun rays rested on tent tops that housed busy vendors selling handcrafted wares to browsing patrons at the African/Caribbean International Festival of Life (IFOL) on Saturday. Between Saturday and Monday, IFOL is expected by organizers to draw more than 3,000 visitors from across Chicago to its first festival since 2019. IFOL exposes fest-goers to the cultures of people from Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. Advertisement This festival is to celebrate people from the diaspora primarily, and to bring other people in the mix, the festival organizer, activist and former photojournalist Ephraim M. Martin said. Its a kind of, its where you feel the culture, the roots of the people, especially from Africa and the Caribbean, where we come together in Washington Park. The IFOL was first held in 1993 at the Hawthorne Park Racetrack in Cicero. In 2020, the festival could not meet because of COVID. In 2021, the event was fused with the Jerk, Seafood & Vegan Festival, another event organized by Martins International, under Martins umbrella company. Advertisement Directly in front of the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, the IFOLs mainstage spilled music and chants from esteemed musicians and DJs. Saturdays guests included reggae artist Concrossiss, the Ifficial Reggae Movement, Smokey Da Bandit, Haitian hip hop artist Lizzie G, and Latin-music artist Big EZ, to name a few. Between acts, DJs blasted music that gave the festival a constant thump that resonated like a heartbeat. In a slow-moving line for cold and creamy fruit smoothies from Chicagos original Cool N Smooth, the 22-year-old Nigerian American Esther Mere talked about how music at the festival created a sense of unity. I heard Burna Boys music and it brought me joy seeing, like, an African artist, Mere said. With that, also heard hip-hop, we heard jazz, we heard everything, you know? So it just makes, like, the music right affects the musical festival surrounding right? Because it shows it kind of represents what this event is about. Other unifying elements of the festival were the large fuming grills in the food court along Payne Drive that cooked chicken, shrimp, steak and vegetables. Throughout the festival, large metal plates on stoves held mountains of simmering yellow rice with peas and carrots. A stack of fried whiting overshadowed a wide pan of charred crab cakes blended with white onions and green peppers. Heat bounced around looming visitors who gazed over burping grills that housed hot, hissing, seasoned chicken and heat-deflated vegetables. Older visitors sat under trees and on steps to eat their food and catch bits of shade. On the west side of the park, Shyba Seals, 54, wore a daisy crown and sunglasses and sat waiting for her husband under a tree. This is our third year coming here. We appreciate everything about the culture, the food, the sights, the vendors, Seals said. I got a bag full of stuff. I got candles. I got oil. I got body butter. I got books. Advertisement My husband likes the T-shirts that are kind of revolving around Martin Luther King, our Black history makers, Seals said. You dont see Malcolm X on a T-shirt all the time. The first two tents near the east entrance, parallel to Cottage Grove, were owned by one vendor. The owner, Steve Pitts, 64, wore a white mud cloth from Mali with a black elephant on its back and a hut surrounded by black ankhs on the front. Hed been coming to the festival for the last 28 years and ran four tents at the event. Hopefully this will give (new visitors) some kind of incentive to possibly think about traveling there and one day. Not only to Africa, to the Caribbean as well, Pitts said. They got different booths here. You can actually find out about traveling to other countries. Near the north entrance of the festival, another stage played softer music. Vendors there sold fragrances and clothes and lit incense which contrasted with the higher energy at the main stage. Walking toward the main stage, South Side Chicago native Tyrell Davenport mentioned cultural exploration as his key take-aways from the IFOL. The mission on, as far as going forward, for how we can come together without violence going on and everything so thats why I really liked this whole thing, Davenport said. It actually drives me closer to my roots. Joshua Burrell is a freelance writer. Ron_Thomas / Getty Images/iStockphoto For those thinking about retirement, it might seem daunting to live with a strict budget from month to month. However, there are several factors to consider that can make the budgeting process less intimidating and allow people entering retirement to feel more prepared. When choosing a city to retire in, it's important to consider cost of housing, groceries, healthcare and overall livability. In order to streamline the process, GoBankingRates has compiled a list of the 11 best cities to retire with a budget of $2,500 a month. MidwestWilderness / Getty Images/iStockphoto 11. Omaha, Nebraska Monthly expenditures: $2,126.22 Livability: 72 Omaha's rent falls in the middle range: A one-bedroom apartment averages $1,166. What ranks Omaha lower on the list, however, is the steep monthly healthcare cost of $562 and the hefty monthly grocery average of $398. Despite those sizable expenses, the livability in Omaha (72) is quite high. f11photo / Getty Images/iStockphoto 10. Milwaukee, Wisconsin Monthly expenditures: $2,061 Livability: 61 Milwaukee falls at No. 10 on this list, with monthly rent at $1,231 and groceries among the most affordable on the list, at $383. While Milwaukee offers monthly living for under $2,000, the city ranks the lowest on the livability scale, at 61. DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images/iStockphoto 9. Buffalo, New York Monthly expenditures: $2,040 Livability: 63 Buffalo is the No. 3 most expensive city on this list, thanks to the second-highest rent ($1,215) and grocery costs ($406) each month. But the healthcare expenses ($419 per month) fall in the middle of the pack. All things considered, living in New York state is going to be expensive, but Buffalo is a cheap alternative to New York City. benkrut / Getty Images/iStockphoto 8. Des Moines, Iowa Monthly expenditures: $2,029 Liability: 75 Des Moines may not be the best place to settle for social people as only 14% of the city's population is over 65. Monthly rent for a one-bedroom in this city ranks highest on this list, at $1,138, and the city features the second-highest monthly healthcare costs, at $495. Living in Des Moines, however, could be worth it, as the livability score is 75. Story continues traveler1116 / Getty Images/iStockphoto 7. Scranton, Pennsylvania Monthly expenditures: $2,015.15 Livability: 63 Scranton features a monthly rent of $1,174 and a lively retired community as 20% of the city is 65 or older. The city does showcase pricier monthly grocery costs, at $398. Sebring_Florida_iStock-1324752145 6. Sebring, Florida Monthly expenditures: $2,009 Livability: 65 Sebring offers amazing opportunities for residents looking for a vibrant social life as 36% of the city's population is over 65. The rent for Sebring falls at $1,148 for one bedroom, and the city's grocery costs are the highest on this list, at $417. Tim Roberts Photography / Shutterstock.com 5. Sierra Vista, Arizona Monthly expenditures: $2,007 Livability: 78 Sierra Vista is a great option for social adults as over one-fifth of the population in the city is 65 and older. With monthly one-bedroom rent at $1,171 and a livability score of 78, the city offers amazing social opportunities with an impressively low cost of living. Davel5957 / Getty Images/iStockphoto 4. Toledo, Ohio Monthly expenditures: $1,893 Livability: 62 Toledo offers a one-bedroom apartment for an average of $1,148 and the cheapest grocery costs on this list, at $372. The monthly healthcare costs in Toledo are also very low: $373. The city is great for retirees who are looking for a place to live with an abundance of recreational activities and a stable housing market. Sean Pavone / Getty Images/iStockphoto 3. Akron, Ohio Monthly expenditures: $1,868 Livability: 63 Akron is also a top contender for retirees as it offers the lowest monthly healthcare costs on this list, at $359. With rent costing $1,124 for a one-bedroom apartment, the city offers multiple appealing factors for those looking to find a place to settle down during their retirement. dlewis33 / Getty Images/iStockphoto 2. Little Rock, Arkansas Monthly expenditures: $1,822 Livability: 64 Little Rock takes second place on this list, with rent costing $1,055 and an impressively low healthcare cost of $372. While this city features a lower livability number, the great rent and healthcare costs make it a fantastic city for retirement. DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images/iStockphoto 1. McAllen, Texas Monthly expenditures: $1,812 Livability: 81 McAllen made the No. 1 spot as the best city to retire on a monthly budget of $2,500 or less by offering the most budget-friendly expenditures compared to the rest of the U.S. and the top livability score among these 11 cities. Rent averages $1,042, $885 less than the U.S. mean. Groceries typically cost $379, significantly lower than the U.S. average of $412. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 11 Best Cities To Retire on $2,500 a Month Keith Homan / Shutterstock.com This weekend kicks off Fourth of July celebrations across the United States. From coast to coast, there will be plenty of cookouts, fireworks and deals at all your favorite places. GOBankingRates rounded up some of the top freebies you wont want to miss out on check em out below. See: 11 Best Cities To Retire on $2,500 a Month Small Business Spotlight 2022: Nominate Your Favorite Small Biz by July 25 Cafes and Bakeries Jamba: Jamba Rewards Members may receive a medium Watermelon Breeze Smoothie for just $5 through the Jamba app, online or participating in-store locations. Offer is valid from July 2 through July 4. Pressed: Get four juices for $22 starting July 1 through July 4. VIP members receive four juices for $19. Live Updates: Financial Trends, Money News and More Coffee Shops Krispy Kreme: Doughnut fans that wear red, white and blue to participating Krispy Kreme shops throughout the United States may receive a free doughnut of their choice every day, June 27 through July 4. From July 1 through July 4, fans may receive a free Original Glazed dozen with the purchase of any dozen at regular price. Starting June 27, participating Krispy Kreme locations will offer the new I Heart America doughnut collection available individually and in a limited edition Fourth of July themed box. Fast Food Qdoba: Receive an additional 4x points on your purchase July 4 by placing an order online, on the app or in in-store using your rewards account. No exclusions or specific entrees. SONIC: Receive a free cheeseburger June 27 through July 31 with any purchase through the SONIC app. Treats 7-Eleven: Slurpee Day is back! Starting Friday July 1, a coupon for one free small Slurpee will be added to 7Rewards and Speedy Rewards loyalty members accounts. The free small Slurpee may be redeemed in-store at participating 7-Eleven, Speedway and Stripes store locations between July 1 and July 11. Auntie Annes: From July 1 until July 4, Pretzel Perks members can purchase any of the three new Dragonfruit Mango drinks and receive a free pretzel (original or cinnamon sugar). Redeem the offer in the Auntie Annes Pretzel Perks app. Cinnabon: Use code NOPOPCORN in the Cinnabon Rewards App when purchasing a Classic Roll, MiniBon or Center of the Roll and get one free. Offer lasts through July 4. Story continues Meal Kits EveryPlate: Use the code EPJULY42022 through July 4 to receive meal kits for $1.79 per meal along with 20% off another two boxes. Green Chef: Receive $135 off your meal kit purchase plus free shipping when you use code GCJULY4TH22 now through July 4. HelloFresh: Enjoy 16 free meals and free shipping using code HFJULY4TH22 through July 4. Pizza Pieology: Receive $5 off any $30 order using the code 50FF30JULY4 when ordering your custom pizza in-store and online. Slice: Use code JULY4TH22 on the Slice app to receive $5 off first-time orders on July 4. Minimum order of $20. Sit-Down Restaurants Applebees: From sip to shining sip, celebrate the summer with the new $5 Star-Spangled Sips including the All-American Mucho and Blue Bahama Mama through July 4. Chilis: Party like its 1776! Drink specials include $4 large domestic drafts and $5 Southern Back Porch Rita all day July 4 and July 5. Cracker Barrel: Spark more than just fireworks this July 4 by creating meaningful connections with family and friends over craveable meals at a value. Place an order on crackerbarrel.com including a Southern Fried Chicken Family Meal Basket for curbside pickup or delivery during the weekend of July 4 and receive a free family-size side of Bacon Baked Beans. The offer will run July 1 through July 6, just in time for National Fried Chicken Day. Millers Ale House: All military personnel, active or retired, will receive 50% off their entree of choice on July 4. Remember to provide proof of service. STK Steakhouse: Spend July 4 weekend indulging in the Red, White & Blue Lobster Topping for only $17.76! Fourth of July Weekend Brunch and Fourth of July Happy Hour will also be offered. More From GOBankingRates Heather Taylor contributed to the reporting for this article. This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 18 Fourth of July Freebies and Specials in 2022 Insider rounded up books that fans of Casey McQuiston's "Red, White, and Royal Blue" will love. HarperCollins/Penguin Random House/Macmillan The cast for the adaptation of Casey McQuiston's "Red, White, and Royal Blue" was recently announced. But the Amazon movie doesn't have a release date yet. Books with similar plots or characters can tide you over until the film premieres. "D'Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding" by Chencia C. Higgins "D'Vaughn and Kris Plan A Wedding." Carina Press Carina Press In reality, D'Vaughn Miller and Kris Zavala are strangers. But if they want to win $100,000 on the reality TV series "Instant I Do," they have to convince their friends and family members they're actually soulmates planning their dream wedding amid a whirlwind romance. Kris wants to take home the money and further her career as an influencer through the show, while reserved D'Vaughn hopes a fake romance will bring her closer to the real love she craves in her life. But Kris and D'Vaughn are surprised to find it's not as hard as they thought to look like they're in love, especially as the chemistry between them continues to grow. But can a relationship built on a fake wedding really last? Find out in Chencia C. Higgins' "D'Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding." Find out more about this book here. "The Song of Achilles" by Madeline Miller "The Song of Achilles." Harper Collins HarperCollins Despite the title, "The Song of Achilles" by Madeline Miller actually follows the life of Achilles' closest companion, Patroclus, who is best known in mythology for his death that drives Achilles mad with grief. Miller puts a fresh lens on the well-known tale, focusing on the rivalry between Achilles and Patroclus that develops in their boyhood. Their feud soon becomes friendship and then something more, and the duo has to reckon with what their feelings for each other mean as Achilles faces a fatal prophecy about his involvement in the Trojan war. "The Song of Achilles" is both a war story and a beautiful look at first love, making Homer's epic accessible and meaningful in a whole new way. Find out more about this book here. "Heartstopper: Volume One" by Alice Oseman "Heartstopper: Volume 1." Scholastic Scholastic Everyone at Truham Grammar School for Boys knows who Charlie Spring is after he was outed and bullied in year nine. Story continues Charlie isn't expecting much for year 10, but things change when he meets 11th-year rugby player Nick Nelson. The unlikely pair become fast friends, and Charlie feels himself falling even though he thinks Nick will never want him. But love has a way of surprising people. Alice Oseman's comic "Hearstoppers" is a delightful story about young love, and the beloved book was recently adapted into a Netflix series. Find out more about this book here. "Her Royal Highness" by Rachel Hawkins "Her Royal Highness." Penguin Random House Penguin Random House When Millie Quint finds out her unofficial girlfriend was unfaithful, running away seems like the best option. She gets a scholarship to a boarding school in Scotland, hoping it can offer her a fresh start in a place where no one knows her. The school is the escape she was looking for, aside from one small problem: her prissy roommate, Flora, who is a literal princess of Scotland. Despite the differences between them, Millie and Flora are drawn to each other in ways they never expected. They're already falling, but how can Millie trust Flora won't betray her? Rachel Hawkins' "Her Royal Highness" is a flirty and fun romance that puts a modern twist on the enemies-to-lovers trope. Find out more about this book here. "The Unhoneymooners" by Christina Lauren "The Unhoneymooners." Amazon Simon and Schuster Christina Lauren's New York Times bestseller stars Olive Torres, the unlucky twin who feels like she's always living in her sister's shadow. But things change at her sister's wedding, where the entire wedding party gets sick, aside from Olive and Ethan Thomas, a groomsman she happens to loathe. The pair are given the chance to take the newlyweds' 10-day honeymoon in Hawaii, and Olive agrees to go for the free trip despite her hatred of Ethan. As the unlikely pair enjoy their surprise vacation, Olive finds herself feeling things for Ethan she never expected. Has her luck finally changed? Find out more about this book here. "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe" by Benjamin Alire Saenz. "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe." Amazon Simon and Schuster Aside from being named after philosophers, Aristotle (Ari) Mendoza and Dante Quintana don't think they have much in common. Ari, who struggles with anger issues and has a brother in jail, doesn't understand Dante, a thoughtful boy who is unlike anyone he's ever met. Yet the boys discover they understand each other, developing an intimate bond few rarely find, especially in their youth. As they talk about music and explore their small town, they grow closer than either expected. But Ari is afraid of what his feelings for Dante mean, and he'll have to decide if facing them is worth the risk. Benjamin Alire Saenz's award-winning "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe" is a quintessential LGBTQ coming-of-age story full of poignancy and bittersweet heartache. Find out more about this book here. "Honey Girl" by Morgan Rogers "Honey Girl." Amazon HarperCollins Grace Porter has always done what she was supposed to do in Morgan Rogers' "Honey Girl." She followed the rules her military father set for her, completing her PhD in astronomy at just 28 years old. So when she marries Yuki Yamamoto, a woman who was a stranger just a few hours before they said "I do," during a drunken trip to Las Vegas, everyone including Grace is shocked. Grace surprises herself even more by running away from her home in Portland to spend the summer in New York with Yuki, trying to ignore her parents' ever-present pressure. Soon, Grace is in love with Yuki, who is free in ways Grace never thought she could be. But Grace can't hide forever, and as the summer comes to a close, she'll have to face her fears and what her feelings for Yuki mean. Find out more about this book here. "Boyfriend Material" by Alexis Hall "Boyfriend Material." Amazon Sourcebooks, LLC Luc O'Donnell isn't supposed to be famous. It's not his fault his rock-star dad who he's never met is getting a second chance at his career. But his paternal connection has made him a paparazzi favorite, and a not-so-flattering photo is leading people to talk. Enter Oliver Blackwood, a vegan lawyer who is the epitome of class. Even though they have nothing in common, Luc and Oliver make a deal to have a PR relationship, parading around town on fake dates to improve Luc's reputation. As the fake relationship continues, Luc and Oliver's connection starts to feel more real. Their feelings for each other might be more authentic than they anticipated. Find out more about this book here. "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera "What If It's Us." HarperCollins HarperCollins The odds of Arthur and Ben meeting were slim. Ben isn't usually at the post office mailing his ex-boyfriend a box of forgotten items, and Arthur isn't usually in New York at all. Their random run-in feels like a twist of fate as their chemistry flies, but they aren't sure it was meant to last as forces try to keep them apart over the rest of the summer. Neither Arthur nor Ben is sure they're ready to fall in this collaboration from Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera, but sometimes love comes for you whether you're ready or not. Find out more about this book here. "I'm So (Not) Over You" by Kosoko Jackson "I'm So (Not) Over You." Penguin Random House Penguin Random House The last time Kian Andrews spoke to Hudson Rivers, Hudson was dumping him. So when Hudson texts Kian out of the blue, he thinks that maybe his ex realized the mistake he made. But really, Hudson wants Kian to be his fake boyfriend for a night while his parents are visiting. To his chagrin, Kian agrees, but things go awry at dinner when Kian accidentally agrees to be Hudson's date to a wedding in front of his parents. Kian tries to see the wedding as nothing more than a business opportunity since everyone who is anyone in high-society Georgia will be there. Helping Hudson avoid disappointing his parents (again) is just a fringe benefit. Both Hudson and Kian are ready to fake their way through the day. But they can't avoid their real feelings in "I'm So (Not) Over You" by Kosoko Jackson. Find out more about this book here. "Something To Talk About" by Meryl Wilsner "Something To Talk About." Penguin Random House Penguin Random House Actress Jo and her assistant Emma are shocked when tabloid rumors start to swirl about them being a couple after Jo makes Emma laugh on the red carpet. Even though they tell the press "no comment," the paparazzi start following the duo everywhere, eager to urge the story on as Jo prepares for a new film. Jo and Emma end up spending even more time together because of the movie, and Emma discovers she understands Jo in a way few others can. No one is more surprised than they are when they realize there might be truth to the rumors. Will they put their careers on the line for a chance at love? Find out more about this book here. "The Wedding Party" by Jasmine Guillory "The Wedding Party." Headline Eternal Penguin Random House Every installment of Jasmine Guillory's "The Wedding Date" series offers a steamy love affair, and the third book, "The Wedding Party," is no exception. Theo and Maddie have never liked each other though they share a mutual attraction that's hard to ignore. Most of the time, they do their best to avoid each other, only hanging out when their best friend Alexa forces them to. But when Alexa gets engaged and Theo and Maddie are both made members of the bridal party, they're forced to spend time together, making it harder and harder to ignore the spark between them. Eventually, they give in to their temptation, swearing that they'll end their secret affair the second Alexa says "I do." But what will Theo and Maddie do when they realize they're falling for each other? Find out more about this book here. "The Magpie Lord" by KJ Charles "The Magpie Lord." Amazon KJC Books KJ Charles' "The Magpie Lord" is a delicious read for readers who like their romance with a side of fantasy. Lucien Vaudrey hasn't been to England in 20 years. But when his brother and father die under suspicious circumstances, he returns from his exile in China to see to both his new responsibilities as an earl and the enemies his father left behind, including supernatural ones. To combat the threats, Lucien enlists the magician Stephen Day, who quickly discovers the shamelessly flirty, tattoo-covered Lucien is nothing like he thought the aristocrat would be. Stephen finds he's in over his head in more ways than one as he falls for Lucien while trying to prevent them both from being destroyed by the evil haunting his home. Find out more about this book here. "Cemetery Boys" by Aiden Thomas "Cemetery Boys." Amazon Swoon Reads Yadriel decides the best way to get his Latinx family to accept his true gender after he comes out is to summon and free the ghost of his murdered cousin to prove how much of a man he is. But instead of summoning his cousin, Yadriel accidentally calls upon Julian Diaz, his school's tough guy who isn't interested in staying dead until he figures out what happened to him. Yadriel agrees to help Julian in the hopes he can still prove his manhood to his family, but as he spends time with Julian's ghost, he discovers feelings for him he never imagined he would have. Aiden Thomas' bestselling and award-winning "Cemetery Boys" is inventive and heart-warming, giving readers a glimpse into one boy's journey to find himself. Find out more about this book here. "Drag Me Up" by R. M. Virtues "Drag Me Up." Amazon Strange Hungers Publishing In R.M. Virtues' inventive retelling of the story of Hades and Persephone, Hades is a shy older brother who most think is a myth. He has no qualms with his younger sibling Zeus taking credit for his work as long he gets to keep his life of anonymity. Persephone, on the other hand, yearns to be center stage, fighting her way out of Demeter's grasp so she can show her talent in Calliope's Cirque. But she made the mistake of trusting Zeus, and her debt to him looms over her as she tries to make her way in the world as does a secret about her gender. When Hades and Persephone cross paths, neither expects to find a home in the other. But their connection is undeniable, and they need to work together to stop Zeus from ruining their lives. What will they be willing to sacrifice to keep each other? Find out more about this book here. "Beach Read" by Emily Henry "Beach Read." Penguin Random House Penguin Random House Romance author January Andrews is only spending the summer at her late father's beach house for three reasons: She needs to clean it out before she can sell it, she needs a change of scenery to get out of her months-long writer's block, and she's broke. But when she finds out her college crush and nemesis Augustus Everett, who became a literary fiction author, lives next door and is also in a writing rut, things change. The neighbors make a deal to teach each other how to write their genres in the hopes of sparking creativity. As part of the experiment, January will take Augustus on romantic dates, while he'll bring her along to interview former cult members. The arrangement is just for the summer, and no one will get attached until they do. Emily Henry's "Beach Read" is a book about love, grief, and the power of honesty. Find out more about this book here. "The Charm Offensive" by Alison Cochrun "The Charm Offensive." Simon and Schuster Simon and Schuster As a producer on the reality dating show "Ever After," Dev Deshpande's job is to make tech genius Charlie Winshaw look like the ideal man. But Charlie is the ultimate pessimist, and he's only on the show as a PR move for his dismal image. Trying to form a connection with 20 women on national television is his nightmare, and to Dev's chagrin, Charlie's discomfort is obvious to viewers too. But Dev doesn't give up easily, and he's willing to put in the work to show the sweeter side to Charlie. As they bond during filming, Charlie is shocked to find Dev is the one he's drawn to, not the women vying for his attention. Dev and Charlie have to decide what they're willing to risk for the chance at real love in "The Charm Offensive" by Alison Cochrun. Find out more about this book here. "Meet Cute Club" by Jack Harbon "Meet Cute Club." Amazon Amazon Jordan Collins isn't interested in dating; he prefers to read about ideal men in romance books. That's why his book club, the Meet Cute Club, is so important to him. The club is slowly losing members, and Jordan is willing to do whatever it takes to save it, including suffering through endless teasing from Rex Bailey, an employee at his local bookstore. When Rex asks to join the club, Jordan desperately wants to say no, but it doesn't feel like he can reject him as he tries to keep Meet Cute thriving. To Jordan's surprise, Rex puts the same energy he does into saving the club and looks incredibly handsome while doing it. Jordan Collins finds the ideal man might be right under his nose in Jack Harbon's "Meet Cute Club." Find out more about this book here. "One Last Stop" by Casey McQuiston "One Last Stop." Macmillan Macmillan McQuiston's sophomore novel stars August, a 23-year-old looking for a fresh start in New York, a place that seems perfect for a cynical, amateur sleuth who just wants to blend in. But not only does August find herself living with roommates who are determined to be her friends as soon as she arrives, but she also can't stop thinking about Jane Su, aka Subway Girl, a devastatingly sexy commuter she sees every time she steps on the Q train. August is drawn to everything about Jane: her love for retro punk music, her tattoos, her kindness, and her ever-present leather jacket. But soon, August uses her detective skills to uncover the truth about her Subway Girl: Jane is a time traveler who has been trapped on the train since the 1970s and she can't remember anything about her life before she stepped onto the train. August makes it her mission to get Jane back "when" she belongs, fighting the clock as subway repairs threaten to take Jane away forever. Of course, August and Jane can't help but fall for each other as they try to figure out her story, and as their time together grows shorter and shorter, they'll have to decide what they're willing to sacrifice for true love. "One Last Stop" is a delightful love story, but it's also a tale of queer joy, chosen family, and the importance of being yourself told in McQuiston's relatable style. Find out more about this book here. Read the original article on Insider adamkaz / iStock.com It might seem like everyone wants to work from home these days, and it's not terribly surprising. After all, remote jobs allow you to save time and money you would otherwise spend on commuting. Plus, they allow you to do all that while working from the comfort of your own home (or wherever you want). See: Here's How Much Cash You Need Stashed if a National Emergency Happens Explore: 22 Side Gigs That Can Make You Richer Than a Full-Time Job If working remotely is your goal, there is no shortage of jobs available at any given moment. However, you might think remote jobs must not pay very well. Quite the contrary -- many pay $20 per hour or more. Many companies have a shortage of workers to fill various roles, leading them to offer generous pay for remote jobs. While these jobs are constantly changing, we'll provide a list of several remote jobs that pay at least $20 per hour that are available right now. Ken Wolter / Shutterstock.com Early Careers Client Success Associate, UnitedHealth Group Pay range: $21.68 and up This job from UnitedHealth Group is an entry-level position focused on helping people kick-start their careers in healthcare. It requires a bachelor's degree and 3+ months of experience in sales, fundraising, and/or customer service experience. Specific pay information is not provided for most states, but the job does indicate that the pay range is $21.68 to $38.56 for Colorado residents and $23.94 to $42.40 for Connecticut/Nevada residents. View the job posting at UnitedHealth Group. Michael G White / Wikimedia Commons Coding/Reimbursement Specialist, UPMC Health Plan Pay range: $20 to $33.22 This job with UPMC Health Plan is a full-time work-from-home position. Responsibilities include ensuring the accuracy of claim submissions and verifying reimbursement. The posting indicates that prior experience in emergency department coding is required, although it only requires a high school diploma. Pay starts at $20/hour. View the job posting at UPMC. POLL: Do You Think You Will Be Able To Retire at Age 65? Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com Hospitalist Coder, Banner Health Pay range: $18.32 - $27.48/hour Story continues This remote position with Banner Health is another medical coder position involving the coding of diagnostic and procedural information related to medical procedures. It also involves quality assurance for medical records to comply with coding regulations. Pay for the positions starts at $18.32/hour but can be well over $20/hour depending on experience. View the job posting at Banner Health. Ridofranz / Getty Images/iStockphoto Remote Data Entry Clerk/Customer Service Rep, General Rental Center Pay range: $26 - $27/hour General Rental Center is hiring for data entry clerk/customer service rep positions in states around the country. The posting does indicate that 1-2 years' experience is required, but the duties appear to be quite straightforward. These include entering information into an accounting system and ensuring transparency and efficiency in all accounting transactions. View the job posting and apply on Workable. Tony Webster / Wikimedia Commons Contact Center Lead, Duluth Trading Company Pay range: $28.82 to $39.87 As the word "lead" suggests, this position is more of a managerial role and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Contact Center. You will also be responsible for achieving department goals and ensuring all projects and non-call-related work are completed in a timely manner. The position is remote and can be done from anywhere in the continental U.S. View the job posting and apply on Salary.com. mapodile / Getty Images Pharmacy Technician (Part-Time/Seasonal), Tabula Rasa HealthCare Pay range: $18.38 to $23.28/hour Tabula Rasa HealthCare is hiring part-time/seasonal pharmacy technicians to provide medication management services to patients and clients. It includes making outbound cold calls offering services to patients, as well as receiving inbound calls. The job posting indicates that a high school diploma is required, and six months' experience is preferred. View the job posting and apply on Salary.com. Wojciech Kozielczyk / Getty Images/iStockphoto Fraud Customer Service (Part-Time), Discover Pay range: $35.27 to $48.29/hour Discover has an interesting opportunity for part-time fraud customer service representatives. The position involves processing late and trailing transactions on fraud status accounts. It also involves making outbound calls to verify transactions, as well as processing zero-dollar fraud loss cases. The job starts at $35.27/hour and only requires a high school diploma/GED; there is no mention of experience being required. View the job posting and apply on Salary.com. cbarnesphotography / Getty Images Accounts Receivable Analyst II, American Red Cross Pay range: $28.84 to $30/hour While the "II" in this job title indicates this position from the American Red Cross isn't exactly entry-level, it pays well nevertheless. It requires a four-year degree and three to five years' experience. As an accounts receivable analyst, you ensure that approved transactions are entered into the system. The posting indicates this is a work-from-home position located anywhere within the continental U.S. View the job posting on Remote.com. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 8 Remote Jobs That Pay at Least $20 Per Hour A the Women's Health Center of West Virginia in Charleston, chief nurse executive Danielle Maness stands in an empty examination room. (Leah Willingham / Associated Press) Danielle Maness has squeezed the hands of hundreds of anxious patients lying on tables in the procedure room, now empty. She's recorded countless vital signs and delivered scores of snacks to the recovery area, now silent. Peering into each darkened room at West Virginia 's only abortion clinic, the chief nurse wondered whether she'd ever treat patients here for abortion care again. It literally just sickens me, and we dont know what their futures hold for them, Maness said of the residents who rely on the Womens Health Center of West Virginia. Its the kind of heartbreak thats difficult to put into words. There are all these what- ifs. The waiting room should have been filling up with patients on two days last week, when the clinic reserves all slots for abortion appointments. But since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade days earlier and ruled that states can ban abortion, the clinic was forced to suspend the procedures because of an 1800s-era state law banning them. The ACLU of West Virginia filed a lawsuit on behalf of the clinic, asking that the law be declared unenforceable so staff can immediately resume abortions. Other states are in various stages of legal limbo. Nationwide, workers at clinics that shuttered abortion services are feeling fear and stress as they try to pick up the pieces and chart a path forward. At the West Virginia center, the days after the historic court ruling brought on a kind of grief for staff as their new reality set in, one Maness said will linger long after the initial trauma of the decision. Conversations with frantic patients that first day play on an inescapable loop in her head. I dont think any of us can block it out, she said. Its constantly on our minds. Like many clinics that perform abortions, the facility did not offer the procedure daily. Several days of the week are dedicated to routine gynecological care cervical exams, cancer screenings mostly for low-income patients on Medicaid with nowhere else to go. The resolve to continue that work has buoyed employees. Story continues Immediately after the decision's release, Maness was one of a few staff members tasked with calling patients to cancel abortion appointments. On the other end of the line, she'd never before heard people speak with such fear. The entire staff found themselves in crisis mode for days, though they and others across the country had expected the ruling for months. You think you think youre prepared for the moment, but youre never really prepared until its a reality, executive director Katie Quinonez said. She watched her staff break down and sob. Some called patients or answered phones. Workers who had the day off showed up, some still in pajamas, to relieve colleagues and offer support. Quinonez encouraged all to take breaks, often managing the phones herself. She'll forever remember that Friday as one of the worst days of her life. Over the weekend, she shut off her phone, lay under a weighted blanket on her couch, ate junk food and watched television. It was the only way she could escape and cope. When she and her staff returned to work, she held off on filling the vacant slots from canceled abortion appointments. Some patients still needed other services, but she wanted to let workers catch their breath. She told them to come in late if needed. Clinic rooms remained largely empty, dark and quiet. Still, the phones rang. Beth Fiddler sat at her desk behind the clinics glass reception window in the waiting room. She had no patients to check in, no Medicaid data to scan into charts, no informative packets to hand out. Instead, she found herself answering the same questions again and again, referring callers to a hotline or website to help them find the nearest out-of-state abortion provider. You guys are going to close up soon, right? No, the clinic will be open to provide other services. Can I get Plan B the morning after pill? What about an IUD, or other birth control? I'll help you make an appointment. You're sure I can't make an abortion appointment? Isn't there a loophole, an exception?" There are no abortion services at this clinic. Some callers were in denial. Some remained stoic, others cried. A few responded with hostility, insisting Fiddler was wrong. She tried to be polite, empathetic but the conversations take a toll. It frustrates me," she said. "Im already stressed out and upset. I understand wanting to find a way, but theres no way. As one of the first workers patients see, Fiddler takes pride in making people feel welcome and safe. Having to turn them away and simply refer them to a website is gutting, she said. As helpless as I feel about it, I cant imagine how they must be feeling, she said. Outside the clinic, it's quiet too. There's no buzz of patients arriving in the parking lot to be escorted by volunteers in pink vests. The only cars belong to staffers and a security guard. Across the street, a lot owned by an anti-abortion organization is vacant except for a large white cross. A regular protestor, a pastor with a Jesus Loves You sign, prayed outside a few early mornings, but the usual crowd pleading with patients to reconsider is gone. Some cars slow as they pass. Workers recognize some as protesters' vehicles, and they imagine the clinic is being watched to make sure patients aren't arriving for abortions. Director Quinonez said she knows the next steps will be challenging, with a long road for workers to recover from pain. "Our staff need space and time to process this very traumatic loss, she said. And all of the secondary trauma that were experiencing from all of the patients. Simply being at work is hard, but the employees are dedicated to helping patients. We came in Monday and I was kind of like, OK, what do I do now? said Kaylen Barker, who handles the clinic's public messaging. It's somber to come back here and realize we're not going to be able to do the lifesaving care that people need and that we're going to have to refer them to websites. Thats the best thing we can do right now. Barker came to the clinic as a patient during a breast cancer scare 12 years ago. She got care when she had no other options. She knew she wanted to work at this place that helped save her, so she applied until she was finally hired. Knowing she can help others like her keeps her going, whether abortions are scheduled or not: People deserve to receive healthcare in a welcoming space, without bias or judgement. So Quinonez and her staff focus on keeping the clinic open. Abortion services account for 40% of clinic revenue, leaving a gap that could mean layoffs but Quinonez is determined to avoid that. She's encouraging residents to transfer their gynecological care to the clinic, and she plans to offer new services. The clinic recently added gender-affirming hormone therapy services, along with HIV prevention and treatment. She hopes more programs will follow. And donations are flooding into the clinic's abortion fund. Before this year, the fund's balance never exceeded $50,000. In one weekend after the ruling, they raised $75,000. Staff will use the money to help send people out of state for abortions. Yes, we are tired, we are devastated, we are angry, Quinonez said. "But this is far from over. I want to reassure people that regardless of how hopeless and dark it feels right now, this isnt the end. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Adele has opened up about being inspired to write her first song after attending a protest against the Iraq War. Appearing on Desert Island Discs on Sunday (3 July), Adele discussed her musical history and how she came to write her debut single Hometown Glory as a teenager. I was with my friend Olivia, at the time, and my mum and we were at the flat in West Norwood and we were going to the march the following day against the Iraq War, down by Parliament, she told Lauren Laverne. We were making our signs and I felt such a sense of power in that. Me and Olivia were like 15, 16, and we went and I was just mesmerised by everyone. I was really soaking it all in. She continued: That night, when we got back and I got home, I wrote it. It was very profound and I was very proud to walk those streets with a million other people. Adele described the song as the first proper track that I wrote. An estimated one million people took to the streets of London to protest against the war in Iraq in February 2003. At the time, it was claimed that the march was the largest political demonstration in the citys history. Elsewhere in the interview, Adele discussed the decision to postpone her Las Vegas residency earlier this year. Despite describing the reaction to the news as brutal, Adele said work is going on behind the scenes to get the show running and that she stands by the decision to cancel them. Photograph: Jeff Lange/AP Authorities in Akron, Ohio, have released chilling police body-camera video in the shooting death of Jayland Walker, a Black motorist who was gunned down after running from officers during a traffic stop on Monday. The video, which shows a fast police chase of Walkers vehicle, culminates with several officers surrounding the 25-year-old in a parking lot, attempting to Taser him and then opening fire. Walker was accused of firing a handgun at police from his vehicle before leaving the pistol in the drivers seat and trying to run from officers. The familys attorney says the video shows officers fired 90 times, but police investigators say they have not determined how many shots were fired. Akrons medical examiner spotted about 60 wounds on Walkers body. Demonstrators have gathered for four straight days this week, demanding police accountability. But as the video was released, Akron law enforcement and political officials called for calm as they warned of its graphic nature. The video is heartbreaking, its hard to take in, said the citys mayor, Daniel Horrigan. For many reasons, it is difficult to watch, Akrons police chief, Steve Mylett, said. At the request of Mr Walkers family we have blurred Mr Walkers body in the video. Video from the scene also showed a gun on the front seat of Walkers car, and Mylett said traffic camera footage which was also publicly released did appear to show the flash of a gun from the drivers window of Walkers car during the chase. Up to 10 police cruisers followed Walker at times during the pursuit. Mylett said eight officers were directly involved in the shooting and have been placed on administrative leave. The Ohio criminal investigations bureau is reviewing the shooting at the request of Akron police. Im not going to pass judgment until that investigation is completed, Mylett said. Akron officials anxiety over Walkers killing and the response to the release of the body-cam video has been palpable. The police chief thanked Walkers family in their appeals for calm in a situation, he said, that had a potential for aggression and violence between officers and demonstrators. Story continues Horrigan had earlier cancelled the citys Rib, White and Blue festival for the Fourth of July holiday weekend. Independence Day is meant to be a celebration and a time of gathering with friends and family, the mayor said. Unfortunately, I feel strongly that this is not the time for a city-led celebration. On Saturday, Walker family attorney Bobby DiCello described what hed seen on the body-cam video, saying it was brutal and how officers gunfire sounded like a whole brick of fireworks going off. Were all bracing for the communitys response, and the one message that we have is the family does not need any more violence, DiCello said. They just want peace, dignity and justice for Jayland. According to reports, Walker was involved in a chase with law enforcement less than 24 hours before leading police on a high-speed pursuit. Mondays deadly confrontation began when officers tried to stop Walker for an equipment violation. A four-and-a-half-minute pursuit ensued. When Walker stopped and ran officers chased him on foot. Seconds later, two officers initially used Tasers before eight officers open fire. Mylett later said that stills from the incident appeared to show that Walker had moved his hand toward his waistband, and forward. Soon after the gunfire from officers erupts. Actions by the suspect caused the officers to perceive he posed a deadly threat to them, police said. In response to this threat, officers discharged their firearms, striking the suspect. When the medical examiner reached the scene, Walker was found lying on his back while in handcuffs. Walker had been shot in the face, abdomen and upper legs, the report said, adding that a weapon was recovered from his vehicle. Akron police earlier claimed that Walker presented a deadly threat and was wearing a black ski mask when he got out of the car, police said. During Sundays press conference, Mylett said offers had attempted to resuscitate Walker. DiCello had initially questioned the police narrative that Walker, an Amazon employee before becoming a driver for Doordash, had fired a gun while driving away from the traffic stop. DiCello also emphasized how the video showed Walker running with his back to officers when they fired. Television station WJW-TV said a preliminary report from the medical examiners office found Walker sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his head, torso and legs. Ohio congresswoman Shontel Brown, whose district includes Akron, said in a statement: I am gravely concerned about the killing of a young Black man at the hands of police, especially as it happens all too often across this country. Brown urged the city of Akron and its police department to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation to fully inform Mr Walkers family and our community and ensure accountability. As they braced for protests after the release of the body-cam video, authorities strategically positioned snow plows and other large trucks so as to serve as street barriers. The shooting was the third fatal one by a police officer in Akron in the past six months. On Saturday, a crowd of more than 100 gathered outside the city courthouse and chanted: No justice, no peace, prosecute the police. On Saturday, Roderick Pounds Sr, pastor of the Second Baptist church in Akron, said that protest is a way of crying after seeing the video prior to its public release. Pounds said the body-cam footage was shocking and showed that Walker posed no threat when he was shot in what he described as a massacre. Ioan Gruffudd and Alice Evans split after 20 years together. (Getty Images) Alice Evans has accused Ioan Gruffudd's girlfriend of making fun of her in a make-up smeared selfie. The former couple are going through a bitter divorce and Gruffudd, 48, has now moved on in a new relationship with Australian actor Bianca Wallace. Read more: Duncan James was so scared of coming out that he pretended to date Geri Halliwell Evans has spoken publicly about the heartbreak of seeing them together, and has now said that Wallace was mocking her in an Instagram selfie which showed her with lipstick and eyeshadow smudged across her face. Alice Evans gave an emotional interview to Lorraine about the divorce. (ITV) In a now-deleted Instagram post, Evans, 53, shared the photo of 30-year-old Wallace and wrote: "This is my husbands girlfriend trying to take the p*** out of me when I had been hit by a rock so large I never thought Id come through. And because I cant see, I sometimes dont get my make-up right. "I know this happens. I didnt feel you noticed. But now I know so maybe Im too old to be posting pics like that, eh. Thanks for the warning. Read more: Towie's Ferne McCann is engaged "I hope you have a great life laughing at people you think are not as cool as you and dont worry - I am giving up my entire career to make sure our kids grow up balanced, thoughtful, creative, and courageous. "Good luck to both of you in your endeavours." However, it emerged that Wallace had actually posted the photo back in July 2020 and captioned it: "7 yo: Can I please do your make up? It might be bad......#yourehired #favouritelookever" Gruffudd revealed he was dating Wallace months after splitting from his wife, although Evans has accused them of having an affair for years previously - something Gruffudd and Wallace have both denied. Evans shares two daughters with Gruffudd and has been open about the impact that the split has had on herself and her children. The Bristol-born actor recently revealed that she had had to let her divorce lawyers go as she could not afford them any more, saying that she was struggling to pay her bills and buy food. Watch: Alice Evans on the collapse of her marriage to Ioan Gruffudd Amber Heard is seeking to appeal or throw out the June verdict in the high-profile defamation lawsuit between her and ex-husband Johnny Depp. In a lengthy filing in Virginia court on Friday, the Aquaman actresss legal team argued the ruling had a number of issues, including poor legal reasoning, an improperly vetted jury and excessively awarded damages. Last month, a seven-person civil jury ruled largely in favour of Mr Depp in a split verdict, finding that Ms Heard had defamed him in a 2018 op-ed in The Washington Post in which she implied he had abused her but did not name him. The decision ordered Ms Heard to pay the Pirates of the Carribbean star$15m in punitive and compensatory damages. It also held one of Mr Depps attorneys defamed Ms Heard, who was awarded $2m in punitive damages. In the Friday court documents, Ms Heards attorney Elaine Bredehoft said the case rests on flawed legal logic, arguing Mr Depps claims proceeded solely on a defamation by implication theory, abandoning any claims that Ms Heards statements were actually false. Ms Bredehoft also argued that Mr Depps legal team said it would focus on the period after the op-ed came out, but instead widened to encompass events and statements from back in 2016. The motion calls a new trial, a new verdict, or a dismissal of Mr Depps complaint altogether. In it, Ms Heard also claims there were problems with the jurys credibility. The filing points to Juror 15 as proof, arguing that there appears to be a 25-year discrepancy between their birthday on court records and in publicly available information, raising questions about the thoroughness of the vetting process. Ben Chew, who leads Mr Depps legal team, told Courthouse News the appeal was what we expected, just longer, no more substantive. In the course of the trial, which lasted from April until June, the dispute between the two actors became something much bigger than a narrow defamation proceeding. Instead, the case attracted feverish attention online and in person, including from parasocial groups of fans, and was seen by some as the death knell of the #MeToo movement. The Tunisian jurist who oversaw the drafting of a new constitution submitted to President Kais Saied said Sunday it has been changed into a charter that could lead to a dictatorship. Some articles of the draft constitution published last Thursday in the official gazette could "pave the way for a dictatorial regime", warned Sadeq Belaid, who headed a committee tasked with drafting the document. The published text is "completely different" from that submitted in person to the president late last month, the respected jurist told AFP. In July last year, Saied orchestrated a dramatic power grab, which many have denounced as a coup, sacking the government and freezing parliament. Belaid was viewed as a pro-Saied figure even during subsequent moves by the president to further consolidate power this year. His disavowal of the altered constitution is therefore a blow for the president, just weeks before it is due to go to a referendum. Contacted by AFP, Belaid confirmed he has withdrawn his support for the draft. Saied has since his initial power grab moved to rule by decree and extended his powers over the judiciary and the electoral board. Some Tunisians welcomed his moves against the sclerotic system that emerged from the revolution that toppled dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. But others have protested in the streets and warned that the president is targeting political rivals and dragging the country back towards autocracy. - 'Completely different' - The constitution for a "new republic" is at the centre of Saied's programme for rebuilding Tunisia's political system. The president plans to hold a referendum on the constitution on July 25, to mark one year since his power grab. The draft constitution published last week grants the president wide powers to rule. It allows him to carry out "executive functions with the help of the government", whose chief he would appoint. The president would also head the armed forces and name judges. The draft constitution waters down the role of parliament. Story continues Belaid warned that the published document "contains risks and considerable shortcomings". He specifically points to one article, which he said carries an "imminent danger" because it would give the president "very wide powers... that could lead to a dictatorial regime". "That is why, as head of the national constitution committee... I declare, regretfully and in true conscience... that the committee has nothing to do with the document that the president" will submit for approval in a referendum, Belaid added. The altered draft constitution augurs a "bad future" for the country, he contended. His misgivings were initially published as a letter in the Assabah newspaper, and he spoke subsequently to AFP, confirming that he was the author. "The text that I drew up after several weeks of work with the participation of dozens of experts at all levels is completely different from the text that has been published," he told AFP. In contrast to Tunisia's past constitutions, the draft also makes no reference to Islam as a state religion or basis of the law. The 2014 constitution, a hard-won compromise between the Islamist-inspired Ennahdha, which was parliament's biggest party, and its secular rivals created a system where both the president and parliament had executive powers. It was adopted three years after the North African country's 2011 revolution that toppled Ben Ali. kl-ezz/hc/dwo Chicago has long been a breeding ground for tap dance, and the citys flagship summer festival, Rhythm World, is back. Now in his second year on the job, director Jumaane Taylor looks to put his personal stamp on the 32-year-old festival, but tap dancers and their fans are likely to see familiar faces as some of the nations best hoofers once again convene in Chicago for three weeks of classes, workshops and performances. Rhythm World kicks off July 8. There will be free public performances on July 9 at the DuSable Black History Museum, July 16 at Beverly Art Center, July 20 at Navy Pier and July 23 at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Purchased tickets are needed for the July 13 exhibition at Jazz Showcase in Printers Row a festival highlight well worth the investment and a gala on July 18 at the MCA. Advertisement I was really trying to bring the old feeling back during the first year, said Taylor, who relaunched the in-person festival in 2021 after a truncated, online version took place in 2020. His main goal was to bring tap dancers to Chicago that represented a variety of generations and were completely open to teaching anyone that was in the room. If theres a theme this year, its about digging in. As with all artists, the pandemic forced Taylor to look inward. He took time to reevaluate himself and examine his artistic goals. It also caps his first season as artistic director of the Chicago Human Rhythm Project, the umbrella organization that presents Rhythm World and several other programs promoting tap and percussive dance. Advertisement Tap dancers Keyana Latimer, left, and Kenn "Djedi" Russell rehearse as Lane Alexander looks on at the Mayfair Arts Center on June 27, 2022. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune) On the surface, much of Rhythm World may look the same, but underneath, Taylor has put into motion a plan to preserve taps living legacies. Thats been the Chicago motto: Keep going forward while respecting the tradition, Taylor said. An example: Dianne Lady Di Walker aims to create a new work that will remain in Chicago to serve as a training exercise for future generations a 2022 Shim Sham Shimmy, if you will. Not to call any of the classes disposable, Taylor said, but sometimes when you go to class, after class, after class the information can go over your head. We want to highlight those nutritious choreographic or improvisational elements that have been created for us. The Human Rhythm Project (now called the Chicago Human Rhythm Project, CHRP or Chirp), officially began in 1990. Founding director Lane Alexander and his partner, Kelly Michaels, put together a series of workshops (attended by 52 students) and a single performance at Northwestern University. Proceeds benefited Open Hand/Chicago, a service organization providing meal delivery to people affected by AIDS. Michaels died of AIDS-related illness in 1995. Alexanders tenacity and talent for capacity building created an infrastructure that contributed to Chicagos reputation as one of the top places for tap. Name a tap dancer in Chicago; odds are theyre one or two degrees of separation from CHRP. Annual participation peaked at 40,000 people in 2007. That was also the first year CHRPs budget exceeded $1 million a big number for an organization of its size and type. Of course, tap was here long before Texas transplant Alexander arrived in the 1980s. Much of the training took place in one of two South Side locations: Tommy Suttons Mayfair Academy and the Sammy Dyer School of the Theatre. Taylor started dancing at Sammy Dyers, training with Geraldine Williams, Idella Reed-Davis, Runako Jahi, Jimmy Payne Jr., George Patterson III and Bril Barrett. Taylor was a scholarship student at Rhythm World and an original member of M.A.D.D. Rhythms, the company Barrett and Martin Dumas III formed in 2001. Human Rhythm Project founding director Lane Alexander outside the Mayfair Arts Center on June 27, 2022. Overhead are images of Tommy Sutton and his daughter Peggy Sutton, along with an image of first lady Michelle Obama who was a Mayfair alumnus. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune) In 2004, CHRP began experimenting with ways to expand and diversify the organizations leadership, in order to be less reliant on Alexander as the sole executive and artistic director. A series of guest directors petered out in 2008 with the Great Recession. A 2012 nationwide search led to a new executive director (who did not last). A revolving door of managing directors came and went (they are currently hiring). From 2017-2019, Swiss dancer/choreographer Dani Borak curated Rhythm World and formed CHRPs current resident ensemble, Stone Soup Rhythms. He now works at his familys dance studio in Zurich. Advertisement As a native Chicagoan, Taylor represents a shift in approach, but why him? Alexander cites Taylors cool, calm and collected temperament, plus their shared belief in tap is a sacred practice. Then theres Taylors 2015 master work Supreme Love, set to John Coltranes A Love Supreme, as evidence of his unparalleled artistry. I dont know that the field of tap dance understands what he created when he created that piece, Alexander said. Its a Leonardo da Vinci. Its just beyond. Usually, thats not an accident. Tap dancer Jumaane Taylor performs at the Jazz Showcase as part of the Chicago Human Rhythm Project's annual Rhythm World festival in July 2016. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune) Alexander is not stepping back completely. On the contrary, delegating the curatorial aspects of the organization to Taylor frees him up to push other initiatives forward. I still have a lot to do, Alexander said. There are things that Im good at that I can continue to do to support the organization. Case in point: On Jan. 1, 2021, Mayfair Academy closed. CHRP had spent several years hubbed at the Fine Arts Building. Paying Michigan Avenue rent indefinitely was not financially viable for them, but opportunity knocked when Alexander got a call from Peggy Sutton, Tommy Suttons daughter, about Mayfair closing. CHRP answered and bought the building. A multiphase capital improvement plan is underway for the five studio, 11,000 square-foot spot in Calumet Heights, supported, in part, by a Neighborhood Opportunity Fund grant from the city of Chicago. Deeply Rooted Dance Theater and the Joel Hall Dancers are currently offering summer classes at Mayfair, and the Academys previous director, Erin Barnett, relaunched her studio, Black Girls Dance, in their previous home and recently held their dance recital there. A grand reopening and return to full operations is scheduled for Sept. 18. Advertisement Lest you worry that all this administrative work will keep us from Taylors choreographic brilliance, part of CHRPS five-year plan includes built-in time for him to continue to flex his artistic muscles. Most likely, new works will be nestled under CHRP as he rebuilds Stone Soup Rhythms (currently just three dancers, including Taylor). Theyll present a brief snippet of new stuff at Rhythm World, where Taylor will also appear with his band, The Jazz Hoofing Quartet. Like most things Taylor does, you wont want to miss it. Rhythm World takes place July 8-24 at various venues. Tickets are free to $250 and a full schedule at chicagotap.org This story has been updated to clarify that participation of 40,000 in 2007 was for all Chicago Human Rhythm Projects programs. Ahead of Independence Day, at least 10 of the 44 people in the Beaufort County Detention Center were charged over the weekend with driving under the influence. In addition to the 10 DUI arrests, there were at least two people charged with public drunkenness and one arrested for having an open container. Two more were charged for having alcohol with a broken seal in their cars. Rates of deaths in crashes involving alcohol are higher in South Carolina than nationally, according to 2018 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And the CDC says that from 2009 to 2018, such crashes killed 3,299 people in South Carolina. In Beaufort County over last years Fourth of July weekend, nine people were charged with a DUI, along with one boating under the influence charge and two public drunkenness arrests. If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol dependency, support can be found by calling the free 24-hour substance abuse hotline at 1-800-662-4357. LOS ANGELES (AP) Nate Looney is a Black man who grew up in Los Angeles, a descendant of enslaved people from generations ago. Hes also an observant, kippah-wearing Jew. But he doesnt always feel welcome in Jewish spaces his skin color sometimes elicits questioning glances, suspicions and hurtful assumptions. Once, he walked into a synagogue dressed for Shabbat services in slacks and a buttoned-down shirt and was told to go to the kitchen. The last thing you want to happen when you go to a synagogue to attend a service, Looney said, is to be treated like you don't belong. Now Looney is in a position to do something about that, after being named to the new role of director of community, safety and belonging for the Jewish Equity Diversity and Inclusion team at the Jewish Federations of North America, or JFNA, in April. He believes he can channel his painful personal experiences into healing divisions and changing perceptions, and help make a trip to the synagogue a spiritual rather than a scarring encounter for Jews of color. In this new role, Looney has been tackling the delicate task of producing guidelines on how to be more welcoming of Jews of color, even as synagogues and community centers strengthen security in the wake of recent attacks including mass shootings in Pittsburgh and Poway, California. The concern is that such boosted security increases the likelihood of racial profiling incidents affecting congregants of color. Its a relatively small but growing demographic. A Pew Center survey in 2021 showed just 8% of U.S. Jews identify as Hispanic, Black or Asian, but that nearly doubled to 15% among respondents aged 18 to 29. The poll also found that 17% reported living in a nonwhite or multiracial household. Looney, 37, has led a life that has taken several turns. He served in the military police as part of the Louisiana National Guard and spent nine months overseas training Iraqi police forces. He has worked in real estate and has even done urban farming, selling microgreens in local markets. Story continues His spiritual journey began at 13 when a friend asked Looney, whose father was Baptist and mother was Episcopalian, about his own religion. Despite his family's Christian faith, Looney said he never felt connected to it. I was obstinate that (Christianity) wasnt for me, he said. When I think about African enslavement in America and how religion was something that was forced, I believed that the religion I was practicing was not true to who my ancestors were. Looney embraced Judaism while still a teen because he viewed it as a faith that gives believers permission to ask difficult, uncomfortable questions, though he didnt formally convert until age 26. It was after the police killing of George Floyd and the racial reckoning of summer 2020 that Looney began working with organizations to raise awareness about Jews of color. It was also during that time that JFNA launched its diversity, equity and inclusion initiative. Looney said Jews of color are often subjected to questions about their Jewish origins. Even when well intentioned, those queries can be painful because they cast doubt on their identity right away and imply they dont belong, he said. Add to that the increased security at synagogues, and theres even greater potential for people to feel othered or unwelcome. How do you strike a balance? You dont want to exclude anyone, and yet you want to be discerning of who is coming in the door, Looney said. Cultural competency is important. Just the fact that someone who is Black is walking in shouldnt raise alarms. He knows from personal experience. The morning of the Tree of Life synagogue mass shooting in Pittsburgh on Oct. 27, 2018, Looney was unaware it had taken place because he was not using his phone in observance of Shabbat. When he entered a synagogue, he got more questions and experienced deeper scrutiny from security guards, and it was painful. If that were my first time entering that community, he said, I wouldve never come back. The guidelines he is working on will be shared with Jewish federations across North America and, Looney hopes, implemented at the local level by synagogues and community centers. Just two months into his job, he says they are a work in progress but will continue to evolve over time. One goal is to inculcate in security guards a deeper understanding of the diversity of the Jewish community, he said: Were starting to have these types of conversations and thats a great beginning. Rabbi Isaiah Rothstein, who founded the diversity, equity and inclusion initiative and serves as JFNAs public affairs advisor, said Looneys professional experience as a military policeman and his lived experience as a Jewish person of color make him uniquely qualified to boost inclusivity while being cognizant of the sensitive relationship between law enforcement and people of color. Security and belonging dont have to be mutually exclusive, said Rothstein, who is the son of a white father and a Black mother and has seen his darker-skinned relatives being treated differently in synagogues. Nate is helping us bring an equity lens to make sure all our institutions are safe and secure while creating a culture of belonging for all Jews and our loved ones. Sabrina Sojourner, an African American Jewish chaplain at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington who met Looney at a leadership seminar five years ago, said people of color are profiled consciously and unconsciously by white people and Looney's role at the JFNA is crucial to help transform assumptions about who is the threat and who is not. If you look at attacks against Jewish people and synagogues, they are not perpetrated by people of color, Sojourner said. Nates work is so important because it tells me JFNA gets that if the most vulnerable people in our communities are not safe, our communities are not safe. Looney said another challenge is that antisemitism and racism tend to be compartmentalized. It's a tough job to make people understand that many of us have multiple identities and fit into both categories and that we are all fighting against white supremacy, he said. Placing Jews of color in decision-making roles in Jewish spaces can help forge solidarity and bring the realization that marginalized communities are stronger when they come together, he added. Rothstein believes Looney will make a big difference because he is also a healer. As an example, he cited a virtual JFNA event commemorating Martin Luther King Day in 2021 when Looney recited a prayer and sang Lift Every Voice and Sing, a hymn written by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900 and often referred to as the Black national anthem. Those three minutes felt like three hours and they felt like three seconds, Rothstein said. Its how Nate holds himself. He is so accessible to people because of his heart. That comes through the life he has lived. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. MIDDLETOWNDuring the last four days of June, young burglars struck three township elementary schools, leaving a trail of graffiti behind in one, police said. Four burglars entered Fairview Elementary School on Cooper Road shortly before 11 p.m. Monday, police said. It's unclear if they did any damage or took anything. Hours later, about 2:45 a.m. Tuesday, three young males illegally entered Bayview Elementary School on Leonardville Road in the Belford section of the township. The suspects vandalized the school with graffiti in several places, police said. The three suspects, estimated to be between 15 and 20, wore masks and had on backpacks. One of them wore a pink facemask and a brown or maroon hooded sweatshirt with the words Los Angeles embroidered in white on the front and carried a white Champion backpack. River Plaza Elementary School, in the River Plaza section of the township, was burglarized about 8:20 p.m. Thursday, police said. There are two suspects, both white and estimated to be between 15 and 20: a male with long, wavy dark hair, a black t-shirt, dark colored shorts and black socks and sneakers. The female suspect has straight light brown or reddish blond hair and was wearing green matching pants and top. It was unclear if they took or damaged anything in the school. Clean energy: NJ to lower EV incentive to spread the $35 million to more people Police are urging anyone with information to call the Middletown detectives Keith Hirschbein or Ricardo Cruz at (732) 615-2120. This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Middletown police seek help finding burglars that hit three schools Jul. 3Burmese Catholics from around the nation have gathered in Owensboro to take part in the 11th Annual National Conference of Burmese-American Catholics this weekend. A signature part of the conference was the priesthood ordination of Deacon Martin Ma Na Ling on Saturday morning. The Owensboro Sportscenter hosted the event, which was performed in both English and Burmese to an assembled crowd of both local residents and conference attendees. The Most Reverend William F. Medley, Bishop of the Diocese of Owensboro, ordained Ling during the ceremony. He is the second Burmese priest to be ordained in the diocese. The previous Burmese priest ordained was in 2020. "What a beautiful vision this is of the Church gathered from all over the country and all over the world to celebrate our Diocese of Owensboro, the calling of dear Deacon Martin to the Holy Order of Priesthood," Medley said during the ceremony. Medley said that the ceremony was being live streamed to Myanmar, so that those who were unable to travel to Owensboro for the ordination ceremony could view it. The ordination was one of several events making up the National Conference of Burmese-American Catholics, which is scheduled to conclude Monday. More than 1,000 Burmese-Americans were expected to travel from numerous states to Owensboro, with upwards of at least another 1,000 potentially visiting Saturday for the priesthood ordination. A soccer game at Steele Stadium featuring local Burmese against those visiting the area for the conference also took place Saturday afternoon. An "American Idol"-style competition is scheduled to provide some entertainment for conference goers Sunday, before a Monday morning mass concludes the conference. In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Incorporated (NYSE:RBA) by projecting its future cash flows and then discounting them to today's value. One way to achieve this is by employing the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Models like these may appear beyond the comprehension of a lay person, but they're fairly easy to follow. Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in the Simply Wall St analysis model. View our latest analysis for Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers The method We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second 'steady growth' period. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate: 10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$306.5m US$325.1m US$341.5m US$361.0m US$376.0m US$389.2m US$401.0m US$411.8m US$422.0m US$431.8m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x2 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 4.16% Est @ 3.5% Est @ 3.03% Est @ 2.7% Est @ 2.47% Est @ 2.31% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 6.2% US$289 US$288 US$285 US$284 US$279 US$272 US$264 US$255 US$246 US$237 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$2.7b Story continues The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (1.9%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 6.2%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032 (1 + g) (r g) = US$432m (1 + 1.9%) (6.2% 1.9%) = US$10b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$10b ( 1 + 6.2%)10= US$5.7b The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value, which in this case is US$8.4b. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of US$67.5, the company appears about fair value at a 11% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind. dcf The assumptions The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. You don't have to agree with these inputs, I recommend redoing the calculations yourself and playing with them. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 6.2%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.000. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. Moving On: Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it ideally won't be the sole piece of analysis you scrutinize for a company. DCF models are not the be-all and end-all of investment valuation. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, we've compiled three pertinent elements you should explore: Risks: For example, we've discovered 3 warning signs for Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers that you should be aware of before investing here. Management:Have insiders been ramping up their shares to take advantage of the market's sentiment for RBA's future outlook? Check out our management and board analysis with insights on CEO compensation and governance factors. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every American stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that its possible the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol will make a criminal referral against former President Trump. During the interview on ABCs This Week, the networks chief Washington correspondent, Jonathan Karl, asked Cheney who serves as the vice chairwoman of the committee whether the panels hearings have demonstrated that Trump should be prosecuted. Ultimately, the Justice Department will decide that, Cheney responded. I think we may well as a committee have a view on that. And if you just think about it from the perspective of, what kind of man knows that a mob is armed and sends the mob to attack the Capitol and further incites that mob when his own vice president is under threat, when the Congress is under threat? Its just very chilling. And I think certainly we will continue to present to the American people what weve found, she added. When pressed by Karl, Cheney said that it is possible the committee will officially make a criminal referral. She also noted that the Department of Justice doesnt need to wait for the panel to make a decision in order for it to make its own criminal referral. Last month, the committees chairman, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), sparked criticism after saying that the panel would not make a criminal referral, claiming that its not our job. Thompson clarified soon after making his comments that the decision to make a referral remained a possibility. Cheneys comments follow ex-White House aide Cassidy Hutchinsons testimony last week to the panel about the former presidents behavior during the attack on the Capitol. Cheney told Karl in a previously released portion of the interview that she wholeheartedly believes in Hutchinsons credibility. Story continues I am absolutely confident in her credibility. Im confident in her testimony, Cheney said. I think that what Cassidy Hutchinson did was an unbelievable example of bravery and of courage and patriotism in the face of real pressure. Karl also asked Cheney if shes concerned about the possibility of Trump running for president in 2024 against President Biden amid a Justice Department prosecutor. Cheney answered that she was more worried about the possibility of people who hold responsibility for the Jan. 6 attack not being held accountable and the constitutional threat that could impose on the country. I have greater concern about what it would mean if people werent held accountable for whats happened here, the Republican congresswoman said. I think its a much graver constitutional threat if a president can engage in these kinds of activities and the majority of the presidents party looks away or we as a country decide, You know, were not actually going to take out constitutional obligation seriously. I think thats a much more serious threat. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. (Corrects to say Shanghai's recent COVID-19 lockdown was lifted on June 1) BEIJING (Reuters) -Cities in eastern China tightened COVID-19 curbs on Sunday as coronavirus clusters emerge, posing a new threat to China's economic recovery under the government's strict zero-COVID policy. Wuxi, a manufacturing hub in the Yangtze Delta on the central coast, halted operations at many public venues located underground, including shops and supermarkets. Dine-in services in restaurants were suspended, and the government advised people to work from home. City authorities urged residents not to leave Wuxi unless necessary, after reporting 42 new asymptomatic cases on Saturday. China continues to try to stamp out new infections as part of the strict approach taken in the country where the coronavirus was first detected in late 2019. But the lockdowns and other measures have taken a heavy toll on the world's second-biggest economy. Si county in Anhui province locked down its 760,000 residents and suspended public traffic as it reported 288 cases on Saturday. Anhui accounted for most of China's new infections, reporting 61 symptomatic and 231 asymptomatic cases for Saturday. Mainland China recorded 473 new COVID-19 cases, of which 104 were symptomatic and 369 were asymptomatic, the National Health Commission said on Sunday. That compares with 268 new cases a day earlier - 72 symptomatic and 196 asymptomatic infections, which China counts separately. Yiwu, China's export capital for small commodities, cancelled flights to the capital, Beijing, for an unspecified period, state TV said, citing COVID prevention measures. Yiwu has reported three COVID cases in the past week. Shanghai, China's most populous city and financial hub, reported one positive case outside of quarantine areas in the city from midnight to 5 p.m. on Sunday (1600 GMT on Saturday to 0900 GMT on Sunday), officials told a news press conference. The city lifted a lockdown on June 1 after two months of shutdown that hit output and consumer spending. Story continues There were no new deaths, keeping the nation's death toll to 5,226. As of Saturday, mainland China had confirmed 225,851 cases with symptoms. For Saturday, Beijing reported no new local cases, and Shanghai reported two local symptomatic cases, according to local government data. (Reporting by Sophie Yu, Stella Qiu and Ryan Woo; Editing by William Mallard) Last month, a Springfield city council committee outlined an initial allocation for the city's $40 million in emergency federal ARPA aid, including millions of funding for homeless services and Cooper Park renovations. The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act was signed into law by President Joe Biden in March. More than $673 billion of those funds were set aside for state and local governments. In August, the city accepted its first installment of their total $40 million. The city has already approved a $6.5 million ARPA expenditure on police, fire and city healthcare worker retention payments, who will each receive $6,000 total over the next three years. Council also originally set aside $8 million for the Springfield Greene County Health Department, but councilmembers said last month they were likely to lower that to $3 million. More: Greene County awards nearly $23 million in coronavirus ARPA aid, half of its federal funds "We wanted to make sure that we never got to a point where we weren't able to have adequate resources," Councilman Matthew Simpson said at the meeting. "But the health department has continued to excel in getting federal grant funding to fund those (COVID) efforts. So we have not had to touch that 8 million yet." Those previous allocations notwithstanding, the council committee outlined their vision for a total ARPA allocation. The recommendations are: $7.3M Cooper Park renovation $500,000 Jordan Creek renewal $750,000 Missouri State University $750,000 Ozarks Technical College $50,000 Discovery Center $250,000 Fairgrounds (tentative; unsure if included in final total) $500,000 Library system $2M Boys & Girls Club $7M Homeless services $500,000 Housing study $1M Restore SGF $3M Art Museum $3M Ozark Greenways $4M Historic City Hall renovations $100,000 Burrell 24/7 mental health hotline $3M Contingency reserve fund Many of these allocations are based on providing matching funds for projects allocated from the state legislature, which was complicated by the governor's recent veto of funds for several of those projects. Story continues This included $7.5 million of state ARPA money toward the Jordan Creek renewal and $5 million to repair the historic Jefferson Avenue Footbridge, which the city did not allocate their own money toward because of the state's initial allocation. More: City sets new election date for Galloway development after rebuke in court In a statement, Mayor Ken McClure said the city would pursue "every available alternative" to fund the vetoed projects. "We are pleased with the news that many important Springfield projects will receive funding from the state of Missouri and are grateful for the Governors support. Our local colleagues in Jefferson City have been very helpful this legislative session and we greatly appreciate it," McClure said. During the city's ARPA allocation process, councilmembers received hundreds of millions of dollars of requests. At last month's meeting, subcommittee chair Matthew Simpson stressed their decision not to fund some projects was not a reflection on their quality or importance to the community. "Funding is not a reflection on whether it's a good project. It's just a recognition that there's limited money and there's not enough to fund everything," he said noting there will be state applications for additional ARPA funds. "There are additional rounds of state funding that will be occurring through competitive applications. Some of those already opened." The chosen projects must still pass through the full city council and may be subject to further change. This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: City council to fund homeless services, Cooper Park renovations in ARPA plan Ed Kienholz's sculpture "The Illegal Operation." (Christopher Knight/Los Angeles Times) In 1962, when Edward Kienholz made The Illegal Operation, the sculpture gave intense visual form to an experience many knew, but one that remained submerged deep in the cultures shadows. Abortion was a crime, and the wretched back-alley procedure that the artist witnessed his wife endure was fresh in his mind. (She survived.) The sculptors assemblage is sordid in every detail dirty rags; a soiled bedpan, trash-filled bucket and battered enamel pot piled beneath a shopping-cart chair; filthy medical instruments and tools; a brass standing lamp with its tattered shade askew and lightbulb exposed, the better to illuminate the gruesome job and, at the same time, suggest a threatening police interrogation lamp. In the most shocking element, the woman, Kienholzs wife, is represented as a gray, ruptured, inhuman bag of oozing matter a nameless, unidentified lump sagging across the seat. A ruptured bag of inert cement stands in for the woman in Ed Kienholz's "The Illegal Operation." (Christopher Knight/Los Angeles Times) A homey but stained hooked rug serves as grimy pedestal for the awful tableau. Stepping just outside its margins into the viewers space, a grubby pink stool where the abortionist sat is placed next to the patients wire seat. The shopping carts allusion to a blunt commercial transaction rather than a therapeutic process of medical care is artfully asserted. When he made the sculpture, the artist was 35. (Kienholz died at 66 in 1994.) His squalid assemblage would eventually end up in the permanent collection of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, in the city where it had taken shape. Acquired in 2008, it is on view today in the third-floor galleries of the BCAM building. A living moment in time the present of 1962, when civil rights movements were churning and change from the insulated, socially repressive postwar years seemed possible is embodied in a work of art that gives form to the callous violence routinely done to desperate women. Eleven years later, The Illegal Operation was transformed. The United States Supreme Court decision in Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion, ruling that unduly restrictive state regulation of the procedure was unconstitutional. Kienholzs sculpture embodied one legacy of misogynistic brutality that had blessedly ended. Art defining the present became an artifact of the past. Story continues And it remained so for half a century. Then, on June 24, The Illegal Operation time-traveled yet again. Another Supreme Court, this one fashioned expressly as a third political branch of government meant to establish law that the legislative and executive branches would not or could not, overturned Roe. The sculptural present that became the past now describes the future. The inevitability of illegal operations spreads out into the dark and shabby corners of onrushing American life, cheered on by five conservative Christians clad in the blackest of robes, who decided that their religious beliefs should trump medical science and secular law. Edward Kienholz, "The Illegal Operation (detail)," 1962, mixed media (Christopher Knight/Los Angeles Times) Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote the opinion, which includes imbecilic reference to a notorious 17th century English predecessor most widely known for his ardent belief in witches, whom he condemned to death for wickedness. (The barrister, raised by a strict Puritan father, initially planned to become a priest.) After a draft of the opinion was leaked in the spring, Alitos misogynistic reasoning was widely dissected and even mocked in aghast legal circles. The opinion was joined by four other justices, all conservative Catholics like Alito, for whom abortion violates their religious faith. Among them is a man credibly accused of sexual harassment of women, another credibly accused of attempted rape, and a woman affiliated with a charismatic cult whose structure rests on a doctrine of male superiority. In that regard the incisiveness of Kienholzs sculpture is on scorching display in its cruelest, most devastating image that gray, oozing lump of nameless matter. Alitos nasty, hollow abortion opinion barely acknowledges that women will be affected by it, and the artist understood full well how intractable such routine dehumanization could be. As a young man Kienholz had fled small-town eastern Washington for Southern California to get far away from his fundamentalist Christian mother. That the centerpiece of his monstrous scene is a split-open bag of cement anguishes the heart. Alito and his self-righteous cohorts might as well have been deciding the fate of inert lumps of the sort to which Kienholz gave blistering form. The living, breathing, flesh-and-blood women who will suffer and die at the hands of abortionists have been excised from consideration. The courts ruling will not stop abortion, as everyone knows, instead terminating abortion safety. The procedure has been turned back into an illegal operation that will kill thousands of people, which only the dissenting justices bothered to express. LACMA acquired Ed Kienholz's 1962 assemblage "The Illegal Operation" in 2008. (Christopher Knight/Los Angeles Times) Americans dont want this evil inflicted on them, as every poll shows. Four of the five jurists who made the scandalous decision were appointed by two presidents rejected three times by large majorities of voters. Last week the authorities in effect told Americans to sit down and be quiet. Do not expect that to happen. Kienholzs The Illegal Operation is powerful for what it so indelibly represents, a ruthless scene of cruelty that can only flourish if hidden away and kept silent. Such is the nature of important art. And such is the purpose of a museums permanent collection, where paintings and sculptures sit patiently cared-for as time passes until, suddenly, a moment calls for them to step forward to shake us by the lapels or take us by the hand. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. The Telegraph Dustin Johnson held off a final-day charge from fellow American Bryson DeChambeau to claim the spoils and secure his first win of the season, emerging triumphant from a dramatic final round as the worlds best went toe-to-toe on the grandest course of all. As we know, this is not what happened at the 150th Open Championship. This is what happened at the LIV Golf Open Championship. Chicago police are asking for the public's help locating three young girls last seen Friday in the 6100 block of South Racine Ave. They are Sharae Woods, 10, from left, Rayven Woods, 11, and Janiya Young, 12. (Chicago police photos) Police are asking for the publics help locating three young girls, 12, 11 and 10-years-old, who were last seen Friday in the 6100 block of South Racine Ave. The youngest girl is Sharae Woods, 10, who was described as Black with a medium complexion, black hair and brown eyes. She is about 5 feet 4 inches tall, and weighs 140 pounds, police said. Advertisement Rayven Woods, 11, also is missing. She was described as Black with a medium complexion, black hair and brown eyes. She is 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 170 pounds, police said. The third girl, Janiya Young, 12, was described as Black with a dark complexion, brown eyes and black hair. She is 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 215 pounds, police said. Advertisement Janiya has scars on both arms. Anyone with information on their whereabouts should contact the Chicago Police Department at 312-747-8380. PRAGUE (Reuters) - Czech fighter jets will guard neighbouring Slovakia's air space as of September, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said on Sunday. Slovakia asked its NATO allies to patrol its skies as it decided to ground its Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets, which could be sent to neighbouring Ukraine to help Kyiv defend itself against Russia's invasion. "I don't see any problem there, the government will certainly approve it," Fiala said in a televised debate with his Slovak counterpart Eduard Heger. Slovakia ordered F-16 fighter jets from the United States in 2018. The first planes were expected to arrive this year and the shipment to be completed in the next year, but the delivery is now assumed to take place in 2024. (Reporting by Robert Muller; Editing by Toby Chopra) European authorities responded Sunday to a shooting that unfolded at a shopping center in the capital of Denmark not far from the venue of a Harry Styles concert scheduled for Sunday night. Copenhagen Police tweeted that officers responded to Fields shopping center to reports of a shooting. Multiple people have been struck by gunfire, the department said, instructing the public to avoid the area. Police later said a suspect has been arrested but did not disclose more information. The department urged anyone who has video of the incident or observed what happened to dial 411. A large police presence remained at the scene, but it was unclear if any casualties occurred. CROWDS OF NEW YORK CITY JFK AIRPORT TRAVELERS RELOCATED AMID UNATTENDED BAG INVESTIGATION Video showed crowds of people running on the street away from the mall. Demark has some of the strictest gun laws in Europe. Harry Styles is scheduled to perform at an arena across the street from the mall Sunday as part of his "Love On Tour." Hes recently performed in Oslo, Norway, Stockholm, Sweden and Hamburg, Germany. This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates. INDIANAPOLIS (AP) When drastic increases in food costs spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic left Andrew Caplinger struggling to find fresh catfish for his restaurants, he decided to try an experimental solution growing his own. In the coming months, the Indianapolis restaurant chain Caplingers Fresh Catch Seafood will begin sourcing its second most popular menu item from fish ponds at his 28-acre farm in southern Indiana. The goal is to produce up to half of the 800 to 1,000 pounds of catfish fillets served at the restaurants each week. Ive never done anything like this Ive sold dead fish my whole entire life, he said. It's tough, and it might be risky. But assuming things go well and these fish grow like they should, we wont have to look at raising our store prices again for some time. Its a move that could increase local appetite for fish, Caplinger said. But even with fish and seafood consumption on the rise in the U.S., the number of Midwest aquaculture farms is declining, and many fish producers say they face challenges getting their produce to consumers in the region. Midwestern states compose a fifth of the countrys land but contain about a third of all U.S. farms, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Although experts maintain the region could be a strong aquaculture producer, the number of aquaculture farms in the Midwest has fallen to roughly 271 from 336 a decade ago. This could be because the region has historically relied on wild-caught seafood, said Amy Shambach, an aquaculture marketing outreach associate with the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant. Seafood produced in the Midwest also must compete with cheaper, imported seafood. Our input costs are a little bit higher than other places, and (that) contributes to some of the slow growth, Shambach said. Stagnant fish farming in the Midwest aquaculture industry has national implications, Shambach said. With global seafood consumption expected to increase by 100-170 billion pounds by 2030, the growing seafood trade deficit means more fish will need to be farm-raised, opening the door for Midwestern farmers to meet demand. Story continues Joseph Morris, former director of the North Central Regional Aquaculture Center at Iowa State University, said growing the industry is a challenge, noting problems with marketing, fish processing and high labor costs. The big hurdle to tackle how can they produce a product, economically, to meet the consumer needs and still stay in business? he said. How do you reach the growing market of people wanting to eat fish? Mike Searcy, who owns a trout farm in Seymour, Indiana, said the Hoosier state one of only two in the Midwest to report an uptick in farms in the last decade lacks a central processing facility for gutting and filleting harvested fish. He sends most of his fish to Kentucky for processing and distribution. "We have demand from our local customers, but the biggest hindrance is the lack of processing, filling that gap between the farmer and the restaurant owner. That holds us back," said Searcy, who is exploring having a processing facility at his own farm. When were competing with foreign markets and much cheaper labor, they can supply a fillet to the grocery stores a heck of a lot cheaper than what I can. Shambach said the lack of processing available in Indiana allows only a handful of Indiana aquaculture farms to produce for food businesses. Instead, most fish raised in the state is sold live to Asian food markets in Indianapolis, Chicago, New York City and Toronto. Still, Morris said, fish farmers are vying to grow their businesses and increase profits which could succeed if producers can better market their fish. A new generation of folks are eating more fish, and theyre asking more often, Wheres my food coming from? Thats where the Midwest comes in, Morris said. One solution for farmers could be recirculating aquaculture systems, which allow fish and shrimp to be grown in tank-based systems. The method gives producers control over water quality often preventing fish disease and the need for antibiotics and allows various species to be raised year-round in land-locked areas. The method is costly, though, precluding many small- and mid-size farmers. Searcy, whose farm runs entirely on the technology, cautioned that the operation is also completely dependent on electricity. Environmental activists argue that recirculating aquaculture systems require abundant water resources, and they voice concerns about the disposal of waste. Tyler Isaac, aquaculture program manager for Monterey Bay Aquariums Seafood Watch, said that with sustainably sourced fish feed and proper precautions, the recirculating systems could lead to more fish farms in the Midwest. Its always a game of tradeoffs, but I think at the end of the day, recirculating systems are a really good step forward, Isaac said, adding that renewable energy sources would also make such operations more environmentally friendly. The development of an aquaculture industry in a place like the Midwest is a good thing. It just needs to be done with appropriate safeguards. Morris said other emerging technologies such as AquaBounty's genetically modified Atlantic salmon being grown in Indiana that grow faster and are less susceptible to disease could also be very attractive for producers," although it could be several years before similar genetically altered fish become mainstream. In terms of Midwest aquaculture overall, the growth has got to be with the food-fish operation. Thats where your market is a consumer basis, Morris said. There are only so many ponds to stock out in the Midwest, only so many anglers. But there are consumers wanting to eat more and more fish in Midwest. We have to focus on that. ___ Casey Smith is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Smith on Twitter. Los Angeles Police Department bomb squad officers with illegal fireworks dropped off at Brand Park in Mission Hills on Saturday. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) Los Angeles officials collected nearly 700 pounds of fireworks as part of a buyback program Saturday at Brand Park in Mission Hills. The event, hosted for the second year in a row by Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez, was held in response to community concerns about fires breaking out amid a severe drought and historically dry conditions. She said the buyback brought in about a third more illegal fireworks than last year's event, during which officials collected 514 pounds. I truly appreciate the community members who voluntarily participated in this buyback effort to remove dangerous fireworks from our communities, Rodriguez said in a statement, adding that the increase in recovery shows promise for a larger citywide effort. "I look forward to expanding next year to return peace to neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles. Drought conditions can cause fires to spread quickly, particularly in "high" fire severity zones like northeast San Fernando Valley, and fireworks only increase the threat, the councilwoman's office said. They can also be distressing for people with autism or other sensory issues, as well as those with post-traumatic stress disorder. Pets can also be affected by the bangs and flashes. In all, 75 people stopped by the park Saturday to turn in illegal fireworks, including aerial mortars, sky rockets, M-80s and M-1000s, officials said. Depending on the weight of the fireworks they turned in, participants received Dodger tickets, gas cards or gift cards to Starbucks or Target. The Los Angeles police and fire departments were on hand to accept the fireworks and make sure they were properly dealt with. Last month, Los Angeles City Atty. Mike Feuer issued a warning to residents against using illegal fireworks leading up to the holiday, saying that his office would be cracking down. He said his office was issuing cease-and-desist letters to online platforms such as Facebook and Craigslist that are advertising firework sales in Los Angeles. Story continues Fireworks are illegal in the city of Los Angeles, and selling, possessing, using or discharging them can bring a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to a year in jail, according to the city attorney's office. Last year, a South Los Angeles block was blown up in a failed fireworks detonation by the LAPD bomb squad. In recent weeks, several cities in the area canceled their fireworks shows after state authorities raided the offices of the company hired to provide the pyrotechnics. Still, scores of other sites across Los Angeles County are hosting their own fireworks displays. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Having a care plan in place at the end of life is important in ensuring the person's wishes are respected as much as possible. Monica came to the emergency department by ambulance for shortness of breath. The paramedics knew her well because she had been quite sick for many years, and they had treated and transported her to the hospital multiple times. Her nurse asked me to come see her right away because she looked distressed. I immediately saw how anxious she was: she had a tight grip on the handrails of her bed and her eyes were wide open. The paramedics had placed a mask with oxygen on her face. I quickly glanced at the monitor to see that Monicas blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen level were OK. One of the paramedics asked if he could talk to me in the hall. I introduced myself to Monica, asked the nurse to get her IV started and told her Id be right back. The paramedic told me that Monica, who was in her early 80s, had a long history of cancer that had been in remission, but it had recently recurred. He said she had always wanted to have everything done for her, but he mentioned that her husband told them that she was interested in hospice care. I looked through Monicas records on the computer and saw that she had undergone cancer treatment several years prior and had been doing well the past few years. She had recently undergone scans that showed that her cancer had recurred and was not responding to chemotherapy. I went back in to find Monica much more relaxed. The nurse had been able to turn down the oxygen in the face mask and transition her to oxygen through a small tube in her nose. Her husband had not yet arrived, but she told me that her son was going to be driving him to the emergency department (ED). She had been increasingly short of breath over the past few days. She had previously had fluid around her lungs (caused by her cancer) that had to be drained, and was worried that fluid had reaccumulated. I ordered a chest X-ray and asked the nurse to let me know when Monica's family arrived. A short time later I got her report, which showed her fluid collections had returned and were worse than they had been. I went back to check on Monica and her son and husband were walking down the hall toward her room. I introduced myself and asked if we could briefly talk before going into the room. Story continues Monicas son asked how she was doing and said they were just trying to come to terms with her recent news and further decline in health. They told me Monica had decided that she did not want to keep undergoing treatment for her cancer. Until that point Monica had designated herself as full code, which means she wished to undergo all medical treatments and wanted to have everything done in the event that her heart stopped or she stopped breathing. Dr. Erika Kube I went into Monicas room with her family; she looked so relieved to see them as her husband immediately grabbed her hand and kissed her on the forehead. I sat down on the other side of Monica and pulled up her chest X-ray on the computer so she could see the abnormality. She paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and said that she was not interested in doing any other cancer treatments and wanted to know if we could just focus on keeping her comfortable. I held her other hand and reassured her that she would direct what happened and we would honor her wishes. Her son had tears in his eyes and told Monica that he supported her decision fully. Her husband rubbed her hand and nodded his head in agreement. I consulted with our hospital hospice team, which was able to come to the ED and meet with Monica and her family. She said If her heart were to stop beating or she were to stop breathing, she would not want to undergo CPR, heart defibrillation, or be put on a ventilator. She did not wish to undergo any further treatment. After our discussion, I signed a Do-Not-Resuscitate (DNR) order for Monica. The order allows an individual to document their choices relating to CPR. In Ohio, there are two types of DNR directives the difference between the two is when the DNR order becomes active. With DNR Comfort Care (DNRCC), the order is active once the form is signed by an authorized health care provider. This directive indicates that the patient will not receive resuscitative medications, CPR, defibrillation or be put on a ventilator. A DNR-Comfort Care Arrest (DNRCCA) directive means the patient can choose to receive medical care until the time of cardiac or respiratory arrest, at which point the directive becomes active, resuscitative efforts are stopped, and comfort care measures are instituted. This form can be completed at any time, even when someone is young and without chronic medical problems. Monica made the decision to not pursue further treatment for her cancer and wanted to focus on being comfortable. She asked me to designate her as DNRCC. She was admitted to a hospice facility, where she was able to spend the last few weeks of her life with her family members at her side before she comfortably passed. I was grateful that Monica was able to discuss her end-of-life desires with her family, make her decision, and that we were able to honor her wishes of how she wanted to spend the final days of her life. This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Woman reconsiders end-of-life wishes after cancer returns One evening in early June, a week after 19 students and two teachers were shot and killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, extremism researcher Kesa White saw media reports of another mass shooting, at a medical center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In turn, she picked up each of the three phones she uses for research and got to work, scrolling fast. Apps. News sites. Twitter and more obscure social media platforms. In the minutes after a shooting, she needed to learn as much as she could. The news of another attack, so soon after the racist attack in Buffalo, New York, then the Uvalde shooting, was shocking, as always. For White, it crystallized another emotion: dread. This, she feared, could be the one she was waiting for. White had spent the previous week watching for what extremism researchers call a copycat shooting: Another disturbed young man could try to kill more people than the 18-year-old shooter had in Texas. Her research showed her all the signs: increasing rhetoric and violent chatter on encrypted messaging apps; a blooming of support for the Uvalde shooter in dark spaces online; loose cannons increasingly firing shots across cyberspace. It made me think, somebody's going to try to do something similar pretty soon, White said. I think there's going to be some sort of copycat attack. Before long, details emerged about the Tulsa shooter: His race and name were revealed, and researchers and journalists concluded that the attack was not ideologically driven. Tragic but not a copycat. Multiple people were killed in a shooting at a hospital in Tulsa, Okla. The shooter committed suicide. Whites sense of dread never goes away. It is a part of the job for people such as her, an informal team of researchers, academics and professional intelligence gatherers who took it upon themselves to monitor the poisonous melting pot of American extremism. Connected by Twitter and encrypted messaging apps, these researchers scour the nastiest corners of the internet, watching for trends, tricks and terminology. Some create sock puppet accounts to get inside secret chatrooms and eavesdrop on hateful groups. Others pore over data and messages scraped from social media or hacked from extremist groups, searching for clues and the identities of racists and bigots. Story continues They are a diverse collection of personalities, but on the whole, they shun publicity, balking at the suggestion their work is exciting or dramatic and sometimes rejecting the idea that they are hunting for extremists. What unites them is the desire to do thankless, often boring, research they hope will shed more light on the countrys dark underbelly. It's kind of embarrassing, the whole extremism hunter, Antifas Secret Weapon stuff, said Megan Squire, a research fellow with the Southern Poverty Law Center, who was bestowed the Secret Weapon moniker in a Wired Magazine article in 2018. It feels like people want you to be more amazing or more spy-like or something, when what it actually is is just a lot of deliberative plodding writing stuff down and being super-organized. Through this methodical work, this network of extremism watchers has become an invaluable resource for journalists, law enforcement agencies and the general public. Their sleuthing is responsible for much of what becomes known about mass shooters, extremist groups and other domestic terrorists. Their monitoring occasionally sparks investigations and arrests, and their willingness to put themselves online to face harassment or worse from extremists fills a vital gap in the nations understanding of a growing threat, said Daryl Johnson, a security consultant and former senior analyst for domestic terrorism at the Department of Homeland Security. I'm glad that network exists, Johnson said. I'm glad it's been expanded. I'm glad there's more and more analysts and resources being brought to bear on this problem, because when we have more people looking at it, you get answers, and then the picture becomes clearer. More: Online, extremists turn shooters into 'saints.' Experts worry others aspire to join the ranks More: Yes, American voter demographics are changing. No, thats not what Replacement Theory is How it begins: Trying to save the world Sara Aniano, a researcher who completed a masters thesis at Monmouth University on Instagram comments in the lead-up to the insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, began focusing on extremism during the COVID-19 pandemic. Like many people, Aniano was furloughed from her job and found herself with a lot of free time. One day I was on the beach, and a friend of mine texted our group chat, talking about how Ellen DeGeneres was on house arrest and adrenochrome and save the children, and I was like, Hold on, is she joking? Surely she's joking, Aniano said. Anianos friend, like millions of Americans, had fallen into the trap of nonsense and disinformation sold by people such as Alex Jones and spread on fake news sites such as Infowars. That someone so close to her was spreading QAnon-related conspiracy theories was a wake-up-call, she said. Almost overnight, Aniano said, she started digging into disinformation networks and conspiracy theories on Instagram and other platforms. Before long, she realized she could apply what she learned to her masters thesis, and within a year, she was in regular contact with other extremism and disinformation researchers, sharing what she knew, searching for leads and falling down ever-more complicated online rabbit holes. I'm basically always online, Aniano said. It looks like Im just on my phone, but Im actually trying to save the world. Several researchers who spoke with USA TODAY described similar personal experiences that led them to full-time roles monitoring extremists. For Squire, it was tracking and reporting a neo-Confederate hate group in her hometown in North Carolina. For White, who works at the Polarization and Extremism Research Innovation Lab, or PERIL, at American University, it was a confrontation with a racist hate crime on her university campus, where somebody scrawled the initials of a predominantly Black sorority onto bananas and tied them up with string made to look like nooses. Aniano, who was hired by the Anti-Defamation League to continue her work, said she grew apart from her friend, who fell deeper into disinformation. She and other researchers decided to run straight at a phenomenon unfolding across America. As domestic extremist groups flourished and hate crimes spiked, the informal network of individuals determined to understand, monitor and chronicle that movement also flourished. How they do it: Building a puzzle one piece at a time A typical day for an extremism watcher involves hours of scrolling through hateful content online. As extremists have been pushed off mainstream social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter for violating their terms of service, experts constantly readjust their tracking to new platforms, networks and messaging services. A lot of their time is spent on the encrypted messaging and social media app Telegram. Often dubbed Terrorgram by researchers, the app, founded by a 37-year-old Russian billionaire, which takes a laissez-faire attitude toward extremists, has become the go-to communication platform for many extremist groups and conspiracy mongers. Researchers monitor groups public and private channels on Telegram, where users cross-post content from different channels into their own, creating a daisy chain of hate that is trackable across the platform. White describes her often-monotonous work as like trying to piece together a never-ending jigsaw puzzle without knowing what the image shes building will be. She said she essentially watches and learns every day, trying to keep up with the latest hateful language and memes, learning about up-and-coming hate groups and new conspiracy theories. Im just, like, falling into rabbit holes all day, every day, White said. Because you're always learning something new, and what I learned today is going to be different from what I learn tomorrow, and sometimes something that I learned yesterday is no longer relevant. Along with the day-to-day monitoring, there are periods of frantic action. In the hours after a mass shooting, for example, researchers scramble to learn as much as possible about a suspect before the persons online life disappears. You're racing against the clock to collect as much information as you can get before social media companies remove it, White said. It's going to help paint a story of them, because you always have that one person saying, But they were such a nice kid, we didn't see the warning signs. But you go on their social media account, and you see them posing with guns and saying racist things online. QAnon demonstrators protest in Los Angeles in 2020. How they specialize: Working together Several of the researchers formed sub-groups that focus on a particular topic, group or conspiracy theory. The Q Origins Project, for example, is a small collective of researchers focusing primarily on the early days of a conspiracy theory called QAnon and the community that grew from it. Another collective, the Accelerationism Research Consortium, focuses on the white supremacist concept of accelerationism seeking to foment a race war and ensuing dystopia to bring about a race-based new global order. The researchers try to understand relationships between these groups, said Alex Mendela, a member of the Q Origins Project. Our work focuses on how QAnon relates to the broader conspiratorial far-right, and the pathways that individuals could take to more programmatic extremist movements and eventually violence, Mendela said. Adding to the complexity is the ever-growing network of websites and social media platforms dedicated to hosting extremists. Researchers who spoke with USA TODAY said they monitor accounts on Gab, Gettr, Parler, DLive, Rumble, Cozy and former President Donald Trumps social media site, Truth Social, to name a few. This process of watching and learning is a big part of an extremism researchers job. Occasionally, that work surfaces real, actionable leads or what law enforcement agencies consider credible threats of violence in the real world and not just online. Thats when the watchers sometimes become more than observers. How they respond: To report or not report? In August 2019, Squire was folding laundry while flipping through Telegram channels when she noticed one conversation in a channel that was more stark than the typical flow of hate. One White man with a gun walked into two mosques and killed 50 invaders, Another walked into a mall and killed 20. Another walked into a church and ended more, wrote a user called Anti-Kosmik 2182, whom Squire had identified as Jarrett William Smith, an ex-soldier formerly stationed in Kansas. Have you not seen the impact of 3 amateur shootings? I thought, I'm gonna make a copy of this real quick, because this doesn't seem right and also, this guy is using his real photo as his profile picture. I thought, well, that's kind of unusual, Squire said. So I made a copy of the chat. Researchers such as Squire sometimes face ethical dilemmas when they come across this sort of information: Should they report individuals to law enforcement Or keep monitoring them until they announce actual plans of violence? In this case, Squire didnt have long to debate. About 14 days later, the guy was arrested for plotting to bomb some houses, she said. Smith was sentenced to 2 years in prison for distributing information on social media about building a bomb. The researchers who spoke to USA TODAY were split on the question of whether they should act as a conduit to the police. Some said they are quick to report threats as soon as possible. Others said they see their work more as journalism: watching threats and writing about them but not contacting authorities directly. Most full-time extremism researchers are aligned with institutions of higher education, which have rules about ethical responsibility and invasion of privacy. There are boundaries on what we can and can't do, and I think we follow a very ethical standard, said Matt Kriner, a senior researcher at the Center on Terrorism, Extremism, and Counterterrorism at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. If it's available if anybody can get to it we'll look at it. Kriner said much of the work he and other researchers do isnt really focused on tracking individuals. I think ultimately, everybody wants to say we're trying to stop a shooter from shooting, right? he said. It's a romantic notion. It's one that can occur, but it's not typically the one that we're trying to accomplish. Instead, Kriner said, extremism researchers focus more on movements and trends. Their job is to help the public understand the connections between the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017 and the Jan. 6 insurrection, for example, he said. What law enforcement does is look at islands based on the critical thresholds that you need for investigations, Kriner said. What we're doing is we're looking at the broader landscape. How they survive: Support in a never-ending cycle The work this network of researchers does can be physically and emotionally draining. And theres always more work than they can possibly do. It's completely overwhelming, Squire said. I could clone myself six, eight times over, and it wouldn't be enough people. Rather than compete, extremism researchers tend to collaborate reaching out to one another to swap ideas and share tips. In the wake of a domestic terrorism incident, or after a big leak of hacked data from an extremist group, the network swings into action to try to learn as much as possible. A lot of what we've tried to do is put people in contact with one another, to have really granular discussions about Why does it matter that this person put X symbol on their gun? What are we seeing across the table? Kriner said. We share tips and tricks, we talk to each other about what works and what doesn't and why its important for us to be shifting to this topic area versus that topic area. The collaboration isnt just academic, Mendela said. These guys are my rock, he said. "We often discuss things from our personal life, personal achievements. We hold Dungeons & Dragons games as a good way for us to connect off the clock. The extremism watchers know theyre never going to win. Their work will never eradicate hate and prejudice. They will never know or understand all the extremists or even all the extremist groups in America. But at least theyre doing something. It's a never-ending battle, and were pretty much just pawns in their little game, White said. In terms of end goals, of course, you want world peace and everything like that, but its just a never-ending cycle. More from USA TODAY For subscribers: 'Replacement theory' fuels extremists and shooters. Now a top Border Patrol agent is spreading it For subscribers: After Uvalde shooting, moments of silence, yet so much left to say For subscribers: The great white shark mystery in Southern California This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Extremist watchers: They track online hate to learn what's coming next A still from bodycam footage taken by DC Police officer Michael Fanone on January 6, 2021, at the US Capitol. Justice Department Former DC police officer Michael Fanone said there's "ample probable cause" to indict former President Donald Trump. Fanone was present at the Capitol riot last year, and he told lawmakers he developed PTSD as a result. During the insurrection, he was dragged down a set of stairs and beaten with a flagpole. A former police officer who was beaten during the Capitol riot last year said he believes there's "ample probable cause" to indict former President Donald Trump. "If there's probable cause to suggest that he committed these crimes, which I think we've seen ample probable cause, he should be arrested," Michael Fanone, a former Metropolitan Police Department officer, told CNN on Saturday. "The case should be put before a grand jury, and if they indict him, he should be tried." Fanone was among the Washington, DC, police and US Capitol Police officers who were present on January 6 when a mob of pro-Trump supporters breached barricades and violently stormed the building. In testimony before Congress last year, Fanone said he developed post-traumatic stress disorder from the riot. During the insurrection, Fanone was dragged down a set of stairs and beaten with a flagpole, prosecutors said. Organizers were emboldened by Trump's urges to protest the results of the 2020 election with him, despite Joe Biden's election victory. While members of Congress were meeting inside the Capitol to certify the results and verify Biden's electoral win, Trump supporters organized an attempted coup and stormed the Capitol. Fanone said Saturday on CNN it is time for law enforcement, particularly the Justice Department, to prosecute all involved including the former president. "I don't have the highest of hopes," Fanone said. "I think that for a lot of people, [Attorney General] Merrick Garland included, accountability was more in the line with political accountability: that they felt they can avoid a trial, which could be very ugly for this country especially with how polarized things are now by simply either damaging Trump or his political ability. But I don't think that's enough. It's not enough for me, and I don't think it's enough for most Americans." Story continues He continued, "If you want to restore the credibility of the Department of Justice, we need to return to the rule of law, and my understanding of that is that no one in America is above the law." The Capitol riot left five people, including one police officer, dead. Members of the Proud Boys, which is classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, were also present. After the riot, insurrectionists scrambled to delete photos and social-media posts proving their participation in the Capitol riot. Some broke their cellphones, scrubbed their social-media accounts, and tried to wipe hard drives that might contain photos and other proof of their involvement. But others boasted of their involvement, making it easier for the FBI to catch and charge them. So far, more than 874 people have been charged in connection with the insurrection, according to Insider's database. Read the original article on Business Insider In the years leading up to July 4, 1776, many colonists did not want complete independence from England. But over time, British trade restrictions, taxes, and troops occupying America turned more and more colonists against British rule. April 19, 1775 was the start of the shooting war of the American Revolution with battles at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. The Continental Congress was formed. On June 7, 1776 a motion was made to declare independence from England. A committee was formed to draft such a declaration. Thomas Jefferson drafted a Declaration of Independence, John Adams, Ben Franklin, and Jefferson then revised it. July 2, the Continental Congress voted to adopt the Declaration. It was signed July 4, 1776. John Adams thought that Independence Day should be July 2. Gilmore Printer John Dunlap printed 200 copies of the Declaration of Independence and the copies were distributed to the Colonies. (Only 27 copies are accounted for today. The most recent copy discovered sold for $8.14 million.) On July 8 the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence took place at the Pennsylvania Statehouse (now called Independence Hall) in Philadelphia. August 2, 1776 members of the Continental Congress signed an enlarged version of the Declaration of Independence; this document has John Hancocks very large signature (so that the King of England could easily see his name without wearing glasses). The Revolutionary War continued until the Battle of Yorktown (near Williamsburg, Virginia) where one-third of the British forces in the United States were defeated and surrendered on October 19, 1781. That was the last battle of the Revolution. British troops began going home to England. The Revolutionary War officially ended September 3, 1783 with the Treaty of Paris. Congress debated years before adopting rules for our government the Constitution of the United States on September 17, 1787. In 1870 July 4 was declared a holiday and became a federal holiday in 1938. The Statue of Liberty was formally presented to the United States on July 4, 1884. Ironically, 50 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed, two of its authors, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, both died on July 4, 1870. Story continues The War Memorial will be closed this July 4 to allow our volunteers to celebrate Independence Day. We invite you to visit our museum of military artifacts and photographs from WWI to Afghanistan. Our high-tech Education Center features five computer kiosks, each with information on 11 U. S. wars. We also have oral histories of the Vietnam War and WWII. Visit our gift shop for military tee shirts, ball caps, and military memorabilia. We invite you to visit our Museum Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Our telephone number is 806-350-8387; our web page is www.TexasPanhandleWarMemorial.com Perry Gilmore is executive director of the Texas Panhandle War Memorial Center. This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Perry Gilmore why it's important to remember Independence Day South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem speaks during the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual convention at the George R. Brown Convention Center on May 27, 2022 in Houston, Texas. Brandon Bell/Getty Images South Dakota bans abortions unless the mother's life is at risk. The law came into effect after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Gov. Kristi Noem refused to answer if she'd change the law so a 10-year-old could get an abortion. South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem avoided answering whether or not she would change the state's law to allow a 10-year-old rape victim to get an abortion. "The Indianapolis Star" is reporting that a 10-year-old girl in Ohio who was six weeks and three days pregnant now has to travel across state lines to Indiana to receive an abortion," CNN's Dana Bash asked Noem on Sunday. "So I just -- because this is a trigger law that was passed before you became governor, I wanted you to be clear. Will the state of South Dakota going forward force a 10-year-old in that very same situation to have a baby?" South Dakota bans abortions except in cases where the life of the mother is at risk. The trigger law went into effect after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. "You know what I think is incredible, Dana, in this tragic story? Because I heard about this last night. What's incredible is that nobody's talking about the pervert, horrible and deranged individual that raped a 10-year-old," Noem responded. Noem added that the conversation should be about what needs to be done to protect children from abuse. "And as much as we can talk what we can do for that little girl, I think we also need to be addressing those sick individuals that do this to our children," Noem said. Bash replied, "Right. I couldn't agree more," before she pressed Noem on whether she would change the South Dakota law to protect young girls from having to carry out a pregnancy. "But our bodies are our bodies, and women are the ones who get pregnant. And, in this case, it wasn't a woman. It was a girl," she said. "Should she have to have a child. A child. Should she have that baby?" Story continues "Every life is precious," Noem said. "This tragedy is horrific. I can't even imagine. I have never had anybody in my family or myself gone through anything like this. I can't even imagine," she continued. "But, in South Dakota, the law today is that the abortions are illegal, except to save the life of the mother." She added that she'd never be "okay with a 10-year-old girl having to have a baby." "In fact, that story will keep me up at night. It absolutely will," Noem said, still not answering if she'd change the law. Noem said if a girl's life is in danger from having to carry out a pregnancy then it's up to her doctor to make that decision. "What I would say is, I don't believe a tragic situation should be perpetuated by another tragedy. And so there's more that we have got to do to make sure that we really are living a life that says every life is precious, especially innocent lives that have been shattered, like that 10-year-old girl," Noem said. Read the original article on Business Insider City Hall Dowtown area in Haines City Fl. Wednesday Oct. 20 2021. ERNST PETERS/ THE LEDGER HAINES CITY As issues continue to plague Haines City Clerk Erica Anderson, Mayor Anne Huffman wants the clerk's department brought back under the oversight of the city manager. On the agenda for the special city commission meeting scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m. is an item entitled "city clerk department discussion." The agenda simply states that the intent of the item is to "discuss the City Clerk's department and on going concerns." The first order of business? Determining when the commission can expect Anderson back at work. Mayor Anne Huffman wants the clerk's department brought back under the oversight of the city manager. Previously: Haines City to pay $10,000 to get back into compliance with Florida sunshine laws Moving up: Haines City commissioners hire former police chief Jim Elensky for $170,000 a year At the June 16 commission meeting, Commissioner Morris West said that he'd been informed Anderson was out on family and medical leave, known as FMLA. Anderson was not present at that meeting and her role was assumed by the Deputy City Clerk, Erica Sanchez. City Manager Jim Elensky told The Ledger in a phone call Wednesday that Anderson was out on sick leave that day. FMLA allows employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave annually, either all at once or intermittently. According to Anderson's time card for the pay period between June 13 and June 24, her last recorded day in office was June 13. She worked from home June 14 and 15, though the option to work remotely ended in March for city employees, Huffman told The Ledger in a phone call Friday. The rest of the days on that time period are marked as either sick or a floating holiday. According to an email sent by HR Director Veronica Hairston to Elensky on Wednesday, Anderson requested FMLA medical leave "and ADA accommodation for medical leave" on June 27 - two weeks after her last day in the office. Hairston said that Anderson had inquired about FMLA two weeks prior to June 27. "Based on the number of hours Erica has worked and the fact that she has noticed to HR that she has developed a serious health condition that makes her unable to complete her essential work functions, she is eligible for FMLA," Hairston said. "We prepared all the necessary forms and sent them to her." Story continues Related: Haines City commission to discuss city clerk's job, including 'pattern of irresponsibility' Anderson informed commissioners via email June 28 that she had requested FMLA leave. She also told commissioners that her job would be taken over by Sanchez. Hairston said that Anderson has until July 18 to return her medical documents for FMLA. That's one of the things Huffman intends to challenge Tuesday: she thinks the 15-day window to turn in those forms should have started ticking June 17. Huffman said that the situation is "getting kind of murky" and that she's just "baffled by the whole thing." "It's a hot mess," Huffman said. "The residents deserve more and we just don't know where she is." Huffman said she also intends to ask Reilly whether Anderson's city-leased car and gas card, which Anderson is cleared to use for both business and personal use, will be returned to the city while Anderson is gone. The pending questions about Anderson's absence and extended leave has brought to light how little commissioners observe about city hall on a daily basis. Huffman said she only goes to city hall three to four times a month and commissioners don't have offices there. Huffman intends to ask Reilly about how they can go about rectifying that issue. "I'm going to point out the fact that although the five commissioners are the ones Erica reports to, we are not accessible on a day-to-day basis to provide oversight," Huffman said. "I'm going to ask Fred what can we do in order to place that department under the city manager." The city manager used to directly supervise the clerk's office. Huffman said in 2021, voters approved a referendum making the clerk's office an independent entity under the supervision of the city commission. Huffman said the change was requested by the previous clerk, Linda Bourgeois, who wanted to be able to hire, fire and reprimand her own employees. "I feel that the voters got it wrong in 2021," Huffman said. "It needed to stay just like it was." Did you know: In six months, Haines City racked up nearly $100,000 in credit card charges. Here's what that bought For reference, in Lakeland, the city clerk reports to the finance director. And in Winter Haven, although the city clerk is hired by the city commissioners, the day-to-day operations of the department are overseen by the city manager. In Haines City, the city clerk is one of three positions, alongside the city manager and city attorney, that serves at the pleasure of the city commission. Huffman said she wants the clerk's department back under the city manager's watch at least for practical matters, such as payroll. On Monday, the city's finance department struggled to get in touch with Anderson to approve her department's time cards. Haines City Clerk Erica Anderson "Your department is the final to submit and is holding up payroll," Deputy Finance Director Andrea Henley-Pratt told Anderson in an email. But maintaining the chain of command within the clerk's department is something Anderson has stressed. On Tuesday, Anderson sent an email to Sanchez to be shared with her staff, saying that she was going to be out of office "for an undisclosed period of time." In that email, Anderson sought to clear up some talk about miscommunication amongst her staff. Anderson also emphasized keeping concerns generated within her department from going other places. "If there are any concerns, please follow chain of command to thwart any issues. Chain of command does not extend outside the City Clerks department. If you have any concerns, please follow the city's personnel handbook and speak with your supervisor," Anderson wrote. "I would advise ALL staff, if you're not sure about something, go to your supervisor first to prevent any unnecessary misinformation or embarrassments to the department or yourselves." Issues pile up for clerk's office Anderson's extended absence comes at a tumultuous time for the clerk's office. The city is moving forward with paying American High-Tech Transcription and Reporting more than $10,000 to transcribe nearly 40 meetings worth of minutes that are missing for the city commission, planning commission and community redevelopment agency. The city clerk is responsible for city commission minutes and the deputy city clerk is responsible for minutes generated by the other boards. Sanchez said that Bourgeois, the former city clerk, was caught up on her minutes before she left in 2020. What had fallen behind were the minutes generated by the deputy city clerk, a role at the time taken by Anderson. Elensky said there is not money available in the clerk's budget for the transcription service. The money is going to be transferred from the contingency budget, Elensky told The Ledger in a text message. The city had previously been paying a temporary employee $23.75 an hour to transcribe minutes for half the day and serve as a receptionist for half the day. Anderson said in her email to staff that the afternoon receptionist position has now been filled. City commissioners also sparred over a letter sent by Polk County Supervisor of Elections Lori Edwards concerning Anderson's oversight of the 2022 election, saying that she had never seen "such a pattern of irresponsibility." Commissioners expressed concerns months ago Commissioners have a chance once a year to review Anderson's performance. They were last called to do so at the end of 2021; evaluations were due December 6, though only one commissioner, Roy Tyler, turned in the evaluation on time. The last evaluation was turned in Feb. 2 by Huffman. The Ledger received these evaluations through a public records request and found commissioners had the opportunity to rank Anderson's performance on a scale of 1 to 5, with five being the highest, on a variety of factors and could also choose to leave comments. Anderson earned an overall rating of 4.40. Her lowest overall score was in daily operations, at 3.80. 'Part of my legacy': Haines City commissioners elect the city's first Black, female mayor Tyler gave Anderson the lowest overall scores, with an average score of 2.92. Under daily operations, Tyler said that "timely submission of records and attendance at advisory committee needs does not appear to be consistently maintained." Tyler has questioned in meetings over the past couple of months how the backlog of minutes the city needs to clear up to get back in compliance with Florida Sunshine laws was allowed to grow so large. He did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Huffman thinks oversight from the city manager's office may solve the problem. "I just feel that if [the clerk's department] had remained under the city manager ... that we would have known about minutes not being in the system a whole lot earlier," Huffman said. The first list of missing minutes was generated in November. Huffman has previously said that she assumed the issue was solved before submitting her evaluation in February, when she said that Anderson had "exceeded" her expectations and that she was impressed with her professionalism and reliability. A new list of missing minutes was generated in May. Like Tyler, Huffman said in her evaluation that she wanted to see "more consistency in providing minutes in a more timely fashion." Also: Haines City delays decision for youth football teams jockeying for use of a field Sanchez will take over the city clerk's duties until Anderson returns. Elensky said in a phone call with The Ledger Wednesday that he's going to bring up Sanchez's pay in front of the commission to see if she can be compensated at Anderson's level for the additional responsibilities she's taking on. Also at the upcoming meeting, city commissioners could determine which local football team or teams will be granted permission to use Myers & Wiley Field. The decision was delayed over a week to accommodate City Attorney Fred Reilly's vacation days, despite the fact that the football season has already started. Maya Lora can be reached with tips or questions at mlora@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @mayaklora. This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Haines City commission to discuss city clerk's absence Tuesday A 19-year-old Chicago man charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old girl Friday afternoon outside a Southwest Side McDonalds was ordered to be held without bond at his first court appearance Sunday. Anthony Heredia, of the 4300 block of West 25th Place in Little Village, was arrested Friday shortly after allegedly shooting the girl in the back outside a McDonalds in the 4300 block of West 26th Street, authorities said. Advertisement The shooting victim, identified by the Cook County medical examiners office as Tierra Franklin, of the 3700 block of West Cermak Road, had allegedly thrown a cup of water at an employee through the drive-thru window of the restaurant, prosecutors said during Heredias bond hearing Sunday afternoon. Heredia, who was allegedly called to the restaurant by an employee who recognized the girl from a previous altercation at the restaurant, was outside when the incident occurred, prosecutors said. As Franklin was running toward a car in the parking lot, Heredia pulled a gun and fired twice, striking the girl once in the back, prosecutors said. Advertisement The girl got herself to St. Anthonys Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Heredia was identified by multiple employees of the McDonalds as having been in the restaurant immediately before the shooting and allegedly could be seen on surveillance video retrieving a spent casing from the scene, prosecutors said. The spent casing was found in his pocket when he was arrested a short time later near his home and matched another recovered at the seen, prosecutors. In ordering Heredia held without bail, Circuit Judge Susana Ortiz highlighted that he was able to acquire a gun at the age of 19. I will note here that we have a 19-year-old who can obtain firearms more readily that he can obtain a pack of cigarettes, Ortiz said. Thats something we may want to look at. Heredia lives with foster parents and is under the supervision of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, his attorney, Assistant Public Defender Courtney Smallwood, said during the hearing. He is supposed to begin his senior year at private school Country Club Hills Tech and Trade in the fall, Smallwood said. Heredia pleaded guilty in January to reckless discharge of a firearm in connection with a 2021 incident in Cicero and was sentenced to two years in prison. He was released in March with credit for time served. Despite being encouraged not to say anything about his case, Heredia told the court Sunday, I just want to apologize to the victims family. Franklin, who also was in the care of DCFS, was looking forward to her senior year at Curie High School and was anxiously awaiting the prom, a relative said from Florida, where family members were spending the Fourth of July holiday. Because of the death of Franklins mother, Keeyana Sanderson, from cancer two months ago, the girl stayed behind. Advertisement Its been so difficult for her and her younger sister, said Wesley Bowman, who was reeling from the news of her slaying. Relatives learned Franklin had walked up to the McDonalds restaurant Friday where she was involved in an ongoing disagreement with an employee. Allegedly, the employee stepped away from the counter and called someone. Afternoon Briefing Daily Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox each afternoon. > Chicago police could not confirm the confrontation, but prosecutors said Heredia told police after his arrest that he was called to the store by an employee who was concerned about Franklins presence because of an earlier incident. Relatives said the gunman followed the car and continued to fire, but the car wasnt struck by gunfire. In 2012, Franklins father was fatally wounded at a party on the 5100 block of Morgan in the Englewood neighborhood. In June, another relative, 18, was shot multiple times on the Southwest Side, and is disabled due to his injuries. Advertisement The family was preparing to open a GoFundMe account for Franklins funeral arrangements. dpetrella@chicagotribune.com DAWilliams@chicagotribune.com One person was arrested after a high-speed police chase ended in a crash after the suspect headed the wrong way into the Bourne rotary, according to Massachusetts State Police. Just before 1:30 Sunday morning, a State Trooper observed the operator of a 2011 Nissan Altima using his cellphone along Rt. 6 in Bourne, but when the Trooper attempted to stop the vehicle, the driver fled at a high speed. The Trooper began to pursue the suspects vehicle but terminated pursuit when the driver entered Grandmas Rotary in Bourne going in the wrong direction ending in a crash at the intersection of Main Street and Wagner Way. The suspect then fled the scene. Meanwhile, a Trooper located a government document in the vehicle with the name of Juan Sanchez, 18, of Hyannis, and a photo that matched the description of the driver. After contacting a family member, the suspect returned to the scene and was found to not have an active drivers license. Sanchez was arrested and charged with failure to stop for police, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, speeding, holding an electronic device while driving, wrong-way violation, marked lanes violation, and unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. According to police, Sanchez posted bail Sunday morning and will be arraigned later this week. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty It was March 10, 2022day one of a virtual forum held over Zoom to re-write the Uniform Determination of Death Act (UDDA), a draft law that for four decades has been the basis for defining who is alive and who is dead in the United States. Many of those assembled were legal professionals who are members of the Uniform Law Commission (ULC), a quasi-governmental entity whose origins go back 125 years. Its a crowded meeting of five dozen guests from both the legal and medical realms. Each one was eager to share their own perspective on an issue that at first glance may seem fairly cut-and-drieduntil one really starts to dig deep into the legal and medical nuances behind trying to define death itself. The ULC is the perfect forum for this kind of debate. Pandemonium can arise for laws that left up to states, each different state choosing to abide by its own wildly different set of rules.. When each stateand therefore the U.S. as a wholewould benefit from uniformity, the ULC drafts bills that are then presented to each legislature for adoption. Normally, that means wrestling with relatively mundane issues like child custody or trucking regulations. That day, the ULC was taking on something more existential. Unfortunately, even matters of life and death are prone to Zoom hiccups. Dr. Malcolm Shaner, a neurologist at University of California Los Angeles, was running into some difficulties while trying to address the group. You appear to be muted, Arizona Court of Appeals judge Samuel Thumma, the chair of the meeting, said with a touch of wry amusement creeping into his voice. His stately image was reinforced by the wall of thick legal books at his back. Oh, there we go. Shaner, wearing a suit and tie thats completely at odds with the tropical rainforest Zoom background behind him, launched into a monologue about brain stems, reflexes, and their connection to consciousness. Despite the thick medical jargon, many in the digital windows nodded along. Story continues Over the course of several hours, Thumma kept things moving, calling on individual speakers as they raised their hands via digital emoji. In the chat, heated yet respectful debates spilled over each other. Dr. Doyen Nguyen, a professor of moral theology and bioethics at Atlantas Pontifex University, who is also a physician specializing in diagnostic hematology (the study of blood and its disorders), duked it out with Thaddeus Pope, an expert on medical law and clinical ethics at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Pope co-authored a January 2020 journal article in Annals of Internal Medicine that first proposed remaking the UDDA. Thad: We are dealing with human beings, Nguyen wrote in the chat. This is not the place nor the time to impose uniformity for uniformity sake. Doyen: Really? This is the UNIFORM law commission, discussing the UNIFORM determination of death act, Pope replied. When drafting legislation, vocabulary counts for everything. Opposing viewpoints were passionately aired over seemingly minute details. Within this group, there were two sides: One believes that death is best described as permanent, and the other believes death is irreversible. The distinction is subtle, but critical. Fans of the latter definition argue that describing death as permanent doesnt go far enoughdeath is only permanent if no medical action is taken, but irreversible means that nothing can be done. A North Dakota doctor by the name of Christopher DeCock, who opted for the bridge of the original Starship Enterprise as his background, used another fantasy tale to make his fandom of Team Irreversible known. This isnt Princess Bride, where youre mostly dead, he says, paraphrasing Billy Crystals comedic relief healer Miracle Max from the 1987 classic. Either youre dead or youre not dead. The debate over when death begins goes back more than half a century. Prior to that, death was rather straightforward: Life ended when the heart and lungs ceased to function. But in 1959, two French physicians, Pierre Mollaret and Maurice Goulon, documented for the first time a phenomenon they observed in two dozen patients who were connected to ventilators. Unlike someone in a vegetative state, these patients couldnt breathe on their own, nor did they respond to stimuli, even reflexively. Nor did they show any other signs of life typical of previous patients who lacked consciousnessthey did not sleep, for instance. Their brains showed no electrical activity, ruling out any chance of any kind of consciousness. This went further. Mollaret and Goulon coined a new term for this condition: coma depasse, or beyond a coma. The bodies lived, but the patients themselves did not. A few years later, in 1963, a Belgian surgeon named Guy Alexander harvested organs from the body of a patient whose condition was the same as those observed by the French doctors. Since the patients organs were still being fed oxygen, they would be in better shape when they were transplanted into living patients. The donors brain wasnt functioning and the donor was in coma depasse, so what was the problem? Around the world, great numbers of organ transplants followed, including, in 1967, the first successful transfer of a human heart from one body to another. Families and Physicians Debate the True Meaning of Brain Death But there was a problem. At the time, death was still defined as the loss of a pulse. By that legal and medical definition, all of those organ donors were still alive. In 1968, faced with this brave new world of organ transplantation, a small team convened at Harvard University to sort out a modern legal definition of death. Together, the group tried to answer two questions: When has a human brain irreversibly ceased to function? And if the brain has ceased to function forever but the heart continues to pump, is that person dead? Or, read another way: What is a life? A COVID-19 patient, in a medically induced coma, is connected to life-sustaining devices providing blood pressure medication, antibiotics, sedation, feeding and assistance breathing at Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital in Oceanside, New York on April 14, 2020. Jeffrey Basinger/Newsday via Getty Images The landmark Harvard paper laid out some basic criteria for determining when a brain is non-operative. But the authors concluded that this state of irreversible coma did not need a legal definition. Whenever lawsuits came up, they said, the courts should simply bow to expert medical opinion. In other words, these new problems in medical ethics would have to be judged case by case. Alex Capron, a law expert in health policy and medical ethics currently at the University of Southern California, was among the first legal scholars to point out the flaws in this approach. In 1970, Kansas became the first state to enact a clumsily written law recognizing that a still-functioning body could belong to a person who was now legally dead. Other states began following with their own individually written laws. Without a universal standard, Capron argued, death in the United States could become a legal and ethical hodgepodge, with different criteria in different states. That means someone could be alive in New York and dead in New Mexico. The country needed clear, consistent criterialest the courts be flooded with lawsuits from anguished family members whose loved ones lay in a legal gray zone between heaven and Earth. In 1980, Capron was appointed to head up a presidential commission to examine the issue. Representatives from the American Bar Association, the American Academy of Neurology, and the American Medical Association, gathered in Chicago, ultimately concluded there should be two ways to determine death: either when the heart and lungs have stopped working, or when the brain has stopped working. Alexander Capron at medical ethics conference. Denver Post With this guidance in place, ULC commissioners gathered on the Hawaiian island of Kuaui the next year to formally draft a model law governing deaththe UDDA. It was a fitting locale: Local legend holds that the islands Waimea Canyon is home to the souls of the recently dead. The core of the UDDA consists of just a single paragraph, which defines a dead person as: An individual who has sustained either (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions, or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem... A determination of death must be made in accordance with accepted medical standards. The Uniform Determination of Death Act Those 42 words were the product of almost a decade of work from both doctors and lawyers. Thirty-six states soon adopted the laws exact language. The rest made only minor revisions. Essentially, the commissioners had formalized brain death, as it became colloquially known. No longer was the line between life and death a simple divide between a beating and a still heart; as the following decades would prove, the line had become remarkably perforated. In the Zoom calls chat, Robert Truog, the director of Harvards Center for Bioethics and a practicing clinician in pediatric intensive care, had a bone to pick: He wanted to know if the others believed that whole brain deathwhere both the brain stem and the cerebrum are no longer functioningequated to biological death. He pointed to the case of a 4-year-old boy who was kept on life support for 20 years. Over the years, he underwent a stunted form of puberty, despite a subsequent autopsy showing his brain had long since calcified. To Truog, this was not a curious but isolated item from the medical archives. Rather, its the case that best makes a point he has spent a career hammering home: Human beings do not need a brain to live. Truog, who holds a philosophy degree from Brown University, has spent much of his career pondering what it means to be alive. While he was working on his internship at the University of Colorado in the early 1980s, the UDDA was unveiled to the world. He was perturbed by what he saw as contradictions in the acts definition of death. It did strike me that there was something odd, he told The Daily Beast. We can use medical testing to decide when your kidneys arent working, when your lungs arent working, when your hearts not working. And then we use science to think about how to address that. But, Truog said, the question of when someone has died is more a metaphysical one than it is a scientific one. The question of death is a hugely multifaceted issue that really strikes to the core of the human condition, he said. And to think that we could simplify our understanding of death into an algorithm of medical tests struck me, I think, immediately as, Theres something fishy going on here. As his career progressed, Truog became an outspoken critic of brain death as both a medical and legal concept. In 2012, he co-authored a book called Death, Dying and Organ Transplantation: Reconstructing Medical Ethics at the End of Life, laying out a case for doing away with it and suggesting a new paradigm for ethical organ harvesting. In the book, Truog argues that, had it not been for the advent of vital organ transplantation, brain death as a concept likely would never have been invented. In his view, the idea of brain death was just a convenient way for doctors to avoid contravening their Hippocratic oath, First, do no harm. What if Brain Death Could Be Reversed? Transplant surgeons abide by what is known as the dead donor rule: They cannot remove vital organs such as hearts and lungs unless the donor is dead. (Non-vital organs, like kidneys, may be removed if the donor is alive, so long as the donor gives proper consent). To remove vital organs from a living patient would be murder. The problem, as Truog saw it, was that brain-dead patients didnt meet the criteria for being dead. Yes, their brains had suffered tremendous damage, but so had people in persistent vegetative states, and they were considered alive. Yes, those patients were alive only because of the machines they were hooked up tobut so were kidney patients on dialysis. And how could the brain be dead if the hormonal system was still functioning? The 4-year-old boy had gone through puberty. Other cases have seen fetuses gestate in brain-dead mothers. Both those processes rely on hormones. The pituitary gland and hippocampus, the bodys hormonal regulating centers, are located in the brain. I know Bob Truog and I respect Bob Truog a lot. I think hes a thought leader, Sam Shemie, a pediatric critical care doctor at the Montreal Childrens Hospital who has written extensively on brain death, told The Daily Beast. But, the arguments that are put forward against brain death are quite repetitive and tiring. He adds, When we're talking about death, we're no longer talking about death of all the cells of the body, all the organs of the body, we're talking about a medical-legal definition of death that is based on the presence or complete absence of brain function The medical and legal definition of death that allows hospitals to work is an understanding of when things can be reversed, and when they cannot. That needs to be scientifically based. The gray zone surrounding brain death was perhaps most publicly debated in the case of Jahi McMath, a California teenager whose family fought against a brain death determination after she developed a severe bleed while undergoing surgery for tonsillitis in 2013. The familys efforts to keep their daughter on a ventilator went so far that they ended up moving to New Jersey, the only state where religious objections can be a reason to keep a person deemed brain dead on life support indefinitely. Scientists Explain Near-Death Experiences For a small but vocal group of physicians, these cases arent just outliers. At least one of the Zoom calls participants had called for a moratorium on harvesting organs from the brain-dead, arguing that its impossible to be truly certain that brain function has been lost forever. Instead, physicians should disclose the ambiguity to families while seeking consent for organ donation. Nailah Winkfield, mother of Jahi McMath, sits with her husband, Martin Winkfield, left, while attending a court hearing to discuss the treatment of 13-year-old daughter Jahi McMath in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, Dec. 23, 2013. Kristopher Skinner/Bay Area News Group/MCT Pope noted that for every case that becomes widely known, many others remain obscure. Its impossible to say just how frequent lawsuits involving the UDDA and its variants have become. And thats to say nothing of the personal pain that opaque rules on brain death can cause. For every headline-grabbing tale, there are many others that play out quietly in hospital ICUs and hallways where grieving kin are told that a mother or father, daughter or son, lying just feet away with their chest still rising and falling, is not actually alive. Families must reconcile what their eyes are seeing with what the medical and legal realms have deemed a fact. But exactly how that consideration is determined remains frustratingly ill defined. Under the current wording of the UDDA, brain death must be determined by the best practices of the medical communitywording so vague that there can be different requirements for calling someone dead not just between states, but between different hospitals, sometimes in the same city. The issue isnt isolated to the U.S.. In 2020, physicians from more than 15 countries joined to co-author an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Calling themselves the World Brain Death Project, they pointed out that a universal way to pinpoint who was dead was nonexistent. Only around 40 percent of countries had a protocol to determine brain death. Of those, almost all were unique, with massive discrepancies in procedure. Some countries didnt require checking body temperature. Some didnt require doctors to make sure patients bodies didnt contain drugs that could mimic brain death. The clinical tests themselves were scattershotaround 10 percent didnt require an apnea test, in which a ventilator is shut off to see if rising carbon dioxide levels in the blood kickstart autonomous breathing, before declaring someone brain dead. Physicians and lawmakers around the world couldnt even agree on what brain death is. In the U.S., the definition requires the entire brain to lose function while other countries define brain death as failure of the brain stem only. This fractured, hyper-nationalized conception of death could only lead to confusion, the World Brain Death Project claimed. A patient could be considered alive in the U.S. and dead in the United Kingdom. Dozens of organizations representing medical experts from around the world, including the World Federation of Neurology, endorsed the initiative. Even as the experts on the Zoom call were ping-ponging ideas on what the new law will require, some on the call were worried about what would happen once that consensus is reached. The new laws wording isnt expected to be agreed on before 2023. After that, it will have to go to 50 state legislatures (as well as the bodies governing areas like Puerto Rico and Washington D.C.) for approval. Although many states passed the original UDDA with little fanfare in the years following 1981, politics since then has gotten much uglier. It seems absolutely obvious to me that in South Dakota, Oklahoma, Ohio, a number of states, this is going to be a big problem, Pope said at the meeting. Were literally legislating what states of life are worth protecting, which is very, very similar to the abortion debate. On June 24, the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade, the pivotal ruling that for almost half a century enshrined abortion as a constitutional right. As millions of people expressed their anguish, several states immediately moved to outlaw the procedure, with several others likely to take action to severely restrict, or even ban, abortions in the near future. There is worrying precedent. A Tragedy Compounded: The Heart-Wrenching Case of Jahi McMath May Have Devastating Consequences to Organ Donation In 1981, shortly after the wording of the original UDDA was approved, Capron appeared on ABCs Nightline. Host Ted Koppel interviewed Capron, and then pivoted to an opposing view from a physician named Mildred F. Jefferson, the first Black woman to ever graduate from Harvard Medical School. Jefferson was one of the most ardent anti-abortion advocates in the country. (She was perhaps best known for convincing Ronald Reagan to become pro-life). As the segment wrapped up, B-roll footage from the Western Massachusetts Hospital played. Nurses attended to prone, motionless patients. In voiceover, a reporter declared that 25 patients in the hospital have no brain waves and, by Massachusetts state law, they are legally dead. But even they continue to breathe on their own, without the use of machines. Today, 41 years later, Capron is still incensed at the error. People in persistent vegetative states are not the people who are going to be determined to be dead, he said. Those people may have suffered serious injuries, but since they breathed without the help of machines, they were not brain-dead. Brain death and persistent vegetative states are often confused by the public. Capron fears the mixup could be used to push a narrativeunder todays even more partisan climate, death could once again become a victim of political culture wars. He pointed to the case of McMath. Once that became an issue, she was, of course, embraced by the Right to Life Community, he told The Daily Beast. And they were saying basically the same thing that this woman had said on Nightline, which is that you are taking people who are not dead, and for the wrong reasons, calling them dead so that you can take their organs or whatever. Perhaps the clearest case of the political fighting that can break out over end-of-life issues came during the years-long saga of Terri Schivao, the Florida woman who suffered massive brain trauma resulting in the diagnosis of a persistent vegetative state in 1990. When Schiavos husband decided to remove her feeding tube, saying his wife wouldnt have wanted to continue living in her condition, her parents sued to have it kept in. The matter escalated to the point that Congress and then-President George W. Bush intervened, passing special legislation to send the matter to a federal court after a judge ruled the tube should be removed. Terri Schiavo and her mother taken at Terri's hospital bed in 2003 in Gulfport, Florida. Getty Images Though Schivao was able to breathe on her own, and therefore wasnt brain-dead, the argument over who gets to determine what level of life is worth preserving became a media and political firestorm that dominated cable news for weeks. Over the past decade, Truog has come to an uneasy peace with brain death. Hes spent too much time in an ICU, declared too many patients brain-dead, overseen too many organ procurements, spoken to too many colleagues to believe his views will ever become mainstream. Instead of seeing death as a biological state, he now sees it as a social construct. He still believes that doctors are engaging in a form of justified homicide if they remove organs from a brain-dead patient, even with full consent. But he acknowledges that convincing his peers and the general public of his stance will never fly. It is not unreasonable, he said, to say that when a person will never wake up again, will never breathe on their own again that means they can be treated as dead, and for legal purposes could be considered dead. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. By Gavin Jones ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and the leader of the 5-Star Movement Giuseppe Conte will meet on Monday to try to resolve tensions which could bring down Draghi's 16-month old government. Conte, who was Draghi's predecessor as premier, took the reins of the 5-Star Movement after his own government collapsed in February last year, but relations with Draghi have grown more difficult as 5-Star's fortunes have waned. "We will discuss among our political bodies whether to remain in the government ... Monday's meeting will be important to clarify things," Conte said at a gathering on Friday with 5-Star's ally the Democratic Party (PD). 5-Star was the largest party in parliament until a split this month saw around 60 of its lawmakers leave to join a breakaway group led by Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio, a former 5-Star leader. Some of those who remained are urging Conte to pull out of the multi-party government, saying Draghi has watered down or scrapped its flagship measures and it has more chance of reviving its fortunes in opposition. Draghi raised the stakes on Friday, telling reporters his government "cannot exist without the 5-Star Movement," and saying he would step aside if it quit his coalition even though he would still have a majority in parliament. He denied reports he had tried to persuade 5-Star's founder, comedian Beppe Grillo, to kick out Conte as leader. Conte will ask the premier to provide assurances on several policies championed by 5-Star which are in doubt due to opposition from Draghi or from other coalition parties, a 5-Star source told Reuters. These include the "citizens' income" poverty-relief scheme, the introduction of a minimum wage, and state subsidies for energy-saving home improvements. Conte will also press his case over plans for a garbage incinerator in Rome, which 5-Star opposes, and over future Italian arms shipments to Ukraine which his party also opposes but on which Draghi shows no sign of relenting. Story continues The meeting with Draghi will be preceded by a gathering of 5-Star's top brass to finalise its position, the source said. If 5-Star does quit the coalition, it would jeopardise its prospects of an alliance with the PD at a national election due early next year. "If 5-Star pulls out that will be the end of the government and it will be impossible for us to run with them at the election," Culture Minister Dario Franceschini, a prominent PD politician, said on Sunday. The PD is currently polling on around 20% while 5-Star, which took 33% at the last election in 2018, has seen its support wither to around 12%, according to the latest surveys. (Editing by Alexandra Hudson) Attorney Bobby DiCello holds up a photograph of Jayland Walker, the man who was shot dead by Akron Police on June 25, as he speaks on behalf of the Walker family during a press conference at St. Ashworth Temple in Akron, Ohio. Jeff Lange/USA Today Network via REUTERS Jayland Walker, a Black man killed by police in Ohio, was shot 60 times, a lawyer who viewed body camera footage said. Bobby DiCello described the video as "brutal" and an "unbelievable scene." Police in Akron said they shot Walker because his actions caused officers to "perceive he posed a deadly threat." After a police pursuit over a traffic violation, Jayland Walker was shot 60 times by police in Akron, Ohio, a lawyer who watched body camera footage of the incident on Friday said. Bobby DiCello, the attorney representing Walker's family, described the video as an "unbelievable scene." He also said the shower of 90 bullets from the officer's guns, which he estimated lasted six seconds, sounded like "a whole brick of fireworks going off." The body camera footage will be released to the public on Sunday by police. "This is going to be a brutal video. It's going to stir up some passion. It's going to make people uneasy," he told the Akron Beacon Journal. The Akron Police Department released a statement Tuesday saying officers tried to pull 25-year-old Walker over for a traffic violation at 12:30 a.m. on June 28. Police said Walker refused to stop and drove off in his vehicle. A chase ensued and officers reported that a gun had gone off in the vehicle. The officers did not clarify how they knew a gunshot had went off. DiCello said that when an officer reported the gunshot into the police radio "His voice doesn't get excited" and they continue to drive for several minutes. DiCello also said his team has not been able to gather evidence that Walker pointed his gun at officers or that gunfire escaped his car. DiCello told The New York Times all of Walker's windows were intact after the fatal shooting. Walker eventually hopped out of the vehicle and fled on foot. Police say that "actions by the suspect caused the officers to perceive he posed a deadly threat to them." DiCello said that the body camera footage may dispute some of these claims. Story continues "There is no stopping and turning around," DiCello said. "There's no making his hand into the shape of a gun. There's no holding his cellphone. He has nothing in his hands." DiCello also said an investigation into Walker's death suggests he sustained 60-80 gunshot wounds and that his body was "riddled with bullets." Officers in Akron were placed on administrative leave following Walker's death, the NYT reported. Over the past week, residents of Akron have been protesting on behalf of Walker. During a Thursday press conference Walker's family described Jayland as a "sweet young man" and asked for transparency from authorities over the shooting. "We love Jayland," Lajuana Walker Dawkins, Walker's aunt, said Thursday. "He was my skinny little nephew and we miss him. We just want some answers." The Akron Police Department and DiCello did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment. Read the original article on Insider Former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson said on Sunday that the recent congressional hearings on the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol have been a profile in courage for the women who have taken center stage. During an appearance on NBCs Meet the Press, Johnson named Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), former White House aide Cassidy Hutchison, and Capitol Police officer Caroline Edwards. I have to begin with this. While a lot of men are hiding under their desk in lawyers offices, this hearing has really been a profile in courage among women: Caroline Edwards, Cass Hutchinson, and Liz Cheney, Johnson told moderator Chuck Todd during the shows roundtable discussion. I think that this hearing has been choreographed exceptionally well for the attention span of the average American in 2022, he added. Hutchinson, who was an assistant to former President Trumps chief of staff Mark Meadows, featured in a bombshell hearing last week, testifying that the president and senior members of the White House were repeatedly warned about potential violence on Jan. 6 and were aware that some protesters were armed when Trump sent them to the Capitol building. Cheney, as vice chair of the committee and one of two Republicans on the panel, has faced intense blowback from her party and is up against a Trump-backed challenger in her House race in Wyoming. Edwards, who was among two witnesses in the first Jan. 6 public hearing, provided a vivid description of the violent mob as it overtook police outside the Capitol, calling it a war scene and adding I saw friends with blood all over their faces. I was slipping in peoples blood. The House select committee has placed Trump at the center of efforts to overturn the 2020 election, and Johnson said on Sunday he sees a criminal case being developed during the hearings. However, he expressed concern about one part of Hutchinsons testimony, in which she provided a second-hand account of Trump attempting to grab the steering wheel and lunging at the driver in an attempt to join the mob on Jan. 6. Story continues Secret Service agents in the vehicle are reportedly willing to deny the claims, which were relayed to Hutchinson by other White House officials. Im concerned as the former federal prosecutor in me that gets you a lot of cred these days on television Im concerned that the committee may have overreached on the incident in the vehicle, Johnson added. It was colorful, it was vivid, it was collateral to the central charge. If and it was secondhand hearsay. The House panel held six televised public hearings last month on the capitol insurrection, which resulted in the deaths of five people. Cheney said told ABCs This Week on Sunday that the committee may recomment criminal charges against Trump, but noted that the Department of Justice (DOJ) will make the ultimate decision on the matter. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. A cyclist rides an e-bike on the East Bay Bike Path in East Providence on Friday. Keep e-bikes off the bike paths I have ridden a bicycle across America twice as well as across Vietnam and Cambodia. I have a passion for riding a push bike as they would say in Australia. I love to ride the beautiful paths between Springfield and Eugene nearly every day no matter the weather conditions. When spring arrives, the use of the bike paths increases with casual walkers, runners, bikers, electric scooters and electric motor driven bicycles. I'm always courteous when I pass walkers or a bike that may be traveling at a slower pace. The problem is with the hot-shot bikers who think they are in the Tour de France passing without warning. To make things worse, people riding e-bike's speed well above the 12-mph speed limit. Someone is going to get seriously hurt or killed. Now that e-bikes are becoming affordable there are more of them on the bike paths. They need to slow down and be courteous. An e-bike is a motorized vehicle so, why are they on the bike paths? The paths are for exercise, not as a freeway to mow down walkers and slow-moving bikers. Frank Harper, Springfield Are we too late? We surpassed a milestone humanity has not reached in more than 6,000 years. According to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Association, the Earth is at 421 ppm of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, 50% higher than the start of the Industrial Revolution and increasing 2 ppm per year. Scientists say 350 ppm is the allowable level for humans to sustainably live. The burning of fossil fuels has put us at this level and we are cooking the planet. A rapid transition off gas and oil and using electric energy through renewables will help us reduce carbon emissions. Nationally, the Biden administration has enacted the Defense Production Act to manufacture energy efficient heat pumps and solar panels making climate change and clean energy a natural security issue. Locally, we need to phase out gas appliances, and the city could require the Downtown Riverfront proposed multi-dwelling buildings be electric. This and passing an ordinance making all new residential construction be energy sourced by electricity would help the city reach their Climate Recovery Ordinance goals. Increasing 2 ppm of CO2 per year, we do not have time to procrastinate. We are already experiencing the consequences. Jim Neu, Eugene Story continues The 14th Amendment lays it all out In the story "Witnesses testify they rejected plan to reverse election, it says, "Several members of Congress are also under scrutiny, and the panel is also probing several candidates for elected office who were among the rioters." The 14th Amendment to the U. S. Constitution, Section 3, says: "No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any state legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any state, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability." So, why have these people been allowed to run in primaries, and, having won (a disgrace in itself), be allowed to stand for election in November? That the "disability" could ever be removed for any reason whatsoever is also shocking to me. John Raymonda, Florence Vote out complicit Republicans The Jan. 6 hearings verified that there is no partisan Democratic witch hunt because all of the witnesses were conservative Republicans from the Trump administration. They swore under oath that everyone in the White House knew the election was NOT stolen. Attorney General Bill Barr and many others told Trump that there was no fraud. Trump coerced state officials to overturn election results and had 61 lawsuits that were dismissed for lack of evidence. Finally, he embraced John Eastmans crazy plan to have the vice president throw out the election because of fake electors. Eastman took the Fifth more than 100 times and asked for a pardon because he knew that plan was illegal and unconstitutional. Eastman has ties to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife and because of affiliation with the coup, Thomas should retire or be impeached. Rep. Kevin McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnel initially condemned Trump for the coup attempt on Jan. 6, but soon thereafter most Republicans violated their oaths, to spread the Big Lie, thus becoming complicit in the attempted coup. They deceived Trumps loyal but gullible followers for millions of dollars and power. All Republicans should be voted out. Jerry Brule, Eugene Renew hope for all I, as a 93-year-old citizen, was proud to be with my pubic-school-teacher daughter and hundreds of other folks gathered in Eugene's Monroe Park to raise awareness in our community of ways that we can make our neighborhoods, schools and churches safer, healthier and happier. Many organizations, faith groups and individual persons were represented in a beautiful multicolored show of unity. I realized again that we are all related and must work at not only dealing with immediate problems of caring for the homeless and changing gun laws, but also we must spend more of our resources on the long-range goals of saving our planet home, health care for all and equal education and job opportunities for everyone. Thus, I will continue to put my resources and heart into Health Care for All Oregon, my Methodist faith community, the NAACP and my neighborhood emergency planning group. I do believe and am grateful that kindness and love, not guns and division, can renew hope and joy for all! Shirley Kingsbury, Eugene Get business people out of the presidency If the Jan. 6 hearings are any indication of the necessary quality of a president, it can be summed up in a few words. No businessman or woman has any business being president. Sure, the boorish behavior of a CEO or company president (insults, inflamed ego, need for worship) are expected negatives of someone running a company. If we are rewriting the Constitution let's add a stipulation. The office of the president must be based on statesmanship, not a CEO's sole adherence to a company's bottom line. Garth Price, Eugene Hutchinson embodies a patriotic spirit Since the riotous storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, I have been appalled and disgusted by the response of most Republican U.S. representatives and senators. These lawmakers refuse to call out the former presidents delusions or outright lies! In contrast, during the televised Jan. 6 hearings we have seen numerous brave Republicans who refused to bow down when the former president tried to manipulate them into committing illegal acts, ignoring the Constitution, and/or breaking their oaths of office. We saw Cassidy Hutchinson perform an incredible act of courage as she testified about activities in the White House in the days leading up to and on Jan. 6. She is a Republican and has worked for and with Republicans. At 26, she has shown the silent Republican lawmakers the brave and righteous path. She should be lauded for knowing the right thing to do and doing it; the Republican representatives and senators should be ashamed of themselves for staying under the thumb of a lying tyrant. Teresa Dobles, Eugene Letters should be 200 words or fewer and sent with the writers name, address, and daytime phone number via e-mail to rgletters@registerguard.com. Letters may be edited for length and clarity, and maybe published in any medium. We regret that owing to the volume of correspondence we cannot reply to every letter. The Opinion Page runs Sundays and Wednesdays in The Register-Guard. This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Keep electric bikes off the bike paths in Eugene this summer Congress "must pass" new immigration laws, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Sunday while defending the administration's policies amid renewed scrutiny of the high amount of migration at the southern border. "Because the border has been a challenge for decades, ultimately Congress must pass legislation to once and for all fix our broken immigration system," Mayorkas told ABC "This Week" co-anchor Martha Raddatz. Mayorkas' defense comes after 53 migrants were found dead in a tractor-trailer in San Antonio, Texas, late last month, which Mayorkas called a "tragic result" of a "dangerous journey." Four men have been charged in the deaths. MORE: 4 charged after 53 found dead in Texas tractor-trailer On "This Week," Mayorkas said that the U.S. was working with regional allies in Central and South America beyond pushing for legislation, which remains a dim prospect in Congress. "These are remarkable, distinct times," Mayorkas said. In lieu of new laws, "we have a multi-faceted approach, not only to work with our partner countries but to bring law enforcement to bear to attack the smuggling organizations in an unprecedented way," he said. "We are doing so very much." Raddatz pressed Mayorkas, noting that a legislative fix on immigration was unlikely given partisan gridlock on the issue -- and, she said, the administration's warning to migrants to not try to cross the border was either not being heard or not being heeded. PHOTO: Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during the 90th Winter Meeting of USCM on Jan. 20, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Alex Wong/Getty Images, FILE) "Fifty-three people lost their lives in the most horrific of conditions," Mayorkas said of the migrants who died in San Antonio. "We continue to tell people not to take the dangerous journey. We are enforcing our laws. And we are working with countries including our close partner Mexico, but with Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica, Colombia, to really address the migration that is throughout the Western Hemisphere." Still, Raddatz cited a historic high in May for southern border crossings: 240,000. Story continues "I think that we are doing a good job. We need to do better," Mayorkas acknowledged. "We are focused on doing more, and we are doing it with our partners to the south." "You have Congressman Henry Cuellar saying that only about 30% of the Border Patrol are doing missions at checkpoints and the border because the other 70% are tied up at detention centers. How do you fix that?" Raddatz pressed. MORE: Death toll rises in San Antonio migrant truck incident "We are pressing this issue vigorously and aggressively to address the number of encounters that we are experiencing at the southern border," Mayorkas responded. He touted the administration's recent win before the Supreme Court, which ruled last week that the White House can end the Trump-era "Remain in Mexico" policy that made migrants seeking asylum stay outside the U.S. during adjudication. Mayorkas argued that policy "has endemic flaws and causes unjustifiable human tragedy." "We need to wait until the Supreme Court's decision is actually communicated to the lower court, to the federal district court and the Northern District of Texas ... So, we have to wait several weeks for that procedural step to be taken," he said. PHOTO: Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during the third day of the 2022 National Action Network's Annual Convention on April 08, 2022 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images, FILE) As for the migrant deaths in the tractor trailer in Texas, Mayorkas said he didn't want to comment on the facts of the case as they were still emerging. He declined to say whether or not the vehicle had been "waved through" a checkpoint. "The smuggling organizations are extraordinarily sophisticated. They are transnational criminal organizations," he said. Raddatz followed up, asking: "What good are these checkpoints if a truck like that gets through, full of migrants?" Mayorkas said the "checkpoints are part of a multilayered approach." "In fiscal year 2022 alone we've stopped more than 400 vehicles and saved and rescued more than 10,000 migrants," Mayorkas said. "But this is why we continue to communicate that the journey -- the dangerous journey should not be taken. We are enforcing our laws and people lose their lives at the hands or exploitative smugglers." Mayorkas calls for new immigration law amid renewed scrutiny and tragedy at the border originally appeared on abcnews.go.com COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) Cash-strapped Sri Lanka on Sunday extended school closures for one week because there isn't enough fuel for teachers and parents to get children to classrooms, and the energy minister appealed to the country's expatriates to send money home through banks to finance new oil purchases. A huge foreign debt has left the Indian Ocean island with none of the suppliers willing to sell fuel on credit. The available stocks, sufficient for only several days, will be provided for essential services, including health and port workers, public transport and food distribution, officials said. Finding money is a challenge. Its a huge challenge, Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera told reporters. He said the government has ordered new fuel stocks and the first ship with 40,000 metric tons of diesel is expected to arrive on Friday while the first ship carrying gasoline would come on July 22. Several other fuel shipments are in the pipeline. But he said authorities are struggling to find $587 million to pay for the fuel. Wijesekera said that Sri Lanka owed about $800 million to seven fuel suppliers. Last month, schools were closed nationwide for a day due to fuel shortages and had remained closed for the last two weeks in urban areas. Schools will remain shut until Friday. Authorities also announced countrywide power cuts of up to three hours a day from Monday because they cant supply enough fuel to power generating stations. Sweeping power cuts have been a blight on Sri Lanka's economy for months, along with severe shortages of essentials including cooking gas, medicine and food imports. Wijesekera said the main problem is the lack of dollars and appealed to some 2 million Sri Lankans working abroad to send their foreign exchange earnings home through banks instead of informal channels. He said workers remittances, which usually stood at $600 million per month, had declined to $318 million in June. Story continues According to the Central Bank, the remittances the nations main foreign exchange earner dropped from $2.8 billion in the first six months of 2021 to $1.3 billion in the same period this year for a decline of 53%. The drop came after the government last year ordered the mandatory conversion of foreign currency. It said that black-market premiums have led people to hoard foreign currency. Sri Lanka's has been getting most of its fuel needs from neighboring India, which provided it with a credit line. The government said it was also negotiating with suppliers in Russia and Malaysia. Sri Lanka has suspended repayment of about $7 billion in foreign loans due this year out of $25 billion to be repaid by 2026. The countrys total foreign debt is $51 billion. The economic meltdown has triggered a political crisis with widespread anti-government protests erupting across the country. Protesters have blocked main roads to demand gas and fuel, and television stations showed people in some areas fighting over limited stocks. In the capital, Colombo, protesters have been occupying the entrance to the presidents office for more than two months to demand President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's resignation. They accuse him and his powerful family that included several siblings holding top government positions of plunging the country into the crisis through corruption and misrule. SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea criticised the United States, South Korea and Japan's recent agreement on strengthening military cooperation to be a means to materialise a U.S. plan for a military alliance like NATO in the region. North Korea's foreign ministry spokesperson said as much to a question put by KCNA, the state news agency reported on Sunday. "The reality clearly shows that the real purpose of the U.S. spreading the rumour about 'threat from North Korea' is to provide an excuse for attaining military supremacy over the Asia-Pacific region," said the spokesperson. "The prevailing situation more urgently calls for building up the country's defences to actively cope with the rapid aggravation of the security environment," the spokesperson added. The leaders of the United States, South Korea and Japan met on the sidelines of a NATO summit last week and agreed to explore further means to reinforce "extended deterrence" against North Korea. (Reporting by Jihoon Lee; editing by Jonathan Oatis) Ohio police released graphic body camera video and additional details Sunday about the shooting of Black motorist Jayland Walker, showing for the first time the moment eight officers released a barrage of bullets at Walker as he ran. Akron officers said they tried to stop Walker, 25, on June 27 on unspecified traffic violations and chased him when he did not pull over, police said in a statement. Police said officers "reported a firearm being discharged from the suspect vehicle" during the pursuit. Walker then jumped out of his car and officers chased him on foot, police said. Actions by the suspect caused the officers to perceive he posed a deadly threat to them, police said. In response to this threat, officers discharged their firearms, striking the suspect. Police said at a news conference Sunday that officers pursued Walker's car on the expressway for several minutes before they exited on a ramp. After the chase on city streets, Walker's car slowed, and he got out through the passenger side door as the car continued to roll forward, police said. Officers tried to stop Walker using stun guns and opened fire after the stun guns failed, according to the department's retelling. Police Chief Steve Mylett did not know the traffic or equipment violation officers cited in trying to pull Walker over. Eight officers have been placed on paid administrative leave as part of protocol in a police shooting, Mylett said. The Ohio attorney generals Bureau of Criminal Investigation, or BCI, will lead the probe of police use of force. In a statement Sunday, the Akron chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police said it believes investigators will find that the officers' actions and the number of shots were justified. "Officers reasonably believed that Mr. Walker presented an immediate threat of serious physical harm or death and lawfully ... discharged their weapons," the statement said. Walkers family has questioned the use of deadly force. An attorney for the family, Bobby DiCello, said he reviewed the body camera video with the family Thursday. Police publicly released the body camera video Sunday from eight officers who opened fire and five others who were at the scene. Story continues A protester stares down an Akron police officer outside the Harold K. Stubbs Justice Center during a protest on July 2, 2022, in Akron, Ohio, after Akron police officers shot and killed Jayland Walker earlier. (Jeff Lange / Akron Beacon Journal via USA TODAY Network) DiCello said that Walker was fleeing from police when they shot at him and that he has not seen any evidence yet about allegations that Walker shot at officers. "They descend upon him, and the first two of many officers there use their Tasers," he said. "There can be no doubt he was unarmed at the time he exited the vehicle. Its a nonlethal force when you have a nonlethal threat." DiCello said Mylett did not claim during his viewing last week that Walker made any threatening moves that would have justified his killing. "The chief told us Thursday when he showed us the video that he could not find the movement that caused the shot," he said. DiCello told the Akron Beacon Journal on Saturday that dozens of shots were fired. He is just in a down sprint when he is dropped by I think the count is more than 90 shots, DiCello told the newspaper. Now, how many of those land, according to our investigation right now, were getting details that suggest 60 to 80 wounds. Citing autopsy photos and interviews with police sources, NBC affiliate WKYC of Cleveland reported that Walker was hit dozens of times. NBC News has not obtained a copy of the autopsy report. Mylett confirmed Sunday that the medical examiner observed 60 wounds to Walker's body, but he said the injuries had not been differentiated between entrance and exit wounds. "We do not know the exact number of rounds that were fired. However, based on the video, I anticipate that number to be high. And I will not be surprised if the number at the end of the investigation is consistent with the number that has been circulating in the media, but right now we just don't know," Mylett said. Asked about DiCellos comments about not seeing Walker brandish a gun at officers, Mylett said that the investigation is still ongoing and that it is difficult to obtain details from watching the video in real time. A handgun and a loaded magazine were found on the driver's seat, police said. Police went back to the scene where officers said they heard a gun being discharged from Walker's car, Mylett said. "A casing was discovered at that location consistent with a firearm that Mr. Walker had in his vehicle. BCI will determine whether or not that casing came from the gun or not," he said. Officers independently reported seeing Walker turn in a way that they thought might be a firing position, Mylett told reporters. No gun was found on Walkers body. DiCello told NBC News that the gun appeared to be legal, and he emphasized that it was unloaded, even though ammunition was nearby. He also rebutted the department's contention that Walker fired one round during the pursuit, saying there is no evidence, besides officers' word, that that happened. If Walker did shoot, he said, "the discharge of a firearm in the presence of police does not allow the police to shoot you." He added that while some white suspects who are armed or who open fire in the presence of police live to face their days in court, "my client is in the morgue tonight, and all he did is run from his vehicle." The Fraternal Order of Police said in its statement Sunday that a state Transportation Department camera recorded a muzzle flash as Walker led officers on the chase. The flash was highlighted in video police released Sunday. DiCello spoke to reporters on behalf of Walker's family after the news conference, urging them to ask for peace following the release of the video. "I came here to say what our message is, and that is peace," DiCello said. "If you can do anything for the family, please give peace. Give dignity and give justice a chance." He reiterated the familys wishes in an interview Sunday evening, saying, Please, we want peace, and we want dignity, and we want justice for Jayland. The mood appeared tense late Sunday, with temporary barriers knocked down, at least one window smashed and an apparent dumpster fire, WKYC reported. Officers in riot gear responded and tear gas was fired near the citys Stubbs Justice Center and adjacent police headquarters, the station reported. By early Monday, the number of demonstrators left on the streets seemed to have dwindled, with many of those remaining congregating in small groups. DiCello, the lawyer for Walkers family, said at the news conference that he had seen the video three times by the time he spoke Sunday and that it "doesn't get any easier." "They want to turn him into a masked monster with a gun, and we knew that," DiCello said. "But I want to thank the chief for one thing he said, at the time he was shot ... he was unarmed." DiCello expressed a number of concerns to reporters about the investigation, including whether officers had made statements to the attorney general's investigators by Sunday. He also alleged that he was initially told that the gun in Walker's car was found in the back seat, even though police now say it was in the driver's seat. Walker's girlfriend died a month before his death. DiCello said his family did not observe any issues about his behavior in his grief. "I mean, he was sad, but he was getting through it, and the family was just as surprised as I am today. ... Knowing what's happened here is a big mystery for them," DiCello said. He noted that Walker had no criminal history. A review of public records by NBC News found no criminal records or civil lawsuits against Walker. The single record found in Walker's name was a 2017 speeding ticket in Akron Municipal Court. Protesters have peacefully demonstrated in Akron for days, demanding more transparency and accountability in Walker's death. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, a native of Akron, tweeted that he was praying for his city before the news conference Sunday. Mayor Dan Horrigan canceled the city's Fourth of July festivities amid the ongoing protests and the investigation, saying now "is not the time for a city-led celebration." Horrigan urged residents before the video was released Sunday to remain peaceful, citing Walker's family's desire for them to refrain from violence. "Youre going to have to do one of the most difficult things I can ever ask anyone to do and that is to please be patient and let the attorney general do their work," Horrigan said. A rally was scheduled after the news conference, and a number of protesters gathered calmly awaiting speeches by local clergy, WKYC reported. NAACP President Derrick Johnson described Walker's death in a statement Sunday as a "murder" and said pulling over for police "is often a death sentence." "This Black man was killed struck more than 60 times by 90 fired bullets for a possible traffic violation," Johnson said. "This doesn't happen to white people in America. Why do police continuously target us like domestic terrorists? We are just trying to live our lives, and we are tired of being hunted like prey." Ernest Willingham, left, and Eryk Brown in Oak Park on July 1, 2022. Willingham testified in May before the U.S. Senate on the trauma of gun violence. Since his testimony, Brown was shot and wounded outside a vegan restaurant on the South Side. The men are back in the area on a break from college. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune) Ernest Willingham testified before the U.S. Senate last month about growing up in Chicago with gun violence literally surrounding him. His father, brother and cousin have all been shot and his best friend killed. Hes been to more funerals than weddings, he said. Now, a niece and another close friend have been shot since his June 15 testimony. The shootings have begun to feel like falling dominoes, Willingham said. Advertisement I feel bad that we have to experience these things at such a young age, he told the Tribune this week. His niece was shot while sitting on the couch at home on June 20. The friend was struck by random bullets four times while waiting for food in his car on June 22. Advertisement For 19-year-old Willingham whose best friend, Jahnae Patterson, was killed by stray bullets at 17 years old gun violence feels like a constant, constant, constant cycle. We cant even get food. We cant even sit at home, he said. Willinghams 17-year-old niece was sitting in the living room the day after Fathers Day when the doorbell rang, he said. Suddenly, bullets started coming through the window. One struck her in both legs. The girl was discharged from Mount Sinai Hospital, but her family is displaced and hasnt been able to return to their North Lawndale home for fear of more violence, Willingham said. After experiencing numbness, she went back to the hospital and discovered the bullet hit a major blood vessel, he added. A 37-year-old man was killed in the shooting, Willingham and police said. Willingham declined to share his nieces name because of those same safety concerns. The Tribune confirmed that details in Willinghams description of the incident match police reports for a shooting that same day. Two days later, Willinghams friend Eryk Brown was shot. When Willingham heard about the shooting, he thought about how much they had in common. Both studied hard in school. Both left the city for college. Both plan to work in the medical field, inspired by the inequities theyve seen. Their shared goals brought them together. Wow, that could have been me, Willingham remembered thinking. Advertisement Brown was parked outside a Calumet Heights vegan restaurant waiting for food when he heard gunshots. I looked into the rearview mirror, and I see blood on my face, Brown said. He realized he had been shot as he pulled away. As the 21-year-old drove himself to Advocate Trinity Hospital, his friends were panicking. Another 20-year-old friend in his car had been shot in the hand, he said. Brown, a University of Wisconsin at Madison nursing student on a full-ride scholarship, said he was thinking about his dreams of becoming a nurse on the way to the hospital. Bullets hit Browns left leg three times, grazed his right leg once and grazed his back twice. His car was shot 18 times, he said. Browns using crutches because he cant put weight on his legs. He has no idea why the shooting happened, he said. Meanwhile, Browns 17-year-old cousin was shot and killed while riding a CTA bus last week, he said. [ 2 men shot, 1 fatally, on a bus in West Garfield Park, police say ] Brown said he thinks that Chicagos gun violence stems in part from an unequal distribution of school resources. He went to a selective school, where he got care and help applying for college. Advertisement A lot of these kids dont see those things, Brown said. The threat of gun violence always loomed when he was growing up in North Lawndale, he said. He stayed away from crowds and checked his surroundings. He heard gunshots and stories of friends of friends being shot. Afternoon Briefing Daily Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox each afternoon. > Now, he feels like he has to leave Chicago. If you stay here, its unsafe for you, you feel like youre going to be a victim, if you arent already a victim, Brown said. Willingham, a third-year student at Bostons Northeastern University, said he struggles with those same fears as he weighs his safety and dreams for his future. He plans to become a doctor and received early acceptance into the Icahn School of Medicine Mount Sinai in New York this week. Were just trying to get careers, go off to college, grad school and come back to fill in the gap for whats been missing, what we didnt have, Willingham said. But were unable to do that if were hurt. Advertisement Willingham had previously told the Tribune that he wanted to live outside Chicago in the future because of gun violence. But now hes having second thoughts. After Brown and his niece were shot, he said he feels an even more pressing responsibility to care for the people here. jsheridan@chicagotribune.com Twitter @jakesheridan_ Kiski Township police say that one person was killed and another was flown to the hospital after a crash. Police have identified the man who was killed as 58-year-old Anthony D. Stasko from Indiana. Kim Stasko, his wife, was riding the motorcycle with him during the time of the accident. The couple was traveling west on Route 56 when a 2011 Honda CRV came across Balsinger Road and collided with the motorcycle. Anthony was pronounced dead at the scene and Kim was flown to be treated at a hospital in Pittsburgh. Officers say they responded to the accident at around 1:12 p.m. Sunday. Pennsylvania State Police, the Armstrong County DAs office and the Armstrong County coroner worked to reopen the road after the accident. Autopsy and toxicology results are not available at this time. This is a developing story. Check back in with WPXI for more updates. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Local gas station will lower prices to $2.38/gallon on July 4 Wigle Whiskey ordered to pay employees back nearly $39K for making them share tips with managers July 4 is Fish-for-Free Day in Pennsylvania VIDEO: West Mifflin police investigating armed robbery at BP gas station, 1 person in custody DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts The Pittsburgh Japanese Culture Society held a Cars and Cosplay fundraiser event for their Tekko convention. After COVID-19 caused the event to cancel many times, the society had to fundraise to secure the future of the event. Organizers had a goal of raising $100,000 to secure the convention for this year and in the future. According to their website, at least $60,000 was needed for Tekko 2022 to take place. They ended up raising more than that. Our community is amazing and raised over $60,000 alone, by themselves, said Joshua Palmquist with the Pittsburgh Japanese Culture Society. We have people donating thousands of dollars to save an anime convention. Tekko will take place from July 21 through July 24. Click here if youre interested in attending. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Police arrest man believed to have shot and killed an 18-year-old in Pittsburghs Hill District Florida-made ice cream linked to listeria outbreak that killed 1, left 22 hospitalized in 10 states Allegheny County police arrest man accused of attempting to rob three convenience stores VIDEO: Pittsburgh gearing up for busy Fourth of July weekend DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts Two children were among six people who were hurt Saturday night in an apparent drive-by shooting, police in eastern North Carolina said. Officers responded to a home for a report of shots fired around 9:30 p.m. Saturday, the Clinton Police Department said in a news release. Officers found six people suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. A preliminary investigation suggests that suspects arrived in a car and drove past the home, where people were gathered outside. They circled the block and then opened fire toward the home, striking the victims in what appeared to be a targeted attack, according to the news release. Four adults, a 12-year-old boy and a 17-month-old boy were hurt. They were taken to a hospital and were all listed in stable condition, police said. The suspects fled the scene. ALSO READ: Armed woman having crisis killed by police in Fayetteville Angela Middleton, who lives down the street from the incident, told our partners at ABC 11 that she tried to help three of the victims after hearing the car and the gunfire. Middleton told reporters that the older woman, her son, and her 12-year-old grandson are related to a man who was shot and killed Friday evening near Kennedy Street. However, authorities said they are still trying to determine if the shooting was related to other recent shootings. The Highway Patrol told ABC 11 that Clinton officers who responded to the scene originally found four people with gunshot wounds. Officers later found that the infant had also been wounded. The sixth person was found on another street in town with a gunshot wound. The investigation is ongoing. (WATCH BELOW: Multiple people hurt after church bus collides with vehicle in Raleigh) The Root The latest Supreme Court ruling guarantees the Second Amendment right of people to carry their firearms in public space for self-defense, according to the Los Angeles Times. As we know, these new gun laws were advocated for because white people grew concerned about their gun rights. You know whos even more concerned than them? Black gun owners. Russian dictator Vladimir Putin Read also: Russia is mobilizing more recruits and hiring, firing generals ISW However, Putin also says this: There should be the creation of conditions that would provide security guarantees for Russia but at the same time he downplays this argument in his rhetoric. Such a thesis creates further uncertainty. Obviously, producing more uncertainty is a regular tactic for Putin, he never says anything just for the sake of saying it. He always has a reason for saying it. The uncertainty circles around what it means for Putin to be able to reach certain goals that would provide security guarantees for his country. Read also: Russians lost almost $1 billion dollars worth of equipment during occupation of Snake Island Forbes Ukraine Of course, by saying this, Putin wants to preserve himself as much space for further actions as he thinks is needed. If necessary, he may always go back to his original plan for the special operation. If necessary, he can reschedule and replan those territorial gains that hes thinking about right now. Even for the Russian army, the goals of Putins special operation remain quite unclear. Theyre volatile, theyre being changed all the time according to the progress, or lack of it, on the battlefields. To add more uncertainty to Putins rhetoric, Russia made a goodwill statement after retreating from Snake Island in the Black Sea. This is the second such declaration of goodwill during this war. Remember the end of March, when Russia was withdrawing its troops from Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy oblasts in northern Ukraine? Back then, we heard talk of goodwill too. This is a sign of how Russia understands goodwill, and what particular actions it might take after expressing it. Now lets move on to analyzing all those versions voiced in the past several days to explain the most recent wave of Russian escalation missile attacks on Ukrainian cities and their civil infrastructure. Obviously, this has nothing to do with achieving any particular military goals it is rather revenged against Ukraine for all the success that it has had during the war. Story continues You cant judge Ukraines success by the number of its local advances, as its a strategic success of a much greater scale. Look at Snake Island its a very painful assault on both Russias military positions and Russias public image. Moreover, its an assault on Putin as a strong leader. Theres another way to explain the Snake Island developments: corruption among the Russian generals who report much bigger usage of munitions for targeting military goals in Ukraine, then they have a number of munitions that are not mentioned in the reserve arsenal anymore this allows the generals to sell them and earn some money. Russia has some sort of control procedures over the use of munitions, but its very likely the numbers on paper and the numbers in the storages dont really match. Recently I read an interesting article, the conclusions of which resonate with my previous writings. According to official information from Russian Ministry of Defense, their army destroyed several times more Ukrainian tanks, artillery and all kinds of vehicles than the Ukrainian army has ever had. What we see is that Russians are producing fake information even within own military planning. Therefore, I wouldnt be surprised to see fake numbers on how many missiles Russian army is launching on Ukrainian territory. With fuel, its even more obvious: it gets stolen all the time. Talking about cruise missiles, Russians cant really sell those anywhere even delivering them from a weapon-trading commercial entity in Russia abroad is a huge problem. Very few countries would be able to buy Russian cruise missiles maybe North Korea, or Iran. But these would be highly risky steps, even with a high degree of adventurism that is now prevailing in the Russian Federation. By the end of the day, its Russias large-scale corruption and a total ignoring of international law that is becoming a decisive factor. This is why you cant really tell what Russia will be doing next with its weapons. Actress Jenny Agutter with train driver Nicholas Hallewell - who also appears in both films Stars of The Railway Children sequel have taken the trip to the station from the original film, where the follow-up's world premiere was held on Sunday. Fifty-two years after the classic came out, Jenny Agutter reprises her role as Bobbie in The Railway Children Return. She said returning to Oakworth station in West Yorkshire for the new film was like "going right back in time". Agutter was joined by her new co-stars Sheridan Smith, Sir Tom Courtenay and John Bradley at the station. Agutter and Smith (back) with the sequel's new generation of railway children Agutter and Smith with the young cast in The Railway Children Return The sequel is set almost 40 years after the first film, with Roberta, known as Bobbie, now a grandmother who takes in a new set of children who arrive on the railway - evacuees fleeing World War Two bombs in Salford. "It's really lovely when something comes around again, and in a different way," said Agutter, 69, who played Bobbie in the beloved 1970 family film and a 1968 TV series. They were both based on E Nesbit's novel, which was set in 1905 and followed a family who were forced to move from their wealthy life in London to a run-down cottage in Yorkshire when the children's father went to prison. Sally Thomsett, Jenny Agutter and Bernard Cribbins in The Railway Children film For the sequel, Agutter and the writers filled in the story of what her character had gone on to do, given the changes in British life. "She would have been definitely a suffragette," Agutter said, speaking at the station, which was also a filming location for the follow-up. "Probably a magistrate. Very involved with young people and social issues and making these changes. The feminism through it is really interesting from 1905 to 1944." Agutter, who is also known for playing Sister Julienne in the BBC's Call the Midwife, added: "I think Nesbit would have approved. I think she would she would love to see it carry on and the story carry on." Agutter and Smith pose for photos at Oakworth station The sequel includes numerous nods to the original film, as well as replicas of memorable props. "When I was taken to the set, they had created a home that was filled with Roberta's childhood memories - the little paper theatre, the train that Peter would have had, lots of things that I was really deeply touched by," said Agutter. Story continues "I mean, it was like stepping back. It felt like a part of my life." This time, Beau Gadson plays the eldest of the new generation of railway children, the feisty Lily. Fans lined the station entrance to get a glimpse of the cast Despite being born almost four decades after the original film came out, she says she was a fan before she went up for the part in the sequel. "It's a British classic. I had to have seen it. I've read all the books. I've even seen the theatre production where a real steam train came in." Gadson, who played the young Princess Margaret in The Crown, said Agutter "helped us a lot" during filming. "She was great to have on set," the 15-year-old said. "I mean, the original Bobbie coming down to this station again? It was amazing." The young cast of The Railway Children Return The new film brings in Smith as Bobbie's daughter, and Game of Thrones actor Bradley as the grandson of Bernard Cribbins' stationmaster Mr Perks. After interviews and photographs at Oakworth station, the cast boarded a steam train to a screening in Keighley. Writer Danny Brocklehurst said they tried not to think about risking the legacy of such a well-loved film. "When we were writing, we weren't sat there with the original on our shoulder, thinking, oh my gosh, we must honour this enchanting beloved classic. "It was like, let's do a new film that tells a story about new characters - evacuees in the Second World War. "We very much wanted to keep to the spirit of the original and keep some of the themes and the tone of the original, but bring it to a new audience with a new story." John Bradley plays the new Mr Perks The film's Yorkshire-based producer Jemma Rodgers first came up with the idea for the sequel, and a strand of the story about black US soldiers stationed in the county being attacked by US military police officers. That was based on a true incident in Bamber Bridge, Lancashire, where soldiers and military police got into a gun battle in 1943, leaving one of the soldiers dead. "Because of my own mixed heritage, I was very interested in stories about black people before Windrush in the UK," Rodgers said. "And I came across the story of Bamber Bridge, which I had never heard of before." The real-life trouble arose after the white American military police and officers tried to impose racial segregation in the town. "The villagers said, we're not doing that here. And they did the opposite - they put signs up in the window saying, 'Only black troops allowed and locals'," Rodgers explained. "One night, there was a fight with the MPs [military police] and it was awful. Sixteen people got arrested, somebody got shot. "But the thing that was really inspiring to me was that the locals fought with the black GIs. They just saw unfairness. They didn't see colour." In the film, which is released on 15 July, Pose actor KJ Aikens plays a character who is discovered by the children after being targeted by military police. Rep. Liz Cheney delivers a speech at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, Calif., on June 29, 2022. Mark J. Terrill/AP Photos Liz Cheney told ABC News on Sunday that the GOP "can't survive" if Trump is its standard bearer in 2024. "I think that he can't be the party nominee and I don't think the party would survive that," she said. Cheney has been a vocal critic of Trump's repeated claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him. Rep. Liz Cheney, during an interview that aired on Sunday, said that the Republican Party won't be able to survive if former President Donald Trump captures the GOP nomination in 2024 and once again serves as its official standard-bearer. During a conversation on ABC's "This Week," the Wyoming Republican told chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl that the party would be in dire straits if Trump were to head the top of the ticket in 2024 a sentiment she has articulated in the past, arguing that the former president's conduct during the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, disqualified him for seeking office again. "It can't survive if he's our nominee," she said. "I think that he can't be the party nominee and I don't think the party would survive that." She continued, "I believe in the party and I believe in what the party can be and what the party can stand for and I'm not ready to give that up. Those of us who believe in Republican principles and ideals have a responsibility to try to lead the party back to what it can be and to reject so much of the toxin and the vitriol." The congresswoman said that Trump has "betrayed" GOP voters by continuing to repeat debunked claims that he won the 2020 election over now-President Joe Biden. "That is a really painful thing for people to recognize and to admit, but it's absolutely the case, and they've been betrayed by him, by the Big Lie," she said. "And by what he continues to do and say to tear apart our country and tear apart our party, and I think we have to reject that." Cheney was first elected to the House in 2016, which coincided with Trump's presidential victory over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and she quickly rose up the leadership ladder by becoming the House Republican Conference Chair in 2019. Story continues But she broke away from Trump after January 6, rejecting his allegations of a stolen election and voting to impeach him for "incitement of insurrection" for his actions on that day. Her vocal stance against Trump led her GOP colleagues to remove her from House leadership, but she was undeterred in her resolve against the former president. "I will do everything I can to ensure that the former president never again gets anywhere near the Oval Office," she told reporters on Capitol Hill in May 2021 shortly after being ousted from the No. 3 House GOP position. Last September, she gained another prominent congressional role as the vice chair of the January 6 committee investigating the Capitol riot; the panel's work has led to a series of ongoing hearings that have brought riveting testimony about the events of that day to the public. In August, Cheney will face several candidates in a GOP primary, with her most notable opponent being Trump-backed water rights attorney Harriet Hageman. Read the original article on Business Insider Rep. Tricia Derges resigned from the Missouri House of Representatives on Friday, days after a jury found her guilty of 22 federal charges. The Nixa Republican was convicted on counts of wire fraud, illegal distribution of controlled substances and making false statements to federal investigators in the conclusion of her trial last week. In a letter to Speaker Rob Vescovo, she resigned her seat representing Christian County. "For many years, it has been my humble honor to have served the lord by bringing medical care to thousands of forgotten citizens in SW Missouri: the homeless, our veterans, the impoverished and uninsured," Derges wrote. "Care that helped alleviate the unspeakable pain many people lived in, helping to save lives from uncontrolled chronic diseases, healing wounds and saving limbs from amputation. The most rewarding work I have ever done." Derges, who rose to prominence in southwest Missouri through her founding and operation of several medical clinics, was found to have fraudulently obtained federal aid money for her nonprofit clinic, lied to patients about "stem cell" treatments that did not contain stem cells and mixed money between the nonprofit, Lift Up Springfield, and her Ozark Valley Medical Clinic locations. Tricia Derges: Lawmaker found guilty of wire fraud, illegal prescriptions, lying to feds Her sentencing will be determined in the coming months; the jury also voted to allow the government to keep $300,000 in CARES Act money she received for her clinic's COVID-19 testing that had already been reimbursed prior. First elected in 2020, Derges continued to push for an expansion of Missouri's assistant physician program. A licensed assistant physician herself, she wanted to allow them to become licensed, expanding the medical field and relieving labor shortages in the field. In her resignation letter, she called the lack of access to licensing for assistant physicians a "tragedy" and urged for further legislation on the program. Story continues "Missouri was a trailblazer with this phenomenal healthcare solution," Derges wrote. "I pray that the value of this program will one day be welcomed and appreciated. These valuable doctors are a resource that we cannot afford to lose." Rep. Tricia Derges' resignation letter from the Missouri House. Last legislative session, Derges filed a bill aiming to allow assistant physicians a path to licensing. But it went nowhere Derges' federal indictment was unveiled in early 2021 and she was quickly stripped of much of her power in Jefferson City. She was kicked out of House Republican caucus meetings, stripped of her committee assignments, and re-assigned to a broom closet-sized office in the Capitol building. Meanwhile, other lawmakers have sought to tighten requirements to be licensed as a physician. Her resignation means she will not be in Jefferson City for a special session focused on taxes and the veto session later this year. She will be sentenced in the coming months. She was blocked from running for re-election as a Republican, and after being convicted cannot run for office under Missouri law. Two Republicans, Jamie Ray Gragg and Danny Garrison, and a Democrat, Amy Freeland, are running for her seat this fall. Galen Bacharier covers Missouri politics & government for the News-Leader. Contact him at gbacharier@news-leader.com, (573) 219-7440 or on Twitter @galenbacharier. This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Rep. Tricia Derges resigns from Missouri House after conviction Watch: More than 100 people evacuated from fire in south-east London About 120 people have been evacuated from a block of flats in south-east London after a fire broke out. Smoke was seen from the top of the 19-storey tower block at St Mark's Square in Bromley on Sunday. No injuries have been reported following the blaze, which is still being attended by firefighters. It was tackled by 15 fire engines and about 100 firefighters, London Fire Brigade said. Half of a five-room flat on the 15th floor was alight and part of the roof was also on fire. Firefighters were called at 11.58am and are still at the scene. They used a 64m turntable ladder to tackle the fire. The cause of the fire is not known. Station Commander Colin Digby said: Crews are making steady progress. This is going to be a protracted incident and we expect our crews to be on scene for several hours to come. Firefighters tackling a blaze at a block of flats in St Mark's Square in Bromley, south-east London, on Sunday. (PA) Smoke at the top of a building in Bromley, south-east London, on Sunday. (PA) The brigades 999 control centre received 88 calls alerting them to the blaze. Fire crews came from Bromley, Beckenham, Addington, Woodside, Lewisham, Forest Hill, Sidcup and Croydon and surrounding fire stations. Footage showed flames and black smoke coming from one part of the building's slanted roof, while further clips showed firefighters on the roof with the flames apparently extinguished. Josh Gill, 29, a Co-op team leader from Bromley, said: I literally live on the doorstep. Some people were upset and crying whilst others were shocked and confused as to what was going on. The fire brigade are still here and you can see people who live in the flats evacuated in the church. It is scary to see this right on the doorstep as I have a family. Brent Bautista, 17, who lives with his parents and younger brother on the 11th floor, said: I reckon it was around 12 something that the fire alarm started to go off on the ground floor and everyone evacuated. However, apparently the fire alarm on the 11th floor did not go off at all so everyone was literally getting evacuated but we were just standing there not knowing what to do, so we just had to come down by ourselves anyway. Story continues He said a sprinkler system seemed to activate on the floor above, pouring water down to his flat. He added: I just remember we were cooking there and the sprinklers just went on and the balcony was drenched so we didnt know what to do at that point so we gathered everyone and just started walking downstairs because obviously the lifts werent working at that point because of the fire. A man living near the tower said he saw flames burning ferociously on the building. Rowland Leslie, 63, said: I was just walking down to come to Bromley and I dont think it had started not long before that because the fire engines were just coming. Read more: Boris Johnson's wage-price spiral warning branded a myth by economis Where there is the slant of the building there are balconies and flames were burning ferociously at the start. I have been in Bromley for over an hour and where I was it looked like the fire had been put out but in the last 20 minutes it looks like it must have started up again. A large cordon remained in place around the scene of the fire on Sunday afternoon, with residents being diverted on longer routes to get to their homes. Firefighters point water at smoke at the top of a block of flats in London on Sunday. (PA) Smoke billows from a building in St Mark's Square in Bromley, south-east London. (PA) Firefighters use a ladder to tackle a blaze at a 19-storey block of flats in south-east London. (PA) Guests at a nearby Premier Inn were evacuated and told they are likely to have to wait several hours to get back inside. One guest, Jerome Smith, 22, said: I was asleep, woke up, came out, my friend messaged me saying there was a fire and they evacuated everyone. My car is parked in the car park, so were just waiting to get in. Theyre saying its going to be a three-hour wait. Raquell Viamonte, 22, who works at a restaurant in St Marks Square, said it was terrifying when the fire broke out. Firefighters at the scene of a blaze in south-east London on Sunday. (PA) She said: It was quite stressful. I had to deal with quite a lot of customers, kick them out and refund their orders. The fire alarm started ringing and by the time I walked out there were firefighters running around everywhere. It was terrifying. Residents of St Marks Square have been evacuated to the nearby St Marks Church where they are being provided with coffee, tea and snacks while they wait for news. Bromley Council said it is providing support for residents. On Sunday evening, the council said it had been informed by LFB that residents were allowed back into the building up to the 12th floor. The council said management agents are on site and are bringing in contractors to get rid of the water needed to put out the fire. Staff at the cinema on the site are also being allowed back in but it will not reopen on Sunday evening, the council added. Looking at Resverlogix Corp.'s (TSE:RVX ) insider transactions over the last year, we can see that insiders were net buyers. That is, there were more number of shares purchased by insiders than there were sold. While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. See our latest analysis for Resverlogix The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Resverlogix In fact, the recent purchase by Co-Founder Donald McCaffrey was not their only acquisition of Resverlogix shares this year. Earlier in the year, they paid CA$0.25 per share in a CA$93k purchase. That implies that an insider found the current price of CA$0.25 per share to be enticing. Of course they may have changed their mind. But this suggests they are optimistic. While we always like to see insider buying, it's less meaningful if the purchases were made at much lower prices, as the opportunity they saw may have passed. Happily, the Resverlogix insider decided to buy shares at close to current prices. The only individual insider to buy over the last year was Donald McCaffrey. Donald McCaffrey purchased 500.00k shares over the year. The average price per share was CA$0.25. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below! Resverlogix is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying. Insider Ownership of Resverlogix For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Based on our data, Resverlogix insiders have about 3.7% of the stock, worth approximately CA$2.3m. We prefer to see high levels of insider ownership. So What Does This Data Suggest About Resverlogix Insiders? It is good to see the recent insider purchase. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. But on the other hand, the company made a loss during the last year, which makes us a little cautious. While the overall levels of insider ownership are below what we'd like to see, the history of transactions imply that Resverlogix insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for the future. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 5 warning signs for Resverlogix (of which 2 are concerning!) you should know about. Story continues If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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. China's water, soil erosion area continues to decline in 2021 Xinhua) 13:38, July 03, 2022 BEIJING, July 2 (Xinhua) -- China's water and soil erosion area continued to decrease in 2021 amid the country's efforts to restore the ecological environment, according to the Ministry of Water Resources. The country's water and soil erosion area stood at 2.67 million square km in 2021, down 18,500 square km, or 0.69 percent, compared with 2020, according to monitoring data on soil and water loss analyzed by the ministry. Among the total, the area of hydraulic erosion is 1.11 million square km, down 1.27 percent year on year. There is also a wind erosion area of 1.57 million square km, down 0.27 percent from a year earlier. The ministry said that in the future it will work with other relevant departments to strictly control water and soil loss caused by human activities, strengthen forest and grassland restoration efforts, and elevate the level of scientific governance to tackle water and soil erosion. (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji) The first mosquitoes carrying West Nile virus recently were found in Cook County, officials said. Representatives of the North Shore Mosquito Abatement District said mosquitoes collected last Wednesday from one of the districts traps tested positive for the virus Thursday. The mosquitoes were collected in Skokie. Advertisement According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the West Nile virus is the leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the continental United States and most commonly appears during the summer and into the fall. While there are no vaccines or medications to prevent or treat the virus, most people who are infected do not feel ill. Only one in five develop a fever and other low-risk symptoms, but one of every 150 people infected can potentially develop serious, even fatal, symptoms. Advertisement Dead mosquitoes and other insects were collected from a trap in a heavily wooded area and taken to the Northwest Mosquito Abatement lab on July 14, 2021, in Wheeling, Illinois. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune) In 2020, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported 42 human cases of the virus and four deaths. In 2021, the health department reported 61 total cases and five deaths. According to a news release from the health department, seven Illinois counties had reported cases of the West Nile virus as of June 23. West Nile virus is a serious illness, and we want to remind everyone to protect themselves from mosquito bites at this time of year when so many of us are spending more time outdoors, said Amaal Tokars, acting director of the health department, in the release. Risk for infection remains low, but the abatement district issued a series of recommendations for residents to protect themselves from mosquito bites, including wearing dark, loose-fitting clothing and insect repellent and avoiding the outdoors during peak mosquito feeding times dawn and dusk. The abatement district also recommended residents regularly check for and eliminate standing water, saying, If it can hold water, it can breed mosquitoes. A Russian soldier at the entrance to Kherson in early March 2022 (illustrative photo) Read also: Russian invaders reconsider holding sham referendum in Kherson Oblast Hand-picked Russian collaborators in the oblast earlier pledged to hold a vote on joining Russia this fall, the message said. The recent abduction of Kherson Mayor Ihor Kolykhaiev is probably an attempt to stem growing resistance to the Russian occupation authorities, the ministry said. Russia is likely prioritizing a pseudo-constitutional vote in an attempt to legitimize its control of the region, the UK ministry said. However, widespread armed and peaceful resistance continues across occupied areas. Read also: Collaborators will be punished as harshly as the invaders, states Ukrainian Minister Vereshchuk Quoting senior U.S. officials, CNN earlier reported that Russia doesnt have enough troops to establish firm control over the captured areas of Kherson Oblast. Ukrainian resistance in the region is gaining momentum. Ukraines General Staff reported that Potyomkine and Ivanivka in Kherson Oblast were liberated in recent days by Ukrainian forces. According to Operational Command South, Russian troops are being gradually pushed back there. Vladimir Putin and Sergei Shoigu Photo by Contributor/Getty Images Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin on Sunday that the eastern Ukrainian city of Lysychansk had fallen to Russian and Russian-backed separatist forces, Reuters and CNN report. Lysychansk along with its sister city of Sievierodonetsk, which Russia captured about a week ago represented the last bastion of Ukrainian-controlled territory in Luhansk Oblast. Ukrainian regional Gov. Serhiy Haidai said Russia appeared to have "deployed all their forces at Lysychansk" and "attacked the city with inexplicably brutal tactics." After failing to capture the capital city of Kyiv in the early months of the war, Russia redirected its focus to capturing the eastern oblasts of Luhansk and Donetsk, both of which have been partially controlled by Russian-backed separatists since 2014. Russian forces now control virtually all of Luhansk and about half of Donetsk. The U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War assessed Friday that, following the capture of Lysychansk, Russian forces will likely consolidate their control over Luhansk and "then prioritize drives on Ukrainian positions in Siversk before turning to Slovyansk and Bakhmut." You may also like The turning point The soul of a machine 7 cartoons about Cassidy Hutchinson's explosive Trump testimony Consequences of a Russian missile attack on the Serhiyivka resort of the Odesa Oblast Read also: Famous author Stephen King calls Russia's missile strike on Kremenchuk shopping mall terrorist attack The Russians have shifted to conducting the war in a way that aims to stoke panic in Ukraine, terrorize people, and make them pressure the government into making certain concessions to Moscow, said Podolyak. What are their tactics now? On one hand, they disregard the world reaction to these barbaric cruise missile attacks on residential areas. They are forcing our people to pressure the government into saying alright, well make some territorial concessions. Read also: 21 dead in Russian air strike on Odesa Oblast (UPDATED) He added that the Kremlin is sparing no expense in funding its lobbying groups in foreign countries, urging them to push for a way to end the war. Besides generic anti-aircraft defenses, Ukraine needs anti-air missile defense systems to derail this new Russian approach, Podolyak said. Moscow last week carried out a series of terror air strikes on Ukrainian cities, killing dozens of civilians. Read also: Survivors of Amstor shopping mall attack in Kremenchuk share their stories Russian missiles struck an apartment block in Kyiv, killing one person on June 26. Another missile hit a kindergarten, which, thankfully, was closed at the time. Soviet-era Kh-22 anti-ship cruise missiles then targeted a mall in Kremenchuk, Poltava Oblast, leaving at least 20 people dead on June 28. The same kind of missiles were used in the attack on resort town of Serhiivka, Odesa Oblast, killing 21 people, including a 12-year-old child, on July 1. Residential areas and civilian infrastructure in Kharkiv and Mykolayiv remain under regular Russian artillery fire, further adding to the civilian death toll. Reuters Videos STORY: Ukraine condemned the strike as a war crime, saying it had killed at least 23 people, including Liza, who had Down's Syndrome, and two other children. Scores more were wounded, including Liza's mother, Iryna Dmitrieva.Russia's Defence Ministry said it hit a military target.Vinnytsia, a city of 370,000 people about 125 miles (200 km) southwest of Kyiv, is far from the eastern frontlines of the conflict.Valeria Korol, a speech therapist at the LOGO Club children's center, where Liza saw specialists shortly before she was killed Thursday, told Reuters the child's mother sought safety in Vinnytsia after the war started."Liza began treatment in our centre when she was two-and-a-half-years-old. She and her mother lived in Vinnytsia at the time. Then they moved to Kyiv and lived there for a while. I understand they returned back to Vinnytsia to live in what they thought would be a safe place and started therapy sessions again, and recently attended them regularly," she said.Liza was known as "Sunny Flower" at the children's center. ROMAN PETRENKO SUNDAY, 3 JULY 2022, 15:20 The Russian occupiers shelled Sloviansk in the Donetsk region, the authorities report 6 killed and 15 wounded. Source: Mayor of Sloviansk Vadym Liakh on Facebook, "Suspilne" Quote from Liakh: "Massive shelling of Sloviansk with MLRS [multiple launch rocket systems.] The largest one in recent times. Many killed and wounded." Details: According to the mayor, there are currently about 15 fires in the city. A spokeswoman of Donetsk Oblast Military Administration informed the media that as a result of shelling by Russian troops in Sloviansk there are six dead and 15 wounded. The Russians also struck Kramatorsk with three missiles, destroying a hotel and damaging a road in a residential area. The "Dom" TV channel reports that the city market caught fire as a result of the shelling. Several hits were also recorded in the city, in particular, in the private sector. Seven days out is your guide to entertainment events, concerts, festivals and activities in Escambia and Santa Rosa County. MONDAY July 4 Riverfest 9 a.m. Monday, July 4. Downtown Milton. Celebrate the Fourth of July with a family-friendly event featuring the Firecracker Motorcycle Show, a car show, food vendors, retail vendors, a childrens activity area, live entertainment, and the Great Milltown Duck Race. The night will end with fireworks display over the Blackwater River at dark. More info: 850-623-2339 or srcchamber.com. Sertomas 4th of July Celebration and Fireworks 4:30 p.m. Monday, July 4. Downtown Pensacola. The 2022 celebration is on but a bit different this year. While organizers will not have the full day event, they will start with live music and food trucks. Come with blankets and lawn chairs and get ready for a fantastic fireworks show over the bay beginning at 9 p.m. Bring a radio and tune to Cat Country 98.7 for the special 4th of July music to accompany the fireworks. The best viewing will be along Bayfront Parkway. More info: pensacolafireworks.com. Hometown Fourth of July Parade & Celebration 6 p.m. Monday, July 4. 8579 Gulf Blvd. Navarre Beach. Celebrate the Fourth of July on Navarre Beach with family fun and live entertainment leading up to the Navarre Beach fireworks display. The event will kick off with a non-motorized childrens parade, and at 7 p.m. the band Duchess will perform. Bring a blanket and chairs to enjoy the show. More info: 850-939-3267 or navarrechamber.com. Monday Night Blues 7 p.m. Monday, July 4. Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. Seville Quarter and the Blues Society of Northwest Florida are bringing the blues back to the Seville Quarter Entertainment District. The event features live blues music and "BBQ and Bud" food and drink specials. More info: 850-434-6211 or sevillequarter.com. Symphony Sparks & Stars Attendees watch a previous Symphony, Sparks & Stars fireworks show at Blue Wahoos Stadium in downtown Pensacola. 7:30 p.m. Monday, July 4. Hunter Amphitheater at Community Maritime Park, 301 W. Main St. Bring chairs and blankets and enjoy this family-friendly Independence Day performance featuring patriotic favorites, an Armed Forces Salute, music from West Side Story and more. The festivities will begin with the United States Marine Corps presenting the colors followed by the National Anthem and a flyover. The conductors are Peter Rubardt & Brittan Braddock. The concert will wrap up just before Sertomas fireworks begin at 9 p.m. Free. More info: pensacolasymphony.com/product/symphony-sparks-stars-2022/. Story continues Fireworks at the Beach 8:30 p.m. Monday, July 4. Pensacola Beach Boardwalk. Let Pensacola Beach get you into the patriotic spirit this Independence Day. With the sugar-white sands of Pensacola Beach under your feet, keep your eyes focused on the night skies this Fourth of July for a dazzling fireworks display along the Pensacola Beach Boardwalk and Santa Rosa Sound. More info: pensacolabeachchamber.com/july-4th-fireworks/. Navarre Beach Fourth of July Fireworks Display 9 p.m. Monday, July 4. 8579 Gulf Blvd., Navarre Beach. Celebrate the Fourth of July on Navarre Beach. Fireworks display will be shot off from the end of the Navarre Beach Fishing Pier. Visit 850-981-8900 or getrelaxing.com. TUESDAY Jazz Concerts with Joe Occhipinti & Friends 1 p.m. the first and fourth Tuesday through July 26. West Florida Public Library, 239 N. Spring St. The West Florida Public Library is sponsoring a series of jazz concerts hosted by Joe Occhipinti, one of Jazz Pensacolas founding members. Occhipinti and his friends will perform jazz standards as an educational outreach to highlight the Jazz Room on the second floor of the library. Free. More info: jazzpensacola.com. Bands on the Beach 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, July 5. Gulfside Pavilion at Casino Beach, Pensacola Beach. Pensacola Beach's popular outdoor summer concert series with performers for every musical taste. Featuring a lineup of regional artists, Bands on the Beach delivers an eclectic musical experience throughout the entire summer. This week features Johnny Earthquake & the Moondogs. Spectators are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets. Free. More info: 850-932-2257 or visitpensacolabeach.com. Tuesday Night Jazz 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 5. Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. Enjoy jazz with Melodious Allen and The Funk Heads in Lili Marlene's. More info: 850-434-6211 or sevillequarter.com. WEDNESDAY The U.S. Navy Blue Angels Pensacola Beach Air Show The diamond formation of the U.S. Navys Blue Angels soars over Pensacola Beach during a past Red, White and Blues Pensacola Beach Air Show. Wednesday through Saturday, July 6 through 9. Pensacola Beach. Red, White and Blues Week returns with the annual Pensacola Beach Air Show headlined by the U.S. Navy Blue Angels. This years air show is presented by the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association. The show highlights the hometown hero Blue Angels the U. S. Navys flight demonstration squadron stationed at Forrest Sherman Field aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola. Circle and arrives will take place at 8 a.m. Wednesday, the dress rehearsal will take place at 2 p.m. Thursday, a full dress rehearsal with civilian acts will take place at 11 a.m. Friday and the air show will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday. More info: visitpensacolabeach.com/whats-happening-blue-angels. Jazz Pensacolas Jazz Jam 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 6. A Little Madness Brewing Company & Pizza Kitchen, 9838 N. Davis Highway. Led by professional musicians, Jazz Jams are strictly for fun, opportunities to play jazz with other musicians. Drummers, please bring your own sticks/brushes. Vocalists, please bring your own mic. July's House Band: Roger Villines, trumpet; Isabelle Schrack, keys/vocals; Max Levesque, bass; Fred Domulot, drums. Cost: Donations. More info: jazzpensacola.com, 850-433-8382. THURSDAY Tunes by the Dunes Concert Series 7 p.m. Thursday, July 7. Navarre Beach Marine Park, 8705 Gulf Blvd., Navarre. Tunes by the Dunes is a free spring concert series held on Thursday evenings. Enjoy a relaxing evening for live local music and food vendors. Spectators are encouraged to bring their own beach blankets and lawn chairs. Hosted by the Navarre Beach Area Chamber of Commerce. This week features the Jay Williams Band. Free. More info: 850-939-3267 or navarrechamber.com/tunes-by-the-dunes. SATURDAY Inferno Burlesque 7 p.m., doors; 8 p.m., show; Saturday, July 9. Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox St. Inferno Burlesque is presenting the hottest burlesque show in town featuring burlesque, variety and drag acts from all over the nation. Tickets start at $15. For ages 18 and older. More info and ticket purchase: vinylmusichall.com. IMPROVable Cause: Live! Members of Improvable Cause perform a medley of Queen songs. 10:30 p.m. Saturday, July 9. Pensacola Little Theatre, 400 S. Jefferson St. Improvable Cause is Pensacola's best professional improv comedy troupe. Their unscripted shows are sure to bust attendees at the seams with over-the-top, anything-goes hilarity. Everything is created in the moment with audience suggestions, so each show is different. More info: pensacolalittletheatre.com. SUNDAY Blues on the Bay 6 p.m. Sunday, July 10. Community Maritime Park Hunter Amphitheater, 301 W. Main St. This free concert series is one of the most popular events for locals and visitors to spend the final hours of their weekend enjoying great music with family and friends in a great atmosphere. Concert spectators are invited to bring coolers and lawn chairs. Guests of all ages are encouraged to enjoy the cool breeze of the bay while listening and dancing to some of the region's best musical talent. This week features Classic June. More info: 850- 436-5670. Never miss a story: Subscribe to the Pensacola News Journal using the link at the bottom of the page under Stay Connected. This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola Beach Air, Fourth of July fireworks and more to do July 4-10 A Greenwich Village gas leak sparked a small explosion at a pizzeria Sunday, injuring a Con Edison employee inspecting the shop, officials said. Firefighters rushed to La Mia Pizza on Fourth Ave. near E. 12th St. about 3 p.m. after reports of a gas odor, FDNY officials said. Con Edison was called to the scene, and while an employee was investigating the source of the smell in the basement, he sustained a flash to his face, a spokesman for the utility said. The explosion was contained in the kitchen of the pizzeria, the FDNY said. The utility worker was treated at the scene for minor injuries. A total of 78 firefighters responded to the scene and stretched a hose line into the shop as a precautionary measure, but no fire was sparked, fire officials said. Con Ed workers continued to investigate later Sunday. kupicoo / iStock.com One of the reasons Social Security checks can cover bills for some retirees and not others is because benefits are based on income earned before retirement. The more you earn working, the more you pay into the Social Security system, and the higher your benefit. Two retirees can work the exact same number of hours and years but still have drastically different Social Security checks. Social Security: Why You Dont Have To Entirely Depend on It, Even With No Savings Learn: 15 Best Places in Texas for a Couple to Live Only on Social Security This goes a long way toward explaining why the average Social Security check for women is much smaller than for men. As of May 2022, men received about $1,848 per month on average, USA Today reported. In contrast, the average monthly check for women was only $1,494 per month a difference of about $354 per month, or $4,248 per year. If you want to know how much that difference adds up over the course of a retirement, consider this: During a 20-year retirement, the average man will receive about $85,000 more in Social Security benefits than the average woman. Over 30 years, the difference is more than $127,000. You dont need an economics degree to figure out why: Its because women have consistently earned less than men over the decades and that pay gap still exists. Heading into 2022, women earned 82 cents for every dollar men, according to the Society for Human Resource Management, which cited research from Payscales 2022 State of the Gender Pay Gap Report. Women are also much more likely than men to leave the workforce to care for children. The result is that they dont earn nearly as much money as men over the course of their professional lives. This has a major impact on their Social Security retirement benefits, which are based on income during your 35 highest-earning. When someone drops out of the workforce for a substantial number of years, those zero-income years are factored into the benefit calculation, which shrinks checks even more. Story continues There have been some encouraging developments, however. The Social Security gender gap has been slowly narrowing over the last few decades as the gender pay gap shrinks as well. As USA Today noted, in May 2000, women received less than 77% of the average mans Social Security check. As of May 2022, the difference was closer to 81%. For women (and others) in the working world who want to help increase their Social Security benefits in retirement, the best strategy is to find opportunities to boost income. Consider asking for a raise, obtaining licenses and certifications that can lead to higher pay, or switching to a better-paying job. If you cant work outside the home due to caretaking responsibilities, look for remote jobs or side hustles that can bring in income. Just keep in mind that if you do get a side hustle that involves 1099 income rather than W-2 income, youll need to pay into Social Security on your own through estimated tax payments or on your tax returns. Social Security: How Much Is the Spousal Benefit Actually Worth? Discover: 5 Things Millennials Should Know About Social Security Its also important to earn income for at least 35 years, even if some of those years only involve working part-time or side gigs. If you can make it past 35 years while earning a high income, the higher-earning years will replace any lower-earning years that came earlier. Another way to boost your Social Security check is to delay signing up for benefits as long as you can. Although you can sign up as early as age 62, waiting a few years will lead to a higher Social Security check. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Social Security: Women Get $354 Per Month Less Than Men Heres Why Henry Kremers in his home from Holland Digital Archives Henry Kremers was born in 1850 in Drenthe, Michigan. His parents, Williem Kremers and Anna Heins, emigrated from the Netherlands in 1847 and married in 1849. Henry was the oldest of their five children. More History: Arend Visscher and James Huntley lived on a hill More History: George Hummer and the creation of West Michigan Furniture More History: Holland's first mayor excelled at management Henry enrolled in Hope College in 1868 and graduated in 1873. After teaching school for one year, he enrolled at the University of Michigan, where he studied medicine. He received his M.D. in 1876. Upon graduation, he married Alice Van Zwalenberg and they settled in Drenthe. Six years later, Alice and Henry moved to Holland, where Henry opened his medical office at 6 E. Eighth St. In 1886, Kremers opened a pharmacy with William Z. Bangs in downtown Holland. In 1889, Kremers bought out his partner. That year, the people of Holland elected him mayor, even though he ran as a Democrat and single tax (socialist). To understand his platform, we need some context. During the Civil War, Congress approved an income tax on the countrys most affluent citizens. The Supreme Court upheld that decision in 1864. However, in 1871, Congress repealed the income tax because the government was again getting the revenue it needed from import tariffs, a tax instituted in the days of Alexander Hamilton. Because import tariffs made goods more expensive for everyone, and, on a relative basis, more expensive to farmers and factory workers and those with disproportionately less income, many in the working class and progressives supported a tax on the rich and, thus, the single tax idea. Despite his political platform, Kremers was still able to successfully collaborate with Hollands business elite. In the 1890s, in the aftermath of an economic recession, Kremers and Holland capitalists Arend Visscher, William Beach, George Hummer, Isaac Cappon and John C. Post, among others, created a bonus plan to entice companies to relocate to Holland. Story continues Herold and Kremers' doorframe in downtown Holland In 1892, Kremers and Ernest Herold, a shoemaker, constructed the building at 8 E. Eighth St. next door to Kremers medical office and pharmacy. In 1894, Kremers selected the double lot on the southeast corner of Central Avenue and 12th Street to build a residence. He then engaged contractor George Dalman to build a Queen Anne-style home, complete with a large solarium for his wife, who loved botany, and a large two-story carriage house. Subscribe: Learn more about our latest subscription offers! Meanwhile, Kremers also served as the second president of the Ottawa County Building and Loan Association, following C.A. Stevenson, the local jeweler. That, like his political platform, showed that he was a different type of capitalist. In those days, people who had less than significant wealth, but more wealth than the working class, created building and loans to get access to mortgages and loans. Members who could afford it bought shares, which provided capital for loans to other members. Unfortunately, those with less money, such as small farmers and factory workers, had no choice but to borrow from relatives or neighbors. Kremers also served as director of Holland's Board of Health, which encouraged vaccinations and could shutter public places to slow the spread of disease. In 1892, Kremers and other Holland capitalists formed the Holland and Chicago Transportation Company. They also bought and donated land to Holland that became Prospect Park. In 1906, Kremers and friends recruited the Kolla family and, with them, formed the Holland Furnace Company. In 1913, Kremers retired from his medical practice. He died in 1914. In 1919, Kremers house became home to Holland Hospital, an idea proposed by William Kremer, the eldest son of Henry and Anna. There, the Womens Literary Club opened a free childrens clinic on the first floor of the carriage house. Steve VanderVeen Altogether, the house and the second floor of the carriage house could accommodate 22 patients. In 1928, after Holland Hospital moved to its new location, the city rented the site to the Knickerbocker fraternity, which housed Hope College students until 1938. From 1940 to 1992, the house was home to the Netherlands Museum, now Holland Museum. In 1995, Rein and Kay Wolfort opened the Centennial Bed and Breakfast on the site. The house was later sold to Rob Walcott. Information from this article comes from Robert Swierengas "Holland, Michigan," Madalyn DeJonge via digitalholland.org, cityofholland.com/869/property-research and encyclopedia.com. Steve VanderVeen is a Holland resident and writes about local business history. Read about his book series at kickstarter.com/projects/holland-me/holland-and-me-the-series. This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland History: Henry Kremers bridged a political-economic divide After Jan & Dean recorded their catchy hit "Surf City," the song topped the charts and allowed listeners around the country to imagine the coolness and relaxation of beach life in the 1960s. Although the tune about having fun, riding waves and partying is relatable to many on Topsail Island during the summer, they weren't singing about the one in North Carolina. But it's hard to imagine the classic is not in the back of people's minds when they're visiting the coastal community in Pender and Onslow counties. "Nobody has ever asked in a serious way," said Tammy Proctor, public information officer about the song. "People talk about it over the years, even long as I lived here over half of my life." Surf City development news: Proposal for 700-plus units behind Surf City neighborhood worries residents More from Pender County: Sandwiched between Wilmington and Hampstead, how Scotts Hill is caught in the middle of growth Founded in 1949, the local Surf City has grown from a small fishing village to what tourism officials are calling the heart of Topsail Island for more than 60 years. According to "Born in Reconstruction: The Story of Pender County, 1524-2010," written by retired Superior Court Judge Gary E. Trawick and former town attorney, the development and incorporation of Surf City came from the work of a property owners of a large track of island land. After World War II when the island was used for training purposes, the island was released to land owners who purchased buildings and began converting the area into an ocean resort in the late 1940s. Michael Y. Taylor, a board member of the Pender County Museum & Historical Society, said Edgar Yow played a major role in the development and suggested the name for Topsail Island. Information was published in work from author David Stallman. "Mr. Edgar Yow was main force communicating with the government to release the island back to landowners and leaving the pontoon bridge built in 1941 by the military," Taylor stated. "It was the only bridge for 13 years until the steel swing bridge was built by the (North Carolina Department of Transportation) in 1954." Story continues In the 1940s, the heirs of J.H. Batts started a subdivision called "Long Island Beach." In May 1948, the portion was encompassed into "Surf City Subdivision No. 1," according to Trawick's book. This would become the nucleus for North Carolina's Surf City. Yow prepared and sent a charter to the North Carolina General Assembly to incorporate the town, which was ratified on March 23, 1949. A group named D.N. Lucas as the first mayor, while Gerald C. Mercer and A.H. Ward were commissioners. Ward was designated as the public works director. Gianni Pike catches a wave next to the Surf City Ocean Pier in Surf City, N.C., Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2020. Four 'Surf' cities for everyone Released in 1963, the duo of the late Jan Berry and Dean Torrence was thinking about Huntington Beach, Calif. when they were making the song with help from Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. They sing about going to the beach in a 1934 wagon to a place where there's "two girls for every boy." In 1991, Huntington, a city located in the greater Los Angles area, nicknamed their town "Surf City, USA." But receiving the official trademark came with some controversy and lawsuits since Santa Cruz, a city in Northern California, also wanted to claim the Surf City moniker. According to an article from Surfer Today, a newspaper coined the name for Santa Cruz in the 1920s. Officials from Santa Cruz also supported their claim by saying the area was the first to introduce surfing to mainland America in the 1880s after three Hawaiian princesses rode waves in the water. California and North Carolina are not the only places with a Surf City. New Jersey also has a borough with the name and a population close to 2,000 people. It was incorporated in 1984 as Long Beach City and renamed Surf City in 1999. Like the local Surf City, the New Jersey community is also a popular area for tourists on the eastern seaboard. More: Topsail Island's Loggerhead Inn purchased in potential record-breaking deal According to a report from the Los Angeles Times published in the 1990s, the late Leonard T. Conners, former mayor of the Surf City in New Jersey, wrote a letter to the Huntington Beach mayor, which included information about contacting Douglas C. Medlin, current mayor of Surf City in North Carolina, in regards to community opposition to the California city having exclusive rights. "We wrote a letter objecting it because that beach have never been named Surf City," Medlin told the StarNews. "New Jersey and here were the only ones that ever really used the name for a city or a town." According to Medlin, there were times when postal officials would get mail mixed up between the two towns. "Everywhere the mail was coming from, they would look at it, and mistake it for Surf City, New Jersey," he said. "They would send it there and they would have to forwarded it down here. So, sometimes it would take a while to get a letter." But Medlin said the name was something both towns didn't want to give up. "They were trying to trademark it so they could use the name Surf City for their advertisement only," Medlin added about the city in Southern California. "I didn't like it, and the mayor in New Jersey didn't like it." It was noted in the LA Times report that everything was in good humor at a certain point before Huntington Beach council voted to get a copyright. "Bring your board and see you at the beach," Conners said to then-Huntington Beach Mayor Peter M. Green. Like on Facebook: Check out what's happening at Pender Today Conners said the song was always a benefit when it came to promoting the New Jersey borough. "There were people who came to Surf City because of that record and who I married as mayor," Conners told the LA Times. "There was one couple, the girl came from California and he was from New Jersey, and they came to Surf City to be married in Surf City. And they were married on the beach. Medlin lived in North Carolina's Surf City since 1950. He served on the council for more than 30 years. He was a teenager when the song was released. "Everybody thought they were talking about here," Medlin said. "It was a popular song when Surf City was growing and getting started. People always known about the song." He remembers the chart-topper being played at the pier and the game room when he was hanging out with friends. "They would play that song over and over again," Medlin said. Forging its own identity Decades later and about 10 hours away, the Pender County tourism department is working to make sure its Surf City stands on its own by mentioning Topsail Beach or Topsail Island. Director Tammy Proctor said it's a way to avoid confusion with New Jersey. It may also help people know the difference between the area and the one Jan & Dean crooned about in the 1960s. "No, I have never used it," Proctor said. But that doesn't mean Topsail Island can't have a song of its own. Charlie Albertson, dubbed the "Singing NC Senator," wrote the song "18th Avenue" about the area, which also includes the towns of Topsail Beach and North Topsail Beach. "He gave it to us to create a fun video," Proctor said. "We took a nostalgic look at the island knowing that bridge was going away." Reporter Chase Jordan can be reached at cjjordan@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: How did North Carolina's Surf City get its name? Hint: Not from the song Irving Michelson emigrated from Poland to Chicago in 1921 and later married his wife Charlotte and had two children, Harry and Tobia. He died in Chicago in 1935 from poisoning. (Stein family photo) My great-grandfather, Irving, followed in his older brothers footsteps when he emigrated from Poland to Chicago a century ago. This was a crucial move for the brothers because three of their siblings who stayed behind in Europe later died in the Holocaust. But Irving would meet his own untimely death in Chicago. What happened on that warm night in 1935 led me on a very personal hunt through Cook County public records and the Waldheim Cemetery, west of Chicago, for clues. Advertisement I started looking into Irvings story late in 2020 when I discovered his death certificate while cleaning out my familys storage space. I was able to obtain the inquest into Irvings death through a Freedom of Information Act request that took months to process because the papers had been folded for decades. Heavy books were used to flatten them so they could be photocopied. The 33-page typewritten transcript provides a glimpse into the hardships experienced by a Jewish immigrant during the Great Depression. Even more, it revealed allegations that he was slain, offering the rare chance to hear from witnesses in their own words as if I was in the jury room with them. Advertisement The case of a long-lost family members demise was officially closed as an accidental poisoning, of all things, but was it? A fateful journey, a name change, a wife gone Born in Lomza, Poland, in 1895, Irving was 26 years old when he arrived in Chicago after traveling through St. Johns, a city off Canadas Atlantic coast, and Detroit. One of the first things he did when he stepped on American soil in 1921 was change his name from Isaak Michalski to Irving Michelson. On his immigration paperwork, Irving described himself as 5-foot-6, 115 pounds and a chemist. He noted he would be staying with his older brother, Louis, who ran a cigar shop out of his home in what is now posh River North. Ive walked that stretch of Wells Street many times over the years. Louis storefront is long gone. In its place is an apartment building where rents start at $2,400 a month. Charlotte Michelson, who hailed from Poland, arrived in Chicago in the 1920s. She died while living at a mental health facility in Elgin in 1941. (Stein family photo) Irving didnt live in the neighborhood long. He married Charlotte, a cousin from Poland, in 1923. The couple was living on the Near West Side in 1924 when Charlotte gave birth to a daughter six months into her pregnancy. Charlottes unspecified debility was listed as the reason for the stillbirth, and the girl was not officially given a name. Irving and Charlotte were able to expand their family twice, in 1925 with the birth of son Harry, and in 1928 with daughter Tobia (my grandmother). Irving became a U.S. citizen that year, according to his naturalization paperwork. He was working as a cigar merchant at the time, perhaps making use of his knowledge of chemical compounds. Life was hard in the Michelson home. At some point after Tobias birth, Charlotte began living in a mental health facility in Elgin. Newspaper reports from the time describe a hospital so crowded that hundreds of people were forced to sleep on mattresses on the floor. Charlotte was a patient there for years, eventually dying there in 1941. The few public records I obtained about her yielded no hints of her diagnosis. Advertisement The last supper After his wife left, Irving needed help caring for their two children. According to testimony given during the inquest into Irvings death, an unidentified Jewish organization sent a housekeeper to the Michelson home for support. Rebecca Goldstein started her new job on a Monday. Irving died five days later, on Saturday. I picked up the inquest paperwork from the Cook County medical examiners office, not far from the site of the hospital where Irving died. Deputy Coroner James Whalen had prepared the case history and coroners verdict by hand, while the inquest proceedings were typewritten. Rebecca had testified the prior housekeeper initially showed her around the Michelson apartment in what is now the Humboldt Park neighborhood. Rebecca said she spoke at length with Irving for the first time on Thursday, when he gave her $1.50 to buy chicken and bread and prepare a meal on Friday. He told her not to work on Saturday because he is an Orthodox Jew and observed the Sabbath. He would not allow me to do it, Rebecca testified. The Chicago Tribune published an 85-word account of Irvings death on June 30, 1935. The newspaper misspelled Irvings last name and got other details wrong. (Chicago Tribune, June 30, 1935) She said there were several obstacles to cooking this meal, starting with a rusty food grater she was afraid to use. Ingredients were also a problem. Ive never heard Rebeccas voice, but my mind gave her one as I continued to read the document. I looked in the pantry. I was looking for flour. I couldnt find flour. And then there (were) two bags. One was empty, Rebecca testified. I looked in the oatmeal box. I (had) seen a bag with several pieces of cinnamon, red pepper, allspices, garlic, black pepper. I figured when I looked at it, I figured it must be flour. The powder inside the brown paper bag was white, odorless and crusty, so Rebecca guessed it was cake flour. She said she stuffed it into the neck of the chicken with a soup spoon and roasted it with the rest of the chicken. Advertisement At dinner Friday, she served a soup course and then the chicken neck, just to Irving. She assumed he would divide it up for the children, but he kept it for himself. He bit into the first piece. He called me, What did you stuff that neck with? Rebecca testified. I looked at him, I says, Why, dont you like? I stuffed it with flour? And he says, No, that aint the question, if I like it. That is not flour. That is roach powder. Rebecca said she brought Irving the box. He confirmed the substance inside was roach powder, which he presumed was tucked away and not with his spices. With this revelation, Irvings kids stopped eating their chicken. Irving said he had swallowed some of the chicken neck, Rebecca testified, but spit out what was in his mouth before rinsing it out. Because of his background as a chemist, I wondered whether in those moments, Irving knew he was in serious danger. Another poisoning? What happened next is the subject of contradictory testimony. Rebecca said Irving went to the drugstore about an hour after dinner to get a bottle of medicine (red stuff) to help himself vomit. He reminded her he had pharmacy training. Rebecca said she was nervous and restless that night as Irving got sicker. She said Irving told his son to call the doctor early Saturday but she advised him against it. And so I talked to the little son, Dont call the doctor because we havent got any money in the house. The best thing is to call the police station, Rebecca testified. Advertisement She said she checked on Irving that morning after he called for help. I says, Now, Mr. Michelson, I says, We aint poisoned. I better make you a hot glass of milk, she testified. She said Irving initially declined the milk before drinking a glass and a half. The police arrived shortly thereafter and found him laying in bed moaning. Irving Michelson with his daughter, Tobia, in Chicago in an undated photo. Tobia was 6 years old when Irving died. (Stein family photo) Irving was taken to the county hospital, where he died that day a few years before one of his younger brothers and two of his younger sisters were killed in the Holocaust. Irving had rented the first-floor apartment on Hirsch Street for less than a year before his death, city records show. He shared a bedroom with his son, Harry, while Rebecca briefly stayed in his daughters room. Harry, then 9 years old, was called to the stand after Rebecca, my rare document showed. He said his father immediately noticed the bitterness of the chicken when he tasted it. He spit out part but not all of the neck upon learning it was stuffed with roach powder, Harry testified. He said Irving got up from the table and vomited multiple times. Later, he instructed Harry to call the doctor. I was ringing the bell on the third floor because our phone was disconnected. Nobody heard the bells, I suppose, Harry testified. He said his father not Rebecca directed him to contact police. She didnt say nothing about it, he said. Advertisement Harry also offered a shocking piece of information the family had been served roach powder about a month before, by a different housekeeper who was not identified in the testimony. Harry said he and his father got sick from eating the pesticide, which was baked into some kind of a cake. Harry said that time, he and Irving took a laxative and vomited. And then I went to go out to play because my boy friends were calling me, he testified. More questions than answers Irvings older brother, Louis, then asked to say a few words to the inquest panel. He said neighbors told him Rebecca and Irving quarreled before his death. He offered to produce witnesses to corroborate the argument. He also testified that Rebecca left the apartment after Irving went to the hospital. The police waited for her to return. When she did, she said she had been shopping. Rebecca interrupted Louis testimony to say she went out to fetch milk. Louis testified that Rebecca had admitted to him she purchased a pair of shoes. She made a terrible impression upon me, Louis said. Louis raised issue with Irving being the only person to get sick when the neck was cooked with the rest of the chicken, which everyone at the table ate. Louis blamed Irvings death on the Jewish society that sent Rebecca to the Michelson home. Advertisement I was notified by the society to take care of his case. They were the ones that sent his wife away to the insane asylum. They were the ones that wrecked his life, Louis said. They sent the woman over to take care of his affairs. This woman murdered him. The name of the Jewish society was not disclosed during these proceedings. The six jurors on the inquest were not convinced this was murder. They struggled to identify a motive for the housekeeper, who had only started working in the home a few days earlier. And Rebecca didnt bring the roach powder into the apartment it belonged to Irving, according to police. The officer who handled the case testified an exterminator sprinkled roach powder in the building once a month. Other tenants kept similar pesticides in their home. The officer also said he interviewed neighbors, and no one reported hearing any arguments. The death was ruled an accident, though, for me, the testimonies raise more questions than answers. Im not ready to put this mystery to bed. A post-mortem examination by Dr. J.J. Kearns found hyperemia (an increased amount of blood) and edema (swelling caused by trapped fluid) in Irvings brain, lungs, liver, kidneys and spleen. A chemical analysis of his stomach and its contents revealed strongly positive tests for fluorides. Advertisement Irving is buried at Waldheim, not near Charlotte. It took me two trips through the snow in the winter of 2021 to find the two of them. Suddenly I was standing before Irvings grave. The stone marking it notes he was a beloved father. In some of his final moments, had he wondered whether his future descendants would know what had happened to him? The Chicago Tribune published an 85-word account of Irvings death on June 30, 1935, under the headline Insect powder used as flour; father of 2 dies. The newspaper misspelled Irvings last name, got the names of Irvings children wrong and said his wife was on vacation at the time. Let this story serve as a very long correction of the record. Signs of the times This was not even the most shocking roach powder poisoning of the time. In 1940, roach powder was whisked into pancakes served at a Salvation Army site in Pennsylvania, killing 12 men and sickening dozens more. Two years later, 47 deaths and hundreds of illnesses were linked to scrambled eggs prepared with roach powder at Oregon State Hospital. The incident was said to be an accident a cooks assistant confused poison for powdered milk. Afternoon Briefing Daily Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox each afternoon. > Deborah Blum, author of The Poisoners Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York, studied New York poisoning cases between 1915 and 1936. She said accidental poisonings were not unusual back then just like theyre not now. About 77% of poison exposures reported in 2020 were unintentional, according to the National Capital Poison Center. Poison was also an easy way to get rid of someone in the early 20th century, Blum said, because of ready access to arsenic, cyanide, thallium and strychnine and primitive detection methods. I gave Blum, director of the Knight Science Journalism program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and publisher of Undark magazine, a brief overview of my great-grandfathers case via email. She shared my suspicion that Irvings death may not have been an accident. Advertisement It would take a high degree of carelessness to pick up a poison container those were usually marked as such instead of a seasoning, she wrote. And sometimes we never do know or get the motive for a killing sometimes its for the pettiest of reasons, nothing most of us would ever do. I kept Blums words in mind when I visited the block that was once home to Irving, Harry and Tobia. It was a summerlike afternoon, not unlike the day Irving died. His apartment building has been replaced by a different apartment building festooned with lawn decorations and a Puerto Rican flag. Any clues about what happened to Irving have vanished. But there may be some answers in Charlottes hospital records if I can get my hands on them. Tracy Swartz covers Chicago Public Schools for the Tribune. tswartz@tribpub.com A shooting in Houston, Texas, left a 5-year-old dead and an 8-year-old wounded when the vehicle they were riding in came under gunfire as it stopped at an intersection early Sunday morning. Speaking to reporters at the scene, Houston Police Assistant Chief Chandra Hatcher said officers received several phone calls before 1 a.m. about a shooting in the 13300 block of Northborough Drive. They arrived at the scene but did not see any witnesses, suspects or complainants, Hatcher said. Further investigation determined a mother was driving in the area with her two kids and had stopped at a stop sign at an intersection when her vehicle came under gunfire. WASHINGTON D.C., MARYLAND POSTAL SERVICE MAIL CARRIERS ROBBED AT GUNPOINT SIX TIMES IN 2-DAY PERIOD The woman then "left the location immediately once she realized her children were shot and immediately took them to the hospital," Hatcher said. Approximately 15 minutes after responding to the scene, police received additional phone calls regarding two children arriving at an area hospital with gunshot wounds. Hatcher said a 5-year-old was shot and died of the injuries, while an 8-year-old also shot is expected to make a full recovery. "It is unclear if the complainants were the intended targets of the shooting or if there was something else going on in this area at the time," Hatcher said. "We do not know a motive. We do not have suspect descriptions other than potentially two Black males in a dark-colored vehicle. We are looking for surveillance footage out here and are gathering evidence." Based on information from a few witnesses, Hatcher said police believe a dark-colored vehicle, possibly with two occupants, was driving westbound on Rush Street, while the complainants vehicle was traveling northbound on Northborough. The occupants of the vehicle driving westbound started discharging a firearm or potentially multiple firearms. The complainants vehicle was stopped at a stop sign at an intersection when it was impacted by the gunshots, Hatcher said. Anyone with information is asked to call Houston polices homicide division at 713-308-3600 or crime stoppers at 713-222-TIPS. "At this time, I ask that if anyone knows information, please come forward, and please continue to pray for the family of the deceased child and the injured eight-year-old," Hatcher said. Thousands of nonviolent federal prisoners eligible for early release under a promising Trump-era law remain locked up nearly four years later because of inadequate implementation, confusion and bureaucratic delays, prisoner advocacy groups, affected inmates and former federal prison officials say. Even the Biden administrations attempt to provide clarity to the First Step Act by identifying qualified inmates and then transferring them to home confinement or another form of supervised release appears to be falling short, according to prisoner advocates familiar with the law. The Department of Justice was tasked with carrying out the law through the federal Bureau of Prisons, but the bureau director, Michael Carvajal, a Trump administration holdover, announced his retirement in January amid criticism of a crisis-filled tenure marked by agency scandals. No replacement for Carvajal has been named, and criminal justice advocates contend that for the bureau to allow even one person to be incarcerated beyond what is permitted under the First Step Act exposes ongoing failures. It shouldnt be this complicated and it shouldnt take this long, said Kevin Ring, president of the nonprofit advocacy group Families Against Mandatory Minimums, or FAMM. Here we are, four years later, and its maddening. The Justice Department published a final rule in January that implements an integral feature of the law in which inmates can earn so-called time credits, which are obtained through participation in prison and work programs and calculated as part of the process of getting out early. The problem, advocates say: They are identifying inmates whose time credits arent getting applied, and in some cases, the inmates arent getting released as early as they should be. Courtney Curtis, a former Missouri state lawmaker who was sentenced last year to 21 months in federal prison for wire fraud related to the misallocation of campaign funds, said in a letter shared with NBC News that his time credits have not been adequately counted after he participated in programs such as Be Successful, Drug Education and Talk to your Dr. Story continues Former Missouri state Rep. Courtney Allen Curtis speaks on the House floor in Jefferson City in 2015. (Tim Bommel / Missouri House of Representatives via AP) Curtis, 41, who is being held in the Federal Correctional Institution Elkton in Ohio, said he hasnt had his time credits added since January, and if they were, he believes he would have been released in early June. His current release date is Oct. 22. As one of the many inmates that benefit from the FSA, he wrote, referring to the First Step Act, Ive made strides to take classes, work and stay productive, but the BOP and its systemic way of operating inefficiently have stymied my ability to take the most amount of classes in an orderly fashion as prescribed in the FSA or to release me as soon as I shouldve been. I can only wonder if this is by design, and what the total extent of impacted inmates is. The Justice Department declined to comment on Curtis case, citing privacy reasons. Data provided by the Bureau of Prisons shows that as of June 18, more than 8,600 inmates have had their sentences recalculated and are slated for release with the application of their time credits. But its unclear how many qualified inmates are entitled to have been released early but remain incarcerated. In a response, bureau officials said, We have no data which suggests inmates had their release dates delayed. But with the bureaus own data identifying about 66,600 inmates who are eligible to earn time credits, some industry experts disagree. We estimate that there are thousands of inmates who will not receive the full benefit days off of their federal prison sentence of the First Step Act simply because the agency is uncertain how to calculate these benefits, said Walter Pavlo, president of the consulting firm Prisonology LLC, whose experts include former Bureau of Prisons case managers, wardens and sentence computation professionals. Calculating time credits Holly Harris, a longtime Republican strategist who pushed for passage of the First Step Act as head of the nonpartisan Justice Action Network, said the change in administrations is no excuse for a slow rollout. Not only that, but the Biden administration ran on criminal justice reform, and now we cant get answers for anything, she said, adding that she hopes Carvajals replacement will dig in quickly and prioritize those individuals who are just languishing in prison needlessly to the unnecessary expense of the taxpayer. In 2018, former President Donald Trump signed the bipartisan First Step Act as a way to reduce recidivism and ease the federal prison population, which has fallen in recent years but still includes more than 140,000 inmates currently in custody. In particular, the laws supporters believe it can cut particularly harsh sentences for nonviolent drug offenders and lessen the racial disparities affecting people of color in the criminal justice system. President Donald J. Trump (Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post via Getty Images file) Within the laws first year, more than 3,000 inmates were released from prison early, according to the Justice Department, with the total now more than 7,500 inmates. An inmates eligibility is measured by an algorithm known as the Prisoner Assessment Tool Targeting Estimated Risk and Needs, or PATTERN, scoring them in different categories, including their history of violence and whether theyve been involved in serious incidents while incarcerated, to determine if they might reoffend. In order to collect time credits for early release under the First Step Act, inmates must be at a minimum or low risk of reoffending and not have been convicted of certain serious crimes. Time credits are granted based on an inmates participation in prison and work programs over a 30-day period related to anger management, mental health, financial literacy and other topics that seek to address behavior and instill personal skills. Once the credits are calculated and it is determined those credits equal the time left on the sentence, the inmate can be transferred out of prison into pre-release custody, such as a halfway house or home confinement. Some may also be eligible for supervised release like probation. But prisoner advocacy groups say the availability of these rehabilitation programs varies widely depending on the prison, which means some inmates simply cant receive enough earned time credits. The situation has worsened because of staffing shortages amid the Covid pandemic. In addition, some inmates say, even if theyve taken the appropriate classes, their time credits arent being regularly calculated, potentially delaying their ability to get released sooner. The Justice Departments final rule also allows for time credits to be counted retroactively for any prison and work programs inmates participated in after the First Step Act became law in 2018. But Pavlo said the Bureau of Prisons never had the mechanisms in place to adequately track inmates participation and he is concerned the agency is not facilitating the timely calculation and application of time credits in accordance with the final rule, forcing inmates to serve custodial terms longer than required. In the cases hes reviewed, he said he has seen inmates in prison from six months up to a year who could have had either an earlier release or time in pre-release custody. The biggest problem is nobody on the front lines seems to understand the new rule, Pavlo said. There needs to be a task force on this now. Revising the algorithm The Justice Department said it is continuing to evaluate its use of the PATTERN algorithm after concerns by advocates that some risk categories that the tool examines are believed to exacerbate racial disparities. The agencys statistics published in November found that about 55% of white inmates were classified as minimum or low risk for recidivism compared with about 28% of Black inmates. In its 2022 annual report examining the effectiveness of the First Step Act, the Justice Department said it was implementing another updated version of PATTERN in an effort to mitigate against various racial and ethnic disparities associated with prior risk level categories. But Jim Felman, a Florida criminal defense attorney who has examined the First Step Act, said more transparency is needed about how the algorithm has been tweaked to ensure that prisoners of color arent at a disadvantage, particularly since Black and Latino people remain overrepresented in U.S. prisons. The federal government has shown the world how we lead in imprisonment, but we can also show the world how to lead in getting people out, he said. Why wouldnt we let every mathematician in the world see our data so we can evaluate how racist any new version of the tool might be? The Bureau of Prisons reiterated in an email that Attorney General Merrick Garland has directed the continued study of the tool to improve the equitability, efficiency, and predictive validity of the risk assessment system. The Danbury 100 NBC News (Jose A. Alvarado Jr. for NBC News) The frustration has been felt by former incarcerated prisoners like Dianthe Brooks, 52, who in 2018 received a four-year sentence after pleading guilty to wire fraud in a million-dollar kickback scheme. She said she was released early from prison in Danbury, Connecticut, to home confinement in 2020 because she has underlying medical conditions that put her at higher risk for Covid. But it wasnt until her time credits were recalculated in January under the Biden administrations renewed efforts that her ankle monitor was removed. She believes that would have happened in June 2021 based on her time credits if the program had been running as intended. Now Brooks is advocating on behalf of other inmates at Danbury and across the country to ensure they understand their rights under the law. Its still vague how theyre calculating time, she said. Nobody can give you a manual for here are the classes that qualify, the credit youll get and heres how theyre applied. That doesnt exist. So how do I even know if my time was calculated correctly? The Danbury 100 NBC News (Jose A. Alvarado Jr. for NBC News) Another former Danbury inmate and prisoner advocate, Alice Phillips, said she was surprised to learn that after working in the prison grounds crew, the manual labor ultimately didnt qualify for time credits. She said she was given no guidance by the prison, other than being told in December 2019 that she was a minimum-risk offender eligible under the First Step Act. Phillips, 56, who received a two-year sentence in 2019 after she was convicted of wire fraud related to a real estate scheme, was also released to home confinement in 2020 because of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. She said she continued to work during home confinement in prison-approved jobs, but those time credits were never counted as they would be now, leaving her probationary period to last until 2024, instead of 2023. Prison officials at Danbury declined to comment about specific inmate allegations but said in a statement that they communicate essential information in several ways, including through computer announcements, one-on-one program review appointments and town hall meetings, and each inmates release date is calculated in accordance with federal statutes. But Phillips believes the First Step Act hasn't lived up to its promise for everyone. I behaved. I did the work. I qualified for these credits, she said. Im not free, but I could be free sooner. Biz Tips: Small business owners have three choices when making decisions The dream of earning a living doing what you love is the reason so many business owners enter the world of entrepreneurship. Do you carve birds, create note cards with handmade drawings, create pottery, jewelry, unique clothing, paint canoe panels or screen-print customized sweatshirts? During the startup phase, the passion for and dedication to your product or service and those you serve are the necessary ingredients for a successful venture. The desire to turn a hobby into a business is one way to grab ahold of that entrepreneurial dream. But, before you quit your day job and jump in headfirst, you need to answer the question, "Will my hobby make a sustainable business?" Turning a hobby into a successful business means a willingness to take your hobby from something that you want to do into something you have to do. If you want to earn a living doing what you love, youll need to shift your mindset and operate your hobby as a serious business. One of the hardest parts of making that shift for a lot of owners is looking at your hobby as something you have to do and no longer something you only do when you feel inspired. More: Business Tips from SCORE: Word of mouth marketing is key to business growth Emily Heaslip, a contributing writer for the US Chamber of Commerce, recommends that you dont lose the joy of the hobby as you transition. Distance yourself from emotions When youre making the business case for a hobby, distance yourself as much as you can from the love of it and think through a few of the realities that come with being a small business owner. Ask yourself: Will you still enjoy your hobby once it becomes your job day after day? This means fully dedicating yourself to your passion, even on days when youd rather be doing something else. Are you willing to put yourself out there? This is a big one. Many of our hobbies are reasons for us to escape the day-to-day world. When your hobby is your business, you need to be shouting about it from the rooftops. Is there a market for your product or service? Is the market large enough to support and sustain your business and are there customers out there willing to spend money on what you create? Can you and are you willing to become more than just a hobbyist? Story continues As a business owner, youll also be the accountant, the salesperson, the marketer and fill every other roll during the start-up and growth phase. You have to create the right balance between what you love to what you are doing as a small business owner. If youre ready to shift from hobbyist to small business owner, take the time to develop a well thought-out business plan. Like with any startup, do the work of writing a solid business plan before you go real time. Even if youre not seeking funding, a business plan is invaluable. More: Business Tips from SCORE: BMC is a great organizational tool for start-ups, existing businesses A plan increases success by 16% Its the best way validate that there is, in fact, a strong business case for your hobby becoming a sustainable business. Ask yourself these questions. (1) Determine the Unique Benefit your Value Proposition what need, want or desire will your product or service provide? Another way to think about this is what is the problem that your product or service solves. (2) Identify your Target Customer. Define the types of buyers who will need your product/service? And, of those, which are willing to pay for it? Identify this target customer and think through their age, gender, where they live, and their other demographic and psychographic attributes. (3) Consider how you will communicate your Value Proposition. Every business has competitors. How will you prove to your target customers that your product or service will bring greater value to their lives or businesses than any of your competitors? Use the Business Model Canvas (www.strategyer.com) as your initial planning template. It helps explore your business model options by both planning internally and externally. A written plan is important because it helps identify the time, energy, and financial resources necessary to take your hobby to another level. Heaslip reports that hobbyists who create a business plan are 16% more likely to succeed in the transition. Before you make the move, connect with a mentor to have an accountability partner and guide through the process. Contributed by Marc L. Goldberg, Certified Mentor, SCORE Cape Cod & the Islands. Source: Ask SCORE 2021. For Free and confidential mentoring contact SCORE at www.capecod.score.org, capecodscore@verizon.net, 508-775-4884. Source: ASK SCORE, Emily Heaslip, Contributor, U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO, May 31, 2022. This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Business plan is a big help when turning hobby into a business The case of a pregnant 10-year-old girl in Ohio became the focus of a pointed discussion Sunday between South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and CNN host Dana Bash. During a back-and-forth on CNNs State of the Union about South Dakotas abortion laws, Bash brought up with Noem the 10-year-old girl from Ohio who was denied an abortion and then traveled to Indiana to terminate the pregnancy. When Bash asked Noem a Republican governor against abortion rights if South Dakota will, going forward, force a 10-year-old in that very same situation to have a baby, Noem expressed sympathy for the 10-year-old and called the story tragic. She also said no one was talking about the rapist in the situation. As much as we can talk about what we can do for that little girl, I think we also need to be addressing those sick individuals that do this to our children, she said. Bash answered: "But our bodies are our bodies, and women are the ones who get pregnant. And, in this case, it wasn't a woman. It was a girl." When pressed further, Noem said, What I would say is, I don't believe a tragic situation should be perpetuated by another tragedy. And so there's more that we have got to do to make sure that we really are living a life that says every life is precious, especially innocent lives that have been shattered, like that 10-year-old girl. Bash also asked if Noem would consider the life of a mother at risk in this situation. And I think that's something that yes, that situation, the doctor, the family, the individuals closest to that will make the decisions there for that family. She went on to say that every state will have different laws on the books It's the way our Constitution intended. Noem also said she believes that those who break South Dakotas abortion laws should be punished. And that's the doctors, not the women. I want to make sure that that's appropriate and that the women are not punished in this situation, and that we do support them as we go forward. Story continues On the subject of paid leave, Noem said, that's a discussion we're going to have and it's something that I have supported in the past and talked about. Bash also asked if Noem would support the ballot measure in November that could expand Medicaid under Obamacare and allow low-income people without health insurance, particularly those who become pregnant, to be covered. I think it's interesting because what that does is make sure that Medicaid expansion would cover able-bodied single individuals that are able to work, Noem said. And it also would include about an $80 million cost to the state. Noem said she wont be voting for the measure herself but will certainly make sure that it's implemented fairly and that it's done fairly should it pass. Donald Trump may soon officially announce hell run for the presidency because hes having a fit about the dirt revealed about him in hearings investigating the Capitol riot, and because he has all the impulse control of a freaking toddler, a former GOP official scoffed Saturday. At the end of the day, hes going to do whatever he wants. Hes shown that time and time again, Kurt Bardella, a former deputy communications director for the GOP-controlled House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, told MSNBC. (Hes now a Democrat and news commentator.) This guy has the impulse control of a freaking toddler. So nobody should be surprised about that at all. I think that Republicans, yeah, this is the golem they created, Bardella added. Bardella was responding to a New York Times story Friday that Trump is hoping a stepped-up announcement about going for the presidency yet again will distract the public from a stream of damaging revelations, and could officially declare hes entering the race as early as this month. We all know from past experiences Donald Trump doesnt care about anybody else but Donald Trump, Bardella told MSNBC host Alex Witt. So it doesnt surprise me that when faced with the criticism thats been mounting right now, following the January 6th hearings, that hes thinking about pulling the trigger now. That timing will likely ruin things for the Republicans ahead of the midterms as more negative testimony taints the candidate, said Bardella. But its what Republicans deserve for tying their future to Trump, he said. You know what, Donald? Bardella said. Go out there, show everybody who you are, what you want to do, implode the Republican Party before November. These guys have wanted to divorce themselves from Donald Trump for the last five years; they just have lacked courage, the ability, the guts to actually do it, Bardella added. Behind the scenes they are rooting for the Jan. 6 committee. Story continues Bardella claimed that nobody was was more excited about the powerful testimony early this week by Cassidy Hutchinson than Republicans who want to dispense with Donald Trump. Among her most damning revelations, Hutchinson, who was an aide to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified that Trump wanted to drop security screening for his supporters, who were known to be carrying weapons, and allow them to march to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Theyre not here to hurt me, Hutchinson quoted Trump as saying. Check out Bardellas full interview about Trump in the video below. He talks about Trump stepping up his race announcement beginning at 5:30: This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated. Related... Two men sitting in a taxi were wounded by stray bullets when a man opened fire on a Midtown street, police said Sunday. The victims were sitting in the cab stopped at a red light on W. 37th St. at Eighth Ave. when a gunman started shooting at a group of people nearby about 3:50 a.m. on Saturday, cops said. He missed his targets but bullets pierced the cab, striking a 22-year-old passenger in the right arm and a 24-year-old passenger in the left arm. Medics took both men to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition. The gunman ran off and has not been caught. Cops describe him as having a dark complexion, medium build, black hair and facial hair. He was wearing a white T-shirt, light-colored pants and pink sneakers. Anyone with information is asked to all Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. LONDON (Reuters) - Britain will host a conference next year focused on helping Ukraine recover from the damage caused by Russia's invasion, the foreign office said, as nations gather in Switzerland for this year's event. The Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC2022) beginning on Monday in Lugano will discuss how to rebuild Ukraine, bringing together a Ukrainian delegation with representatives of other countries, international organisations and civil society. Britain said it was working with Ukraine and others to host next year's conference, and it would sit on a supervisory board to help coordinate between Ukraine and its allies on recovery measures. An office will be set up in London. "We have led on support for Ukraine during the war and will continue to lead in supporting the Ukrainian Governments Reconstruction and Development Plan," Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement. "Ukraines recovery from Russias war of aggression will be a symbol of the power of democracy over autocracy. It will show [Russian President Vladimir] Putin that his attempts to destroy Ukraine have only produced a stronger, more prosperous and more united nation." Russia says what it calls a "special military operation" aims to protect Ukraine's Russian-speakers from nationalist or neo-Nazi persecution. Ukraine and its Western allies say this is a baseless pretext for a war of imperial conquest. The Foreign Office said Britain had been asked by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to champion the recovery of Kyiv and the surrounding region. Britain pledged to use its financial sector expertise to help draw investment into Ukraine. Britain has already agreed to provide $1.5 billion worth of guarantees for multilateral loans and over 100 million pounds ($120 million) in bilateral support. ($1 = 0.8269 pounds) (Reporting by William James; Editing by Kevin Liffey) Pamela Walker, left, and Jada Walker are overwhelmed with grief during a press conference at St. Ashworth Temple on Thursday following the shooting death of Jayland Walker. Walker was shot by Akron police Monday. It's unclear how many questions surrounding the police shooting of Jayland Walker will get answered Sunday when Akron police release bodycam videos from the multiple officers involved early Monday. How many officers were involved? Is there evidence supporting police allegations that Walker fired at officers chasing him after an attempted traffic stop in North Hill? Walker's family has demanded accountability and justice from Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan and Police Chief Steve Mylett, who will hold a press conference at 1 p.m. Sunday, the deadline mandated by Akron law to release at least three videos of major incidents. A livestream of the press conference will be available on BeaconJournal.com. The shooting death has sparked days of protests in Akron and growing national interest. Horrigan and Mylett say they will discuss Walker's death and review bodycam video recordings of Walker's shooting after he fled from his car in the Firestone Park neighborhood. When the press conference ends, the police department said it will publicly release the videos. Mylett previously said all applicable videos will be released. Walker, 25, was shot to death by Akron officers in a parking lot early Monday morning on the Bridgestone Americas campus in the Firestone Park neighborhood after a car chase that started in North Hill over an attempted traffic stop. The chase started at about 12:30 a.m. and lasted about 4 minutes, followed by Walker being shot and declared dead shortly after 1 a.m. Jayland Walker: What we know about the fatal Akron police shooting of Jayland Walker The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is conducting the investigation at the request of Akron police. Here are some of the key issues and unresolved questions. Gun in Walker's car A medical examiner report viewed by the Beacon Journal said a gun was recovered from Walker's car. Police reported Walker fired a weapon during the chase. Story continues Was gun residue found on Walker's body and in his car? Had the gun found in Walker's car been fired? If so, how many times? Police chase Traffic camera video obtained by the Beacon Journal shows only one cruiser in pursuit when Walker enters Route 8 at Tallmadge Avenue at 12:31 a.m. A second cruiser follows within seconds. At 12:35 a.m., a camera at Interstate 77 and Archwood Avenue shows 10 cruisers following Walker into a residential area. What was the specific traffic violation that prompted the stop? Why did Walker not pull over? Did the chase meet the city's policy for such situations? Is there any video or audio evidence of Walker firing a gun? Final moments Police say Walker exited his still moving car in Firestone Park and was then shot by police. Did Walker say or shout anything to police prior to being shot? What attempts did officers take to de-escalate the confrontation? Did Walker have a weapon on him when he was shot? If not, did officers think he might still have a gun? How many officers deployed their stun guns or fired their guns? Going forward Some Black leaders have called for Akron to change how it handles traffic stops and for dashboard cameras to be placed back in cruisers. Officer bodycam video is normally obstructed by the dashboards. Others have demanded Will this incident result in any changes in how Akron police handle chases and confrontations with individuals? Will the city buy dashcam videos for all police vehicles? The Beacon Journal also has requested the standard police incident reports required to be released immediately under Ohio law. The request was filed Tuesday. The Ohio Supreme Court recently ruled police officers' initial observations of a possible crime and witness statements taken that day are public records that must be disclosed. Beacon Journal reporter Jim Mackinnon can be reached at 330-996-3544 or jmackinnon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him @JimMackinnonABJ on Twitter or www.facebook.com/JimMackinnonABJ. This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Many questions await mayor, police chief in Jayland Walker shooting In the 15 years since Adam Dailey began boating on Lake Mead, the shoreline has receded hundreds of meters, the result of more than two decades of punishing drought that is drying out the western United States. Launch spots that lined the edge of the lake, located outside Las Vegas, have been abandoned, and a single ramp is now the only way to get a boat in the water. "We used to have more. So everyone's fighting to use one ramp... and still trying to figure out how to get along," said Dailey. "It's kind of sad, what's going on. But we still come out and try to enjoy it when we can." Lake Mead is the largest reservoir in the United States, a huge man-made body of water formed by the construction of the Hoover Dam in the early 1930s. Its 247-square-mile (640-square-kilometer) surface area stores water for tens of millions of people and countless acres of farmland in the southwest. But it's shrinking at a terrifying rate and now stands at just one-quarter full. The National Park Service (NPS), which manages access to the lake, has spent more than $40 million since 2010 trying to keep the water open to boaters. It costs them $2-3 million dollars to reconfigure the boat launch ramp every time the water levels fall another four feet (120 centimeters). "Declining water levels due to climate change and 20 years of ongoing drought have reshaped the parks shorelines," the NPS says on its website. "As Lake Mead continues to recede, extending launch ramps becomes more difficult and more expensive due to the topography and projected decline in water levels." - Bathtub ring - A series of NPS signs show the shoreline at various points since 2001. The sign marking the level in 2021 is 300 paces from the water. In the mud, the receding waters leave behind bottles, cans, fire extinguishers and other detritus that somehow made its way overboard in years gone by. The rocks that form the hard edges of the reservoir offer a stark illustration of just how far water levels have fallen. Story continues A white band of mineral deposits stains the mountainsides like the ring on a bathtub, showing where the water was at its high point after a flood in 1983. "We used to water ski race here," Jaxkxon Zacher told AFP. "And the island -- only the tip... was out 25 years ago. So now we can't even race here anymore. It's dropping drastically." The growing islands in the middle of the lake point to the uneven topography of the valley that was flooded -- and the hazards that await. "Every day someone's ripping a drive off, because last week, where there was no rock, it's now a foot down or two feet down so things are exposed," boatseller Jason Davis said. "You've got houseboats getting beached and stuck, and people are ripping their lower units off." And with vessels that can retail at hundreds of thousands of dollars, a weekend outing can turn into a costly mistake. - A new job - For some people, the risk of an accident and the sheer hassle of having to wait so long to get a boat into the water and then out again at the end of the day means Lake Mead is no longer a viable recreation option. Below the Hoover Dam, stretches of river remain relatively unscathed by the dropping water levels. At Willow Beach, across the state line in Arizona, kayakers frolic in the shallows, unloading water pistols on each other as 104 Fahrenheit (40 Celsius) sunshine beats down. A small marina there offers Steve McMasters a place to stage his pontoon, just a short distance from his home in Boulder City. "It can be a four-to-five-hour wait on weekends to get your boat out of the water (at Lake Mead), so this is big to have," he said. "I waited like four months on a waiting list to get it. I got lucky here." Climatologists say two decades of drought is not unheard of in the western United States, but combined with human-caused global warming, it is transforming the region. Higher temperatures mean less moisture falls as snow on the Rocky Mountains, and what snowpack does form melts more quickly. This leaves the Colorado River without the slow and steady feed that supplied it year-round in the centuries and millennia before the region was settled. In climatic terms, Lake Mead is a baby; in existence for less than 90 years. But in human terms, it is vanishing at a startling pace. Jason Davis, the boatseller, says more people need to witness the stark changes for themselves. "If you haven't come to see these rings, you know, you don't quite comprehend," he said. And if the water keeps dropping? "I'll need a new job." hg/caw The Daily Beast Kelly Wilkinson/USA Today Network via ReutersFour people are dead and several injured after a man with a rifle walked into a food court at Greenwood Park Mall in Indiana and began shooting, local authorities said Sunday evening.One of the dead is the suspected shooter, according to Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers. The gunman, an adult male, has not been identified. Police said he had been carrying a long rifle and several ammunition magazines.This tragedy hits at the core of our community, the mayo Ald. Gilbert Villegas, a candidate for the 3rd Congressional District, thanks his wife, Melissa, right, during his concession speech Tuesday. (Vincent D. Johnson/for the Chicago Tribune) They saw themselves walking the halls of Congress, wearing judges robes or smiling in portraits at drivers license offices across Illinois. But with one exception, the six Chicago aldermen who tried to leave their jobs on the City Council for other elected gigs failed in Tuesdays primary, leaving them to reexamine their political aspirations while remaining in a job that many privately grumble isnt fun anymore. Advertisement While this primary cycle had new opportunities to rise up the political ranks thanks to decennial redistricting and retirements, City Hall insiders could not recall an election in recent history when so many sitting members of the council ran for higher office. Two aldermen and possibly more are also looking to move up by challenging Mayor Lori Lightfoot in 2023. The circumstances of each race varied, but Tuesdays losses and the attempted exits raise questions: Are aldermanic power and the ward organization waning? Are the aldermen part of a post-pandemic reshuffling of professional priorities? Or simply unhappy working with Lightfoots administration? And is the job title more sullied with voters than in years past? Advertisement Former 49th Ward Ald. Joe Moore, who in 2000 unsuccessfully ran for clerk of the Circuit Court, can name roughly a dozen others from his time in politics who couldnt make the jump. That includes Ald. Edward Burkes run for Cook County states attorney in 1980, Anthony Beales run for Congress, and Ameya Pawars abandoned run for governor in the 2018 cycle. One barrier to higher office for aldermen is that their constituencies are small and their reach relatively limited. A ward is one-fiftieth of the city. Then if youre really, really, really lucky, only about 40% of that base hates your guts, Moore says. And while that remaining 60% might approve of their own alderman, other voters think as a general rule that aldermen are clowns, incompetent and corrupt. Multiple City Hall sources chalk the sprint for the exits up to the same thing: low job satisfaction. Collegiality among aldermen and between the council and the mayor has faded, making it more difficult to pass meaningful legislation. Ribbon-cuttings for major projects have similarly slowed since the days of Mayors Daley and Emanuel, starving aldermen of a chance for recognition and tangible benefits they can point constituents to come Election Day. And Lightfoots frequent criticism of aldermanic privilege and personal fights with council members do little to improve their standing. Nor does the indictment and conviction of former and sitting aldermen. The City Council is rarely a perch that lends itself to higher office. There are exceptions: Luis Gutierrez, Bill Lipinski and Bobby Rush all made the jump straight from alderman to the U.S. House, and Toni Preckwinkle ascended to Cook County Board president. Ald. Gilbert Villegas concedes to State Rep. Delia Ramirez after Tuesday's Democratic primary for the newly drawn 3rd Congressional District. (Vincent D. Johnson/for the Chicago Tribune) Ald. Gilbert Villegas, 36th, had his sights set on Washington too, but was trounced in the race for the new 3rd Congressional District on the Northwest Side. The winner, State Rep. Delia Ramirez, outperformed him by about 40 points, according to unofficial returns. Villegas blames a number of factors for the loss: low turnout of moderate voters, difficulty campaigning in a much larger district, the influence of outside money, and the Supreme Courts decision on abortion likely driving up turnout among women who wanted to vote for a woman. Advertisement But he also noted that ward organizations are a shadow of what they once were. An alderman back in the 80s or 90s had the ability to have precinct captains, the ability to bring out the vote. Its not like that anymore, he said. Those precinct captains of old often got their city jobs or jobs for their family with an aldermans support and worked hard on Election Day to keep their jobs. Vaunted operations run by formal or informal political families are dwindling away. Field workers of today are more frequently members of unions who have endorsed the candidate or are associated with ideological groups. Ramirez benefited from fervent progressive support, including from the Chicago Teachers Union and a group of elected officials and activists aligned with U.S. Rep. Jesus Chuy Garcia. As head of City Councils Latino Caucus, Villegas recently led an unsuccessful push to draw more majority-Latino wards in the citys new map. When his efforts failed and a majority of the council instead backed a map supported by most of the councils Black Caucus, Villegas was left with an 8-mile-long ward shaped like a teeter-totter. Villegas does plan to run for reelection next year. I am running for alderman, because the people want me there, he said. Ald. George Cardenas, 12th, was the exception to the rule this year, winning a seat on the Cook County Board of Review, a tax appeal panel. He agrees with Villegas that the nature of field operations has changed, and a vacuum of precinct workers has been filled in part by labor and activist groups. Advertisement The new power brokers are these organizations instead of the individuals that make decisions locally, Cardenas said. Ald. George Cardenas, shown at a June 22 City Council meeting, was the only sitting alderman to win his primary for a new office. Cardenas won a seat on the Cook County Board of Review, beating incumbent Tammy Wendt. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune) He has not yet established a timeline for leaving the City Council. He is unopposed in November, and his exit will give Lightfoot the opportunity to make her third aldermanic appointment. Cardenas said redistricting offered him an opportunity to run in a Latino-leaning district, but he also acknowledged being on the council isnt as fun as it used to be. Ill leave to each alderman to say what they want about that. For me, I looked at the opportunity. Ive served three different mayors. Its a tough environment between the pandemic and recent debates in council over police accountability and public safety. Ald. Pat Dowell placed second among 17 Democratic candidates aiming to replace U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush in Congress. Dowell is shown at a May candidates forum. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune) In the race to succeed the retiring Rush, another member of council came up short. Third Ward Ald. Pat Dowell placed second in a crowded Democratic primary field but was still 9 points behind winner Jonathan Jackson, of one of the remaining local political family dynasties. Dowell started this election cycle running for Illinois secretary of state, but dropped that bid in January when Rush announced he was retiring from Congress. Dowell did not respond to a request for an interview, but in a statement said she looked forward to continuing to serve as alderman and working with Jackson to ensure that we get our fair share of resources. Shes served on the council since 2007 and holds one of its most powerful positions: budget chair. Advertisement Sign up for The Spin to get the top stories in politics delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons. Ald. David Moore, 17th, came in a distant third in the heated Democratic race for secretary of state. Another city official, Clerk Anna Valencia, placed second, but was nearly 20 points behind Alexi Giannoulias, whos held statewide office before. It would have been difficult for anyone to run a successful statewide campaign against two candidates as well known, broadly endorsed and well financed as David Moores opponents. But he blames big money for his loss and notes it was especially difficult to campaign around the state while still running a ward office, attending committee hearings and holding meetings with constituents and developers. His loss had nothing to do with the mayor demonizing aldermen, he said. Ald. David Moore was an also-ran for Illinois secretary of state. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune) That type of thing has been going on since Operation Silver Shovel, Moore said of the sweeping anti-corruption probe in the 1990s that led to several aldermen being convicted. People see who we are individually. Moore plans to run for alderman again in 2023. Advertisement Despite having the seal of approval from the Cook County Democratic Party, a law career spanning three decades and across-the-board positive ratings from local bar associations, 21st Ward Ald. Howard Brookins was trailing in his bid for a judicial seat on the Cook County Circuit Court behind Lisa Michelle Taylor, an attorney also recommended by local bar associations. Its hard to beat a woman in Cook County in a judicial race, especially when theres only one in the race and theres two guys, he said. Brookins did not commit to running for another term on the council. If I dont win, Im pretty sure that I stay until May when the term is over. But I dont know. Hes currently fighting a city board finding that his defense of clients in criminal cases involving the Chicago Police Department violated the citys ethics ordinance. I firmly believe in citizen legislators. When you hear me talk about issues, the red-light cameras and what administrative hearing officers are doing, how theyre treating people, what the police are or arent doing when they arrest people I cant go toe to toe with the administration without practicing law. If thats an impediment to practicing law, thats a factor in a possible exit. Ald. Chris Taliaferro ran unsuccessfully for a judgeship. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune) Ald. Chris Taliaferro, 29th, placed second in a two-person judicial race for the 11th Subcircuit. A former police officer and an attorney who has mostly worked on divorce, child support, and domestic relations cases, Taliaferro was about 1,600 votes behind opponent Aileen Bhandari as of Friday, according to unofficial results. Advertisement Taliaferro was rated not qualified or not recommended by several local bar associations. According to Injustice Watch, which compiled a guide to judicial candidates, the Chicago Bar Association said Taliaferro is hardworking and possesses a fine demeanor but lacked the depth and breadth of legal knowledge and practice experience to be a judge. Bhandari was highly recommended by legal groups a contrast with Taliaferro she played up in campaign mailers and has spent most of her career at the Cook County states attorneys office. Taliaferro has been alderman since 2015. He did not respond to a request for comment. LONDON (Reuters) - Peter Brook, one of the world's most innovative theatre directors who perfected the art of staging powerful drama in bizarre venues, has died aged 97, his publisher said on Sunday. The British director used the world as his stage mounting productions ranging from challenging versions of Shakespeare through international opera to Hindu epic poems. Brook put on plays in gymnasiums, deserted factories, quarries, schools and old gas works in towns around the world. His 1970 Stratford production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream", played all in white and with a huge garlanded swing, secured his place in the annals of theatre history. According to Le Monde, Brook - who had been based in France since 1974 - died in Paris on Saturday. A statement https://twitter.com/NickHernBooks/status/1543535566242955264?s=20&t=09SrYhIeuCKWW6xc2R-1FQ from his publisher confirmed his death on Sunday. Although Brook was regarded with awe in theatrical circles, he was less well known among the wider public because of his refusal to bow to commercial taste. He left Britain to work in Paris in 1970. He often shunned traditional theatrical buildings for the empty space" which could be transformed by light, words, improvisation and the sheer power of acting and suggestion. "I can take any empty space and call it a stage," he wrote in his ground-breaking 1968 book The Empty Space". His quest for inspiration took him as far afield as Africa and Iran and produced a variety of original improvised plays marked by his eye for detail and challenging approach. Born in London on March 21 1925, his father was a company director and his mother a scientist. He left school at 16 to work in film studio and then went Oxford University and took a degree in English and Foreign Languages. In 1970 he transferred from Britain to work in Paris, founding the International Centre of Theatre Research which brought together actors and designers of many different nationalities. Story continues Brook continued working into his nineties. "Every form of theatre has something in common with a visit to the doctor. On the way out, one should always feel better than on the way in," he wrote in his 2017 book 'Tip of the Tongue'. (Editing by William James and Raissa Kasolowsky) It is a dangerous time. I dont think thats a stretch. That is how Tanisha Sullivan reacted to Saturdays march through Boston by, apparently, the white supremacist group Patriot Front. Sullivan, president of the Boston chapter of the NAACP, said what she found particularly noteworthy was the organizational aspect of the march. Were talking about reports of upwards of a hundred people who were very coordinated in how they came into the city of Boston, Sullivan said. This was planned. And we do have at least one report of a physical altercation. That alleged altercation took place near Copley Square and involved a Black man. A witness, who came to the mans aid, told Boston 25 News approximately five members of the marching group participated in the assault, using shields to push at the victim. She said by the time it was over, the man was really bloodied up. She said two Boston police officers responded. There are no reports of arrests, however. Sullivan is concerned the reported assault represents an escalation amid an uptick in activity by far-right groups in Boston. She considers the situation so serious that shes been consulting with partners in the Anti-Defamation League as well as with Mayor Michelle Wu and U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins. Sullivan said the goal is to increase awareness to help keep the public safe if groups such as Patriot Front increase activity this summer. What should we do if we happen to view behavior that is concerning? Who should we call? she said. And also what should we not do? For example, with groups like this that are highly organized, very disciplined chasing after members of these groups is not the safest thing to do. Some in Boston jeered the marchers as they made their way in an orderly column from the Freedom Trail, up Commonwealth Avenue and eventually to the Boston Public Library area in Copley Square. Leaders condemn white supremacist march through Boston The marchers were dressed identically in khakis and navy shirts. Their faces remained covered in ivory colored gaiters. They carried various types of flags including one representing the Patriot Front. Story continues City leaders denounced the march. In a tweet, Mayor Wu called the marchers cowards for keeping their faces covered. City Council President Ed Flynn expressed his outrage and disgust, also on Twitter. We are at, really, a crossroads in our country, Sullivan said. We are truly in a battle for the soul of our democracy. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW A woman has died after being struck by a train, according to the China Grove Police Department. Police said shortly before 4 p.m. they responded to a call about a person being struck by a train. At the scene, police said they found the body of a woman with fatal injuries. She has been identified as 39-year-old Wendy Paulette Ervin. ALSO READ: California Amtrak crash: 3 killed when train strikes car in Brentwood Police said the train had stopped nearby and was identified as an Amtrak passenger train. Police said this case appears to be accidental. However, the investigation is ongoing. (WATCH BELOW: Amtrak crash: 3 killed when train strikes car in California) Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast A few days before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last month, a woman who described herself as an anti-abortion activist showed up in the waiting room of Dr. Marissa Lapedis, a family-medicine doctor who performs the procedure in Atlanta. But she wasnt there to protestshe had an appointment. She talked about being in marches, and said she had spent a lot of time volunteering in crisis pregnancy centersyou know, showing patients the ultrasound image and explaining what happens, Lapedis, a fellow with the group Physicians for Reproductive Health, told The Daily Beast. She said she had been anti-abortion her whole life, and that her whole family was like herand yet she was so appreciative of the care she received from us. She literally was like, Im so grateful that Im able to make this choice for myself. Lapedis experience is remarkable in part because she resides in a state with a looming ban on the procedure after six weeksthough the law has so far been held up in court. You sometimes have anti people who are like, Promise me no ones going to find out, my boss cannot know, [because] they work in the Republican legislature or something. Which has happenedbut this patient was so appreciative. Abortion providers across the country are reeling from the fall of Roe, and some face the prospect of legal reprisal from law enforcement in their own state or even other states where patients need help. Almost inevitably, they are reflecting on the many patients theyve seen who came in for a service they claimed to fervently opposeand in some cases actively protested against. All of us who do abortions see patients quite regularly who tell us, Im not pro-choice, but I just cant continue this pregnancy, said Dr. Sarah Prager, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Washington. Weve even seen people coming into the clinic off the protester lines to get their abortion, then return to protesting outside the clinic. And to be clear, she added, These are not people who turn anti-choice after having an abortion, but who simply access this essential service when they need it in spite of their personal beliefs about abortion in general. Story continues This Planned Parenthood Is Now Demanding Proof of Residency for Some Abortions According to Prager, the phenomenon is so common that abortion providers have a name for it: the Me Exception. We in the movement often say people believe abortion should be legal in cases of rape, incest and me, meaning whatever reason is relevant for that person, she said. And yet, she noted, of the many surveys describing how Americans view abortion, virtually none reflect that reality. Anti-choice people have no incentive to be honest about whether or not theyve had an abortion, and we as physicians would never leak a story about a patient, she continued. Doing so is prohibited under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, the federal law that protects confidential health information. Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast Still, health professionals are permitted to discuss cases in general terms, and when asked about patients with anti-choice views this past week, abortion providers had no shortage of sometimes incredible tales about activists deeming themselves an exception to the rule. Dr. Portia Jones, a family-medicine physician in Washington, recalled the time a woman whose sister-in-law was the president of a big right-to-life organization had asked to be snuck in the back door of the clinic where she was working in Philadelphia. Then there was the picketer who brought her daughter in for a procedure and was back on the picket line the next week, she recalled. On another occasion, a woman came in and declared to a full waiting room that they were all sinners and should leave immediately, she said. When I drew her aside, I found out she was there for an abortion, too, Jones told The Daily Beast. Jones and other abortion providers attributed many such instances to a sense of exceptionalism on the part of patients who decide their situation entitles them to do what they believe other women shouldlegallybe unable to. Ive done a lot of options counseling with patients who had to do some pretty creative moral jujitsu to justify their behavior to themselves, she added. But our role is to give people information, to create a space for them where they can make decisions, and to support them in that process. Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast While 13 states with so-called trigger laws are poised to be the first to effectively prohibit almost all abortions, roughly two dozen states in total have laws on the books that could be used to sharply restrict the procedure, according to an analysis by the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports abortion rights. The laws are, of course, the product of decades of far-right organizing against reproductive rights, with actions ranging from peaceful protest to the election of anti-choice officials to violent attacks. But providers said the hypocrisy among the rank and file powering the so-called pro-life movement was glaring. Id say about a third of my patients would reveal in their counseling or during the procedure, you know, I want you to know Im pro-life, but you understand why this has to be, said Dr. Nicholas Gideonse, recalling his work as an abortion provider in rural Oregon. I think in almost all of those cases, they were making that choice in order to be the best parent that they could be. There were certainly those pro-life patients who stridently insisted that their circumstances were particular and special, Gideonse added. But there were cases, too, of pro-life patients who came to him seeking compassion. Im remembering a soft-spoken younger woman who felt that I, because I had delivered her other unplanned pregnancy, understood how pro-life she really was and that for this reason I was the person who could perform the procedure she needed now, he said. Rather than a one-off, stories about anti-choice activists literally coming off the protest line to seek care were rife. That phenomenon may fade in states where clinics are shutting in the face of legal threats, but providers were confident hardcore activists will continue to seek their care. Several years ago, Dr. Meera Shah, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic in New York, provided abortion care to one of the protesters regularly outside of her clinic. I treated her with compassion and kindness just like I do everyone, knowing that people come to us with their own lived experiences, she said. I dont know what this person was exposed to, or what her community is likeit may be unsafe for folks to express an alternative view [about] abortion in their communities or their families. But I do know that nobody anticipates this. Nobody thinks theyre going to be in that situation. You can have these fixed beliefs around something that you think will never impact you, and then when youre in the moment, your thoughts around it can change, and thats very much the case with abortion. We see it all the time. In her book, Youre the Only One Ive Ever Told, Shah explored the everyday reality of abortion care that mainstream political dialogue mostly fails to capture. I think that the anti-abortion movement comes at it with very strong preconceived notions, she said. Their lived experience has taught them that abortion is bad, so they just run with that. But what they fail to do is keep an open mind and express empathy for those who are going through it. And thats what got us here. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. tommaso79 / Getty Images/iStockphoto People closing in on retirement have a pretty good idea of how much theyll receive from Social Security. This year, the monthly maximum Social Security payment for an eligible individual is $841 and $1,261 for a couple. Those planning to retire soon can expect to receive something similar. Related: Social Security Changes That May Be Coming for 2023 Learn: The Downsides of Retirement That Nobody Talks About For those who arent nearing retirement age, Social Security is a lot more uncertain. Most Americans dont believe that they can rely on Social Security to fully fund their retirement plans. Some Americans arent even sure if Social Security will be around at all. A recent GOBankingRates survey found that 16% of people believe that Social Security will run out before they retire. And of those people, 57% are between the ages of 18 and 34. The younger generations have seen the warning signs coming, and theyre right to be concerned. Will Social Security Run Out? The simple answer is no, but its a bit more complicated than that. The Social Security board of trustees estimated in their 2021 annual report that by 2034, the Social Securitys cash reserves will be fully depleted. While that sounds really bad, heres what that actually means. Social Security is funded by a combination of payroll taxes and trust fund reserves. Its projected that the trust fund will be empty by 2034 as more and more Americans leave the workforce for retirement. Longer life expectancies, a smaller working population and a much larger retiree population are all factors that would contribute to this possibility. In 2034, the U.S. is likely to see the number of retirees increase from 56 million today to 78 million. All of those retirees will be taking money out of the Social Security system, but there will be fewer people paying into it. What Happens After 2034? Heres some good news. Remember how Social Security is only partially funded by the trust fund? Payroll taxes are still expected to cover about 78% of scheduled benefits every year after 2034. So as long there are people working, Americans will still receive their Social Security checks. Story continues Live Updates: Financial Trends, Money News and More The issue currently facing Americans now is whether that funding gap the remaining 22% will be filled. Theres still plenty of time for the board of trustees to right the ship. In the worst case scenario if nothing is done about the gap Social Security benefits will have to be cut in order to continue providing those scheduled benefits to everyone who qualifies. Retirees would only receive 78% of what they could be. Although this is unlikely, it doesnt hurt to consider other ways to finance retirement. The best way? Start Saving Now Its not too late to save if you havent started yet. Start with something small and manageable. It doesnt matter how small. If you can only save $25 every 2 weeks, do that. Saving something is better than not saving at all. The sooner you start saving, the better. Retirement accounts have a much better return on investment when theyve been allowed to grow over several years (if not decades). Enroll in a 401(k) and Max Out Contributions Take advantage of employer-provided 401(k) programs, and determine an amount to deposit thats comfortable. Some employers provide matching programs in which they offer to wholly or partially match the contributions their employees make up to a certain percentage. Its essentially free money for your retirement. Invest in an IRA In addition to the 401(k), an IRA allows people to save even more. There are two kinds of IRAs: traditional and Roth. Both allow people to actively invest and contribute to a retirement fund, but Roth IRAs seem to be better for younger people who arent near retirement. Talk to a Financial Advisor If you need help with retirement planning, seek out professional advice. Financial advisors will help determine the best methods for growing your nest egg, including which IRA best suits your needs and how much you should expect to save. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: What You Should Do if Youre Worried About Social Security Running Out When a manatee cried for help, ZooTampa answered the call. Molly Lippincott, the curator of Florida and Manatees at ZooTampa, used her expertise to successfully help Nanichi, a 2-month-old calf at the Caribbean Manatee Conservation Center, take a bottle. ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee ZooTampa joins forces with Puerto Rico conservation center to rescue manatee The team in Puerto Rico named the manatee Nanichi, which means my love or my heart, from the original Taino language of the Greater Antilles. She had been rescued on the shores of Santa Isabel when she was about a week old. Now, the manatee is in a period of rehabilitation and will eventually be released back into the wild. Read: SeaWorld releases rehabilitated manatee back into the wild We are happy to extend our expertise to our neighbors in Puerto Rico and like many of their residents, we are rooting for Nanichi, said Tiffany Burns, director of conservation at ZooTampa. Manatees are an incredibly resilient species facing many obstacles. Burns said the only way they can help the manatee population survive is to collaborate within the Manatee Rescue & Rehabilitation Partnership. ZooTampa is only one of two critical care centers in the United States for orphaned calves. Read: Gov. DeSantis pledges $30 million to help save Florida manatees Our Center is grateful to ZooTampa and its manatee care personnel for sharing with us the challenges and solutions in nursing manatee calves back to health, said Antonio Mignucci, director of the Center and marine sciences professor at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico. The Center at the Inter American University currently has five manatee patients, including one long-term care Florida manatee from ZooTampa. Caring for Guacara, the Florida manatee, since 2010 aligned us with ZooTampa, and now with the help they offered with Nanichi, the Zoo and the Center solidified what the partnership is about, the caring for and saving threatened species like the manatee, Mignucci said. Story continues Read: Yago the manatee returned to the wild after being rescued in February Lippincott said ZooTampa is grateful to be a part of the conservation effort with their dedicated colleagues in Puerto Rico. They are a small facility, but with a mighty team that does amazing work with the conservation of manatees, birds and sea turtles, she said. Not only in Puerto Rico but throughout the Caribbean. Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live. Little scientists, farmers and nature-lovers in training were spread out across Sweet Briar Colleges wildflower field on June 24. The children werent in the field to pick flowers or just enjoy the nice summer day they were doing serious work. Campers in the first ever Kids Grow Green Camp had come to the wildflower field from a tour of the Sweet Briar greenhouse. Ecology professor Linda Fink helped students identify flowers and insects to collect data on which flowers were attracting the greatest variety of insects. That Friday was the final day of Kids Grow Green Camp, sponsored by the Nature Foundation at Wintergreen, and campers took a field trip to Sweet Briar in Amherst for a day of hands-on learning. After the activity, Fink asked the students to review their research and tell her what flowers were visited by the most insects. Yaretzy Barragan-Ortiz told Fink bumblebees had visited black-eyed Susans, sunflowers and clover and Henry Wright told the professor honeybees liked the beebalm. Kathie Driscoll is the education director for the Nature Foundation at Wintergreen and helped organize funding to make the camp possible. Driscoll said she was surprised at how many campers had signed up 50 in total and impressed with their engagement and knowledge. These guys are asking so many awesome questions, Driscoll said from the wildflower field, where a nearby group of campers in white T-shirts were listening raptly to Fink. Driscoll said many campers already knew the names of the flowers Fink was telling them about. Nelson County High School Science Department chair and teacher Lindsey Hill added one camper told her she already knew about milkweed because her 3rd grade teacher already taught me that. Hill explained the Kids Grow Green Camp is the third and final week of the Nelson County Public Schools Excel Academy summer enrichment opportunity, open to Rockfish River and Tye River Elementarys 2nd through 5th grade students. KDDI Corp, one of Japan's top three carriers, said Saturday its mobile customers have been facing difficulties making calls and getting online for over half a day, with the disruption of its nationwide networks also impacting services from banking and transmission of weather data to parcel deliveries. The au mobile brand operator said work to restore the networks continues after the disruption began at around 1:35 a.m., but no time frame for a resumption of services has been provided. The trouble, which the company said is due to a failure with its voice call system, has also affected its low-cost UQ Mobile brand and its lower-priced "povo" wireless customers, as well as other firms using KDDI's networks. KDDI apologized and said it is still investigating the number of users who complained about being inconvenienced. As of March, its infrastructure has around 62 million mobile subscriptions, with individual contracts for the au, UQ Mobile and povo brands accounting for about 31 million users. The communications ministry has yet to classify the disruption as a "serious incident." Japan's telecommunications business law stipulates that the government can apply the label requiring a report on the issue's cause within 30 days if 30,000 people or more cannot dial emergency numbers such as 110 or 119 for an hour or longer. Users of Rakuten Mobile Inc and Jcom Co's low-cost mobile services have also been affected as their services use KDDI's lines. The Iowa Supreme Court on Thursday reversed a long-standing precedent that allowed landowners to sue for damages when a neighboring hog farm causes water pollution or odor problems that affect quality of life. The court concluded, 4-3, that a 2004 decision was wrong. The earlier ruling established that a portion of Iowas law providing immunity to livestock farms from neighbors nuisance lawsuits violated the inalienable rights clause of the Iowa Constitution. It also found neighbors could sue if they had lived in the area long before the farm began operating, had sustained significant hardship, and did not benefit from the nuisance immunity granted to the livestock farm. Justice Thomas Waterman wrote in the Thursday decision that protecting and promoting livestock production is a legitimate state interest, and granting partial immunity from nuisance suits is a proper means to that end. Iowa is the nations leading pork producer with 23 million pigs, most kept in large confinement buildings that collect nitrogen-rich manure from the animals and use it to fertilize fields. The court said judges must use a rational basis to review future court challenges a standard that will be difficult to overcome because it presumes state laws are passed for the benefit of the public. The decision is a significant blow to property owners in rural areas who want to take legal action over expanding hog farms. Its going to make it more difficult. It was difficult anyway as it was, said Wallace Taylor, the attorney representing landowner Gordon Garrison who bought 300 acres of land in Emmet County in northwest Iowa in 1972, built a home there in 1999, and was disturbed in 2015 when New Fashion Pork began operating a 4,000-pig operation on land owned by BWT Holdings about half a mile away. Garrison said he could smell its odor more than 100 days of the year, sometimes all day, and it caused him to experience nausea and dizziness that forced him to stop working outdoors. Other neighbors supported his complaints. He also complained of water pollution caused by manure spread on adjacent farm fields. Garrison sued in 2020, calling the hog farm a nuisance. A district court judge dismissed his lawsuit in May 2021 and he appealed. Waterman wrote Thursday that balancing the competing interests of hog farmers and neighbors is a quintessentially legislative function involving policy choices our constitution places with the elected branches. Under the ruling, property owners can sue when the damage results from a farms failure to comply with a federal or state law or regulation, or when the farmer failed to use prudent and generally accepted management practices. The Iowa Supreme Court restored the Iowa legislatures role in striking a balance between the right to farm and the impact on those who choose to live in rural Iowa, said James Pray, the lawyer who represented the pig operation manager and the farm owners. The Iowa high court has six conservative justices appointed by Republican governors and one Democratic appointee. Last Friday, the court overturned its 2018 decision that guaranteed Iowans the fundamental right to abortion under the state constitution. Justices Brent Appel and Christopher McDonald wrote in dissenting opinions that they would have upheld the 2004 case that provided for hog farm challenges. Justice Dana Oxley agreed. Appel said the purpose of the inalienable rights clause in the bill of rights is to ensure that individual liberties are not subject to erosion by an aggressive legislative or executive branch. Are we telling the existing property owners that they are required to take one for the team as the private owners next door emit nuisance odors under a scheme of statutory immunity? he wrote. McDonald said Iowas law immediately deprives a property owner of the right to assert a private nuisance action and seek full compensation, and that other states allow time for neighboring landowners to sue. In the end, the legal question presented in this case is a simple one: does the constitution mean what it says? Do the men and women of this state have the constitutional right to protect their property? The text of the constitution, precedent, and history say yes. The majority says no, he wrote. Taylor said Iowans need to elect legislators who will rein in the livestock industry, who will listen to their concerns and repeal the nuisance immunity law for hog farms. We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. A Darien man, who police said had previously worked as a camp counselor and substitute teacher, has been arrested on grooming charges by Lake County authorities. An investigation by the Lake County sheriffs offices Special Investigations Division and the Naval Criminal Investigative Services resulted in the Thursday arrest of James R. Wood, 35, of the 7500 block of Farmingdale Drive. Advertisement Wood was taken into custody at his place of employment in Naperville, the sheriffs office said. Police said an undercover officer posing as a girl under the age of 15 was contacted online by Wood in June. Once Wood learned of the age of the girl, he requested nude photos of her and sent a nude picture of himself, according to police. Advertisement He also engaged in sexual discussions and said he planned to travel to Lake County for a sexual encounter, the sheriffs office said. However, he never made the trip; police said he was busy after starting a new job. The investigation into Wood is continuing and anyone with information is asked to contact their local police. Wood was being held in the Lake County jail in lieu of $100,000 bail. We cannot stress this enough please do not let your children communicate on social media applications with anyone, unless you as their parent or guardian have personally verified it is someone they know, Sheriff John Idleburg said. Predators use every day social media applications to prey on children of all ages from all communities. Wood is due back in court July 26. Moroccos Health Ministry has recommended a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine for senior citizens and for individuals suffering from chronic diseases to lower their risk of contracting the virus. The new recommendation, which is part of a new update of the national vaccination strategy in the fight against the ongoing pandemic, comes as the country has witnessed in the past few weeks an increase in COVID daily numbers. The Health Ministry, after reviewing a set of recommendations made by Moroccos scientific community, has called on people aged over 60 and individuals with health conditions who are older that 18 to take the fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose six months after their third shot, the ministry said in a statement. As to individuals who have recently contracted the virus, the scientific commission recommends that they should receive a second booster dose four weeks after testing negative for the virus. In its statement, the ministry called on citizens to adopt the new recommendations so as to support the country in consolidating its past gains in the fight against the pandemic. It explained that the measure has been recommended in light of recent increases in COVID numbers across Morocco. The Ministry called on citizens to continue to respect preventive measures such as the correct use of masks in closed public spaces and during gatherings, hand washing and physical distancing, especially on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha and the summer holidays to preserve a safe situation for all and avoid any epidemiological relapse. New York hosted an international research seminar on territorial autonomy and the devolution of legislative powers. The seminar, organized by Moroccos Permanent Mission to the United Nations, was attended by leading experts, researchers and academics from Switzerland, France, Spain, the United States and Mauritius as well as by about fifty diplomats, senior UN officials and media accredited to the United Nations. This meeting offered the opportunity to compare the autonomy initiative proposed by Morocco for the Sahara region with other autonomy experiences in the world, especially in terms of devolution of legislative powers in autonomous regions. The seminar, which was moderated by Marc Finaud, Senior Advisor at the Geneva Center for Security Policy, provided opportunity to share the experiences of the Canary Islands, New Caledonia, Puerto Rico and Rodrigues Island. In his opening speech, Marc Finaud recalled the provisions of the Moroccan Initiative for the autonomy of the Sahara region, that has been described, he said, as serious and credible in more than a dozen resolutions of the UN Security Council, and approved by a growing number of countries. The Moroccan Initiative includes several provisions that guarantee the exercise of legislative power in the Sahara region, he said, reviewing the guarantees established in Articles 5, 12, 19, 20, 22 and 24. The Moroccan proposal for the Sahara region is generous. It is, moreover, open to negotiation and can be developed and completed. In his presentation, Dr. Joan-Josep Vallbe, professor of political science at the University of Barcelona, presented the development of the legislative system in the Canary Islands since they were granted autonomy in 1982, and surveyed the major reforms introduced in 1996 and 2018. He stressed that the legislative power of the region belongs to the regional parliament, which exercises the legislative function in full autonomy, without interference from the central government. Referring to the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative, he described Article 12 as too open, proposing to establish a list of areas of exclusive competence of both the central government and the region. On the other hand, he welcomed the guarantees offered in Article 19, particularly in terms of active participation of local populations and adequate representation of women. For her part, Carine David, professor of law at the University of the West Indies in France, compared the legislative powers of New Caledonia with those provided for in the Moroccan autonomy initiative, noting that the primary function of the Congress of New Caledonia is the exercise of legislative power, materialized by the power granted to the local Assembly to adopt laws. The State, having been divested of the competences it has transferred to New Caledonia, in an irreversible way, can no longer intervene in these matters, Carine David said, pointing out moreover that the parity between men and women is respected in the New Caledonian context. She suggested in this connection that the Moroccan Initiative gives more details on the appropriate female representation it refers to. For his part, Dr. Jorge Farinacci Fernos, professor of law at the University of Puerto Rico, spoke at length about the different aspects that mark the relationship of Puerto Rico with the United States of America, in the context of its exercise of legislative power on local issues. He also made a comparative exercise between the constitutional status of Puerto Rico and that of the different states that make up the United States. Regarding the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative, he focused on Articles 5, 6, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20 and 24, which, for him, are the most relevant articles to the exercise of legislative power in the Sahara region. He described the definition of the Statute of Autonomy of the Region, highlighted in Article 24, as the very foundation of the Initiative. In the case of Puerto Rico, there are several structural limitations that impede the exercise of legislative powers, he noted, explaining that the U.S. Congress exercises the power to unilaterally modify its agreement with Puerto Rico or to abolish it completely. Head of the law department at the University of Mauritius, Marie Valerie Uppiah, presented one of the African examples of devolution of legislative powers, discussing the case of the autonomous territory of Rodrigues Island, which obtained its autonomy from Mauritius in 2002. In this context, she explained that the autonomous status allows Rodrigues Island to set up its own system of governance. Along with the three branches of government that exist in Mauritius, Rodrigues Island has established its own institutions that govern and regulate its administration, including a regional assembly with legislative power, commissions that manage the executive, and courts that are part of the judiciary, she said. At the same time, she stressed that the Moroccan autonomy initiative is an appropriate solution for the Sahara region, as it has various advantages for both Morocco and the constituents of the Sahara region. She explained that autonomy will give the Sahara region more powers and capabilities to conduct its own internal affairs, as it includes, among others, the legislative, executive and judicial powers, which are the three fundamental powers necessary for good governance and administration of any state. The North Platte City Council Tuesday will consider changing law firms and take a final vote on rezoning the site of a 51-lot shovel-ready housing project it approved a month ago. Ratification of a new two-year contract with the citys firefighters union also will be considered at the meeting. It starts at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall council chamber, 211 W. Third St. City officials put out requests for proposal for providing legal services in November, Interim City Administrator Layne Groseth said in a council memorandum. North Plattes Waite & McWha firm has been the citys legal counsel since January 2020, when longtime full-time City Attorney Doug Stack retired. A tabulation sheet of four applications attached to Groseths memo ranked the Brouillette, Dugan & Troshynski firm first. Waite & McWha came in second, followed by former private-practice lawyer Patrick Heng since appointed a district judge and the firm of Kelley, Scritsmeier & Byrne. Council members will be asked to authorize Mayor Brandon Kelliher to negotiate for a City Attorney agreement with the agreed-upon firm, according to Groseths memo. The council advanced a rezoning ordinance both June 7 and June 21 for the North Platte Area Chamber & Development Corp.s planned housing subdivision. The city would sell the chamber the northern 13.2 acres of some 23 acres it owns at North 17th Street and Adams Avenue, between the North Platte Cemetery and Educational Service Unit 16. The chamber plans to install streets and utilities, then sell individual lots to developers to install modular homes or build other types of permanent housing. Council members voted 6-2 June 7 to approve $1.87 million in tax increment financing to help offset those infrastructure costs. If they favor the rezoning ordinance once more Tuesday, the housing sites zoning would change from transitional agriculture to R-2 residential. The citys proposed contract with North Platte Firefighters Local No. 831 would grant identical pay raises to those the council approved May 3 for the citys police union. Firefighters pay would rise by 1.5% Oct. 1, another 1.5% on June 1, 2023, and finally 3.5% on Oct. 1, 2023. Fire union members previously ratified the deal, which would expire Sept. 30, 2024, Groseth said in a memorandum. Council members will consider the fire contract as part of the evenings nine-item consent agenda, which will be approved with a single vote unless a council member asks for separate votes on one or more items. In other business, the council will: Decide whether to renew the citys interlocal agreement with Lincoln County to acquire and sell fuel to the latter at its actual cost plus 1 cent per gallon. The item appears on the councils regular agenda. Consider, as part of the consent agenda, whether to authorize the Police Department to seek a $11,164 overtime grant from the Nebraska Department of Highway Safety for a special statewide July 20-Aug. 14 speeding enforcement effort. County commissioners agreed Monday to let the County Sheriffs Office seek a grant for the same event. Decide whether to ratify Kellihers reappointments of Emily Wurl and Lee Davies to the city Planning Commission. Both positions also appear on the consent agenda. Following publication of BPs annual Statistical Review, each year Rystad Energy releases our own analysis of the global energy landscape to provide an independent, data-based comparison and evaluation. Continuing the trend from previous years, Rystad Energys 2022 review shows a sizeable drop in recoverable oil resources in what could deal a major blow to global energy security. According to Rystad Energy analysis, global recoverable oil now totals an estimated 1,572 billion barrels, a drop of almost 9% since last year and 152 billion fewer barrels than 2021s total. Recoverable oil corresponds to the industry term remaining technically recoverable crude oil and lease condensate, i.e. expected volumes including fields, discoveries and risked future discoveries. The drop in reserves is driven by the 30 billion barrels of oil produced last year, plus a significant reduction in undiscovered resources, to the tune of 120 billion barrels. The US offshore sector has contributed the largest total to that drop, where 20 billion barrels of oil will remain in the ground, largely thanks to leasing bans on federal land. Of the 1,572 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil, only about 1,200 billion barrels are likely to be economically viable before 2100 at $50 per barrel. This economically extractable oil would contribute about 0.1?C of additional global warming by 2050, and somewhat less by 2100 thanks to natural carbon sinks. While the drop in oil availability is positive news for the environment, it may threaten to further destabilize an already precarious energy landscape. Energy security is a matter of redundancy; we need more of everything to meet the growing demand for transport and any action to curb supply will quickly backfire on pump prices worldwide, including large producers such as the US. Politicians and investors can find success by targeting energy consumption, encouraging electrification of the transport sector and drastically improving fuel efficiency, says Per Magnus Nysveen, Rystad Energys head of analysis. Related: Oil Prices Rebound As Crude Supply Tightens Looking at the longer-term picture, Rystad Energy has updated our estimates for total undiscovered oil from 1 trillion barrels in 2018 to 350 billion barrels in our latest report, due to a rapid collapse in investor appetite for exploration exposure, leading to fewer government leases. This downward revision is good news for carbon compliance but could have negative consequences for global energy security, particularly if electric vehicle adoption falls short of expectations. The broader climate implications of the total recoverable oil are broadly positive. If all remaining recoverable oil was to be burnt immediately, the global warming impact would be +0.25?C, based on 350 kg of CO2 per barrel and +0.1?C warming per 220 Gt CO2 emitted. However, only 35% of carbon emissions from that oil would still be in the atmosphere in 2100, as it takes 80 years for CO2 to be naturally removed from the air. Also, not all oil is burnt for energy; for example, carbon in plastics is released into the atmosphere only if incinerated. How long can proven reserves last? Rystad Energys updated report includes revisions for proven reserves. Here, we apply a consistent set of conservative probabilities, as opposed to official reporting by authorities which are considered less consistent. This year we found significant differences between OPEC and non-OPEC members in the longevity of proven reserves. All OPEC countries have proven reserves that are expected to last over 10 years, ranging from Iraq with just over 10 years to more than 14 years in Saudi Arabia. In non-OPEC member countries, Mexico ranks last among individual countries with fewer than five years of proven reserves, whereas Canadas reserves are projected to last almost 20 years. Where is all the oil? Referring to the report on recoverable oil resources, Saudi Arabia holds onto the top spot with 275 billion barrels, followed by the US with 193 billion barrels. Russia with 137 billion barrels, Canada with 118 billion barrels and Iraq with 105 billion barrels round out the top five. In South America a fast-growing region for oil discoveries and production Brazil remains in first place, with 71 billion barrels of recoverable oil, ten times the volume of proven reserves, but down four billion barrels from last year. In Europe, both the UK and Norways recoverable volumes have fallen by one billion barrels and now stand at 10 billion and 17 billion barrels respectively. Bucking the trend of most countries losing oil resources this year, the US added 8 billion barrels to its discovered resources. The timestamp of Rystad Energys newest resource assessment is 1 January 2022. In other words, our analysis illustrates where the remaining recoverable resources of each country stood at the beginning of this year. By Rystad Energy More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: China is leading the buying spree, accounting for as much as 13.9% of Russian exports. In the first 100 days since its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has averaged $977 million per day in fossil fuel exports. Even with sanctions and import bans, Russia is still exporting billions of dollars worth of fossil fuels. Despite looming sanctions and import bans, Russia exported $97.7 billion worth of fossil fuels in the first 100 days since its invasion of Ukraine, at an average of $977 million per day. So, which fossil fuels are being exported by Russia, and who is importing these fuels? The infographic below, via Visual Capitalist's Niccolo Conte and Govind Bhutada, tracks the biggest importers of Russias fossil fuel exports during the first 100 days of the war based on data from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). In Demand: Russias Black Gold The global energy market has seen several cyclical shocks over the last few years. The gradual decline in upstream oil and gas investment followed by pandemic-induced production cuts led to a drop in supply, while people consumed more energy as economies reopened and winters got colder. Consequently, fossil fuel demand was rising even before Russias invasion of Ukraine, which exacerbated the market shock. Russia is the third-largest producer and second-largest exporter of crude oil. In the 100 days since the invasion, oil was by far Russias most valuable fossil fuel export, accounting for $48 billion or roughly half of the total export revenue. While Russian crude oil is shipped on tankers, a network of pipelines transports Russian gas to Europe. In fact, Russia accounts for 41% of all natural gas imports to the EU, and some countries are almost exclusively dependent on Russian gas. Of the $25 billion exported in pipeline gas, 85% went to the EU. The Top Importers of Russian Fossil Fuels The EU bloc accounted for 61% of Russias fossil fuel export revenue during the 100-day period. Germany, Italy, and the Netherlandsmembers of both the EU and NATOwere among the largest importers, with only China surpassing them. Related: Erdogan Warns Sweden, Finland NATO Bids Could Still Be Blocked China overtook Germany as the largest importer, importing nearly 2 million barrels of discounted Russian oil per day in Mayup 55% relative to a year ago. Similarly, Russia surpassed Saudi Arabia as Chinas largest oil supplier. The biggest increase in imports came from India, buying 18% of all Russian oil exports during the 100-day period. A significant amount of the oil that goes to India is re-exported as refined products to the U.S. and Europe, which are trying to become independent of Russian imports. Reducing Reliance on Russia In response to the invasion of Ukraine, several countries have taken strict action against Russia through sanctions on exports, including fossil fuels. The U.S. and Sweden have banned Russian fossil fuel imports entirely, with monthly import volumes down 100% and 99% in May relative to when the invasion began, respectively. On a global scale, monthly fossil fuel import volumes from Russia were down 15% in May, an indication of the negative political sentiment surrounding the country. Its also worth noting that several European countries, including some of the largest importers over the 100-day period, have cut back on Russian fossil fuels. Besides the EUs collective decision to reduce dependence on Russia, some countries have also refused the countrys ruble payment scheme, leading to a drop in imports. The import curtailment is likely to continue. The EU recently adopted a sixth sanction package against Russia, placing a complete ban on all Russian seaborne crude oil products. The ban, which covers 90% of the EUs oil imports from Russia, will likely realize its full impact after a six-to-eight month period that permits the execution of existing contracts. While the EU is phasing out Russian oil, several European countries are heavily reliant on Russian gas. A full-fledged boycott on Russias fossil fuels would also hurt the European economytherefore, the phase-out will likely be gradual, and subject to the changing geopolitical environment. By Zerohedge.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Medical students attended a rally in reaction to the Supreme Court overturning Roe v Wade on June 29 at the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University Many medical students expressed their concern about their ability to receive OGBYN training in Indiana. - Original Credit: Photo courtesy of Delany Brown (Photo courtesy of Delany Brown / HANDOUT) Sydney DiGregory, a fourth year medical student at the Indiana University School of Medicine, said she was waiting to take a patient into the operating room to assist on an abortion procedure when the notification came to her phone: Roe v. Wade was overturned. It was a stunned silence between all of us. Just open mouths, nobody said a word. Nobody moved, DiGregory said. Our attending physician came in about two minutes later with tears rolling down her face. It was a very emotionally charged moment. Advertisement The patient, DiGregory said, was in her second trimester, and very much wanted a baby, but the fetus had genetic abnormalities. So, the woman made the difficult decision to have an abortion, DiGregory said. Indiana doesnt have a trigger law, DiGregory said, so the medical team was able to perform the abortion and still can until the Indiana General Assembly passes a law banning abortion. But, knowing how many women will be impacted by the overturning of Roe v. Wade was tangible, DiGregory said, as she assisted on the abortion. Advertisement We still had to take care of this woman, and it meant even more. It felt like there is a clock now, like, Okay, we get to take care of one more. Its been like ever since then. This week, everyday that we got to take care of a patient, it was like, Okay, we got to help one more family, DiGregory said. Lucy Brown, also a fourth-year medical student, said when she learned of Roe v. Wade being overturned she was working in the hospital Newborn Intensive Care Unit. After reading the news, Brown said she went to hold one of the NICU babies whose mother left the baby in the hospital. It goes with this sentiment that every baby born should be a wanted baby. I just want to emphasize that abortion providers love babies, they love children. They just want them to have a good life. Theyre not going to have as good of a life if theyre not wanted, Brown said. There are plenty of babies in the NICU whose parents just have never come. Indiana medical professionals described the shock they felt after Roe v. Wade was overturned and their fear of what Indiana might do to further restrict abortion. The Indiana legislature will meet July 25 to begin discussing abortion legislation. Dr. Caitlin Bernard, assistant professor of clinical obstetrics and gynecology at the Indiana University School of Medicine, said when she learned that Roe v. Wade was overturned one of her first thoughts was about what she would tell future patients who need abortions. How do you tell somebody that I have something that can alleviate your suffering, its safe, its effective, I can do it here and yet Im not allowed to? Im not allowed to provide this essential medical service to you because lawmakers have decided its wrong, Bernard said. Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, Bernard said shes received a lot of referrals from Ohio, which now has a ban on abortions after six weeks. Bernard also said shes started planning for how to help patients travel to Illinois for abortion services, given the likelihood of Indiana banning abortions, while still helping patients in Indiana while its still possible. To further help patients in Indiana, Bernard said she and other medical professionals have started talking to legislators about including exceptions particularly for the most severe or life-threatening cases so that those patients dont have to travel to get care into any potential abortion law. Advertisement We do not have the time to be trying to figure out whether the treatment that they need is allowed. We need to be able to provide it at that exact moment, Bernard said. Ensuring that there is exceptions for life-threatening situations that dont require us to check with our local prosecutors office to see if they agree with our decision making. Additionally, stating life of the mother in a law to cover extreme circumstances doesnt work, Bernard said, because medical professionals cannot predict when a situation will become life-threatening. For example, if a pregnant patient has high blood pressure, which is unsafe, Bernard said she cant predict if the patient will die or have kidney failure or heart damage. But, Bernard said, what she does know is that the patients health will be negatively impacted as a result of having high blood pressure during pregnancy. Its important for legislators to hear from the medical community on this issue, she said, who provide abortion care for various circumstances. How I would like (an abortion law) to be written is not at all, Bernard said. Theres no additional law that will make is safer for people here in Indiana. However, we understand the political reality is that legislators ... are responding to a very small but very vocal constituency in Indiana that are the most conservative, the most extreme, who want abortion completely banned. Indiana already restricts abortion care, Bernard said, like requiring an 18-hour waiting period, counseling where false information about abortion is shared with a patient (like that abortion is dangerous to a future pregnancy), and a minor needing permission from a parent and a notarized letter proving consent to get an abortion, among other restrictions. Advertisement Unfortunately, Bernard said she foresees Indiana passing a law that issues a total ban on abortions with narrow exceptions, like rape and incest. If that type of law goes into effect, Bernard said patients who can afford it between taking time off work, securing transportation and potential child care, and finding a hotel for after the procedure will travel out of state to get an abortion. The patients who cannot afford to go out of state for an abortion will be forced to carry a pregnancy to term, Bernard said. We anticipate this being a huge issue for women, in general as a population, in terms of ability to complete their education, ability to get well-paying jobs, ability to avoid the need for state assistance. Were only going increase the number of children in foster care and increase the needs of all the other family support mechanisms that we have in Indiana, Bernard said. DiGregory said she does not have a lot of trust in the legislature that theyre going to make a decision based on evidence-based medicine. I expect its going to be a very harsh law. I am worried that theyre going to enact the strictest of laws where there is no exception for rape or incest, DiGregory said. They dont care about womens health. Bernard said she anticipates going to Illinois for a some time to help with the influx in abortion care, but she wants to continue providing abortion care in Indiana. DiGregory and Brown both said that the overturning of Roe v. Wade impacts where they plan to apply for residency. But, DiGregory said overturning Roe v. Wade has solidified her medical career choice. Advertisement It has definitely strengthened my resolve and my desire to become an OBGYN. I feel like I am on a pursuit towards the greater good of taking care of my future patients, DiGregory said. We will work with them to build their integrity and resilience, develop capabilities, and uphold their political independence, member countries said in the summit declaration. As Russias war against Ukraine continues to rage, NATO has pledged to ramp up support for Georgia and other key partners. NATO has pledged to increase its support for Georgia in the wake of Russias war against Ukraine. But while the alliance is expanding to include two new members, Georgia is making little apparent progress toward its own membership aspirations. At what NATO called a historic summit in Madrid on June 28-30, Georgia was promised more political and practical support. In light of the changed security environment in Europe, we have decided on new measures to step up tailored political and practical support to partners, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, and the Republic of Moldova, member countries said in the summit declaration. We will work with them to build their integrity and resilience, develop capabilities, and uphold their political independence. At a June 29 press conference, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the increased aid would include increasing Georgia's participation in NATO's cyber exercises, strengthening secure communications and help[ing] develop protection of critical infrastructure. He said the alliance also would add additional personnel at a NATO liaison office in Tbilisi. But as to when Georgia might attain its longstanding goal of membership, the alliance was noncommittal. At a 2008 summit in Bucharest, NATO pledged that Georgia (along with Ukraine) will become members of NATO. That pledge was reiterated, but not advanced, in Madrid. We stand by the decision we've taken [during Bucharest Summit] but we're not going to give any dates, Stoltenberg said. A new strategic document adopted in Madrid promised that NATO would continue to develop partnerships with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia and Ukraine to advance our common interest in Euro-Atlantic peace, stability and security. But it was two Scandinavian countries, Sweden and Finland, who were invited to join. We will demonstrate that NATO's door remains open by inviting Finland and Sweden to join our Alliance, Stoltenberg said in his opening remarks to the summit. Few in Georgia were surprised about the two Scandinavian countries jumping ahead of the former Soviet states, which have been waiting for much longer to join NATO. Finland and Sweden only abandoned their longtime neutrality this year, in the wake of the Ukraine war, to seek NATO membership. But they have no territorial conflicts with Russia, meaning no complications with the alliances mutual defense obligations. Related: New ESG Rules Are Hurting American Farmers NATO-supportive Georgians have felt bittersweet about what the Nordic expansion could mean for their own membership prospects. While it seems to signify that what has become known as the Russian veto on expansion is not absolute, possibly paving the way for other countries to join as well, some fear that opening one door could instead mean closing another if the alliance has decided it has expanded enough. We congratulate Finland and Sweden on being invited to join the Alliance, the Georgian Foreign Ministry said in a June 30 statement. Being the actual implementation of the Open Door Policy, this process is vitally important for Georgia as an aspirant country. Unlike the countrys recent failure to attain status as a European Union candidate, the NATO summit outcomes presented less of a frustration for Georgia as expectations were already low. But given the changing geopolitical context and what Stoltenberg described as a fundamental shift in [NATOs] deterrence and defense, Georgians are left wondering if they could still possibly benefit from heightened geopolitical significance. The new strategic document identified Russia as the most significant and direct threat to Euro-Atlantic security, a stark demotion from strategic partner in a previous similar document from 2010. The document also named the Black Sea region as being of strategic importance for NATO, pledging continued support for the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of interested countries in these regions. By Eurasianet.org More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Dvorak Law Group Welcomes Two New Associates Timothy J. Kubert Skylar Young Dvorak Law Group is pleased to welcome Timothy J. Kubert and Skylar Young to the firm. Timothy Kubert is a member of the firm's business and corporate practice group where his practice includes a full range of real estate and corporate transactions. Tim represents owners, investors, developers, and corporations at all stages of buying, selling, and leasing real estate. He also advises clients regarding the formation and structuring of business entities and provides outside general counsel services to corporations of all sizes. Skylar Young is a member of the firm's business and corporate practice group. Her practice includes a broad range of general corporate and business matters, including mergers and acquisitions, securities, and reviewing, managing, and negotiating a variety of vendor, and supply chain contracts, including technology and licensing agreements. Skylar also assists clients in building and protecting their intellectual property, and with data privacy and security matters. About Dvorak Law Group, LLC Dvorak Law Group, LLC is a full-service business, estate planning, and litigation law firm with offices in Omaha, Hastings, Sutton, Columbus, and North Platte, Nebraska. It serves individuals, businesses, non-profit organizations, and government entities in Nebraska and throughout the country. To learn more about Dvorak Law Group, visit www.dvoraklawgroup.com. . Joe Thornton Joins Scooter's Coffee Leadership Team as President to Help Lead Company into the Future To help drive Scooter's Coffee intentional expansion goals, brand excellence & exceptional franchise support, Joe Thornton has joined the company leadership team as President, a new role at the rapidly growing drive-thru coffee chain. "Scooter's Coffee is expanding rapidly, and we are well on our way to opening over 1,000 stores. By the end of 2022, Scooter's Coffee will have over 600 stores open across 27 states and five distribution centers operating, including our newest in Atlanta. We also have a growing consumer packaged goods and ready-to-drink business with Scooter's Coffee products in over 1,000 retail locations," said Todd Graeve, Chief Executive Officer of Scooter's Coffee. "As we continue to scale a course of rapid growth and deepen connections with our valued customers, we welcome Joe Thornton to our dynamic leadership team at Scooter's Coffee." With more than 38 years of experience in operations, new store expansion, marketing/ branding, employee development, franchising, and store optimization, Thornton has led some of the fastest growth companies over the years, including Starbucks, Jamba Juice, Blockbuster and, most recently, HMSHost. As a Senior Vice President at Starbucks with responsibility of well over 2,000 stores, he led the drive-thru team at Starbucks with a focus on speed. As Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for HMSHost, Thornton led more than 1,500 food and beverage locations in North America, partnered with more than 300 brands and engaged more than 30,000 associates across HMSHost restaurants. At Jamba Juice, Thornton was Senior Vice President, Chief Operating Officer where he led strong business optimization and sales based on speed, taste and friendliness. As founder of Vizzionnary Brands, Joe consulted with businesses and authored two books: "The Power of Or: Choosing and Doing What Matters Most," released in 2020, and "The Hostility of Change: Breaking Through Deep-Seated Barriers," published in 2021. "In the midst of a rapid growth season, Joe and our outstanding leadership team will continue to build lasting relationships and uphold the manner in which we want to conduct business and deliver an excellent customer experience.through our core values and brand promise," said Graeve. "We look forward to continuing to provide amazing drinks along with fast and friendly service to our loyal and new customers." About Scooter's Coffee Scooter's Coffee continues to grow rapidly while it strives to become the #1 drive-thru coffee franchise in the nation. The Scooter's Coffee Brand Promise is: "Amazing People, Amazing Drinks Amazingly Fast!" It represents the company's business origins from 1998 and reflects a steady commitment to providing an unforgettable experience to loyal and new customers. Scooter's Coffee is at the dawn of a strategic growth phase nationwide, approaching 600 stores in 27 states. Visit ownascooters.com to learn more about the benefits of owning a franchise of a well-established company. Morgan Dodge used to say that when she grew up, she wanted to have 10 dogs. Instead, shes done the next-best thing. As soon as the 22-year-old was settled in a house, she put in her name as a foster parent for Muddy Paws Second Chance Rescue. I really enjoy it, she said. A lot of these animals come from bad situations. Getting them in your home and taking care of them ... the love they give back makes it all worth it. Shes been a foster mom for Muddy Paws for about a year and a half. Morgan Rye-Craft does the same for Hops + Co. Small Animal Rescue. I currently have a small herd of guinea pigs in my basement, she said. Rye-Craft said fostering gives the family a chance to care for and play with animals that she knows she wouldnt adopt otherwise. Son Quinn-Michael, 2, gets to see what goes in to caring for an animal things like cleaning cages. Hops + Co. founder Eryn Swan says fosters are essential to animal rescue organizations. Few have a physical shelter to house their animals. Even animal shelters rely on fosters for the overflow of pets or animals that are too young, sick or not a good fit for shelter life. Fostering is a win-win situation, Swan said. Fosters help a rescue to understand a pets personality and needs to find the best suited home, they provide a low-stress environment for the pet while they wait for their adoptive home and allow rescues and shelters to take on more animals. With millions of dogs and cats euthanized in American shelters each year, foster homes truly help save lives. Both Muddy Paws and Hops pay for food, accessories and medical attention. Thats huge for Dodge, who often cares for dogs with special needs that take longer to find a home. She also has had a lot of pregnant moms and their puppies. She estimates that, including litters of puppies, shes cared for 50 to 60 animals during her time with Muddy Paws. The organization adopted out 607 pets last year, of which around 550 were in foster homes. Dodge also has three dogs and a cat of her own, so she said adding a few more isnt a big deal. Its just another part of my day, she said. She was nervous about signing up at first but has found a supportive community in Muddy Paws. Rye-Craft decided to help after founder Swan posted on social media that she needed help with some of the small animals that are cared for by her organization. Rye-Craft said her large unfinished basement is perfect for an 8-foot guinea pig enclosure. She wasnt attached to the guinea pigs like she was to the hamster she cared for before it found a home. Shes afraid to help with rabbits because shes concerned that it would be much harder to let them go. I have not foster failed with any of these little guys yet, she said. Saying goodbye to the animals is the hardest part of the job. Rye-Craft said her son is too young to understand why an animal is at their home one day and gone the next. Dodge said she copes by asking adoptees to send photos and join the Muddy Paws adoption page on Facebook. She plans reunions for the puppies and volunteers to pet sit. The careful vetting of new owners also soothes her concerns. She knows they are going to a good home. Dont be afraid to jump right in, she said. Its a lot of fun. CAIRO (AP) Egyptian authorities on Saturday closed off a stretch of the country's Red Sea coastline, a day after a shark attack killed an Austrian woman swimming near the resort of Hurghada. The 68-year-old woman, who lost a leg and an arm in the shark attack, died shortly after she was brought to the private Nile Hospital in Hurghada, an Egyptian health official said. She was barely alive when she was brought in on Friday, the official said, adding that attempts by medical staff to resuscitate her failed. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters. According to an internal document from the office of the governor of the Red Sea province, shared with The Associated Press, authorities were to close off the area for three days, banning all sea activities, including diving, snorkeling, wind surfing and kite sailing. Fishing boats were also banned from the waters off Hurghada. The governor ordered the closure. A video circulated online purported to show the attack on the woman by a Mako shark relatively close to the shore, seen from a nearby pier. In the video, the water around the woman turns red from blood as bystanders on the pier throw a flotation device toward her. It remained unclear how she was able to get to the shore. Shark attacks have been relatively rare in Egypt's Red Sea coastal region in recent years. In 2020, a young Ukrainian boy lost an arm and an Egyptian tour guide a leg in a shark attack. In 2010, a spate of shark attacks killed one European tourist and maimed several others off Sharm el-Sheikh on the Sinai Peninsula, across the Red Sea from Hurghada. Egypt's Red Sea resorts, including Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh, are some of the country's major beach destinations and are popular with European tourists. Divers are drawn by the steep drop-offs of coral reefs just offshore that offer a rich and colorful sea life. Authorities have in recent years sought to revive the vital tourism sector, battered by years of instability and, more recently, the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Tyler Kalinowski of Bellevue West and Waverlys Regan Wiseman participated recently in the National High School Musical Theatre Awards ceremony in New York City. Neither won a Jimmy Award, the high school equivalent of a Tony Award, but they were there for a week for rehearsals and training with professionals. Tyler and Regan were selected as Nebraskas nominees during the Nebraska High School Theater Academy Showcase at Omaha Performing Arts earlier this summer. Regan says she was overwhelmed by the experience. As soon as I left the stage after the opening number, I started crying because it was so surreal that I was performing on a Broadway stage, she said. Tyler said he got chills when he heard the crowd cheering when the show started. This was such a life-changing experience participating in the Jimmys with such talented students from across the country and performing on the Minskoff stage. Omaha Performing Arts also has announced that the 2022-2023 season of Voice Amplified! will focus on the Many Flavors of Latino Culture. The programming, which begins Oct. 13, includes exploration of Latino music, dance, fashion and food. The program is a multidisciplinary arts and social justice initiative to elevate artists from diverse cultures and connect them with the Omaha community. Schuette earns award at finals Millard West graduate Erin Schuette received an interview award during the final night of competition recently at the 65th Distinguished Young Women National Finals. A $1,000 cash scholarship was presented to five of the 50 state representatives who received the highest scores from a panel of judges evaluating their personality, maturity and expressive ability during an individual interview. The competition was held at the Mobile Civic Center in Mobile, Alabama. Schuette will attend the University of Arizona with plans to become a cardiologist. Katelyn Cai of Arizona was selected as the Distinguished Young Woman of America for 2022 and presented with a $40,000 cash scholarship. Summer programs at DeSoto Join staff at the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge for some kid-friendly Junior Ranger weekend programs. Rededication of the steamboat Bertrand historical marker: July 9, 10 a.m., Bertrand Excavation Site. Join refuge staff and the Daughters of the American Colonists for a rededication event for the 50th anniversary of the installment of the Nebraska Historical Marker for the Steamboat Bertrand Discovery Site. Birding for beginners: July 16, 1 p.m., visitor center. Explore the more common and distinct bird species out on the trails. Binoculars and bird ID books will be available. Habitat investigation: July 23, 2 p.m., visitor center. Explore the different habitats the refuge has to offer. Exploring pollinators: July 30, 1 p.m., visitor center. Explore pollinators that use the flora at DeSoto. Wear long pants and socks. Gross Catholic among Omaha Choice winners Gross Catholic earned the top choice for a private school education earlier this year. Omaha World-Herald readers from across the metro area voted for their favorite local businesses and services in an online ballot. Being named Omahas Choice confirms that Gross Catholic continues to provide outstanding acadewmics, positive co-curriculars and a faith-filled learning environment. We always look for opportunities to expand ways to help our students grow and develop them into future leaders, principal Paulette Neuhalfen said. The school also announced that senior Gaby Gandara has received a full ride to Princeton University that covers her tuition, room and board, transportation expenses and more. Its through the QuestBridge National Scholars Network. Guidance counselor Julie McNamara guided her through the scholarship application process. I am pursuing a major in molecular biology and psychology with a minor in French on a pre-med track, Gaby said. She is especially interested in studying abroad through programs that combine research and service opportunities. See other winners from this years Omaha Choice awards at issuu.com/omaha-world-herald/docs/oca_winners_for_issuu. Goodwill funds will help senior center Goodwill Omahas Round-It-Up for Intercultural Senior Center campaign will run through July 31. Many older adults, in particular elderly immigrants and refugees, have essential needs that go unmet. They are isolated by poverty, language and cultural barriers, and few transportation options. This is where the Intercultural Senior Center steps in. ISC welcomes older adults from around the world with culturally appropriate, high-quality services and programs. ISC plans to invest any Round-It-Up funds to support educational opportunities such as language, technology, and art, which inspire older adults to be lifelong learners. Throughout the month, shoppers at all Goodwill Omaha retail stores can round their purchases up to the next dollar or higher and Goodwill Omaha will donate all of the rounded-up money to ISC. Our shoppers tend to be very generous, and our Round-It-Up campaigns can raise a surprising amount of money. We love doing it. To us, giving back is just part of what it means to be a good steward of the community, President and CEO Tobi Mathouser said. Mental health services grow at CSI As the need for mental health services in the Omaha-metro continues to grow, Child Saving Institute has expanded its therapy team to support local children, adolescents and families seeking mental health services. One area of focus is expanding bilingual services to Spanish-speaking children and families. CSI has recently added two additional bilingual therapists to its mental health services team. Evette Alvarez joined CSI as a provisionally licensed mental health practitioner providing therapy services in both English and Spanish. Itzeni Nayeli Lopez is a bilingual therapist providing individual and family therapy to children, adolescents and their families. Jessica Womach will provide therapy services to children, teens and families in need of mental health support. If you or your child are seeking mental health services, contact Child Saving Institute at 402-553-6000 or visit childsaving.org to book an appointment. Lifesaving equipment has immediate impact Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation awards millions of dollars worth of lifesaving equipment and resources to first responders and public safety organizations throughout the country. The equipment purchased through these grants often provides an immediate impact. Thats what happened for Elmwood Rescue when it recently experienced a cardiac arrest emergency. Elmwood Rescue was awarded a chest compression system to help its medical crew respond to cardiac arrest emergencies in its rural response area. Shortly after the equipment arrived, the crew was dispatched to the scene of a man in respiratory distress. The team used the awarded device to provide continuous chest compressions until the patients pulse returned. Today, he is out of the hospital and able to resume a normal life. A big thank you to Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation for helping us purchase this lifesaving device, Captain Ed Blunt said. A 56-year-old Omaha man was sentenced to prison for the seventh time last week in Douglas County District Court after being convicted of stealing thousands of dollars worth of catalytic converters. Brian A. Sears was sentenced to eight to 10 years in prison after being found guilty of the theft of over $43,000 worth of catalytic converters. When that sentence is finished, he will serve 18 months to two years for possession of burglars tools. Under state law, an inmate is eligible for parole after serving half of the lower end of his sentence and must be released after serving half of the upper end. Sears will be credited with 157 days in jail. Sears was arrested Nov. 14, 2021, at the Transportation of America bus lot near 54th and L Streets. He had been arrested two other times in the previous five weeks on the same charges. Police officers were called to the bus lot at 5402 L St. about 2:15 p.m. to investigate a theft in progress. They found Sears, who claimed to be a bus maintenance worker, inside the fenced parking lot. A company official arrived and told officers that Sears is not employed by the company. According to the police report, officers found 13 catalytic converters that had been removed from buses and one that had been cut but not yet removed. The bus parts are valued at a total of $43,500. The report said officers reviewed surveillance video of Sears removing the catalytic converters from buses with the aid of a power saw. Nebraska Department of Corrections records show Sears had been sent to prison six previous times, including a sentence of 10 to 12 years in 2006 after being convicted as a habitual criminal. An inmate at the Omaha Correctional Center died Saturday morning at an area hospital. James Trebilcock, 72, was serving a 12 to 20 year sentence for third-degree sexual assault of a child and an attempted first-degree sexual assault that occurred outside of Douglas County. His sentence began in November 2019. The cause of death has not yet been determined, but according to the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, Trebilcock was undergoing treatment for a medical condition. Under state law, a grand jury must investigate all in-custody deaths. Three men broke out of the Douglas County Jail on July 3 and 4, 1956 the culmination of an extraordinary hacksawing effort that lasted at least two days. George Delbert Williams, 34, escaped on July 3, and Richard D. Comstock, 19, and Stanley J. Mallory, 18, walked out of the jail 24 hours later. The Sheriff's Office knew nothing of the jailbreak for hours, though a prisoner repeatedly tried to warn deputies while it was in progress. His warnings were ignored. On July 3, when the 24 men in cellblock 4 were taken into the showers after their evening meal, Williams and Comstock "wandered away." They hid while the 22 other prisoners were herded back into the cellblock. Williams and Comstock took turns sawing a bar from the outside window. While one worked, the other watched for guards. Later that day, Williams, a slim man, squeezed out the window. Comstock tried to do the same, but he got stuck for 20 minutes. He then asked Mallory to sneak outside the cellblock when trusties delivered a meal. Comstock hid on top of the cellblock until July 4 at noon. Mallory slipped out of the cellblock behind a trusty. He and Comstock used the bar that had been sawed off the window as a lever to bend back another bar in the window. The two then squeezed through the enlarged opening. In an exclusive interview with a World-Herald reporter, a prisoner told of watching the escape proceed undetected for more than 36 hours. Sheriff Patrick E. Corrigan earlier accepted full responsibility. "I have no excuses," the sheriff said, adding that the jailbreak "might have been averted." Corrigan said that all deputies and trusties were brought in for questioning. There also was a complete shakedown of the jail. The three were eventually captured, and Comstock, of Chicago, was said to be the mastermind of the jailbreak. Kate McHugh knew when she was elected as principal, shed have only three more years at Omaha High School before retirement was forced on her. Before she was 60. McHughs tenure was from 1911 to 1914. She was there when the present building was finally completed after 12 years of construction and became designated as Central High. At age 59, she had to accept a $500 annual pension. Back in 1909, the Nebraska Legislature passed bills creating pension funds for Omahas teachers, police officers and firemen. Teachers with 40 years of experience shall be retired, the law read. And the 1913-14 school year was McHughs 40th. She began teaching as an 18-year-old in her hometown of Galena, Illinois, and came to Omaha High in 1893, after her older sister, Josie, was teaching here. She was an assistant principal from 1898 to 1911, except for the year she was in England to study the countrys school system. McHugh is included in former World-Herald staffer Eileen Wirths new book, The Women Who Built Omaha (University of Nebraska Press, $22.95). Its the authors fourth book on the citys history. Kate McHugh was one of my favorite women in the book, said Wirth, also a professor emeritus of journalism at Creighton University. First on Wirths favorite list is Rachel Gallagher. Her legacy is back in the news with a $1.2 million donation from the Gallagher family to improve the park in the Benson neighborhood thats named for her. When I came to Omaha in 1969, she was sort of easing out of things, Wirth said. But I remember the fight over UNOs expansion into Elmwood Park, and how everybody knew (her role) but I didnt know enough really about the city at that time to realize it. But the more I read about her, she was my kind of gal. She was smart, she was absolutely fearless. She got stuff done. One of the things I loved most was the way that she preserved the parks from the interstate. She went to Washington to get the Secretary of the Interior to say no interstate could touch an Omaha park without her permission. You look how close the interstate comes to what was then Riverview Park and is todays zoo and you realize, probably in my view, it might have gone through there if it hadnt been for Rachel Gallagher for preserving that site. Among those Wirth said she learned a great deal about were Rowena Moore, whose family owned the Malcolm X house site and she led the campaign to have it included in the National Register of Historic Places; Sarah Joslyn, whose lifelong crusade was to bring culture to the city; and Susette Bright Eyes LaFlesche. I had known, of course, (LaFlesche) translated at the trial of Standing Bear. I had no idea she was at Wounded Knee. And I certainly didnt know that she had illustrated a book on Omaha Indian culture for the Trans-Mississippi Exposition, Wirth said. I knew the things everybody knows, but I didnt realize that she had traveled and lectured all over Europe and spoke several languages. I mean, she was an amazing woman. The Women Who Built Omaha brings out the impact women had on the establishment and early operation of Boys Town when money was tight, the role the Sisters of Mercy played in establishing Omahas Catholic school system and the history of women physicians that dates to the 1880s. The books inspiration came one day to the author as she was driving on West Center Road. She saw the College of St. Mary and knew to the north was Nebraska Furniture Mart. To the east she saw Mutual of Omaha and all of sudden it was like all of these things were founded or co-founded by women. But how much had Omahas history books included womens accomplishments? About 10% of the names in the indexes of two books written a century apart were of women or womens groups, she discovered. It wasnt all the fault of the authors, she said, whose works tended to focus on the business and political growth of the city. Those were not deals in which women had worked. So that was why I decided to write the book, Wirth said, to discover the women responsible for a large part of what makes Omaha special. The 15 chapters contained in the 172 pages are easy to read and enlightening. Wirths newspaper background keeps the writing tight. It will become a reference book for future columns. Remembering Bob Marks, 83 At 81, his dream job came along for Bob Marks. The gig for the former Mutual of Omaha vice president? Omahas History Detective, writing Sunday columns for The World-Herald. Their popularity inspired Marks to take the columns from September 2020 to May 2021 and add new material for a book of his own after assisting with others. Alas, his Omaha History Detective: Mysteries, Myths & Memories From Our Last 220 Years, will be published posthumously. Marks died June 17, only weeks after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. A celebration of life will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Rejoice! Lutheran Church, 2556 S. 138th St. Former World-Herald staffers Chris Christen and Christine Zueck-Watkins guided the efforts for Marks book to come to fruition. He lived as fully as he could right up to the end. I saw him the Monday before he passed and he was still sitting up, discussing edits on his book, Zueck-Watkins said. He was able to finish everything he wanted to write and see a book proof. I wish we had been able to finish before he passed away. According to his obituary, the man with a collection of 6,000 Omaha historic postcards was active in city history circles since the Durham Museum was called the Western Heritage Museum. He also contributed significantly to Their Man in Omaha: The Barker Collection, 1860-1876 (2006) and Omaha and Council Bluffs, Yesterday & Today (2008). Marks is survived by his wife of 45 years, Gena; children Robert Marks, Michelle Payne and Laura OBrien; brother John Marks; and sister Jane Cannaday. A Wisconsin man faces an attempted murder charge after allegedly fleeing and shooting at an Indiana State Trooper, then jumping into the Grand Calumet River to trying to escape Monday, charges state. His car a 1993 Ford Escort was stolen from a Milwaukee homicide victim killed on June 24, the affidavit states. Advertisement Carlos Santiago, 38, of Milwaukee, was also charged in Lake Superior Court Wednesday with attempted battery, criminal recklessness, two counts of resisting law enforcement, pointing a firearm and leaving the scene of an accident. He was arrested and is being held on an $8,000 cash bond at the Lake County Jail, court records show. Court listings do not yet show a lawyer. Advertisement Milwaukee Police spokesman Sgt. Efrain Cornejo said Thursday he couldnt confirm if Santiago was a suspect in the killing, but had not yet been charged. An Indiana State Trooper approached a disabled Escort, which had no license plate, on the Indiana Toll Road between Cline and Calumet Avenues at 4:20 p.m. Monday. Santiago took off. He later entered I-90 westbound and drove against traffic, the affidavit states. The trooper chased him for seven miles east before calling off the pursuit. During the chase, Santiago appeared to flash a handgun and fire a shot toward the officer, charges state. Santiago crashed into another car about two miles east, just before the Grant Street exit, then fled on foot with a gun. By 7 p.m, troopers found him nearby on the toll roads north side. He was naked with a gun and injecting himself with a syringe, the affidavit states. Santiago then waded into the Grand Calumet River, ignoring their commands to swim back to the bank, before he got out of the river. Police later found clothes, bullet cartridges, and a clear plastic bag with a powder-like substance nearby. They also found a 9-mm bullet casing at the 10-mile marker that they believed corresponded with the weapon used to shoot at the trooper, charges state. On a quiet Sunday afternoon in 1951, 16-year-old Clifford Battershaw strolled into the Douglas County Jail with a German Luger pistol and helped his brother Dewey Battershaw, 21, and another inmate, Victor Sweet, 24, escape. The younger Battershaw bulled his way through four locked doors and sprang his brother and Sweet. The three took a deputy sheriff and an Omaha attorney hostage as they walked out of the jail. The escapees and hostages headed east to 17th Street, where they caught an Ak-Sar-Ben bus. After a 20-block bus ride, they stole the first of three cars. They picked up two other hostages in their flight from Nebraska. All four hostages were freed unharmed the next day near Auburn, Nebraska. The fugitives trail went cold for 11 days. Then four miles west of St. Johns, Arizona, local authorities began tailing the trios speeding 1949 Dodge. As a chase ensued, Clifford Battershaw broke out the rear window of the speeding car and put a bullet through the window of the patrol car. Dewey Battershaw was mortally wounded in the two-hour running gun battle with the hard-riding Arizona peace officers; his brother and Sweet were captured. Lets reminisce on being your brothers keeper and breaking him out of jail. This vaccination clinic had no tears and no Band-Aids. And in lieu of a lollipop for being a good sport, patients got tender chunks of raw beef. (Or in Diesels case, beef liver.) Six Amur tigers received booster doses of a COVID-19 vaccination designed for animals Friday at the Lee G. Simmons Wildlife Safari Park near Ashland. The tigers, which are part of a breeding program, were among a handful of felines both at Omahas Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium and kept behind the scenes at the park to receive the vaccines. Zoo staff acquired 20 doses of an experimental vaccine in a second round of distribution from the Zoetis company, said Dr. Sarah Woodhouse, director of animal health at both the safari park and the zoo. In addition to tigers that live on the safari park property, vaccines also have been given at the zoo to tigers, snow leopards, a bobcat and a black-footed cat. Zoo staff started working with Zoetis in late September to secure doses in the companys second round of vaccine distribution. Part of the reason they waited for a later round of doses, Woodhouse said, was because COVID rates initially werent high in the Omaha metro area. While still experimental, the vaccine has been administered to animals at several U.S. zoos. Those zoos did not report any significant adverse effects. Because its experimental, Woodhouse said, specific permits for each species had to be sought from the USDA for each facility using the vaccines. The Henry Doorly Zoo initially applied for felines and otters. Staff opted to prioritize big cats at the zoo and safari park because of how susceptible felines are to contracting the virus. This past week, a 14-year-old tiger died from complications related to COVID at an Ohio zoo. Staff at the Omaha zoo and safari park had to decide which cats should receive the vaccines. They considered things such as susceptibility, risk of contracting the virus and genetics. The bobcat that lives in the Desert Dome is in the same space as hundreds of visitors each day, bumping him onto the priority list. Tigers at the safari park are genetically valuable, pushing them on the list. Their genes arent yet represented in the North American tiger population. Meanwhile, the 20 cheetahs that live at the safari park in the breeding program dont interact with people other than their keepers. That kept them from getting a vaccine dose this round. Its important to preserve the tigers. About 100 Amur tigers are held in North American zoos. Only 11 cubs were born in the last year, said Dan Cassidy, vice president of animal management at both the zoo and safari park. The tigers have yet to produce cubs at the safari park, but the breeding process can be a tricky and time-consuming process. Woodhouse said she is used to prioritizing animal health. But because COVID can be transmitted between humans and animals, she has been after her staff to stay healthy and get vaccinated and boosted. Precautions still are in place behind the scenes, with keepers wearing masks around felines, primates and a handful of other species that are especially susceptible to the virus. Keepers masked up Friday as they entered the gate to the tiger breeding area at the safari park. Vera the tiger waltzed right into her enclosure which is open to her at all times and started rubbing her face along the fence. She made grumbling noises toward her keepers Carol Eager, supervisor of carnivores, and Stacy Selko, senior keeper. Using a prop on the outside of the fence, Selko guided the cat along the enclosure, getting her to sit and lie down. While Selko fed the cat hunks of beef, Woodhouse gave the cats right flank a prod with a practice needle. That gauged whether the cat would spook or flinch. The first prod didnt faze Vera. She sat nicely, eating beef, while Woodhouse stuck her with the real injection. Woodhouse said they use longer needles just in case an animal does flinch. Most of the time, the animals dont even feel the jab. Next door, 330-pound Diesel was a little hesitant. But he sat still long enough to get boosted and snack on some beef liver. It takes a lot of training time to get the animals to approach the fence for medical care. Woodhouse said tigers often are leery of humans. Training the cats to come to the fence, lie down and stand up helps keepers manage the animals health. After Elara received her booster, Selko had the cat flip to her other side, where Selko applied ointment on a small wound near the cats shoulder. After being vaccinated, the tigers went back about their days, most of them lounging in the tall grass of their private enclosures. Woodhouse said the zoo would like to receive additional doses to vaccinate its lemurs. The lemur exhibit lets people walk through the same space the animals occupy. Coronavirus cases have been confirmed in gorillas, tigers and lions at zoos; domestic cats and dogs; farmed mink; and at least one wild mink. Recent studies have found COVID-19 antibodies in deer, although wildlife experts have said risk of the animals spreading the disease to humans is low. LINCOLN Two out of three of Nebraskas statewide petitions are on track to get enough signatures to make it on the November ballot, but for one petition, its going to come down to the wire. An official with Citizens for Voter ID said the group is on track to meet its signature-gathering goal by the July 7 deadline, though the campaign declined to reveal how many signatures it has gathered. Meanwhile, Raise the Wage Nebraska reported Friday that it had cleared its goal. But Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana still has a sizable gap to close, according to representatives with the campaign. Petitions for initiatives that would change state law have to collect valid signatures from 7% of registered voters. Theres a 10% threshold for those that would change the state constitution, which the voter ID effort would do. Based on the most recent voter registration numbers, that would equate to roughly 87,000 signatures per petition for the minimum wage and medical marijuana efforts and 124,000 for the voter ID petition. Crista Eggers, campaign manager for the medical marijuana group, said each of the campaigns two petitions had about 67,000 signatures as of Friday morning. We have not reached the threshold we need, we are not working on overage, and without tens of thousands of Nebraskans signing this weekend we may not be able to submit our signatures to the Nebraska Secretary of State on July 7th, Eggers said in a press release. The first petition would require the Legislature to enact new statutes protecting doctors who recommend medical cannabis and patients who use it from criminal penalty. The second would require lawmakers to pass a bill protecting private entities that produce and supply cannabis for medical purposes. State Sen. Adam Morfeld of Lincoln, a co-sponsor of the campaign, said he expects the campaign to continue gathering signatures up until the July 7 deadline. It will be a race to the finish line and down to the wire, Morfeld said. The medical marijuana group is working with significantly fewer resources than it had hoped. A string of tragedies earlier this year left the campaign without two major donors. Since then, Morfeld said, the group has switched to primarily fundraising through small donations. Reports filed with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission show the medical marijuana campaign had received nearly $208,000 in cash contributions as of late June. It had a cash balance of just under $75,000. That is far below what a similar campaign to legalize medical marijuana raised in 2020, when the group reported about $2.5 million in overall contributions and gathered more than 182,000 signatures. Though it surpassed the signature requirement, the ballot initiative was disqualified by the State Supreme Court for containing more than one subject. That led the campaign to return again, this time with two petitions. Major contributions, which include cash and in-kind donations, have come from: ACLU of Nebraska ($38,752); Marijuana Policy Project ($15,501), a national nonprofit supporting marijuana policy reform; Missouri Hemp Improvement Company ($12,500), a Missouri-based medical marijuana company; and BMD Smithville LLC ($12,500), another Missouri-based medical marijuana company. The campaign did not record any significant expenditures between late May and late June, according to a disclosure report. It reported over 20 expenditures to individuals during the reporting period, none more than $2,600 per person, for signature gathering. Eggers said she cant think of a greater tragedy than if the campaign fails because it couldnt gather enough signatures in time to meet the deadline. Typically, ballot initiative campaigns arent as transparent about how many signatures they have gathered, she said, but the campaign wants people to understand the urgency of the situation. It truly is in Nebraskas hands, Eggers said. Citizens for Voter ID, which supports amending the state constitution to require valid photo identification before voters cast their ballot, is on track to meet its signature requirement by deadline, according to Sen. Julie Slama of Dunbar, the initiatives sponsor. She said she isnt sure if the campaign will submit its signatures on or before July 7. Were playing it by ear, Slama said. The campaign has received more than $2 million, most of it coming from Gov. Pete Ricketts mother, Marlene Ricketts. Last year, she donated $376,000 to the campaign, and in early June she donated an additional $1.5 million, according to disclosure reports. The campaign also recently received a total of $200,000 in two donations from Thomas Peed and his Lincoln publishing company Sandhills Global. The voter ID group paid more than $486,000 to Vanguard Field Strategies, a GOP firm based in Austin, Texas, on June 15 for signature collecting. Vanguard also was reportedly used by a Republican candidate for governor in Michigan who was disqualified from the primary ballot because the states election bureau found that thousands of his signatures were fraudulent. That candidate, James Craig, has since filed suit against a subcontractor and 18 circulators suspected of forging signatures, according to reporting by the Detroit News. Craig said he believes the forgeries were performed by subcontractors that were several times removed from Vanguard, the news outlet reported. The Nebraska voter ID campaigns signature-gathering strategies have been questioned in recent weeks, with complaints surfacing that petitioners have falsely claimed to be state employees, and later that petitioners were being misleading about the initiatives intent. Slama has characterized the complaints as part of a Democrat-led hit job meant to undermine the initiative and keep it off the ballot. The initial complaint, lodged by Sen. Carol Blood, the Democratic candidate for governor, was sent to the Nebraska Attorney Generals Office for further investigation. Slama said she had not received any updates on the investigation as of Friday morning. Raise the Wage Nebraska, which would gradually raise Nebraskas minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2026, had collected more than 130,000 signatures as of Friday, according to a press release. Campaign manager Kate Wolfe told the Lincoln Journal Star that the petition will continue to circulate up until the deadline. Were not done collecting signatures, Wolfe told the Journal Star. I think its important for as many citizens who want to weigh in to get a chance to sign the petition, so were still going to be out there. Reports filed with NADC show that the drive had raised nearly $1.2 million as of late May. Its cash balance was just under $524,000. The largest donations, which include cash and in-kind contributions, have come from: the Sixteen Thirty Fund ($634,490), a national organization supporting progressive causes; the Fairness Project ($251,020), a national group that supported previous Nebraska petition drives to expand Medicaid and limit the interest charged on payday loans; and Nebraska Appleseed ($300,580), a Nebraska organization that advocates on issues related to poverty. The most recent major expenditure for the group was $275,000 to the Dallas consulting company Advanced Micro Targeting for petition circulation. It also recently paid just shy of $18,000 in total to six individuals for petition circulation. 100 years ago July 3, 1922: Four hundred shopmen of the local Illinois Central shops representing the various federated crafts of railroad work laid down their tools at 10 a.m. Saturday in Clinton. The going out of the men was orderly and but little trouble is anticipated by the authorities or the railroad officials as a result of the strike so far as the Clinton terminal is concerned. 75 years ago July 3, 1947: The seven staff nurses of the McLean County Health Department made 7,404 calls and visits to homes and schools last year. They meet at 8:30 a.m. at the office at 1009 N. Park St., don their uniforms, take their black bags and head out. They assist with matters that can range from communicable disease control and education to prenatal care for expectant mothers. 50 years ago July 3, 1972: Woodford County residents are seeing a different sight as they drive U.S. Route 150 between Carlock and Congerville this summer: Richard Romersberger and three daughters tending a strawberry patch, which spans about an acre. The group first became interested in commercial strawberry production during a tour of one in Southern Illinois. 25 years ago July 3, 1997: The historic Ensenberger building in downtown Bloomington may see new life. Twin City developer Barry Spitznass, Chicago architect Doug Farr and Gillespie businessman Cliff Crispens reached an agreement with members of the Ensenberger family to buy the 120-year-old building at 212 N. Center St. to develop a combination of condo and retail space. Finance Minister, Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, will on Wednesday, July 13, present the Mid-Year Review of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of Government and Supplementary Estimate for the 2022 Financial Year to Parliament. Mr. Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, Majority Leader, who announced this on the floor of Parliament, when he presented the business statement of the House for the week ending Friday, July 8, 2022, said this was pursuant to the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921). The Majority Leader said the Minister of Interior, who is also responsible for the National Identification Authority (NIA) would on Wednesday, July 6, attend the House to brief Members on the challenges the Authority was facing regarding the printing and issuance of the ECOWAS Identity Card also known as the Ghana Card to the citizenry. He noted that leaders of the House were firming up discussions with the Minister responsible for National Security to brief Parliament at a close sitting on matters pertaining to the security of the State, particularly having regard to the recent spate of terrorist attacks within the West Africa sub-region. He said leadership was still in discussions with Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, to brief the House on the compensation package by the Government to poultry farmers who were impacted by the outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza in 2021. He said the appropriate date for the briefing would be communicated to Members during in the course of the ensuing week, but it shall most probably, be Tuesday, July 5. Mr. Osei-Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said the Business Committee had not scheduled any Minister to respond to questions asked by Members on Friday, July 8th. This he explained was in view of the fact that a Cabinet retreat was scheduled for the said date which would require the presence and participation of all Cabinet Ministers. He said barring any unforeseen circumstances, the House was expected to adjourn sine die on Thursday, 28th July, saying This is subject to confirmation with Right Honourable Speaker upon his return to Ghana on July 6. He said this early adjournment of the House was to enable the Speaker and some members of the Leadership of the House to participate in a statutory international meeting during the last week of July. He said with regards to this development, the Business Committee again was urging Committees with referrals to expeditiously work on same for consideration of the House. In that same vein, the Committee is also urging the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to present to Parliament any government business that would require the attention of the House before adjournment sine die. The Majority Leader said for the ensuing week, six ministers are expected to attend the House to respond to 31 questions. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Germany's road traffic agency said it was recalling Tesla (TSLA.O) models Y and 3 because of a fault in the automatic emergency call system that affects 59,000 vehicles globally. The KBA watchdog said on its website dated June 29 that a software flaw was causing a breakdown of the eCall, which is designed to automatically contact emergency responders in the event of a serious accident. German regional broadcaster Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg, which serves the region that is home to Tesla's German model Y and battery production site near Berlin, first reported the recall on Saturday. KBA said 59,129 vehicles were affected globally but did not specify how many of those were registered in Germany. The software glitch is an added headache for Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk after Tesla on Saturday said it delivered 17.9% fewer electric vehicles in the second quarter from the previous quarter, as China's COVID 19-related shutdown disrupted its production and supply chain. Musk said last month that Tesla's new factories in Texas and Berlin are "losing billions of dollars" as they struggle to increase production because of a shortage of batteries and Chinese port issues. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) early in June upgraded its probe into 830,000 Tesla vehicles with the advanced driver assistance system Autopilot, a required step before it could seek a recall. Source: Reuters Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Madam Abla Dzifa Gomashie, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ketu South, has appealed to individuals and organisations to keep on with the support for victims of recent tidal waves in the Ketu South constituency. She said there was still a lot to be done to ameliorate the sufferings of the victims in the fishing-dependent communities of Adina, Agavedzi, Amutsinu- Salakope and Blekusu. Madam Gomashie spoke to the Ghana News Agency after a donation to the victims of an amount of GH5,000.00 and assorted items, including bags of clothing and shoes for men, women, and children, from the Catholic Women's Council of the archdiocese of Accra, Keta-Akatsi, and Jasikan Diocese. The latest donation followed a recent GH100,000.00 from Togbe Afede XIV, Agbogbomefia of Asogli to complement the MPs efforts in making life more comfortable for the victims. Madam Gomashie bemoaned the destruction of homes and properties of her constituents caused by the raging sea and said they were open to receiving support from all to among others, work at a structure to provide temporary shelter to the displaced who now seek shelter from churches and classrooms. When I was contesting and campaigning, there were homes along the beach that I went into to campaign and homes where I sat with the people; those homes are all gone. Its a terrible situation to be in, to have worked your whole life and then nature comes and takes it away from you. It is the reason why I am very vocal about it. We dont have a community that has a conducive environment to serve as a shelter for those who are caught up in this situation, she said and called for support to build a community center that can serve as a temporary shelter for the people. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Gracefield School Limited, a private school at Oyarifa in Accra, has been put before court over alleged negligence. On June 24, 2021, the School was said to have fed a five-year-old pupil with Banku (a local meal), which it allegedly knew the girl was allergic to. The plaintiff, who is being represented by Mr Charles Kofi Kwadam, is claiming compensatory damages of GHC150,000 for the trauma, ill health and inconvenience suffered by the Minor. The plaintiff is also claiming punitive damages against the School for putting the life of the Minor at risk regardless of being aware of her health condition (Corn or maize allergies). The plaintiff is further seeking special damages of GHC 1,634.00 being the cost of seeking medical treatment for the Minor. The court heard that the Minor was enrolled in the School on April 23, 2021 and started on May 4, 2021 In a statement of claim, the Minor's mother said she had informed the school of his (Minor's) allergies. It said the mother, on the admission form, indicated that the Minor had allergic rhinitis, corn or maize and groundnut allergies. "The defendant School, for this reason had, prior to June 24, 2021 lunch, given the plaintiff alternative food whenever the Banku was served to other students for lunch. The defendant on June 24, 2021 at lunch, instead of serving the plaintiff with an alternative food, served the plaintiff with banku, which he was allergic to because it contained corn or maize," the statement of claim said. The court heard that because the Minor was starving by lunchtime, she ate about six morsels of the banku before the schools lunchtime attendant changed it to a bowl of spaghetti for her. The court was told that after school, the Minor fell asleep and woke up around 7 pm the same day and started vomiting profusely. "Plaintiff between 7 pm and 11 pm had vomited about 7 times," the statement of claim said. The court heard that she was rushed to two different hospitals and spent days on admission. She was said to have suffered a lot of physical pains with the vomiting leaving her weak and dehydrated. Again, he suffered emotionally and psychologically. The schools administrator and class teacher were said to be informed about her plight and they promised that "they will not repeat that mistake again." The Plaintiff held that the school had, however, not done anything to mitigate the harm it caused her or compensate her for the physical pain, trauma and distress. The school, in its statement of defence, denied some of the issues raised by the plaintiff. The defendant said at all material time since the admission of the plaintiff at the school, its officers had constantly followed the instructions of her (plaintiff's) mother and at no material time had the school failed to comply with instructions related to "her allergies." ...At no material time to the day in question did any of our officers make available to the Plaintiff banku in lieu of any other food to, which the plaintiff is not allergic.'' The defendant said on June 24, 2021, the Plaintiff brought snacks to school where she ate them at about 10:00am before lunch was served at 11:00 am and, therefore, she could not have been starving at lunchtime. The school averred that during lunch time, the Minor was served with spaghetti in sauce only. The defendant said after lunch, the Minor ate the rest of her snacks, which she had brought from home and he did not show any sign of sickness, weakness or allergic reaction whilst in the school. The school further contended that any substance found in the vomit of the Minor could have been any chewed material and maintained that it did not "serve or make available banku'' to the Minor. According to the defendant, the Minors family had been making false and unfounded allegations against the school, a behaviour, which was unreasonable and denied the claims in its entirety, maintaining that the Minor was not entitled to any of his claims. The Plaintiff has been cross-examined and the matter, adjourned to July 15, 2022. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video With the Chinese schools' summer vacation around the corner, the sci-fi movie Rainbow Sea Fly High announced it will open domestically on July 16, anticipating it will attract a lot of youngsters to walk into cinemas. The upcoming film, which took six years of preparation and production, marks the latest outing of Coloroom, the animation arm of Enlight Media which is known for the blockbusters Ne Zha (2019) and Legend of Deification (2020). Produced in the traditional 2D version, the 100-minute feature film has gathered more than 1,000 animators, with most of its action-studded scenes demanding a lot of original paintings. For instance, for a two-second-long footage featuring a catastrophic sight, the animators created 600 pieces of hand-drawn paintings. Adapted from Rainbow Sea, a 2011 popular animated series which has earned 9.6 points out of 10 on Douban, the movie fictionalizes an epic tale to rescue the Earth at the edge of an unprecedented disaster in the far future where interstellar travel is highly developed. So far, around 130,000 netizens have marked the movie in their most-want-to-watch list on Maoyan, one of China's largest ticketing services. We will consider those who left their monies with us first before any other pilgrim, Hajj Board Chairman Some Muslim pilgrims have expressed disappointment towards the Hajj Board after they were abandoned at the Hajj village for hours. According to them, they were expected to travel to Mecca but the board has intentionally removed their names to the final list of travellers while their passports are also being held by the Hajj Board. Most of them, believed to be part of the 2019 batch who made payment before the ban of pilgrims, are demanding a refund from the board. Last month, the Hajj boards had promised to prioritise the 2019 batch but they are yet to be airlifted, despite proof of their documentation. They said they cannot find my passport; I am broken, I dont want to cry but its not easy. We were told those who paid in 2019 are going to be among the first passengers but that did not happen. The holiness of the whole issue, probably, the process is not as holy as the activity itself. Now, I am sitting here with no hope. This time, we are not going to leave the money with them, myjoyonline.com quoted one of the pilgrims. Chairman of the Hajj Board, Sheikh Ibrahim C. Quaye earlier said some pilgrims had paid monies to the board before the ban. Such people, he explained, were expected to make an additional payment of GH7000.00 to the previous amount of GH19, 500 they paid. He also added that those who made payments before the ban will be considered first before other pilgrims. After the ban on Hajj was lifted this year, quotas of all participating countries have been drastically reduced. Ghanas quota is 3,069 instead of the 2020 quota of 6,000 pilgrims, and so we will consider those who left their monies with us first before any other pilgrim, he said But that has not been the case as many who were part of the last batch have been left out after the ban was lifted for this year's pilgrimage. 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. Featured Video RABAT has officially been launched as the Capital of African Culture at a glittering ceremony at the citys Mohammed V Theatre. This was the official celebration of the February 2020 decision when the Committee of African Capitals of Culture officially announced the choice of Rabat as the Capital of African Culture for 2022-2023. A large concert highlighted the jam-packed program put together by the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication under the high patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI. The befittingly glamorous opening ceremony, supported by the Organisations such as United Cities and Local Governments United of Africa, the wilaya of Rabat-Sale-Kenitra region, the prefecture of Rabat and the City Council of Rabat, was marked by the presence of several officials, ambassadors and representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Kingdom. Top Moroccan artists including Douzi, the largely popular Oum, African Vision troupe, the Andalusian music choir Al-Amarti, Amar Mansouri and the dance troupe Ashtah gave thrilling performances. In an opening speech delivered on his behalf, the Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication, Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid welcomed the news of Rabat being named as the capital of African culture under the patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI. It reflects the special interest that His Majesty grants to the African dimension of the Kingdom and the importance of strengthening relations between our country and our African brothers, he said. The Minister added that the celebration of Rabat as the capital of African culture is an opportunity to present to the world the bright face of the ancient African civilization, and to highlight the deep Afro-Moroccan ties. Bensaid it further shines the spotlight on the great development that the city of lights is experiencing as one of the major African and world capitals, with a global renaissance that combines the most beautiful aspects of originality, modernity and African cultural diversity. According to the Minister, the celebration of Rabat as the capital of African culture is also an opportunity to highlight the richness and diversity of African culture, with its tangible and intangible components, through a diverse cultural, artistic and heritage program that reflects the value of this great cultural event. For her part, the Mayor of Rabat, Ms. Asmae Rhlalou, said that the capital of the Kingdom will be, for a whole year, a cultural and artistic African destination, since the activities of this celebration will continue until May 2023, and will know the presentation of the best creations in various arts. Rhlalou added that the city of Rabat is rich with its diverse tangible and intangible cultural heritage, highlighting the role played by the pioneering royal project - Rabat, the capital of lights. This magnificent project which has provided the city with state-of-the-art infrastructure, is ready to host major international cultural events. United Cities and Local Governments of Africa President, Fatimou Abdel-Malik, said her organization is at the forefront of celebrating capitals of African culture. She said they further strive to make culture in African cities a vector to reconfirm the sense of belonging and self-respect. The United Cities and Local Governments of Africa President said they take pride in promoting African creativity and beauty, as well as integrating the artistic activities and creative industries on the international arena to positively influence the continent. Abdel-Malik stressed that the choice to make Rabat the first city to be celebrated as the capital of African culture, is a recognition by the leaders of the organization of the efforts made it has made, which combine authenticity and modernity with openness to the world. She described it as a showcase for all that is done in Africa in the field of creativity, culture and arts. The program of celebrations of Rabat as capital of African culture, includes the organisation of activities and events in the fields of literature, poetry, visual arts, music, theatre, cinema, street arts, dance, digital arts, fashion shows, photography, folk arts, storytelling, circus arts, in addition to forums and intellectual meetings, among others. The different activities will be organised in all the historical spaces, public squares and all the neighbourhoods of the city of Rabat, with the participation of cultural events representative of the civil society and an important participation by different national public institutions concerned with cultural affairs. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Member of Parliament for North Tongu constituency, Samuel Okudjeto Ablakwa has asked government to scrap the controversial Electronic Transaction Levy (E-levy) since it's going to the IMF. It may be recalled that part of the campaign to convince Ghanaians to pay the e-levy was that it will prevent us from going to the Fund. However, a tweet from Gabby Asare Otchere Darko suggested that the GHc 600m estimated has not been achieved. "What options are open to government? The question should rather be: what option, if adopted, will re-inject investor confidence in our economy? Even if we find the $3-5 billion required, will that help? E-levy which was to have given us some 600m by now has done less than 60m," he tweeted. Subsequently, on Friday, 2nd July, 2022 government announced its decision to go back to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to support its economic programme. Reacting to this on his Facebook page, Okudjeto Ablakwa wrote: "You gave Ghanaians two options: E-Levy or IMF. Having opted for the IMF, any honest government will scrap the unconstitutional and repugnant E-Levy immediately". "Perhaps the only positive outcome of an IMF bailout is that they wouldnt allow President Akufo-Addo to obstinately continue with his insensitive, wasteful, oligarchic 20,000 an hour chartered luxury jet travels which have cost the suffering taxpayer over GHS34million in 13 months" he added. 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. Featured Video Calls for Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta to resign continue to increase especially as Ghana heads to the IMF. Leader of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG) adding his voice during a panel discussion on Kumasi-based Hello FM said President Akufo-Addo needs to appoint a new Finance Minister. "Reshuffle is long overdue...especially the Finance Minister; he doesn't seem to know what he's doing. Some people have occupied a position for so long and they need to go..." he said. Listen to him in the video below 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. Featured Video It may be recalled that on Friday's edition of Peace FM's morning show 'Kokrokoo', Former General Secretary for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwabena Adjei Agyepong accused his close friends including renowned journalist Kwami Sefa Kayi of leaving him in the lurch when he needed them most. According to him, aside Sefa Kayi, the Managing Editor of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako and Ibrahim Mahama should have also defended him when he was accused of misconduct resulting in his suspension. Im disappointed in you all he stated throughout a one-on-one on Kokrokoo However, Chairman General as he is popularly called, had a response for Mr Agyepong. Listen to him in the video below 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. Featured Video " " Japanese body-painting artist Hikaru Cho adds the finishing touches to a painting on the head of Ryonosuke Tanaka during Tokyo Designers Week in Tokyo, 2014. YOSHIKAZU TSUNO/AFP/Getty Images The spotted creature silently weaves its way in and around the partygoers, its tail bobbing ever so slightly. Flecks of gold are sprinkled across its latte-colored skin, creating a shimmery effect when the light hits it just so. That is the most amazing cheetah costume, you think to yourself. And then suddenly the creature is at your side, and you realize it's not a costume. Not really. It's a person whose body has been transformed into that of a cheetah with paint. Body painting has been around since the beginning of time. Men wiped streaks of paint across their cheeks to prepare for war; women placed dots on their foreheads to indicate they were married; intricate henna designs were painted onto young women's slender hands for decorative purposes. In many cultures, body painting for women morphed into the current practice of slathering on facial cosmetics. For men, it simply disappeared, save for some indigenous peoples in Australia, New Zealand, India, Africa, Japan and the Pacific Islands [sources: Bella Volen, The Pitt Rivers Museum]. Advertisement Although traditional body painting practices may no longer be in vogue in most of the world, the practice still lives on. It's just been a bit modified. Today we paint our bodies as a form of artistic expression. And just for plain old fun. There are two main types of body painting done today. Face painting and full-body (aka large-scale) painting. The paint applied is temporary and lasts a few hours or a day. Designs can be simple or complex, with more streamlined designs typically reserved for the face, and more complex paintings for the entire body [source: Design Your Way]. Wondering what it would be like to be a body painter or a body paintee? Read on to see if you've got what it takes. " " Former CNN pundit Kayleigh McEnany appears in a video on President Trump's Facebook page Aug. 6, hosting a segment called the "Real News." Screenshot HSW We live in a confusing media world. The news used to be something you read in a printed newspaper, or what the guy on TV with good hair talked about at 5 o'clock every weeknight. Whether you thought the news of the day was "good" or "bad" didn't change the fact that it was still the news something we all agreed was important, impartial and in most cases, true. Not anymore. Thanks to deep political polarization and an explosion of news(ish) content shared on social media, whether a news item is "real" or "fake" is now mostly a matter of personal opinion. If the news fits our preconceived political notions, then it's real. Otherwise, it's biased, crooked, conspiratorial or even "Soviet-style propaganda." Advertisement That last label is how some critics on Twitter described a video posted on Aug. 6 on the Facebook page for Donald J. Trump, and his organization that's campaigning (yes, already) for President Trump's re-election in 2020. In the one-and-a-half-minute video, a former CNN commentator named Kayleigh McEnany shares the "News of the Week" from Trump Tower in New York City. The news is unabashedly good McEnany cites a positive job report, an immigration bill and the president honoring veterans and delivered with all the trappings of a cable TV news broadcast, including over-the-shoulder graphics and b-roll footage. Upon closer inspection, there are some clear signs that the video is part of a political campaign and not an unbiased report. For starters, McEnany is sitting in front of a blue backdrop plastered with ads for DonaldJTrump.com, the president's campaign website, and there's the familiar logo for "Trump - Pence: Make America Great Again." Still, by using a recognizable TV personality and surrounding her with cable TV-style graphics, the Trump campaign was clearly trying to position the video as a news broadcast. Not just any news broadcast, of course, but the "real news," as opposed to the "fake news" printed in The New York Times and other "main stream media." McEnany even signs off by saying, "And that's the real news," with a "Real News" caption over her shoulder. While comparisons between the McEnany video and state-run media broadcasts are probably overblown under the video is a caption that says "Paid for by Donald J. Trump for President, Inc." it's fair to ask whether a campaign video on Facebook dressed up as a cable news broadcast represents a new type of threat to conventional news outlets. Chris Wells, associate professor in the School of Journalism & Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, sees the video as a continuation of Trump's communication style, which uses social media Twitter in particular to bypass traditional media gatekeepers. "[The McEnany video] seems like another small, yet still concerning step," Wells says. "It feeds the narrative that the 'fake news' or 'liberal news media' aren't giving you the real story. In the past, it was Fox News or conservative radio that was going to set the record straight for you. This seems like a more direct channel for the Trump campaign to do that." Wells compares the McEnany video to Trump's unorthodox and ongoing "Make America Great Again" rallies "campaign rallies without a campaign," Wells calls them in which a sitting president takes his message of success directly to his supporters. The video is employing the same tactic on social media. One might argue that there's nothing confusing or dangerous about the McEnany video because it's posted on the Facebook page of Donald J. Trump, so anyone viewing it there would understand its political motives, whether they're on the right or left. In fact, just a week earlier, Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump hosted a similar "news of the week"-style video in front of the very same blue backdrop, minus the cool graphics. But Stephanie Edgerly at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism says the trouble starts when a video is shared on Facebook or Twitter, and loses its original context. "You see [the video] shared on your news feed in the same way that you'd see a story from The New York Times, or your aunt's photos from her latest trip," Edgerly says. "It almost equalizes all these very different types of information, which makes these judgment calls harder to make." Even though Facebook was fiercely criticized for helping to spread fake news stories during the 2016 election season, neither Edgerly nor Wells thinks that the social media website has a responsibility to "police" content. The job of parsing fact from fiction, or news from campaign rhetoric, is very much the responsibility of the information consumers. In other words, you and me. "The unfortunate reality of the media world we're living in right now is that you have to be more critical consumers," Edgerly says. "You have to wear your skeptical glasses. 'Is this a news organization? Is it a campaign page? If I Google this headline, what else comes up?' If the expectation is, 'Facebook checks everything and deletes things that are false,' then I worry that people will stop doing that." Now That's Not Cool As an example of how online videos lose context when shared on social media, Edgerly says that many people who "like" and share videos from RT think the abbreviation stands for "retweet," not Russia Today. Exposed rock from low water levels due to the western drought is seen at the Lake Mead Marina on the Colorado River in Boulder City, Nevada on May 5, 2022. In the 15 years since Adam Dailey began boating on Lake Mead, the shoreline has receded hundreds of meters, the result of more than two decades of punishing drought that is drying out the western United States. Launch spots that lined the edge of the lake, located outside Las Vegas, have been abandoned, and a single ramp is now the only way to get a boat in the water. "We used to have more. So everyone's fighting to use one ramp... and still trying to figure out how to get along," said Dailey. "It's kind of sad, what's going on. But we still come out and try to enjoy it when we can." Lake Mead is the largest reservoir in the United States, a huge man-made body of water formed by the construction of the Hoover Dam in the early 1930s. Its 247-square-mile (640-square-kilometer) surface area stores water for tens of millions of people and countless acres of farmland in the southwest. But it's shrinking at a terrifying rate and now stands at just one-quarter full. The National Park Service (NPS), which manages access to the lake, has spent more than $40 million since 2010 trying to keep the water open to boaters. It costs them $2-3 million dollars to reconfigure the boat launch ramp every time the water levels fall another four feet (120 centimeters). "Declining water levels due to climate change and 20 years of ongoing drought have reshaped the park's shorelines," the NPS says on its website. "As Lake Mead continues to recede, extending launch ramps becomes more difficult and more expensive due to the topography and projected decline in water levels." People recreate on the shore during low water levels due to the western drought at the Lake Mead Marina on the Colorado River in Boulder City, Nevada on May 5, 2022. Bathtub ring A series of NPS signs show the shoreline at various points since 2001. The sign marking the level in 2021 is 300 paces from the water. In the mud, the receding waters leave behind bottles, cans, fire extinguishers and other detritus that somehow made its way overboard in years gone by. The rocks that form the hard edges of the reservoir offer a stark illustration of just how far water levels have fallen. A white band of mineral deposits stains the mountainsides like the ring on a bathtub, showing where the water was at its high point after a flood in 1983. "We used to water ski race here," Jaxkxon Zacher told AFP. "And the islandonly the tip... was out 25 years ago. So now we can't even race here anymore. It's dropping drastically." The growing islands in the middle of the lake point to the uneven topography of the valley that was floodedand the hazards that await. "Every day someone's ripping a drive off, because last week, where there was no rock, it's now a foot down or two feet down so things are exposed," boatseller Jason Davis said. "You've got houseboats getting beached and stuck, and people are ripping their lower units off." And with vessels that can retail at hundreds of thousands of dollars, a weekend outing can turn into a costly mistake. Visitors launch boats from a ramp extended multiple times as a result of worsening low water levels due to the western drought at the Lake Mead Marina on the Colorado River in Boulder City, Nevada on May 5, 2022. A new job For some people, the risk of an accident and the sheer hassle of having to wait so long to get a boat into the water and then out again at the end of the day means Lake Mead is no longer a viable recreation option. Below the Hoover Dam, stretches of river remain relatively unscathed by the dropping water levels. At Willow Beach, across the state line in Arizona, kayakers frolic in the shallows, unloading water pistols on each other as 104 Fahrenheit (40 Celsius) sunshine beats down. A small marina there offers Steve McMasters a place to stage his pontoon, just a short distance from his home in Boulder City. "It can be a four-to-five-hour wait on weekends to get your boat out of the water (at Lake Mead), so this is big to have," he said. "I waited like four months on a waiting list to get it. I got lucky here." Climatologists say two decades of drought is not unheard of in the western United States, but combined with human-caused global warming, it is transforming the region. Higher temperatures mean less moisture falls as snow on the Rocky Mountains, and what snowpack does form melts more quickly. This leaves the Colorado River without the slow and steady feed that supplied it year-round in the centuries and millennia before the region was settled. The bathtub ring of Lake Mead during low water levels due to the western drought at the Lake Mead Marina on the Colorado River in Boulder City, Nevada on May 5, 2022. In climatic terms, Lake Mead is a baby; in existence for less than 90 years. But in human terms, it is vanishing at a startling pace. Jason Davis, the boatseller, says more people need to witness the stark changes for themselves. "If you haven't come to see these rings, you know, you don't quite comprehend," he said. And if the water keeps dropping? "I'll need a new job." Explore further A major California reservoir has hit its peak for the year at just over half full 2022 AFP MAURICE RIVER TOWNSHIP As sunset nears and the tide turns on Thompsons Beach on a weekday evening in late June, tangles of horseshoe crabs focus on the task of making more horseshoe crabs. They gather on the waters edge on a brick-strewn beach on the Delaware Bay, at the end of a long dirt road not far from the mouth of the Maurice River. A portion of a fireplace and a ragged foundation flanked by a timber barrier are all that remains of a waterfront town that once thrived along this beach. The first big hit came in the 1950s, and subsequent storms and floods slowly whittled away the remaining buildings, leaving little sign of human occupation. Before the town washed away, before the first home was built, the horseshoe crabs were there. In fact, the armored animals have been around far longer than New Jersey, laying eggs each spring back when most of the state was still underwater. The animals have remained more or less unchanged for about 450 million years, according to Shane Godshall, the restoration project manager for the American Littoral Society. That means they predate the dinosaurs and are still going strong. Horseshoe crabs have been doing their thing since before trees had leaves, he said, and have survived multiple mass extinction events that each wiped out most life on the planet, long before the appearance of human beings. The Littoral Society is working to ensure there are still beaches for the crabs to use on the bay, one of the most important spots for horseshoe crabs in the world. Strathmere celebrates beach nesting birds with new signs They were put in place last month as part of a threefold event for the Strathmere Improvemen Its the largest concentration of horseshoe crabs in the known universe, he tells a crowd of a couple dozen volunteers who have gathered on the beach, swathed in bug spray. After a short introduction to the animals and a demonstration, these volunteers will gather crabs from the waterline, punch holes in the left side of their shells and attach a numbered plastic tag. The organization tags about 4,000 crabs a year, part of a tagging program approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Each round, white tag includes a serial number, and the volunteers take notes on the crab as each tag is attached, marking if it is a male or a female and if it has any visible injuries or attached barnacles or other shellfish along for the ride. Godshall, along with habitat restoration technician Toni Rose Tablante and habitat restoration coordinator Quinn Whitsall, assures the volunteers the tags will not hurt the crabs or impair their survival. After the demonstration, the volunteers poke a hole part of the way through the shell with a hand tool, which has been modified to ensure it does not go too far in. For some crabs, there is a spurt of clear, blue-tinted blood from the hole. According to Godshall, they heal quickly. Naturalists and anyone else interested in horseshoe crabs will be able to look up those numbers online when they see them in the future, providing data on the crab movements and their numbers. For the Littoral Society, the tags can also help indicate how effective beach replenishment and habitat restoration projects have been in restoring the horseshoe crab breeding areas. The organization has worked on projects at Reeds Beach, Cooks Beach and Kimbles Beach along the bay, trying to ensure there are places for the crabs to lay their eggs. Volunteers scour bayside beaches to rescue horseshoe crabs Try to picture a million horseshoe crabs, gathered on a Delaware Bay beach this spring. The crew on the beach said they have seen a rebound since New Jersey ended their harvest in 2008, although this year state officials have looked at amending that ban. It is not just about the crabs. The crabs eggs fuel thousands of shore birds each spring, including the endangered red knot, which makes an extraordinary migration from the far south of South America to the Artic Circle to breed. They arrive on the Delaware Bay in May, half-starved and ready to gorge on horseshoe crab eggs. On this June evening, stripes of the eggs can be seen on the beach, and in the water near the tide line, thick as an egg chowder. The freshly laid eggs are opaque and colorful. A few on the beach appear clear. Those who look very closely are rewarded with a glimpse of a minuscule crab tumbling and swimming within the membrane, more detailed than anything Faberge could have ever presented. The crabs used to be used as bait, and as fertilizer. Now, New Jersey only allows their use for medical purposes. There is a chemical in the animals blue blood that can be used to test medicines for contamination. That includes artificial knees, in injectable drugs and in vaccines, including the vaccines for COVID-19. The volunteer tagging events are winding up for the year. They take place around the new and full moons, Godshall said, when the crabs are the most active. Stockton hosts Atlantic City Community Cleanup Day ATLANTIC CITY Hundreds of volunteers were in ODonnell Park Saturday morning with trash ba The crowd was a mix of Jersey Shore locals and summer visitors. Some volunteers return again and again, but for most, this was their first time wrangling horseshoe crabs. One strict instruction: Do not interrupt the female crabs when they are laying eggs, each surrounded by ardent male suitors. Using volunteers is not the most efficient way to get the crabs tagged, but there are other benefits, Godshall said. The process can help members of the public gain a connection to the alien-looking horseshoe crabs, and in turn to care about what happens to them. Its a completely different experience being on the beach with them, interacting with them and holding them, he said. For us, its really about stewardship and building a group of people who care about horseshoe crabs. That seemed to be the case for Jennifer Bowman, who made the trip to Cumberland County from Ocean City as part of a group organized by Joan Vicari, of Egg Harbor Township. Vicari was the librarian at Ocean City High School for many years, including when Bowman attended the school. Vicari founded the Student Environmental Association at the high school in 1984. Vicari helps install protective fences for turtles, tag crabs and undertake other environmental efforts. She regularly organizes groups to join in the horseshoe crab project. Bowman participated with her daughter last year, and this year was on the beach with her cousin Kristine Emmons, of Florida. For Bowman, the event was a good motivation to visit a historic area of the state, and to see the crab breeding up close. Its such a unique opportunity. And then youre rewarded with a beautiful sunset. What an amazing night, she said. You are here: China Twenty-seven people were missing after a floating crane sank in waters off the coast of south China's Guangdong province on Saturday morning, according to the provincial maritime search and rescue center Sunday. At 3:50 a.m. Saturday, the floating crane was found via monitoring system to have had dragged anchor and was in danger after its mooring chain broke while it was avoiding typhoon Chaba in waters near the city of Yangjiang. The floating crane had sunk, according to the provincial maritime search and rescue center. Rescue helicopters, rescue vessels and merchant vessels nearby have been mobilized to search for the missing people, said the center. Three people were rescued at about 12 p.m. Saturday and 27 others fell into water and were missing, the center said. Search and rescue efforts are still underway. In 2016, Atlantic Citys local government was broke. It could not pay its employees or fund its public schools. Republican Gov. Chris Christie and the Democratic majority state Legislature responded with two drastic new laws. A Municipal Stabilization Act created a new state office with the power to disregard union contracts and civil service rules. It then cut salaries and fired employees. A Casino Property Tax Stabilization Act exempted Atlantic Citys eight casino properties from local property taxes for 10 years. It had them pay their share for public schools and local government with payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT) based on their gross gambling income. I was then the attorney and executive director for a local organization called Liberty and Prosperity. One of our core missions is to promote awareness and compliance with federal and state constitutions. We did not oppose the 2016 Municipal Stabilization Act. It complied with the state constitution and was long overdue. Big cuts in government spending were needed to match big drops in taxpayer income after the subprime mortgage recession and competition from Pennsylvania casinos in 2008. However, we did oppose the Casino Property Tax Act. We filed a lawsuit declaring that it was unconstitutional. Since 1875, the State Constitution required all real estate to be assessed and taxed equally. Exceptions can only be made by amending the constitution not just by passing a new law. Two years later, we settled that lawsuit. The Municipal Stabilization Act cut spending, and balanced the citys budget with sustainable taxes. Its yearly budget dropped from $262 million in 2015 to 225 million in 2018. We also saw from two years of actual tax collections that the PILOT law did not reduce what the casinos would have been paying in real estate taxes. The increase in internet gambling income made the alternative tax method work. Finally, when the case was about to be decided, the state agreed to a very fair court settlement. The state promised that it would not allow the 10 year PILOT law to negatively impact taxpayers in Atlantic City or Atlantic County. The eight Atlantic City casinos were not parties to that lawsuit or the settlement. However, they were actively involved in writing the PILOT legislation. They also closely monitored the litigation. They never objected to what the state was doing in public or in court. If the state kept its promises, the PILOT program would have quietly continued until it expired at the end of 2026. By then, most of Atlantic Citys debt from its 2010 to 2018 financial crisis would have been paid off. Atlantic City casino properties would then be taxed like all other real estate, as required by the State Constitution. However, the state broke its promise. Last December, the state changed the Casino Property Tax law so casinos would no longer include internet gambling in calculating the casino PILOT payments. The casinos would pay roughly $5 million less to Atlantic City government in 2022 and roughly $19.3 million less to Atlantic County government over the next five years. That is why we are back in court. We want the state to again use internet gambling income to calculate the casino PILOT payments. If that cannot be done, we want the court to enforce the State Constitution. We want casino properties to again pay regular real estate taxes like everybody else. Atlantic Citys nine casino properties are worth more than half of the total value of all real estate in Atlantic City. They should pay more than half the cost of public schools and local government. Also, the casinos together with their employees, professionals and suppliers have far more political clout than any other group in Atlantic City. They should be financially motivated to demand honest and efficient local government that benefits all taxpayers not special deals for themselves. This is why the equal taxation provision was added to the State Constitution in 1875. Finally, state mismanagement created Atlantic Citys financial mess. The state took over Atlantic Citys finances in 2010, but waited seven years to cut spending. During that time, the state broke its own balanced budget laws for local government. That put Atlantic City taxpayers more than $400 million into debt. Both the state and the casinos have a legal and moral obligation to pay their share of it. The case is now before Judge Michael Blee. He is scheduled to decide this case on Aug. 5. ST. JACOB One man died and another was seriously injured in a plane crash at roughly 11:30 a.m. Saturday near St. Jacob, according to Illinois State Police. The plane, a White Piper Comanche 250, took off from nearby St. Louis Metro East Airport/Shafer Field, police said in a news release. The plane lost altitude for unknown reasons and crashed just west of the intersection of Illinois Route 4 and Keck Road. Robert L. Binger, a 60-year-old man from Lake City, Florida, died in the crash. Buck E. Martin, 39, of Edwardsville, was transported to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries. An investigation into the crash was ongoing as of Saturday afternoon. TINLEY PARK Chii Lewis said that long before COVID-19 vaccinations were available for children 5 and under, family members were urging her to have her son, Isaiah, get the shot. But she was not fully on board. "I was more nervous than my husband," she said before her 3-year-old got his first injection Thursday. "I know it's safer for him to be vaccinated than not." While there was some crying after getting jabbed with the first of three shots spread out over 11 weeks, Chii and her husband, Trevell, were there with Isaiah at an Advocate Aurora Health pediatric clinic in Evergreen Park. In no time, the boy acted as if nothing had happened, with an "I got mine" sticker affixed to his shirt. As vaccinations are now available for children 6 months to 5 years, health care professionals in the south and southwest suburbs say they are fielding questions about the safety and effectiveness of the shots. Following clearance from the Food and Drug Administration and then the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, vaccines became available for order by health care providers June 18, and the Evergreen Park site began administering shots June 21. Dr. Markeita Moore, Isaiah's pediatrician, said she is mostly asked about how new the vaccine is, possible side effects and its effectiveness. The Pfizer vaccine has a gap of 21 days between the first and second dose then a third shot coming eight weeks after the second injection, she said. Plans call for also offering the Moderna vaccine for young children. The Pfizer vaccines effectiveness is a bit more than 80%, Moore said. Potential side effects are similar to those experienced by adults, including soreness at the injection site, fatigue and fever. Moore said the side effects tend to be more pronounced after the second dose. Moore said while vaccinated children can still become infected with COVID-19, they're much less likely to get severely ill if they have been vaccinated. "With the summer time we tend to forget there is still COVID out there," Moore said. "With the vaccination, there is an extra layer of protection that would give them less of a chance of getting COVID." Delovely Jackson is a nurse practitioner at the Olympia Fields location of Specialty Physicians of Illinois, where vaccinations are now offered to children 5 and older, but tentatively plans are to expand that to younger children on July 11. "We have had multiple calls from parents even before it was approved," she said. Jackson said that some parents want to hold off and see the results with other young children before committing to the shot, and may wait until closer to the start of the school year. "They don't want to be guinea pigs," she said. The Cook County Department of Public Health said it expects many parents seeking the vaccination for their child will go to their pediatrician, but that the health system offers options including mobile vaccination clinics at events, churches and schools. Mobile vaccination clinics began inoculating children 6 months through 4 years the week of June 20, according to a spokesman. Chii Lewis said her aunt is a pediatrician in Ohio and she has an uncle who is a surgeon in California, and both urged her to have Isaiah vaccinated as soon as shots were available for younger children. "This was even before my husband and I could be vaccinated," she said. Lewis, who lives in Chicago's Beverly community, said she was still hesitant, but became convinced it was the right move after consulting with others, including Moore. She said she was grateful for her pediatrician's guidance in the matter. "She is amazing," Lewis said. "With all of the questions I had, even with the medical professionals in my family, we wanted to speak with his pediatrician." Lewis said she chose to share her story and allow photos of Isaiah receiving the vaccination as a way of encouraging other families to get their youngsters vaccinated. "If there is any way we can help other families to do the same, we will," she said. Moore, a pediatrician for nearly 10 years, said she has two sons, 8 and 6, who were vaccinated late last year. While the children's vaccine requires multiple doses, she said that, for parents at least, it's not a big deal to add a few more injections. "They are used to the childhood vaccinations at that age," Moore said. In mid June, just before the FDA and CDC approval of the vaccines for younger children, the Chicagoland Children's Health Alliance was encouraging families to consider having children vaccinated once doses became available. The alliance includes Advocate Children's Hospital, the department of pediatrics at NorthShore University HealthSystem and the University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children's Hospital. "We know parents of many young children have been anxiously awaiting this moment, which will finally allow entire families to be afforded the additional layer of protection that COVID-19 vaccination provides," the alliance said in a June 16 statement. The alliance noted that while children have often fared better than adults when it comes to COVID-19, many children have also faced severe side effects from this virus, including long COVID and Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children, or MIS-C. According to the CDC, MIS-C is a condition where different body parts can become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes or gastrointestinal organs. While it is not known what causes the condition, data has shown that many children with MIS-C had the virus that causes COVID-19 or had been exposed to someone with the virus, according to the CDC. A Davenport man has been charged with pimping after police found text messages with four women discussing prices and times for sexual acts on his cell phone. On April 14, James Olyn Shell Jr., 28, was one of five people inside a trailer home at 5112 N. Fairmount St., when Davenport police served a search warrant at the home. Police were conducting an investigation into a narcotics operation and a shooting that had occurred Feb. 11 in the 3900 block of North Elsie Avenue. Shell was on parole from the Iowa Department of Corrections at the time. His cell phone was seized as part of the investigation. The Davenport Police Departments Forensic team located conversations between Shell and four women that included solicitation for prostitution. The conversations, which occurred from Feb. 10 until April 5, included prices and times for sexual acts. A warrant was issued for Shells arrest. Shell is charged with one count of pimping, a Class D felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of five years. According to the arrest warrant filed by Davenport Police Officer Joel Griffin, Shell was arrested Friday as he was seen driving a 2015 Chevrolet Trax in the 2100 block of East Kimberly Road. Shell is barred from driving until Oct. 14, 2025. During a search of the vehicle, officers seized a bag, inside of which were eight tied bags of marijuana, totaling 33.15 grams, and a digital scale. Police also seized five alprazolam pills for which Shell did not have a prescription. The drug is used for anxiety and panic disorders. Also located in the vehicle were seven ecstasy pills that tested positive for methamphetamine and five-tenths of a gram of a substance that tested positive for cocaine. In addition to the pimping charge, Shell is charged with one count of possession with the intent to deliver marijuana, a Class D felony. He also is charged with driving while barred and possession of prescription pills, namely the alprazolam pills, each of which is an aggravated misdemeanor that carries a prison sentence of two years. Shell also is charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance-first offense, for the cocaine and ecstasy. Each of those charges is serious misdemeanor that carries a jail sentence of up to one year. Shell was being held Saturday night in the Scott County Jail on bonds totaling $5,000, cash or surety. During a first appearance Saturday in Scott County District Court, Magistrate Peter Geirut scheduled arraignment in the cases for July 21. Shell had served a prison sentence on convictions of operating a vehicle without the owners consent, operating under the influence-third offense, assault causing bodily injury and driving while barred-habitual offender. He was placed on parole Oct. 20, 2021. His parole ended April 30, 2022. CHICAGO - Chicago enters the July Fourth weekend with some encouraging news: The unrelenting gun violence that the city has experienced over the previous two years continues to decline, with a double-digit decline in homicides, officials reported Friday. With a number of factors in play, including that the city is rebounding from a deadly pandemic that coincided with increased violence, it would be hard to pinpoint just what is driving the reductions, or even celebrate them just yet, especially with most of the summer ahead, experts said. The news is also tempered by the fact that gun violence here remains historically and unacceptably high, as evidenced by two shootings early Friday: The wounding of a Chicago police officer just hours after an overnight shooting outside a downtown business that wounded three people and left two dead. Although gun violence across Chicago declined in the past six months, issues downtown, a place where people from all over the city gather, have been higher than usual this year, leaving many in Chicago on edge. That dynamic was punctuated by the killing of a teen in Millennium Park earlier this year. At a news conference Friday afternoon to announce safety measures in advance of the holiday weekend, Mayor Lori Lightfoot acknowledged the tension between the real declines and the perceptions of safety in the city. We are making progress on both homicides and shootings, Lightfoot said. Nobody is taking their foot off the gas. There is a lot more work that we need to do to build the confidence in the public that our city is safe. But it is also important to mark the milestone of progress. Meanwhile, experts also urged caution about the numbers, saying critical months remain. Its too soon to tell. We are just creeping into the summer. Its always June, July, August that adds the biggest count to the total. said Northwestern professor Wesley Skogan, of the Institute for Policy Research, who added at least one note of hope. The really bad years are the ones that start off badly, Skogan said, nodding to the declines in the statistics. Numbers show a decrease Through June 26 there had been 304 homicides in Chicago, approximately a 10% decrease from the 336 recorded during the same time frame last year. There were 1,220 shootings incidents in the first half of the year, a decline of 17% from last year, according to Chicago Police Department statistics. The overall drop comes after a significant two-year spike in gun violence, including a 60% increase in homicides during 2020 and 2021, a time when the pandemic struck and the country faced a national reckoning over police abuse in America that included sustained criticism of especially big-city departments. The six-month numbers also show a roughly 25% increase in robbery victimizations, according to city of Chicago data portal. And carjackings, a crime that has received widespread attention, remain higher this year, with a 7% increase, according to the portal. The gun violence also is trending down in some of the citys less-safe neighborhoods. But the figures remain elevated in unexpected places, including downtown, which presented a challenge for the department at the start of summer. Officers were forced to contain large groups of teenagers who gathered in the center of the city and caused unrest but also violence, including the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old Seandell Holliday near The Bean in May. A city curfew was enacted for Millennium Park, forbidding unaccompanied minors from being there after 6 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. But despite the perception reinforced by high-profile incidents, the number of shootings downtown is well below levels of violence that continue to occur in historically less-safe communities, where the continued use of firearms in street conflicts is the overriding factor. Last weekend, 5-month Cecilia Thomasbecame the citys youngest victim killed by gunfire in years when she was struck by a bullet while riding in the back seat of her familys vehicle as it traveled on the 7700 block of South South Shore Drive. The need to both secure downtown and protect neighborhoods presents a massive task for the city, which Lightfoot and police Superintendent David Brown addressed at the Friday news conference. Weve ensured we have enough officers where we need them most, Brown pledged, though he declined to provide any specific numbers regarding police presence over the holiday weekend. Brown acknowledged that long weekends, such as the July Fourth holiday, are difficult for CPD, and are one of the periods when leadership cancels days off. Only a first step For sure, signs that homicides and gun-involved injuries could be reversing is meaningful and important. But Skogan and other experts noted that making gains against the two-year spike is only a first step. For one, the homicide and shooting numbers are still up when compared to 2019, before the pandemic and the unrest of 2020. And even if the city does return to pre-pandemic levels, the challenge will be to achieve even greater declines. Five to six years ago, the city had much lower gun crime numbers, compared with previous years, said Roseanna Ander, director of the University of Chicago Crime Lab. But the figures were still significantly higher than Los Angeles and New York City, and the impact of all of it was being felt most in the same places it always has been in Chicagos Black and Latino communities that have been starved of resources for decades. Even the 2015 levels were unconscionably high, particularly in a country with the kind of resources this country has, Ander said. We were, even in 2015, a tale of two cities. Depending on what neighborhood you lived in, your exposure to violence and sense of safety and security varied greatly. More boots on the ground The challenges ahead in 2022 for Chicago are significant and the summer months will certainly determine if the short-term gains hold. Some noted that Chicago Public Schools closed just two weeks ago, which means there are more youth in need of programming now, at a time that agencies are facing staffing shortages. The Chicago Park District announced Tuesday that fewer than half its pools would open Tuesday, amid a lifeguard shortage that had already delayed public pool openings. And Chicago police are facing significant personnel shortages, putting a strain on officers who are facing long work weeks. But this summer also marks a new, and significant, commitment by the city to support a more diverse and community-driven strategy for public safety. The Community Safety Coordination Center is operating for the first summer season. The center aims to harness resources from all city offices from sanitation to Park District to combat violence. It is also trying to fast-track support and money to a strength Chicago always had, namely local organizations and neighbors trying to address the violence in their own corner of the city. Meanwhile, street outreach efforts to those most at-risk of violence are now coordinated citywide across dozens of groups, bringing immediate interventions on street conflicts and victim services. There is a lot of strategy this summer including more boots on the grounds with outreach and more summer programs, Skogan said. In the Back of Yards neighborhood Thursday, Oscar Contreras, who has been doing outreach on violence for more than 20 years, was working two phones in his office as he tried to coordinate three events for the community. Contreras, a program manager for the Back of the Yards Neighborhood Council, said he believes the pressure has eased a little, and people are slowly feeling more safe. He sees more coordination too. A recent spate of shootings in the Back of the Yards was immediately addressed, he said, with cooperation from a few groups. But Contreras cautioned this type of work is not easy or fast, and that the commitments this summer need to hold. And when there are shootings downtown, there is a different kind of pressure from people who want quick answers, he said. People dont understand this doesnt happen overnight, he said. At the news conference, Lightfoot stuck to often repeated themes, highlighting the coordination of city agencies and criticizing the amount of illegal guns on the street. Then she also made a call for peace on a holiday that celebrates freedoms that are not available to people throughout the world. Its important for us to highlight those moments of joy, Lightfoot said. But we have a responsibility and an opportunity in this democracy to not forget that we are each others neighbors, and that weve got to find common ground to be able to move forward. Chicago Tribunes Gregory Pratt contributed. OTTAWA The tale of how residents of Ottawa, Illinois, helped a fugitive slave escape to freedom marks a transitional phase in the states history, experts say, but has been largely forgotten. Historians hope that changes Monday the Fourth of July when they will explain the story during the dedication of a historical marker outside the Ottawa courthouse. According to Illinois State Historical Society research, Jim Gray was one of three enslaved people who escaped in 1859 from owner Richard Phillips near New Madrid, Missouri. Gray was arrested in Union County, Illinois, and taken to Ottawa for trial. He arrived at the train station with his arms and legs shackled and a rope around his neck. A crowd gathered at the station, where Scottish immigrant and grain merchant John Hossack asked, What crime has he committed? Has he done anything but want to be free? At the courthouse the next day, hundreds of onlookers gathered. Gray was ordered to appear before a U.S. commissioner for a hearing under the Fugitive Slave Law, which likely would have meant his return to enslavement. According to a plan hatched by local abolitionists and led in part by Hossack, several men restrained the U.S. marshal holding the prisoner, and Gray broke free. Hassock brought Gray out of the building, while the crowd blocked the marshal from pursuing. Outside, Gray jumped the fence and leaped into an awaiting carriage. Despite an attempt to stop the team of horses, the carriage raced out of town, to Canada and freedom under British law. Hossack and several others were arrested and taken to Chicago for trial. They were held in jail, where crowds of supporters visited them. Hossack was found guilty and sentenced to 10 days in jail and a $10 fine, but his speech in court was published as an anti-slavery tract. Upon his release, he and his fellow conspirators were escorted around the city and treated like celebrities. At the time, the Illinois Constitution excluded Blacks from moving to the state without a certificate of freedom, and its Black Laws prevented them from voting or having other basic rights. After passage of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, slave catchers abducted Black people even if they had certificates of freedom. Hossacks mansion, which still stands on a bluff in Ottawa, was a stop on the Underground Railroad for escaped slaves, and Chicago was a terminus, where Blacks could open a business or find work, according to the Chicago History Museum. The Illinois State Historical Society offers grants to help pay for such markers, which cost about $5,000 and are made of cast aluminum. Board member Chuck Stanley, who lives in Ottawa and helped lead the effort, said few people know the story of Jim Gray, which means the marker will enlighten visitors about what happened. It was a dramatic event, for abolitionists to take a prisoner from a U.S. marshal in a courthouse and get him to freedom, he said. The incident stood in sharp contrast to the vigilante lynchings of Blacks at the time. According to the court transcript, Gray was born to enslaved parents in Missouri, but sold at age 5. What happened to Gray after his escape to Canada remains a mystery. While Grays thoughts remain a secret, We only know that when he had a chance to run, he did, wrote Christopher Schnell, director of manuscripts at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield,. Grays escape came at a turning point in American history, when pro- and anti-slavery views clashed in Illinois and across the nation, Schnell said. In general, Schnell said, Illinois was not a friendly place for enslaved people or freed Black people. Abolitionists like Hossack were considered extremists, but his support in Chicago indicates he was not alone. To put the times in context, the escape came two years after the U.S. Supreme Court, in the Dred Scott case, denied citizenship to all Black people. It came just a year after the first debate, held in Ottawa, between future President Abraham Lincoln and Sen. Stephen Douglas, over the issue of slavery, and less than two years before the beginning of the Civil War. Despite popular support for exclusionary laws, Stanley said, the Jim Gray escape shows how strong the sentiment was for the abolitionist cause in northern Illinois. Illinois Supreme Court Justice Robert Carter, who lives in Ottawa, will dedicate the memorial, and former Mayor Robert Eschbach will speak. The Ottawa Historic Preservation Commission, the La Salle County Bar Association and the William G. Pomeroy Foundation also sponsored the effort. On July 4, we will celebrate the birthday of our nation, a nation which was, as Abraham Lincoln so eloquently put it in his Gettysburg Address, conceived in Liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. When Lincoln delivered his address on a battlefield where the fate of our nation was decided, it was a time of great uncertainty. A time of crisis in which a bloody civil war threatened the future of the nation. A time when Lincoln expressed the fervent hope that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. Today, a century and a half after Lincolns inspiring address, our nation once again is experiencing a time of crisis. A crisis in which a president who could not accept the fact that he was defeated for a second term orchestrated an attempted coup in an effort to remain in office. An attempted coup culminated with his supporters storming the U.S. Capitol in an effort to prevent his opponent from officially being declared the winner of the election. In part, the attempted coup failed because judges on multiple levels, including judges and justices which President Trump nominated, repeatedly ruled that his allegation that the election had been stolen from him because of widespread fraud was not backed up by the facts. Even more significant was the fact that key elected Republican officials, as has been underscored by the hearings by the U.S. House of Representatives select committee that is investigating the events related to the January 6, 2021, storming of the U.S. Capitol, courageously decided that their primary loyalty was to the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law, rather than to do what President Trump tried to pressure them into doing. These elected Republican officials include Vice President Mike Pence, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, and Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers. You might or might not agree with their views on abortion, gun regulations and other matters of controversy. However, we all owe them a huge debt of gratitude for the courageous decisions that they made in the face of immense pressure, courageous decisions which saved our democracy from the most savage assault on the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law since the Civil War. What does the future hold? In substantial measure, that depends on what happens with respect to the Republican Party, a party with a long-standing tradition of respect for the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law. A tradition Donald Trump is hell-bent on eradicating as he does everything in his power to remake the GOP in his own image. Which of these countervailing forces will prevail? We dont know the answer to that question. The future, by its very nature, is difficult to study. All things considered, however, I am optimistic that those who respect the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law will prevail. I take comfort in the fact that Georgia Secretary of State Raffensperger defeated an opponent Trump recruited to run against him in the primary. If Donald Trump succeeds in remaking the Republican Party in his own image, democracy as we know it will cease to exist, for it is essential that both major political parties be committed to supporting the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law, including the peaceful transfer of power in keeping with the will of the people as expressed at the ballot box. But if people like Mike Pence, Brad Raffensperger and Rusty Bowers define the future of the Republican Party, democracy as we know it will continue to exist and, to use Lincolns phrase, government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. Yesterday was the 246th anniversary of the adoption of the Lee-Adams Resolution of Independence, the action which officially severed our ties with Great Britain. Tomorrow is the 246th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, a document that explained what had been done two days earlier. You could use those two events to illustrate the contrasting appeal of reality and marketing. It is pretty clear which carried the day: we celebrate Independence Day on July 4th, commemorating the eloquent and persuasive announcement which advertised to the world the dramatic action taken earlier by the Continental Congress. This July 3rd, we are between these two anniversaries; an appropriate time to reflect on which you prefer: dry fact or artful persuasion; the steak or the sizzle. The intricacies of decision-making, the gritty details of compromise, just dont have the public appeal of a good selling job. The choice matters little if promotion is based on fact. Its when the two divide that we get into trouble. In these days of universal selling, when everything from religion and politics to goods and services is being hawked, its hard to know whats real. We cant be sure if were being sold the Bill of Rights or a Bill of Goods. In the marketplace, the watchword remains caveat emptor. When you are offered a deal too good to be true, it is. During my early years as a TV pitchman, I saw up close the deception involved in hustling goods on camera. The medium has now become more sophisticated and semi-regulated, but even as the voice-over cautions that this drug can kill you, an actors cheerful voice and countenance tell a contrary and more compelling story. This tension between fact and fantasy; reality and wish fulfillment; runs in various modes of human transactions. The economic collapse of 2008 was brought about by economic illusions on two levels: lenders imagining that they could eliminate the risk of bad loans by spreading them across an infinite web of responsibility; and borrowers dreaming of owning homes beyond their means being seduced by unscrupulous agents interested in nothing but their immediate commissions. We patched things up by leaving the gullible borrowers destitute and penalizing the guilty financial institutions by making them - as one wag put it - too big to fail, jail, or curtail. The fixation on fantasy in finance has run through three massive tax breaks for the wealthy. The promise was that giving the wealthy more money would spur investment and increase jobs. In three tries, it never worked, yet it is still an article of faith in finance today. At the intersection of politics and finance, slogans continue to trump balance sheets. Cutting taxes is unrealistic in our debt-ridden times, but it is such a powerful mantra that it overrides the math. If fiscal reality finally intrudes and the well-off are threatened, the prudent pol directs public anger at those least able to counter it: the poor, immigrants, or any minority at hand. Its in current politics that we find the most dangerous gulf between fact and fantasy. We are in the middle of Congressional hearings on former president Trumps attempted coup to subvert the 2020 election and remain in office. The deeper his allies dig, the less evidence they find to support his claim. Yet a sizable segment of the electorate takes his statement as an article of faith. Its rather like believing that Tinker Bell is real: the louder we applaud, the stronger she grows. While Tumps multiple efforts to upend our democracy, including incitement to insurrection, make him a tempting target for legal action, there are extenuating circumstances. He is emotionally delicate and cannot bear the thought of being proven a loser, a term his brutal father applied to everyone who wasnt a killer. There is also the fact that his Stop the Steal lie has earned him a quarter of a billion dollars. Its really just his concept of business as usual. His followers have an out as well. When a person in a position of authority speaks with passion and conviction, it is easy to be carried away by attractive illusions, especially if they conform to what one wishes to be true. Few actually question the words and ideas which move us to buy or vote. If it sounds good, it must be true. During the eight years I spent in Springfield, I was sobered by the manner in which undeniable facts were routinely dismissed in favor of political orthodoxy. When I asked why even reasonable limits on handguns could not be enacted, a member of leadership assured me that a public vote would rile the National Rifle Association and scupper ones re-election. But he added: If we could vote by secret ballot, gun control would pass in a heartbeat. So what in this world is really true? And whom can we trust to tell us that truth? Further, do we really want the truth if it contradicts the beliefs with which we are comfortable? This is a long ramble from this weekends twin anniversaries of Independence, but the relationship between what is done and what is said about it remains worth considering. Our revolutionary leaders sought to secure national liberty and were open and honest about what they did and why. Our national goals today are as varied and contradictory as our citizenry. The problems facing us are so overwhelming and intractable that too many find it easier to support leaders who provoke their passions rather than appeal to reason. The Founding Fathers stirred the country in forthright words and deeds. Can we find that balance again? The Bitterroot Valley is celebrating Independence Day in various communities with Darby hosting Sacajawea Day, the return of the Stevensville "pig-nic," and fireworks displays set for Florence and Hamilton. In Darby, the Bitterroot Heritage Civic Group is presenting Sacajawea Day, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, July 4, in Sacajawea Rest Park, 209 N. Main Street, Darby. The formal presentation begins at 11 a.m. with Laurie Smith of Darby Endowment, talking about the Sacajawea Parks history and plans. There will be a guest artist demonstration by Shirley Anderson Sylvester of the Montana Archaeological Board and signature member of the Montana Watercolor Society. Gay Findley, Bitterroot Heritage Committee chair, said the centerpiece of the celebration is the unveiling of the Descent Trail markers for the Lewis and Clark Trail on the pass. Weve had several national visitors lately, Findley said. The speakers include Travelers Rest Director Molly Stockdale, Darby National Forest Trails Ranger Mark Smith, Trapper Creek Job Corps representative Dave Brothers (TCJC built the markers), and retired Darby District Ranger Eric Winthers. They all worked together on this project, Findley said. Kristine Komar worked on the grant for the project. National Smoke Jumper Association past president Fred Cooper will speak and current Darby District Ranger Abbie Jossie will be there to meet the community. Findley said Ted Hall would talk about the meeting with the Salish. They call it the second gift, Findley said. It is when the Salish gave horses to the Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery so they could continue their trail. Their horses were broken down and the Salish delivered fresh horses. The Bitterroot Heritage Committee will also have a fundraiser onsite by selling T-shirts, key chains, bracelets and the sale of Henry Hamilton Grants books. We are working on a mural for the park and the lady who is going to do it is local, Findley said. Were trying to gather funds for the mural, and weve been working on it. We even did a booth at the 50-Mile Garage Sale so we could have some funds. She said the Bitterroot Heritage Committee is also gathering funds for park repairs. In Darby, the BHC will also host a Bitterrodders Car Club Show n Shine car show. It should be a good get-together, Findley said. For our little town, its going to be a pretty good get-together. We timed it so people can attend before they do their Fourth of July events like family dinners. She said the Sacajawea Park in Darby has been a culmination of community effort. It has been a private local thing by the Bitterroot Heritage group, the heritage markers have been a combination of the Forest Service and the Lewis and Clark national committee, Findley said. It is all starting to come together. We started at the end of 2018. We got the bronze paid for by donations. It is a very pretty little park and a community investment. The Trapper Creek Job Corps built the tables, benches, and back wall and the Darby High School shop class built all the metal work in the park. Stevensville is hosting their famous pig-nic, a community potluck for comfortable community visiting. Roast pork will be provided, at noon, bring a dish to share and a lawn chair to relax on at Lewis and Clark Park on the west end of Second Street. No fireworks or skate park events are planned. The City of Hamilton is hosting a fireworks show at dark at the Ravalli County Fairgrounds, 100 Old Corvallis Road in Hamilton. Donations are welcome and can be mailed to Hamilton City Hall, 223 S. 2nd Street, Hamilton, MT 59840. The fairgrounds will open at 5 p.m. and food trucks will be on site. Fairgrounds Manager Melissa Saville said the food trucks include Meandering Moose, Big Sky Squeeze and Baskin Robbins. Hamilton Mayor Dominic Farrenkopf said the city has almost raised all the money needed for the fireworks display. We are confident that a few more donors are out there that would like to support the show, and I am grateful that we have people who feel that way, Farrenkopf said. I will also be at the fireworks display dressed as Uncle Sam walking through the crowd with a donation bucket. I would encourage people to bring a lawn chair or a blanket on Monday night and enjoy the fireworks show that will be displayed at dark, around 10:30 p.m. Florence is also having a community picnic, a raffle and a fireworks show around 10:20 p.m. or as soon as it is dark. The Florence Rural Fire District and the Florence Firefighters Association are sponsoring the annual July 4 fireworks show. Fire Department Volunteer Kathy Case said the event is special and open to everyone. We are not doing food this year but will have food trucks there from 6 to 10 p.m., Case said. We are having a raffle for a TV, and I dont know if we got a gun this year but I think we are going to do gas cards. Kind of fun stuff. The event will be held at the Florence City Park, 5448 Florence Carlton Loop, in Florence. Case said everyone is welcome to bring chairs, a picnic, and sit in the field to enjoy the evening and the fireworks. A DJ will be providing music during the evening. It is going to be a great show, she said. They put on a great show for the Fourth. Last year I was really impressed, the guys who put on the fireworks did a great job. The funding for the event was gathered by the Florence Fire Department. I go around and ask for donations, Case said. The local businesses help by allowing us to put fire boots around town for donations. We count it at the end and put it towards the fireworks. Raffle tickets can be purchased at the event and the funds will be used for next years fireworks and any fire equipment needed by the all-volunteer fire department in Florence. We are excited to have people come and hopefully people will donate more, Case said. Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent trip to Hong Kong has conveyed the message of care, trust and hope, and will give a powerful boost to the practice of "one country, two systems" in the special administrative region, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council has stated. The office made the remarks in an article released Saturday after Xi's Hong Kong visit between Thursday and Friday. During his visit, Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, attended the meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland and the inaugural ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), and inspected the region. Xi's trip to Hong Kong demonstrated his deep concern for Hong Kong compatriots. During his stay in Hong Kong, Xi attended over 10 events and the Hong Kong compatriots could feel the close affinity between Hong Kong and the motherland, as well as the profound bond between the hearts of Hong Kong compatriots and the people of the motherland, according to the article. It noted that Xi's trip has effectively strengthened the firm confidence of all sectors in the bright future of Hong Kong's development. While delivering a speech, Xi said the central government will remain resolute in implementing the "one country, two systems" principle, and will not change or vacillate in this stand. Xi's words demonstrated the country's full support for the development of Hong Kong and have further strengthened the confidence of people from all walks of life in the future of Hong Kong, the article stated. It also noted that the president's trip has expressed his ardent hope that the HKSAR can realize good governance and long-term stability. The next five years are important for Hong Kong to break new ground and achieve another leap forward, Xi said. The proposals put forward by Xi charted the direction for the new HKSAR government to exercise law-based governance, read the article. Calling this trip to Hong Kong a milestone, the article expressed confidence that the HKSAR will write a new chapter of the "one country, two systems" principle with the strong backing of the motherland and concerted efforts of the Hong Kong people. " " (From left) Ackee, haggis, gooseberries and horse meat are just some of the foods forbidden in the U.S. Philip Dumas/John Craske/Laszlo Podor/Dougal Waters/Getty Images/HowStuffWorks There are foods enjoyed around the world that U.S. considers so risky that they're outright banned there. Some of these pose the risk of foodborne illness while others bring agricultural pests into the country. The process of determining which foods are safe is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and/or the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA), depending on the type of food in question. Here's a list of eight foods that are generally illegal in the U.S. Some of them are only banned in certain states. Advertisement 1. Horse Meat No one stateside is noshing on horse meat unless they're doing so illegally. This is because Mr. Ed and his equine buddies must be inspected for human consumption under the Federal Meat Inspection Act. However, the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is not allowed to fund the inspection of horse slaughter for human consumption, since 2006 anyway, according to a representative at the FSIS. Since they can't inspect it, the slaughter can't happen. The ban on slaughtering horses for meat "has become an annual fight" in Congress, according to USA Today. There is bipartisan support for banning it permanently, something the Humane Society of the United States supports but the American Veterinary Medical Association does not. 2. Haggis OK, so haggis per se isn't banned, but one of the primary ingredients of the authentic dish is. That ingredient is animal lungs. Haggis, the national dish of Scotland, is traditionally made with a sheep stomach used as a sack to contain all the other ingredients (including chopped-up lungs). The FSIS isn't trying to be party poopers, however, the lung ban is for consumer protection. This is because gastrointestinal fluids can make their way into the lungs of an animal during the slaughtering process, leading to an increased risk of foodborne illness, according to an FSIS representative. So, many in the U.S. make haggis with ingredients like ground lamb and organ meats from other animals like beef kidneys or chicken livers. 3. Gooseberries This ban mainly applies to people in the Northeastern section of the country these days, a big relief to fans of sweet, sweet gooseberry jam. Maine, Delaware, New Hampshire and a handful of other states maintain the ban on the gooseberry and its cousin black currant because some species aid and abet a tree-killing disease known as white pine blister rust. Since the Northeast is pretty fond of its white pines, it's not hard to see why residents would want to minimize the risk. 4. Mechanically Separated (MS) Beef "Appetizing" as it sounds, you can't find mechanically separated beef in the U.S. because it could contain the agent Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, which you know better as "mad cow disease." MS beef is a paste-like meat product made when edible meat still attached to bones is forced through a sieve under high pressure. This separates the bone from the meat tissue, but the process was deemed unsafe in 2004 by the FSIS. The mad cow risk isn't limited to MS beef, however. Other cattle parts are also prohibited for human food, including cow brains, skulls, eyes, spinal cords, tonsils and various other bits. So, the next time you're in the U.S. and have a hankering for cow tonsils, you're out of luck. Advertisement 5. Sassafras It's fun to say, but it's dangerous to eat! Sassafras contains oils that are now-known carcinogens, although they were once used for flavoring all sorts of dishes, foods and beverages, including root beer, and even for treating eye inflammation. Because of the cancer connection, sassafras was prohibited for human consumption in 1960 in the U.S. by the FDA and remains taboo today. So, if great-grandma suggests some sassafras tea to cure what ails you, you know what to say. 6. Foie Gras The thought of foie gras (French for "fat liver") makes a lot of people's mouths water until they find out how it's produced. Ducks or geese are force-fed massive amounts of food through a tube until their livers swell to at least eight times the normal size. Foie gras has been banned in California since 2012, due to the way it's made. Now, other areas are hopping on board, but not without resistance from the foie gras industry, which argues that the ducks don't feel discomfort. New York City enacted a foie gras ban that goes into effect in 2022, and other cities and states may well follow suit. 7. Unpasteurized Milk Pasteurization is a process that heats milk hot enough to kill nasty, illness-causing bacteria (such as salmonella, E. coli and listeria). You know, bacteria that cause really bad stuff like listeriosis, tuberculosis, diphtheria, typhoid fever and other diseases. But some people prefer to drink their milk raw, which has caused many states to make it illegal to sell milk or other dairy products that haven't been properly pasteurized. Other states only allow raw milk sales on farms, but not at retail stores. 8. Fresh Ackee Here's a fruit you're not going to find at the farmers market. Ackee is native to West Africa and found in other tropical areas like Jamaica (where it is part of the national dish), but it can only be consumed in canned or frozen form in the U.S. This is because the red-skinned, vitamin-rich, pear-shaped fruit, produces a toxin called hypoglycin, when picked before it is fully ripened. This can cause dangerous drops in blood sugar and vomiting. In severe cases, it can even cause death. Now That's Unfortunate The purchase and sale of shark fins are next on the chopping block, if animal rights activists have anything to say about. Fins, which are acquired when cut right off the body of a live shark (which is then dumped back in the water to die), are considered an Asian delicacy, especially in soups. Many U.S. states have banned the practice of finning, but it is still legal to buy and sell fins. QUESTION: My small company has been having quality problems. Weve looked at some programs like Six Sigma, but they seem very complex. Is there a simple, straightforward way that we can systematically improve our quality? ANSWER: The business world is full of quality experts and quality programs, but for most small to midsize businesses, an extensive quality program utilizing higher-level mathematics is not going to be the best solution. Rather, whats needed is a down to earth, common sense approach to quality as outlined in the following four steps: 1. Document your processes For small and midsized businesses to improve quality, processes must be consistent across the organization and over time. This can best be accomplished by documenting your processes and ensuring that the way the work is actually done matches the documentation. Documenting your processes is not glamorous work, but quality improvement requires that things be done consistently. 2. Identify quality issues Employees and management must embrace quality issues as opportunities to improve. Management must take extra care not to shoot the messenger. No company wants to discover that quality issues exist in its processes. However, companies must view raising the issues that do exist as a positive thing. They should not sweep them under the carpet. Companies are all too often surprised when they routinely chastise people who raise quality concerns and then find that people hide these issues. Reward employees who identify quality issues, dont punish them. 3. Fix the problem for the customer The owners of two very successful businesses, an auto repair shop, and a frame and body shop both observed essentially the same thing. Mistakes happen. Most people understand that. The issue is how you deal with the problem when one occurs. Handled poorly, the mistake can result in the loss of a customer. Handled well, the result can be a loyal customer who feels well cared for. The key is to accept full responsibility and ensure that you treat the customer more than fairly. When a problem occurs, resolving the issue for the customer must always be the top priority. 4. Ensure that the problem doesnt reoccur Having executed the three prior steps, too many companies call the issue closed. After all, the customer has been satisfied. The urgent issue is resolved, but this approach misses the opportunity to prevent future quality problems. It is imperative to ask, What caused this problem, and what do we need to do to ensure that it never happens again? Once you have answered these questions, you can correct the processchanging the documentation to reflect the new way things will be done. This is why having well documented processes is the first step to quality improvement. When a flaw in the process is identified, the fix can quickly be rolled out across the entire organization only if everyone is already doing things in the same way. This would not be the case if people in different parts of the organization were accomplishing the same task in different ways. While following this course of action sounds simple, it requires a disciplined approach and getting the nuances right can be critical. But, properly executed, it will put your enterprise on the path to continuous improvement. In the long run, the rewards will be well worth the effort. On July 1, 1862, the Union and Confederate armies clashed in Henrico County for one last struggle in the Seven Days Battles. Ultimately, the Union was successful and won the Battle of Malvern Hill. Richmond National Battlefield Park offered walking tours Saturday to explain in detail the complicated battle. This is the last of what are called the Seven Days Battles, which was a week of constant fighting in 1862, said park ranger Bert Dunkerly. The Union army was trying to capture Richmond, and the Confederate army was trying to push them back. At 1:30 p.m., a walking tour of about 20 people listened to a detailed account of the mistakes made by the Confederate army that lost them the battle. Park Ranger Mark Wilcox led the tour and said bad communication, bad information and bad timing were three key factors that caused the Confederates to lose that day. With help from a binder of resource material, Ranger Wilcox explained how the various troops on both sides were positioned and how each attack played out. The Battle of Malvern Hill was a very bloody day of the Civil War, with ultimately 5,600 Confederates and 3,000 Union soldiers dying. Dunkerly said the park services tries to host tours on anniversaries to educate the public about the history of the war. The fact that it falls next to that patriotic holiday is great, Dunkerly said. We want people to think about American history, the importance of studying the past, appreciate what happen in the past and also the importance of learning from it and preserving these historic sites today. This battlefield is only one of several historical sites the Richmond National Battlefield Park Service preserves, but Andrea DeKoter, the chief of interpretation and education, said this site is especially well preserved. This is considered the most pristine battlefield, the best preserved battlefield, in all of Virginia, she said. DeKoter said through years of conservation, the park closely resembles the terrain the soldiers fought on 160 years ago. Recently, the park acquired 371 new acres through a donation from the Capital Region Land Conservancy. Along the field are six real cannons from the Civil War era that are positioned like the Union army had them during the battle. The park is open to the public and has over 3 miles of walking trails with historical markers. Both DeKoter and Dunkerly emphasized the importance of studying history with context. Studying Civil War history, especially in light of the last couple years with people questioning monuments and symbols of the Confederacy, this helps us understand the past with context, Dunkerly said. We are really focused on telling a holistic Civil-War-to-civil-rights story, and I think thats one of the things we really have tried to impress on people. When we tell these stories, we want people to understand that slavery caused the Civil War and that even though slavery ended, it didnt really resolve the outstanding civil rights issues. DeKoter said she works with the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia and Black RVA, a tourism group, to help promote conversations. You cant have the Civil War without civil rights as part of the conversation, she said. We want to facilitate [dialogue]. These are really complex stories to tell, she added. In addition to the battlefields, the service also preserves the Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site. For more about the battlefields and historical sites, visit www.nps.gov/rich/index.htm. Law enforcement officials took an adult male into custody after he exited a two-story home in Henrico County at 6:24 p.m. while on the phone with police. Police entered the home and found two adult females deceased. The Henrico County Police Criminal Investigations team was on scene. Police were called to a residence in the 7600 block of Phillips Woods Drive at around 9:30 a.m., and officers on the scene reported hearing gunfire inside, according to a release from Henrico police. Police suspect the incident to be domestic-related. The release reported two males ran from a residence to safety when gunfire erupted. Police spoke with both men. First responders from Henrico police and fire, the Hanover County Sheriffs Office, Virginia State Police and the Metro Richmond Flying Squad remained on the scene working together. Additional details will be forthcoming as they become available. The property that was once home to the last Ruby Tuesday in the Roanoke Valley has been sold for what agents described as a new market high for the region. The 1.03-acre tract on Electric Road in Cave Spring sold for $1.8 million. That per-acre price is a new peak for land sales in the valley, said Poe & Cronk Real Estate Group, which represented the buyer in the sale. The deal, announced in June, was completed after a due diligence period that included pursuing a special use permit from the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors. The board was asked to sign off on allowing Ultimate Shine Car Wash to build a 3,950-square-foot car wash on the site, according to county records. Ultimate Shine plans to use modern, automated technology to offer an express car wash service, according to its permit application. The design includes 18 vacuuming stations, and environmentally friendly equipment that captures, treats and recycles over 90% of all water used. The existing, vacant restaurant is set to be razed. That building had been empty and on the market since Ruby Tuesday closed in summer 2020. The restaurants departure marked the end of the chains presence in the Roanoke Valley. It once had two locations, including a Valley View restaurant, which closed in 2016 and has since given way to a Chipotle Mexican Grill. Ruby Tuesday still has restaurants in Christiansburg and Bedford. Ultimate Shine, headquartered in Tennessee, has been rapidly growing its footprint in the area. Since 2020, it has opened new car washes in Roanoke, Salem, Rocky Mount and Christiansburg. The Roanoke County project, located at 3250 Electric Road, secured a vote of approval from the board of supervisors in May. Contact Alicia Petska at alicia.petska@roanoke.com Its a little bar with a big drink menu beer, wine, whiskey, White Claws, cocktails and cordials are all served at downtown destination Fork in the Market. But it has one thing it absolutely, always stocks in its rotating lineup: Pabst Blue Ribbon. We are not allowed to run out, said bar manager Savannah Martin. It is our No. 1. The downtown watering hole serves up the American-made lager at a prodigious rate, and has the plaques to prove it. This year, it was crowned Virginias No. 1 seller of the beer affectionately referred to as just PBR, beating out bigger bars and bigger cities. It jumped to No. 24 on the nationwide sales roster. Its been steadily climbing its way up those rankings since debuting on the top-sellers list in 2018 in slot 89. People love a good, affordable beer, said Dave Trinkle, co-owner of Fork in the Market, where a PBR pour will set you back a mere $2. He credited the restaurants staff and its regulars with pushing it up the charts. People get competitive, he said. It makes it fun. PBR, an easy drinking beer with cache among blue collar and hipster crowds alike, has held its own amid the craft beer boom. Weve tried to really embrace it, Joe Cilek, a PBR national accounts manager, said of the rising number of smaller local breweries across the country. We have a lot in common. Were a small company; craft beers are small companies. There are a lot of similarities, he said. PBR, while nationally distributed, has a staff totaling just around 300 people and famously eschews mainstream, big money advertising pushes. There is enough room at the tap for everybody, Cilek said. He added later he had never seen a bar fly up the sales rankings as fast as Fork before. Fork, a small slice of a bar spanning about 700 square feet, is punching well above its weight among beer slingers from coast to coast. Its staggering. Roanoke, Virginia, is kicking peoples rear ends. I cant ever shut up about it, said J. Nobles, who up through May was a longtime area manager for PBR whose territory included Virginia. The bar sold a little over 50,000 PBRs last year to claim the top spot in the commonwealth. It celebrated on the weekend of June 11 with Pabst-A-Palooza, a street festival complete with live music, themed food specials PBR beer cheese nachos, anyone? and, of course, plenty of Pabst Blue Ribbons. There are a lot of PBR fans here, Trinkle said that day as he surveyed the busy scene. Its funny. Were a teeny little restaurant, and weve made No. 1 in the state of Virginia. PBR, in addition to bringing an array of swag, presented Fork with a new placard to add to its wall hanging that documents its rise up the national sales charts. I dont know about all of you, but I have helped make this happen, Alan Keeney, of the band Reverend Carbine, which played at the festival, said from the stage as he held up the newest tag. Lets give it up for Fork in Market, Keeney exclaimed. Hell yeah! Friday was a big day on West Main Street in Salem. A line formed early outside the door of the RISE Salem medical marijuana dispensary. Meanwhile, cars jammed its parking lot and drive-thru. The dispensary even called in a Roanoke food truck, Butta and Moon, to handle an expected influx of new business. Some customers were no doubt regulars stocking up on medicine for the holiday weekend. But the big reason that RISE saw a sudden surge in traffic Friday had more to do with a change in state law. As of July 1, Virginia medical marijuana patients no longer need to register with state regulators before they can buy legal weed from a licensed medical dispensary. (They still need a prescription, or certificate, from a health care provider whos registered with the commonwealth to prescribe cannabis.) Now, patients can take their prescriptions directly to the dispensary and get weed. As of Friday, the least expensive variety RISE sold was $50 for 3.5 grams. In terms of access to medical marijuana in Virginia, this is a huge difference compared to last year, when patients had to pay $50 to the Virginia Board of Pharmacy merely to register, then wait weeks until the board issued their medical marijuana cards, before they could even attempt to buy legal weed. Many of those cards got lost in Third-Class mail, and the board was inundated with complaints and pleas for reissued cards, said Ashley Allen, a vice president for legal and regulatory affairs at Columbia Care. It operates dispensaries in Richmond and Eastern Virginia. Jack Page, one of the founders of Dharma Pharmaceuticals (which owned the Salem dispensary until Dharma sold out to another company) told me that as of Thursday, there were at least 5,000 Virginians who already had medical marijuana prescriptions who were anxiously waiting for their Board of Pharmacy registration to be processed. Beginning Friday, that wait was over, and those folks flooded RISE and other dispensaries. (The Board of Pharmacy is still processing documents for patients who want an actual card.) I think its amazing that patients can come see me, and take their certificate [the prescription] directly to the dispensary, said Rikki McConnell, the nurse-practitioner/owner of The Hybrid Clinic, in Stewartsville. Shed been considering filing a lawsuit over the delay in issuing registrations. But its not quite that simple. McConnell still advises some patients, such as people on probation, to obtain a card, because that can serve as a form of legal protection during a run-in with police. The same applies to medical marijuana patients who travel to other states. Some states offer medical-marijuana reciprocity to card-carrying patients from other states, McConnell said. In those states, patients could face arrest for possession if they fail to have a card in their possession. Theres still so much gray [in the law] that it kind of bites, McConnell added. Delta-8 THC products to be banned? Thats hardly the only gray area in a regulatory framework thats still evolving. Another has to do with Delta-8 THC products, which are widely sold as candies, gummies or other snacks in smoke shops, gas stations and convenience stores. Those may soon be illegal in Virginia. Delta-8 THC, which is synthesized from hemp, is similar to Delta-9 THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. But effects from Delta-8 are milder. State law used to distinguish between the two and only Delta-9 was specifically prohibited. But another regulatory change is threatening to ban candies, gummies, or snacks that contain Delta-8. The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services issued a press release Thursday that noted VDACS and the Virginia attorney general were initiating efforts to prohibit the sale of over-the-counter products containing any kind of synthetic THC, including the Delta-8 isomer. Tyson Daniel, a Roanoke attorney and owner of Virginia Cannabis Lawyers PLLC, said clients have been flooding his phone with questions about whether they should pull Delta-8 THC products from their shelves. Im not advising them to pull [Delta-8] products off the shelf, Daniel told me. Im advising them to seek counsel with me, rather than roll over on something for which theres no specific statutory authority. It sounds like a lawsuit may be in the works over Delta-8 products. Recriminalization for large amounts Another change in the law limits the amount of marijuana one may possess in public. Used to be, an adult could possess a couple of ounces legally. And possessing up to a pound was a mere $25 civil infraction, so long as it wasnt packaged for redistribution. (Selling recreational weed in any amount remains illegal.) In the 2022 budget bill, Virginia lawmakers recriminalized possession in public of more than 4 ounces of pot up to a pound. Thats now a misdemeanor punishable by a $500 fine on a first offense, and six months in jail on subsequent offenses. The old setup was a boon for small black-market operators. They could drive to Washington, D.C., and purchase a pound of legal weed from any one of its delivery services for as low as $120/ounce. Though they risked felonies for reselling it, there was a substantial reward. Weed on Virginias black market can go for $300 per ounce a gross profit of almost $2,900 per pound. Now those operators risk arrest for merely transporting that much weed in Virginia. Home cultivation regulations relaxed There was some better news in the budget bill for folks who are growing cannabis at home. Virginians are allowed to grow up to four plants, per house, for personal use. That has not changed in the law, but other aspects of home-growing have. Under last years law, four plants could easily put growers over the legal weight limit for possession, because its easy to harvest a couple pounds of weed from four plants. This year, lawmakers added language that clarified possession of cannabis for personal use in the home is not subject to penalty, according to the Virginia chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML. The General Assembly also relaxed requirements that homegrown plants be invisible from the street, and that growers tag their plants with their names and drivers license numbers. Failure to do either used to be a potential felony; as of Friday, those are misdemeanors. Its also worth noting that these laws in all likelihood will continue to change, as the Old Dominion moves toward legalizing recreational weed sales to adults in 2024. For that reason, everyone involved with weed should stay on their toes. Daniel, Roanokes best-known weed lawyer, says hes overloaded with business. He told me hed love to have some partners to lighten his workload. Hes certain theres no shortage of Virginia attorneys with an interest in the subject matter, he added. Bentley and his siblings bounced around their backyard trampoline on a 90-degree day in rural Georgia. Everybody watch out! This is dangerous, Bentley said as he gestured his three siblings out of the way, but they kept running and screaming in his path. Momma, they wont let me do a trick! OK guys move out of the way, Alyson Clark yelled as she shooed her other three kids to the side. Bentley counted to three before he flipped over and landed on his back to cheers from his siblings. For them, most days last summer looked like this one playing outside, cooking dinner, watching TV and eating fresh watermelon from a local fruit stand. And when school started up again in August, the Clarks were back to their daily routine of working, going to school and doing homework. But every three months, for almost 12 years now, there is an unordinary day when Alyson logs onto her computer and checks the Virginia sex offender registry. She scrolls through the list of names and photos until she finds the man shes looking for: her former foster father, who sexually abused her while she lived in his Blacksburg home and impregnated her with Bentley. Her foster father is required to be on the sex offender registry for the rest of his life. Under state law, registry details are verified every three months and his picture is updated every two years. Alyson checks to make sure hes still complying with the rules of his sentence. The Roanoke Times is not naming the foster father in this article to protect the privacy of Alyson and her children. He pleaded guilty in 2011 to taking indecent liberties with a minor and received two months in jail. Afterward, Alyson filed a civil lawsuit against him, his wife and the social workers involved in her case. The lawsuit has been open in Radford Circuit Court for more than a decade, but it was purged from the docket in May 2021 and reinstated this past April. Alysons attorney, Pat McGraw, hopes it can go to trial within the next year. Alyson is one of thousands in the last 20 years who have moved through the Virginia foster care system. And her story serves as only one example of children who can be further traumatized by a system designed to protect them. The court system is her only recourse left. And sharing her story, Alyson said, is one of her last chances for justice. My biggest fear is that were all going to die before I get a chance for my story to go public, Alyson said. I dont even want anyone to go to jail. I just dont want to push it under the rug for the next kid. An unstable childhood Growing up, Alyson prepared for the day a social worker would knock on her front door. She hid her moms marijuana pipes and beer cans before she left for school each day. She cleaned up the kitchen and tidied the living room to make the house look presentable anything to keep her from going to another foster home. Between the ages of 5 and 18, Alyson said she was in more than 40 foster homes. She and her mom, Julia Jones, moved to multiple states during her childhood, but social services almost always became involved. Alyson would go into foster care for a few weeks at a time, until her mom regained custody. Meanwhile, Alyson would create problems in her new homes, scheming to be sent back to her mom. One time, she threw a hanger at her foster mother and told her to die. That placement, her shortest, lasted only three days. When Alyson was 11, she and her mother moved to Florida. That trip was the first time Alyson ever met her biological father, Jerry Walker. Soon after, Alyson moved in with him and Walker took them to live in Washington State. Later, she moved back to her mother. And then back to her father. I think one of the hardest things was the insecurity and not knowing where I was going to go, who I was going to come in contact with, not knowing where my mom was, she said. I just had to trust that everyone had my best interests in mind. Eventually, Alyson, her father and stepmother moved to Radford, near where her stepmother grew up, and Alyson attended Dalton Intermediate School. When Alyson lived with her mom, she had no rules, but her dad was strict and didnt trust her. Alyson described her fathers house as a boot camp. According to court documents, her father cut her hair as a form of discipline, which made her look different from other girls at school, and made it harder for her to fit in. She helped classmates raise money for a choir trip to Philadelphia, but her father didnt allow her to go. A school counselor who worked with her for a few years wrote a letter about Alyson that was included in her court files. The counselor said that Alysons father was concerned about her habit of lying. We discussed how lying often becomes a survival skill for children who grow up in the type of chaotic home Alyson experienced with her mother, the counselor said. One day, Alyson told her father she was going to run away and sprinted down the steps and toward the front door. Her dad followed her, and Alyson said he was moving too fast and accidentally slammed her arm in the door when she tried to leave the house. She went to the hospital with a sprained wrist and had to wear a brace. At school, the counselor asked her what happened. Alyson said she and her dad got into a fight. The counselor called social services. That day, the bus dropped Alyson off at her dads house, but she didnt go inside. Instead, she ran in the opposite direction. She crossed a bridge in Radford when a police car pulled up alongside her. The officer said, Are you Alyson Walker? Yeah, thats me. He told her they received a call that she was a runaway and that she was going into foster care. At 16, the social workers took her to her last foster home in Blacksburg. The last foster home The home was fine at first. Alyson noticed her foster father would comment on what she was wearing and seemed to gaze at her for long periods of time. It made her uncomfortable, but she ignored it. In June 2009, the family took a trip to Claytor Lake. One night, her foster dad came into her room, which she shared with another foster child, and put his hand in her pants. According to court documents, Alyson was paralyzed with fear and the foster dad said she would be punished if she told anyone about it. He returned to her room each night of the trip. When they got back from the lake, the foster father moved Alyson into her own room away from the other children in the house and started to visit her almost every night. Alysons foster mother began to leave home at night and came back intoxicated in the morning, according to court documents. When her foster mother began to leave, the assaults progressed to sex. Alyson said her foster dad told her that he was sterile so she didnt have to worry about getting pregnant. Alyson said she felt threatened and believed her foster father would kill her if she told anyone. He displayed collectible samurai swords on the walls and she thought those sent a clear message. According to court documents, she complained to her social workers that her foster parents drank often and fought constantly. She told them the foster father hit one of the other foster kids in the house and she wanted to be moved to a new home. But Alyson said she doesnt remember telling her biological parents, her foster mother or her social worker about the sexual assaults. I knew it was wrong, Alyson said. I knew that I needed to tell somebody, but I didnt trust anybody. I didnt know what to do. I didnt want to be put in another foster home. I always heard about group homes and how theyre so bad, and I didnt want to go there. I was 16, I just wanted to finish out my jail sentence. Thats what it was. This went on for months. Alyson went to Blacksburg High School, but she attended school at night in the middle school after the high schools roof collapsed in 2010. In February, she was on her way to class when she passed out in the hallway. The principal saw her on the security camera and helped her up off the ground. She hadnt eaten dinner yet, and blamed it on that. After her second class, she passed out again and the school sent her to the hospital. Alysons foster parents arrived at the hospital and asked her what was wrong, but she didnt know why she was passing out. She gave a urine sample, and then a nurse told her she was pregnant. The nurse and her foster mother asked her who the father was, but Alyson knew she couldnt tell the truth. She made up a story that she got drunk at a party and had sex with someone. After Alyson turned 18, the social workers moved her into her own apartment, which was in the basement of a social workers parents house. There was no running water and she had to go upstairs to the main house to use the restroom or to shower. Her foster father visited her almost every day. He asked her if she had a boyfriend, gave her money and reminded her not to tell anyone that he was the babys father, Alyson said. In August, she went to a doctors appointment. In the waiting room, she ran into her biological dad and he saw for the first time that she was pregnant. He told her to call if she needed anything or wanted a place to stay. When she got home that day, her foster father visited again. Somehow he knew she had seen her dad and was convinced she had said something about the sexual assaults. He told her no one would believe her if she told the truth. She called her dad the moment her foster father left that day. Her dad came to pick her up, and in the car, she told him everything. A long road to improvement Alysons story is extreme, but illustrates an example of how foster kids can be further traumatized while in the states care. Most foster kids are removed from their homes because neighbors, teachers, counselors, family members or friends call local social services departments to report their concerns. In the vast majority of cases, including Alysons, these young people have undergone something traumatic sexual abuse, physical abuse or neglect before stepping foot in their first foster home. The states responsibility is to remove them from a dangerous situation at home, stabilize them in foster care, offer services to heal any trauma, and set them up to be successful as adults. But sometimes, even more harm can fall on kids while theyre in the system. In 2018, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission released a report about how the system handles the children in its care. According to the report, Virginias social services departments do not utilize family foster care placements nearly as much as other states. Instead, the state relies on foster homes, group homes and residential facilities. Agencies do not adequately try to reunify children with their birth parents and social workers have high caseloads that affect their ability to provide proper services. More children age out of foster care without a permanent family in Virginia than other states. In 2018, that number was 19% compared to the national average of 8%. Since the JLARC reports release, the state social services department has tried to improve on issues addressed in the report and implement recommendations. Many of the recommendations passed in Sen. Bryce Reeves foster care omnibus bill in 2019. It established a caseload standard that limited the number of cases that could be assigned to a foster care worker. It also implemented a more reliable and comprehensive case review system to monitor the work of local departments. The bill allowed the social services commissioner to assume temporary control over foster care services if a local department failed to provide them or made decisions that impacted the well-being of a child. The bill also required the state to hire a director of foster care health and safety, who would be responsible for identifying the local departments having issues in their foster care services. According to the most recent status update provided to the governors office in December, social services had not yet hired anyone for the position. Progress slowed after the state instituted a hiring freeze during the pandemic and there have been low applicant numbers. Following the JLARC report, Virginia also established its first office of the childrens ombudsman, which has the authority to investigate complaints from citizens and gather information from social services offices about specific cases. The office officially opened its hotline to receive complaints in May. But the offices director, Eric Reynolds, said they began receiving calls before then and opened investigations into local social services departments. In an interview in December, Reynolds said his staff had seen a range of social work excellent caseworkers who go above and beyond their regular duties and others who make him wonder why they chose this field. Theres a lot of room for improvement in this child welfare system and its going to take time, he said. (This office) should have been created a long time ago, but this is as good a time to do it as any. Its much needed here in Virginia for that kind of oversight. Her only recourse When Alyson told her dad the identity of her babys father, he immediately called Alysons social workers. They doubted Alysons story, she recalled. Alyson had already told the social workers and her foster family a lie, that she didnt know who the babys father was because she had been drunk at a party. But she agreed to do a DNA test to prove her story. I talked to the social worker and she said I was lying and that I was a whore and a slut, Alyson said. The judge had the DNA results and read them to us in his chambers. The social worker said [her foster father] should get off on a simple charge and thats why I didnt drop the lawsuit. I want a day in court to look all of them in face and say, OK, youve tortured me for 10-plus years and now I can look all of you in the face and say I told you so. Alysons foster father entered an Alford plea, which means he maintained his innocence, but admitted the evidence the state had against him was enough for a conviction. He was sentenced to two months in jail. The foster fathers therapist wrote a letter that was included in his court file. It said, While in treatment [the foster father] has examined what motivated him to engage in a sexual relationship with his foster daughter. He takes full responsibility for his action and regrets what he did. [He] has looked at how his relationship with his wife may have played into his dissatisfaction with his marriage and may have been a contributing factor. The counselor said the foster father was at a low risk to reoffend, given the age of his victim and the situation he abused her in. Alysons father and stepmother asked her if she realized that her foster father was lightly punished, she said. They both encouraged her to keep fighting and do something more to protect herself and her newborn son. They searched for the foster fathers name online and found a lawyer who had previously filed a lawsuit against the same man in another foster care placement. Roanoke attorney Pat McGraw filed a federal lawsuit in 2011 against Alysons foster father and his wife, along with seven other foster parents. In the lawsuit, he alleges that six siblings were unnecessarily removed from their parents in 2008 in Giles County and placed into different foster homes. At those foster homes, the children were locked in their rooms for hours and experienced emotional trauma. Additionally, the foster parents intentionally tried to alienate the children from their biological parents. McGraw said the lawsuit eventually died because the family did not want to pursue it further. Alyson and her father hired McGraw because he was already familiar with Alysons foster father. McGraw filed a civil suit in 2012 against the foster parents and the social workers from the Radford City Department of Social Services. He alleged they were negligent in ensuring Alysons safety and well-being and did not perform proper background checks of her foster parents. In the lawsuit, the defendants claimed that no background check would have revealed anything in the foster fathers history that would have shown the assault was likely to happen. And because Alyson did not inform her social workers about the assaults, none of them failed to act in the face of that knowledge. According to court documents, the claims against Alysons foster parents were dismissed with prejudice in 2012. Remaining claims against the social workers are ongoing. McGraw said the COVID-19 pandemic has created issues with scheduling hearings. But also, he and the defendants attorney disagree on many fundamentals in the case, a dispute which has slowed progress as each issue must be decided by a judge. One disagreement is whether Alyson told the social workers, or anyone else, about the sexual assaults before she told her dad. And whether her allegations about physical abuse and drinking in the house should have led them to investigate further and could have prevented the assault. McGraw said even if Alyson hadnt told them prior to that, it is a victim-blaming excuse. Her foster father had already been named in another foster care abuse case and other parts of her story should have been red flags to trigger an investigation. As is often the case, there was no blood, no broken bones, McGraw said. She capitulated to it out of self-preservation, not out of actual consent. These are supposed to be the people who are looking out for these kids. To this day, I dont think shes gotten the help and support she needs. Without a safety net Children in foster care bounce around different placements frequently. VDSS published foster care numbers in June that showed more than 3,400 kids, or 68%, have been in two or more placements either a foster home or a congregate care setting since being removed from their home. Another 31 of the states foster kids were listed with an unknown number of placements. Social services officials did not respond as of press time to explain how the state social services department would not be able to track these childrens placements. Em Parente, assistant director of permanency, policy and practices at VDSS, said Virginia is using an antiquated child welfare database system that makes it difficult to pull reports on foster care numbers. VDSS is currently working to establish a child welfare information system to fix the problem. Its going to allow us to be much more data driven in our work, Parente said. Were going to be able to actually know things in real time and have access to that information more easily. Children in foster care fare better when they experience fewer moves, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Kids can have poorer educational outcomes and increased behavioral and mental health issues if they continually move to new placements. Most foster care placements are disrupted because a childs behavioral issues can be hard to handle, but in Virginia, local departments of social services sometimes remove children unnecessarily. Reynolds said he has seen this come up in complaints from foster care parents, and the moves seem arbitrary to him and his investigators. He said this issue came up years ago when he worked as a guardian ad litem, an attorney appointed by a judge to represent a child in their case. Reynolds said the issue may eventually need a legislative fix, which his office is exploring. Parente said she believes the number of arbitrary moves in foster care is small, but it is an issue the department is addressing. She said part of the issue is that foster parents are not always treated the way they should be and are cut out of conversations about the childs placement. What we tend to find is that the foster parents were not involved in the decision making the way that they should have been, rather than that the move was inappropriate, she said. We need every foster family that we have and we cant afford to not partner with them and treat them the way that they deserve to be treated. Research has shown that kids need consistency, predictability and an attachment to a caring adult to thrive, according to Casey Family Programs, a leading national foundation focused on foster care. According to numbers from the states social services department, just under 700 kids are set to become emancipated. These include foster children who choose to stay in foster care until they are 21. The program, called Fostering Futures, allows kids who need financial and social support services to help cover housing costs, room and board at school, or independent living. Some of these kids choose to stay with their foster parents, but some of them will leave foster care without a permanent family or connection. Without a permanent family, these teenagers have no financial or emotional safety net. They may have trouble forming trusting relationships and have difficulty coping. They are more likely to be homeless, have a lower education level, get pregnant younger and be unemployed. Once they leave foster care, many kids try to find their biological parents and siblings, which can lead them to reenter a cycle of abuse and neglect. But Alyson said this is what saved her. She was seemingly set up for failure because of the circumstances in her life, but the connections she maintained with her mom, dad and siblings is what helped her get through hard times. She lived with both her mom and dad again after she gave birth to Bentley. Their relationship hasnt always been perfect, and some of her siblings have struggled with the same issues as her parents, but without them, Alyson said she would be in a much darker place. Her relationship with her husband Brian has also helped her overcome trust issues and heal from her trauma. You wonder whether youre really worth anything to anybody, Alyson said. I found my self-worth. And when I met Brian, thats when it changed for me. After I knew Brian and I were made for each other, that helped me. He loves all of our kids. Its not Alysons kids and my kid, its our kids. Trauma recovery The smell of freshly sliced watermelon filled the kitchen air in Alysons house. Her mom Julia stood at the counter cutting it up under a sign that read, Live every moment with joy and laughter. Julia, Alyson and Brian playfully argued whether it was weird to put salt on watermelon. Since she left foster care, Alyson has reconnected with her mom, who visits every few months from North Carolina. Her mother has been sober for more than a decade and is trying to be a better grandmother than she was a mother. Its not fair what shes been through, Julia said. But I think shes come out 100%. Im so proud of her, of the woman and the mother and the wife shes become. But even now, Alyson struggles to work through some of the things she went through. After going in and out of foster care, she said she has trouble trusting the people in her life. As a child, she was convinced that her mother had kidnapped her and wasnt really her mom. She asked to see her birth certificate once as proof. Alyson said it has taken a long time to trust men again and its affected her personal relationships. When she talks about what happened to her, she often gets nightmares that theres a man in her backyard with a knife threatening to kill her and her family. And she said it feels like her body goes into shock anytime she sees a police officer. All throughout my life, every time a police officer got involved, I ended up in foster care or someone got arrested, Alyson said. Bad things always happened. Alyson said she doesnt want her kids to have any of these experiences. Shes stayed away from drugs and alcohol. She works from home selling T-shirts, makeup and other products online. And she has kickstarted a new cleaning business. I never wanted to end up like my mom, she said. I always told myself growing up, Im never going to be like my mom. Im definitely breaking the cycle. My kids know they can tell me anything, anytime. From the moment she first found out she was pregnant with Bentley, she knew she wanted to keep him. The social workers and her foster parents pressured her into adoption, and some people said she should get an abortion, but she couldnt do it. Bentley, who is now 11, loves to draw his favorite Minecraft, Fortnight and Pokemon characters usually Charizard. He spends hours on YouTube watching his favorite celebrities and has even started his own channel, where he wants to sell branded merchandise with a logo he designed. When hes not on YouTube, he watches the Discovery Channel. One time he came out of his room and was telling me the lifespan of a cockroach, Alyson said. At first I was like, Mommy is not interested in learning about cockroaches, but he had to tell me. In the kitchen, Julia pulled out a griddle, bread and slices of deli ham to make lunch for Alyson and her kids. She said when she visits she likes to try to take some of the work off of her daughters shoulders. Alysons four kids ran in and out of the kitchen asking for snacks and to put their swimsuits on for the second time that day. They wanted to hook up the sprinkler to the trampoline and splash around as they jumped. Julia yelled to Alysons youngest son Kenneth to come eat some lunch. She opened the steaming griddle, put the sandwich onto a plate and walked over to Alyson at the kitchen table. Im so proud of you, Julia said as she set the plate down. She leaned over, kissed Alyson on the top of her head and then walked to the sink to wash a pile of dishes. The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors approved a measure this week that a top local law enforcement official said will finally ensure a police presence at each of the county schools outside of Christiansburg and Blacksburg. The board, via a 6-0 vote last week, approved the transfer of $150,000 to provide two additional school resource officers to the Montgomery County Sheriffs Office. The SROs will cover two elementary schools located in the county. That will complete all the schools in the county, of which there are eight, county Sheriff Hank Partin told supervisors. It will allow us to not have one unattended. The approved item comes amid an ongoing national debate over school safety, a discussion that was reignited in the wake of the tragedy in May at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Partin, who was first elected in 2015, said it has long been his goal to ensure the permanent presence of an SRO at each of the county schools. He, however, acknowledged that recent events such as the one in Texas have become additional factors. He also cited the tragedies at Virginia Tech in 2007 and Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012. Its not just now, he told supervisors about the request. That was a campaign promise I made to the county in 2015 I cant say how many events have affected me and have affected our deputies. A point that Partin has made over the years in his push for placing an SRO in each of the county schools located outside the towns has been the response time. He has said it generally takes longer for police to reach the schools outside the two towns due to distance. An SRO, he has said, helps alleviate that problem. With us, it doesnt matter if its one or 51. Somebodys going to be in that building, he said. Were going to slow it down until the cavalry gets there. Partin said theres also a vehicle component to his recently requested measure but that he will bring that item up at a later time. The county schools that are located outside of the two towns are the three in the Riner areathe Auburn strandBelview Elementary, Eastern Montgomery elementary and high schools, Prices Fork Elementary School and Shawsville Middle School. Each of the districts middle and high schools have an SRO assigned to them, according to information shared by both Partin and Montgomery County Public Schools spokeswoman Brenda Drake. All schools have an officer available to them, but many of them [the officers] have more than one school assigned, Drake wrote in an email. Not all the elementary schools in Blacksburg and Christiansburg have an SRO on their campus at all times. However, we do work with the police departments so that officers know our schools can be check-in spots, Drake wrote. They have access to Wi-Fi and can grab a water or use the facilities. It helps build relationships and provides more coverage. Among the facts Partin shared this past week was the addition of an SRO in 2018 to split their time between Prices Fork and Belview elementary schools and the addition of an officer the following year at Eastern Montgomery Elementary School. Based on the information shared by both the sheriff and Drake, that leaves Auburn Elementary as the other school outside the two towns that doesnt have an SRO on its campus at all times. Partin said the towns handle the SRO situation in their schools, but that he cant quite speak on the specifics of those arrangements. When asked by a supervisor why he didnt bring up the request during the budgeting cycle earlier this year, Partin said there were other needs he needed to address. For example, he mentioned the need to replace outdated SWAT tactical vests, items he described as costly. They were things that happened then I had to ask for, he said, adding that hes currently making a similar decision with the SRO vehicle component. I couldnt ask for the SROs then I dont want to overwhelm anything or anyone. In addition to approving the measure unanimously, several supervisors spoke in strong favor of SROs in school buildings. Supervisor Mary Biggs, a former teacher, said shes long been passionate about the issue. She recalled the impact of D.A.R.E. officersDrug Abuse Resistance Educationat the elementary level. You start then, and it builds up through middle and high school, she said. Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Sherri Blevins voiced similar support for the measure and brought up her involvement as a parent in the public safety-driven campaign to relocate the Park and Ride in Christiansburg away from Falling Branch Elementary School. She also brought up recent national events in response to questions about the timing of the measure. Because of Texas, we dont want to look back and say What could we have done? she said. We want to do it now. WAYNESBORO The 6th District congressional race set for November has its first clear issue for voters to consider. Democratic nominee Jennifer Lewis has denounced the Supreme Courts overturn of Roe v. Wade, saying in a Facebook post that we are seeing rights that have been on the books for 50 years ripped out from underneath us. Lewis spoke Saturday at a Harrisonburg march for reproductive rights. In a telephone interview Thursday, Waynesboro resident Lewis said the high court decision is really frightening. And she said while Republicans speak of small government, you cant get more big government than government telling you what you can do with your body. The incumbent 6th District congressman, Republican Rep. Ben Cline, praised the decision, saying the right to abortion was not constitutional. Cline tweeted on the day of the decision Life wins! He said decisions on abortion would now be left to the states and their elected representatives. The congressman said in a text message that he supports a legislative proposal of Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin that would ban most abortions in Virginia after the pregnancy reaches 15 weeks. The only exceptions for Youngkins proposal would be for pregnancies involving rape, incest or the health of the mother. Like Gov. Youngkin, I am prolife and support legislation that would move us in that direction and away from the radical abortion policies of former Gov. Ralph Northam, Cline said in a text message response to questions regarding the abortion issue. Cline further said voters are also urging me to work to lower gas and food prices, fight against Bidens open border policies, and combat the rise of drugs and crime in our neighborhoods. I am continuing to work on all of these issues for the people of the Sixth District. The Supreme Court decision will play out in mid-term elections across the country in November. The question is, will it be felt in the 6th District, a strongly Republican group of cities and counties that stretches from the Roanoke area across the Shenandoah Valley. James Madison University political scientist Bob Roberts said the decision could impact competitive Virginia House races in the 7th and 10th districts, involving incumbents Abigail Spanberger and Jennifer Wexton. However, the 6th District remains reliably Republican, according to Roberts. It (Supreme Court decision) will have no conceivable impact, said Roberts. He said the 6th District remains one of Americas most Republican districts. Every county in the district is going about 70 percent Republican, he said. But the decision is generating discussion among 6th District voters, according to Lewis. She is hearing the feedback on every campaign stop since the Supreme Court decision was released on June 24. This is definitely taking over as the top issue of the folks Im talking to, Lewis said. She said the court decision is engaging voters who have previously sat out elections. This issue has ignited a lot of women and a lot of people who can get pregnant, Lewis said. The challenger believes the decision can impact elections, particularly if voters show up at rallies like Saturdays and in the voting booth. We can have a world that is more equitable and equal, she said. I recently joined several members of the U.S. House Budget Committee on a trip to Texas to hear firsthand from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents about the crisis that President Bidens immigration policies have created at our southern border. Visiting the border should be mandatory for every member of Congress, who need to hear from the Border Patrol agents who are tasked with containing this dangerous hole in our national security. First, our current border policies are driving illegal immigration levels even higher. Between Oct. 1 and the end of April, CBP agents in the McAllen, Texas, sector of our southern border have stopped migrants at our border more than 287,000 times. That doesnt count the thousands who have evaded apprehension. This crisis will not end unless we either change policy or remove Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who either fundamentally misunderstands or is willfully neglecting the situation at our border. Whats more, President Biden has proposed cutting the Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) budget by $150 million thats almost a $400 million cut when our need for additional resources is at its highest. During our visist, CBP agents provided a comprehensive tour and briefing of the Rio Grande Valley Sector Centralized Processing Center and the RGV Sector Donna Processing Facility. At the tour of the intake facilities, we were told nearly 80% of adults released dont return for immigration processing and court hearings. Agents said that the Mexican drug cartels charge around $8,000 per adult and as much as $6,000 to smuggle unaccompanied minors across the border, in addition to their smuggling of drugs and guns. Fentanyl shipped from across the border is having a deadly impact across the country, including in rural communities like ours. Fentanyl overdoses are the leading cause of death for adults aged 18-35, an epidemic that must be addressed. Strong and effective border security measures can and will save lives right here in Virginia. While the federal government under Democratic control has failed to secure our border, the state of Texas has stepped up to the plate. In fact, Texas is contributing $2.5 million per week for border protection. Texas law enforcement gave Members a tour of their efforts to secure the Rio Grande river, which is frequently used as a dangerous method for illegal entry into the United States. Building a wall is step one to securing our border, and finishing the wall is critical to stopping illegal immigration. CBP agents provided a tour of what they call the decades-old legacy wall as well as the Trump wall. The legacy wall, while a barrier, has massive holes, is easier to scale, and possesses little deterrent to those illegals crossing the border. The Trump wall, in some places 30 feet tall, worked where it was installed, according to border officials. Shockingly, we also found an estimated $350 million in taxpayer-funded border fencing in a guarded lot collecting rust due to President Bidens January 2021 Executive Order canceling construction. Finally, we must not repeal Title 42 of the U.S. Code. Under Title 42, CBP may prohibit the entry and allow for the rapid expulsion of individuals who may pose a communicable health risk or who may be entering the U.S. through illegal means in order to bypass health screening measures. The Administration has attempted to repeal Title 42 unilaterally, and now they are trying to do so through court appeals after Federal judges have blocked them. CBP authorities made clear to us that a repeal of Title 42 would double the numbers and worsen the already exploding chaos at the border. In the end, this crisis is one of failed policies pursued by President Biden and Democrats in Congress. The policy failures are numerous, but there are now four critical mistakes: halting border wall construction, ending Remain in Mexico, reimplementing Catch and Release, and attempting to rescind Title 42. We were urged by Federal, state, and local officials to take action to secure our border. Customs and Border Protection, Texas local and state law enforcement, and McAllen Mayor Villalobos all established that we need to reverse President Bidens disastrous policies, provide funding to secure the border, including walls, technology, and manpower, so that America can end this humanitarian, economic, and national security crisis. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. " " The T-44, an unsatisfactory model, became the T-54 Main Battle Tank when the T-44 chassis was equipped with a new turret and a heavier 100mm main gun. 2007 Publications International, Ltd. The T-54/T-55 series of Main Battle Tanks were descended directly from the famous Prinadlezhit-Chetverki, or T-34 Medium Tank, the Soviet Union's armored savior. The T-34 evolved into the T-44 medium tank, which had a different engine, a torsion bar suspension system, a larger chassis, and a dome-shaped turret lying close to the hull. The T-44 had serious design problems and was not widely produced. Design work on a new, heavier medium tank was started. In 1946 the first prototype of the T-54 rolled onto the testing grounds. Advertisement The T-54 was built on the T-44 chassis and had a 100mm Model 1944 main gun. The turret was cast in one piece with the top welded on, a technique Soviet industry worked out for the T-34 turret. Early production models had manual gun-laying systems, but these were later upgraded to powered models. The T-54 carried two 7.62mm machine guns, one in the hull and the other in the turret. A third machine gun was mounted on the turret at the loader's cupola. " " The T-54 Main Battle Tank, more heavily gunned than the T-34, was supplied to a large number of military forces around the world. 2007 Publications International, Ltd. The T-54/T-55 fired a wide range of ammunition, including armor-piercing-tracer; high-explosive; armor-piercing, capped-tracer; high-explosive fragmentation; high-explosive, fin-stabilized; and high-velocity, armor-piercing, discarding sabot-tracer. Like the T-44, the T-54 used a torsion bar suspension system. The AV-12 diesel engine was mounted transversely to drive the rear sprockets and produced 520 horsepower. Five rubber-tire road wheels were mounted per side. There were no return wheels; the track ran across the top of the road wheels on its return. The distinguishing identification feature of the T-54/T-55 series is the gap between the first and second road wheels. The T-54 was the first Soviet tank able to operate completely underwater. It could cross rivers at depths down to 18 feet by using a snorkel. " " The T-55 Main Battle Tank was basically the T-54 with a new turret and more powerful engine. 2007 Publications International, Ltd. The T-55 model entered service in 1959 or 1960. It was essentially an improved T-54: a more powerful version of the same V-12 diesel engine (580 horsepower), a rotating turret floor, the elimination of the loader's cupola, and an improved transmission. The antiaircraft 12.7mm turret machine gun and the 7.62mm machine gun mounted in the bow plate were removed in the T-55A version to allow more room for main-gun ammunition. The T-55A was given an antiradiation lining, although no version of the T-54 or T-55 had true nuclear-biological-chemical warfare protection for its crew. The T-54 and T-55 were built in the Soviet Union, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the People's Republic of China. Estimates of total numbers vary from 42,000 to 57,000. The T-55 is still in wide use with Soviet and Warsaw Pact forces -- estimates range between 31,000 and 39,000. The series is, or has been, used in some 47 other nations on both sides of the Iron Curtain. The T-54/T-55 series has proved so popular that an array of modernization packages are available around the world. See the next page for specifications of the T-54/T-55 Main Battle Tank. To learn more about historical tanks, check out: FLORENCE, S.C. The wedge issues at the Pee Dee State Farmers Market in Florence served only to put smiles on people's faces as they left the rind behind to find one they could buy to make their own. "Today's event is the specialty crop of the week which is melons," said Bob Sager, market manager, as he handed out wedges of different types of melons. "We do that because it's The Fourth of July and what could be more appropriate for a specialty crop of the week than melons on The Fourth of July?" Some of the melons were yellow, some red, some seedless and others required the occasional seed spit. Each person was given a menu of what kind of melons were being sampled and where they could be purchased at the market. The menu, for those who keep score, had 11 varieties of melons available from five vendors. "This is our second year doing tasting where we're cutting and tasting," Sager said as he and sidekick Diane Guilfoil worked their way through several coolers' worth of melons. "We're going to sample at least five and maybe as many as seven depending on how many we go through," Sager said as the line to sample melons grew and the Fiddlin Fluds and Company played bluegrass in the background. "It's an opportunity for us to promote South Carolina produce," Sager said. Most of the melons at the market Saturday were South Carolina grown. "By now you're getting almost all South Carolina melons. Right now I think just about everything in the market, with a few exceptions, will be South Carolina," Sager said. "I didn't know there was a yellow watermelon, and it tasted delicious," said Lena Jackson after she sampled a wedge. "I'm going to have to try to find me one." "It was delicious, they were good. I had never tried yellow watermelons," said Michelle Smith who, with a smile on her face, continued, "It tastes like watermelon." "It was really really good. My husband is a watermelon fanatic," said Yvonne McFadden. "We just came along with him. We already bought two, we just have to bring the car around." McFadden said of the family's Saturday haul from the market. Sager said the market could have sourced the melons from the state Watermelon Board, but was instead blessed with melons from the vendors who had piles and piles of them. "If you've been through the market, we're not going to run out of melons," Sager said. While the tasting was Saturday, Sager said the melons will remain available throughout the week at the market. Firefighters work to put out a large brush fire on Saturday, July 2, 2022 on Dix Road in Kingsbury. Emegency crews from 20 county and state agencies responded to the fire. Dalondo Moultrie is the assistant managing editor of the Seguin Gazette. You can e-mail him at dalondo.moultrie@seguingazette.com . Ethnic festival "Liuyueliu" celebrated in SW China's Guizhou Xinhua) 13:50, July 03, 2022 A woman performs folk dance during activities to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 2, 2022. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Xinhua/Yang Wenbin) People perform dragon dance among splashed water to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 2, 2022. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Xinhua/Yang Wenbin) People play "lusheng", a traditional reed-pipe wind instrument, to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 2, 2022. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Xinhua/Yang Wenbin) Aerial photo taken on July 2, 2022 shows people taking part in dragon dance among splashed water to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Photo by Fang Peng/Xinhua) Aerial photo taken on July 2, 2022 shows people taking part in dragon dance among splashed water to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Photo by Liu Jinyin/Xinhua) Women perform folk dance during activities to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 2, 2022. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Xinhua/Yang Wenbin) Women perform folk dance during activities to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 2, 2022. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Xinhua/Yang Wenbin) People perform dragon dance among splashed water to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 2, 2022. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Photo by Wan Wenjie/Xinhua) Aerial photo taken on July 2, 2022 shows people taking part in activities to celebrate "Liuyueliu", an ethnic festival, in Jianhe County of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province. Annual celebration of the ethnic festival "Liuyueliu" lasts from July 2 to 5 here in Jianhe County. Local people of various ethnic groups will take part in activities like dragon dance as well as folk singing and dancing during the celebration. (Photo by Yang Jiameng/Xinhua) (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji) You are here: World Flash Mawlawi Mansoor, head of Natural Disaster Management Authority of Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province, on Saturday thanked China for sending humanitarian assistance to quake-affected families. "We are thankful to China for sending assistance particularly tents to the quake-affected people here and I am also hopeful that the neighboring country could help rebuild the ruined houses," Mansoor told Xinhua. Mansoor said his team distributed about 300 tents to the quake victims in Barmal district of Paktika province on Saturday, which are part of 920 pieces of tents and clothes donated by China. Expressing gratitude to China for the humanitarian aid, Karim Khan, an elder of Barmal district, told Xinhua that "the tents can solve our problem temporarily and we need to rebuild our houses before winter" to survive the freezing season. China has pledged 50 million yuan (7.5 million U.S. dollars) in emergency humanitarian aid for quake victims in war-torn Afghanistan. A number of countries, including China, India, Pakistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan, have sent or announced assistance to quake-affected regions in Afghanistan. A devastating earthquake jolted eastern Afghanistan on June 22, which left more than 1,000 people dead and over 1,500 others injured in Paktika and neighboring Khost province. New Leaders Crans Montana 2022 : Le Senegalais Sally Alassane Thiam honore a Bruxelles Le Senegalais Sally Alassane Thiam a remporte le prix New Leaders Crans Montana 2022 a Bruxelles ce Samedi 02 Juillet 2022. Notre compatriote dedie ce trophee au President Macky Sall en tant que President de lUnion Africaine, a toute la jeunesse africaine mais egalement au patrimoine africain. Le prix recompense de Nouveaux Leaders du Futur. Ils sont selectionnes pour leur reussite professionnelle exceptionnelle et leur experience du leadership et du savoir-faire au sein dentreprises, de gouvernements et dorganisations de la societe civile. Ces jeunes representent des institutions gouvernementales, des entreprises et des ONG, ainsi que les mondes de lart, de la mode, de la presse et des droits de lHomme. Ces Nouveaux Leaders du futur beneficient du soutien appuye du Forum de Crans Montana pour renforcer leurs reseaux regionaux et internationaux et developper leurs competences dans le cadre de la cooperation Sud-Sud. Longest prison sentence yet in Varisity Blues case, 30 months, given to Georgetown tennis coach | Main | Furman at 50: DPIC provides a census of nearly 10,000 death sentences July 2, 2022 "Crushing the Soul of Federal Public Defenders: The Plea Bargaining Machines Operation and What to Do About It" The title of this post is the title of this notable new article recently posted to SSRN and authored by Walter Goncalves. Here is its abstract: Existing scholarship on the vanishing federal trial does not explain how assistant federal public defenders (AFPDs) have been affected by the plea-bargaining machine. Without an understanding of the repercussions to line attorneys, heads of federal public defender offices (FPDOs) cannot take proactive measures. The result is low morale among staff, difficulty training litigation skills, and lower quality representation. This state of affairs exacerbates non-trial resolutions as defenders know only how to push pleas. FPDOs must train AFPDs to better screen cases for trial and improve courtroom litigation. They must also focus on how the plea-bargaining machine has affected racial minorities as seen in charging and sentencing disparities. The historical oppression of African Americans, Latinxs, and American Indians made it easier to justify laws that ignited plea-bargaining hegemony: sentencing guidelines, mandatory minimums, and fast-track programs. David Patton, Executive Director for the Federal Defenders of New York, authored an influential essay published in the Yale Law Journal, Federal Public Defense in an Age of Inquisition. He compared federal practice in 2012, when he wrote it, to the time of Gideon v Wainwright. Patton concludes that todays criminal defendant is more likely to be of color, in custody, face more prison time, and less likely to go to trial. While relevant a decade later, the analysis does not develop problems of race, nor realistic improvements. The better theoretical lens considers race and supplies solutions through training. This Article shows how sentencing guidelines, mandatory minimums, and fast-track programs operate in AFPD work, highlights problems for defendants of color, and proposes strategies FPDOs can apply to blunt the impact of the decreasing trial rate. July 2, 2022 at 06:07 PM | Permalink Comments This is a useful piece, and I don't want to seem ungrateful, but it also illustrates the futility of trying to make a system safe one component at a time, particularly beginning with THIS component. The AFD decisions that are looked at critically here are efforts at "sense-making" in an unsafe system. Training will help but it won't change the realities the AFDs confront. What we have here is a colonialist system of racial and class subjugation. Yes the defenders might be able to bend the curve, but not much on their own. Defense lawyer. Posted by: James Doyle | Jul 2, 2022 6:34:05 PM How to know immediately that a post is BS: When it and the comments use words and phrases such as, Latinx, plea bargaining machine,, historical oppression, and colonialist system of racial and class subjugation. What legal academia doesnt understand is that Americas distrust of the CJS is not the result of the thuggish police, heartless DAs, etc. Its stupid articles like this pushed by the defense bar and the same legal academia. Posted by: TarlsQtr | Jul 2, 2022 11:23:45 PM TarlsQtr -- As you point out, the main takeaway from this article is how oblivious anti-American defense lawyers have become to the unhinged extent of their race huckstering. Posted by: Bill Otis | Jul 3, 2022 9:18:39 AM TarlsQtr -- On the other hand, you do have do be somewhat sympathetic to defense counsels' plight. If I had to deal with criminals day in and day out for years, people who find everyone else to blame for their problems but never themselves, and who sooner or later are going to blame me too by filing a habeas petition alleging that I was drunk every day of their trial, I too would be depressed. Posted by: Bill Otis | Jul 3, 2022 10:34:09 PM Can you imagine how many more "people of color" would be in prison if we actually took crime seriously? Inner city murder, rape, robbery, all those tend to be committed by the people who are there, against other people who are there. And reading various posts by the good Professor over the years, the clearance rate for those offenses is atrocious. Posted by: Soronel Haetir | Jul 4, 2022 12:00:30 PM I am waiting -- and expect to continue to wait -- for the equivalent article on the soul crushing nature of the plea bargain machinery (and the defense tactics designed primarily to wear out the prosecution to get a better bargain) on prosecutors. Posted by: tmm | Jul 5, 2022 4:12:52 PM tmm -- Yes, you'll be waiting a long time. Some time ago, my law alma mater, Stanford, put on a panel discussion, "Can A Good Person Be A Prosecutor?" I wrote them asking when they'll be putting on a panel about whether a good person could be a defense lawyer. I'm still waiting to hear back. Posted by: Bill Otis | Jul 5, 2022 5:59:07 PM If you write such an article, tmm, I will be eager to blog about it. Posted by: Doug B. | Jul 5, 2022 10:18:00 PM Post a comment Furman at 50: DPIC provides a census of nearly 10,000 death sentences | Main | "What the end of Roe v. Wade will mean for people on probation and parole" July 3, 2022 Will Oklahoma carry out over two dozen executions over the next couple years? The question in the title of this post is prompted by this new Washington Post article headlined "Oklahoma plans to execute an inmate nearly every month until 2025." Here are some of the details: Oklahoma plans to execute 25 prisoners in the next 29 months after ending a moratorium spurred by botched lethal injections and legal battles over how it kills death row inmates. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on Friday set the execution dates for six prisoners in response to a request by Oklahoma Attorney General John OConnor (R) in mid-June. The court later added dates for an additional 19 prisoners for a total representing more than half of the states 44-person death row population. After a federal judge in Oklahoma ruled in early June that the states three-drug lethal-injection protocol was constitutional, OConnor made his request, saying in filings that the prisoners had exhausted their criminal appeals. OConnor argued for imminent execution dates as a matter of justice for the family members of those who were killed. In a statement, OConnor noted that the earliest kill by a prisoner on Oklahomas death row was committed in 1993. The first execution is scheduled for Aug. 25, with subsequent executions scheduled for about once every four weeks through 2024. In Oklahoma, prisoners are automatically granted a clemency hearing within 21 days of their scheduled execution, at which point the states pardon and parole board can recommend the governor grant a prisoner a reprieve from death row. The scheduled flurry of executions is expected to draw Oklahoma back into familiar territory: the center of the nations death penalty debate.... Several of the Oklahoma prisoners scheduled for execution have strong innocence claims, histories of intellectual disability that should disqualify them for the death penalty or whose cases have claims of racial bias, their lawyers say. Among them is Richard Glossip, whose 2015 case against the states lethal injection protocol went before the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in the states favor. His assertion of innocence has not only made him one of the more high-profile death row cases in the United States but has also won him support from Republican lawmakers in the state who object to his execution, scheduled for September. Prior recent related posts: July 3, 2022 at 01:58 PM | Permalink Comments Unfortunately, this is the logical consequence of the end of a moratorium. While the moratorium on actually carrying out an execution was in place, offenders exhausted their appeal and habeas process leaving a large number of individuals on the "need an execution date" list. And to avoid adding any delay for future cases, you need an expedited schedule to clear out that list. We went through a similar process in Missouri in 2013 when our moratorium ended with 18 executions in 22 months. Posted by: tmm | Jul 6, 2022 1:56:38 PM tmm -- Yes, that's how it works. When you artificially dam up the normal flow of X, then, when the dam is opened, you get a faster-than-normal flow of X because of what has been pent up by the dam. For people who don't like this, maybe building the dam wasn't all that good an idea. P.S. So finally I find out you're in Missouri! Posted by: Bill Otis | Jul 7, 2022 10:54:40 AM Post a comment STORM LAKE, Iowa -- Tyson Foods is celebrating its 40th year slaughtering and processing pork in Storm Lake. In 1982, Iowa Beef Processors, Inc., a forerunner to Tyson, purchased the then-vacant plant from Hygrade Food Products and remodeled it extensively. It was IBP's first venture into pork production. Hygrade, which had once been Storm Lake's largest employer, made clear the pork plant wasn't doing well as early as 1978, and made plans to close due to a dwindling local hog supply, increased operating costs and labor difficulties. It remained open for a time, but by October 1981, with the plant losing money, Hygrade closed it down. Roughly 500 jobs were lost. Storm Lake civic leaders cheered IBP's $2.5 million purchase of the plant in April of the following year. When an IBP airplane landed at Storm Lake's airport on the day of the announcement, they were met by an entourage of eight cars, plus a police escort. Cheerleaders and a band played for the IBP delegation. Hiring began in early September 1982, according to Journal archival information, with a base hourly rate of between $6 and $7. Then-Iowa Gov. Robert Ray and U.S. Rep. Berkley Bedell were on hand for the occasion when the plant resumed operations that month under new ownership. "There is a real positive attitude here. It's good to have the enthusiasm and support of the community," Bruce Pautsch, an IBP spokesman said in 1982 when hiring began at the Storm Lake plant. IBP initially hired 350 employees for one daily production shift at the plant, a Tyson spokeswoman said. Today, the plant employs around 2,300 and runs two production shifts and one maintenance and sanitation shift. The plant has been expanded significantly from what IBP acquired 40 years ago -- it's now more than 300,000 square feet. The sprawling facility was built in numerous phases: certain parts of the property date back to the early 1930s, while other parts were built at various points between the 1940s and the 1990s. More recent additions were in 2016 and 2019, according to Buena Vista County property records. Tyson would not disclose the amount of pork produced at the plant, but a spokeswoman said it processes more than three times what it did in 1982. The plant produces fresh boxed pork products for retail and foodservice, raw pork materials sent to case-ready plants (which take larger cuts of meat and prepare them into cuts for retail), and pork for export. When IBP opened the plant in 1982, company officials expected 7,000 hogs to be processed in an eight-hour shift. IBP was acquired by Tyson in 2001 for $3.2 billion. (Tyson also operates a turkey complex in Storm Lake, one of the largest turkey plants in the country, which was acquired upon Tyson's purchase of Hillshire Brands for more than $8.5 billion in 2014. Tyson's turkey operations in Storm Lake employ around 750 people). Mary Berg was 22 years old when she began a job with an IBP construction crew working on the remodeling of the pork plant. When the plant began production later that year, she became a gam-cutter on the harvest floor. "I came from Early, Iowa, and I was living in Sac City at the time. I was without a job and one of my best friends' dads said, 'You'd better get up there if you want a job,'" said Berg, now 62 and a training specialist at the plant. "I went up right away and was hired right away." Berg is one of 10 current employees who've been working at the plant all 40 years Tyson has operated it. The others are Richard Zwemke, Ivan Scwhaller, John Wiley, Jerry Morlan, Ron Peters, Mark Thompson, Keith Benningsdorf, Dan Coleman and Nick Lovan. "When you're working in a place like that, you become family. You work with everybody, that many hours a day, that many days a week, they become your second family," Berg said. To celebrate the 40th anniversary, Tyson donated more than 40,000 pounds of meat to local food pantries and organizations and gave five donations of $4,000 to five organizations: Upper Des Moines Opportunity, CAASA, Ready Set Grow, Storm Lake Police Departments Mini Pitch Project and the Storm Lake Rotary Club. SIOUX CITY -- After a COVID cancellation in 2020 and switching to a two-day affair in 2021, the 2022 installment of Sioux City's Saturday in the Park was back to a one-day bonanza of bands, fans, food and vendors. A little more than a half hour before the free music festival kicked off, attendees could be seen streaming into the 32-acre Grandview Park. A potent smell of barbecue, gyro meat and fries wafted through the food concourse as a drummer was heard thwacking away at his kit during a soundcheck on the Bandshell. Then, the lower area of the Main Stage was mostly empty. An hour in, the park was fully alive. Love of community Lines were forming at vendors like Smokin R's BBQ which came all the way up from Florida to supply festivalgoers with ribs, brisket and pulled pork sandwiches. In the "Kid's Zone," kids were harnessed and scaling the rock wall or navigating through an inflatable obstacle course or watching clown extraordinaire Special K'z move bubbles through the air with an array of wands. Some folks were plenty content to just sit in their chairs and listen to the music no matter who was playing. "We just love being here," said Rhonda Hawks and her husband Mike, 60 and 65, who drove 28 miles down from Akron, Iowa for the event. "We love the community, just bringing people together," Rhonda said. Mike added that he had been to as many as 30 installments of Saturday in the Park and couldn't recall a single fight or fracas. Lyle Huff, 60, drove over an hour from Ashton, Iowa and said he too has been to nearly every Saturday in the Park and also didn't remember seeing anything getting out of hand. "Everybody's just enjoying themselves," Huff said. For him, the best the festival ever got was when blues legend B.B. King performed at it in the 2007. So he was plenty excited at the prospect of hearing King's old touring mate, Buddy Guy, take the Main Stage at 6:15 p.m. By the 6 o'clock hour, with the temperature hovering around 82 degrees, Saturday in the Park co-founder Dave Bernstein said at least 25,000 people were in attendance. Firsts Relative newcomers to the festival like Blaine Griese prioritized other experiences. The 13-year-old said he was most excited to see hip hop artist Fetty Wap, who scored a major hit in 2015 with the song "Trap Queen." Deborah Harper, 65, came to her first Saturday in the Park mostly to browse the Arts Alley, which included a number of clothiers, and get donuts. First-time performers at the festival, such as Tori Semanick of the groove-heavy metal group Fall of Kings and rapper Richard Miller, marveled at the chance they got to perform on Saturday in the Park's Abe Stage. "My voice is totally gone now," Miller said after wrapping up. "It was amazing to perform with the other artists too." Before the show, Semanick let a number of women paint on her body as a way for them to express their own feelings. That communal engagement extended to the performance itself. "Everyone in the band has contributed to the lyrics," Semanick said. "It's not just me singing my own lyrics, but me singing for everybody." Mariah St Cyr, aka RYA DON, became the first female Native American rapper to perform at the festival and didn't take the opportunity for granted one bit. "It was crazy. A little surreal. It means a lot. Last year I was just performing at bars and now I'm here. I think this is the biggest crowd I've been in front of," she said. "I'm still trying to come out on top. Trying to make it. Maybe people can see me up there and maybe think they can make it for themselves." New Orleans-based group Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience had just two day's notice that they were playing after the band Daisy the Great dropped out. The group, which won a Grammy in 2008 for "Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album," played songs filled with bass, brass and keyboard riffs, all while tossing purple, gold and green beads in to the crowd. Staying safe and keeping cool Even with the crowds swelling throughout the day, there were few safety-related incidents. According to Lt. Joe Rodriguez, the Sioux City Fire Rescue deputy fire marshal, up until about 4 p.m. only one person had to go to the safety tent. "(They) overheated," Rodriguez said. That degree of ease is something Bernstein also spoke too in a chat with the Journal. "Just felt very smooth this year!!!" he said via text. Meetings and events Bruguier's Cabin Tours, the second Sunday of the month from June to October, from 2 to 4 p.m. Special group tours can be arranged by calling 712-490-6506. Dakota County Historical Society meets at 7:30 p.m. on third Thursday of the month, Dakota City Library. Contact Dennis Reinert at 712-253-1609 for more information. Top O' Morning Toastmasters Club, Mondays, noon to 1 p.m. Contact LeAnn Blankenburg, 712-870-1120, for meeting information. The Siouxland Ostomy Support Group, find us on Facebook. For more information and meeting times contact Dick Lindblom at 712-251-2453. Southside "South Bottoms" former residents, 6 p.m. potluck, second Wednesday of the month at Goodwill Industries cafeteria, 3100 Fourth St. Gert, 258-2227. Siouxland Metal Detecting and Archeology Club, 6:30 p.m., first Tuesday of the month in the Gleeson Room at 4510 Buckwalter Drive. Visitors welcome. Ray Turner, 712-899-2114. American Legion Post 64, 7 p.m. last Thursday of the month at 4021 Floyd Blvd. 712-258-3986. Marine Corps League, 6 p.m. second Tuesday of the month at Elks Club on TriView Ave. All marines welcome. For more information, call Cathy Moreno, 712-899-8441. Sioux City Chapter of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), 7 p.m. fourth Tuesday of the month at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 1421 Geneva St. 712-203-2052. Sioux City Duplicate Bridge Club, 12:30 p.m. Mondays (open); at the Senior Center. Mary 605-670-9613. Siouxland Fly-Fishing Club, 10 a.m. last Saturday of the month at the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center on Hwy 12. All interested in fly fishing; beginners welcome. Monthly programs provided. For more information, call Bob Gillespie, 712-251-9463, or Diana, 402-987-3945. Siouxland Coin Club, 7 p.m. first Tuesday of each month at First United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall, 1915 Nebraska St. Bob, 255-4829. The Siouxland Pride Alliance, peer support group, 5:30 p.m. Fridays; Youth Pride group, 1:30 p.m. second Sunday of the month; potluck, 5:30 p.m. third Sunday of the month. First Unitarian Church, 2508 Jackson. Call 712-223-0931 Siouxland Samplers Quilt Guild, 7 p.m. second Monday of the month at the Redeemer Lutheran Church, 3204 S. Lakeport St, door #2. Visitors and new members welcome. Siouxland Sewing Guild, 6:30-8 p.m. first Thursday of the month at South Sioux Public Library, 2121 Dakota Ave., South Sioux City. For anyone interested in sewing. Denise, 402-922-1822. Sooland RC Modelers, 7 p.m. second Thursday of the month at Morningside Lutheran Church. Non-profit club that flies remote control aircraft. Anyone interested in RC is welcome. Retired Educators, 10:30 a.m. third Tuesday of the month, at the Redeemer Lutheran Church, 3204 S. Lakeport St., door #6. Mid-Step Services for Handicapped, meal at 5 p.m. on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month, at the Redeemer Lutheran Church, 3204 S. Lakeport St., door #6. Confirmation Instruction and Midweek Lessons, 5 p.m. on Wednesdays, at the Redeemer Lutheran Church, 3204 S. Lakeport St., door #6. Open to all kids 5 years old through 8th grade. Primetime (Potluck), 12 p.m., second Thursday of each month, at Whitfield United Methodist Church, 1319 W 5th. For more information call 252-3261 Tuesday-Thursdays, 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Abundant Life Fellowship, 809 S. Alice St., in Sioux City will distribute food boxes after their 11 a.m. Sunday services. For additional information contact Pastor Bob at 605-205-0718 or Donna at 605-205-0719. Richard and Jeannine Scott of Sioux City will celebrate 67 years of marriage on Saturday with a luncheon hosted by their children from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Sioux City Baptist Church, 3222 Pawnee Place. No gifts please. SOUTH SIOUX CITY Nearly a month after the South Sioux City Senior Center shut down, efforts to revive the center are basically starting at square one, according to one volunteer. If we do not start now, it is only going to get more difficult to revive the centers services, said volunteer Bill Garvey Sr. The city is assisting the center in its efforts to resume operations, but a lack of volunteers, an increase in requests for services and a need for funds to pay for replacement delivery vans have slowed progress. The center officially shut down on June 6, but its march toward closing began more than two years ago. Increase in requests At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the center received an increasing number of requests for its services. Because its dependent on volunteers to handle day-to-day tasks, it became overwhelmed. The Meals on Wheels program, which serves about 90 individuals, needs volunteers to deliver one meal a day, five days a week. A substantial portion of the volunteers were other elderly members of the community. Being at higher risk of major complications or even death from the virus, many had to stop their work. According to Garvey, community involvement was already on the decline. The number of volunteers before the start of the pandemic isnt what it used to be 10 or 20 years ago. An already low volunteer base was even more diminished. Due to the shallow volunteer pool, the remaining volunteers and paid workers had to pick up the slack. At one point in May, the last cook was doing three different tasks, cooking, making deliveries, and watching the elderly at the center, all while being paid the same amount as she was before. The cook left the center around the end of May. Higher costs Financial issues also contributed to the center's closing. Before the spike in gas prices in the last few months, delivery drivers were able to justify spending some of their own money on fuel to make deliveries. But fewer drivers meant more mileage, and more mileage meant more fuel. Longer delivery routes combined with rising gas prices led to expensive receipts at the pump -- something that many volunteers could not be available for or afford. Garvey said those factors led to fewer volunteers and fewer donations. Getting donations is not as easy as it used to be, said Garvey. Community drive is still there, but justifying the donation is difficult given the circumstances. Rising food costs also added to the problems. While donations and state and federal funding were enough to cover most operations, those who utilized the food service were given an invoice for a recommended donation amount. We kept the donation amount at $4 a meal, said South Sioux City Senior Center board member Clara Woten. For 20 meals a month, the total monthly recommended donation was $80. But while the cost remained low, some were not able to pay, and the difference between the cost of food production and the number of people using the meals began to draw closer. Garvey noted that the donation receipts did not increase proportionately with increased expenses when speaking on what was discovered in a review of the centers financial records. With concern surrounding the ability to socially distance in the center, requests for delivered meals increased. And with little understanding of how COVID-19 spread at the time, extra packaging was used to deliver the food, increasing costs. Due to Title III of the Older Americans Act, passed by Congress in 1965, those who received the delivered meals could not be denied service if they did not voluntarily donate. Since there is government money involved, the senior center could not stop delivering meals to anyone due to inability to pay the donation amount, said Garvey. Funding issues The money Garvey is referring to came from the Northeast Nebraska Area Agency on Aging. Funding from the agency was held up from May 19 to June 6 due to issues keeping the temperature of the food high or low enough during the delivery process. Connie Cooper, executive director of the Northeast Nebraska Area Agency on Aging, said that the temperature range is above 135 degrees Fahrenheit for hot meals, and below 41 degrees Fahrenheit for cold meals. The agency monitors a number of services that the senior center provides, said Cooper. To ensure safety, the temperature of the food is one thing we monitor. The food was tested upon departure and return, and the center failed the test when we were there both announced and unannounced. It was then that Cooper became aware of the senior centers financial troubles. When the center stopped its Meals on Wheels program, state funding resumed. All funds since June 6 have been released to the center, said Cooper. Hopefully, they can resume operations soon. The center was experiencing its fair share of downs, but the loss of one team member was the last straw. In mid-April, South Sioux City Senior Centers Director Tom Rich informed the board that he was retiring. If we knew at the beginning of the year that he would be retiring, we would have stepped up, said Woten. But we did not know until a couple weeks before. Rich had been the director of the center for 19 years. He was the leader here, Garvey said. You have to have a passion to do the job. It is not easy to replace. There are sacrifices you have to make. Training deficit According to Woten, Rich received training from the state of Nebraska before assuming the mantel. The director he chose to succeed him, a former cook at the center, received no such training. She left the position after a month, working from May 1 to end of May, Woten said. She did a lot of deliveries and such, but they did not have the time or knowledge to complete the tasks. With training she would have been better off. Cooper said she was aware of Richs departure, but was never officially notified of who would fill his role. The Northeast Nebraska Agency on Aging is also responsible for training the director. Board members declined to provide the most recent directors name so the director could not be reached for comment. Her departure left two vacancies at the center, which also included the cook. Soon after, board members resigned, too. Lois Daniels was the one member to remain. After they all left, we had an election to fill the spots and build up again, said Daniels. Clara was one who stepped up to fill the hole. This was not Wotens first time on the board. She had been on and off the board over the past 15 years. Daniels has been a board member for the last seven years. High priority Since the center closed, the board as well as community members have been working closely with the city to forge a plan to resume operations. Lance Hedquist, South Sioux City's city administrator, said the city and the board are meeting two times a week to discuss plans. This is a very high priority for the community, Hedquist said We are still establishing a financial budget, but we have had some people come forward to volunteer and get paid jobs. For those who receive the Meals on Wheels service, its importance goes beyond that of simply having something to eat. A person coming by to check on the elderly is just as valuable, Garvey said. South Sioux still has the feel of a small town. You do not necessarily know everybody but there is always somebody that will look out for them. With Meals on Wheels, someone was checking in every day, he said. The date when Meals on Wheels will resume is unknown. Those working towards reopening say that ensuring financial integrity is the first step in resuming services for the center. We have two retired accountants reviewing financial data from past years, he said. We consider it due diligence. We do not have any suspicions, but it will give us and any donors peace of mind. Woten and Daniels both expressed interest in completing a business plan before entertaining any donors. We know it is going to be a tough task, but if we do not start now, it is only going to get more difficult to revive the centers services, Garvey said. From one July Fourth to the next, a steep slide for Biden WASHINGTON (AP) Last Fourth of July, President Joe Biden gathered hundreds of people outside the White House for an event that would have been unthinkable for many Americans the previous year. With the coronavirus in retreat, they ate hamburgers and watched fireworks over the National Mall. Although the pandemic wasnt over yet, Biden said, were closer than ever to declaring our independence from a deadly virus. Across the country, indoor masking requirements were falling as the number of infections and deaths plummeted. Within weeks, even some of the presidents allies privately admitted that the speech had been premature. Soon the administration would learn that the delta variant could be transmitted by people who had already been vaccinated. Masks went back on, then came polarizing vaccination mandates. The even-more-contagious omicron variant would arrive months later, infecting millions and causing chaos during the holiday season. We were hoping to be free of the virus, and the virus had a lot more in store for us, said Joshua Sharfstein, vice dean of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The number of people in the United States who died from COVID-19 nearly doubled, from 605,000 to more than 1 million, over the past year. That sunny speech one year ago marked a crossroads for Bidens presidency. The pandemic appeared to be waning, the economy was booming, inflation wasn't rising as quickly as today and public approval of his job performance was solid. 3 dead, 3 critically wounded in shooting at Denmark mall COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) A gunman opened fire inside a busy shopping mall in the Danish capital Sunday, killing three people and critically wounding three others, police said. A 22-year-old Danish man was arrested after the shooting, Copenhagen police inspector Sren Thomassen told reporters, adding there was no indication that anyone else was involved in the attack, though police were still investigating. Gun violence is relatively rare in Denmark. Thomassen said it was too early to speculate on the motive for the shooting, which happened in the late afternoon at Fields, one of the biggest shopping malls in Scandinavia and located on the outskirts of the Danish capital. When the shots rang out, some people hid in shops while others fled in a panicked stampede, according to witnesses. It is pure terror. This is awful, said Hans Christian Stoltz, a 53-year-old IT consultant, who was bringing his daughters to see Harry Styles perform at concert scheduled for Sunday night near the mall. You might wonder how a person can do this to another human being, but its beyond beyond anything thats possible. 'Stay tuned' for new evidence against Trump in July hearings WASHINGTON (AP) More evidence is emerging in the House's Jan. 6 investigation that lends support to recent testimony that President Donald Trump wanted to join an angry mob that marched to the Capitol where they rioted, a committee member said Sunday. There will be way more information and stay tuned, said Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill. The committee has been intensifying its yearlong investigation into the attack on Jan. 6, 2021, and Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., the committee's vice chair, is making clear that criminal referrals to the Justice Department, including against Trump, could follow. At least two more hearings are scheduled this month that aim to show how Trump illegally directed a violent mob toward the Capitol on Jan. 6, and then failed to take quick action to stop the attack once it began. The committee also has been reviewing new documentary film footage of Trumps final months in office, including interviews with Trump and members of his family. Hope and despair: Kathy Gannon on 35 years in Afghanistan KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) The Afghan policeman opened fire on us with his AK-47, emptying 26 bullets into the back of the car. Seven slammed into me, and at least as many into my colleague, Associated Press photographer Anja Niedringhaus. She died at my side. Anja weighed heavy against my shoulder. I tried to look at her but I couldnt move. I looked down; all I could see was what looked like a stump where my left hand had been. I could barely whisper, Please help us. Our driver raced us to a small local hospital in Khost, siren on. I tried to stay calm, thinking over and over: Dont be afraid. Dont die afraid. Just breathe. At the hospital, Dr. Abdul Majid Mangal said he would have to operate and tried to reassure me. His words are forever etched in my heart: Please know your life is as important to me as it is to you. Much later, as I recovered in New York during a process that would turn out to eventually require 18 operations, an Afghan friend called from Kabul. He wanted to apologize for the shooting on behalf of all Afghans. Russia claims control of pivotal eastern Ukrainian province KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russia claimed control Sunday over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of Moscow's grinding war. The General Staff of Ukraine's military reported that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk in Luhansk province. President Volodymr Zelenskyy acknowledged the withdrawal but said the fight for the city was still raging on its outskirts. If confirmed, Russia's complete seizure of Luhansk would provide its troops with a stronger base from which to press their advance in the Donbas, a region of mines and factories that President Vladimir Putin is bent on capturing in a campaign that could determine the course of the entire war. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin that Russias troops, with a local separatist militia, have established full control over the city of Lysychansk and now hold all of Luhansk, according to a ministry statement published Sunday. As is typical with such descriptions, the Russian statement characterized the victories as the liberation of the Luhansk Peoples Republic. Separatists in Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk, which make up the Donbas and are home to significant Russian-speaking populations, declared independence from Kyiv in 2014 and their forces have battled Ukrainian troops there ever since. Russia formally recognized the self-proclaimed republics days before its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. Video shows Akron police kill Black man in hail of gunfire AKRON, Ohio (AP) A Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again, authorities said Sunday at a news conference. Akron police released video of the shooting of Jayland Walker, 25, who was killed June 27 in a pursuit that had started with an attempted traffic stop. The mayor called the shooting heartbreaking while asking for patience from the community. It's not clear how many shots were fired by the eight officers involved, but Walker sustained more than 60 wounds. An attorney for Walker's family said officers kept firing even after he was on the ground. Officers attempted to stop Walker's car around 12:30 a.m. for unspecified traffic and equipment violations, but less than a minute into a pursuit, the sound of a shot was heard from the car, and a transportation department camera captured what appeared to be a muzzle flash coming from the vehicle, Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said. That changed the nature of the case from a routine traffic stop to now a public safety issue," he said. Police body camera videos show what unfolded after the roughly six-minute pursuit. Several shouting officers with guns drawn approach the slowing car on foot, as it rolls up over a curb and onto a sidewalk. A person wearing a ski mask exits the passenger door and runs toward a parking lot. Police chase him for about 10 seconds before officers fire from multiple directions, in a burst of shots that lasts 6 or 7 seconds. Alpine glacier chunk detaches, killing at least 6 hikers ROME (AP) A large chunk of an Alpine glacier broke loose Sunday and roared down a mountain in Italy, sending ice, snow and rock slamming into hikers on a popular trail on the peak and killing at least six and injuring nine, authorities said, warning that the toll might climb. A local Civil Protection official, Gianpaolo Bottacin, was quoted by the Italian news agency ANSA as providing the toll, but stressing that the situation was evolving and that there could be perhaps 15 people missing. In late evening, the National Alpine and Cave Rescue Corps tweeted a phone number to call for family or friends in case of "failure to return from possible excursions to the glacier. Rescuers were checking license plates in the parking lot as part of checks to determine how many people might be unaccounted for, a process that could take hours, Corps spokesman Walter Milan told The Associated Press by telephone. The glacier, in the Marmolada range, is the largest in the Dolomite mountains in northeastern Italy and people ski there in the winter. But the glacier has been rapidly melting away in recent years. The long, ongoing debate over All men are created equal NEW YORK (AP) Kevin Jennings is CEO of the Lambda Legal organization, a prominent advocate for LGBTQ rights. He sees his mission in part as fulfilling that hallowed American principle: All men are created equal. Those words say to me, Do better, America. And what I mean by that is we have never been a country where people were truly equal, Jennings says. It's an aspiration to continue to work towards, and we're not there yet. Ryan T. Anderson is president of the conservative Ethics and Public Policy Center. He, too, believes that all men are created equal. For him, the words mean we all have the same dignity, we all count equally, no one is disposable, no one a second-class citizen." At the same time, he says, not everyone has an equal right to marry what he and other conservatives regard as the legal union of a man and woman. "I don't think human equality requires redefining what marriage is," he says. Few words in American history are invoked as often as those from the preamble to the Declaration of Independence, published nearly 250 years ago. And few are more difficult to define. The music, and the economy, of all men are created equal make it both universal and elusive, adaptable to viewpoints social, racial, economic otherwise with little or no common ground. How we use them often depends less on how we came into this world than on what kind world we want to live in. WWII Medal of Honor recipient to lie in honor at US Capitol WASHINGTON (AP) Hershel W. Woody Williams, the last remaining Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, will lie in honor at the U.S. Capitol, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Sunday. A date and other details will be announced later, Pelosi and Schumer said in a joint statement. Woody Williams embodied the best of America: living a life of duty, honor and courage, Pelosi said. Schumer said: Woody Williams was an American hero who embodied the best of our country and the greatest generation. Williams, who died on Wednesday at 98, was a legend in his native West Virginia for his heroics under fire over several crucial hours at the battle for Iwo Jima. As a young Marine corporal, Williams went ahead of his unit in February 1945 and eliminated a series of Japanese machine gun positions. Facing small-arms fire, Williams fought for four hours, repeatedly returning to prepare demolition charges and obtain flamethrowers. Later that year, the 22-year-old Williams received the Medal of Honor from President Harry Truman. The Medal of Honor is the nations highest award for military valor. Wimbledon wild-card entry steals set, not win, from Djokovic WIMBLEDON, England (AP) Even knowing what an unusual Wimbledon this has been, what with so many unexpected results and new faces popping up, and so few top seeds and major champions remaining, surely Novak Djokovic would not lose to a wild-card entry making his Grand Slam debut, would he? If it did not quite seem plausible, it did at least become vaguely possible a tad past 9:30 p.m. on Sunday night under the closed roof at Centre Court, when 25-year-old Dutchman Tim van Rijthoven ranking: 104th; lifetime tour-level victories: eight, all in the past month had the temerity to smack a 133 mph ace past Djokovic and tie their fourth-round match at a set apiece. All of nine minutes later, the time it took Djokovic to grab 12 of the next 15 points, and the next three games, both plausibility and possibility took a hike. Soon enough, the third set was his, and not much later, so was the fourth, and the match, a 6-2, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 result that gave the tournament's No. 1 seed a 25th consecutive grass-court victory at the All England Club and a place in his 13th Wimbledon quarterfinal. Novak did his Novak thing, van Rijthoven said, and played very, very well. He had all the answers. Beforehand, van Rijthoven had said: Ill go into that match thinking I can win. Might have still had that sense Sunday evening. If only briefly. Flash The Iranian Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned the United States for its "constant hostility" against Iranian people, saying 34 years ago, it was manifested by the downing of a passenger plane, and today, through the continuation of maximum pressure policy. The ministry made the remarks in a tweet to commemorate the 34th anniversary of the downing of an Iranian passenger aircraft by a U.S. Navy guided-missile cruiser in 1988 over the Gulf, which killed 290 people on board. The U.S. "hostile approach continues to this day by maintaining the failed policy of maximum pressure," said the ministry tweet. On July 3, 1988, the Iran Air Flight 655 from the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas to Dubai was shot down by the USS Vincennes guided-missile cruiser, killing all 290 on board including 66 children. KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) The Afghan policeman opened fire on us with his AK-47, emptying 26 bullets into the back of the car. Seven slammed into me, and at least as many into my colleague, Associated Press photographer Anja Niedringhaus. She died at my side. I could barely whisper, Please help us. Our driver raced us to a small local hospital in Khost, siren on. I tried to stay calm. At the hospital, Dr. Abdul Majid Mangal said he would have to operate and tried to reassure me. His words are forever etched in my heart: Please know your life is as important to me as it is to you. Much later, as I recovered in New York during a process that would turn out to eventually require 18 operations, an Afghan friend called from Kabul to apologize for the shooting on behalf of all Afghans. I said the shooter didnt represent a nation, a people. For me, it was Dr. Mangal who represented Afghanistan and Afghans. I have reported on Afghanistan for the AP for the past 35 years, during an extraordinary series of events and regime changes. Through it all, the kindness and resilience of ordinary Afghans have shone through which is also what has made it so painful to watch the slow erosion of their hope. I have always been amazed at how Afghans stubbornly hung on to hope against all odds. But by 2018, a Gallup poll showed that the fraction of people in Afghanistan with hope in the future was the lowest ever recorded anywhere. I arrived in Afghanistan in 1986, in the middle of the Cold War. It seems a lifetime ago. It is. Then, the enemy attacking Afghanistan was the communist former Soviet Union, dubbed godless by United States President Ronald Reagan. The defenders were the U.S.-backed religious mujahedeen, defined as those who engage in holy war, championed by Reagan as freedom fighters. At that time, the God versus communism message was strong. The University of Nebraska even crafted an anti-communist curriculum to teach English to the millions of Afghan refugees living in camps in neighboring Pakistan. The university made the alphabet simple: J was for Jihad or holy war against the communists; K was for the Kalashnikov guns used in jihad, and I was for Infidel, which described the communists themselves. There was even a math program. The questions went something like: If there were 10 communists and you killed five, how many would you have left? When I covered the mujahedeen, I spent a lot of time and effort on being stronger, walking longer, climbing harder and faster. At one point, I ran out of a dirty mud hut with them and hid under a nearby cluster of trees. Just minutes later, Russian helicopter gunships flew low, strafed the trees and all but destroyed the hut. The Russians withdrew in 1989 without a win. In 1992, the mujahedeen took power. But it wasnt long before the mujahedeen turned their guns on each other. Thrice the AP lost its equipment to thieving warlords, only to be returned after negotiations with the top warlord. One day I counted as many as 200 incoming and outgoing rockets inside of minutes. The bloodletting of the mujahedeen-cum government ministers-cum warlords killed upward of 50,000 people. I saw a 5-year-old girl killed by a rocket as she stepped out of her house. Despite the chaos of the time, Afghans still had hope. In the waning days of the warring mujahedeens rule, I attended a wedding in Kabul where both the wedding party and guests were coiffed and downright glamorous. When asked how she managed to look so good with so little amid the relentless rocketing, one young woman replied brightly, Were not dead yet! The wedding was delayed twice because of rockets. By mid-1996, the Taliban were on Kabuls doorstep, with their promise of burqas for women and beards for men. As international sanctions crippled Afghanistan, one-eyed Taliban Mullah Mohammad Omar got closer to Al-Qaida, until eventually the terrorist group became the Talibans only source of income. Then came the seismic shock of 9/11. Many Afghans mourned the American deaths so far away. Few even knew who Osama bin Laden was. But the country was now squarely a target in the eyes of the United States. Amir Shah, APs longtime correspondent, summed up what most Afghans were thinking at the time: America will set Afghanistan on fire. And it did. I was the only Western journalist to see the last weeks of Taliban rule. The U.S.-led coalition assault began on Oct. 7, 2001. The powerful B-52 bombers of the U.S. pounded the hills and even landed in the city. On Nov. 12 that year, a 2,000-pound bomb landed on a house near the AP office. It threw me across the room and blew out window and door frames. Glass shattered and sprayed everywhere. By sunrise the next day, the Taliban were gone from Kabul. Afghanistans next set of rulers marched into the city: The mujahedeen were back. The U.S. and U.N. returned them to power even though some among them had brought bin Laden from Sudan to Afghanistan in 1996, promising him a safe haven. The hope of Afghans went through the roof, because they believed the powerful U.S. would help them keep the mujahedeen in check. Yet worrying signs began to emerge. The revenge killings began, and the U.S.-led coalition sometimes participated without knowing the details. The mujahedeen would falsely identify enemies even those who had worked with the U.S. before as belonging to al-Qaida or to the Taliban. In the meantime, corruption seemed to reach epic proportions, with suitcases of money, often from the CIA, handed off to Washingtons Afghan allies. Yet schools were built, roads were reconstructed and a new generation of Afghans, at least in the cities, grew up with freedoms their parents had not known and in many cases looked on with suspicion. Then came the shooting in 2014 that would change my life. It was two years before I was able to return to work and to Afghanistan. By that point, the disappointment and disenchantment with Americas longest war had already set in. Despite the U.S. spending over $148 billion on development alone over 20 years, the percentage of Afghans barely surviving at the poverty level was increasing yearly. In 2020, the U.S. and the Taliban signed a deal for troops to withdraw within 18 months. It was the sudden and secret departure of President Ashraf Ghani that finally brought the Taliban back into the city on Aug. 15, 2021. The Talibans rapid march toward Kabul fed a rush toward the airport. For many in the Afghan capital, the only hope left lay in getting out. Now the future in Afghanistan is even more uncertain. Scores of people line up outside the banks to try to get their money out. Hospitals are short of medicine. Afghans are left to face the fact that the entire world came to their country in 2001 and spent billions, and still couldnt bring them prosperity or even the beginnings of prosperity. I leave Afghanistan with mixed feelings, sad to see how its hope has been destroyed but still deeply moved by its 38 million people. Most certainly, though, I will be back. ACCRA, Ghana (AP) West African leaders attending a regional summit agreed Sunday to lift sanctions on two neighbors led by military governments that are now promising a return to democratic rule. The summit of the Economic Community of West African States resolved to lift all economic and financial sanctions imposed on Mali and Burkina Faso, although those countries will remain suspended from the regional bloc, said Jean-Claude Kassi Brou, an Ivorian politician who has been serving as president of the ECOWAS Commission. Guinea, the third country under sanctions, received no reprieve because it did not submit an acceptable roadmap toward elections, he said. He said the suspension of all three nations from ECOWAS would remain in force until they hold elections. In lifting the sanctions on Mali and Burkina Faso, leaders at the summit in Ghana's capital, Accra, accepted transition plans presented by military authorities in those countries. Mali's junta proposed scheduling a presidential election by March 2024. Burkina Faso proposed a 24-month transition leading to polls. ECOWAS sanctioned Mali severely in January by shutting down most commerce with the country, along with its land and air borders with other countries in the bloc. The measures have crippled Malis economy, raising humanitarian concerns amid widespread suffering. The wave of military coups began in August 2020, when Col. Assimi Goita and other soldiers overthrew Malis democratically elected president. Nine months later, he carried out a second coup, dismissing the countrys civilian transitional leader and assuming the presidency himself. Mutinous soldiers deposed Guineas president in September 2021, and Burkina Faso leader Roch Marc Christian Kabore was ousted in a January coup. Burkina Faso authorities said Saturday that Kabore, who has been under house arrest, is now a free man. The political upheaval came as many observers started to think that military power grabs were a thing of the past in West Africa, an increasingly restive region that also faces growing danger from Islamic extremist fighters. Some leaders who spoke at Accra's one-day summit urged action as armed groups expand their footprint in the region. These terrorist attacks are now not only focusing on the Sahel, but also expanding to the coastal states in our region, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo. "It is imperative for us to continue to implement our regional action plan against terrorism and to coordinate our various security initiatives. In the first half of 2022, the region recorded a total of 3,500 deaths from 1,600 extremist attacks targeting countries including Togo, Burkina Faso, Niger and Nigeria, according to Brou. In Burkina Faso, where attacks blamed on Islamic extremist fighters are soaring, gunmen killed at least 55 people in the country's northern Seno province last month. This story has been corrected to show that Guinea remains under economic sanctions imposed by the ECOWAS bloc. With Iowa Republican leaders likely to restrict access to abortion in the state following the U.S. Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe v. Wade this past month, a potential legal battle over access to abortion pills is brewing. Medication abortions account for more than half the abortions in Iowa as well as more than half of all abortions in the United States and often are obtained by patients through telehealth appointments. Businesses offering abortion pills through the mail has grown in recent years, and likely will continue growing as the country becomes a patchwork of abortion access. But whether states can ban the actual medication itself which has approval from a top federal health agency is the next question that may be answered in upcoming court cases, some experts have said. WHAT IS A MEDICATION ABORTION? Medication abortion involves taking two different medications that can be administered up to 10 weeks gestation. The first is mifepristone, which is followed by misoprostol one or two days later. Since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration first approved the drug regiment in 2000, its use nationwide has grown rapidly. As of 2020, medication abortion has become the most common method for elective abortions, making up 54 percent of abortions in the United States, according to the Guttmacher Institute. By comparison, in 2017, it accounted for 39 percent of all abortions nationwide. The majority of abortions in Iowa in recent years have been medically induced, surpassing the number of surgical abortion procedures in the past decade or so, according the Iowa Department of Public Health. In 2020, there were 3,222 medically induced abortions compared to the 835 surgical abortions in Iowa, according to the latest data from the state health department. The IDPH first began reporting medically induced abortions in reports from 2005. That year, public health officials say there were 1,753 medical abortions, compared to 4,128 surgically induced abortions. IOWA LIKELY TO RESTRICT TELEMEDICINE ABORTIONS With the U.S. Supreme Courts decision to overturn the landmark 1973 case that established federal abortion protections, 13 states already have enacted laws that ban nearly all abortions, including medication abortions. Its likely GOP-led states including Iowa could go further. Some states already have proposed legislation that would ban telehealth appointments with abortion providers, and some have attempted to make it a crime for an out-of-state provider to provide abortion services to a resident. Sally Frank, a Drake University law professor, said if Iowa restricts or bans abortions, telemedicine abortions similarly would be restricted or banned. Frank said the question is what would happen if an Iowa woman attempted to obtain abortion medication via telemedicine in a state where abortion remained legal. In such an instance, the out-of-state physician would mail the abortion medication to the Iowa woman. That remains to be decided (legally), Frank said. I think it would be difficult to try to bring that provider under Iowa law. Gov. Kim Reynolds and other Republican statehouse leaders did not respond to requests for comment about how they might approach regulating telemedicine abortions. Reynolds did tell reporters earlier this past week she did not plan to call a special legislative session to pass abortion restrictions, but did say she may consider it if her efforts to bring back Iowas fetal heartbeat law fails. For now, Reynolds is asking the Iowa Supreme Court to rehear a recent case with the hopes the court will establish legal standards for future abortion restrictions. She also is asking state courts to lift the injunction on a 2018 law that would ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, which often is before a woman knows she is pregnant. During this years session of the Iowa Legislature, 21 Republicans in the Iowa House signed onto legislation that would ban telemedicine abortions. But the bill, House File 2119, did not advance past the early steps of the lawmaking process. Despite their agenda-setting majorities, Republicans did not pass any abortion-related legislation during this most recent session. Leaders said they preferred to wait for the U.S. Supreme Court and Iowa Supreme Court rulings on abortion cases. Both were delivered earlier this month. Abortion including medication abortion is legal up to 20 weeks in Iowa. TELEHEALTH PROVIDERS NAVIGATING CHANGING LEGAL LANDSCAPE Planned Parenthood, the states largest abortion provider, offers telehealth abortions at its clinics across the state. Patients schedule a virtual visit with a provider at one of its health centers, where they receive the first pill to take at the clinic. They are given the second pill to take at home the next day. For Iowans, with the rapid expansion of telehealth during the pandemic, access to abortions has grown beyond brick and mortar facilities. Nowadays, individuals can receive these pills in the privacy of their home, with a video call with a provider and a credit card. Options for Iowans are increasing as companies that offer virtual abortion care rapidly have expanded their services nationwide. Carafem is one company that began offering services in Iowa in September 2021 after seeing an influx of patients traveling to its physical location in Illinois. Chief Operating Officer Melissa Grant said the increase in demand occurred after state policies resulted in the closure of reproductive health clinics in the state. What that has done is really increase the availability of access for those who couldnt travel, Grant said. To date, Carafem offers telehealth abortion in 14 states and Washington, D.C. Under current Iowa law, patients are required to have at least one in-person appointment for an ultrasound before receiving the medication, Planned Parenthood spokeswoman Sheena Dooley said. We follow the law, and what were required to do under that law is to have patients come in-person for the first pill, Dooley said. However, Carafems interpretation of the law is different. Carafem does require patients to receive an ultrasound from a provider in Iowa, but Grant said the rule does not require the first abortion pill to be administered within a health care setting. Instead, both pills are mailed to patients to take at home. Grant said Carafem is working closely with legal experts as the landscape of abortion laws is rapidly changing, but officials hope to continue offering this service to patients nationwide. Moving forward, as theyve prepared for a post-Roe era, Carafems strategy is to continue to increase its telehealth offerings in accordance to state regulations. Our mission right now is to work as a pressure valve to take off pressure from the increased number of visits where abortion is not restricted, Grant said. The Washington Post contributed to this article. KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russia claimed control Sunday over the last Ukrainian stronghold in an eastern province that is key to achieving a major goal of its grinding war. Ukraine's General Staff of the military reported that its forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk in Luhansk province, but the president said the fight for the city was ongoing. If confirmed, Russia's complete seizure of Luhansk would provide its forces a stronger base from which to press their advance in neighboring Donetsk province and bring them one step closer to achieving one of President Vladimir Putins major goals: capturing the entire Donbas. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin that Russias troops, with members of a local separatist militia, have established full control over the city of Lysychansk and now hold all of Luhansk, according to a ministry statement published Sunday. Keep up with the rest of the story here: A prolific fiction writer residing in Rapidan will release her first nonfiction book on July 4, a 128-page pictorial history of the Henrico County, Virginia countryside town where the author grew up in the 1960s. Images of America: Glen Allen, by Cary Holladay, tells the story in photographs of the Richmond suburb founded in the 1830s that remained rural well into the 20th century. Holladay is a recently retired University of Memphis creative writing professor who has written eight books of fiction. She lives with husband John Bensko, an award winning poet on the Orange County side of the hamlet named for the Rapidan River. Her father, George Holladay (1919-2006), grew up in Rapidan, where his father and grandfather ran the mill. Virginia history and culture inspires a lot of her work, said Holladay, who lived 10 years in Glen Allen, until 1969, along with her family, mom, Catharine, a Richmond native, and sisters Julie and Hilary, also a writer. Cary Holladay has written several short story collections, including Horse People: Stories, set in Rapidan, inspired by its land and people; and The Deer in the Mirror, partly set in Culpeper. The Quick-Change Artist is a collection of stories set in Glen Allen. The author grew up in Glen Allen in the 1960s and it was wonderful, Holladay told the Star-Exponent. Glen Allen was rural then, really country, and much the way it had been for 100 years, she said. People kept horses and chickens. There were many small farms and plentiful wildlife, including whippoorwills and bobwhite. You wouldnt have known Richmond was only a few minutes away. Inevitably the area has since been developed, and there is much more traffic and population density, said Holladay. Henrico County has done an admirable job of preserving many of the old landmarks and repurposing them as cultural attractions, she said. Holladay started on her latest book, a pictorial history about the town of her childhood, during the early part of the pandemic, after Arcadia Publishing contacted her about doing the project, and she agreed. The work took two years, in preparation for an Independence Day release. The author returned frequently to Glen Allen and Richmond to gather materials and for meetings. She held a community scanning day last summer and people brought photos, real treasures from vintage albums, Holladay said. It was so much fun meeting people, hearing their stories, and writing the narrative, she said. There were also challenges compiling a book during a pandemic as many museums, libraries, and archives were closed or understaffed, the author said. Luckily, some material was available online. Holladay also reached out directly to many individuals, families, and organizations, and put out a call on Facebook. Sometimes, a photo would just turn up in my mailbox or in my email. The images had to be high-resolution originals or scans. I gathered a wealth of images, far more than I could use. The contributors are the stars of this project, she said. Glen Allen had earlier names (Mountain Road Crossing, Allens Station), but it was Glen Allen by 1862. Mountain Road, the main thoroughfare, is an old Indian path. The railroad connection and proximity to Richmond accelerated the communitys growth, the author said. During the Civil War, there were battles and skirmishes throughout the area. Yellow Tavern, where Confederate general Jeb Stuart was mortally wounded, is about three miles away. Glen Allen had chiefly two notable figures, very different from each other, whose influence continues to shape the locale; the book has a chapter on each. They are English adventurer John Cussons and visionary African American educator Virginia Randolph. To my knowledge, the book offers the most information that has yet been written about John Cussons, the founder of Glen Allen, who built a splendid hotel that was the main landmark for over 100 years; and Virginia Randolph, a pioneering teacher during segregation, the author said. Cussons (1838-1912), a native of England who emigrated to the U.S., lived with the Sioux and fought for the Confederacyalthough he later wrote that the full measure of Americas greatness could be achieved only under a single flag. Cussons built an enormous Victorian-style style hotel, Forest Lodge, in the 1880s. It stood for more than 100 years. He also built houses, established a successful printing factory, wrote books, and publicized the community, according to Holladay. His grand hotel in a 1,000-acre park was torn down in the early 1990s, despite efforts to save it. It was Forest Lodge that sparked Holladays lifelong interest in history and is a cherished memory of many Glen Allen residents, she said. It sat right beside the railroad tracks, and passengers were stunned to see this 100-room hotel rising out of the pine forests, Holladay said. Virginia Randolph (1880-1958) was a pioneering Black teacher who established an elementary school in Glen Allen during segregation, when many Black youth had little chance of going to high school, yet had to compete for jobs with better-educated white students, Holladay said. She knew the realities of a job market in a segregated society, the author said. Randolphs curriculum was practical. It included job training as well as academics, so her students would have opportunities to be self-supporting. Black schools were severely underfunded. Randolph was undeterred. She raised money for supplies, and students themselves made repairs to the building, Holladay said. Eventually, Randolph added secondary education and educated adults, too. This occurred during the flourishing night-school movement in the nineteen-teens, when the state of Virginia was making a push to abolish adult illiteracy. Randolphs combination of industrial arts instruction combined with academics became known as the Henrico Plan, said Holladay. It was implemented across the South and in several countries overseas. Randolph is now regarded historically as one of the nations top educators. Another chapter in the new book, Village Life, is a community album with pictures of people throughout the decadessnapshots of moments in their lives. The best part of this project was meeting people and learning their stories. I did a lot of research to verify names, dates, and other data. Contributors were the best source of information. I hope people will enjoy the book, Holladay said. See caryholladay.net. From the author: Cary Holladay writes short stories, novels, and essays. Her work has won an O. Henry Prize and a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. Images in the book have been gathered from museums, libraries, the files of Henrico County, and private collections and include rare photographs of Forest Lodge and the Virginia Randolph Training School. Virginia Business has named Janet Gullickson, Germanna Community Colleges president, one of the commonwealths top female leaders for her innovation and impact in education. She featured in the magazines July issue on 2022 Womens Business Leaders, in bookstores now. The honor came on the fifth anniversary of her installment as Germannas chief, its first woman president. Led by Dr. Gullickson, Germanna was one of a small percentage of U.S. colleges to see their enrollment and fundraising soar during the pandemic. Germannas enrollment jumped while most colleges lost students due to the COVID-19 crisis and the national trend of fewer students graduating from high school, the college said in a statement Friday. She is now developing work-based learning programs for students to gain hands-on experience through paid internships. We plan to have that rolled out for all of our students within the next year, Gullickson said. She has helped develop partnerships with other institutions such as the University of Virginia to allow Germanna students to transfer easily from its online College Everywhere program. Germanna is finalizing a similar partnership with George Mason University. Earlier, Gullickson held positions in the Colorado Department of Higher Education, Minnesotas university system and the Community Colleges of Spokane. She was Spokane Falls Community Colleges president immediately prior to moving to Virginia. Germanna has the uncanny ability to bring out the best in people, Dr. Gullickson said. It worked on me, too! When other colleges hesitated during the pandemics onset in the spring of 2020, Gullickson ordered all classes moved online and oversaw making Germanna a first-rate provider of distance learning that was safe for students. As students have returned to classrooms, she hasnt deemphasized online classes. Germannas new accelerated, all-online College Everywhere program enables students to earn two-year degrees in one year, saving them time and money, and transfer seamlessly to four-year schools like UVa and GMU. This month, Germanna will sign an online-transfer agreement with the University of Mary Washington. This academic year, Germannas enrollment is up 10 percent for summer 2022 and 7 percent for fall 2022. Over the past four years, the college has seen enrollment grow 15.65 percent. African American student enrollment rose by 25 percent, and Hispanic student enrollment by 10 percent. Following the May 2020 murder of Minneapolis resident George Floydwhich ignited activism around the nationGermanna created a website called Black Minds Matter to connect students to resources and counseling, Virginia Business reported. The college also began the development of its Truth and Reconciliation Strategic Plan. We really have made an effort in racial equity, Gullickson said. Germanna is Culpeper County residents preferred college for enrollment, educating more than 1,000 students from Culpeper annually. The college has about 13,000 students, including those in degree programs, workforce training and apprenticeships. Germanna serves Culpeper, Orange, Madison, Stafford, Spotsylvania, Caroline and King George counties and the city of Fredericksburg. Gripping the worn-down steering wheel cover tightly with both hands, Peter Forister inched forward in the drivers seat of his trusty Subaru and gunned the engine. He was in a race against mother nature. As he peered up at the looming storm clouds through a rain-spattered windshield, excitement splashed across his face. He had a storm to chase. Ive always loved weather, said Forister, a Charlottesville-based storm chaser. Meteorologists say that theyre kind of born with a love for weather sometimes, and its literally been as long as I can remember that weather is my thing. He did offer a quick disclaimer to those who might decide to hop in their car and hit the road any time the skies open up. Dont. Only trained professionals should do storm chasing because there is an inherent risk, he warned. He, himself, is a trained professional. Not only does he have six years of studying meteorology under his belt, but he has spent the last dozen years working with other trained professionals in the field. As a kid in Colorado Springs, Colorado, he spent just about every afternoon in the summer watching thunderstorms roll in. After moving to Virginia in 2012, he began driving to a local school in Winchester for a better view of the dark clouds and flashes of lightning. From there, the sky was the limit as he adventured further out from the city, to the county, the state, and now he chases storms all over the country. Fiddling with his phone in a parking lot off of Seminole Trail, Forister examined a weather-tracking app called RadarScope. With this app he is able to track a storms reflectivity. That's how hard its raining and its velocity, or how fast wind is moving. This data helps him know the magnitude of the storm hes chasing and where its headed so that he can stay ahead of it. His goal is to document the storms structure, which he says can look like an alien spaceship. Forister claims that a storm is most photogenic when it has good structure. As the years went on, Foristers passion for storm chasing steadily grew from a childhood fascination to something much more. Storms are just incredible, he said. Theyre so huge, theyre so powerful, and when you get in an intense one its a massive adrenaline rush. As a self-described nature junky with a masters degree in geography from Virginia Tech, he has not only found the perfect hobby and part time job (he sells some of his photos and videos to various news outlets); according to Forister, hes also in the perfect location. Charlottesville is a weirdly good storm-chasing place. Its kind of become this nationally recognized place, he said. Likening the area to Tornado Alley, a swath of the central United States where tornadoes frequently occur, Forister says that it hasnt been scientifically proven but he believes that the Charlottesville area is a sort of supercell alley that creates a high number of major storms. These storms just go crazy around here, he said. Chasings just really fun around here. Good storms. Its challenging, but its reliable. Between North Carolina and Virginia, he has seen dozens of tornadoes and hundreds of supercell storms, storms that have a rotating updraft. He says the adrenaline absolutely smokes through your veins when experiencing the heart of a powerful storm. Once, he and some friends went the extreme tourism route and climbed Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina during the middle of a blizzard. They stood on the ridgeline and measured winds between 110 and 120 miles per hour as chunks of ice hit them in the face. 120 mile-per-hour wind to the chest is like ... its really hard to describe how much power is in that wind, he said. So that was like a full sensory experience of just getting crushed by weather around you, and it was amazing. Forister quickly found a place to pull over and jumped out of the car. Every shade of blue collided in the sky, dappled with hints of aqua green. A trembling rumble crescendoed and shook the air, accented by blinding flashes of brilliant white light. Drops of rain pummeled the hood of the car in a harsh staccato solo backed by the tumultuous cacophony of natures choir. The supercell storm he chased made its appearance. Standing there on the side of the road in his red raincoat, backwards Steamboat hat and weather-worn Crocs, Forister was in his element. Scottsbluff High School and Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) future health professional members enjoyed an educational opportunity last week as they attended the 45th annual International HOSA Leadership Conference in Nashville, Tennessee. Jennifer Hare, the SHS HOSA adviser, traveled with 11 students to the conference, which was held June 22-25. The conference was held at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center. It featured competitive events focused on leadership, professional and technical skills as well as education seminars, workshops and exhibits. It was an opportunity to meet people from across the globe with similar goals, Hare said. In addition, the general sessions provided recognition and opportunity for all HOSA members. The conference was attended by over 10,000 HOSA members from across the country and world. Senior Madysen Powell, who also a HOSA Nebraska state officer, said the conference featured a variety of sessions students could choose to attend, which helped her learn more about careers in the health care industry. We were given the opportunity to go to educational symposiums and a lot of different activities through HOSA to broaden our educational opportunity, Powell said. She sat in on a Guess Who panel with five health care professionals. After they provided a brief description of their jobs, students used pre-answered questions to determine their jobs before a question and answer session. I enjoyed that session because we were able to talk about some areas of health care that arent talked about a lot like podiatry and wound specialization, which was very interesting, she said. Following high school, Powell wants to become a radiologic technologist, also knowns as radiographers, performing imaging on patients. The Bearcats competed in health care career display, medical math, epidemiology, behavioral health, home health aide, nursing assistant and HOSA bowl events. Several of the events start with a first round and then a small number of competitors move onto the second round, Hare said. Scottsbluff HOSA is proud to share that Alyssa Spurgeon moved onto the second round of home health aide. Powell competed in a written test over epidemiology, after qualifying at the state leadership conference. It was kind of nerve-wracking but also kind of cool, Powell said. You had to be the best of the best to be able to go and I felt honored to be able to say I competed against the best in the world. Aside from the opportunities available at the conference, the students explored Nashville. They toured backstage of the Grand Ole Opry and rode the General Jackson Riverboat down the Cumberland River. That resort was beautiful. Being able to walk around and enjoy the place we were in was amazing, Powell said. We got to tour backstage of the Grand Ole Opry house and that was really cool. We were very fortunate. Hare said the conference was a meaningful learning and networking opportunity for students, which was made possible by the support from local businesses and community. Scottsbluff HOSA is very appreciative of the several local businesses and community members who assisted in sponsoring the event with donations and purchasing from our cookie dough fundraiser, she said. This helped cover half of the costs for the students and the students and their families covered the remainder. Powell has been a HOSA member throughout high school and said the organization has afforded her opportunities to learn more about the health care industry. I think this conference gave the students who were able to go just a better look into areas of health care that not every chapter or state would be able to get exposed to because not every state has the same opportunities as everyone else, she said. HOSA is a global student-led organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and several federal and state agencies. Its mission is to empower future health professionals lead the global health community, through education, collaboration and experience. HOSA actively promotes career opportunities in the health industry and to enhance the delivery of quality health care to all people. It will take a multitude of trusty volunteers to make the 101st annual Oregon Trail Days in Gering a success. The event will run from July 7-10 and is shaping up to be a memorable experience. From carnival rides to parades, the event has made its mark in the community over the last century. Some dedicated volunteers have spent as much as a third of that time or even longer helping to organize it. I really enjoyed Oregon Trail Days as a child growing up now thats been a few years, probably close to 55 to 60 years ago, but when I was asked I thought, Yeah, I can do that, volunteer Bill Schlaepfer said. Schlaepfer spent three years judging the celebrations chili cook-off and four years helping with the parade. He now serves as the chairman of the chili cook-off, a position hes held for the last 14 years. Its like, every year, I have a party for 700 to 900 of my closest friends. Who wouldnt like doing that? he said. He said he likes helping out at the celebration so future generations can enjoy it. I want my grandkids to enjoy the same things I did at the celebration, Schlaepfer said, adding that not all communities have events like this. Its all volunteer help. Nobodys paid to help with any of the events. Its a community effect. People plan their vacations or family reunions around the Oregon Trail Days festivities. Schlaepfer meets chili chefs, judges and the general public during the competition and public tasting. He said he feels satisfaction when hes taking part in the event. Its a really fulfilling thing to do. Ive gained a lot of pride in doing it, he said. Some volunteers have served even longer than Schlaepfers 21 years. For many of them, the history of the event is something to be admired. What I like most about Oregon Trail Days is theres a celebration of some sort that actually deals with the history of the area, treasurer and volunteer Mike Minzey said. Minzey has been helping out at the event since 1986. He said a friend first asked him to serve food there 36 years ago and hes been volunteering ever since. Its just a nice community-style celebration to honor the old settlers and their descendants, the ones who put this community together, Minzey said. He said he enjoyed how the Oregon Trail Days events honor the legacy of the people who first settled in the Platte Valley. Not all of the weekends festivities are focused on the past, and many longtime volunteers turn their focus to the future, including kiddie parade organizer Mary Robinson. They (the kids) have so much fun. Theyre so happy to be here its their enthusiasm and creativity, Robinson said. The kiddie parade truly is just a fun event. Parents and children who enjoy the parade could come back in the future and volunteer to help set it up. Robinson has been volunteering at the kiddie parade for around three decades. She also assists with the weekends art show. She said the Oregon Trail Days events are a celebration of the local community, and that needs to be promoted. You just need to continue anything that promotes community. Robinson said she has another lady shes showing the ropes to who could eventually take over some of the kiddie parade planning from her. Its important to get more people involved, she said. Its a sentiment shared by many longtime helpers at the event. Cindy Scheinost helped found the Panhandle Quilt Guild in 1991 and hosted the first quilt show at OT Days in 1992. One of the first things we wanted to do was have a quilt show so we were elated when we were asked to partner with Oregon Trail Days and be a part of that event, she said. Changes over the years include new activities being added to the weekends events and the construction of the Five Rocks Amphitheater. Volunteers have also come and gone. Volunteering for any occasion can help bring people closer together, Scheinost said. Over the years, though, its gotten more difficult to get younger volunteers involved. Perhaps volunteers can make a point of showing how enjoyable the experience can be, she suggested. Scheinost said participating in the weekends events are more fun than just spectating them. I hope the community will continue to support it as much as they have, she said. Its a civic duty to do things for your community so all those things can continue to happen. Read more about the events that will make up OT Days. Negatively, its so easy to blurt out. What were you thinking! And, thats not a question. Its a statement, akin to the judgment call saying Are you outta your mind?! An expensive mistake or ill-intended word can elicit such an outburst. Has anyone ever said this to you? A poor choice of igniting a firework that ends in eye damage or worse, can get a What were you thinking! I confess to being part of an FFA campout in the U.P. (Upper Peninsula of Michigan where the residents are referred to as Yoopers). A day-activity included a school bus drop-off at the border-crossing into Canada where we all legally purchased as many fireworks/firecrackers we could stuff into our various items of clothing. It worked really slick. That evenings campfire (my grandkids call them fire-camps) was a real hoot. Many dollars went up in noisy smoke that night. Somehow, we still had money left over in our pockets. Soooo we talked our ag teacher into another day-trip the next day. This time with a determined mission. Upon our return to the United States of America we once again sidled through customs. Not so fast boys. Where are your fireworks? Our answer was some sort of, Uhhh, what fireworks? The customs officers answer was particularly direct: Oh, you know. Like the ones you have stuffed anywhere you could. When it was all said and done, the counter was rather full from a pricey Canadian shopping spree. If we were thinking at all, it would be classified as stinkin thinkin. Fortunately, we werent jailed or fined. What were we thinking?! On a more positive note, at times, it actually is a question. A penny for your thoughts, we say. An incredible portion of Gods enormous and supernatural creation is that of the brain, the mind, the thinker part of our body. Its the control center and memory bank. Its the link to our heart where belief takes place. The Word of God gives us this challenge and command: Commit your works to the LORD, And your thoughts will be established. (Proverbs 16:3) Proverbs 12:5 says this: The thoughts of the righteous are right, but the counsels of the wicked are deceitful. Have you pondered and thought about this teaching on what to think? Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. (Philippians 4:8 KJV) Philippians 2:5 invites us to, Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. Jesus raises the standard to include this in Matthew 5:27, 28: You have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not commit adultery. But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Isaiah 55:8-11 reminds us For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways, says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. Romans 12:1,2 begs us to not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. May this food for thought stir us to a deep and hearty walk with the Lord Jesus. PRAYER NUGGET: Thank you, Father, for thinking of us, and for what you think of us. Thanks for loving us as You do. We bask and marvel at Your all-sufficient grace. In Jesus name. Amen The New River Valleys ninth Annual GiveLocalNRV Giving Day recently raised $508,531 for 95 nonprofits serving the region. The Community Foundation of the New River Valley annually hosts Giving Day to raise money and awareness for a variety of nonprofits serving the NRV. Nearly 2,000 unique donors made 2,306 donations during the early giving period from June 1-22 and during the event, June 22. Floyds Springhouse Community School raised the most in the region during the early giving period with more than $40,000, and it also raised the most among like-sized large nonprofits with nearly $75,000. Springhouse came in second for the most unique donors in 2022 with a total of 211. The Floyd Center for the Arts came in fifth for early giving with $6,125 and raised the most among medium sized nonprofits with more than $35,000. The June Bug Center, Floyd County Humane Society, Floyd Friends of Asylum Seekers, Blue Mountain School, Plenty! and other Floyd nonprofits participated in power hour events and benefited from incentive grants. Eighteen grants (totaling $16,500) were sponsored by area businesses for Giving Day 2022. This years sponsors were National Bank of Blacksburg, Carter Bank & Trust, Hethwood Apartments by HHHunt, First Bank & Trust Company, Olio Financial Planning, Atlantic Union Bank, The Maroon Door, Member One Federal Credit Union, Brown Edwards, Brown Insurance, and Hurt & Proffitt. Since Giving Day began in 2014, participating nonprofits have raised more than $2.6 million for their missions. Our team watched with excitement as donations came in during the early giving period and on the Giving Day, said Lindsey Gleason, assistant director for CFNRV. This event speaks to the power of many people joining together to support one another, and the Community Foundation is proud to provide the GiveLocalNRV platform for our region. Community members can learn more about the event and continue to make donations to their favorite nonprofit organizations through the platform year-round at givelocalnrv.org. Nonprofit registration for the 10th GiveLocalNRV Giving Day will open this fall. Businesses interested in learning more about event sponsorships can contact Lindsey Gleason at lindseygleason@cfnrv.org or (540) 381-8999. Some Highlands residents say crime has gotten worse over the last year and they don't feel safe. A group of them is reviving the neighborhood's block watch program to clean up streets at a grassroots level. Residents are working together to keep an eye on suspicious neighborhood activities and relaying reports, photographs and videos to police to catch suspects and prevent future crimes. "We have seen that block watches are successful, said Longview Police Chief Robert Huhta. People take ownership of their neighborhoods but not by taking the law into their own hands. 'You have to help' Shannon Gilman has lived in the Highlands neighborhood for 14 years. She said the escalation of possible minor crimes around her home began in late 2021 and has gotten as bad as she can remember. Neighbors told her they saw somebody entering her yard at night. Tools were moved around in her backyard and cigarette butts were left next to the chairs on her porch. Gilman and her husband don't smoke. Around the time that she first complained to the Longview City Council this spring, somebody climbed onto her roof. Gilman began advocating for city and county officials to act in response to the neighborhood's concerns and worked with the Highlands Neighborhood Association to lead the expansion of the block watch program. Dozens of residents have already signed up to be part of the watch for the initial two blocks. "We're getting more of us to say you have to help this community. We can stand together for this," Gilman said. Despite the perception of a rise in crime by neighbors, the number of calls to report suspected crimes in the Highlands in 2021 is similar to records 15 years ago. An improvement plan for the neighborhood in 2006 says 6,713 calls were made to the police about suspected crimes in the Highlands. In 2021, the Highlands and the nearby St. Helens neighborhood made 6,410 police calls, according to police records. Police say the Highlands made up the majority of incidents of the two sections of town. The two most frequent types of calls that came from the Highlands this year were abandoned vehicles and suspicious activity, neither of which are high-priority or felony crimes, according to police records. Gilman and fellow block watch organizer Crystal Moldenhauer said residents are discouraged from calling the police because they have seen slow responses for thefts, drug incidents and other lower-priority calls. Moldenhauer, a Longview School Board member, lived in the Highlands for two years and spent time in the neighborhood on and off growing up. Moldenhauer said she didn't feel safe letting her kids walk to Archie Anderson Park recently. She pointed to a handful of violent crimes that happened this year and a suspected rise in drug use, which she saw direct and indirect signs of throughout the neighborhood. "I grew up around addicts, so I can pick them out. You can tell by their demeanor, how they react to you, the ways they meet up at certain places," Moldenhauer said. Moldenhauer said she suspects much of the recent crime is driven by residents of the homeless campsite on Alabama Street. The camp is not in the Highlands but has sat directly across Oregon Way from the neighborhood for two and a half years. The interest in expanding the Highlands' block watch program to prevent suspected crime predates the campsite. When Highlands residents were interviewed in 2018 for the most recent update to the neighborhood's revitalization plan, an expanded block watch program was one of the most frequently requested changes. 'More eyes on problems' Longview Police Sgt. Brian Streissguth is a community service officer who's been helping to organize the block watch for the Highlands for the past three months. Streissguth said a large part of the work he did was teaching residents how to be vigilant and notice the details that made for strong eyewitness statements. "By being a united group and being aware of what's going on around, there are more eyes on problems that can be solved," Streissguth said. The stated focus of the block watch is to identify, capture and report suspected crimes and suspicious behavior to the police. Gilman and Moldenhauer were quick to say that 'capture' means taking pictures and recording videos that can be submitted as part of complaints. "We explicitly say we don't want them to take the law into their own hands, Streissguth said. Just being vigilant is all were asking people to do." The group could also work to make Highlands residents get to know their neighbors better. Gilman said block watch captains could organize help for elderly or disabled residents. "We will have a phone tree and messages between neighbors participating, so we can get ahold of each other when something happens," Gilman said. Another level of crime prevention is returning to the neighborhood later this year when the Longview police plan to open a satellite station in Archie Anderson Park. The previous Highlands station closed in 2019 when the department's lease ended as new property owners took over the building. The new station is on track to be completed around September. Streissguth will be based out of the satellite station, along with the department's behavioral health unit and other officers. He said the consistent police presence in the neighborhood should improve response times and provide a better feeling of security. "I'm encouraged by the excitement level to have the police department back in the Highlands," Streissguth said. Entering this years Go 4th Festival from Kessler Boulevard and Hemlock Street, the first thing you will notice besides the large amount of people and vendors is the smell of fried food. Specifically, the Longview-Kelso Altrusa food truck, which is serving up its famous elephant ears sugar and cinnamon encrusted fried dough that Altrusa President Nancy Gill said is similar to fried bread. The local chapter of the international club has been selling the treat at Longviews Independence Day festival since at least 1987, and members were out again Saturday on the first day of this years three-day event. Over the years, Gill said the clubs recipe has gone through several changes, including the evolution of the dough. In the past, the club made their special snack with Rhodes frozen dough. Now, they make the treat from scratch right on site in the trailer at the lake. People come all the way out here just to grab an elephant ear, said Gill. Altrusa member Kathy Demarest said people pass down the tradition of grabbing the treat. A man came up with a child last year and said they were a third-generation ear (customer), said Demarest. That was such a heartwarming experience. Altrusa, combines the word altruism and USA, said Gill, though the club has expanded across the globe since its 1917 founding in Nashville. The service club is located across the U.S., with eight chapters in Washington alone, as well as in countries like Mexico, Ireland and New Zealand, according to its website. Local members depend on Go 4th weekend and other festivals to make money for future donations. The goal of the service group is to make money, which we spread into the community, said Gill. The group focuses on children, donating over 3,400 books last year to five Kelso transitional kindergarten classes, as well as the Community House on Broadway, the Longview Emergency Support Shelter and other community groups, Gill said. They also pack 100 bookbags full of food each weekend during the school year for children, who would otherwise go without over the weekend, and provide scholarships to high school graduates annually. Members recently provided carpet for an Emergency Support Shelter room, Gill said. If fried dough doesnt sound appetizing, the festival has food ranging from Thai to Mexican, along with other popular carnival foods. Market vendors will also be open through Monday, with all kinds of gifts and art for sale. Did you decide to take advantage of Washingtons spectacular natural beauty sometime last year and reserve a campsite, cabin or yurt at one of our state parks? If so, you werent alone. Use of campsites and other state-owned park facilities surged in 2021, according to data from Washington State Parks. The number of overnight stays last year totaled around 812,000, up by nearly 114,000, or 16%, from 2019, before the pandemic took hold. The data doesnt tell us what accounts for the spike, but it seems likely that with the pandemic still raging, many people didnt feel comfortable flying or traveling anywhere crowded. While some opted for a staycation, others looked for safer outdoor alternatives like camping. Early on in the pandemic, camping declined, because many facilities were closed due to pandemic lockdowns. Overnight stays at state park facilities totaled 617,000, a 12% decline from 2019. But with most facilities open again in 2021, overnight stays soared. Washington State Parks staff has experienced some challenges with the increased number of visitors, communications director Amanda McCarthy said. We still remind folks to pack out what they pack in, follow all park rules, have a backup plan in case the park they wish to visit is crowded, check our website before heading out for important alerts and be courteous to our staff that do an excellent job serving our parks and visitors, McCarthy wrote in an email. The great majority, 92%, of overnight stays were at campsites where people set up their tents. In total, there were 747,000 such stays in 2021, a 16% increase from 2019. Visitors can reserve campsites and other facilities year-round, though theres less demand in the winter months, as youd expect. Prices are higher in the peak summer months. The campsite with the highest occupancy rate last year was Fort Worden State Park, in Port Townsend, with about 86% of available nights booked. Grayland Beach State Park in Pacific County was the second most in-demand campsite, with an 83% occupancy rate. Saltwater State Park in Des Moines ranked third, at 79%. Situated between Seattle and Tacoma and just two miles off I-5, the location may partially account for this campsites popularity. After campsites, the most popular facilities for overnight stays were cabins and yurts. Washington State Parks offers these roofed accommodations and even some vacation houses for those who want some of the comforts of home while camping. Overnight stays in each of these categories increased at a greater rate than campsites from 2019-2021, and stays at vacation houses more than doubled. Twenty-one state parks have furnished wooden cabins, which sleep four to six people. There were nearly 23,000 stays in cabins in 2021, not including the Cama Beach cabins, up 28% from 2019. As far as cabin reservations go, Skagit Countys Rasar State Park, located along the Skagit River, had the highest occupancy last year, at 87%. The cabins at Cape Disappointment State Park on the Long Beach Peninsula ranked second at 82%. Bay View State Park, located on Padilla Bay near the City of Anacortes, had an 81% occupancy rate for cabins, ranking third. In seven state parks, visitors can rent yurts, which are semicircular domed tents made of heavy-duty canvas that can accommodate up to five guests. There were nearly 11,000 overnight stays at yurts last year, up 19% from 2019. The top yurt site in 2021 was Cape Disappointment State Park at 72% occupancy rate, followed by Grayland Beach State Park at 67% and Pacific Beach State Park with 65% in Grays Harbor County. Washington State Parks offers other types of facilities, including marinas where boat owners can dock overnight there were roughly 8,000 dockings in 2021, up 21% from 2019. Group campsites, for large groups of people, were closed for most of 2020. Last year, the numbers rebounded to roughly the same levels as 2019, with close to 4,200 stays. The one facility type where overnights fell significantly since 2019 was retreat centers, down nearly 100%. But theres a simple explanation: Retreat centers, which accommodate large groups, were closed due to the pandemic until Memorial Day weekend of this year. Samsung is expected to launch the premium Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Flip 4 later this year, but this report suggests there is a foldable smartphone that is affordable. The next foldable smartphone by Samsung - the Galaxy Z Fold 4 - is expected to be released along with the Galaxy Z Flip 4 later this year. The rumour mill is already in works which suggests that the Z Fold 4 will be a high-end premium foldable Samsung smartphone just like its previous avatar. Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip 3 is currently one of the cheapest foldable phones available priced at Rs. 84,999. But the good news is that, Samsung is likely stepping into the affordable segment for foldable smartphones. At least, this is what the latest report has hinted at! The report comes from Korea's ETNews which claims Samsung will be bringing an entry-level foldable smartphone under $770 (around Rs. 60,000) by 2024. Samsung wants to speed up the popularization of foldable phones by making them more affordable for the wider reach by simply excluding some premium features available on the Fold and Flip models. "Samsung Electronics' Mobile Experience (MX) division has recently begun a product planning and development project for the launch of the lower-end Galaxy Z Fold and Flip foldable smartphones, '' a Korean IT News report mentioned. Currently, Samsung has a wide range of users while offering the premium smartphone series such as Samsung Galaxy S22 on one hand and on the other, it caters to the mid-range and budget buyers with its A-series and F-series smartphones. Samsung's strategy is now to create a foldable smartphone version of the 'Galaxy A with the entry-level foldable smartphone lineup, the report suggests. Samsung is aiming to rapidly increase its market share of foldable phones with better price competitiveness. Samsung's budget and mid-range smartphones play a significant role in Samsung's smartphone expansion as the lower priced smartphones have the tendency to accelerate the sales. With the same strategy, Samsung is planning to expand its foldable smartphone segment too from 10 million to 15 million units. How dangerous can asteroids be for Earth. NASA reveals the horror. Space is full of objects like asteroids, comets, stars, planets, meteors, stars, galaxies and more. There are instances when due to the gravitational pull Earth tends to attract certain objects like asteroids and meteors and they do crash onto Earth. However, there is no potential harm caused by these objects until and unless they are large such as the asteroid that killed off all the dinosaurs. Needless to say, Earth needs a defense system in place in order to prevent any kind of mishap. NASA had revealed that the dinosaurs went extinct 65 million years ago as a result of a single asteroid strike or comet impact on Earth, but also shared another possibility. "Extinction of the dinosaurs may have occurred 65 million years ago as a result of single asteroid or comet impact, but it is also possible they died out as a result of many comet impacts over one to three million years, group of scientists has theorized. Comet showers occurring over period of time may have caused the extinctions, said Dr. Paul Weissman of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., one of eight authors of paper recently published in Nature, the British scientific journal," NASA said in a report. Also Read: NASA: Asteroid Psyche mission set for August launch Therefore, staying alert and prepared is important as any similar strike will destroy Earth in unfathomable ways and may even lead to extinction of humans. Yes, the potential for horror is massive. With this aim, NASA launched the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission in November 2021. DART is the worlds first planetary defense test mission dedicated to investigating and demonstrating one method of asteroid deflection by changing an asteroids motion in space through kinetic impact. "DART will show that a spacecraft can autonomously navigate to a target asteroid and intentionally collide with it a method of deflection called kinetic impact. The test will provide important data to help better prepare for an asteroid that might pose an impact hazard to Earth, should one ever be discovered," NASA said. LICIACube, a CubeSat riding with DART provided by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), will be released prior to DARTs impact to capture images of the impact and the resulting cloud of ejected matter. Roughly four years after DARTs impact, ESAs (European Space Agency) Hera project will conduct detailed surveys of both asteroids, with particular focus on the crater left by DARTs collision and a precise determination of Dimorphos mass. According to a report by techexplorist, the fraction of the asteroid population that has survived since the formation of the solar system has experienced numerous collisions, dynamical, and thermal events that have shaped their structures and orbital properties. Due to the inability to recreate impact conditions in laboratory experiments, the observed regime of low-gravity, low-strength impacts has remained largely unexplored so far. In addition, the very large timescales involved in the crater growth (more than a few hours in the case of DART) have made it impossible to numerically simulate these impact processes up to now. Also Read: Big setback for NASA CAPSTONE launch to Moon! Missions like the artificial impact experiment of JAXAs Hayabusa2 on the surface of asteroid Ryugu, have demonstrated that an asteroid could have a very loose internal structure. But, earlier simulations of the DART mission impact assumed a solid interior of its asteroid target Dimorphos. This could drastically change the outcome of the collision of DART and Dimorphos, which is scheduled to take place in the coming September, study lead-author Sabina Raducan from the Institute of Physics and the National Centre of Competence in Research PlanetS points out, as quoted by techexplorist. The report further informed that in 2024, the European Space Agency (ESA) will send a space probe to Dimorphos as part of the space mission HERA. The aim of the mission is to visually investigate the aftermath of the DART probe impact. Looking for a new fancy gaming headset? There are plenty of options out there, but we want to point Sony fans to the company's latest bunch. News about the InZone series gaming headsets officially popped up a few days ago, and now the company has confirmed that they will be coming here. Yesterday, Sony Malaysia unveiled the InZone H9, InZone H7, and InZone H3 at a local gaming event. All three models come with 360 Spatial Sound for gaming, advanced optimisation for acoustics, and more. These gaming headsets are compatible with PC and PlayStation. While unconfirmed, you should also be able to use them with the Nintendo Switch or mobile devices. InZone H3 (wired model) InZone H9 (wireless model with noise cancellation) 360 Spatial Sound to personalised your audio experience Where the InZone H3 is a wired gaming headset, the InZone H7 and InZone H9 are wireless Bluetooth headphones. But all three models have similar designs, featuring a white body with black earpads. They also come with a high-quality boom mic, which has a bidirectional pickup to ensure your voice can be captured. On top of that, the InZone H9 comes with active noise cancellation to keep you from outside distractions. If you're interested in Sony's new gaming headsets, you can check out the respective product pages on the Sony Malaysia website. We've also listed the prices below, so let us know if you think they're worth it. As usual, stay tuned to TechNave for more news on gaming gadgets like this. Prices While its been a nationwide trend for families to turn to homeschooling after the classroom moved to families living rooms, kitchens and bedrooms during the COVID-19 pandemic, there has not been a sharp increase of homeschool students in the Bryan and College Station districts. Both districts require families to submit a letter declaring their intent to withdraw their child from the public school district to homeschool their student. Representatives from both districts said the same requirement is not in place for students who re-enroll from homeschool, and there is also missing data from students who have never enrolled in public school and instead have been homeschooled since kindergarten. Chuck Glenewinkel, communications director for the College Station school district, said the district sees an average of about 100 students withdraw to homeschool each year. The 2021-2022 school year saw a little higher number with 145 students. There was a larger increase during the 2020-2021 school year, which he referred to as the COVID year, with 301 withdrawing from the district for homeschool. However, as of late April, they knew of 261 students who chose to re-enroll this year from homeschool. Barbara Ybarra, associate superintendent of teaching and learning for the Bryan school district, said there was a small rise during the pandemic and into the 2021-2022 school year. However, that increase was about 20 more students, accounting for about half a percent of the entire district. She said it is the parents discretion for their childs education, and state law protects that choice, whether it is in a public, private or homeschool setting. She said it ultimately comes down to what is best for the family and the student. That is, honestly, all we ever want, Ybarra said. We want the best instructional setting for every kid that we serve and that is in the Brazos Valley, quite honestly, so what does that look like for them. College Station students Ariel and Peyton Little, 14 and 12 years old, respectively, began attending One Day Academy in 2020. Ariel, who attended Greens Prairie Elementary School, wanted to change her educational setting before starting at Pecan Trail Intermediate School. In fall 2019, she and her younger sister, who had been at Greens Prairie also, enrolled at the International Leadership of Texas charter school. It was not a good fit for either student. Ariel enrolled in One Day Academy homeschool in January 2020, while Peyton returned to Greens Prairie. Their father, Allen Little, said he felt there was a marked difference in the virtual learning Peyton received at Greens Prairie and the remote learning Ariel had at One Day Academy, preferring One Day. Peyton joined her older sister at the homeschool site in time for the 2020-21 school year. At One Day Academy, students go onto a campus one or two days a week to receive education from certified teachers. The remainder of their learning is done at home. Allen compared it to college where they meet once or twice a week and then must complete the other course work on their own. Their mother, Terri Little, said she likes having access to teachers to get answers for her daughters as they work at home or get support for a lesson. Allen said homeschool can look different for different families. For some, it means unschooling in which the students do not learn the traditional math and science curriculum. For others it means creating a curriculum that fits within a certain set of values. For his family, Allen said, it was important to structure their homeschool curriculum around preparing them for college. The state requires homeschool students to receive education in language arts, math and good citizenship, but other subjects are left up to the parent. The Littles receive core subject instruction both on the One Day Academy campus and at home, but also learn through American Heritage Girls a Christian alternative to Girl Scouts and groups, such as Recess and Road Trips. Allen said homeschool does not have to look and feel academic, and he enjoys the freedom it gives his daughters to learn the way that works best for them. It also adds time back as a family and for academics, saying they can work during lunch if they choose and do not have to spend time changing rooms between classes. Peyton, whose favorite subject is English, said she enjoys being around her family more. Sometimes I do need breaks to myself to just go over to friends, she said. I really enjoy having fun times sometimes, but when I need to, I can just go away, and I still see friends, but I still see my family more. Ariel, whose easiest subject currently is algebra, said she enjoys having the freedom to go to the pool or do fun things with her other homeschooled friends in the middle of the day and also prefers being in class with students who want to learn. Terri said her daughters are less anxious and happier in the homeschool setting. Suzanne Gose, communications chair for Community Homeschool Center in Bryan, was previously a middle school Spanish teacher and chose to homeschool her children after deciding she did not enjoy the stress that came with traditional schooling. I dont think its evil. I dont think anythings bad, she said. I just think, why would I let somebody else have all the fun? She said parents sometimes feel intimidated by the thought of becoming a teacher if they do not feel equipped to teach, but parents are resourceful. She says parents teach their children language and to tie their shoelaces before beginning school. That is homeschooling, she said. So when the public school teachers say Discipline and education starts at home, it does. Homeschooling is just a natural extension of parenting. Its just do you want to? If you dont want to, dont do it. But if you want to, thats it. Thats the criteria. You have a child, and you want to homeschool. She said while public school is seen as the norm, homeschooling is millennia old compared to public school systems, so she encouraged parents who are interested in trying it to give it a chance. If you dont like it, you can always put them back in, so maybe try it during the summer, said Gose, whose oldest son graduated in 2020. It is harder with kids that have been in the system because theyve been trained this is how you learn. They think you have to sit at a desk. They think you have to read from a textbook. We have textbooks, but my kids learn mostly from all the living books, you know, the autobiographies and all that stuff we read as adults or childrens stories. She said there are some homeschooled students who she knows should not be in that setting, but she also knows of some in a traditional educational setting who would benefit from homeschool. One of the intangible benefits, Gose and the Littles observed with homeschool, is the time they have with their families. Looking back at the 20 years of homeschooling, I know Ive messed up a lot, but I cant say, Oh, I wish I had had more time with my kids, and thats awesome, Gose said. Texas A&Ms RELLIS Campus in Bryan will host its third annual drive-in Fourth of July Fireworks & Drones Show Monday at the RELLIS parking lot. WTAW will broadcast music that is synced to the fireworks. Parking lot opens at 6:30 p.m. Show starts at 9 p.m. tx.ag/driveinfireworks. The College Station Noon Lions Club hosts the I Love America celebration Monday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum. The free family event features bounce houses, food, music, train rides, veterans groups, first responder displays and free vision screenings. Free museum admission. csnoonlions.org/events/ila2022. The Brazos County District 2 Volunteer Fire Departments 19th annual fireworks show will open Monday at 5 p.m. at the Kurten Community Center. There will be food trucks, a gun raffle, music and activities. Admission is free, and fireworks will start after dark. district2vfd.org. The Foxfire neighborhood in College Station presents a Fourth of July event Monday that includes a gathering at Triangle Park on Foxfire Drive at 8:30 a.m.; greetings from Mayor Pro Tem John Nichols; the Pledge of Allegiance and a reading of the Declaration of Independence; and a parade that begins at 9 a.m. The Brazos Heritage Society presents Old Fashioned Fourth of July in the Park, which includes exhibitor and food booths. Monday from 9:30 a.m. to noon at Heritage Park in Bryan. A flag-raising ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. followed by a childrens parade at 10:30. Free. brazosheritage.org/copy-of-4th-of-july-in-heritage-park. Friends of the Wheelock School House present the 28th annual Fourth of July BBQ & Parade, starting Monday at 10 a.m. at the Wheelock School House, 10691 Cavitt St. The event includes a parade along F.M. 46 and a barbecue lunch that is a fundraiser for the historic school that was built in 1908. The city of Madisonville will hold its July Fourth celebration Monday from 5 to 9 p.m. at Lake Madison. The event will feature live music from the Texas 105 Band, food vendors, shopping, face painting and kids activities, and culminates with a fireworks show. The Firecracker 5K will be held at Century Square beginning at 8:30 a.m. Monday. Registration is free and runners are encouraged to wear American-themed costumes and attire. To register, visit runsignup.com/race/tx/collegestation/bcsfirecracker5k. Century Square also will hold a Fourth of July celebration with music by Morgan Ashley and Payton Howie from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Though a long way from the war in Ukraine, a North Zulch nonprofit has been helping the effort by shipping medical supplies to hospitals with the help of founder and president Lena Denman. Denman is a government professor at Blinn College and when she isnt teaching, she is running her nonprofit, the Arlene Campbell Humanitarian Foundation, founded in 2016. To date, the foundation has shipped over $1.2 million in medical supplies to five hospitals in Ukraine. I have been going to Ukraine and have been involved since 2000, that was when Arlene Campbell first took me to Ukraine; she was a widow and didnt have any children, Denman recalled. My dad was a pastor in the Sacramento, California, area and he knew Arlene from working with various missions in the area. She had this ministry where she would go to Ukraine and bring medical supplies that were shipped through the U.S. government. She shipped items through the Department of Defenses Humanitarian Program, which is what I used last year in September to deliver shipments. The foundation is made up of three board members and 10 volunteers, but more help has been needed since Russias invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, even though the war has been ongoing since the Russians took over the Crimean region in 2014. We have a dual mission and the first part of that is to step in and send medical supplies and equipment over to Ukraine, but the second part of it is to develop academic partnerships, Denman said. My objective is to be able to work with academic institutions and universities to be able to develop programs where American professors are maybe teaching in a course format online and working with Ukrainian [schooling entities]. The Ukrainian medical system has always been underfunded, according to Denman. Ukraine got its independence in 1991 by the Soviet Union, but they have been working to develop as a country and in that process they have a model where people can come in and receive medical care, she said. There are some privatized hospitals in the country, but many are public. Which means people can come in and get free care but the issue is the government cannot fully fund it. The hospitals will request what they need from the government and they will receive a fraction of that, maybe about 25%. The foundation teamed up with the United Methodist Committee on Relief [UMCOR] which helps with grant money in order to send supplies, Denman said. When you arent shipping through a humanitarian program, it is extremely expensive and the cost of jet fuel is increasing, she said. It is cheaper when you ship by sea and it is much more expensive by air, and our shipping port is not currently accessible. I get lists from doctors at the hospitals telling me what they need from baby formula to bedsheets, to expensive equipment, but the system is getting chronically worse. Other medical items include stethoscopes, catheters, lung care items, PPE [personal protective equipment], masks, gowns and gloves, she said. We work with hospitals here like Baylor, Scott & White with the Faith in Action Initiative and also Ohio Health, which is a Methodist hospital whose warehouse has been helping to package and send supplies for us, Denman said. But at the moment the majority of supplies are coming from Ohio Health. The process of sending supplies to Ukraine starts with a truck that goes from the Ohio Health warehouse to Cincinnati, and then the supplies fly to Warsaw through an AEC Parcel Service and from there get shipped by truck to Ukraines capital, Kyiv. The five hospitals that receive supplies are Kyiv City No. 2, which is a burn center; State Institution Ukrainian Health Ministry Heart Institute; Ohmadit, the largest pediatric hospital in Ukraine; Kyiv Emergency Hospital; and the Center for Childrens Cardiology and Cardia Care, Denman said. After Denmans father introduced her to Campbell when she was 16, Campbell later asked permission to take Denman to Ukraine to experience the culture and introduce her to doctors she had met and worked with back when she sent supplies to Ukraine, Denman remembered. The academic level of education there was really high and that actually inspired me to go on into higher education myself and I wanted to become a professor and give back, she said. My translator was 14 years old and she took me into her classroom and there were only three textbooks in their entire classroom. She was learning physics as a 14-year-old and she spoke four languages. She was able to translate for me excellently, and the standard of living isnt the best but they have such perseverance and that inspired me. After Campbell died in 2002, Denman said she wanted to continue her work. Arlene wanted me to see Ukraine ,but I think she may have been looking to pass off what she was doing to someone else and I was very young at the time, and those were relationships I was able to maintain [with the doctors in Ukraine], so that when these crises got worse and over the years, we were in a position to help, she said. As far as the next steps for the foundation, Denman said she wants to continue expanding the scope of the medical supplies being sent first and foremost. If we dont look at the long-term future and development of Ukraine, even if the war was over tomorrow with the level of damage of their infrastructures, it is going to exacerbate the issue of underfunding for the university, she said. While we do receive grant money that allows us to have transportation to have funding for these items, we still need operational funding in order to work as a nonprofit organization. For more information or to make a donation, visit arlenecampbell.org. The Uvalde school districts police chief has stepped down from his position on the City Council just weeks after being sworn in following allegations that he erred in his response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 19 students and two teachers dead. Chief Pete Arredondo said in a letter dated Friday that he has decided to step down for the good of the city and to minimize further distractions. He was elected to the council May 7 and was sworn in May 31, just a week after the massacre, in a closed-door ceremony. The mayor, the city council, and the city staff must continue to move forward to unite our community once again, Arredondo said in his resignation, first reported by the Uvalde Leader-News. Arredondo, who has been on administrative leave from his school district position since June 22, has declined repeated requests for comment from The Associated Press. His attorney, George Hyde, did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment Saturday. On June 21, the City Council voted unanimously to deny Arredondo, 50, a leave of absence from appearing at public meetings. Relatives of the shooting victims had pleaded with city leaders to fire him. The Uvalde City Council released Arredondos resignation letter Saturday, after city officials received notification of his intent to step down via email, but did not comment further. Representatives of Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin have not responded to APs requests for comment. Col. Steven McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, told a state Senate hearing last month that Arredondo the on-site commander made terrible decisions as the massacre unfolded on May 24 , and that the police response was an abject failure. Three minutes after 18-year-old Salvador Ramos entered the school, sufficient armed law enforcement were on scene to stop the gunman, McCraw testified. Yet police officers armed with rifles stood and waited in a school hallway for more than an hour while the gunman carried out the massacre. The classroom door could not be locked from the inside, but there is no indication officers tried to open the door while the gunman was inside, McCraw said. McCraw has said parents begged police outside the school to move in and students inside the classroom repeatedly pleaded with 911 operators for help while more than a dozen officers waited in a hallway. Officers from other agencies urged Arredondo to let them move in because children were in danger. The only thing stopping a hallway of dedicated officers from entering room 111 and 112 was the on-scene commander who decided to place the lives of officers before the lives of children, McCraw said. Arredondo has tried to defend his actions, telling the Texas Tribune that he didnt consider himself the commander in charge of operations and that he assumed someone else had taken control of the law enforcement response. He said he didnt have his police and campus radios but that he used his cell phone to call for tactical gear, a sniper and the classroom keys. Its still not clear why it took so long for police to enter the classroom, how they communicated with each other during the attack, and what their body cameras show. Officials have declined to release more details, citing the investigation. The Texas Republican platform was once considered the musings of the most fringe elements of the party, mocked or ignored by elected leaders and most others. Folks arent laughing anymore. While the platform still contains wacky planks, such as calls to return to the gold standard monetary system, many proposals once thought too extreme are becoming public policy. Examples include laws related to guns, abortion and transgender residents and policies that address former President Donald Trumps 2020 election grievances. As Texas elected leaders adopt these platform proposals, the obscure delegates who huddle in a convention center room to develop them are now some of the most influential political players in the state. You can look at a lot of different issues, whether its on abortion, LGBTQ rights, voting rights, and the list goes on, said Rep. Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie and chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. When theyre initially proposed, people kind of roll their eyes and shake their heads and say, Oh, thatll never happen. But within a few short years, those proposals have become priority items for Republicans in the Legislature. Former Sen. Bob Deuell, R-Greenville, said the fringes of both political parties are controlling politics because most Texans arent voting in primaries. The convention and the platform committee represent the extreme right of the Republican Party, not the average rank-and-file Republican, said Deuell, who in 2014 lost a primary runoff to Sen. Bob Hall of Edgewood, a proponent of the new permitless carry gun law and other conservative planks, such as banning gender-affirming surgery for those under 18. Youve got a smaller group of people controlling the party now, Deuell said. Thats because of low primary turnout. In June, the Texas GOP approved a platform that declared President Joe Bidens 2020 election was not legitimate. The document more than 5,000 delegates ratified also called homosexuality an abnormal lifestyle choice, deemed gender identity disorder a genuine and extremely rare mental health condition and required official documents to adhere to biological gender. While some across the country decried Texas Republicans, many of those items will inform bills filed in the 2023 legislative session, serving as a guide for lawmakers who are influenced by the most conservative elements of the GOP. Regardless of what people say about the platform, it becomes ingrained within the Republican Party, Republican consultant Matthew Langston said. Pushing back on it as elected officeholder usually means that they are not as in tune to the party that they are associated with as they would want you to believe. Through a campaign spokesperson, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott did not comment on the GOP platform. Platform drives GOP legislative agenda Texas Republicans lead the way in crafting conservative laws that often push the boundaries of being too extreme, critics say. Republicans defend the policies as in step with a majority of Texas voters. After all, theyve dominated the state since seizing control of the Texas House in 2002. Consider the 2016 Texas GOP platform, approved months before Trump received the Republican nomination for president. The document called for abolishing abortion, allowing guns to be carried without a permit and the building of a border wall, one of Trumps most provocative campaign proposals. In six years, all three legislative priorities have become public policy. Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law last year a bill banning abortion for women after six weeks of pregnancy, as well as a so-called trigger law banning nearly all abortions in anticipation of the Supreme Court striking down Roe vs. Wade. Since 2016, lawmakers have made it easier for Texans to carry guns openly, on college campuses and without a permit, a policy law enforcement officials across the state denounced. When I first got to the Legislature in 2009, the idea of open carry was really laughed off by most Republicans, Turner said. That was viewed as kind of a fringe issue, but a short six years later, in 2015, the Legislature passed open carry and campus carry. Some Texas Republicans in 2016 were skeptical about Trumps call for a border wall. Now, Abbott is building a Texas wall, as outlined in the GOP platform. Of the platforms five legislative priorities, only two have failed to gain traction replacing property taxes with another revenue source and convening a convention to diminish the power of the federal government. A few GOP platform planks from 2016 and other years have received bipartisan support, including curbing human trafficking. But for the most part, the platform is an illustration of the Republicans push to the right, especially after the emergence of Trump. How Trump has influenced Texas laws Trump wields a heavy influence on the GOP platform and on Texas laws. Even before Texas Republicans at this years convention declared Bidens 2020 election illegitimate, the GOP-controlled Legislature had made sweeping changes in the aftermath of Trumps narrative. The election law Abbott signed last year restricts mail-in ballots, a system the former president says is ripe with fraud. Republicans pushed through the controversial legislation even as they said Texas elections were fair and smooth. Democrats, who staged several House quorum breaks to stall the bill, say the law suppresses votes. With the 2020 elections inclusion in the GOP platform, voters can expect more laws aimed at curbing mail-in ballots, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patricks pledge to stiffen penalties for fraud. Preparing for another red-meat feat in 2023 Other GOP platform items that lawmakers could consider include school choice, which would allow parents to use state-funded vouchers to send their children to private schools. Abbott advocated for the program in May. Republican lawmakers also have signaled that they are not finished trying to push legislation that applies to those claiming to be transgender. The platform calls for monetary compensation for detransitioners who have received gender-affirming surgery, a target of Patrick and other GOP leaders that the platform calls a form of medical malpractice. Bills to ban it for those under 18 passed the Senate under Patrick but failed in the House. We passed gender modification surgery two times. It never got a hearing (in the House), Patrick told delegates at the Texas GOP convention. I will pass it again and again and again until it passes because its child abuse. Patrick also told convention delegates that he will work to ban taxpayer-funded lobbyists in state government. While he didnt discuss the platform during the convention, House Speaker Dade Phelan said conservative policies lawmakers approved last year would appeal to voters in November. Tell me about those bills that arent God, country and family, Phelan said during a reception. They embody those three elements. I feel pretty good about November and pretty darn good about what we did in the 87th session to attract those people who just want personal freedom. But Phelan is resisting a GOP platform plank that calls on him to stop appointing Democrats to lead House committees, and legislators in the minority party are preparing to fight bills from the far right. We can all agree that we have lots of issues and lots of things that we need to work on in the state of Texas, like keeping the lights on and making sure kids are safe, said Rep. Jessica Gonzalez, D-Dallas. Its unfortunate that Republicans want to distract people from the real issues that we need to be working on. Gonzalez, who has fought against legislation aimed at transgender residents, said Republicans should realize their conservative agenda comes at a cost, including gun policies. They dont realize that these policy ideas or their platform actually hurts many people, she said. Instead, we made it easier to get guns. Turner said elected Republicans arent ashamed of their partys platform, so he doesnt expect them to stop the onslaught of conservative legislation. The days of Gov. George W. Bush saying, Oh, I dont read the platform, are over, Turner said. This Republican leadership does take seriously whats in their platform. A lot of times they act upon it, and thats to the detriment of Texans. America was a dangerous place that July 4, 1776, when delegates to the Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia approved the Declaration of Independence. Two days earlier, those same delegates approved a resolution by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia declaring the 13 colonies free and independent states, no longer under the control of King George III and the British government. On Aug. 2 of that year, the delegates returned to Washington to sign the most sacred document in American history. While freedom fever ran strong in the colonies, not everyone favored independence from Britain. Some preferred continued negotiation with the kings representatives. Others feared rightly the reaction of the British government, while others worried about the challenges of forming a new country. But on July 2, 1776, the die was cast and America and Great Britain were pushed down a path of war and suffering that finally led to the British surrender at Yorktown, Virginia, five years later. It is estimated that 6,800 Americans were killed in the Revolution, while at least another 17,000 died of disease during that time. Of the 56 men who signed the Declaration, nine roughly one in six died fighting for their new country. Five were captured by the British and tortured as traitors. The homes of 12 of the signers were burned. Two more lost sons in the fighting. Now, almost 250 years after we declared our independence, America is in grave danger once again. But unlike 1776, when the danger was from outside, the biggest danger today is from within. We are divided as never before, the Republican right from the Democratic left. Emotions are high, especially in light of the recent Supreme Court rulings on abortion, guns, prayer in school and immigration. Of course, weve always had people on both sides of every issue we fought a war over the issue of slavery. it is healthy to have differing points of view. It leads to discussion, debate and, often, consensus. Neither side gets everything it wants, but together we always have moved forward as a country. Not that moving forward always has been easy. But today, in a nation built on its differences, it seems the divide is wider, deeper than in the past. Congress is gridlocked and compromise no longer seems possible. Neither side seems willing to trust the other, and that mistrust leads to hate and malice. Each side accuses the other of lying, and truth has fallen victim to the vagaries of social media and 24-hour news. Our differences on both sides have led to accusations of disloyalty, of being unAmerican. We no longer trust government to work for us, to protect us and even to care about us. Much of the anger is the fault of the government, which has ceased to function as our founders intended. That anger led, almost a year and a half ago, to a violent effort to overthrow our American system of government egged on, it is increasingly clear, by a president who showed no regard for our cherished Constitution. He wasnt alone, of course. He had a cadre of associates and lawyers encouraging him at every step, feeding into his delusion that he had won a second term two months earlier even though those close to him tried to persuade him that the election was fair and that Joe Biden had, indeed, been elected president. Thankfully, order was restored and Biden was sworn in as president, as our Constitution directs. Biden certainly isnt Donald Trump, but neither is he the president we expected and need. A flawed House committee is investigating the events of Jan. 6, 2021, and Trumps role in them. The case they are building, based in large part on testimony from Republicans, is growing stronger. But, of course, we are only getting the information the committee wants us to see. Whatever the outcome of that committees investigation, our nation must heal from the wounds of the past decades. Our government must function as it should, providing help when we are in need, giving guidance as we as a nation move forward, and sowing hope where there is despair. We as a people need to embrace one another, celebrate our differences and work together for a better, united America. Democrats are not the enemy. Republicans are not the enemy. This country has many foes, but the American people should not be among them. Not surprisingly, our goals, left and right, are more similar than any of us suspect. We need to talk to each other, and just as important, we need to listen. We cant do that when we are shouting or using a bullhorn. This July 4 weekend, lets show the courage of our founders and join together to rebuild the nation they fought to create. Happy holiday! The Nebraska Admirals Association, along with the Big Red Sub Club, were honored to host six sailors from the USS Nebraska Submarine on June 14. They arrived in Omaha and were met by members of the Big Red Sub Club. The sailors then traveled to Grand Island, where they were met by Fleet Admiral Annette Partridge of the Nebraska Admirals Association. A steak dinner and social was enjoyed with the sailors and a few members of the Grand Island Port Admirals. On June 15 the group toured Stuhr Museum led by Fred Roeser, Grand Island port commander and state board member. Fellow Admiral Steve White from NTV met with the group and interviewed the sailors. Next was a trip to the Raising Nebraska Building where the sailors enjoyed weighing themselves in number as if they were live baby pigs and learned how to drive a combine. Ed Meedel, Nebraska Admirals operation officer, was instrumental in organizing this tour. They then met a group of admirals at the United Veterans Club for lunch provided by Admiral Doug Brown of the Grand Island Port. The sailors were able to observe the flag display at Veterans Park before leaving for Kearney. The sailors visited the Archway Museum and were met by DeAnna the kookie lady who gave them each homemade cookies before making their way to North Platte. After staying in North Platte and taking part in the Nebraska Land Days parade and attending the rodeo, they returned to Omaha to go to the College World Series games on Sunday, June 19. On Monday evening, June 20, was a farewell picnic before leaving Tuesday morning to return to their boat. The guys were very impressed with all the people they met and sights they saw. Nebraska has the best people, exclaimed one sailor and the others agreed. None of the other state submarines host sailors like this, so it is really special to the men. The master chief determines which sailors earn the right to go on this weeklong excursion. It is rare that a sailor is chosen to go on this trip more than once. The sailors also thanked the admirals for the Christmas ornaments they receive every year. The Chamber of Commerce and Grand Island Tourism also added to the visit with gift bags. BROOKINGS, S.D. Four Central Nebraska students were among the recent graduates at South Dakota State University. Overall, students from 33 states and 20 nations graduated following the spring 2022 semester. Area graduates include: Logan Simpson of Burwell, Bachelor of Science, College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences; Benjamin Dinkel of Kearney, Bachelor of Science, College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences; Natalie Gydesen of North Loup, summa cum laude, Bachelor of Science, College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences; and Maria Northington of Hastings, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, College of Nursing. Graduates Two Grand Island students were among the nearly 3,700 graduates recently honored by the University of Maryland Global Campus, headquartered in Adelphi, Md. Leslie Morris earned a bachelor of science degree in psychology. Jon Jost received his bachelor or science degree in computer networks and cybersecurity. Celebrating its 75th anniversary, UMGC was established in 1947 to serve adults in the workforce. Today, UMGC enrolls some 90,000 students annually, offering bachelors, masters, and doctoral degree programs, as well as certificates in more than 125 fully online, hybrid and face-to-face programs and specializations. Academic honors Grant Johnson of Hastings, a graduate of Adams Central High School, has earned a spot on the Deans List for the spring semester at Drury University in Springfield, Mo. The recognition means a student earned a grade point average of 3.6 or greater (on a 4-point scale) while carrying a full-time course load of 12 or more semester hours. ***** Kaleigh Metzger of Grand Island, a student at Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa, earned a spot on the Academic Deans List for the spring 2022 semester. She is majoring in elementary education. The Deans List is comprised of students who have achieved a semester grade point average of 3.50 or above while carrying a minimum of 12 graded hours. ***** Mary Ferrone of Hastings was named to the Deans List for the spring semester at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa. A student must earn a 3.5 grade point average and carry a minimum of 12 credit hours to be recognized. The list of departures and changes over the last two years is so long that some wondered if Grand Islands favorite fast-food worker was collateral damage. But Jo Nelson, the cheerful fixture at the Second Street McDonalds, has not retired. She stayed home for six months after a serious car accident on Oct. 22. But she returned to work in mid-April, and McDonalds customers are glad to have her back handing out food at the drive-thru window. The accident left her with four fractured bones in her spine and a cracked sternum. She T-boned a pickup that pulled out in front of her at the intersection of Custer Avenue and North Front Street. How hard did the vehicles collide? Nelson was driving south on Custer. When she came to a stop, she was facing northwest. The other driver, who was heading west, wound up pointed east. The pickup driver admitted he was at fault. When her younger son, Lance, saw the vehicle, he said, I dont know how you walked away. Nelson feels blessed that her injuries werent worse. Lots of McDonalds regulars are also grateful. Shes built strong relationships with many customers with her beaming personality. Many Grand Islanders feel they have a special relationship with her. More often than not, people become friends with the nice lady at McDonalds. During the months she stayed home to let her bones heal, Nelson didnt work at the restaurant at all. She also stayed away from the homes and the office she normally cleans. But she still managed to attend physical therapy and watch her grandchildrens activities. I dont miss those, she says, smiling. Nelson has two sons Shane is the older one and five grandchildren. Shes lived in Grand Island since 1973. She grew up on a farm west of Cairo, graduating from Cairo High School in 1966. Nelson works three days a week at McDonalds Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Her shift runs 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., although she sticks around longer when needed. Nelson has worked at the McDonalds since the late 1980s. For a short while, she worked in the grill area, so she can still make a quarter-pounder if she has to. But she likes interacting with the patrons. I just enjoy people and I love the public and I just have the nicest customers in that drive-thru. She gets along well with her young co-workers, and she loves the young people in the cars that pull up in front of her. Many of the teenagers go to Grand Island Senior High, where Lance is a math special ed teacher. Shell ask the students, You dont happen to know Mr. Nelson, do you? The kids say, Sure, we know Mr. Nelson. They go back to school and say to the teacher, We just saw your mom in the drive-thru. Sometimes, they say, Your mom just called me Hon or Sweetie. Mr. Nelson says, Dont feel special. She calls everybody that. She loves kids of all ages. Her grandchildren play sports, so she knows some of the students through them. I have so much fun with the teenagers, she says. Nelson has tried to be a positive person her whole life, and she tries to convey that spirit to her customers. Her standard greeting is, Hi Hon. How are you doing today? I love to compliment the elderly, she says. If a little lady comes through and I know shes just had her hair done, Ill say Your hair looks beautiful today. The woman says, Well, thank you! I just had it done! If a customer is wearing a pretty outfit, Nelson will point it out. Everybody loves compliments, and she tries to take the time to offer one. If a compliment doesnt come to mind, she might talk about the weather. Nelson doesnt worry about making conversation. Its just not hard for me to talk to people, she says. Her mother called people Darlin, a greeting Nelson sometimes uses herself. My mother was just the sweetest person that walked on this earth. We had a wonderful relationship. She was a little tiny thing. She weighed 100 pounds and was about 5 foot 1, but just had a heart of gold. At McDonalds, Nelson has bonded with a coffee group that comes in at 2 p.m. When one of those people has a birthday, she bakes a cake. Husbands and wives come to celebrate the birthdays. Some of them have lost their spouses, she says. Ive been doing that for years. If one of her co-workers has a birthday, she usually bakes two or three cakes. In addition to her restaurant work, Nelson cleans eight houses. Some of those jobs are every other week or just once a month. Not surprisingly, those clients are her friends. Shes been cleaning at least half of the homes for 36 years. She doesnt just vacuum and dust. Shes prepared meals for them, decorated their homes, planted flowers and cleaned their campers. They try to stop her, saying Thats not part of the job description. But theyre just family to me, she says. She takes after her parents, Lawrence and Gert Meyer. My dad was a farmer, and both my parents were hard-working. In an interview this week, a reporter chose not to ask Nelsons age. Good. Because Im not going to tell you, she said. Shes not leaving McDonalds anytime soon. My kids keep saying Mom, maybe its time to retire, she says. After the accident, I could have said, OK, I think this is it, but I just dont feel like Im ready yet. Staying active, she thinks, is good for her. Every once in a while, Nelson has a bad day. But they dont come around very often. She decided long ago that you can make yourself happy or you can make yourself miserable. Why would you want to be miserable? she says. Jeff Bahr is a reporter for The Independent. He may be reached at jeff.bahr@theindependent.com. Tess Kleinknecht, a 31-year-old Doniphan woman, was sentenced Friday in federal court in Lincoln for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. U.S. District Judge John M. Gerrard sentenced Kleinknecht to 77 months in prison. Following her release, she will serve four years on supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. On July 30, 2020, law enforcement officers went to a Grand Island residence to arrest a person federally indicted on methamphetamine conspiracy charges. While there, investigators found Kleinknecht inside the residence, and obtained a search warrant for the residence. Investigators found three bags of meth along with a cutting agent and distribution paraphernalia in Kleinknechts belongings. A lab analyst found there to be more than 5 grams of actual or pure methamphetamine. The case was investigated by the Nebraska State Patrol and the Central Nebraska Drug and Safe Streets Task Force, which is made up of officers from the Grand Island Police Department, Hall County Sheriffs Department, Hastings Police Department, Adams County Sheriff, Kearney Police Department, Buffalo County Sheriff, Nebraska State Patrol, Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI. The Orangeburg Lions Club celebrated 100 years of serving its community with a centennial banquet and celebration on June 18. Orangeburg Mayor Michael Butler recognized the clubs legacy of service during the event. You do great things for the people of Orangeburg and, through your services, you make our community a better place, Butler said. And that is what we should all strive to do. The Lions Club was founded in 1917 and currently has over 48,000 clubs around the world. In the United States, the organization focuses on providing glasses, eye exams and other vision health needs to underprivileged members of the community, among other general service projects. When founded in 1922, the Orangeburg Lions Club was the third in the state. Since then, it has conducted several fundraisers every year to provide for the community and has visited local schools to conduct free eye exams for students. Throughout its history, the Orangeburg club has sponsored 23 other clubs. In 1969, Lions Clubs from across South Carolina established Lions Vision Services, a statewide nonprofit that pools individual clubs' resources to provide glasses, exams and procedures across the state. It's very humbling, said Daniel Prohaska, president and CEO of Lions Vision Services. The individuals that we're working with are individuals that can completely turn their lives around if they just get a little bit of help to get access to the eye care that they need. The celebration featured guest speaker Kembra Smith, a member of the organization since 1990, who served on Lions Clubs Internationals board of directors from 2014 to 2016. Smith, from Decatur, Georgia, said it is interesting that the club was originally founded amid World War I and the Spanish Flu pandemic. As it did then, the club stands as a source of community and help for those in need. We all need community and weve certainly seen that over the past couple of years, Smith said. The organization has seen growth in membership recently, according to Smith. Many of the members are younger than the average age of current members, which trends older. She said this could be due to club meetings going online and attendance not being tracked as strictly during the pandemic. Everybody wants to do service, Smith said. I mean, the idea of giving out free food to people or doing vision screenings, I mean, no one would not want to participate in that. And so we get a lot of younger people that are interested in participating, but they may not be interested in attending club meetings. Smith said the organization is focusing on evolving its service to fill other needs, such as environmental and sustainability causes. Many of the speakers and attendees at the event said they want to see the organization continue to grow and bring in new, younger members. Though members of the club have to receive an invitation, Smith said there are no requirements or barriers of entry for those wanting to join. The only criteria is to have a heart of service and be interested in serving your fellow man, Smith said. -- This story has been changed from its original version to reflect there are 48,000 Lions Clubs across the world. CHARLESTON The South Carolina Historical Society Museum (SCHS) and The Powder Magazine are proud to announce the launch of The Fire and Powder Pass, a joint ticket that grants access to both museums. Were thrilled to offer our first ever joint ticket with The Powder Magazine, said Faye L. Jensen, Ph.D., CEO of the SCHS. As neighboring museums downtown, this pass will give guests the opportunity to explore South Carolinas history in two of the most storied buildings in Charleston. With just one affordable ticket, visitors can explore more than 350 years of South Carolina history at the South Carolina Historical Society Museum and focus on Charlestons earliest history as a fortified walled city at The Powder Magazine, which is the states oldest public building. The Fireproof Building where the SCHS Museum is located and the Powder Magazine combine for this Fire and Powder Pass. Its the best deal in town. The South Carolina Historical Society Museum is in the historic Fireproof Building (circa 1826) at 100 Meeting St. in downtown Charleston. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Powder Magazine (circa 1713) is located just a few blocks away at 79 Cumberland St. The museum is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Guests can purchase The Fire and Powder Pass at both museums. Prices are $15 for adults; $12 for seniors and veterans; and $10 for youth. This is the best deal in Charleston for visiting two museums. For more information or to purchase the pass, please visit www.schistory.org. The South Carolina Historical Society Museum Founded in 1855 and headquartered in Charleston, the South Carolina Historical Society (SCHS) is the states oldest historical society and its largest private repository of documents, books, manuscripts, and maps about South Carolina history. The SCHS is a non-profit organization with the mission to expand, preserve and make accessible its invaluable collection, and to encourage interest and pride in the rich historical legacy of South Carolina. The SCHS headquarters, the Fireproof Building, underwent a multi-million-dollar renovation and now serves as The South Carolina Historical Society Museum. For more information, visit schistory.org. The Powder Magazine Completed in 1713, The Powder Magazine is South Carolina's oldest public building. The building was used for gunpowder storage from 1713-1748 and during the American Revolution in order to defend the city. After 1780, it was retired, and by the early 19th century, it was privately owned. During this period, The Powder Magazine then served as a print shop, livery stable, wine cellar, and carriage house. In 1902, The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in The State of South Carolina purchased the building, saving it from demolition. Within a year, it was opened to the public. Today, it is a museum where you can explore Charleston's colonial period in the last standing component of Charleston's original fortifications. For more information, please visit powdermagazine.org. Ralph Baxter knows it was the prayers of his mother and church family that covered him during a bloody Vietnam battle that forced the United States Army veteran to look death in the face during the three times that a helicopter he was riding in was shot down. The 75-year-old North resident recalls the dangers he faced during the war which pitted communist North Vietnam and the Viet Cong against South Vietnam and the United States. The war ended when U.S. forces withdrew in 1973 and Vietnam unified under Communist control two years later. By the time he left Vietnam in 1970, he said there were some memories that would always stay with him. Ive seen so much death The smell of blood. Ill never forget the smell of blood. Death is just a part of it. We had to do it. There was always thousands of people with my same dilemma, Baxter said. Ive seen so much death. Ive seen so many situations where people were supposed to die even one of my situations. It just wasnt my time, he said. Baxter continued, "My thing was, Well, Im going to make it back. I came to the conclusion that when its time to die, youll die. Youre not going to die before then because Id had close calls. Ive seen mortar rounds come in and wipe out six people and two people just got a little ear damage. He graduated from Dover High School in 1965 before attending then South Carolina State College with a major in biology. He didnt enroll for a second semester and was soon drafted in 1968. When you dont enroll for second semester, your draft notice comes in about three weeks. Thats that. Any time after 68, if youre 19 years old and you dont have a school deferment or some physical deferment, youll get a draft notice within 90 days. Thats how it was in the '60s, Baxter said. The son of the late James and Bertha Baxter wasnt hesitant or afraid about military service when he received his draft notice and had even volunteered to serve in the Vietnam War. He said he came from a military family on his mothers side. Most everybody got drafted even from World War I, World War II. We got drafted. My brother, Frankie, he went in 1960. I always had intentions of going into the military after college. I actually volunteered for Vietnam. I wanted to see a war because I heard my uncles and different people talk about it. [I said], If they made it, I think I could do it, too, Baxter said. He received his basic training at Fort Jackson. I enjoyed basic training. That eight weeks was a lot of fun. I was in top shape, maxed out on the PT test and stuff, Baxter said. I applied for the U.S. Army aviation technician program, which is down at Fort Rucker, but what had happened is they had a surplus of people. They said, Well, we just cant put you there. After basic training, they said, Youre going to the Army maintenance school. Im going, It wasnt aviation. Naturally I was all upset, but I went on to the maintenance school after basic training, he said. Baxter would soon find himself in Germany after Czechoslovakia was jointly invaded by four Warsaw Pact countries: the Soviet Union, Poland, Bulgaria and Hungary. I made E-5 after AIT (advanced individual training). I got to Germany September 1. I stayed in Germany from September 1 to January 1, of 1969. I came home for a 30-day leave, and then I went to Vietnam, said Baxter, who, by then, was a Specialist 4th Class in his transportation unit. He had also undergone RVN training at Fort Lewis, Washington to prepare him for his new mission in Vietnam. When I got to Vietnam, I was in the transportation maintenance company, which was maintenance on trucks, not helicopters. I had a guarantee it was supposed to be an aviation technician, Baxter said, noting that he was with his transportation unit for 91 days. It wasn't long before Baxter was given the option to join the maintenance unit of the 1st Aviation Brigade. Thats what I really wanted originally. Of course, I was so excited. I was around helicopters. Thats what I wanted to do After I had been there 48 days, they said, Well, your position requires being Spec/5. So I was made Spec/5. It was the same as an E-5 rank as far as promotion, but a specialist is a specialist. You dont have no rank over a hard stripe, he said. While he enjoyed working on the hydraulic systems of UH-1 helicopters and Cobras, he would find there was more to his job than that. He would also have to go out on medevac operations which sometimes resulted in his helicopter being shot down. I had developed a courage What I didnt realize was helicopters was used for support, medevac, and, of course, we had our Cobras, he said, referring to the world's first attack helicopter. They said, Well, OK, you seem to be intelligent, were going to bring you on an OJT (On-The-Job Training) program. So I got in and got to know the people and what not After a while, I really enjoyed it, Baxter said. It was during one mid-morning medevac operation, however, that the helicopter he was riding in was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. We were descending into the area. This was about 20 minutes after 9, and we got shot down. We crashed into a rice paddy. I got a few little shrapnel wounds and what not. The pilot, he got his neck snapped," Baxter said, but survived. I was holding the strap. It almost pulled my arm off. I had a few little shrapnel. I didnt realize shrapnel came up through that floor and kind of penetrated some part of my skin, which was no big deal. They came in with a Cobra to escort us and brought another medevac and got me and him out. They took me back to USARV (United States Army Republic of Vietnam). I got me about two weeks off of duty, he said. Baxter did not let his brush with death deter him from his duties and stayed clear of the alcohol and drugs which he said were prevalent. I was always clean. I knew what my duties were, he said, noting that he would soon learn how to run the gun turret of the Cobra helicopter. [They were like], Baxter, you want to learn the gun turret? The Cobra is a narrow machine. Its only 34 inches wide. The pilot sits up above you, and theres a gun turret. They gave you about four days training on firing the mini-guns and all that stuff. I was excited, he said. His excitement would soon turn to another brush with death. He continued, We did about 19 operations with the Cobras. On my 19th operation with the Cobras, we took another rocket. It tore the tail end off the Cobra. It went down. I was just lucky. I got a concussion and what not. It was enough people around that got us out, Baxter said, but this time the pilot was killed. I didnt know what this white matter was. I didnt know the brain had white matter. That stuff that was down on me, that was his brain matter down my neck. That rocket took his skull cap off. I was in the gun turret. When we went down, we just kind of crash landed, but it took his skull cap and his skull material fell back. It blew off the top of his helmet, but his skull material came down on my neck. I was down below him, he said. Baxter said his harrowing war-time experiences forced him to ask his mother and others to pray for him. He knew he could not make it without prayer. I had a bunch of people praying for me I had developed a courage through prayer. You took it day by day you went into an operation. Then they transferred me and two pilots up to a place called Quan Loi, which was bad, he said. Quan Loi was the rugged area northeast of Saigon which saw intense fighting during the war. Baxter said, They just stuck me to a Cobra unit. The Cobra was used for one thing: combat. You dont fire a Cobra unless youre going to engage something. It was a high-tech piece of equipment. I really learned a lot. We lost Cobras, we lost people and stuff, but I was pretty fortunate. We got shot down three times, but the last one was a mechanical failure. A rocket hit part of our hydraulic system. We was able to bring it down kind of out of the way, though. He continued, We always stayed in communication. When you went down, other Cobras and everybody was right there around you because they had to surround you, or you could get captured. It was a learning experience Baxter did not have the comforts of home while in the military and endured everything from mosquitoes and monsoons to open toilets and jungle rot, which he described as an extreme case of athletes foot, during his service. You learned how to live with the diversities of being in the war. Some guys are strong, some guys are weak You did your job to the best of your ability. I got promoted real fast. I made Spec/5 in about the 21st month of being in the military, he said. I met four or five guys from Orangeburg. You met some crazy people. We met the Chicago crowd, the New York crowd, the Italians and this and that. We had some racial problems, but my thing was people are different, and you just deal with whatever it was you had. You dealt with it. You didnt get embellished in it, you just kind of dealt with it, Baxter said. I will admit, if I had to do it again, Id do the same thing. Of course, I probably would have been a helicopter pilot, he said, noting that as a technician, he occasionally got a chance to fly them, too. It was a learning experience. I always wanted to be a pilot. I found a helicopter fascinating. I enjoyed a challenge. I always enjoyed challenges. I never did like just like the mediocre type thing. I always liked challenges. Ive learned when your time comes to die, youll die, but youre not going to die before then. That helps a lot, and I still believe that, Baxter said. He said he kept a level head while in the military, something which served him well. Number one, Bertha Baxter and everybody was praying for me. St. Dorcas (Baptist Church) people always recognized Vietnam veterans back then. They were praying for me. I didnt do nothing foolish. I stayed straight. I didnt mess with drugs or nothing like that. I had my first drink of whiskey after I got back from Vietnam, Baxter said He continued, My thing was some people are strong, some are weak. I was a strong person. When I realized what we had gone through with, I said, Wow, but you were young then and you had a life ahead of you. I was never a scary person anyway. So my thing was death was just a normal thing. Some died, some didnt. Your number may come up, it may not, but you didnt do nothing foolish. During his last two weeks of Vietnam, he was preparing to return to America. Your last two weeks of Vietnam, you dont go any kind of dangerous operation. You kind of stay around the post. I just didnt worry. You fear, but some things you just couldnt afford to (fear) because we were a shortage of people. I always had to sit in for people who didnt do or couldnt do because of intoxicants, Baxter said. He arrived in Oakland, California from Vietnam in 1970, but was not warmly received. Baxter said he and other service members were called pigs. It was terrible. The thing is, [I said], Im going back to the world. Ill deal with it. Just let me get out of this place. One thing I told myself was that for the rest of my life Im going to have cold water, Im not going to sleep among the mosquitos, and Im not going to use a (open) toilet where 10 men sit side each other, Baxter said. Youre different when you come back I never thought Id die over there, but I just saw so much death. I kind of enjoyed certain aspects of it. I would love to go back to Vietnam. Some guys still talk about it, but most of us are dead now. Id like to see it from a peaceful aspect, Baxter said. He said he never understood why so many lives had to be lost in a war which he felt was largely about making money. After the French left, Firestone owned those rubber plantations, miles and miles. Firestone, Goodyear, they owned those plantations. Synthetic rubber really hadnt gotten that big yet. So that latex from those trees, that was part of the Vietnam thing. You had all these people building aircraft. That was a political war. There was money to be made. If you were to cure cancer, what would happen to all these people who are into cancer research? he said. It was so much money being made, and a lot of people didnt want it stopped. He continued, We did a lot of things in Vietnam. So many lives could have been saved had they done it just the practical way. But we have military protocol, we do it like this. Thats why after my time was up, I had no intentions of being in the military, reserve or nothing. "I had had enough. I had too many people who werent as smart as me, too many people smarter than me, but with bad attitudes. There were a lot of people making decisions that didnt make sense. Human lives mean a lot to me. He said there are residual effects of war which will linger for a lifetime. Youre different when you come back from Vietnam. Everybody knows it except you. Youre different. Psychologically, youre different. Its an adjustment period I always wanted to be that straight guy, but I had certain little minor issues, Baxter said. Thank God I was physically and mentally strong. I didnt get involved in all the drugs and drinking. I was just blessed to that point. I was just blessed because most people drank, they smoked a lot of marijuana. Thats where the drug thing started, he said. Baxter, who still works part-time as a diesel mechanic, now enjoys the simple things in life, including playing music hes a musician a St. Dorcas Baptist Church in North and making honey. My greatest joy now is playing and my bees. Ive got about 35 strong hives, and most of my honey is already promised out, he said. The latest reports from the Grand Ducal Police show a busy weekend for officers all across the Grand Duchy. Around 1pm on Saturday, police were alerted to an intruder in a newspaper kiosk in Luxembourg City's Gare district. The man had managed to sneak into the back room and steal several valuable items, including possessions of employees. Although a clerk tried confronting the thief, he pushed her against a shelf and managed to escape. Police found the perpetrator soon after and confirmed that he was in possession of several stolen objects. They arrested him by order of the prosecutor's office. Burglary reported in Merl Around 3.30am on Sunday, an unidentified man broke into a store located on Place Joseph Thorn in Merl. The burglar entered through a window and reportedly stole several items of value. Rioter fined in Hosingen Around 4am on Sunday, a man was thrown out of a concert in Hosingen for rioting and provoking fights. Outside of the venue, he started insulting police officers and pushed one of them against a barrier. The officer did not suffer any injuries and the perpetrator received a fine. After a two-year hiatus, the End-of-Season Party is back at the Philharmonie for a night of high-quality dance music, this year including arguably one of Detroit techno's greatest-ever prodigies: Jeff Mills. As was the case with so many annual events, the End-of-Season Party at the Philharmonie was forced to take a two-year break due to the pandemic-related restrictions. However, the electronic dance music event is now back with a bang, as the organisers enlisted some of techno's biggest names to step into the DJ booth for the 2022 edition. The most famous name on the line-up is undoubtedly Jeff Mills, a DJ and producer who has been an influential and innovative figure in the world of techno since the very dawn of the genre in early 1980s Detroit. As he will travel to the Grand Duchy and grace the dance floor of the Philharmonie with his beats on 9 July, let us look back 40 years and see how the music career of the man now commonly known as 'The Wizard' came to be. Jeff Mills, aka 'The Wizard' Mills took his first steps as a DJ in the early 1980s during what is now commonly referred to as the first wave of Detroit techno. Through his older brother, he managed to learn the craft of spinning records and got his foot in the door of several Detroit-based clubs at an early age. "I would go every Tuesday and sneak in the back door because I was too young to be in the club. I would stay up in the booth and they would let me play at certain times to learn how to handle a crowd. I would move up and they would let me play longer, until I would play the entire night", Mills recalled years later in conversation with music journalist Frank Broughton. The real break-through in Mills' career came during a fateful night in November 1984, when Prince kicked off his Purple Rain Tour with a week of live shows in Detroit. Radio producers all over town were at the time frequenting the urban club scene looking for a Prince-inspired mix when they stumbled upon Mills doing his magic in the behind the decks at Club UBQ. Impressed by the speed of his mixing skills, they recruited the young DJ and let him host his very own show: 'The Wizard'. Over time, Mills expanded his skill set and started to use three instead of just two turntables, which allowed him to not only transition from one song to the next, but to also layer each track with additional textures from other records. With the help of the radio station's extensive archive, he further expanded into conceptual music arrangement. Mills also ventured into live improvisation when playing for crowds in the clubs of Detroit. For that purpose, he employed a TR-909 Rhythm Composer, a drum machine originally released in 1983 by the Roland Corporation for the purpose of emulating real percussion. Though commercially unsuccessful, this little gadget played an important role in techno production and improvisation, and few mastered the instrument as well as the Wizard. Mills eventually stopped broadcasting his radio show and entered the world of music production during the so-called second wave of Detroit techno. The 1990s were marked by the absence of the core producers from the early days, as most of them were by that point touring Europe's club dance floors. Mills stayed behind and joined forces with Mike Banks and Robert Hood to form Underground Resistance, a DJ and production collective now known to every techno fan around the world. Building on the successes of his first collaborative releases, Mills eventually returned to working on his own and releasing music on his label Axis. It did not take long for him to also start touring the planet and sharing his beats on the global techno stage. Today, close to 40 years after starting his career, he has become one of the most revered luminaries the genre has ever seen. And, six days from today, he will make his first and long-anticipated appearance at the Philharmonie in Luxembourg. 2022 End-of-Season Party at Philharmonie The event will take place at the Philharmonie in Luxembourg City's Kirchberg district. Nosi will kick off the party at 9.30pm, followed by a one hour live set from Francesco Tristano, who is scheduled to start at 11.30pm. Mills will step into the booth at 12.30am and play until 3am. Since the line-up does not indicate a live performance, it is unlikely that the Wizard will also be using a drum machine, but three to four decks paired with his extensive record catalogue should still ensure an impressive performance. At this point, I also want to highlight the person with the extremely difficult task of following up on Mills' set. DVS1, a Russian-born DJ who grew up in Minneapolis and long-time resident DJ of Berlin's infamous techno temple Berghain, will step into the booth at 3am, thus closing this year's edition of the End-of-Season Party. If there is someone capable of finding the right tunes for the right crowd at the right moment, it is without a doubt this man. Aside from being a master selector, it is also worth mentioning that DVS1 has gained an iconic status in the world of techno for being a vocal advocate of nightlife values. Inspired by Berghain's strict no-photo policy, he launched an extensive campaign to promote this idea in clubs all around the world. So, when you finally hit the dance floor of the Philharmonie, do remember to keep your phone in your pocket and your ears focused on the beats. There will surely be enough to keep you distracted and dancing for hours, that much I can guarantee. Each Sunday we ask you a question about an issue important to Wyoming, then print what you think the following Sunday. We call it Open Air because its a chance to examine a topic from all sides wide open like Wyomings sky. You can reply through our website or by email, postal mail, Facebook or Twitter. Be sure to specify youre responding to the Open Air question. Please keep your responses to 350 words and include your full name, town and contact information so we can verify your submission. Last week, Massy Financea subsidiary of T&Ts second-largest conglomerate, Massy Grouplaunched its first fintech offering, an online loan platform called InstaLoan. Massys model, according to executive vice-president and group chief financial officer of Massy Holdings Ltd Ian Chinapoo, is to be disruptive, especially to local banks. While its Massys first foray into fintech, online loans have been on the market from three separate companies for the past three years. InstaLoan can be accessed by anyone wanting a loanbe it for a vacation, home repair or for a Carnival costume. The local arm of the Barbados-based Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) has been accused of being unprofessional and inefficient. Nursing student Shevern Harry told the Express that, as a result of being given the runaround over the correction of an error on her certificate, she has not been able to receive her Nursing Council number and has lost some 80 hours of clinical work, and her GATE (Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses) funding is under threat. In 1978, calypsonian Edwin Ayoung, aka Crazy, burst onto the Carnival scene at the Dimanche Gras show when he exited a giant dustbin to perform his hit, Dustbin Cover. In 1979, Llewellyn McIntosh, or Short Pants, delivered his classic calypso, The Law is an Ass. After Fridays Law Association vote on Attorney General Reginald Armours matter, these two calypsoes appear strangely intertwined. We might as well throw the symbolic scales of justice into the nearest dustbin and then firmly apply Crazys cover. The vote of confidence in the Attorney General was a pyrrhic victory. Before examining the context of our fiery protests, let us first turn to some events abroad that are relevant to the use and abuse of power. For now, each partys biggest strength is the weakness of the opponent. Does this statement resonate? It is, in fact, a conclusion drawn last week by The New York Times from early polls relating to the rating of US President Joe Biden and the US mid-term election cycle. The Times also concluded that widespread concerns about the economy and inflation have helped turn the national mood decidedly dark, both on Biden and the trajectory of the nation. VIENTIANE, July 2 (Xinhua) -- A freight transit yard of the China-Laos Railway was officially put into operation on Friday with the first railway containers heading to Thailand's Laem Chabang port. This makes the international logistics channel of land-sea intermodal transport more convenient. The China-Laos Railway adopts international standards while the Thai railway currently uses a 1-meter gauge system. Railway freight transport between Laos and Thailand requires reloading operations. The freight transit yard of China-Laos Railway's Vientiane South Station is expected to work to improve the efficiency of freight transport between China and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries. So far by June 30, the China-Laos Railway has carried 3.36 million passengers with the railway's Lao section carrying 0.48 million passengers, 4.69 million tons of freight and 0.77 million tons of China-Laos cross-border goods. The China-Laos Railway is a docking project between the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative and Laos' strategy to convert itself from a landlocked country to a land-linked hub. Produced by Xinhua Global Service 24 Reasons to Abandon Christianity: Why Christianitys Perverted Morality Leads to Misery and Death By Charles Bufe. See Sharp Press. 340 pp. $19.95; Kindle $8.49. Not to put too fine a point on it, author Charles Bufe is dismayed by Christianity. To demonstrate why, he enumerates what he considers Christianitys most destructive aspects in an articulate summary of evils perpetrated in the name of the (probably nonexistent) Almighty that run the gamut from witch-burning and child abuse to misogyny, homophobia, anti-Semitism and environmental degradation. Based on fear and powered by coercion and hypocrisy, says Bufe, Christian morality is at best an oxymoron and at worst a justification for unspeakable cruelty. He cites the works of philosophers, historians and scientists to support his arguments in this extensively footnoted and indexed book which includes a bibliography running to several pages. The wording of the title was deliberate, he notes, to avoid dictatorial language, because attempting to suppress belief is not as effective as providing information with which to make an informed choice. Tucsonan Charles Bufe is the author, co-author, translator or compiler/editor of 13 books. Helene Woodhams The End of the War By Jeff Hartman. Independently published. 363 pp. $16.95; Kindle $5.95. The ties that bind are at the heart of this deeply-moving account of one familys unraveling during the cultural and political upheavals of the tumultuous 1960s. The Hamiltons were the quintessential, All-American family until the war changed everything, pitting the conflicting ideologies of brother against brother and driving them from home, one to Vietnam and the other to Canada. The fateful ramifications of their decisions would splinter the family for decades until the intercession of their dying sister. Told from the perspective of the youngest Hamilton brother, born too late to be more than an observer of the drama and, subsequently, the mediator piecing it all back together, this highly readable novel offers a window on an era in American history when the rules were rewritten and the concepts of honor and patriotism diverged. Author Jeff Hartman is a retired educator who lives in Tucson. This is his second novel. Helene Woodhams Flourishing in the Desert: A Novel of Resiliency, Courage, and Connections By Deborah A. Lonergan. Independently published. 270 pp. $15.99; Kindle $5.99. Preparing for adventure with her newly-retired husband of 40 years, Holly instead finds herself suddenly widowed. Are new beginnings possible? Leaving friends and family behind, Holly strikes out for aptly-named Nirvana, Arizona. Optimistic and comfortable in her relationship with the Divine, Hollys path to rediscovering herself involves making new friends including a rescue dog as sensitive to spiritual energy as she is and reigniting an old flame, an unanticipated trick the universe had up its sleeve for her. A second chance at love is not the only surprise the universe has in store, but Holly is nothing if not open to new experiences in her mystical Sonoran Desert surroundings. Author Deborah A. Lonergan, who describes herself as a spiritual seeker, lives in Tucson. This is her first novel. Helene Woodhams Sowing the Seeds of Change: The Story of the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona By Seth Schindler. Sentinel Peak Books; 152 pp. $19.95; Kindle $9.95. From its humble beginnings in a tiny, South Fourth Avenue warehouse in the mid-1970s, the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona has become one of the most respected in America, with a $125 million budget and more than 6,000 volunteers. Its founders, discouraged by the ineffective Food Stamp Program and by the amount of food they saw being wasted, were committed to ending hunger in Tucson and the rest is history, recounted here by Seth Schindler in an engaging, profusely illustrated, chronological account. The Community Food Bank owes its success in large measure to dedicated, enthusiastic staff and volunteers; many of their reminiscences are included, providing the text with an up-beat, personal vibe. The charismatic Punch Woods, longtime executive director, is central to the story; his goal of putting himself out of a job by making food banks unnecessary was not realized in his lifetime, but, as Schindler shows, his forward-thinking organization is continuously innovating, blazing new pathways out of poverty. Dont mistake this book for a victory lap. Rather, the authors intention is to demonstrate how communities can win the war against hunger, and he succeeds admirably. Seth Schindler is an anthropologist and former curator of the Arizona State Museum. Helene Woodhams Walk in the Light By Eugene Sierras. Trafford Publishing. 142 pp. $33.99. Kindle $3.99. Everything in Creation, says author Eugene Sierras, is connected by the energy of a universal force. Its a concept about which the author has given a lot of thought. Influenced by catastrophist Immanuel Velikovskys 1950 bestseller Worlds in Collision, Sierras suggests that Earth suffered close contacts with other planets during ancient times with cataclysmic results that may be inferred from scripture. Framed as a conversation between two friends one a Catholic priest, the other a Navy pilot Sierras offers a complex synthesis of comparative mythology, science and religion as the two friends enjoy a wide-ranging discussion about the nature of the Kingdom of Heaven. The author chose a graphic novel format to mitigate the complexity of his topic. A retired Naval flight officer and the author of several books, Sierras lives in Tucson. Helene Woodhams A Life in Three Acts: My Journey from Wartime Burma to America By Solomon K. Samuels (SKS Enterprises Inc.). 414 pp., 88 photos and maps. $35 hardcover. This fascinating memoir is worth the price of admission for its first act alone. In a time when works abound about World War II in Europe, you dont see much about life under Japanese siege in Asia. A Life in Three Acts remedies that. Dr. Solomon K. Samuels was born in Burma in 1930, the son of an educated Christian Indian working in Burmese civil service. In remarkable detail, Samuels describes war and Japanese occupation and his familys disintegration. Samuels second and third acts covering his hard-won medical education, Burmese independence and consequences, and his emigration to the US demonstrate historic insight and admirable personal discipline and tenacity. Christine Wald-Hopkins Bear Child By Rick Church (Archway Publishing).245 pp. $17.99 paperback; $3.99 Kindle. Bear Child is Rick Churchs fifth Noel Two Horses mystery. A Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican, Two Horses is an ex-cop who runs a private investigation firm from his Prescott mystery bookstore. Tucsonan Church knows his territory, as hes a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Nation himself and a Vietnam veteran with a background in state and federal law enforcement. What you see in this book includes law-enforcement territoriality, corruption in police ranks, Reservation and border issues, and disrespect for Natives. The novel opens with three Mexican cartel guys assassinated in Chicago. A couple of crooked Chicago Police Department detectives will use the deaths to frame p-head Indian CPD cop Timothy Bear Child. Noel Two Horses gets called in, and as the Chicago detectives go after Bear Child, the FBI pursues another, related case. No jurisdiction consults with another, and, when Two Horses young assistant is murdered, hes determined to protect Bear Child and nail the killer. Rick Church keeps the action going, and laces his dialogue with entertaining, cop and intertribal ribbing. Its enough to make you check out his other mysteries. Christine Wald-Hopkins Holy Sh*t: Life Lessons Learned and a Critique of Religion By The Reverend John L. Abraham (independently published). 245 pp. $19.95. John L. Abraham pulls no punches in this account of his personal and professional life as an Episcopal priest and his disappointment in organized religion. The retired priest is a thanatologist a speaker, trainer and consultant focusing on patient health care and end-of-life issues. In his 22 years as an active priest, Abraham served 10 congregations. Things did not always go smoothly. His 60s participation in student and anti-war demonstrations may not have prepared him for pastoral life in a staid, hierarchical institution thats resistant to change. Abraham chronicles serving churches from D.C. to Tucson, at times getting crosswise with parish culture or the ecclesiastical administration the most rancorous occurring in a certain large Episcopal church in the Tucson foothills. Abrahams book denounces hypocrisies of organized religion. It elucidates commonalities among world religions including beliefs he has long abandoned. These are not sympathetically presented. What it does, however, is present a heartfelt, informed argument for dignity in death. And it provides resources for compassionately addressing the inevitable in life. Christine Wald-Hopkins Competition is afoot in three Southern Arizona state senate districts where Aug. 2 primaries will determine who ends up on the November ballot. Early voting for primaries starts July 6. The last day to request a mail-in ballot is July 22. District 17 Three Republicans are vying to represent the party this fall in the newly created voting district that encompasses much of the northwest side, the far east side and the Rita Ranch area. Robert Barr, 52, of Tucson owns and operates several investment firms and favors reduced regulations for small businesses. His candidate website barr4az.com says Americans should be free to choose their own lives especially in matters involving health and education. Barr supports school choice and is anti-abortion, and said if elected he would work to ensure tax dollars are not spent on abortion or other controversial medical procedures. Vince Leach, 73, of Tucson is seeking a third term in the Arizona Senate after two terms as a member of the House of Representatives. His campaign website, vinceleach.com, says Leach holds bachelors degrees in history and political science from the University of Wisconsin at St. Point and worked in sales and business management for more than 35 years. Leach says he has worked to increase education funding in the state and promoted reforms to improve student achievement. He has pushed unsuccessfully for measures to reduce the availability of medical marijuana. Justine Wadsack, 48, of Tucson, a licensed real estate agent, is trying again for a Senate seat after losing in 2020 in District 10. Wadsack took part in storming a Vail School District board meeting last year to protest face mask requirements for students during the pandemic. Her campaign website arizonafreedomteam.com says she supports improved border security, a ban on critical race theory and an anti-abortion law that says life begins at conception. The winner of the District 17 primary will run against Democrat Mike Nickerson in November. District 18 Two Democrats are competing to be the partys candidate in the new District 18, which includes the Catalina Foothills, Casas Adobes and a swath of Tucson north of Broadway, east of Country Club Road and west of Camino Seco. Morgan Abraham, 30, of Tucson is an affordable housing developer and military intelligence officer in the Army Reserve. He joined the state Legislature in December when he was appointed to fill a vacancy in the District 10 House seat. Abraham holds a bachelors degree in engineering and an MBA, both from the University of Arizona. His campaign website morganabraham.com says he supports increased funding for education, housing, health care and environmental protection. He is pro-choice on abortion and supports gun safety measures such as tighter background checks, red flag laws and safe storage requirements. Priya Sundareshan, 37, of Tucson is a professor of natural resources law at the University of Arizona. According to her campaign website priyaforarizona.com, Sundareshans top issues include climate change, the states dwindling water supply and increasing public investment in green energy sources such as solar and wind power. She supports common-sense gun safety laws, access to abortion, and measures to make voting easier such as restoring and improving the permanent early voter list. She holds a bachelors degree in engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and two University of Arizona degrees, a juris doctor and a masters in natural resource economics. The winner will face Republican Stan Caine in November. District 21 Two write-in candidates are competing for a spot on the Republican ticket in the new district that includes western Pima County, about half of Santa Cruz county and the city of Bisbee in Cochise County. Jim Cleveland, 59, of Bisbee is a teacher, pastor and Navy veteran who says hes running to be a voice for families. Cleveland does not have a campaign website but said in a statement on Arizonas elections website his priorities include school choice, full funding for law enforcement and border protection and government funding for addiction treatment centers. Dan Dellinges, 68, of Tubac is a retired National Park Service ranger who also worked for 10 years as a roofer. He does not have a campaign website but, in a statement on Arizonas elections website, he said he supports school choice, gun owner rights and stronger border control. Dellinges also is opposed to some of the public health measures put in place during the pandemic. I believe the majority of COVID closures including restrictions placed on churches were unconstitutional, his statement says. The winner will face off in the fall against Democrat Rosanna Gabaldon. A Tucson-based company that has been working on high-power directed-energy systems for two decades has won major new funding from the Navy and Army. Applied Energetics Inc. recently was awarded a $3.9 million, two-year grant from the Office of Naval Research to develop an optical system capable of defeating customer-specified threats for use on Marine Corps platforms. And following that June 1 award announcement, Applied Energetics was awarded a $172,000 Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) contract with the U.S. Army for research and development of a directed-energy system, including an ultra-broadband infrared source as a countermeasure to electro-optical sensors. The targeted end products under those agreements are unclear, and much of the work remains secret. But the Pentagon is investing more than $1 billion a year in directed-energy weapons, including mobile lasers to shoot down drones and other aerial threats, and has already fielded a few units for testing. Applied Energetics has developed an array of patented technologies for ultra-short-pulse lasers and patented laser-guided energy systems for military uses, as well as for commercial applications. Company officials declined to be interviewed without preconditions, but CEO Gregory Quarles said in a prepared response that the competitive Navy grant will allow Applied Energetics to contribute to national security while helping the company to further its research. We are honored to have been competitively selected to receive this grant from the Office of Naval Research, which allows Applied Energetics to partner with the U.S. Marine Corps to better support and protect our deployed military personnel and our homeland from a new wave of asymmetric emerging threats, Quarles said. Enabling and protecting our defense and national security community is extremely important to us as a company. Additionally, we expect that this program will accelerate our ability to continue making scientific advancements in optical and photonics-based ultrashort pulsed lasers and optical sources supporting the national directed energy portfolio, Quarles said, citing the recent Army STTR contract to develop infrared-sensor countermeasures using the companys ultra-short-pulse lasers. The companys aim is to give our military a technological advantage against both improvised and emergent threats, said Stephen McCahon, co-founder and chief scientist at Applied Energetics. The military has already tested some laser systems against drones and other aerial threats. A 50-kilowatt laser system made by Texas-based Raytheon Intelligence & Space and industry partner Kord Technologies and installed on an Army Stryker combat vehicle successfully shot down mortar rounds during testing this past spring. But Applied Energetics says that the continuous-wave military lasers of up to 100 kilowatts now being tested can take anywhere from seconds to minutes to impact a target. In contrast, the company says that it has already developed ultra-short-pulse lasers that top 5 terawatts, or trillions of watts, delivered in a pulse of less than a trillionth of a second to producing instantaneous results. Applied Energetics also has developed a technology known as Laser Guided Energy, that uses a laser to channel a stream of electricity to a target. The companys laser-guided energy technologies are protected by 26 patents and 11 additional Government Sensitive Patent Applications, which are held under U.S. government secrecy orders and allow AE extended protection rights. The company, formerly known as Ionatron, won $50 million worth of Pentagon contracts in the 2000s to develop its laser-guided energy technology to defeat improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. The bomb-zapping system was tested by the Marine Corps in Afghanistan, but the Corps dropped the effort in 2011 after reporting spotty results. In 2014, Applied Energetics suspended business operations and reverted to shell company status, but in 2017 the company announced it was ramping up research and development operations. In 2019, Applied Energetics acquired Applied Optical Sciences, a company founded in 2010 by McCahon. Quarles, a physicist well-known in optics circles as former chief scientist for the Optical Society (now known as Optica), also come on board as CEO in 2019. Last year, Applied Energetics relocated its corporate headquarters to the University of Arizona Tech Park on South Rita Road, taking up space formerly occupied by laser maker Coherent/Dilas that is compliant with international arms-control regulations and includes a 4,800-square-foot, Class 1000 clean room. Applied Energetics also is on a firmer financial footing, though it has little or no revenue the past two years and has not been profitable since reemerging in 2017. The company announced in November 2020 that it had repaid or converted all of its existing investor debt into common stock. And Applied Energetics public stock, which is traded on the over-the-counter market, is trading at about $2.50 per share, after falling as low as 66 cents in the past year. The last day to register to vote in Arizonas primary election is Tuesday, July 5. The primary election will take place Aug. 2 when voters will decide the candidates for the Nov. 8 general election races. The Pima County Recorders office will mail out early ballots July 6, while in-person early voting will take place July 6-29. The last day to request a ballot by mail is July 22. In-person voting will look different this year with the countys debut of e-pollbooks and voting centers, where poll workers check in voters with an iPad, or e-pollbook, that scans voters IDs and confirms their eligibility to vote. The e-pollbook then sends a ballot specific to each voter to a ballot-on-demand printer. The new voting model also replaces the precinct-based polling system where voters were required to vote at the location assigned to them based on their residence. Now, all voters can show up at any of 129 vote centers across the county to cast a ballot, regardless of the precinct they live in. Early ballots should be mailed in by July 26 to make sure they're received by Election Day on Aug. 2. Voters can vote early until July 29 in person or drop off their ballots before Election Day at 15 locations across the county. To see a list of early voting locations and ballot drop-off sites, visit: recorder.pima.gov/earlyvotingsites#primary%20election To register to vote, or to check the status of your voter registration, visit: recorder.pima.gov/RegisteringToVote Primary election dates July 5: Last day to register to vote in the primary election July 6: Early ballots mailed July 6-29: In-person early voting July 22: Last day to submit a request for a ballot by mail July 26: Recommended last day to mail in ballot Aug. 2: Primary Election For a list of vote center locations, visit: Pima.gov/VoteCenters For more information on Pima Countys elections, visit: Pima.gov/Vote2022 The Pima County Public Library has partnered with Cox to activate 70 free hot spots across the county, the first of 120 internet access points planned to enhance connectivity across the region. The first 70 hot spots were activated on June 27, and 50 more are set to launch by mid-July. The new hot spots are part of the countys digital access plan with short-term goals to provide readily-available internet service while addressing gaps in digital literacy and long-term plans to expand broadband infrastructure across the county. The library hopes the free Wi-Fi service will decrease the digital divide by connecting people to other programs that provide more permanent internet services at home, such as the Federal Communications Commissions Affordable Connectivity Program, which provides discounted broadband to low-income households. Were doing this to help reach those individuals that maybe dont have a connection in their home and also dont really know that they can come to the library and get internet, said Michelle Simon, deputy director of support services for the countys libraries. The whole goal with this effort is not to give people free internet access for the rest of their lives. It is to help move them to have affordable internet access in their own homes. The library is paying for the program, called Hotspots around Town, with $720,448 to be reimbursed by the federal governments Emergency Connectivity Fund, which came from the American Rescue Plan Act to provide subsidies to schools and libraries for remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pima County Board of Supervisors approved the contract with Cox on April 5 to fund the hot spot program for three years. The first 70 hot spots already existed for Cox customers to access with their own membership log-ins. Now, anyone can access the internet access points by connecting to the librarys Wi-Fi called PCPLonTheGo. The next 50 hot spots are destined for rural gathering centers such as Canoa Preserve Park in Green Valley and the Three Points Veterans Memorial Neighborhood Park. Five Boys and Girls Club of Tucson locations will also get internet service, which CEO Denise Watters said will enhance the wide array of programs it provides to youth in addition to serving the surrounding communities. We love that we can provide the hot spot because our mission is to be in these neighborhoods where the kids need us the most, and the community and the families that come along with that, Watters said. Its not just the club kids, its the families and the community around those clubs that need us as well. The countys plan is to eventually conduct critical infrastructure projects backed by utilities and public safety agencies to expand broadband access across the county by 10% in each district. For now, the librarys creating a PR campaign to alert community members to the new Wi-Fi services and eventually enable them to receive internet at home. (The hot spots) will lead to people engaging with the library where we can help them to connect to resources, the Affordable Connectivity Program, helping them to fill out those applications so that if they qualify for subsidies, not only do they qualify for subsidies for internet service, but potentially a device, Simon said. This thing is funded for three years, but we will figure out a way to make it sustainable. To view a map of available hot spots across the county, visit: bit.ly/3ae8iCt Tucson businesses and residents seeking building permits and development plans are facing long delays, as the citys permitting agency has been overwhelmed by record-high construction activity and staffing challenges. Help is on the way. The City Council recently approved nearly $1.5 million in funding to help the Planning and Development Services Department add staff and upgrade systems to alleviate the permit delays now running into months. While it will take time to hire more people and improve service, developers and other permit users are encouraged by the effort to beef up staffing and overhaul and modernize permitting systems, with a new digital permitting system set to go online in October. As it is, high demand coupled with staffing shortages have pushed permit and plan review times for development plans to two to three times as required under city ordinances, Tim Thomure, assistant city manager overseeing the PDSD, told the council at a June 7 study session. Weve committed to a time frame of 20 days to review for most things but were not currently meeting that consistently, Thomure said in an interview. There are always instances where things take longer, a lot of projects need multiple reviews to dissect them, but typically the longest (wait) on specific projects is 90 days, and most are less than that. After discussing the issue on and off for months, the City Council at its June 7 meeting approved a plan to immediately fill 15 open positions in PDSD and allocate $250,000 to digitize the departments microfiche permit records and $1.2 million annually to fund 14 new technical and professional staff positions. Record development In a sense, Tucson is a victim of its own success, as the city has ridden a wave of residential and commercial development since 2015, cresting just as the COVID-19 pandemic caused shutdowns and lingering worker shortages. The value of construction projects handled by the departments planning section rose nearly 98% from 2015 to 2021, reaching a record $848 million in 2020 before dropping to about $747 million in 2021, according to a departmental service review presented to the mayor and council. The city issued 210 development packages in 2021, up from 116 in 2015, while rezonings processed jumped more than fourfold to 29. The PDSD has moved to hire additional staff since 2020, though filling those posts has been a challenge, Thomure said. The city manager authorized the addition of four new positions in fiscal 2020, eight new positions in fiscal 2021 and five new positions in fiscal 2022, supplemented by the authority the City Council gave him to over-hire in all PDSD positions when job candidates are successfully recruited. PDSD since 2020 has added 32.5 full-time equivalent positions, growing its staff by 50% to 93.5, including 21.5 nonpermanent contract worker positions. Thomure said he hopes more staff and process improvements will help the PDSD cut the typical review time significantly to perhaps 40 days by August. Positive trajectory The ongoing digitization of paper and microfiche records and the expected October launch of the new EnerGov Permitting System, will help PDSD get back on track toward the end of the year, Thomure said. We are on a much more positive trajectory, he said. Were going to be in a better place three months from now and even better than that six months from now, said Thomure, who met with local industry leaders to discuss the changes as recently as last week. Local developers and business leaders say theyre encouraged by the citys moves to beef up the permitting process, amid long delays they fear could hamper economic development across Tucson. David Godlewski, president of the Southern Arizona Association of Home Builders, said Tucson has long lagged Pima County and other local municipalities in processing development plans and building permits, but things began to get further bogged down about two years ago. In the last 18 to 24 months, there have been some major challenges in getting plans reviewed and approved in a reasonable time what took days or weeks is now taking weeks or months, said Godlewski, who has headed SAHBA for more than a decade. Godlewski said one developer told him he just got initial comments on his development plan back from PDSD on an application submitted seven or eight months ago. And simple building-permit applications that Pima County typically turns around in 48 hours are taking Tucson weeks to review, he said. Thomure said more complex plans can take months if revisions are sought but he hadnt heard of any project delays of up to seven or eight months. Godlewski said he believes Planning and Development staff are working as hard as they can, but its painfully obvious that the department lacks the basic resources to process applications in a timely manner. Other problems are structural process issues, he said, citing the citys first-come, first-served application queue. The system puts smaller projects behind larger ones, causing unnecessary delays, and when an applicant resubmits after adding requested information or correcting errors they end up at the back of the line, Godlewksi said. Development drag The CEO of the Tucson Chamber of Commerce, Michael Guymon, said the group and developer members had worked with the city to get review times for single-family home developments down to 28 days a few years ago. But now those timeframes have tripled or even quadrupled in some cases and the city has been telling applicants more recently it will take 90 days for a review, Guymon said. Guymon, who spent more than seven years with the local economic development group Sun Corridor Inc. before joining the chamber, said hes concerned that Tucson could miss out on attracting significant new businesses or expansion opportunities if companies dont think they can get their projects approved in a timely manner. Speed to market is critical when it comes to cities and communities to compete with each other and attract business and industry, he said. I get concerned when we cant meet certain time frames companies have as they want to expand or relocate into new markets. Existing businesses looking to expand also need certainty that they can proceed with their development timelines without months of delays, Guymon added. The longtime head of a local design consulting firm said he was dismayed when PDSD started telling permit and plan applicants it would take 90 days for review. Taking 90 days per review, and you can generally count on two reviews, if the norm had been 30 days which is kind of the standard, thats an extra four months before it goes to construction, said Bill Carroll, president of Tucson-based Engineering and Environmental Consultants Inc. But Carroll said most members of the development community understand Planning and Development is working to resolve the backlog, giving Thomure high marks for working with the industry and focusing on both near- and long-term solutions. The attitude at the city of Tucson has swung dramatically to the positive over the last few years, he said. During a recent meeting, Thomure said the PDSD is working to speed projects through the review queue by assigning its two most experienced plan reviewers to make initial reviews and comments, and have other less-experienced reviewers check applications resubmitted with changes for compliance, instead of waiting for the original reviewers. That should really speed things up, Carroll said. The department also is looking deeper into the application queue to spot resubmissions with simple changes that can be approved quickly, Thomure said. In the longer term Thomure wants to develop a tracking system to view the real-time status of all applications at a glance. Besides upstaffing, PDSD has made some key service improvements in recent years: The Tucson Development Center opened last year and centralized all review staff from PDSD, Tucson Water, Tucson Fire and Department of Transportation and Mobility into one customer-service facility in the Public Works Building at 201 N. Stone Ave. The PDSD also rolled out remote video inspections prior to pandemic for some building inspections and expanded that service to all inspections during 2021. The department began offering online permit applications and related services in 2020. The PDSD recently began converting all permit applications into digital form for processing and is now working on converting all permit records from old microfiche to digital format. The city partnered with Pima County and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to allow same-day permits for residential solar installations, with more than 2,000 permits expedited through that application process since its launch in 2021. Moving ahead Thomure said the new EnerGov Permitting System, which will be used by PDSD and other city agencies, should significantly streamline the permitting process. The city selected the new system, made by Tyler Technologies, in 2018 but its installation was delayed partly due to COVID-19. That was a blessing in disguise, Thomure said, as Tucson will get the recently released new version of the platform and latest software ahead of other cities. The city has had to revise some of its procedures before switching to the new system, which will undergo testing starting this month, he said. We had a lot to do to modernize and streamline our processes, because you dont want to take a bad process and put it into a new system, Thomure said, adding that further improvements are planned once the new permitting system is in place. Meanwhile, the project to completely digitize permit records now kept on microfiche expected to cost $250,000 annually over four years will provide online access to the public. Hiring challenge Carroll, the design consultant, said he worries that the city will be able to fill the vacancies and planned new positions at Planning and Development as employers across the city and state struggle to find qualified workers amid labor shortages blamed on COVID-19 and a booming economy. Theyre facing the same thing everyone in Tucson is facng right now, he said. We turn work down on a weekly basis because we cant find staff. Thomure said plans for a stepped-up recruiting effort, market-based wage offers and the willingness to train new workers will help the city fill the vacancies and new positions at PDSD. Theres probably a decent amount of folks in town with those skill sets, or the ability, and were willing to do the training is where we can better exploit the local talent by taking the long-term view, he said, adding that Tucson also remains an attractive market for workers willing to relocate. The PDSD has supplemented staff with contract workers, which now comprise about a quarter of the agencys staff, but its tough to get those workers these days as well, Thomure said. SAHBAs Godlewski said improvements at PDSD must go far beyond upstaffing, to restructure processes like creating different queues for specific types of permits or project sizes, for example. The city plans to do a deeper dive into process improvements once the new permitting system is in place, Thomure said. Were in this first phase now, with the resources we have, and when we have the additional resources on board and trained, we can go further down the path, he said. For now, wary US treads water with transformed COVID-19 The fast-changing coronavirus has kicked off summer in the U.S. with lots of infections but relatively few deaths compared to its prior incarnations. COVID-19 is still killing hundreds of Americans each day, but is not nearly as dangerous as it was last fall and winter. Its going to be a good summer and we deserve this break, said Ali Mokdad, a professor of health metrics sciences at the University of Washington in Seattle. With more Americans shielded from severe illness through vaccination and infection, COVID-19 has transformed for now at least into an unpleasant, inconvenient nuisance for many. It feels cautiously good right now, said Dr. Dan Kaul, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor. For the first time that I can remember, pretty much since it started, we dont have any (COVID-19) patients in the ICU. 'Revolutionary' high court term on abortion, guns and more WASHINGTON (AP) Abortion, guns and religion a major change in the law in any one of these areas would have made for a fateful Supreme Court term. In its first full term together, the court's conservative majority ruled in all three and issued other significant decisions limiting the government's regulatory powers. And it has signaled no plans to slow down. With former President Donald Trump's appointees in their 50s, the six-justice conservative majority seems poised to keep control of the court for years to come, if not decades. This has been a revolutionary term in so many respects, said Tara Leigh Grove, a law professor at the University of Texas. The court has massively changed constitutional law in really big ways. Its remaining opinions issued, the court began its summer recess Thursday, and the justices will next return to the courtroom in October. From AM to PM, the fickle force of government is with you WASHINGTON (AP) When you groggily roll out of bed and make breakfast, the government edges up to your kitchen table, too. Unlike you, it's perky. It's an unseen force in your morning. The government makes sure you can see the nutrients in your cereal. It fusses over your toast, insisting that the flour it comes from has no more than 75 insect fragments and one rodent hair per 50 grams. The government also tends to your coffee, mandating that no more than 10% of your beans be moldy. Its satellites inform the weather forecast on your phone for the day ahead. The government weighs in on the water consumption in your bathroom and controls the fluoride in your toothpaste. Thats all before you leave home. The government is going to be hanging with you on and off, mostly on, until you turn off the lamp last thing at night no new incandescent bulbs, please, under a new rule. The world of federal regulation seems both boundless and microscopic. It touches what you touch. It lends a helping hand at every turn or sticks its clumsy fingers in everything, depending on your viewpoint. Russia's messages with missiles tell West to back off KYIV, Ukraine (AP) The latest in a litany of horrors in Ukraine came this week as Russian firepower rained down on civilians in a busy shopping mall far from the front lines of a war in its fifth month. The timing was not likely a coincidence. While much of the attritional war in Ukraines east is hidden from sight, the brutality of Russian missile strikes on a mall in the central city of Kremenchuk and on residential buildings in the capital, Kyiv, unfolded in full view of the world and especially of Western leaders gathered for a trio of summits in Europe. Were the attacks a message from Russian President Vladimir Putin as the West sought to arm Ukraine with more effective weapons to bolster its resistance, and to set Ukraine on the path to joining the European Union? Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko suggested as much when missiles struck the capital on June 26, three days after EU leaders unanimously agreed to make Ukraine a candidate for membership. Texas clinics halt abortions after state high court ruling AUSTIN, Texas (AP) Clinics were shutting down abortion services in the nation's second-largest state Saturday after the Texas Supreme Court blocked an order briefly allowing the procedure to resume in some cases, the latest in legal scrambles taking place across the U.S. following the reversal of Roe v. Wade. The Friday night ruling stopped a three-day-old order by a Houston judge who said clinics could resume abortions up to six weeks into pregnancy. The following day, the American Civil Liberties Union said it doubted that any abortions were now being provided in a state of nearly 30 million people. Amy Hagstrom Miller, president of Whole Womans Health, said the ruling forced an end to abortions in its four Texas clinics, and workers there were winding down abortion operations and having heartbreaking conversations with women whose appointments were canceled. I ache for us and for the people we have dedicated our lives to serve with the fabulous abortion care we provide, many who will be denied that right in the months and possibly years to come, Hagstrom Miller said in a statement. Planned Parenthood's multiple affiliates in Texas had not resumed abortion services even after the restraining order was put in place Tuesday. Bodies of 3 missing kids, woman found in Minnesota lake VADNAIS HEIGHTS, Minn. (AP) The bodies of three young children and a woman believed to be their mother have been recovered from a Minnesota lake, and authorities say the deaths are being investigated as a triple murder-suicide. Meanwhile, the body of the children's father was found at a different location hours earlier. Names had not been released as of Saturday afternoon. The children, all under the age of 5, were two boys and a girl. The chain of events began Friday morning when the man's body was found at a mobile home park in the town of Maplewood, near Minneapolis. Police determined that the woman had left with the children, and a search began. Maplewood Police Lt. Joe Steiner said the woman's car was found near Vadnais Lake around 4 p.m. Friday. The shoes of the children were found on the shore. The Ramsey County Sheriff's Office said the body of the first child was recovered from the lake around 7:30 p.m. Friday. The second child's body was found just after midnight. The woman's body was found around 10:40 a.m. Saturday, and the body of the third child was found around 11 a.m. Uvalde schools' police chief resigns from City Council The Uvalde school districts police chief has stepped down from his position in the City Council just weeks after being sworn in following allegations that he erred in his response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 19 students and two teachers dead. Chief Pete Arredondo said in a letter dated Friday that he has decided to step down for the good of the city and to minimize further distractions. He was elected to the council on May 7 and was sworn in on May 31, just a week after the massacre, in a closed-door ceremony. The mayor, the city council, and the city staff must continue to move forward to unite our community once again, Arredondo said in his resignation, first reported by the Uvalde Leader-News. Arredondo, who has been on administrative leave from his school district position since June 22, has declined repeated requests for comment from The Associated Press. His attorney, George Hyde, did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment Saturday. On June 21, the City Council voted unanimously to deny Arredondo a leave of absence from appearing at public meetings. Relatives of the shooting victims had pleaded with city leaders to fire him. Palestinians give bullet that killed journalist to US team JERUSALEM (AP) The Palestinian Authority on Saturday said it has given the bullet that killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh to American forensic experts, taking a step toward resolving a standoff with Israel over the investigation into her death. The announcement came just over a week before President Joe Biden is to visit Israel and the occupied West Bank for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. It signaled that both sides may be working to find a solution to the deadlock. Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent who was well known throughout the Arab world, was fatally shot while covering an Israeli military raid on May 11 in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinians, along with Abu Akleh's colleagues who were with her at the time, say she was killed by Israeli fire. The Israeli army says that she was caught in the crossfire of a battle with Palestinian gunmen, and that it is impossible to determine which side killed her without analyzing the bullet. Israel says it has identified the rifle that may have shot her, but that it cannot draw any conclusions unless it is compared to the bullet. The Palestinians have refused to turn over the bullet, saying they don't trust Israel. Rights groups say Israel has a poor record investigating shootings of Palestinians by its troops, with probes languishing for months or years before they are quietly closed. Google to erase more location info as abortion bans expand MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) Google will automatically purge information about users who visit abortion clinics or other places that could trigger legal problems now that the U.S. Supreme Court has opened the door for states to ban the termination of pregnancies. The company behind the internet's dominant internet search engine and the Android software that powers most of the world's smartphones outlined the new privacy protections in a Friday blog post. Besides automatically deleting visits to abortion clinics, Google also cited counseling centers, fertility centers, addiction treatment facilities, weight loss clinics, and cosmetic surgery clinics as other destinations that will be erased from users' location histories. Users have always had the option edit their location histories on their own, but Google will proactively do it for them as an added level of protection. Were committed to delivering robust privacy protections for people who use our products, and we will continue to look for new ways to strengthen and improve these protections," Jen Fitzpatrick, a Google senior vice president, wrote in the blog post. The pledge comes amid escalating pressure on Google and other Big Tech companies to do more to shield the troves of sensitive personal information through their digital services and products from government authorities and other outsiders. High court marshal seeks enforcement of anti-picketing laws RICHMOND, Va. (AP) The marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court has asked Maryland and Virginia officials to enforce laws she says prohibit picketing outside the homes of the justices who live in the two states. For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have picketed Justices' homes, Marshal Gail Curley wrote in the Friday letters to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and two local elected officials. Curley wrote that Virginia and Maryland laws and a Montgomery County, Maryland, ordinance prohibit picketing at justices' homes, and she asked the officials to direct police to enforce those provisions. Justices' homes have been the target of abortion rights protests since May, when a leaked draft opinion suggested the court was poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. The protests and threatening activities have increased since May," Curley wrote in a letter, and have continued since the court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was issued last week. For now, wary US treads water with transformed COVID-19 The fast-changing coronavirus has kicked off summer in the U.S. with lots of infections but relatively few deaths compared to its prior incarnations. COVID-19 is still killing hundreds of Americans each day, but for many people the virus is not nearly as dangerous as it was. Its easy to feel confused by the mixed picture: Repeat infections are increasingly likely, and a sizeable share of those infected will face the lingering symptoms of long COVID-19. Yet, the stark danger of death has diminished for many people. How long the interlude will last is impossible to know. A new more dangerous variant could be around the corner. 'Revolutionary' high court term on abortion, guns and more WASHINGTON (AP) Abortion, guns, religion. A major change in the law in any one of these areas would have made for a fateful Supreme Court term. But in its first full term together, the courts conservative majority ruled in all three and issued other significant decisions limiting the governments regulatory powers. And that majority has signaled it has no plans to slow down. With former President Donald Trump's three appointees in their 50s, the six-justice conservative majority seems poised to keep control of the court for years to come, if not decades. Its remaining opinions issued, the court began its summer recess Thursday, and the justices will next return to the courtroom in October. From AM to PM, the fickle force of government is with you WASHINGTON (AP) The Supreme Court's ruling on carbon emission controls on power plants this past week has cast light on the world of federal regulation. The ruling is seen as a potential blow to the fight against global warming, and it may have broader implications, too. Federal regulations run through American life, touching on everything we consume, the air we breathe, the water we drink. Regulation has become the go-to way for presidents to make policy when they cant get Congress to pass a law, as on climate change. Barack Obama and Donald Trump did it, and so does Joe Biden. But the courts conservative majority said not so fast to Biden. Russia's messages with missiles tell West to back off KYIV, Ukraine (AP) The latest in a litany of horrors in Ukraine came this week as Russian firepower rained down on civilians in a busy shopping mall far from the front lines of a war in its fifth month. The timing of the attack was not likely a coincidence. While much of the attritional war in Ukraines east is hidden from sight, the brutality of Russian missile strikes on a mall in the central city of Kremenchuk and on residential buildings in the capital of Kyiv unfolded in full view of the world. The timing of both attacks appeared to be juxtaposed with three summits in Europe where Western leaders emphasized their support for Ukraine. Texas clinics halt abortions after state high court ruling AUSTIN, Texas (AP) Clinics are shutting down abortion services in Texas after the Supreme Court in the nation's second-largest state blocked an order that briefly allowed the procedure to resume in some cases. It's the latest development in legal scrambles taking place across the country following the reversal of reversal of Roe v. Wade. The Friday night ruling stopped a three-day-old order allowing abortions to resume up to six weeks into pregnancy. On Saturday, the American Civil Liberties Union said it doubted that any abortions were now being provided in the state. One provider, Whole Womans Health, says the ruling forced it to stop offering the procedure in its four Texas clinics. Bodies of 3 missing kids, woman found in Minnesota lake VADNAIS HEIGHTS, Minn. (AP) The bodies of three young children and a woman believed to be their mother have been recovered from a Minnesota lake. Authorities say the deaths are being investigated as a triple murder-suicide. The chain of events began Friday morning when the father was found dead at a mobile home park in the town of Maplewood, near Minneapolis. Police determined that the woman had left with the children, and a search began. The womans car was found near Vadnais Lake. One child's body was found in the lake Friday night, another shortly after midnight, and the bodies of the third child and the mother were found late Saturday morning. All of the children were under age 5. Uvalde schools' police chief resigns from City Council The Uvalde school districts police chief has stepped down from his position in the City Council just weeks after being sworn in following allegations that he erred in his response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 19 students and two teachers dead. Chief Pete Arredondo told the Uvalde Leader-News Friday that his resignation is the best decision for Uvalde. He was elected to the District 3 council position on May 7 and sworn in on May 31. The director of the Texas Department of Public Safety told a Senate hearing last month that Arredondo made terrible decisions as the massacre unfolded on May 24 , and that the police response was an abject failure. Palestinians give bullet that killed journalist to US team JERUSALEM (AP) The Palestinian Authority says it has given the bullet that killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh to American forensic experts. The move takes a step toward resolving a standoff with Israel over the investigation into her death. Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent who was well known throughout the Arab world, was fatally shot while covering an Israeli military raid on May 11 in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinians, along with colleagues who were with her, say she was killed by Israeli fire. Israel says its troops were in a battle with Palestinian gunmen, and it's unclear who fired the fatal shot. It says the bullet must be inspected to understand what happened. Google to erase more location info as abortion bans expand MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) Google will automatically purge information about users who visit abortion clinics and other places that could trigger legal problems now that the U.S. Supreme Court has opened the door for states to ban the termination of pregnancies. The company behind the internets dominant internet search engine and Android phone software outlined the new privacy protections in a Friday blog post. Other places Google plans to erase from location histories include counseling centers and fertility centers. The move is made as Google and other Big Tech companies face escalating pressure to safeguard the sensitive personal information collected through their products. High court marshal seeks enforcement of anti-picketing laws RICHMOND, Va. (AP) The marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court has asked Maryland and Virginia officials to enforce laws she says prohibit picketing outside the homes of the justices who live in the two states. Marshal Gail Curley took up the issue Friday with Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and two local elected officials. A Hogan spokesman said Saturday that the Republican governor had directed state police to further review enforcement options that respect the First Amendment and the Constitution. But he also noted that the constitutionality of the Maryland statute Curley cited has been questioned by the Maryland Attorney Generals Office. BOGOTA, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Two new cases of monkeypox were detected in Colombia, bringing the total number of cases in the country to five, local health authorities reported on Saturday. The new cases were two related adults, one of whom had recently arrived from Europe and infected the other, said Bogota's Secretary of Health Alejandro Gomez, adding the two patients are currently in isolation, with their care managed on an outpatient basis. "We have four cases of monkeypox in the city of Bogota, and the four cases are not serious," he said, noting, "The epidemiological cordon, contact tracing and the studies are being carried out normally, as is usually done." The first three monkeypox cases in Colombia were detected on June 23 in people who had returned from Europe, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection reported. The ministry has urged the public not to panic but also called on them to stay alert to any symptoms or contact with infected people. RICHMOND, Va. (AP) The marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court has asked Maryland and Virginia officials to enforce laws she says prohibit picketing outside the homes of the justices who live in the two states. For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have picketed Justices' homes, Marshal Gail Curley wrote in the Friday letters to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and two local elected officials. Curley wrote that Virginia and Maryland laws and a Montgomery County, Maryland, ordinance prohibit picketing at justices' homes, and she asked the officials to direct police to enforce those provisions. Justices' homes have been the target of abortion rights protests since May, when a leaked draft opinion suggested the court was poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. The protests and threatening activities have increased since May," Curley wrote in a letter, and have continued since the court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was issued last week. Earlier this week, for example, 75 protesters loudly picketed at one Justice's home in Montgomery County for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket at another Justice's home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first Justice's home to picket for another 20 minutes," Curley wrote in her letter to Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich. This is exactly the kind of conduct that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit. In her letter to Jeffrey McKay, chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, she said one recent protest outside an unspecified justice's home involved dozens of people chanting, no privacy for us, no peace for you! The letters from Curley were dated Friday and shared with reporters by a spokesperson for the Supreme Court on Saturday. Curley's request came about a month after a California man was found with a gun, knife and pepper spray near the Maryland home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh after telling police he was planning to kill the justice. The man, Nicholas John Roske, 26, of Simi Valley, Calif., has been charged with attempting to murder a justice of the United States and has pleaded not guilty. Youngkin and Hogan, both Republicans, have both previously expressed concerns about the protests. In May, they sent a joint letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland asking for federal law enforcement resources to keep the justices safe and enforce a federal law they said prohibits picketing with the intent to influence a judge. The direct request by the court puts it at odds with the Justice Department, which, while providing U.S. marshals, has not taken steps to limit the protests as long as they are peaceful. Hogan spokesman Michael Ricci said in a statement Saturday that the governor had directed state police to further review enforcement options that respect the First Amendment and the Constitution. He also said that had the marshal taken time to explore the matter, she would have learned that the constitutionality of the Maryland statute she cited has been questioned by the state Attorney General's Office. Elrich said he had no recording of having received the letter addressed to him and questioned why it was released to the press. He said he would review it and was willing to discuss it with Curley, but defended the job Montgomery County Police have done so far. In Montgomery County we are following the law that provides security and respects the First Amendment rights of protestors. That is what we do, regardless of the subject of the protests, he said. Youngkin spokesman Christian Martinez said the Virginia governor welcomed the marshal's request and said Youngkin had made the same request of McKay in recent weeks. The Governor remains in regular contact with the justices themselves and holds their safety as an utmost priority. He is in contact with state and local officials on the Marshals request for assistance and will continue to engage on the issue of the Justices safety, Martinez said. Youngkin in May pushed for a security perimeter around the homes of justices living in Fairfax County, but McKay rebuffed that request, saying it would infringe on First Amendment protest rights. McKay said Saturday that the county's position on the issue was unchanged. The law cited in the letter is a likely violation of the First Amendment, and a previous court case refused to enforce it. As long as individuals are assembling on public property and not blocking access to private residences, they are permitted to be there," he said. Tucson Electric Power (TEP) is asking the AZ Corporation Commission to approve raising residential and business electric utility rates. Residential rates would go up by 12% or about $14 a month and small business rates about $40 a month (which likely would be passed on to customers). TEP says it needs the raises to pay for investments in "renewable energy", solar and wind projects. I wanted to thank Democrat Progressives for this. They demand companies go "green" with renewables, then the incurred costs are passed onto consumers like me. Their "transitioning" from petroleum and associated attacks on the industry have driven the up the price of gasoline to double what it was on November 3, 2020. Diesel is over $6 a gallon and used most by commercial transport trucking companies. A result of that is higher prices for all kinds of goods, i.e. at the grocery store. My point here is that Progressive Democrats and their demands for renewable energy is financially hurting Americans. The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer: A horrific event in San Antonio last week showed the country that the U.S.-Mexico border can be as deadly for migrants as a sniper firing into a crowd. Last week, dozens of migrants climbed into the back of a tractor-trailer as they tried to sneak across the border in Texas. The suffocating heat killed 53 of them, making it the deadliest border crossing in recent memory. The ghastly death toll put it on par with the 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas, where a gunman fired into crowds at a country music festival and killed 58 people. In response to the deaths in San Antonio, several senators issued statements last week drawing parallels with mass shootings and calling for action with some urgency. Now its time for them to commit to finding a solution, just as they did with mass shootings last month. The tragic discovery of at least 53 migrants who perished after crossing our border should be a galvanizing moment like the tragic shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde, Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, said in a tweet. The Senate needs to rally to produce an agreement on immigration in the spirit of the recent gun safety compromise, Durbin said. Nineteen students and two teachers died in Uvalde prompting a national response, Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, said in a tweet. What will it take to provoke a response to preventable deaths at the border from the Biden administration? The latest mass murder in America didnt involve guns, it was the direct result of Joe Bidens open border policy, Sen. Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, said in a campaign ad. I agree to a certain extent with Johnson and Cornyn. I think Bidens policies played a role in these deaths, just as the policies under Trump, Obama, Bush and Clinton played a role in the deaths of thousands of migrants, including about 4,000 in Southern Arizona. I also believe the failure of senators like Johnson, Durbin, and Cornyn to pass necessary laws created the situation where dozens of migrants felt they had no choice but to climb into a tractor-trailer in the June heat. The best path for lawmakers to take would be to give different options to people huddled in tractor-trailers and to migrants walking through the desert, such as the chance to apply for a visa. But that likely would require a monumental compromise on U.S. immigration policy. The bipartisan group of lawmakers who wrote the gun safety law didnt take on the biggest challenges related to gun violence. Instead, they chose measures that could get broad support, such as going after firearms trafficking and expanding background checks. They should do the same with migrant deaths. One straightforward option would be to expand the use of screening technology by Customs and Border Protection, which allows officers to see inside tractor-trailers and makes dangerous human-smuggling attempts, as well as the smuggling of drugs like fentanyl, much more difficult. In Southern Arizona, a simple option would be to enlarge the Border Patrol program that installs rescue beacons in the desert. They also could put more placards with coordinates on them, which migrants can relay to rescuers when they call for help. Other options that wouldnt require an overhaul of the immigration system include funding overtime pay for sheriffs deputies to conduct search-and-rescue efforts, improving the 911 system and expanding cell phone coverage in remote areas. Although no new border policies were put in place last week, it is heartening to see senators talking about migrant deaths with urgency. I hope they can seize on the bipartisan momentum from the gun safety law and work together to stop these preventable deaths. The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer: Last week, I was excited to find my 2022 Arizona Primary Voter Election Guide nestled in my mailbox. I flipped to the Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate statements and began reading. The position of superintendent, who helps schools comply with education policies and distributes almost $6 billion in funding to Arizona schools, is currently held by Kathy Hoffman. Her re-election blurb addressed issues like retaining teachers, investing in counselors and increasing technology for rural areas. I expected the other candidates to cover similar topics, but as I continued reading my stomach sank. Returning candidate Tom Horne, who held the superintendent position from 2003-11, warned that educators are indoctrinating students in critical race theory and other radical liberal propaganda. He stated he will fight back against all types of brainwashing and promote real learning. Candidate Shiry Sapir promised families that she will oppose the new radical woke education agenda and the political indoctrination, radical division, and illicit sexual content being sown in the minds of their children as young as kindergarten. She ended her statement calling her bid for election a statewide child rescue mission. There are many, many reasons why these claims are troubling. First, they are incredibly insulting to educators. I have worked as a teacher or teacher mentor for 16 years, and Ive navigated the school system as a parent for seven years. The words these candidates useindoctrination, brainwash, rescue missionfeel like a slap in the face to those of us who have dedicated our lives to helping children. Surely these candidates understand that teachers spend most of their energy not on salacious scheming, but on foundational topics like classroom management and curriculum development. Certainly they know that kindergarten teachers do everything in their power to shield students from illicit content, not expose them to it. At the very least, they must recognize the important role teachers played in their own lives and development. When candidates ignore these truths and instead promote distrust of the very teachers they hope to supervise, we should all be alarmed. More importantly, we must ask ourselves why they are building entire campaigns around accusing Arizonas teachers of corrupting our children. The answer is simple: if we believe our children are in danger, we will vote for anyone who vows to save them. The real tragedy is that claims of students being taught to hate America or embrace critical race theory are distracting voters from current legislation that will truly jeopardize our childrens education. On June 24, Arizona Republican lawmakers voted to approve HB 2853, thus creating the most expansive educational voucher system in the nation. It will offer every Arizona student $7,000 of taxpayer money to put toward private or parochial school tuition, with zero accountability to report student achievement data or demographics of families who receive the vouchers. Even if only current private school students use these vouchers, it will cost taxpayers about $125 million by the 2024-25 school year. A decisive 65% of Arizonans voted against voucher expansion in 2018, opting for their taxes to continue funding the public schools attended by 1.1 million Arizona students. But while some candidates distract us with claims of student brainwashing, their counterparts in the Legislature are undermining voters and siphoning money away from public schools under our noses. We all want quality schools in our communities, and getting there may mean having hard conversations about what should be included or left out of our schools. These conversations are important and healthy for our democracy, but they require us to think critically about which issues actually impact our children most. As we approach election season, I urge Arizonans to pay close attention to which candidates are using their platforms to vilify teachers and what purpose it serves. Candidates who run on a platform of fearmongering might succeed at the ballot box, but they just may dismantle public education in the process. Folks who dont know much about Tulsas secondary airport have begun receiving an education. The first of three meetings was held this past week to generate master plan input for Tulsa Riverside Airport (location code RVS), which has more takeoffs and landings than any other airport in the state. With close to 187,000 such operations, it was the 53rd busiest airport in the United States in 2021. Our master plan is kind of our outlook of what we want to do over the next 30 years, said Austin Wheeler, airport manager at RVS. We have to submit a five-year capital improvements plan for what near-term the projects were looking at. For projects to get on that plan, we have to pull them out of this master plan. Its kind of the overarching framework of what we want to do. The initial public meeting was held Thursday at the Tulsa Tech Riverside Campus, which also will host the one Sept. 1. The third meeting hasnt been scheduled. The RVS master plan last was updated in 2006. The airport will be laying out its vision for generational improvements and gathering input from airport users and the surrounding community on what should be included in the outline. Owned by the City of Tulsa and operated by Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust (TAIT), the airport opened in 1958 and is located in south Tulsa, adjacent to the Arkansas River (east) and city of Jenks (south). RVS serves as a general aviation reliever facility to Tulsa International Airport, providing an alternative for civilian aviation users, such as flight training students, corporate travelers and recreational pilots. RVS employs 350 people and generates a $95 million direct economic impact for the region. It also is home more than 200 hangars and six flight schools that attract students from around the world. We have an airport system specific to Tulsa, Wheeler said. But we also need to look at the region of northeastern Oklahoma and the needs of airport users that we at Riverside could provide for, if possible. We also take into consideration our neighbors so we can best be in harmony with each other. RVS has $5.8 million allocated for a taxiway project and wash rack in fiscal years 2022-23, Wheeler said. Over the next five years, $11 million has been budgeted for 14 capital improvement projects, he said. Neither Tulsa International Airport nor RVS receive funding from cities of Tulsa or Jenks. Revenues generated at the airports are only used for airport expenses and capital improvement program projects. Aircraft are getting more fuel-efficient and noise efficient, Wheeler said of the future of aviation at RVS. They are running quieter. Engine technology is improving, enabling us to fly larger planes in more populated spaces and not have the nuisance that we used to have. Those are things we will be taking into account. That paired with our training traffic. We have six flight schools based here at the airport. Thats the bulk of our operation. We need to make sure we have the facilities and the infrastructure needed for those pilot-training programs so we can help be a feeder to the pilot shortage. Commercial tenants at RVS include Christiansen Aviation, Riverside Jet Center, Camtronics and AirElectric. All but about two of the airports 752 acres are developed, and that land is available only in small parcels, Wheeler said. Another challenge and another facet of this master plan is ensuring that we maximize use of available land, as well as getting the most return on what we do have already developed, he said. Area prosecutors say they are ready to resume filing charges in cases involving non-tribal member who victimize tribal members within their districts. District attorneys in eastern Oklahoma won back that right as a result of a Wednesday Supreme Court ruling dealing with tribal jurisdiction. The 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta clarified the McGirt v. Oklahoma case and reversed a state appellate court ruling that said Oklahoma did not have criminal jurisdiction in cases involving non-Indians who commit crimes against tribal members on reservation land. The Supreme Courts ruling says the state shares criminal jurisdiction with federal prosecutors in such cases. The tribes and federal government retain jurisdiction over cases involving defendants who are tribal citizens in crimes committed on reservations. District 27 District Attorney Jack Thorp said he and his staff are ready to dive in and sort out which cases can now be filed by their office. We are super excited to have this work because we live in these communities, and there has been a void and weve been powerless in these specific cases to do justice to make our communities safer, he said. Thorp said he estimates his office has had to pass on more than 1,000 criminal cases since the McGirt ruling was issued nearly two years ago. District 27 includes Adair, Cherokee, Sequoyah and Wagoner counties. The state appellate court decision was fallout from the U.S. Supreme Courts 2020 McGirt ruling and others that acknowledged that Congress had never disestablished tribal reservations in most of eastern Oklahoma. The acknowledged existence of six reservations covering most of the eastern half of the state meant district attorneys in eastern Oklahoma now operate primarily within tribal reservations. Thorp said that within hours after the release of the court ruling Wednesday he had notified the four county sheriffs in his district of the ruling. Since then he has also reached out to police chiefs in his district to spread the word that cases involving non-tribal members who victimize tribal members are to be sent to his office, he said. During the nearly two-year period since the McGirt ruling was released, smaller-staffed U.S. Attorneys Offices in Tulsa and Muskogee were exclusively responsible for prosecuting major crimes involving tribal members on reservations. As a result, and despite an increase in federal resources, U.S. attorneys in the two federal districts on the eastern side of the state declined a combined 5,847 criminal cases during an 18-month period since the McGirt ruling, accordinig to a Tulsa World analysis of U.S. Department of Justice data. Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler said his office has also reached out to area law enforcement regarding the decision. And so we will expect that local law enforcement will now be referring cases where a non-Indian is victimizing an Indian to his office, Kunzweiler said. We will resume prosecuting the way we have been prosecuting since 1907, when Oklahoma became a state. Were going to look at every case that wasnt prosecuted post-McGirt, Kunzweiler said. Well examine those for whether or not we have a case that can be prosecuted regardless of whether they were prosecuted in federal court or not. Obviously we are going to have to look at resources in making a decision, he said. If it is our belief that the federal government obtained a measure of justice that is acceptable to us then we will probably examine other cases that either havent been picked up or may need to be reviewed. A spokeswoman for Kunzweilers office said Friday that she could not provide an estimate of the number of cases that could not be prosecuted that involved a non-tribal member victimizing a tribal member. However, she said an estimated 20% to 25% of current Tulsa County cases going to tribal and federal prosecutors could be eligible for prosecution by the state. As for cases involving non-tribal defendants whose cases were dismissed under the McGirt ruling, Kunzweiler said those will be reviewed, too. If that case was set aside based upon a dismissal by the court based upon McGirt, we will review those cases and in all likelihood be petitioning the court to set aside its earlier order of dismissal and ask the court to reinstate its earlier order of conviction, Kunzweiler said. If that involved a time of confinement, we would have to summon the individual in to serve out the remainder of his sentence. In addition to reversing the dismissal of a state child-neglect conviction against Manuel Castro-Huerta, the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday overturned state appellate court case dismissals in 10 other cases involving non-tribal defendants. One of those cases involves Richard Roth, who was convicted of first-degree manslaughter in 2014 and sentenced to a 19-year prison term in the drunken-driving death of 11-year-old Billy Jack Chuculate Lord in Wagoner County. The boy died after being struck by a car driven by Roth. We believe that the Court of Criminal Appeals will take the direction of the U.S. Supreme Court and reverse their earlier holding and that Mr. Roth will be required to serve his properly ordered sentence that he received at a jury trial that I tried back in 2015, Thorp said. Thorp, who helped prosecute the case, said he notified the boys mother soon after receiving the decision Wednesday. She is cautiously optimistic that the Court of Criminal Appeals will reverse their earlier holding consistent with Castro-Huerta, but until we find out exactly how the Court of Criminal Appeals will handle that, she wont be able to rest. Thorp said his office will focus its initial review of cases on violent crimes and crimes against children. Theres people who have been waiting for some type of prosecutor to look at their case for years, and now we are going to try to implement that process as quickly as we can, Thorp said. Featured video: Oklahoma governor addresses Supreme Courts McGirt ruling The mercury had hit 100 degrees or more for 15 days running, but thirsty Tulsans needed no excuse to stampede drugstores and restaurants in Ju Campaigns and elections: The Oklahoma State Election Board meets in Oklahoma City at 5 p.m. Tuesday to certify the results of last weeks primary elections. A few state Democrats are trying to get some traction with criticism of recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings, including the overturning of abortion rights and a McGirt decision that has baffled some Indian law experts and outraged and alarmed many Native Americans. Lets be clear yesterdays ruling makes no one safer, U.S. Senate candidate Jason Bollinger, an attorney, said Thursday in response to the McGirt modification. It creates jurisdictional confusion and sets the stage for crimes on Native lands to go unpunished. The activist majority of our Supreme Court failed, or refused, to recognize the troubled history from which our treaties with Tribal Nations and federal law dictating law enforcement on Native lands derived. Madison Horn, who finished first in last weeks Democratic primary and will face Bollinger in the Aug. 23 runoff, said, I began this campaign with a mission to renew hope in the future. I believe that this hope can only be achieved through accountability, transparency, and a desire to unite people around solutions instead of political parties. In the end, Jackson Lahmeyer didnt present much of a threat to incumbent U.S. Sen. James Lankford in last weeks Republican primary, but the Owasso pastor told followers in an email that hes not going away. We have built a solid foundation, he said. This is not the end but the beginning. When it is time to announce what is next, I believe, you will be very pleased. The Federal Election Commission dismissed a complaint by Tulsa businessman Burt Holmes against Broken Arrow political consultant David Tackett and a political action committee he controls. Holmes charged Tackett illegally funneled $94,000 into the PAC from two entities he owns. The commission ruled the entities are essentially independent expenditure organizations. The two organizations, INIT2 and Conservatives for a Great Oklahoma, aka Vote Safe, were mentioned in last weeks charging documents for Epic Charter School founders Ben Harris and David Chaney. A come-and-go birthday party/meet-and-greet with 1st District City Council candidate Francetta Mays will be from 2-4 p.m. Sunday at the Aloft Hotel, 200 Civic Center. Under the dome: The Oklahoma Department of Human Services said the co-neutrals monitoring the agencys efforts to improve the states child welfare system are satisfied with DHS performance during the last six months of 2021. The co-neutrals determined that OKDHS made good-faith efforts to achieve substantial and sustained progress recognizing Oklahomas investment and OKDHS efforts to create a safer and more effective child welfare system, the agency said in a press release. The co-neutrals also noted that the agency is well-positioned to continue in its good-faith achievements by remaining focused on its performance and nimble in advancing any practice changes necessary to continue that performance. State Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, approved 41 interim studies. Interim studies are often a tip-off to the next sessions legislative priorities. AARP Oklahoma refused to sign off on an OG&E rate settlement, saying it continues to oppose any hike. Bottom lines: Oklahoma Attorney General John OConnor hailed the U.S. Supreme Courts West Virginia v. EPA ruling, which stripped the agency of much of its authority to regulate power plant emissions. Former 1st District Congressman and NASA Director Jim Bridenstine is among those named notable MBA graduates of Cornell University. Randy Krehbiel, Tulsa World Featured video: In early 1972, a married mother of three children in Tulsa was picked up at her home by two strangers, blindfolded and put on the floor of a car for a 30-minute trip for an illegal abortion. Despite kind and reassuring words, she remained blindfolded through the procedure, which included being disrobed and given a dilation and curettage procedure, and was returned home. She never knew where she was taken or who performed the abortion. I wouldnt want to do that again, she said. I wouldnt want other women to have to go through that kind of criminal feeling. About a year before the Roe v. Wade decision was handed down in January 1973, a young Tulsa World reporter did a series about women getting abortions some legal, some illegal. One story focused on women with means who traveled to New York for a legal procedure. The other explored a darker, more frightening world of underground, illegal abortions in the city. Reporter Pat Atkinson, who retired from the Tulsa World after 28 years, says she remembers having to fight the male editors to do those stories. The paper didnt want to touch it. They didnt want me to do it, she told me recently. Very few on the job were women. Anytime I proposed stories of women being held down, like not being paid equally or not having rights, they werent interested. Atkinson went ahead and found women who would speak about their experiences. Then the editors were interested, in part because the Oklahoma Legislature was considering proposals to legalize abortion. I was surprised they got behind those stories then, she said. It took me a while to find women who would talk to me. I went through a lot of people to get to those women. The stories were published on Feb. 6-7 in 1972. Atkinson protected the identity of the women, using only a first name, but included enough detail to understand their circumstances. She withheld their full names to prevent them from harassment or other retribution. Mrs. Beverly J. paid $450 for her illegal and blindfolded abortion, which she described as terrifying because of the steps taken to protect the providers identities. She told Atkinson that her husband supported the abortion decision because a fourth child would financially and emotionally bankrupt the family. For those seeking legal abortions, it was estimated that about 50 Tulsa women traveled each month outside the state. Atkinson found that it cost a minimum of $400 for the out-of-state trip and abortion procedure. About 100 women monthly were inquiring about the out-of-state option with area agencies and at least five local ob/gyn physicians. Profiled was Nancy, a 21-year-old woman from a middle-class family, described as the girl next door. Nancy said panic and worry set in after realizing she was pregnant and considering the alternatives of marriage, adoption or single motherhood. Calling her situation desperate, she scraped together $182 for a round-trip ticket to New York and $325 for the procedure. It would have cost $150 had she gone a week earlier and qualified for a clinic-based vacuum aspiration method used in the early stages of pregnancy. Instead, she was admitted to a hospital for a dilation and curettage. She reported no complications. She never told her family or her boyfriend. I dont remember much about it since I was given a general anesthetic. Just a few stomach pains in the recovery room, but mostly I just felt relieved and good, she told Atkinson. Im glad I had it done. It was really the only choice. But I feel sorry for other girls who may be in the same situation not knowing where to go or unable to get the money. Another woman traveling to New York was Cathy C., a 27-year-old college-educated single mother of two young children. She had trouble getting the money together, using an entire paycheck for the plane ticket and a partial payment for the procedure. It took her months to get caught up on bills. I just couldnt take care of another child, and if I went ahead and had it, I wouldnt have been able to put it up for adoption, she told Atkinson. She said she felt bad about it a little depressed but it was something I had to do. It wouldnt have been fair to the baby, most of all. Similar to Oklahomas current anti-abortion law, the state was operating under a 1910 law banning the procedure unless to save the life of the mother. That included three psychiatric consultations to certify that the woman was potentially suicidal if the abortion didnt occur. Then a hospital abortion committee had to review the case. Reports from that time show that the committees often purposely waited until the final weeks of pregnancy or after the birth for a decision. Atkinson reported that national and local surveys indicated that about 74% of residents backed the repeal of the total abortion ban. A story published Nov. 1, 1972, reported that a survey commissioned by the Oklahoma State Medical Association found that 60% of its members supported changing the states law. Showing some attitudes of the day, 72% supported a requirement to get the husbands consent if he was available. Atkinson went on to write more on the issue in subsequent years, after the Roe decision in 1973. On March 3, 1974, she wrote about the opening of the states first operating clinic Reproductive Services in Tulsa. About 200 women from the across the state, Missouri and Arkansas were getting abortions there monthly. A counselor was assigned to stay with each patient through the entire procedure and after care. Women left with contraception information and a months supply of birth control. Atkinson interviewed Julie, a divorced mother of two children who had used birth control that failed, and Mary, an 18-year-old whose boyfriend broke up with her after finding out about the pregnancy. Mary described the procedure: It hurt some, but I think it was an emotional hurt more than anything else. Im glad I chose this way. I guess the biggest relief was the people here. They made me feel secure through the whole thing, and they did everything to ease my worries. That meant more than anything. That teenage Mary would be about 66 years old now. Many of those women who got abortions in Atkinsons story would be in their older years today. They are seeing history repeat itself. With the U.S. Supreme Court reversing the Roe decision and 49 years of precedents that preserved the right half the states now ban abortion. Oklahoma has the most restrictive laws. The state is back with, essentially, the same 1910 law. Plus, there is a civil path that allows anyone to sue for a minimum of $10,000 any person suspected of aiding and abetting an abortion. Defendants cannot sue for damages if they prevail in a lawsuit brought against them. The culture has changed in some ways, but the arguments for and against legal abortion are the same. Atkinson says she cant remember the specifics of all the women she interviewed through the years, but she recalls the era vividly. Why in the world are we going backward? she asked. I worked in and believed in ethical journalism. We worked hard at making sure people were educated about what was happening. Women still dont have equal access in our country. We are going to go backward. UK not giving up on Hong Kong is 19th-century balderdash By Global Times editorial (Global Times) 15:40, July 03, 2022 Photo taken on June 30, 2022 shows a barque-shaped installation marking the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland in Hong Kong, south China. July 1 is the celebration day for the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland. Photo:Xinhua July 1 marks the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland. The Chinese people, including Hong Kong compatriots, are blessing the city. But every year during such days, there are always some vicious voices coming out from the US and the West. In a video, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson publicly declared that the UK is "not giving up on Hong Kong." Foreign Secretary Liz Truss repeated the same old tune that the UK has a "historical responsibility" to Hong Kong and its people. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also issued a statement at the same time, pointing fingers at China. The boastfulness of Johnson and Truss shows that the "British Empire mentality" has persisted stubbornly in the minds of some of the so-called UK elites. If they have time, they should think more about the questions arising from Scotland and Northern Ireland's pursuit of breaking away from the UK. Does London have a "historical responsibility" for Scotland and Northern Ireland? Do Scots and those in Northern Ireland agree that London has such "historical responsibility?" London should be more concerned about its own internal contradictions that are difficult to reconcile, and whether Great Britain is facing the risk of "disintegration." It should not talk lavishly about its "historical responsibility" for Hong Kong, or fantasize about "taking back" Hong Kong. Similarly, Washington's judgment of Hong Kong's situation today is also delusional. In 2019, Hong Kong rioters, with the support of the UK and the US, tried to hype up a "color revolution" via street violence and attempted to seek power through elections. But this attempt was foiled by the central government with overwhelming moves. Washington, like London, is extremely dissatisfied and helpless about the rebirth of Hong Kong from the ashes. Therefore, every once in a while, some people in the UK and the US tend to yell out vicious but powerless scolding. This scolding is more like a lament. The various freedoms in Hong Kong guaranteed by the Basic Law are the legal arrangements under "one country, two systems," and have nothing to do with the US or the UK, let alone their adjudication or "pressuring the Chinese government" to "reinstate the promise." During the last 25 years and despite the turbulence, Hong Kong did not become a bridgehead for the US and the West to "overturn China." On the contrary, it has become more tightly connected to the mainland, which is the fundamental reason why some people in the West can't stop complaining. Hong Kong is an international financial center and a trade and shipping hub under "one country, two systems." It adopts the common law system as a free port, and enjoys a unique status and advantages that allow growing international connectivity. The facts show that along with China's continuous opening-up and the progress of the Belt and Road Initiative, Hong Kong will play a big role. This general trend goes entirely contrary to the fantasy held by some in the UK and US about making Hong Kong an anti-China base. The construction of the Greater Bay Area is deepening continuously. Hong Kong, as a large market rich in enterprises and resources, demonstrates great potential of development. As some Hong Kong entrepreneurs have unmistakably expressed, the advantage of the city is being part of China and it will have a brighter tomorrow. It is only some Western politicians still living in the 19th century who are daydreaming and crying. The thousands of overseas-funded companies, including those invested by UK and US enterprises, are positive and confident about Hong Kong's future. It is certain that Hong Kong can create a better future by sticking to the basis of "one country" and taking advantage of "two systems," which is a trend no foreign force can prevent. (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji) Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (R) and Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian hold a joint press conference at the Syrian Foreign Ministry in Damascus, Syria on July 2, 2022. Faisal Mekdad on Saturday evening said his country welcomes any role played by Iran in easing the tension between Syria and Turkey and achieving political progress. (Photo by Ammar Safarjalani/Xinhua) DAMASCUS, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad on Saturday evening said his country welcomes any role played by Iran in easing the tension between Syria and Turkey and achieving political progress. The tension has been brewing for weeks after Ankara declared a plan to impose a buffer zone in northern Syria on the border with Turkey through a military operation against the Kurdish militias in that region. Any solution should lead to Turkey's withdrawal from Syrian territories, an end of Turkish attacks on Syria and a halt of Turkish support for the rebel groups in Syria, Mekdad said at a joint press conference held with visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who arrived in Syria to discuss ways to defuse the tension. Amir-Abdollahian reiterated Iran's willingness and full readiness to mediate to prevent a military operation in northern Syria and promote good relations between the two neighboring countries. His visit to Syria comes days after he met with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, in Ankara. Turkey has for long deemed the growing Kurdish influence in northern Syria as a threat to its security and has also carried out several military operations against Kurdish groups there, accusing them of having links to Kurdish separatist groups inside Turkey. Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (R) and Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian hold a joint press conference at the Syrian Foreign Ministry in Damascus, Syria on July 2, 2022. Faisal Mekdad on Saturday evening said his country welcomes any role played by Iran in easing the tension between Syria and Turkey and achieving political progress. (Photo by Ammar Safarjalani/Xinhua) The July 4 celebration Monday marks the best of American ideals for independence; the rugged determination to fight off oppressors for self-governance. The Declaration of Independence that launched a war and foundation of our country contains bold phrases and principles standing the test of time. all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. It was brave of colonists to stand up to the Goliath of military and political might and violently break away. The American Revolution and values of freedom and equality continue to inspire the world. But the struggle to live up to those standards is painful and ongoing. That document did not provide freedom and equality to everyone and kept alive the sin of slavery. Many of the nations founders and early presidents lived a dichotomy between their words and actions, leaving generations to ponder and argue over that hypocrisy. Civil rights movwements invoked the systems of self-governance, but it was often a harrowing, bloody generations-long battle. For many, the fight continues; rights are never absolute. Through the differences, our republic and democratic model survived by a shared embrace of justice, fairness and what President Abraham Lincoln called a government of the people, by the people, for the people. Were in a difficult moment in American history. Congressional hearings about the investigative findings of the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol insurrection are difficult to hear and comprehend. Its a time when what leadership does next on behalf of our nation is critical. In addition, a spate of U.S. Supreme Court decisions have further divided our nation. This election year has attracted unprecedented amounts of dark money, creating ugly campaigns. Yet our nation can, again, come out stronger. Every time Americans face gridlock, tragedy, disappointment and even war, we find strength in our commonalities. We find our way back to the words in the Declaration of Independence: And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor. That closing line declares unity and camaraderie. Its a promise that, as Americans, we have more in common than not. This Fourth of July put aside the quarrels and disagreements. Enjoy the fireworks and community gatherings. Recognize that our diversity of people and perspectives make for a more perfect union. Featured video: To avoid complete dependence on China, Vietnamese lychee farmers used this years harvest as an opportunity to expand their footprint across the globe by exporting to over 30 international markets, as well as strengthening their domestic position. During this years lychee harvest season, which typically falls over summer, Vietnams lychee famers have been focusing their efforts on selling to industrial parks and shipping their products to Japan, the U.S., and several other countries, rather than relying primarily on China, a long-standing market, to purchase their fruit. In a discussion with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, Truong Van Nam, vice-chairman of the Peoples Committee of Luc Ngan District in the northern province of Bac Giang, said that this years lychee crop has been exported to more than 30 countries and territories other than China, adding that all of the lychees grown in Luc Ngan meet standards set forth by VietGAP and GlobalGAP. Agricultural products certified under VietGAP, GlobalGAP, and other equivalent standards are often easily accepted by large distributors and big markets. Luc Ngan District has found ways to ships its famous fruits to other provinces and industrial parks because of Chinas strict restrictions and regulations on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, Nam said. Bac Giang Province, along with Hai Duong Province, is perhaps the most well-known province in Vietnam in terms of lychee production. This year, Bac Giang had a particularly successful lychee crop capable of meeting various market demands. Many groups have signed contracts with the district to buy lychees, said Nam. Given our nations population of around 100 million people, we will easily sell the entire crop even if each individual buys just one kilogram of lychees,, he added. Among the provinces signed contracts, The Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group, also known as Vinatex, has been committed to buying lychees for its three million workers. Labor unions and womens associations across Vietnam have made commitments to buy the fruit. In the long term, Bac Giangs farmers and fruit export companies plan to diversify their markets instead of merely focusing on the Chinese market as they did in the past. A kilogram of high-quality lychees fetches VND5,000-7,000 (US$0.21-0.30) higher than normal quality fruits thanks to both its appearance and health benefits, according to Chu Xuan Ba, a lychee farmer from Giap Son Commune in Luc Ngan District. Normally my family invests VND100-120 million [$4,290-5,147] in each crop," Ba said. "Last year, we sold just 50 percent of our output and the rest rotted owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. "It was a big financial burden on us. "We had mainly sold our lychees to Chinese traders." In Bas opinion, farmers who grow lychees may find it relatively difficult to sell the fruits this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ba hopes that the government will support farmers like him with promotive policies such as supplying low-interest bank loans for periods of five or seven years, rather than one-year loans as they did in the past. He wishes for support in the facilitation of moving export trucks over the border and helping farmers access more freezers to preserve their harvested fruits, as well as to more online shops where they can sell their crops. Luc Ngan vice-chairman Nam said that local authorities are asking farmers to follow official guidelines for growing and packaging lychees for export. We have consulted the provincial authorities of Bac Giang to be able to help the farmers, especially with facilities which produce ice and spongy materials, as well as to construct more ovens for drying lychees," he revealed. "If we have difficulty in exporting lychees, our farmers can take advantage of the ovens to dry the fruits [for sale through other channels]." As of June 27, Luc Ngans lychees had been sold primarily to southern provinces and in supermarkets and stores in Hanoi and other northern provinces and cities. The lychees have been exported to Cambodia through Tay Ninh Provinces Moc Bai international border gate and An Giang Provinces Tinh Bien border gate. They have also been shipped to China through the Huu Nghi international border gate in Lang Son Province. As of the time of writing, Luc Ngan has sold around 15,585 metric tons of lychees domestically and 16,946 tonnes on the international market, of which the Chinese accounted for 97 percent. This year, the price of lychees started at VND14,000-28,000 ($0.60-1.20) per kilogram in the early season and currently sits at VND15,000-25,000 ($0.64-1.07) per kilogram. The Bac Giang lychee has become a famous brand both at home and abroad. The fruit has been exported to more than 30 countries and territories, including such demanding markets as the U.S., Japan, and the EU, making it one of Vietnams staple exports. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Any foreigner who can unscramble the rich tapestry of the Vietnamese language deserves the keys to the city, a Nobel Prize, a Golden Buzzer from Simon, and, while were at it, lets toss in an honorary ambassadorship. The plethora of homonyms, at least to the Western ear, is an exciting feature, as there is nothing more catastrophic than calling someone a horses ass when you simply want to wish them a nice day. Its not as if the language had a few ups and downs here and there as does every tongue, but conveying even the simplest sentiments can be precarious. How about the infamous em yeu anh, anh yeu em, em thuong anh and anh thuong em jigsaw puzzle? Its damn good that most people know I love you in English, for sorting the ems from the anhs and the north from the south is quite a hurdle. Lets look at personal pronouns in Vietnamese because addressing people is the first and most basic step in any relationship, thus a logical starting point. That innocent initial greeting can create an indelible impression, but is often the first step into quicksand because we cannot know which personal pronoun to employ without first taking a stab at the age of a person. If we overestimate age we risk getting kicked in the pants because it implies the person were addressing looks older than they are, so with the first words out of our mouths weve already insulted the person. Underestimating age can be taken as a compliment, but also can be construed as condescending, so either way were in a pickle. Its a chicken/egg, Catch-22 situation: we cant ask the other person their age without using a personal pronoun, and we cant use the applicable pronoun without gauging their age. Guessing wont work because there are simply too many options: anh, chi, chu, bac, co, di, bo, me, ba, ba, em, con, chau, ong, and a truckload of others I cant even remember. Age, gender, and relationship to the speaker are the key components of the personal pronoun jigsaw puzzle older, younger, male or female, followed by ultra-super specific incredibly minute criteria that come into play. The attributes go on and on ad nauseam, right down to whether the person were greeting is a blood relative, their shoe size, and the amount of dirt under their fingernails. A few workarounds are worthy of consideration, but theyre not very robust, so use these at your own risk. Not to worry, the Vietnamese are well aware of the challenge and are gracious as always while they laugh their heads off on the inside. I knew one foreigner who addressed every Vietnamese person as em irrespective of status, age, or gender. One size fits all bank employees, taxi drivers, government officials, and shopkeepers, which elicited stifled snickers among the victims but, in a twisted way, got the job done. Conversely, you can speak up a social level to everyone except little kids, thus calling all males ong, more or less sir, and all women ba, or madam, although both these terms are usually reserved for the most elderly e.g. grandpa or grandma. People will wonder why a random, deranged foreigner is addressing those more youthful as if they were aged royalty, but at least it shows respect, as opposed to engaging a policeman as if he was a runny-nosed little kid. We can also strive to avoid situations requiring tricky judgment of peoples ages. In Vietnamese banks, most of the customer-facing employees are female, neither very young nor elderly, thus comfortably in the co (miss, aunt, or whatever it actually means) range. Test it out by going into a bank, surveying the situation, and hollering Co oi! then watch the heads snap in response. Tip: Dont yell too loudly or they may think a stick-up is in progress. Whilst shopping we can scout out the vendors and select one by age. Lets say there are three women selling fruit in the market, one looks like a teenager (in reality shes probably 30), one middle-aged, say 50ish, and the third seems to be in her 70s. Make a beeline for the youngest vendor, call her co and youre off to the races. This scenario is bizarre by any measurement, but desperate times require desperate measures, so when you need a confidence booster its a good tool to employ. Still, who in their right mind would wander around fruit stalls looking for a vendor of a certain age? Another idea is to not greet anyone that you dont already know, thus squashing the rigmarole of age and title estimates, eliminating the entire problem right at the source. Vietnamese people do it all the time, walking into a shop and starting right in with what they want, no time to waste on formalities. They just spit it right out: Ill take a coke and a phone card or Two bowls of noodles to go. That wont work for me because Im too old school, so every interaction must be initiated with hello, terminated with goodbye, and have a please and thanks in there somewhere, maybe even a youre welcome. This one is another stretch, but we could ask a common friend before actually engaging in a conversation with the person in question. Say this scene takes place at a Vietnamese wedding with everybody and his brother present, per usual custom. I know the whole gang except one person, so I approach a friend hoping he can help solve the riddle: Me: Hey Bao, hows it going? Bao: Cant complain, bro. Me: How old is that lady over there? Bao: Shes 56. Me: Whoa dude, were about the same age! I would have thought younger. Bao: Yep, she takes care of herself, wears her ninja outfit even if there is only one single ray of sunshine. Me: So shes a chi, (I think thats older sister), but I could also say co (miss or aunt). Bao: Puts cucumber slices on her eyes every evening too. Me: OK, OK, clearly a top-shelf lady. So, how do I handle this? Bao: Id go with co and cross my fingers that it strikes the right chord. If all that isnt enough, usage of personal pronouns often varies by region within Vietnam, so what works in the south may not in the north, never mind central Vietnam, which is symbolically betwixt and between. Ive never heard anyone say chu, which is apparently a much younger person, used commonly in the north. The Vietnamese always pull that trick they lead us on so well think were forging progress, then they throw in that but in the north its different business, just to remind us that we will never defeat this language. In desperation I conceived my own little system, consisting of addressing younger to middle-aged women as co (ignoring chi since I cant figure it out), men of nearly every age as anh, and elderly men and women as ong and ba respectively. I use em if its a kid of either gender, thus arming me with enough options to survive in any daily situation. Despite its obvious flaws, the system has been universally well received; at least nobody has burst out laughing, smirked, snickered, or swatted me up the side of the head. This foray is not intended to be a jab at the Vietnamese language (although by any measure its an absolute train wreck), rather an attempt to find a way out of the maze without too much collateral damage. English isnt exactly a walk in the park either just look at the number of native speakers who screw up there, theyre, and their, or who say could of instead of could have, not to speak of butchering which and what, which always makes me cringe. If English is that messy for us, how do those trying to learn it feel? Foreign students, you can be comforted to some degree that we have at least this one unambiguous and simple term: you. New York state passed a law on Friday banning guns from many public places, including Times Square, and requiring gun-license applicants to prove their shooting proficiency and submit their social media accounts for review by government officials. The law, passed in an emergency legislative session, was forced by a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week that struck down New York's restrictive gun-license laws. The court's conservative majority ruled for the first time that the U.S. Constitution grants an individual the right to carry weapons in public for self-defense. New York's Democratic leaders have decried the ruling and the court, saying there will be more gun violence if there are more people carrying guns. They conceded they must loosen the state's century-old permit scheme to comply with the ruling, but sought to keep as many restrictions as they could in the name of public safety. Some will likely be targets for further legal challenges. The court ruled that New York's former license regime, which dates from 1911, gave too much discretion to officials to deny a permit. New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat who ordered the extraordinary session in the legislature, said the state's gun-licensing regulations had resulted in New York having the fifth-lowest rate of gun deaths of the 50 U.S. states. "Our state will continue to keep New Yorkers safe from harm, even despite this setback from the Supreme Court," she told a news conference in the state capital, Albany, while lawmakers were debating the bill. "They may think they can change our lives with the stroke of a pen, but we have pens, too." The court's ruling allowed that people could be banned from carrying weapons in certain "sensitive places" but warned lawmakers against applying the label too broadly. The court also made it easier for pro-gun groups to have a regulation overturned. It ruled that a weapons regulation was likely unconstitutional if it was not similar to the sort of regulations around in the 18th century, when the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment was ratified, letting states maintain militias and defining a right to "keep and bear Arms." The law passed on Friday makes it a felony crime to carry a gun into a new list of sensitive places, including: government buildings, medical facilities, places of worship, libraries, playgrounds, parks, zoos, schools, colleges, summer camps, addiction-support centers, homeless shelters, nursing homes, public transit including the New York City subway, places where alcohol or marijuana is consumed, museums, theaters, stadiums and other venues, polling places and Times Square. Law enforcement officials and registered security guards are among those exempt from the sensitive-place restrictions. Republican lawmakers voted against the law, set to take effect on Sept. 1, complaining that it makes the right to carry weapons lesser than other constitutional rights, such as freedom of speech and of religion. "Now, it's going to be easier to get a concealed-carry" license, said Mike Lawler, a Republican member of the Assembly, during the debate. "But you're not going to be able to carry it anywhere." 'Flagrant violation' The National Rifle Association, the powerful gun-owners' rights group whose local affiliate was the lead plaintiff in the Supreme Court case, called New York's law a "flagrant violation" of the ruling by creating more barriers to New Yorkers' self-defense rights, indicating it may soon face legal challenges. "Gov. Hochul and her anti-Second Amendment allies in Albany have defied the United States Supreme Court with an intentionally malicious rewriting of New York's concealed carry law," Darin Hoens, the New York NRA state director, said in a statement. The court ruled in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen that New York licensing officials had too much subjective discretion over who could enjoy what it said was a constitutional right. Applicants were denied a concealed-carry permit if they could not convince an official they had "proper cause," or some kind of special reason, for carrying a handgun for self-defense. Reluctantly and not without protest, Hochul agreed the state must remove the "proper cause" requirements, though the law still requires licensing officers find the applicant is of "good moral character." The new licensing rules require applicants to meet with the licensing officer, usually a judge or a police official, for an in-person interview, and provide the contact details of some immediate family members and any adults they live with. The law makes it a felony to carry a gun into private business premises unless the business affirmatively gives notice that concealed weapons are welcome. Hanoi resolutely objects to Taiwans live-fire exercises in the waters around Ba Binh (Itu Aba) Island, part of Vietnams Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago in the East Vietnam Sea, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday. The ministrys spokesperson, Le Thi Thu Hang, made the statement in response to medias questions about Vietnams reactions to the live-fire drills conducted by Taiwan on June 28 and 29 in the said waters. Hang stressed that the drills seriously violated Vietnams territorial sovereignty over Truong Sa, and threatened peace, stability, safety, and security of navigation in the East Vietnam Sea. They also triggered tensions and complicated the situation in the waters, the spokeswoman stated, adding that Vietnam requests that Taiwan not repeat similar actions in the future. Vietnams stance, which has consistently been affirmed for years, is to oppose any live-fire drills ran by Taiwan in the waters that belong to Vietnams Truong Sa archipelago, the spokesperson said. As reported on Thursday by Taiwanese media, Taiwans Coast Guard finished its live-fire exercises around Ba Binh a day earlier. Taiwanese authorities illegally established a no-fly zone and banned vessels from operating in the waters during the drills. Taiwan had used domestically developed Kestrel anti-tank guns in the exercises and had deployed such weapons on Ba Binh Island, according to unverified reports. Ba Binh, the largest natural island in Truong Sa, has been occupied unlawfully by Taiwan since 1956. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Here are todays leading news stories: Politics -- Vietnam demands that Taiwan cancel live-fire drills in the waters around Ba Binh Island, part of Vietnams Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago, and not repeat similar violations in the future, Le Thi Thu Hang, spokesperson of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on Saturday. COVID-19 Updates -- The Ministry of Health documented 730 COVID-19 cases on Saturday, raising the national tally to 10,748,127, with 9,699,357 recoveries and 43,047 deaths. Society -- Tropical Storm Chaba weekened into a tropical depression after making landfall in Chinas Leizhou Peninsula on Saturday afternoon, the National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting reported. -- The Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Court on Saturday sentenced Truong Vui, former chairman of Forestry Products Handicraft Production and Export - Import JSC (Upexim), to life in prison for fraud related to the sale of a valuable land lot in the city center. -- Serious congestion occurred on Phu My Bridge connecting District 7 and Thu Duc City in Ho Chi Minh City on Saturday as competent authorities began repairing the structure. -- A group of Vietnamese people managed to rescue a 17-year-old boy from the Mekong Delta province of An Giang more than three months after he was sold to Cambodia. -- Crowds of people congregated at the Immigration Department under the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Public Security on Saturday to register for the new Vietnamese passport, which now has a different design and various improvements compared to the old version. Sports -- Vietnam had a draw with hosts Indonesia in their group-stage opener at the 2022 AFF U-19 Youth Championship on Saturday evening. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A group of Vietnamese people managed to rescue a 17-year-old boy from southern Vietnam more than three months after he was sold to Cambodia and forced to work for a Chinese online gambling racket. Le Hoang Quoc C., 17, was taken back to his hometown in southern An Giang Province on June 30, Le Hoang Bao C.s 41-year-old father told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Saturday. C. is currently staying at home with his parents, but he is still traumatized by the incident, Bao continued. The boy rarely talks and still looks afraid so we dont want to ask him too many questions at the moment," the father said. In March, a friend of C.s on social media tricked him into going to Cambodia to work as an accountant for VND25 million (US$1,020) a month, a handsome amount by local standards. The boy was then sold to Cambodia by an illegal racket and forced to work for a Chinese-run online casino, Bao stated. On June 13, C. contacted his father and said he wanted to go home, but his employers said he needed to pay an amount of money for such a contract breach. Bao had to borrow money from his friends and sold his motorbike in order to pay them a total of VND160 million ($6,800), but they did not agree to release C.. During his time in Cambodia, C. was assigned to look for Vietnamese punters for the gambling site, Bao quoted the boy as saying. His daily target was to trick such gamblers into spending at least VND200 million ($8,500). C. had to work 15-16 hours a day and do extra shifts if the target was not met. He would be given an electric shock if he fell asleep on the job. Le Hoang Bao and his wife cry as they sought help for their son in mid-June 2022. Photo: N.T.H. / Tuoi Tre C. was given daily meals but no salary, while many other Vietnamese were also in the same situation, according to the boys recollection. They lived in a multi-story building guarded by armed men and surrounded by three layers of electric fences. C. once got caught as he tried to run away, and ended up being beaten, handcuffed, and locked inside a room. After the story was published by Tuoi Tre in mid-June, L.V.P., a 28-year-old Ho Chi Minh City resident, gathered some of his friends to rescue C.. We managed to contact C. and asked him to send his location by using his phones GPS, P. elaborated. With the help of several friends in Cambodia, P. and his group were able to find the place where C. was kept. Following multiple negotiations, the Chinese racket agreed to let C. go for $4,000. P.s group paid them the money and took the young boy home. The An Giang Department of Public Security is now working with C. and his family to investigate the case, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Duc Hau, head of the police unit in Long Xuyen City, An Giang Province, confirmed on Saturday. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Beyond Paradise, a spin-off from Death in Paradise, wil lreunite Kris Marshall and Sally Bretton. The series follows DI Humphrey Goodman after he left the sunny shores of Saint Marie and picks up Humphrey and Marthas story as they navigate a new life together in the idyll of rural Britain. Seeking a quieter life away from the stress of the city, Humphrey has taken a job as Detective Inspector in fiancee Marthas hometown. However, they soon find that country life is anything but peaceful and Humphrey cant help but be distracted by the towns surprisingly high crime rate with a new, and very different, case challenging him each week. Kris Marshall says: I had the best time playing Humphrey out in Guadeloupe and whilst I was delighted that he got his happy ending with Martha, I always wanted to know what happened next. So its a joy to be putting his crumpled jacket back on and seeing how life has panned out for him back in the UK. Working with Sally is a dream, and I cant wait to continue Humphrey and Marthas story and solve a few seemingly impossible mysteries along the way. Executive Producer for Red Planet Pictures, Tim Key says: We always knew there were more Humphrey Goodman tales to be told and with the brilliant Tony Jordan leading the writing team, bringing all the Death in Paradise spirit, humour and joy to this brand new, original series, we cant wait to get started. While Humphrey is used to contending with fiendishly clever puzzles, the biggest challenge of all is navigating his private life and finding out what happens beyond the happy ever after. Were delighted to be working with Kris and Sally again and creating a little bit of Paradise in the UK. Tommy Bulfin, Commissioning Editor, BBC, Drama adds; We are delighted to welcome fan-favourite DI Humphrey Goodman back to the BBC. Luckily for us, his knack for cracking the trickiest crimes is as much needed in rural England as it was on the sun-kissed shores of the Caribbean. We cannot wait to see what he and Martha get up to next. Created by Tony Jordan and Robert Thorogood, Beyond Paradise is a co-commission between BBC One and BritBox International and will premiere in Australia on BBC First in line with the UK broadcast. Chrissie Carras, Head of Branded Services, BBC Studios Australia and New Zealand, said: We are so excited to be bringing Beyond Paradise to Australian viewers. Audiences cant get enough of Death in Paradise which is the number one show on our channel so I know they will be eager to see what adventures await Humphrey and Martha as they start their new life. Beyond Paradise has an eclectic mix of characters, intriguing puzzles and the same humorous upbeat tone that has made Death in Paradise such a hit all with a beautiful new location for audiences to feast their eyes on Filming will start on location in the UK later this year. RAMALLAH/GAZA, July 3 (Xinhua) -- A 68-year-old female Palestinian prisoner died Saturday morning in an Israeli prison, with the exact reason unknown, the Palestinian Prisoners Club Association said in a statement. Sa'deya Farajallah, mother of eight from the southern West Bank city of Hebron, died in the Israeli prison of Damon in northern Israel, the Palestinian non-governmental organization said, adding that she was the oldest female prisoner in an Israeli prison. Farajallah was arrested near the Ibrahimi Mosque in the center of Hebron after she tried to stab Israeli soldiers in December 2021. The exact cause of her death remains unknown, with the Israeli authorities giving no official comment on the incident. The Israel Prison Service said Farajallah, who was suffering from a chronic illness and receiving regular treatment, was returned this week from hospital to the prison. An investigation has been opened into the circumstances of her death. Tayseer Farajallah, Sa'deya's brother, told Xinhua that his sister did not suffer from any diseases in the past and that "the prison subjected Sa'deya to torture" and left her "without providing necessary treatment." He said "family members could not visit her during her detention under false pretexts," accusing the Israeli authorities of being "fully responsible" for her death and demanding an autopsy to uncover the leading cause of her death. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Ishtaye held the Israeli authorities fully responsible for Farajallah's death due to medical negligence, calling on international human rights committees to open an investigation and pressure Israel to release all female prisoners, especially the sick and children. The death of Farajallah brings the number of Palestinian prisoners who have died in Israeli prisons since 1967 to 230, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA has reported. According to the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs in Palestine Liberation Organization, about 500 sick prisoners are in Israeli prisons, with about 50 complex cases needing special care. Downing Street has insisted Boris Johnson did not know the Downing Street has insisted Boris Johnson did not know the "specific allegations" against Chris Pincher. (Photo: John Sibley via PA Wire/PA Images) Labour have accused Boris Johnson of sweeping sexual misconduct claims facing one of his closest allies under the carpet in order to save his own skin. The prime minister is under increasing pressure to explain what he knew about the allegations against Chris Pincher before appointing him deputy chief whip. Pincher resigned as the governments deputy chief whip on Thursday night after admitting he embarrassed myself and others when he drank far too much at Tory watering hole the Carlton Club 24 hours earlier. It came after The Sun reported the Tamworth MP allegedly drunkenly groped two men following a reception for the Conservative Friends of Cyprus. After the PM intitially refused to strip Pincher of the Tory whip, it was announced on Friday evening that he had been suspended by the party. Earlier, a Number 10 spokesman had insisted Johnson had not been aware of any specific allegations against Pincher before making him deputy chief whip in February. There was no basis to stop the appointment in the absence of any formal complaint, he said. The spokesperson said Pincher - who resigned from the whips office in 2017 over claims of sexual misconduct - could not be blocked from being given a job on the basis of unsubstantiated allegations. However, Sunday newspaper reports claimed the prime minister had been aware of concerns about Pincher, and had once said: Pincher by name, Pincher by nature. Labour chair Anneliese Dodds has now written to Johnson demanding he explain what he knew about Pincher before making him deputy chief whip, a key role in enforcing Tory party discipline. In her letter, she says: Were you or senior members of your advisory team, including your chief of staff, made aware of allegations of inappropriate behaviour by Mr Pincher prior to his appointment in the whips office? Story continues Government chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris (left) with his former deputy, Chris Pincher, in Downing Street. (Photo: Aaron Chown via PA Wire/PA Images) Government chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris (left) with his former deputy, Chris Pincher, in Downing Street. (Photo: Aaron Chown via PA Wire/PA Images) Dodds said: Only Boris Johnson could have looked at this guys record and thought he deserves a promotion. Not only that, but by not investigating these allegations and allowing the former deputy chief whip to keep the Conservative whip, the prime minister is sending a dangerous signal. This prime minister is clearly happy to sweep sexual misconduct under the carpet in order to save his own skin. Conservative MPs need to take a long hard look in the mirror and decide if this is the kind of leader the British people deserve. A Number 10 source said: Propriety and ethics did not raise any objection to appointing [Pincher]. This is a reference to the background checks carried out prior to Pincher officially becoming deputy chief whip. However, the source failed to respond when asked to comment on the claims that the PM was aware of allegations about the MPs behaviour before his appointment. This article originally appeared on HuffPost UK and has been updated. Related... One person is reported dead at a Michigan air show after a "jet truck" exploded into flames on Saturday afternoon. The Shockwave Jet Truck was racing two planes at speeds up to 300 miles per hour before exploding into flames as onlookers watched, according to WXMI-TV. The city of Battle Creek, Michigan said that one person died in the explosion. Video of the explosion, which took place at the Field of Flight air show, circulated on social media. MICHIGAN DEMOLITION SITE HAS ALARMING LEVELS OF ARSENIC The Shockwave jet race truck is seen at the 2018 Great New England Air and Space Show Media Day at Westover Air Force Base on July 13, 2018, in Chicopee, Massachusetts. Photo by Paul Marotta/Getty Images The show was suspended while emergency crews responded to the explosion. MICHIGAN MAN'S BODY RECOVERED AFTER JUMPING FROM A PONTOON BOAT IN SAGINAW BAY The Federal Aviation Administration is reportedly on the scene investigating along with local authorities. Field of Flight is one of the largest airshow and balloon festivals in the country and was scheduled to last through Monday. The Field of Flight website promotes the Shockwave Jet Truck as "probably the most famous jet truck in the world." "Chris Darnell will bring the SHOCKWAVE to Battle Creek, racing at well over 300 mph down our runway," the website says. "This year, SHOCKWAVE will look a bit different, as it is painted to honor all of those who have served and are presently serving. It also has a TOP GUN appearance to coincide with the release of the new TOP GUN: MAVERICK later this year." David Jackson topped the 1,359-entry field to claim his second WSOP bracelet and the $598,173 up top. He denied Phil Hellmuth his 17th bracelet following a swift heads-up duel. Jackson earned his first WSOP bracelet after taking down Event #25: $777 LUCKY SEVENS as part of the 2021 GGPoker WSOP Online Bracelet Events. Jackson made it through a field of 2,014 entries to win the bracelet and a $194,178 cash. He defeated Dumitru "DDimancescu" Pora during heads-up play, sending the Romanian pro home with $140,394. Full recap to follow shortly. HA NOI Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has urged the Ministry of Health and local authorities to accelerate the administration of the third and fourth COVID-19 vaccine doses for people from 12 years old. The PMs Office on Saturday sent a document detailing his guidance on the issue, as infections of the Omicron sub-variant BA.5 have been detected in Viet Nam. The PM urged the health ministry and authorities to strictly comply with the Governments resolutions and documents on COVID-19 prevention and control, which were issued at the beginning of the year. He assigned Deputy Prime Minister Vu uc am to continue leading the health ministry and authorities in 63 cities and provinces to prevent the spread of the virus, especially by speeding up COVID-19 vaccine administration to reach the goals identified by the Government. He asked the health ministry to put more effort into helping localities give the third and fourth vaccine doses to people from 12 years old, and make sure children from five years old receive two doses. Authorities of cities and provinces across the country should closely collaborate with the ministry to complete these tasks, and make sure there are enough medical equipment and medicine available to provide treatment for the people when needed, he said. He also assigned the Ministry of Information and Communication to collaborate with the health ministry and other communication agencies, providing information to the people on the pandemic situation and the BA.5 sub-variant, and encouraging them to get the vaccines and continue fighting the pandemic. Following the PMs guidance, the health ministry on Saturday sent an urgent official document to nine ministries, requesting their collaboration in carrying out tasks assigned by the Government. They are the ministries of defence, public security, education, industry and trade, transport, culture, labour, construction, and planning and investment. The health ministry asked these concerned Government bodies to encourage their officials and staff to get their vaccines in accordance with health authorities instructions. They should guide units under their jurisdiction to get in touch with local health facilities to get the vaccines, and start a campaign to promote the administration of the third and fourth doses in the first week of July, it said. Statistics from the health ministry show that 52.8 per cent of the countrys COVID-19 deaths were unvaccinated, 29.8 per cent had only one or two doses, and only 7.3 per cent had three doses. Research also showed that the number of antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, especially to the Omicron variant, decrease drastically after 15 weeks of getting the third dose. This means getting the fourth dose is essential to preventing COVID-19 infections, especially for the general population from 50 years old, those aged 18 and older with deficient immune systems, and frontline workers. VNS RAMALLAH, July 3 (Xinhua) -- A senior Palestinian official said Saturday that the bullet which killed veteran Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in May had been handed to a U.S. team for examination. The bullet won't be handed to the Israeli authorities and the competent Palestinian authorities have agreed to hand it to the United States, Palestinian Attorney-General Akram Al-Khatib told the official Palestinian news agency WAFA. That followed a Palestinian probe in May, which said Abu Akleh was "deliberately" shot by an Israeli sniper but was denounced by Israel as "a blatant lie." Israel has requested Palestine to hand over the bullet for a joint investigation, but was refused. "We agreed to allow a specialized U.S. team of experts to conduct a technical examination of the bullet and the bullet has been handed over to the team who recently arrived in the country for this purpose," Al-Khatib said. The examination will be conducted at the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, he added. Abu Akleh, a 51-year-old Al Jazeera journalist who was born in Jerusalem, was killed by a live bullet in the head on May 11 while covering an Israeli army incursion into the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, which has drawn widespread Palestinian, Arab and international condemnation. In June, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki met International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan in The Hague and handed him the result of the Palestinian investigation into Abu Akleh's death. TOOLED UP: Many tools are needed for bookbinding, such as bone sticks, large awls, chisels, needles, threads, knives, hammers, boards, scissors, paint brushes and glue. Photo courtesy of Tran Trung Hieu Trang Nguyen and Bich Van A passion to preserve the craft of bookbinding is what drives Tran Trung Hieu, who creates unique handmade books imprinted with his considerable talent. Hieu, 24, a graduate from the University of Industrial Fine Arts in Ha Noi, has made a significant contribution to the restoration and development of the craft of book rebinding in Viet Nam, both as an occupation and artistic outlet. The young man has been inspired to do bookbinding since he was a student at the university several years ago. He realised that modernisation and high technological globalisation were damaging many traditional crafts in Viet Nam, including bookbinding, which is gradually disappearing. Nurturing talent he has had since a young child, especially an interest in manual work and artisans creating objects with their own hands, Hieu was determined to do such work and decided on bookbinding. Bookbinding originated from European and Middle Eastern countries. It came to Viet Nam during the French colonialism, but book repairing has been neglected for many years due to rapid socio-economic development, according to Hieu. Few bookbinders in Viet Nam work in the trade, and fewer still are of an international standard. It is incredibly difficult to find a vocational course on bookbinding in Viet Nam. "I had to start with zero knowledge about skills, materials and tools. The biggest disadvantage was that I didn't have an experienced teacher by my side to help me start the profession," he said. However, such difficulties could not stop him from trying to learn more. Initially, it took Hieu two years of tinkering to learn how to finish a product. I used to take up to two years to complete binding a book. I couldn't find any documents, teachers, or tools for my first practice. Fortunately, with my foreign language skills, I could talk with foreign friends, some of whom knew about bookbinding, and by reading foreign instructions on the internet, I improved my skills," Hieu said. Instructional videos on YouTube helped him bind more books, and he became familiar with the Bookbinder's Chronicle channel. The more he learns, the more he is immersed in and passionate about the craft. "When I watched a report on John Newman & Son's bookbinding workshop in Dublin, Ireland, I could see how a professional bookbinder worked, as well as some tools I never knew existed, and terms I had never heard of. It was all so new and beautiful," he said. RARE WORK: Hieu completed the rebinding comissioned for book 'L'art a Hue', by Leopold Cadiere (the Nouvelle Edition, which is the second edition published in 1930). The book is in French and about ornamental art in the Citadel of Hue, Viet Nam. Photo courtesy of the artist And he has learnt many lessons. To rebind an old book, it must go through five main steps, including assessing the book, removing the old covers, creating the design structure, wrapping and decorating. The main material for book covers is goat skin. Many tools are also needed, such as bone sticks, large awls, chisels, needles, threads, knives, hammers, boards, scissors, a paintbrush and glue. It takes Hieu about a week to bind a simple book, but for more complicated books, it can be several weeks or even months. Being an enthusiast of "old things" and having been switched to the craft since he was a freshman at the university, Hieu loves and values handmade products. He devotes all of his energy to perfecting each book he works on. To finish a beautiful and standard binding, besides the quality materials imported from abroad and selected by himself, he also needs meticulousness, ingenuity and perseverance. Mark Kirchner, a senior and experienced bookbinder from France who saw Hieu's efforts on Instagram, has offered to teach him more about bookbinding techniques. The foreign artisan had spent time teaching and giving Hieu comments to perfect his product. After each time they worked together, Hieu became more knowledgeable and "firm in his hands" and slowly learnt the right methods for each step of binding a book and the requisite materials needed. There is no special book because they all bring me certain emotions. After each book is repaired, I gain a lot of experience, Hieu said. Under his skilful hand, old books seem to "put on a new jacket", reflecting a desire to keep knowledge forever. For books that are more than 100 years old or unique books he regards as "national treasures", the binder said it was particularly important to have patience, meticulousness and take care as much as possible to avoid damage. BOOKBINDER: Tran Trung Hieu in his workshop. Photo from Hieu's Facebook page Spreading the word In the past few years, bookbinding has returned as a craft of artistic merit, attracting the attention of many worldwide. In Viet Nam, it all started with special book editions produced for bookstores such as ong A and Nha Nam. Hieu is known as one of the very young, enthusiastic and skilful bookbinders in the country. He is currently working at the Sao Bac bookbinding workshop and cooperating with Nha Nam Company to carry out special editions to bring hand-bound books closer to everyone and arouse the interest of the younger generation. "Bookbinding is a synthesis of what I love -- ABC (art, books and craft). I am happy to have a profession that can satisfy my needs to create, and of manual and spiritual labour, and at the same time gain more knowledge. It is also soul therapy for me, and maybe for many others ... something about it feels like meditation. I want to teach others," he said So tay tho ong sach (The Bookbinder's Handbook) is available on the Spiderum website, and showcases Hieu's shared knowledge and experiences that document his career. He said he hoped that what he wrote on the page would help others better understand the value of handmade books, the difficulties in bookbinding and the miracles of a craft that has existed for so long. Although he has had to face many challenges following this rare craft Hieu loves his job. For him, bookbinding converges all the things he loves, from art to knowledge to crafts. It even helps him satisfy his hobby of hunting for antiques. Young people who have or are intending to follow the bookbinding craft should be confident. It will help if you have perseverance first. If you have this in addition to being eager to learn, you will surely get the results you deserve, Hieu said. He is looking forward to the day when this special handicraft will become more popular and develop across the country. VNS The main material for book covers is goat skin, Photo courtesy of Tran Trung Hieu SIMPLE DECOR: The spacious dining room of India has air-con and is decorated with Indian motifs. by Nguyen My Ha After two years of COVID, we finally had our first trip to an Indian restaurant. Our familiar Indian restaurants in the Old Quarter and downtown are open and survived the pandemic. But we ventured further afield into the Trung Hoa - Nhan Chinh neighbourhood, yet another vibrant new town with many restaurants and eateries catering to every palate. It would be about a half-hour ride by car from the town centre during lunch hour if the traffic is not too bad, and a lunch date so far away would take up at least two hours of your time, so carefully consider it if you still have lots of unfinished work in the afternoon. SPICY TREAT: Cottage cheese on a cast iron pan with onions.VNS Photos Minh Huyen In Viet Nam, we come from a very different culinary tradition, where the food needs to be simple and retain as much of its original flavours as possible. The morning glory must taste very different from the gourd's young buds, boiled or stir-fried. Even cooked rice has always been simple and flavourless compared to the varied Indian ways of cooking rice. When we first had a curry cooked the Indian way, we were blown away by the chaos of flavours and tastes: the eggplant, the fish, the mutton and the chicken masala all tasted different after marinating and soaking in a bath of about 10 ingredients all finely blended. It was superb. The pinnacle of every Indian meal we have had was, and shall always be, the delicate Indian bread, or naan, as it's called. Flavoured with garlic or plain, the naan is a plain carb that serves to bring all other dishes and flavours together. Baked in an oven, the naan invariably has a few burnt spots that make it both smell and taste good. Another experience in having Indian food is you get to use your hands. When you touch your food, it brings a certain closeness to the food, and you can be quite thankful to have such a connection with the food. For starters, we had plain dosa (a super thin cracker -- VN75,000) and medu vada (doughnuts with dipping sauce -- VN70,000). Our friend insisted we try a particular super-thin type of special Sri Lankan bread called hoppers (VN120,000). Made from coconut milk, rice flour, beer, yeast and sugar, the hoppers require quite a certain degree of skills to make them perfect. They also look beautiful on the table, and I highly recommend them. Next, we had paneer tikka (VN110,000) with cottage cheese, which we liked because it reminded us of thick pressed tofu. Then, after playing around with so many options of appetisers, we dived into the main courses. The chicken tikka masala (VN130,000) had a heavy sauce with intense flavours, while the Bangan masala (eggplant) was great and has always been my favourite veg. To accompany the dish, an Indian lassi with banana or mango would have been perfect. But the house had a big party the day before, so they had run out of yoghurt, which we were a little saddened by. To many Vietnamese, India is the birthplace of Buddhism, the religion with the largest number of followers in Viet Nam. But in India, Buddhism had less than 1 per cent of followers despite it being a native religion, and most still live below the poverty line and lack many basic amenities like clean water and adequate food supply. Around the Bodh Gaya religious site, many Buddhist countries have built pagodas. We visited a Vietnamese pagoda there, where the monk told us he spent his working life in a government-owned company. After retiring, he turned to Buddhism, became a monk and now spent his time building schools, and setting up water supply systems for children in India, just like I am sure he would do for Vietnamese children in remote villages in our home country. As we recalled the trip to India just a few months before COVID struck in 2019, I was grateful to find out that a member of our group in her 80s had gone on such a trip with her adopted son, an act of kindness I believe that is greater than any study or preaching of right and wrong. Kindness, after all, is what binds us together. I soon had to leave Spices Hanoi to go to another appointment, but I shall come back to immerse myself again in the atmosphere and spices of the land and the vastness of a spiritual country that, surely, anyone would love to set foot in. VNS Spices Hanoi 17 T5, P. Hoang ao Thuy, Trung Hoa Nhan Chinh, Thanh Xuan, Ha Noi Tel: 024 6251 1555 Comment: Great Indian food cooked in the traditional style Foamtec International, whose product line includes swabs used in COVID-19 testing, is placing a production facility in Greater Waco that represents a $25 million investment and could produce 150 or more jobs, officials say. Foamtec first relocated to Central Texas from California about five years ago, opening a distribution center at 720 Venture Drive in Waco. Business growth and a need to improve logistics prompted Foamtec to seek yet another, larger, building in the area to accommodate both distribution and manufacturing, Foamtec Vice President Laura Dotson said. The company chose to build from the ground up, buying 11 acres at 6575 North Interstate 35 in Lacy Lakeview, next to the Road Ranger truck stop. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new 95,000-square-foot plant is scheduled for 4 p.m. Thursday. We were quietly looking for quite some time at larger facilities that came on the market, but none seemed to be the right fit, said Josh Carter, an associate broker with Coldwell Banker Commercial Jim Stewart Realtors. So, last fall Foamtec made the decision to build an entirely new state-of-the-art facility from the ground up Carter said Foamtec made the deal for the 11-acre site in January. Foamtec will move production from Thailand to Waco, and expects equipment vital to those functions to arrive in August for use in September. Plant manager Chris Lanning said Foamtec believes the Waco facility will eliminate delays and long lead times involved in shipping product made in Thailand to distribution points in the United States. Were restoring some jobs in America, Lanning said. Wacos Mitchell Construction is building the new plant. Human resources director Forrest Smith said Foamtec will run 10 product lines in Waco. Robotics will play a significant role, but the company is hiring senior leadership, technical staff, assembly line operators, material handlers and quality control technicians. We will run three shifts six days a week, Dotson said. Smith said Foamtec welcomes a relationship with a trade school to train its employees. He said students taking courses at Texas State Technical College would become ideal candidates, though some would be over-qualified. Foamtec said it will pay competitive wages, but did not get specific. The company employs 40 people at the distribution center it owns on Venture Drive and anticipates needing at least 150 at the combined manufacturing and distribution complex on Interstate 35 in Lacy Lakeview. Lanning, the plant manager, said some current employees will make the move. Dotson said Foamtec may put its Venture Drive building on the market, acknowledging the shortage locally of warehouse and distribution space. The Foamtec International website says the company makes sponges, mops, swabs, wipes and facemasks used in cleanrooms for contamination control. Customers include the semiconductor industry. Its medical division, with headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, creates products of medical grade polyurethane foam, used in drug delivery, wound care, infection control, diagnostics and critical cleaning. Austin-based medical cannabis company Texas Original is making it easier for patients to access its products in Waco through a temporary medical cannabis pickup location. The drive-thru pickup will be available from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Fridays, and the exact location will be released to patients once they are approved for a prescription. Texas Original CEO Morris Denton said the Waco drive-thru pickup site was opened in response to growing demand in the Waco area, where Texas Original serves more than 700 patients. Stipulations of the Texas Department of Public Safetys Compassionate Use Program governing medical cannabis in the state since 2015 include requirements to closely manage all materials and byproducts, so it has to transport products frequently from Austin, where it grows its cannabis and produces low-THC products. Denton said the company opens new pickup locations in response to customer access needs. We are obligated to ensure reasonable, statewide access, Denton said. So every time we get a patient, we have to think how are we going to be able to service that patient? How are we going to be able to get that patient medicine? Once we get enough patients in a location, like we now have in Waco, then that enables to create a temporary pickup location. Its easier for us and its easier for the patients. Denton said he saw the potential of Texas medical cannabis program many years ago. I had seen what had happened in Colorado over the years as it evolved from the narrowly constructed program to a broader adult use program, Denton said. I knew that if Texas had the ability to follow the science and have political courage then, over a period of time, Texas would go from a really narrowly crafted program, to a broader program. The original piece of legislation under the Compassionate Use Act, which passed in 2015, allowed for narrow use of low-THC cannabis products in Texas. The only medical condition that qualified for usage was intractable epilepsy, Denton said. I spent most of 2016 doing a lot of homework, Denton said. There was a specific type of formulation for the medicine and it had to be a 20 to one, 20 part CBD and one part THC, with no more than 0.5% by weight THC. It had a whole bunch of other stipulations and requirements and regulations. Since the initial legislation was passed, the list of qualifying medical conditions has expanded to include epilepsy and other seizure disorders, multiple sclerosis, spasticity, autism, all forms of cancer, symptoms caused by post traumatic stress disorder and incurable neurodegenerative disorders. Updates also increased the THC limit to 1%. The big three symptoms that we treat, that doctors within the program are treating today, are pain, insomnia and anxiety, Denton said. For example, a person with epilepsy, not only will it help manage seizures, but if that person has anxiety because they are worried that a seizure might happen, then you are also using medical cannabis to treat anxiety in that regard. Denton said he has come to see the companys importance beyond its business value. I got into it because of what I thought was going to be an interesting business opportunity, but what happened once we won one of the first three licenses is that my life started to change because I started to get contacted by parents, by siblings, by people that have family members that were dealing with epilepsy and I started to hear their stories, he said. I really realized at that point that this wasnt just a straight business, this was an opportunity to transform Texas through the power and truth of medical cannabis. Waco patient Barry Freeman began using medical cannabis last year after his surgeon alerted him that he would be qualified to receive it under the Compassionate Use Program. Freeman uses it to combat PTSD and some of the symptoms included, such as the chronic pain, anxiety and insomnia. In 2015, after his son Braeden was killed in a home invasion robbery, Freeman was diagnosed with stage-four colorectal cancer. Freeman said he went through 37 rounds of chemotherapy and radiation treatment prior to remission two years later. Within an hour of using medical cannabis, I felt my chronic pain go away with no side effects, Freeman said. I feel better than I did at 45 years old. It allows my body to do yard work, play with my grandkids and use my workout equipment. When I take the medicine, I feel calmness come over me, and it has given me more patience and composure to handle my trauma. Denton said there are already temporary pickup locations in 14 markets in Texas, in addition to a full-time pickup location in Austin and another that opened recently in Houston. The company does not plan on stopping there. We are really looking at opening full-time pickup locations in major markets first, so Austin, Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio will be the ones that will happen the soonest, Denton said. Waco will definitely be on the list of locations for us to have a full-time location sooner than later. The company offers a variety of products available for pickup such as tinctures, lozenges and gummies. They come in a variety of dosages and ratios of THC to CBD, groups of active compounds in cannabis. Prescriptions issued under the Texas law specify dosages and methods of administration, and administration by smoking is not allowed. The price ratio is around 30 cents for each milligram of CBD or THC, Denton said. Freeman said he uses passion fruit-flavored gummies or a cherry tincture with 10 milligrams of CBD and 10 milligrams of THC. Denton said the companys success is a result of offering products that improve peoples lives. We are a purpose-driven company that is committed to creating the highest quality medicine that changes peoples lives, Denton said. When you have medicine and create products that have a direct and positive impact on peoples lives then people are going to want it. We are very focused on creating products that enable patients to get healthy or to get as healthy as they can. WATERLOO The Cedar Valleys Latino heritage will be celebrated during three days of cultural activities. Fiesta! begins Thursday and runs through Saturday at the RiverLoop Amphitheatre in downtown Waterloo. The family-friendly festival, presented by the Waterloo Center for the Arts in partnership with Veridian Credit Union, will feature live music, traditional dance performances, exhibitors, crafts, pinatas and a kids activities. This event is one of the highlights of our summer season. Being an arts center, its just natural for us to be celebrating culture, particularly a culture that is an integral part of our community, said WCA Executive Director Kent Shankle. Art, music, food all those are in our wheelhouse, so Fiesta! is a perfect fit for us. We also have an international folk art collection that has significant Mexican folk art and other Latino art. Fiesta! is an opportunity for us to connect people and the arts in a celebratory way. On Thursday, the Waterloo Municipal Band will perform Latin selections under the baton of Scott Muntefering. The free concert begins at 7:30 p.m. The playlist will include Flashing Eyes of Andalusia, a Spanish dance written by John Phillip Sousa, tango El Choclo by Argentinian composer A.G. Villoldo, The Pan American March, composed by Karl King Jr., and a medley of songs from Encanto. Were really excited to kick off the festival. Its such a wonderful event for the Waterloo community and Cedar Valley. This band has a lot of experience in different types of music, and were looking forward to sharing this music with everyone, said Muntefering. Crafts and other activities begin at 6 p.m. Friday. Food vendors will be on hand, including BBQ Brazil, Con Amor Home Bakery and a taco truck. At 7 p.m., a lesson in Capoeria will be presented by David Pratt. Capoeria is a Brazilian martial art combining dance, acrobatics and music elements. Festivalgoers can then take a whack at a pinata at 7:30 p.m. At 9 p.m., Fridays Cinema on the Cedar will feature the Disney animated movie, Encanto. Its the story of a Colombian teenager who is the only member of her family without magical powers. The movie will be presented with Spanish subtitles on WCAs 39-foot inflatable screen beneath the canopy of the iconic, steel-framed amphitheater. Tropicante Latin Combo returns to the amphitheater stage to headline Saturdays RiverLoop Rhythms concert, featuring the Colombian cumbia, the Dominican merengue, the Venezuelan tambor, the Brazilian samba and more. The ensemble features Ed East of Waterloo, who sings, plays percussive instruments and guitar, and Karin Stein of Grinnell, who sings, plays guitar, pan flute and other Latin instruments. Stein grew up on the rural Llanos grasslands of Colombia. East, co-founder of the Cedar Valleys popular salsa band Orquesta Alta Maiz, is Panamanian and grew up in Panama City. The pair also perform as Calle Sur. Theyre great musicians and great advocates for their cultures, and they share the stories, backgrounds and culture behind the music theyre performing. One of the things thats important is that this event provides visibility and a voice for the Latino community that sometimes goes unrecognized, Shankle said. BBQ Brazil, Con Amor Home Bakery and a taco truck will be available to purchase food and beverages. CEDAR FALLS The City Council will hold a public hearing and likely vote Tuesday night on plans for a substantial College Hill infrastructure project meant to revitalize and expand Pettersen Plaza. The estimated $2.2 million construction project involves removing a structurally deficient bridge on Olive Street, between West 20th and West 21st streets, and then extending the adjacent College Street box culvert supporting Pettersen Plaza eastward to Olive Street. In turn, the plaza, next to next to Jimmy Johns, will be spruced up and expanded over the top of the extended culvert. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. inside the Community Center, 528 Main St. The concrete slab bridge was built in 1955 over Dry Run Creek. It has a pedestrian walking component and the city has said the bridge is experiencing substantial concrete deterioration and corrosion of the reinforcing steel and hand railing. The improvements include the removal and replacement of the existing brick pavers and other pedestrian-related accommodations. Additionally, sanitary sewer and other street-related work will be completed in hopes of improving water quality and addressing existing stream channel stability issues like stream bank erosion and an exposed sewer pipe. The cost will be covered by general obligation bonds, which the council plans to sell July 18, and tax increment financing. Rooted Carrot Co-op committed to finding new site in Cedar Falls The Rooted Carrot Cooperative Market is a community-owned grocery store that seeks to enhance the health and well-being of the greater Cedar Valley, according to its mission statement. In other business, the council will consider and possibly vote to approve: The second of three readings on an ordinance extending the no-parking ban on the east side of Southlawn Road from Stanwood Drive through to Melendy Lane. Four purchase agreements for properties at 627 Clair St., 628 Longview St., 824 Cottage Row Lane and 1027 Clair St. as part of the Northern Cedar Falls Flood Buyout Program and supported by an Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management grant. The lone bid of $378,647 by Kirk Gross Company for new furniture in Cedar Falls City Hall, which is in the midst of being remodeled. Adopting the annual Community Development Block Grant and HOME Consortium action plan, detailing how federal funding will be spent for work ranging from owner and renter-occupied rehabilitation and repair, to agency and organizational support of homeless people among others, neighborhood accessibility improvements and a tree replacement program. Waverly Country Club votes to transfer ownership of property, operations to city The vote comes amidst a lawsuit, filed by the clubs former manager, alleging the board did not address employees sexual harassment complaints, and tried to defame the ex-manager after firing him. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation in Ukraine. Successful offensive of Central group of troops commanded by Colonel General Aleksandr Lapin have resulted in establishing contol in Verkhnekamenka, Zolotaryovka, Belogorovka, reaching Seversky Donets river and having cordoned Lisichansk in coordination with Southern group of troops commanded by General of the Army Sergey Surovikin. Ukrainian group of troops has been completely isolated in this pocket. 38 Ukrainian servicemen, whose major part constitute local residents forcibly mobilised by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), have surrendered in this area just over the past 48 hours. Russian troops and units of the Lugansk Peoples Republic are fighting near Lisichansk and defeating the isolated enemy. Novodruzhevsk, Maloryazantsevo and Belaya Gora located near Lisichansk had been liberated over the past day. The enemy suffers considerable losses on all fronts. 54th Mechanised Brigade of the AFU has lost over 60 per cent of personnel and equipment near Maryinka (Donetsk Peoples Republic) during several days. The rest of the personnel is demoralised and refuse to fulfil combat tasks. High-precision attacks launched by Aerospace Forces near the eastern part of Kharkov has resulted in the elimination of provisional base of 127th Separate Territorial Defence Brigade. The attack has resulted in the elimination of over 100 Ukrainian servicemen and 15 units of equipment. Up to 120 soldiers of fortune have been eliminated by an attack launched by Russian Aerospace Forces at a base of foreign mercenaries. A unit of 5th Separate Assault Regiment from 1st Separate Brigade of the President of Ukraine has been eliminated near Spornoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic). 18 Ukrainian militants have been eliminated, 2 of them have surrendered, and the rest have escaped. Russian Federation Armed Forces continue launching attacks at military facilities located in Ukraine. High-precision attacks launched by Russian Aerospace Forces have resulted in the elimination of 10 command posts near Spornoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Lepetikha (Nikolayev region), Zelenodolsk (Dnepropetrovsk region), 7 munitions depots near Konstantinovka, Bakhmut (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Malaya Shesternya (Kherson region), Visunsk, Nikolayevka and Polyana (Nikolayev region), as well as AFU manpower and military equipment in 15 areas. Within the counter-battery warfare, high-precision attacks launched by Russian Aerospace Forces have resulted in the neutralisation of 3 artillery and 5 mortar plattoons near Verkhnekamenskoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Belogorovka, Maloryazantsevo, Zolotaryovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic). Operational-tactical and army aviation, missile troops and artillery have neutralised: 32 AFU command posts, 1 munitions depot, as well as manpower and military equipment in 287 areas. Russian air defence means have shot down 2 Su-25 of Ukrainian Air Force near Dibrovnoye (Kharkov region) and Kvitnevo (Nikolayev region). 10 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been shot down near Novoye (Zaporozhye region), Volnovakha, Donetsk (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Dmitrovka, Izyum, Berezovka and Kupyansk (Kharkov region). 8 MRLS projectiles have been intercepted, including 4 laucnhed by HIMARS near Stakhanov (Lugansk Peoples Republic) and 4 launched by Uragan near Popasnaya (Lugansk Peoples Republic) and Kamenka (Kharkov region) and near the city of Donetsk. In total, 229 airplanes and 134 helicopters, 1,440 unmanned aerial vehicles, 353 air defence missile systems, 3,893 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 704 combat vehicles equipped with multiple rocket-launching systems, 3,078 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 3,979 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation. Russian Federation Armed Forces continue launching attacks at military facilities located in Ukraine. High-precision attacks launched by Russian Aerospace Forces have resulted in the elimination of 10 command posts near Spornoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Lepetikha (Nikolayev region), Zelenodolsk (Dnepropetrovsk region), 7 munitions depots near Konstantinovka, Bakhmut (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Malaya Shesternya (Kherson region), Visunsk, Nikolayevka and Polyana (Nikolayev region), as well as AFU manpower and military equipment in 15 areas. Within the counter-battery warfare, high-precision attacks launched by Russian Aerospace Forces have resulted in the neutralisation of 3 artillery and 5 mortar plattoons near Verkhnekamenskoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Belogorovka, Maloryazantsevo, Zolotaryovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic). Operational-tactical and army aviation, missile troops and artillery have neutralised: 32 AFU command posts, 1 munitions depot, as well as manpower and military equipment in 287 areas. Russian air defence means have shot down 2 Su-25 of Ukrainian Air Force near Dibrovnoye (Kharkov region) and Kvitnevo (Nikolayev region). 10 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been shot down near Novoye (Zaporozhye region), Volnovakha, Donetsk (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Dmitrovka, Izyum, Berezovka and Kupyansk (Kharkov region). 8 MRLS projectiles have been intercepted, including 4 laucnhed by HIMARS near Stakhanov (Lugansk Peoples Republic) and 4 launched by Uragan near Popasnaya (Lugansk Peoples Republic) and Kamenka (Kharkov region) and near the city of Donetsk. In total, 229 airplanes and 134 helicopters, 1,440 unmanned aerial vehicles, 353 air defence missile systems, 3,893 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 704 combat vehicles equipped with multiple rocket-launching systems, 3,078 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 3,979 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation. Statement by Russian Defence Ministry Today, on July 3, 2022, the Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation General of the Army Sergey Shoigu reported to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Federation Armed Forces, V.Putin, on the liberation of the Lugansk Peoples Republic. According to the report, the successful operations of the Russian Federation Armed Forces in coordination with the units of Peoples Militia of the Lugansk Peoples Republic, have resulted in establishing the total control in Lisichansk and various nearby settlements; the largest of them are Belogorovka, Novodruzhesk, Maloryazantsevo and Belaya Gora. The total area of the settlements liberated over the past 24 hours is 182 square kilometres. @mod_russia_en #MoD #Russia #Ukraine @mod_russia_enjoy WtR We continue to carefully record the facts of the inhumane treatment of civilians and use of residential buildings, educational institutions and social infrastructure facilities for military purposes by Ukrainian armed groups: in Bakhmut, Donetsk Peoples Republic, in the institute of foreign languages and in the civil registration office, militants of nationalist battalions have deployed their units, as well as armoured equipment, positions of mortar and MRLS crews at the adjacent territories, the approaches to the buildings have been mined, but the local population has intentionally been left uninformed; in Kharkov, in the technical lyceum 173, neo-Nazis from Ukrainian armed groups have deployed a strongpoint, armoured equipment and artillery; in Konstantinovka, Donetsk Peoples Republic, in the residential buildings, AFU servicemen have deployed their firing positions, armament and munitions depots, as well as howitzers and MRLS at the local childrens playground, while the residents have been restricted from leaving their apartments under the pretext of security. These acts commited by Ukrainian authorities show again their inhumane treatment to the lives of Ukrainian citizens and total disregard to all moral norms and principles of the international humanitarian law. It occurs with the tacit consent of the collective West that continues turning a blind eye to the numerous war crimes of the Kiev regime. #MoD #Russia #Ukraine #HumanitarianResponse #HumanitarianAid @mod_russia_en On June 30, 2022, in Slavyansk, Donetsk Peoples Republic, AFU units launched an artillery attack from the local compound feed plant at residential quarters in order to accuse Russia of eliminating the civilian population of Ukraine. The attack has resulted in the death of 1 woman and injuring about 10 persons. Just in some minutes after the shelling, reporters from Ukrainian mass media commenced their work at the incident location, started taking photo- and videographic data about the consequences of allegedly indiscriminate attacks launched by Russian Armed Forces at civilian population. This kind of rapid arrival of Ukrainian journalists who supposedly happened to be around that way indicates a pre-staged scenario of this cynical provocation. We emphasise again that the Russian Federation Armed Forces do not launch attacks at civilian infrastructure facilities and treat civilians with an exclusive humanity during the special military operation, unlike the Ukrainian side. #MoD #Russia #Ukraine #HumanitarianResponse #HumanitarianAid @mod_russia_enjoy Top News Today Russian Defence Ministry publishes footage of the Chief of General Staff and First Deputy Minister of Defence General of the Army Valery Gerasimov inspecting the group of troops involved in the special military operation in Ukraine. 3 battalions from 10th Mountain Assault and 72nd Mechanised brigades have lost over 50% of personnel near Verkhnekamenka and Zolotaryovka just in the past 24 hours. Russian Aerospace Forces have launched a high-precision attack at provisional base of 1st Battalion from 30th Mechanised Brigade deployed near Artyomovsk. The attack has resulted in the elimination of up to 120 Ukrainian servicemen and about 15 units of military equipment. In addition, Russian aviation has neutralised a provisional armament and military equipment storage base of 10th Mountain Assault Brigade deployed at the territory of a tractor plant in Kharkov. The attack has resulted in the elimination of up to 30 servicemen and 10 units of armoured and motor vehicles. We continue to carefully record the facts of inhumane treatment to civilians and use of residential buildings, educational institutions and social infrastructure facilities for military purposes by Ukrainian armed groups. In Slavyansk, AFU units launched an artillery attack from the local compound feed plant at residential quarters in order to accuse Russia of eliminating the civilian population of Ukraine. The attack has resulted in the death of 1 woman and injuring about 10 persons. Ministry of Defence continues publishing footage of Russian servicemen in combat action: marines T-80BV tank and BTR-82A armoured carrier crews, Su-25 assault fighter crews and servicemen of the International Mine Action Centre administering final exams for professionals of Peoples Militia engineering units in the Lugansk Peoples Republic. Russian Armed Forces deliver over 150 tonnes of humanitarian aid to residents of liberated settlements in Kharkov region. #MoD #TopNews #Russia #Ukraine @mod_russia_en WtR I am overwhelmed with feelings of indignation at the heinous and vile incident that has taken place these days in Germany. The mosque, located in the Moabit district in central Berlin, reportedly raised the LGBT flag. This demonstration was held in front of a group of people, among whom was the head of the department of the German capital for culture. Participants of the dirty action came with posters with the inscription Love is Halal. The so-called imam of the mosque Mo el-Ketab showed himself even more disgustingly, who not only allowed the action, but, moreover, justified it. In addition, this follower of Iblis had the audacity to express the hope that other Islamic religious organizations would follow his example. Emotions that overwhelm me, there is no limit. Its hard to find the right words. I cannot understand how the imams of this mosque can call themselves Muslims after all that has happened. And how did the parishioners in general, and indeed the entire Islamic part of the population of Germany, leave this action discrediting our religion without a loud, resonant reaction?! Have you completely lost your mind on the wave of permissive European democracy? With what burden do you intend to appear before Allah? The Almighty destroyed entire nations, mired in the sin of sodomy through natural disasters. Come to your senses, otherwise it will be too late and you will have to reap the terrible fruits of your depraved behavior in cruel agony. It is you, the Muslims of Germany, who are primarily responsible for what happened in the mosque. Why do you allow vile pandemonium in the House of Allah? You arrange some kind of rallies and protest when something resonant happens outside of the same Germany or Europe. Arrange political rallies or hunger strikes. Here you bit your tongues in the most cowardly way. If you have lost the power of speech from indignation, then it is time to come to your senses and resolutely express your word, harshly condemn the initiators of the past sacrilege. It is strictly and firmly necessary to speak out so that henceforth such disgustingness would not even occur to anyone else. Otherwise, I dont know what kind of Muslim you are. Under your nose, all sorts of demons are using the mosque for their disgusting purposes, and you are silent. Russia today in the Donbass, not sparing its lives, is fighting against world Satanism, and you are not even able to stop those who defiantly propagate the LGBT ideology in the mosque alone. Wake up, wake up, wake up! This is not a harmless action! Its not just a flag! This is an attempt to subjugate Islam under the vile Western culture of debauchery and Satanism! Just think about it: if earlier they carefully pursued their policy of same-sex relations, now they are so unbridled that they use our mosques for this, they are trying to replace the Muslim religion. But the Almighty will never allow them to do this, but its time for you to wake up, otherwise Allah, without any doubt, will wake you up in unbearable hellish torments. Thank you Kadyrov and you are correct. The issue is that the west worships the Satanic type of life. That is why the western governments have to be isolated, if not destroyed. For they are taking the innocents with them WtR Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi holds talks with Myanmar's Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin on the sidelines of the seventh Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Bagan, Myanmar, on July 3, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Dongqiang) BAGAN, Myanmar, July 3 (Xinhua) -- China and Myanmar agreed here on Sunday to work together to further build a community with a shared future. While meeting with visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Myanmar's Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin said his country cherishes the Myanmar-China "Paukphaw" friendship featured with mutual respect and equal treatment. Myanmar will continue to support China's legitimate stances on the issues concerning Taiwan, Hong Kong, Tibet, Xinjiang and human rights, and is ready to work closely with China to further build a Myanmar-China community with a shared future, he said. Wang said the China-Myanmar "Paukphaw" friendship, fostered by the older generation of leaders in both countries, has enjoyed broad public support and profound social foundation, stood the test of intricate changes in the international landscape, been unaffected by the changes in respective countries, and remained rock solid. China values the traditional friendship between the two countries, and will continue to pursue friendly policies towards Myanmar and its people, Wang said. China will work together with the Myanmar side to further consolidate the four pillars of mutual political trust, mutually beneficial cooperation, people to people bonds, and personnel and cultural exchanges, so as to push for the building of the China-Myanmar community with a shared future to a new high, Wang said. China supports the Myanmar people in exploring the development path that suits Myanmar's own national conditions, and supports Myanmar in safeguarding its legitimate interests and national dignity in the international arena, he added. Both sides agreed to speed up the construction of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), implement well the cross-border power grids agreement, guarantee the operation of China-Myanmar oil and gas pipelines, explore the "CMEC plus" cooperation at a proper time, and elevate the level of bilateral trade and commercial cooperation. China is ready to import more quality agricultural products from Myanmar, expand bilateral financial cooperation, and launch poverty reduction demonstration projects in Myanmar, Wang said. For his part, U Wunna Maung Lwin said Myanmar is committed to implementing a five-point roadmap laid out by the State Administration Council and a five-point consensus reached by the ASEAN leaders last year, and pushing forward the process of democratic transition. Wang said that as Myanmar's largest neighboring country, China expects Myanmar to achieve political and social stability, improvement of people's livelihood and national development and revitalization. China also hopes Myanmar could realize political reconciliation and lasting peace and stability through consultations within the constitutional and legal framework, he added. Both sides exchanged views on the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC). Wang said that Myanmar, where the mechanism was first initiated, has actively participated in and greatly benefited from the cooperation, and China stands ready to boost coordination with Myanmar, promote quality improvement and upgrading of the LMC, and build a closer Lancang-Mekong community with a shared future. He pointed out that it is necessary to synergize the LMC with the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and the Global Security Initiative (GSI) proposed by China. U Wunna Maung Lwin said the GDI and the GSI will play a significant role in safeguarding world peace, upholding multilateralism and promoting common development. Myanmar spoke highly of the initiatives and is willing to actively participate in them. The two sides also discussed the China-ASEAN cooperation. Wang said the Chinese side appreciated Myanmar's important and active role as the country coordinator for China-ASEAN relations, and looks forward to working with ASEAN to build a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful and amicable home together. China firmly supports the ASEAN centrality in the regional architecture, and is ready to work with ASEAN to steer East Asia cooperation in the right direction, he said. The two sides held talks on the sidelines of the seventh Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Myanmar. Also on Sunday, Wang attended the reopening ceremony of the refurbished Zhou Enlai Pavilion, which was named after former Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai who made a donation to the famous Shwezigon Pagoda in Bagan during his visit to the cultural heritage site in 1961. The pavilion, built partly with the donation beside the Shwezigon Pagoda, stands as a symbol of China-Myanmar "Paukphaw" ties. Visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi (4th L), Myanmar's Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin (5th L) and other guests attend the reopening ceremony of the refurbished Zhou Enlai Pavilion in Bagan, Myanmar, on July 3, 2022. The pavilion was named after former Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai who made a donation to the famous Shwezigon Pagoda in Bagan during his visit to the cultural heritage site in 1961. (Xinhua/Zhang Dongqiang) I have a newfound interest in American history. I enjoy the audio books from the library, including the storytelling I have found in several books about American history. I am fascinated by the journals, letters and personal accounts referenced in the books. The information below is from the website History.com. Go to the website to read more. The Fourth of July-also known as Independence Day or July 4th-has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later delegates from the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson. From 1776 to the present day, July 4 has been celebrated as the birth of American independence, with festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues. Declaring independence At a 4th of July celebration I attended a talented man recited the first two paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence, moving many in the audience to tears. Below are the two paragraphs from National Archives, Declaration of Independence: A Transcription (Note: The following text is a transcription of the Stone Engraving of the parchment Declaration of Independence, the document on display in the Rotunda at the National Archives Museum. The spelling and punctuation reflects the original.): In Congress, July 4, 1776 The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Natures God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world. The rest is history On July 2, 1776, Congress voted to declare independence. Two days later, it ratified the text of the Declaration. John Dunlap, official printer to Congress, worked through the night to set the Declaration in type and print approximately 200 copies. These copies, known as the Dunlap Broadsides, were sent to various committees, assemblies and commanders of the Continental troops. The Dunlap Broadsides werent signed, but John Hancocks name appears in large type at the bottom. One copy crossed the Atlantic, reaching King George III months later. The official British response scolded the misguided Americans and their extravagant and inadmissable Claim of Independency. There is the good, the bad and the ugly in our history. As a friend told me, history does not happen in the past, we are living it today. For a book about history or any other topic, take advantage of the library summer reading program. More information is at abqlibrary.org/summerreading. Sources: history.com/topics/holidays/july-4th; archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript In its quest to criticize our efforts to make Downtown safe, the Journal should at least talk to those of us who asked for new ideas and worked with the city and APD to target finite resources toward crime-fighting. Public safety is the most high-stakes matter we deal with, and it should be treated as such by the citys leading paper. Mayor Tim Keller and Albuquerque Police Department Chief Harold Medina listened to us. Now, business leaders are once again joining to support a solution to a problem that affects us all. The June 28 editorial criticizing TEAM, Targeted Enforcement and Active Monitoring, undermines efforts to make Downtown a safer and more vibrant space. The goal of this new police overtime program is to more effectively supplement crime-fighting efforts. Downtown needs a larger law enforcement presence during peak hours; this is not news. APD manages officers between six area commands and has already put in place additional patrols and dedicated officers to Downtown. Thats a huge help for us. The entire purpose of TEAM for us and the entire community is to do more because we want to do more. Some Downtown business owners hire private security for their shops and venues thats great, but its too expensive for many and theres a big difference between a security guard protecting your venue and a trained officer protecting the entire area. TEAM allows us to pool resources and enables officers to choose to help Downtown after their regular shifts are complete, rather than going off duty. Unlike security guards, these officers can make arrests and are highly trained to manage the variety of incidents one might see on a Saturday night. Today, a group of companies and organizations that care about our Downtown have put $90,000 in to launch the program. As this program starts, its Downtown stakeholders with considerable resources like PNM and owners of multiple properties that came together to create the fund, not the smaller storefronts. Of course we want as many Downtown stakeholders participating as possible as we move forward, and indeed more have already pledged to join. But to be clear, nobody is required to contribute; the benefit will still be there. The officers participating in TEAM will not guard individual businesses, they will enforce laws Downtown during peak hours. This concept is nothing new. We already did this Downtown. Years ago, businesses came together to set up a fund to do something very similar. And cities like San Antonio, Dallas, Atlanta and D.C. do the same thing. Its also not a new concept for APD. For years the chiefs overtime program has allowed APD officers to guard big-box stores at the stores expense. TEAM reconfigures this program in a much more reasonable way. The security firms guarding the big-box stores will now use their own personnel for the job and APDs trained officers will go where there is a greater need and greater public purpose: Downtown. Local businesses, event planners and neighborhoods around the city also use the overtime program and still will. The bidding war the editorial speculates about would never happen. These costs are set, and the groups that use the overtime program are in contact with APD about hours available. Lastly, we read the Journal daily and respect it as a reasonable voice of the city. But when it comes to public safety, it should be much more careful. These programs fundamentally involve our police officers, our livelihoods, and the personal safety of thousands who work, live and visit Downtown. Flippant references to the mob and grossly misleading conjecture, without any attempt to contact businesses involved or the city do not serve the public interest and should be well beneath the professional standards of the Editorial Board. Are you ready for some good news everyone? At the start of this month came the paid sick leave bill. After fighting for eight long years we are finally here. Starting on July 1, if you are employed by a private employer in New Mexico, you will begin accruing paid sick leave. You accrue the paid leave at one hour for every 30 hours worked. It will add up in no time, especially if you are employed full time, but even if you are part time or even seasonal you will accrue paid leave time. What is this wonderful new paid leave for? It is for you to take if you are ill, or to stay home to take care of a loved one. Or if you feel like you need a mental health day, you can use it for that, too. You can accrue up to 64 hours per year. Your employer will determine when the year starts for you. For example, if you start employment on Aug. 1 then it would make sense to begin your year at your start date; if you have been working at your job already you begin accrual on July 1, 2022. This is a New Mexico state law. But wait, theres more! Let me share a personal story: My husband, Steve, was working for a security company where the pay was low so overtime was desired. Soon the companys overtime demands were so great and unreasonable that Steve would have to work a 16-hour shift, then go home for a few hours sleep, and have to return to work after only an eight-hour respite. At the same time he was trying to control his blood sugar, eat properly and keep doctors appointments. He crashed and almost landed in the hospital because his blood sugar was so high. This forced him to quit that job. How do you pay the bills with no job? These are impossible options for us and so many other New Mexicans. Steve had to take a whole week off in order to recover somewhat, but it will take time to get back to any control of his health, and without pay. This made our monthly budget even tighter than it already was. I tell you this personal story because it demonstrates the need for paid leave. If my husband, Steve, could have taken the time he needed to rest and gain control of his blood sugar, he might not be facing the intensive, invasive heart testing he must undergo this week. More work time lost and the expense of these procedures will be overwhelming, causing stress levels to increase. There are so many workers who have been in the position of needing hours or days off for themselves or a loved one who will, as of July 1, be able to begin saving up the hours to take when needed. So there it is a bright light at the end of a dark tunnel. Look toward the light. After-school and summer learning programs are vital supports to communities across New Mexico, and we must ensure the recent influx of financial help for them continues. Trusted community-based organizations such as local Boys & Girls Clubs work with students, families and schools to deliver positive settings, relationships and experiences that are critical for young peoples healthy development. Recognizing the serious impacts the pandemic had on young peoples well-being, expanding access to after-school and summer learning is more important than ever. COVID took a steep toll on children, from increased anxiety and social isolation, to coping with grief and loss. The pandemic hit communities that were vulnerable before the pandemic, including youth with disabilities, minorities and children from poor families. Much of the concern around the pandemic has centered on learning loss. But robust academic research shows play is also an essential part of child development, aiding in empathy, healthy relationships, survival skills and self-regulation. These factors encompass a variety of skills, behaviors and attitudes that arm children with the social and emotional competencies to perform well in school and function in society. Thats where out-of-school-time programs come in. President Biden and the Congress included new funding for summer enrichment and after-school programs in the $1.9 trillion COVID relief package last year. At Gov. Michelle Lujan Grishams direction, New Mexico set aside $6 million in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds for mini-grants for partnerships between local school districts and community-based organizations to create, support and expand after-school programs in underserved communities. These funds have provided a unique opportunity for youth and out-of-school-time providers. As of April, 34 grants have been awarded, supporting more than 50 after-school and summer program sites in New Mexico. Throughout the pandemic, research found that after-school and summer programs stepped up to meet the needs of young people, including help with their overall health and well-being. While no one is suggesting a few weeks of summer camp and after-school programming is a cure-all, the science shows the kind of experiences after-school and summer camp can provide a safe, healthy space to explore, play and build confidence can change childrens lives. During the pandemic, these programs adapted to circumstances and expanded services to meet the needs of children and families. Yet too many children are still left out. Even before COVID hit, a survey of New Mexico parents found that for every child in an after-school program, three more would have participated if a program were available. If we are to recover fully and ensure more positive, equitable outcomes for youth, we must continue to invest in after-school and summer learning. The conditional nature of the federal funding will require state policy makers to identify additional revenues to compensate for the end of recovery programs. To achieve long-term sustainability, New Mexico must lock in funding for expanded learning initiatives through community-based providers, distributed fairly. Children are always learning, whether in the classroom or out. Programs outside the traditional school day help channel learning in constructive ways, providing opportunity for students to connect with their passions and develop new skills. The value of after-school and summer education is that it offers an alternative to rigid assessments in favor of student engagement, cultivating love of learning and personal growth. Student achievement and proficiency follow strong student engagement. Necklace, Santo Domingo Pueblo, c. 1930-1940. Necklace, ca. 1920. Figurine, Sheila Antonio, ca. 2000, Navajo. Water Girls, Marla Allison (Laguna Pueblo), 2017, photography by Addison Doty. (Courtesy of Addison Doty) Prev 1 of 4 Next With its glittering pottery, stunning jewelry and modernism-meets-Native paintings, the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture is unveiling a makeover. Years in the making, its new permanent exhibition Here, Now and Always features more than 600 objects including ceramics, basketry, textiles, fashion and more. Supporters raised $2.1 million in private donations and grants for the exhibition. It had been up for over 20 years, co-curator Antonio Chavarria said. It is our core exhibition and a generation has gone by. Painter Marla Allisons newly installed triptych Water Girls, 2017 (Laguna Pueblo) represents the artists version of the sepia-toned Edward Curtis photos of Native people. Allison created the piece during the Standing Rock protests over the Dakota Access pipeline, the subject of lengthy court battles. Its that idea of holding water as sacred, Chavarria said. Its just ingrained within the cultures here. Allison superimposed Laguna Pueblo and Hopi designs over Curtis images, speaking back to the power dynamics inherent in his legacy. Today, his photographs face criticism for presenting a romanticized notion of Native American life, while neglecting the harsh reality in which they lived. A 2-inch tall beaded figure by Navajo artist Sheila Antonio, ca. 2000, represents a World War II code talker. The code was often the soldiers everyday Native language, but both the Navajo and Hopi people developed many more complex codes . Its their dress when they appear in parades, Chavarria said of the beaded depiction. A circa 1920 silver squash blossom necklace (Navajo) dangles 38 globular beads and 24 three-petal squash blossoms anchored by a large double arm cross pendant or dragonfly. The artist included an elks tooth, a signature, adjacent to the clasp. Cases dating to 1997 received updating; the old versions required three people to open them, Chavarria said. Staffers replaced old VHS video technology with iPads. We have iPads with individual interviews with community members, he added. Sheldon Nunez-Velardes (Jicarilla Apache), 2017, double water jar combines an historic piece with a more contemporary version. Nunez-Velardes use of micaceous clay expands upon the earlier artists use of a micaceous slip. He is the new director of their cultural center, Chavarria said. He also helped install the Jicarilla Apache tepee in the exhibit. The working tepee was used for small groups during the tribes September festival, known as the Go-Jii-Ya celebration, which includes runners, Chavarria added. Five in-house curators removed some of the objects from the previous exhibition for conservation reasons. Added pieces were new acquisitions and purchases. Staff members organized the artwork under themes of ancestors, survival and resilience, and creative exchange, among other designations. They also sought input from outside curators located in New Mexicos 19 pueblos, the Apache, Ysleta del Sur Pueblo (El Paso) and the Hopi tribe in Arizona, as well as the Navajo/Dine, Paiute and Oodham communities. The cost of the revamp came from public and private partnerships, as well as the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Museum of New Mexico Foundation, plus $1.6 million in private donations. Editors note: The Journal continues Whats in a Name?, a once a month column in which writer Elaine Briseno will give a short history of how places in New Mexico got their names. The city announced recently that it would establish a police substation at Fourth and Central Avenue inside a vacant building bearing the name Rosenwald. One glance and its obvious the three-story building is historic and even more obvious that it didnt start out as a police station. When the railroad came through Albuquerque in the late 1800s, commercial activity formed around it to provide services for its passengers. Initially, the commercial buildings were relatively simple one-story structures but transportation wasnt the only sector undergoing a metamorphosis. As machinery and engineering became more advanced, so did buildings. What followed was the rise of, quite literally, Albuquerques Downtown when multi-story buildings were erected. The Rosenwald was one of those buildings. It was constructed in 1910 to house the Rosenwald Brothers department store, named for brothers Aron and Edward (sometimes spelled Eduard) Rosenwald who founded the business in 1871 in Trinidad, Colorado. The legacy of the siblings lives on today in a sign stripped across the front of the Albuquerque building reading Rosenwald Bros. The brothers, according to an Aug. 14, 1921, story in the Albuquerque Morning Journal, loaded up all their goods in cumbersome wagons drawn by plodding oxen and traveled along the Santa Fe Trail to Colorado. They set up shop inside a little adobe structure and would begin building their small empire. They opened their Albuquerque branch in 1879 in Old Town, but soon after relocated to New Town on the northeast corner of Third Street and Central Avenue (then called Railroad Avenue) in a small building for which they paid $1,400, a price that was considered extravagant at the time. Upon their arrival, it was not yet certain that Albuquerque would become the metropolis it is today. But the brothers, according to the 1921 story, never wavered in their faith that Albuquerque was where they would prosper. And prosper they did. A few years later they sold off their Colorado store and shifted all operations to New Mexico. According to advertisements published in the Albuquerque Morning Journal throughout 1882, the store carried boots, shoes, hats, caps, dry goods, clothing, furnishings and groceries. Business was booming and when the brothers retired in 1903 they passed management of Rosenwald Bro. to Arons sons Sidney and David Rosenwald. This second generation ushered the business into a new era. They moved into a larger building at the southwest corner of Third and Central in 1907 and would stay there until their move to the current day Rosenwald Building. Construction on the building, designed by architect Henry C. Trost, began on Valentines Day in 1910. The Rosenwald Building was the citys first reinforced concrete structure and was billed as fireproof. The project was not without some danger. About four months into the construction, a worker plummeted nearly two stories as he tried to descend from the building. He lived, but had several broken ribs and bruising. In July, a cement worker named Joe Romero became entangled in the scaffolding and also fell, dislocating his hip, according to an Aug. 2, 1910, article in the Albuquerque Morning Journal. Opening day finally came on Oct. 1. The Albuquerque Morning Journal praised the innovative three-story building (four if you count the basement), calling it the handsomest, most up to date and most complete department store in the southwest. the statement is made without fear of contradiction that not a department store in Denver, El Paso or any other city of prominence in the Rocky mountain region, nor in the valleys where the land begins to slope to the seas, is housed in a better building, nor houses a more complete and up to date stock of merchandise within its walls than the house of Rosenwald. The building had three elevators, which was also a first for Albuquerque. A 10-piece orchestra welcomed the reported 5,000 visitors who passed through its doors on opening day. Customers in those early days would have found dry goods, jewelry, toiletries, shoes and mens clothes on the ground floor. The second floor was home to womens ready-to-wear garments, millinery and corsets along with dressing rooms, an alteration room and a bathroom. A trip to the third floor revealed carpets, rugs and furniture. The store also had something else that was relatively new public telephones in each department so visitors could telephone to friends in the city and will also prove a valuable means of communication between patrons and the heads of the different departments. But nothing was for sale that opening day. Visitors had to return the following Monday if they wanted to actually purchase goods. The store prospered for more than a decade, but trouble did come for the Rosenwald family. Although supposedly fireproof, a mattress on the third floor caught fire in 1921 and caused extensive smoke and water damage, requiring a complete renovation that took six years. David Rosenwald died of a heart attack in November of 1927, at the young age of 49. According to his obituary he was born in Trinidad, Colorado, in 1878. As a youngster he was sent to attend school in Germany. He returned to Albuquerque and graduated from high school. He wasnt just an entrepreneur. He was also extensively involved in the community. He served as secretary of the State Fair association, as director of the Commercial Club and Albuquerque Hotel Co., and as president of the Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club. Sadly, according to newspaper reports, Sidney Rosenwald died by suicide in 1932. It was reported he was depressed over financial worries. McLellan Stores moved into the ground floor of the Rosenwald Building in 1927 and would remain there for 50 years, but the Rosenwald name stayed on the buildings storefront. The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. According to Albuquerque Journal clippings, crews worked to restore the building to its original form in 1980. They converted the upper floors into office space. The city purchased two floors of the building in 2008 and recently sold it to a private developer with an agreement to lease a portion for the APD substation. The reporter present on the buildings opening day in 1910 made this prophetic observation: The magnificent Rosenwald building will stand for many years as a monument to the enterprise of the Rosenwalds, as an indication of their faith in Albuquerque and in Albuquerqueans. That the name of Rosenwald may live long and that the store of Rosenwald Brothersmay prosper always, is the best wish of all those who were guests at the opening yesterday. Curious about how a town, street or building got its name? Email writer Elaine Briseno at ebriseno@abqjournal.com. FILE - The July 9, 1947 Roswell Dispatch's front-page headline reads: "Army Debunks Roswell Flying Disk, As World Simmers With Excitement." The Roswell Morning Dispatch, a long-defunct sister newspaper of the Roswell Daily Record, was published in the mornings from 1928-1950. The Dispatch covered the news of the day, and as such, it carried accounts in July 1947 of the unfolding events related to the alleged recovery of a crashed "Flying Disk" outside Roswell, along with the military's explanations for what had occurred. (Roswell Dispatch/Roswell Daily Record, via AP) FILE - This photo is from the US Air Force's "The Roswell Report," released Tuesday, June 24, 1997, which discusses the alleged UFO incident in Roswell, N.M. in 1947. On balloon flights, test dummies were used and placed in insulation bags to protect temperature sensitive equipment. These bags may have been described by at least one witness as "body bags" used to recover alien victims from the crash of a flying saucer. The 231-page report, released on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Roswell, N.M., UFO incident, is meant to close to book on longstanding rumors that the Air Force recovered a flying saucer and extraterrestrial bodies near Roswell. (US Air Force via AP, File) FILE - This is a file photo from the the US Air Force book released Tuesday, June 24, 1997 entitled "The Roswell Report," which shows "Sierra Sam," center, and 1st Lts. Eugene Schwartz, left, and Raymond Madison. The 231-page report, released on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Roswell, N.M., UFO incident, is meant to close the book on longstanding rumors that the Air Force recovered a flying saucer and extraterrestrial bodies near Roswell, N.M. (US Air Force via AP, File) FILE - Col. John Haynes holds a copy of an U.S Air Force report entitled "The Roswell Report" during a Pentagon news conference in Washington on Tuesday, June 24, 1997 to discuss the UFO incident in Roswell, N.M., in 1947. On the eve of the 50th anniversary of the incident, the Air Force offered what it hopes is the final word on claims by UFO buffs that alien bodies were recovered at the crash site. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE - A bicycle-powered flying saucer sputters by the crowd gathered on Main Street Saturday, July 5, 1997, in Roswell, N.M. About two dozen crafts moved down the street in the Crash and Burn Extravaganza as part of the 50th anniversary celebration of an alleged UFO crash near Roswell, N.M. (AP Photo/Susan Sterner, File) FILE - A sign directs travelers to the start of the "1947 UFO Crash Site Tours" in Roswell, N.M., on June 10, 1997. In Roswell, locals don't argue anymore about whether a space ship crashed nearby. They argue about whose ranch it landed on. Barring a major revelation between now and July 1, 2022, Roswell will mark the 75th anniversary of the alleged 1947 UFO crash with the debate over what occurred here far from settled. (AP Photo/Eric Draper, File) Prev 1 of 6 Next ROSWELL The Roswell incident has been one of the most thoroughly researched and debated mysteries in the history of the UFO phenomenon and among the most enduring. Roswell will mark the 75th anniversary of the alleged 1947 UFO crash with the debate over what occurred here far from settled. That hasnt been for a lack of digging. For decades now, journalists, authors, documentary film crews and others fascinated by the incident have unearthed and publicized countless bits of information and artifacts of that time. Along the way, theyve brought attention to many pieces of Roswell history, including the July 1947 front pages of the Roswell Daily Record that recorded initial reports of the incident along with a follow-up version of events presented by the military that some now view as one of historys greatest cover-ups. The intensity of focus placed on the Roswell incident for three-quarters of a century has led some to posit that most contemporaneous records have already been scrutinized. But one piece of local history recently uncovered provides an interesting companion to those iconic 1947 headlines the public has become familiar with while adding yet more pages to a still-growing historical record. The Roswell Morning Dispatch, a long-defunct sister newspaper of the Roswell Daily Record, published in the mornings from 1928-1950. The Dispatch covered the news of the day, and as such, it carried accounts in July 1947 of the unfolding events related to the alleged recovery of a crashed Flying Disk outside Roswell, along with the militarys explanations for what had occurred. Its headlines were discovered among archived editions of the newspaper. Of interest to UFO research enthusiasts: The July 9, 1947, headline in the Morning Dispatch read, Army Debunks Roswell Flying Disk As World Simmers With Excitement, followed by a sub-head bearing a familiar assertion that would help fuel future accusations of a cover-up: Officers Say Disk Is A Weather Balloon. A sidebar describes then-Sheriff George Wilcox fielding calls from media around the world as journalists sought information on what would come to be known as the Roswell incident. Nick Pope, who investigated UFOs for the UK Ministry of Defense, said discovery of the old headlines holds significance for researchers and others interested in the phenomenon. Its a fascinating piece of history that time had forgotten, Pope said. It just shows that 75 years after the Roswell incident, there are still discoveries to be made in the archives. Barbara Beck, publisher of the Roswell Daily Record, said that bringing a new resource to light for researchers is something the papers staff is excited about. It has taken over 70 years for the Roswell Morning Dispatch with its unique articles and headlines to be discovered while looking through our newspapers archives, she said. The Dispatch was originally owned by my family and its very exciting that we now have a new primary resource to further understand the history of New Mexico and its undiscovered stories. The Roswell Daily Record headlines related to the 1947 UFO incident have, for some time, been federally trademarked. Beck added that the Roswell Morning Dispatch accounts have also now been trademarked, meaning they cant be reproduced without permission. Theres much to be discovered in the archives. A look at the Dispatch records provides a reminder, for instance, of the degree to which a public fascination with UFOs had taken hold here and across the country at that time. The Roswell incident is one of four UFO-related accounts that appear just on the front page of the July 9, 1947, Morning Dispatch. The other items: Carrizozo Man Sees Flying Disk, Joe Massey Spots Disk Over Roswell, and an image of an unknown object in the sky over Seattle with a caption that asks the question, Is this a flying disc? Further research into the archives has uncovered many more mentions of sightings. Readers might also notice that the Dispatch front page contains instances of language that reflect the less culturally sensitive times during which the paper was being published. Daily Record management thought it was important to present the archival front page, a piece of local history, to the public unedited and unaltered. Pope, who will travel to Roswell in July to participate in the Daily Records Roswell Incident event, part of the citys UFO Festival, said he hopes discovery of the old Dispatch headlines reminds people that historical records could still be out there, waiting to be discovered. Such a discovery could, as the much anticipated 75th anniversary of the incident nears, help shed new light on what happened in 1947. The fact that Roswell will be the focus of world attention again, is almost like a sort of final chance to maybe solve the mystery, one way or the other, for good, he said. Copyright 2022 Albuquerque Journal Prescribed burns are a forest management practice that dates back centuries. But what role do controlled burns have in New Mexico if agencies and communities are to avoid another disaster like the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire? State and federal experts point to the need for more trained burn professionals and planning tools that account for a changing climate. A U.S. Forest Service review of the burn that became the largest fire in New Mexico history notes that federal firefighting efforts often have a high utilization of science and technology. But prescribed fire is more or less a collateral effort. The Forest Service has paused all burns on forest lands while the agency reviews its policies. Despite the pause, Forest Service Chief Randy Moore said that prescribed fire must remain a tool in the agencys toolbox to combat destructive wildfires. Unfortunately, the effects of climate change are narrowing the windows where this tool can be used safely, Moore said. The federal review and state experts outline at least three suggestions for making prescribed burns a safer and more effective tool: Build a robust multi-agency burn workforce Use better planning and modeling tools Adapt projects for a changing climate The all hands, all lands approach Thousands of federal firefighters battle blazes across the nation each year. But the federal review recommends that the Forest Service build up a separate workforce whose sole responsibility will be to plan and conduct prescribed fire. An all hands, all lands approach recognizes that no one agency can manage the forest alone, said Forest Stewards Guild deputy director Eytan Krasilovsky. It really is a community of practitioners, he said. I think the events of this year just really solidify that we need to be communicating and working together. The guilds youth corps program trains 18- to 25-year-olds in wildland fire and forestry. Each fall, the corps embeds with crews on the Cibola and Santa Fe National Forests and the Jemez Pueblo. Members learn how to thin forests and restore watersheds. They also assist with prescribed fire projects. As entry-level wildland firefighters theres a lot to learn and a lot of experience to gain, and we try to do that in a slow, deliberate way to a high standard and also with a good foundation in ecology and forestry, Krasilovsky said. Crews need modern fire tools The federal review said prescribed fire training and education are often outdated and do not incorporate the latest tools or the latest fire science. That gap can lead to subpar burn plans. A plan for the Hermits Peak burn used models that underestimated the regions dryness. The plan also didnt adequately consider how a fire would move through the forest if the burn escaped the project boundaries. Most burn planning and modeling technology was developed under a wetter, cooler climate, said University of New Mexico biology professor and forest ecologist Matthew Hurteau. Weve reached a point in the climate system, particularly in the Southwest, where vegetation is becoming much more reactive, Hurteau said. We have higher temperatures and less moisture, which makes fuels more flammable. Shifting burn windows New Mexico crews will also likely need to reconsider when to burn. Those project windows may shift from year to year. Fall is now the most common time for prescribed burns in the state and the rest of the Southwest, with some spring projects if weather is favorable. The fact is, with changing climatic conditions, we may need to look at moving around those windows, and the opportunity to do some burning in the winter months, Hurteau said. New Mexico in recent years has removed some legal barriers for burns. The Prescribed Burning Act of 2021 protects private landowners from severe liability if their well-planned fire goes wrong. The law also created a training course through New Mexico State University for landowners and contractors. At under $200 per acre, prescribed fire is the cheapest method for thinning overgrown forests, according to the State Forestry Division. Tree cutting ranges from $500 to $2,000 per acre. Still, the risks and extensive planning may dissuade groups from burning. Like we saw this year, you can have very big consequences when you put fire on the ground as a management tool, Krasilovsky said. We dont take that lightly. Since the burns went bad this spring, state officials have warned of the risks of starting fires during New Mexicos windy season. State forester Laura McCarthy said that there probably wont be any more prescribed burning in the spring. Federal burn policies do not match up with what we know about the climate crisis, said Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The governor said she thinks New Mexico still needs burns to manage forests and watersheds. But you better know where you are, you better know those fuel loads, Lujan Grisham said. You better have access to water, you better have fire crews, and better consult states and local bodies of government. The Calf Canyon Fire also began as a Forest Service burn. A January pile burn of thinned trees and brush caused that blaze. Embers smoldered for months despite at least three snowstorms and then resurfaced in April and merged with Hermits Peak. The Calf Canyon Fire, Krasilovsky said, points to a need for robust patrolling after a burn. That way they can really monitor those things longer than we maybe thought we needed to, so we can account for the epic dryness were experiencing that allowed an event like that, he said. A nationwide burn pause The Forest Services nationwide pause on controlled burns has prompted a wide spectrum of reactions. Hurteau said the blanket action is a terrible idea for a country with diverse landscapes. The forest ecologist recently did field research in Californias Sierra Nevada range. Forest land burns were on hold. But the National Park Service proceeded with a large burn at Sequoia National Park. I think the Forest Service missed opportunities in other places that werent having these drought conditions, Hurteau said. Despite the backlash from Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak, federal agencies are still counting on controlled burns as a way to prevent more destructive wildfires. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act directs $3 billion to reducing wildfire risk. Meeting that goal means the Forest Service will likely need to burn as much as 4 million acres every year. The federal report notes that the agencys commitment to prescribed burns needs to match the resources devoted to fighting fires. Experts are awaiting any conclusions that may follow the 90-day pause and policy review. The reckoning may be an opportunity to craft prescribed fire policies that consider long-term drought and community involvement. This is a terrible tragedy, and we really need to focus on making people whole, Krasilovsky said. The steps forward I dont think are entirely clear to all of us yet. But when we do move ahead with burns, it needs to be after weve done some deep work listening, thinking and communicating. Copyright 2022 Albuquerque Journal SANTA FE No one describes it as exciting. But counties throughout New Mexico invite political party leaders and others before each statewide election to watch as they test the accuracy of their voting machines. And after Election Day every other year, an accounting firm oversees hand tallies to verify the machines produced accurate results. It matches it always does, Lea County Clerk Keith Manes, a Republican, said of the post-election audit. All that testing is part of a system intended to deliver election results beyond reproach. But the reputation of New Mexicos tabulation machines is under assault this year as voters head into a contentious campaign season featuring races for governor, attorney general and secretary of state. A Republican-dominated county commission in southern New Mexico initially refused to certify the primary election results last month, citing doubt about the voting machines and casting aside assurances from the Republican county clerk who oversaw the election. The commission wanted a hand tally instead. Also this summer, the GOP candidate for secretary of state New Mexicos chief elections officer encouraged county commissioners to insist on a hand count before certifying election results. The states post-election audits, however, suggest a hand tally would produce strikingly similar results to the counts produced by tabulation machines. An audit in 2020 by Robert J. Rivera, a certified public accountant, calculated error rates close to one-tenth of 1 percentage point, sometimes less, for the results he tested with hand tallies. And it isnt clear the machines rather than the humans were responsible for the small difference in totals. I have spent a huge amount of time watching people count votes, and its actually really hard to do it by hand, said Lonna Atkeson, an election administration expert for the MIT Election Data and Science Lab and professor emeritus at the University of New Mexico. Theres a lot of good evidence that human beings are not as good. The machine errors she has encountered, Atkeson said, tended to be random and unbiased stuck ballots and the like where the problems dont favor or harm any particular candidate on the whole. Theodore Allen, a professor of integrated systems and engineering at Ohio State University, said Dominion voting machines the kind used in New Mexico have been scrutinized by experts across the country. If the machines are applied properly and with a paper trail option, he told the Journal, trust in the results should be high. No question Biden won Debate over the accuracy of the Dominion machines fueled by unsubstantiated conspiracy theories shook up the usually sedate practice of certifying election results this summer. The all-Republican Otero County Commission one of the members is Couy Griffin, a founder of Cowboys for Trump initially refused to certify the June 7 primary election results. The Republican county clerk, in turn, maintained the election was conducted without problems. The commission later certified the results with Griffin in dissent after the state Supreme Court issued an order. Other Republicans have also cast doubt on New Mexicos election results despite the systems in place to catch errors. In a Facebook post, Republican secretary of state candidate Audrey Trujillo, for example, urged county commissioners in June to refuse to certify results until a hand tally was done. The Journal wasnt able to reach her for comment. Trujillos Facebook account also shared video of her appearing for a video interview with Steve Bannon who served as a strategist under Donald Trump in which she questioned the legitimacy of Bidens 2020 victory in New Mexico. Biden won the state by about 99,720 votes, or roughly 11 percentage points. The Trump campaign in 2020 voluntarily dismissed its own lawsuit questioning the results. Somebody asked me, How do you know Trump won New Mexico?' Trujillo said on the video. And Im, like, we didnt see Biden signs anywhere. We saw Trump signs. We saw huge convoys. We had so many people that were so excited to see Trump continue in his presidency. Democrats have won the states electoral votes in four consecutive presidential elections, registered Democrats outnumber Republicans in New Mexico and no evidence of fraud on the scale needed to change an election outcome has surfaced. Atkeson, a former director of the UNM Center for the Study of Voting, Elections and Democracy, said its clear Biden, not Trump, legitimately won New Mexico. Absolutely, he won, she said. Theres just no question. Even so, Republicans in New Mexico signed a document intended to deliver the states five electoral votes to Trump on the understanding that it might later be determined that we are the duly elected and qualified Electors for President and Vice President of the United States of America from the State of New Mexico. State Attorney General Hector Balderas, a Democrat, referred the matter to federal law enforcement. Machine certification New Mexicos push to build confidence in the election system begins long before voters show up. By law, counties in New Mexico invite political party chairpersons to watch as they certify the accuracy of voting machines before an election. Members of the public can attend, too. A stack of test ballots is fed through each machine. After the voting machines show they accurately tabulate the ballots, the tabulators are sealed and sent to polling locations. It doesnt draw a crowd. Its usually just my staff, Manes, the Lea County clerk, said. Nobody shows up. He said he hopes more people will attend this year, given the increased interest in New Mexicos voting systems. Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat, said the machine certification is a bit like watching paint dry. But its designed, she said, to give voters a look at the steps taken to safeguard elections. These processes to make sure everything is accurate, theyre not done in a vacuum, Toulouse Oliver said in an interview. Theyre public, transparent processes. Post-election audit Even after election results are certified, New Mexico tests the accuracy of its count. An independent accounting firm oversees an audit after each general election designed to catch mistakes by voting machines. Precincts are selected at random in certain races, including top-of-the-ballot races like president and governor, and employees in county clerks offices are directed to conduct a hand tally, which is then checked against the official result generated by the voting machines. The hand and machine tallies from 2020 show almost no difference for the precincts tested. In the presidential race, for example, the machine tally had Biden winning the six precincts tested by 21.67 percentage points while the hand tally showed he won by 21.54 percentage points an error rate of 0.13 percentage points, or just a fraction of 1 percentage point. The audit also examined the races for U.S. Senate, the 2nd Congressional District and an Appeals Court slot all of which had similarly small error rates. The congressional election, for example, had a miniscule error rate of 0.002 percentage points. The small discrepancies, meanwhile, arent necessarily the fault of the machines. The 2020 report by accountant Robert Rivera said the differences appear to be based on errors in the hand count and similar mistakes. In any case, he said no further testing was required. Voter confidence Despite the steps designed to produce accurate results, its clear New Mexicos vote tabulation machines are in for some extra scrutiny this year. Dominion voting system, like those used in New Mexico, have been targeted by far-right conspiracy theories throughout the country, such as unsubstantiated claims the machines are vulnerable to internet manipulation. Election officials in New Mexico say the machines arent connected to the internet. Just east of Albuquerque, the Torrance County Commission plans a hand tally of its primary election results this summer. The commission certified the results last month amid heckling from the audience. County Commission Chairman Ryan Schwebach, a Republican, said the hand tally this summer wont change the official results. Its simply intended to address community concerns over the voting machines. Im not accusing anybody of anything, Schwebach said, but Ive seen enough to know there are questions that need to be answered to ensure voter confidence. He said he understands New Mexico has a system of checks in place already. But he isnt convinced the testing and audits would catch every possible error. We have to have voter confidence, Schwebach said. Ive never seen anything like this 90% of the people I ask, they are not 100% confident. As for the people carrying out the elections a mix of Republicans and Democrats they say the voting system is already robust. I have confidence in the whole system the way its done. Theres so many checks and balances along the way, Manes of Lea County said. Toulouse Oliver said theres no reason to doubt the voting machines. New Mexicos system of Lets test them before, lets conduct the election, and then lets double check them after is the gold standard for ensuring accuracy, she said. Sen. Daniel Ivey-Soto, D-Albuquerque, said the states automatic recounts, which are required in close elections, also demonstrate the accuracy of the machines. For recounts, every ballot again goes through a voting machine to check the result. In the history of the automatic recounts, Ivey-Soto said, weve never had the outcome of a race change. The states election machinery, meanwhile, is about to whir to life again. Early and absentee voting begins Oct. 11, and New Mexicos vote tabulators will undergo preelection testing a few weeks before that. BUENOS AIRES, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Argentine Economy Minister Martin Guzman on Saturday submitted his resignation from the post he has held since December 2019. "With deep conviction and confidence in my vision of the path that Argentina should follow, I will continue working and acting for a fairer, freer, and more sovereign homeland," he said in a letter to President Alberto Fernandez. "I have dedicated my adult life to building a vision and capabilities to lead a process of normalizing the function of Argentina's economy, which for so long has been characterized by patterns that generate uncertainty and anguish for millions of our compatriots," he said. Guzman's tenure was characterized by the optimal development of debt negotiations with external private creditors as well as with the International Monetary Fund. He was also known for carrying out an economic program that emphasized correcting the fiscal deficit and strengthening the local debt market. If you are one of those who want to install a solar rooftop system, but are worried about lack of space, then here is some good news. A compact portable solar rooftop system a standard plug-and-play photovoltaic one will soon be commercially launched. It can be easily shifted from one location to the other. The system, a German prototype, is part of the Indo-German technical cooperation project titled Indo-German Solar Partnership PV Rooftop. Known as PV Port, about 40 such systems have been successfully installed in Gandhinagar. Its distinct feature is that it does not occupy much space. It is like a tabletop and one can make seating arrangements underneath it to make it a portable workspace. The project was successfully commissioned by Gujarat Energy Research and Management Institute (GERMI) and is funded by the Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (Germany) and implemented by GIZ in partnership with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). The project is aimed at establishing a technically and economically efficient, as well as a socially and environmentally sustainable large-scale power supply in India. The ministry is also considering a proposal to subsidise the portable solar rooftop systems on the lines of conventional ones. This may encourage more people to opt for solar rooftops even if they have space constraints. The benefits A PV Port system comes with a minimum size of 2 kWp (peak power) with or without battery storage and does not require any net metering-related agreement before installation as it is designed for 100% self-consumption and no power is fed back to the grid. Installing it can result in an average annual savings of up to 2800 kWh in electricity bills for 25 years, Himanshu Desai of GERMI said. Such systems have been installed at Akshardham complex, PDEU, NIFT and a few residences. Floating panels The state is also promoting several experiments for the optimal use of solar energy. GERMI is working on a project of floating solar panels which will be places on water surfaces like lakes and rivers. A floating solar panel project for Kankaria lake is also being worked out. The institute is studying the environmental effect of the project including its impact on marine life and vegetation in the water. The NTPC has already launched the countrys first floating solar panel at Telangana. Solar walls The institute is also exploring the concept of solar walls. The institute is working on a project to turn the south wall of any building, residential or commercial, into a solar wall made of glass with photovoltaic cells to generate solar energy. The wall, the institute believes, will not only be aesthetic but can also easily blend with the interior design of a house as photovoltaic cells are available in varied colours. Earlier they were only available in blue colour. TEHRAN, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani said Sunday that the time and venue of a new round of talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal are being finalized, according to the official IRNA news agency. "The negotiations in Doha took place within a pre-determined framework," Bagheri Kani said, adding that "the time and venue of next negotiations are being finalized in the exchanges" between Iran and the European Union (EU). He did not specify whether the next round of talks will take place in the format of Iran and the P4+1 (Britain, China, France, Russia plus Germany) or will be held indirectly between Iran and the United States. Iran and the United States held indirect talks on Tuesday and Wednesday in the Qatari capital of Doha, with the mediation of EU coordinator Enrique Mora, to address their differences over the revival of the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The Doha talks did not bear results, but Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian described the talks as "positive." Iran signed the JCPOA with the world powers in July 2015, agreeing to curb its nuclear program in return for the removal of sanctions on the country. However, former U.S. President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the agreement in May 2018 and reimposed unilateral sanctions on Iran, prompting the latter to drop some of its commitments under the pact. The Iranian nuclear talks began in April 2021 in Vienna, but were suspended in March this year because of political differences between Tehran and Washington. NEW DELHI, July 3 (Xinhua) -- India has slammed the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) over what it described as biased and inaccurate comments on India. According to India's foreign ministry, the comments reflect a severe lack of understanding of India, its constitutional framework and its plurality. "We have seen the biased and inaccurate comments on India by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)," Arindam Bagchi, India's foreign ministry spokesperson said in response to a media query on Saturday evening. "These comments reflect a severe lack of understanding of India and its constitutional framework, its plurality and its democratic ethos." On Saturday the USCIRF on its social media platform quoted its commissioner David Curry, saying the commission is "concerned about the Indian government's continued repression of critical voices -- especially religious minorities and those reporting on and advocating for them." "Regrettably, USCIRF continues to misrepresent facts time and again in its statements and reports in pursuance of its motivated agenda. Such actions only serve to strengthen concerns about the credibility and objectivity of the organization," Bagchi said. As is usual, the Supreme Court saved its most important decisions for the end of this term, and the three biggies were handed down within days of each other: Bruen (gun rights), Dobbs (abortion rights) and West Virginia (administrative regulation of CO2). You dont have to be a constitutional law scholar to wade through all this and the footnotes, citations, and legal disputations. Francis Menton has done it for you: (You cant rely on the major media to do it. For the most part they share the same ideological viewpoint as that of the three dissenting justices, a view Menton explains very well.) In a nutshell: Vision 1 . The Constitution allocates powers to the three branches of government, and also lists certain rights entitled to constitutional protection. The role of the courts is (1) to assure that the powers are exercised only by those to whom they are allocated, (2) to protect the enumerated rights, and (3) as to things claimed to be rights but not listed, to avoid getting involved. . The Constitution allocates powers to the three branches of government, and also lists certain rights entitled to constitutional protection. The role of the courts is (1) to assure that the powers are exercised only by those to whom they are allocated, (2) to protect the enumerated rights, and (3) as to things claimed to be rights but not listed, to avoid getting involved. Vision 2. The Constitution is an archaic document adopted more than 200 years ago, and largely obsolete. The role of the courts is to implement the current priorities of the academic left and then somehow rationalize how that is consistent with the written document. If a right is enumerated in the Constitution but disfavored by the current left (e.g., the right to keep and bear arms), then the courts should find a way to uphold enactments that minimize that right down to the point that it is a nullity. If a right is not enumerated in the Constitution, but is a priority of the left (e.g., abortion), then that right can be discovered in some vague and unspecific constitutional language (due process). And if the left has a priority to transform the economy and the way the people live, but the Congress does not have sufficient majorities to enact that priority, then the Executive agencies can implement that priority on their own authority, and the role of the courts is to assist the agencies in finding something in the tens of thousands of pages of federal statutes, however vague and dubious, that can be claimed to authorize the action. [/quote] These two views, he correctly observes, are irreconcilable. The dissents, like the media coverage (I add) are made in the context of a 6-3 division in which View 2 has no chance of prevailing over the courts majority which, unlike the media and academia, adheres to View 1. So whats the losing justices option? Obfuscate, because you sure dont want people to understand that you want to take a position contrary to the clear words of the Constitution and as well, I say, to the overwhelming views of the electorate. In Bruen, the dissent argued that gun control was the only acceptable moral decision in the face of statistics on firearm killing. (Another, option, of course, is a constitutional amendment, but the dissent knows as well as I do that would never pass.) In the Dobbs case, the majority said there was nothing in the Constitution respecting a right to abortion, and that was an issue best left to the states, not some fancy penumbra and emanation confection by the Court. Again, the dissent made an appeal to its view of morality, not the law. Menton summarizes the dissents argument: To oppose us would be to take women back to the Middle Ages. And what exactly does that have to do with the Constitution? Only a troglodyte could ask such a question! Obviously, the Constitution says whatever is needed to support these critical moral principles. Well, it worked well enough to get most of academia on board, and if your media sources resemble those Ive seen, the moral angle will be played to the hilt with stories of exceptional cases being treated as the rule. Never does it occur to these proponents of rule by judicial fiat that, there too, if they have the votes, they can write into the state laws abortion rules that suit them. They can even push for a constitutional amendment. Nor does it ever occur to them the greatest danger of the second view: A court that holds an entirely different view of morality could ignore the written and duly passed laws to enforce their own views. This escapes them because theyve been in drivers seat for so long they naturally assume they will always be there. And then theres the clipping of the administrative state in the West Virginia case, which I treat with greater detail here: another-big-win-the-court-clips-regulatory-states-claws Whether or not you agree with Justice Elena Kagans frenetic claims about CO2, Menton is absolutely correct in his analysis of her dissenting opinion. The text of the Constitution? The reservation of all legislative powers to the Congress? Those are for chumps. By page 5 of her dissent, Justice Kagan has made it clear that a statute that just said The government must do everything appropriate to save the planet; EPA to implement. would be just fine with her to authorize the agency to transform the economy. Hes right too, that the last decision -- West Virginia -- is the most important one of the three. The Biden administration, without congressional action, is using the chimera of climate change to completely transform the economy. It is churning out pages of rules and regulations designed to hamper domestic energy production, not only through the EPA, but as well the SEC and Department of Interior. The rising prices of fuel, food, and shelter are occasioned by such rules and regulations, which make scarce that of which we have plenty -- sources of energy. The cost is being born by millions of Americans, and its clear to me that Kagans view of morality and theirs is in growing conflict. Are you onboard with a country and its economy ruled by unelected bureaucrats given the green light to do so by unelected judges? I didnt think you were. The dissenting View 2 justices are no match for the brilliance of the Founding Fathers who created the most sensible and abiding ruling Constitution. As the losers in Congress continue to smear former President Trump using the vehicle of an utterly one-sided and partisan committee, dont forget who made this needed shift possible. It was the very same Donald J. Trump, master of the mean tweet, who nominated the justices who are returning this country to a semblance of ordered liberty, respect for the law, and the Constitution. Readers have no doubt been subjected to a wide array of commentaries and internet memes following the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v Wade. Because the war of ideas in 2022 is often fought through internet memes, this essay hopes to offer ideas that can inform and strengthen the pro-life position based on an everyday, average persons interpretation of legal, logical, rational, and reasoned arguments. There are few casual observers. Both sides of the argument evoke strong emotions. However, because the issue involves real and irrevocable impacts on the life of the mother and the infant, more than emotions must guide the individual conscience and our national discourse. For those who are able or willing, we should not shy away from this debate but we should make sure we have a firm foundation for our own opinions and arguments. The difficult task of changing hearts and minds must begin anew every day because this issue has been remanded to the states and it will soon be coming to a legislature near you. The pro-abortion argument almost always leads off with the womans right to choose, a.k.a., bodily autonomy. An offshoot of the autonomy argument is, Nobody has the right to use your body, against your will, even to save their life or the life of another person. This argument must be flipped on its head immediately and stridently. Nobody has the right to end another persons life deliberately and against their will (the obvious exception to this would be the common practice of do not resuscitate orders or a living will which provides for the contingency of discontinuing prolonged medical care to artificially support life). The natural law against taking another persons life is innate to humanity and has been fundamentally understood from the beginning of human civilization. Furthermore, an infant in the womb had no choice in being conceived in the first place and the infant, therefore, is not represented in the decision to end its life. It is an irrefutable scientific fact that human life begins at conception. It is also an irrefutable scientific fact that conception creates a unique human being, with individual DNA, chromosomes, genes, and all that consists of one becoming a uniquely gifted and talented person. Therefore, abortion kills a human life, someone whom society anticipates one day will have a unique identity, personhood, and name. The most fundamental of human rights is the right to life. Abortion activists present an utterly contradictory argument. Those who scream the loudest for their individual rights and autonomy to choose, then decry a patriarchy or system that victimizes or subjugates them and denies their rights, are the same people who are denying the fundamental right to life to another person who has no voice and has no choice in the matter. The one, undeniable truth that is most often omitted in the pro-abortion argument is an admission that abortion takes the life of the unborn. It is this truth that should be the pro-abortion arguments undoing. In Justice Alitos majority opinion, it is clear that Roe v, Wade ignored natural law This natural law can never be set aside by any past, current, or future precedent. Therefore, when Roe conferred a constitutional right to an abortion that denied fundamental natural law, it was fatally flawed based on faulty reasoning and jurisprudence. Thus, Roe v. Wade conceived and then perpetrated a lie, contrary to the truth innately known by every human being. Image: Batman and Robin meme, generated via imgflip. More memes attempt to strike at the morality of the pro-life position: Your morality is deeply lacking if all your want is a child born but not a child fed, educated, and housed. Additional memes follow this premise with, If it was about babies, wed have free universal health care, free parental leave, free lactation consultants, free diapers, free formula, free childcare, universal pre-school. This is yet another faulty premise that a womans unwanted pregnancy is societys responsibility simply because the correct interpretation of natural law prohibits abortion. Instead, it reveals a crass exploitation of the issue by socialist, leftist ideologues to cement the cradle-to-grave, state-provided care they desperately seek. What is true, however, is that there are alternatives to abortion (which the abortion industry continually attacks) that would be far better than the statist fantasy of more government services. It is estimated there are between 1 million and 2 million couples in the United States who are waiting to adopt. When evaluated in light of the most recent data that over 629,000 abortions took place in 2019 and the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institutes report that in 2020, there were 930,160 abortions in the United States, there are more than enough adoptive parents who have been vetted and deemed worthy who could provide what is foundational to a healthy society: a loving, two-parent home in which shelter, feeding, and care are provided. Memes are stating, Vasectomies will prevent abortions. The meme is an attempt to make men understand the concept of bodily autonomy. Yet the more salient point is that men who are part of the hook up culture or those who fail to take responsibility for their actions in causing unwanted pregnancies are equally part of our societys problem with abortions. It appears as if both sexes must play their role in the aftermath of the Courts Dobbs decision. Dennis Prager, in a recent commentary for American Greatness, said it this way: The hook up culture only benefitted men (because) men have benefitted from abortion becoming a method of birth control. Abortion on demand meant that men impregnating women to whom they were not married came with no consequences. Abortion meant they didnt have to marry the woman they impregnated. Abortion meant they didnt have to raise the child they conceived. And abortion meant that men did not have to pay child support. Further illustrating this exploitation of women, youll see this meme rapidly populating social media: If every time men had sex, they risked death, physical disability, social shaming, a life-altering interruption of their education, career, and sudden life-long responsibility for another human being, I think theyd expect a choice in the matter. The responses to this argument (in addition to Dennis Pragers point, above), highlight abortions negative impact on our culture and on mens and womens individual and collective psyches and well-being: Pregnancy is, and always has been, a life-altering event in the lives of the mother and father. Given those potential consequences, if neither party wants a pregnancy, they must do what is necessary to prevent it. Both participants do have a choice. Either the woman or the man can avoid every negative consequence listed in the meme by saying No. The lies embedded in Roe and their negative impact on our culture have been revealed. Both women and men benefit from the committed relationships that cause and provide for pregnancies. When society fosters and encourages committed, monogamous relationships, both women and men benefit. Women will not be exploited by a random hook up, and men will be encouraged to fulfill their roles in society and take equal responsibility. The devastation Roe caused to over 60 million unborn infants and the well-being of both sexes should be readily evident. Dustan Ashe is a pen-name, the authors nom de guerre in the culture war. The news came down from Washington, D.C.: Roe v. Wade has been overturned! There was some rioting, of course there was bound to be. But a lot of America rejoiced. The Good News First Notwithstanding the important caveats raised by Ann Coulter about the low numbers of abortions that will be stopped by Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the historic importance of Dobbs cannot be brushed aside. The most recent judicial event of a similar magnitude would be Brown v. the Board of Education of seventy years ago, which overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and the doctrine of "separate but equal" (Dobbs 4). Like Brown's role in the history of segregation, Dobbs does not eradicate evil in one swoop. But it demolishes the jurisprudence that has protected evil from rightful scrutiny. The decision has now forced abortion-supporters into an unwinnable argument. If pro-choice people want the Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection) to impose one standard for abortion on the whole country rather than allow for states to hold different standards, then they will have to start from scratch to argue in universal terms that unborn people are not humans with a right to life. In open debate, the most sensible universal standard might end up being that people are human before they are born. By seeking a universal standard, pro-choice people would give their opponents the power to defeat them everywhere in America. Dobbs's reliance on states' rights throws the left back on its heels even though we should not embrace "sending it back to the states" as a moral victory in itself. Human beings are not different simply because they were conceived in La Jolla, California, as opposed to Lafayette, Louisiana. There should be one national standard for abortion, and it should define abortion as felonious homicide everywhere. The standard should be God's, since He created everything. We haven't adopted God's standard yet, but the path to that conclusion seems inevitable (see this interview with Rachel Alexander). Scientific advancements since 1973 make it difficult for pro-choice people to argue that prenatal people are not human. Pro-abortion people must get their allies in the Judiciary to keep abortion legal through juridical nonsense argued in bad faith. The Bad News Now, the bad news of which we have quite a bundle. Right-wing triumphalists have congratulated themselves and their allies for a job well done: We got a court decision that lets states decide whether or not killing babies is legal! The decision threw away the concept of viability and trimesters and said states can go for all or nothing, banning abortion from conception or allowing murder up until nursery school so long as the Court doesn't have to make a moral judgment! And this "victory" took only fifty years and millions of non-profit hours to win! Maybe by the year 2122, the Court will rule that there are two sexes, and our great-grandchildren will celebrate that it took only 100 years. On the other hand were skeptics who saw the loopholes in Dobbs. It sends a life-or-death issue of supreme moral importance to fickle "democratic process" to decide (Dobbs 5). It does not state clearly that unborn people are humans with human rights, instead stating that fetal life is simply a "State's interest" (Dobbs 5) and that the Mississippi law "describes" the fetus "as an 'unborn human being'" with quotation marks implying that such a description is one of many possible ways to define life (Dobbs 13). The decision says: "One may disagree with this belief (and our decision is not based on any view about when a State should regard prenatal life as having rights)" (Dobbs 29). To drive the point home, the quote follows: Our opinion is not based on any views about if and when prenatal life is entitled to any of the rights enjoyed after birth. (Dobbs 38) This puts forward a relativist framework, casting abortion as a debate in progress "citizens trying to persuade one another" (Dobbs 14). Whereas the text could have done so, the Dobbs decision never proclaims that abortion is murder or that unborn people are human. In his concurring opinion, Justice Kavanaugh stated, "The issue before the Court is not the policy or morality of abortion. The issue before the Court is what the Constitution says about abortion" (2), adding that the Constitution and Court are "neither pro-life nor pro-choice" (3). Noticeable throughout the 213 pages of Dobbs is the unquestioned commonplace that the Constitution is amoral. The idea that the Constitution is valid only because it points back to God's immutable laws is an utterly alien concept to the "conservative supermajority," which raises the question: this is what conservatism has become? The Preamble lays out the six purposes of the Constitution: to form a more perfect union, to establish justice, to provide for the common defense, to promote the general welfare, to insure domestic tranquillity, and to secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. Kavanaugh is wrong. These six items and, ergo, the Constitution's articles and amendments are not morally neutral. "Perfect" is not a neutral standard. "Justice" is not neutral, depending rather on a sense of wrong and right, to include rewards and punishment. "Welfare" presupposes that there is a moral obligation to assist rather than harm fellow citizens. "Defense" implies that we should protect vulnerable people from danger, while "tranquility" points to the Pauline virtues of living at peace with each other (Romans 12:18) and living a quiet life whenever we can (1 Thessalonians 4:11); these virtues are rooted in God's word, not in Blackstone's commentaries. "Blessings" are not morally neutral, pointing ultimately to a Deity who blesses and curses nations (see Deuteronomy 11:26). And finally, you need a posterity in order to secure blessings to them, so at the very least, the Constitution is not neutral about whether it is more desirable to raise or kill offspring. The Founders stayed close to the primal command from God to be fruitful and multiply. Ironically, within the current standards for constitutional law, Dobbs is flawless. It is morally dry, bureaucratic, prosaic, and cliched. As a moral statement about America's regard for human dignity, Dobbs is a horror show. Nowhere in this extremely long opinion does any justice including Justice Thomas question the majority's misguided assertion that the Constitution is devoid of moral judgment. The entire purpose for the Constitution is to build a moral society that grows "more perfect" over time, not worse. If a judge doesn't get that part, he misses the point of constitutional law. The House of Mourning or the House of Mirth? We cannot dismiss the incredible accomplishment that Dobbs represents. Two heroes of social conservatism Brian Duggan and Sharon Armke died in the last year and tragically never got to see Roe overturned after spending most of their lives contending against it. As someone who feels grateful for having called Brian and Sharon friends, I must say, I wish they could be alive to celebrate June 24, 2022. The yearly marches on Washington, D.C. and countless campaigns before state capitals can't be glossed over. The pro-life movement consisted of people who got scoffed at, exploited, and humiliated for decades and never gave up. For their sake, we have to say, "Hooray!" On the other hand, Roe took fifty years to overturn. The Dobbs decision itself cites a court precedent that was overturned in three years by the Barnette ruling, based simply on "the Court's belated recognition that its earlier decision had been seriously wrong" (Dobbs 41). There is simply no acceptable excuse for American society's failure to reverse Roe sooner, especially given the enormous prestige and clout of the veritable industry called the "pro-life movement." One has to distinguish between in-the-trenches Christians such as Duggan and Armke and the organized, well funded, and smug leadership of the pro-life advocacy industry, which raised funds and won elections based on promises to do something about abortion promises they kept flaking out on. It's not as though Republican presidents prior to Trump didn't have ways of achieving this sooner. Remember Kennedy and O'Connor, appointed by Reagan? Souter, appointed by George H.W. Bush? Or how about Roberts the pearl-clutching naysayer who didn't even want this milquetoast overturning of Roe, wishing instead for a more "measured course" (Dobbs 72)? That was W's gift that keeps on giving. It is clear that without Donald J. Trump's appointment of Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, accompanied by whatever ultimatums Trump gave them behind the scenes, we would not have even gotten Dobbs. If Dobbs is the best that American can do, our country's on the brink. But if we couldn't even get Dobbs, we'd say America was already gone. The "abolitionist" leaders like Joe Goodson of Temple, Texas have been fighting valiantly to obliterate abortion. Goodson told me in an interview, "About ten years ago abolition came out as a movement, and abolitionists were people who had worked in the pro-life industry for most of our lives only to realize they weren't trying to abolish the practice." According to Goodson, abolitionists faced the most vicious pushback and ostracism from established pro-life advocates, who opted for a classy and non-confrontational but perpetually losing approach. Given the gruesome nature of abortion and the access that conservatives had to public communication, there is no way to read the fifty-year slog as anything but a lethally inadequate track record, comparable at best to the delays in ending slavery and segregation and at worst to the Allies' decision not to bomb death chambers of Auschwitz in 1944. It is somewhat disturbing to read Revolver's July 1 headline: "Right-Wing Causes Can Learn a Lot from the Pro-Life Formula for Success." That headline would make sense if the fight against abortion were a political campaign against the Democrat party, similar to efforts to pass tax reform. It was not. It was a collective fight to save millions of bearers of God's image from murder. If we want to study the pro-life movement in order to brainstorm ways to win the midterm elections, then by all means, let's study the pro-life formula for success. If we want to study how to live in obedience to God's word and save bearers of His image from murder, the pro-life movement is the last thing in the world we should study. By most estimates, over sixty million babies were aborted in the interim between Roe and Dobbs, a Holocaust five times the death toll of the Nazi concentration camps. In the USA alone, we lost the equivalent of every living man, woman, and child in present-day Great Britain. We have no way of imagining what our country would look like if we were not missing between one fifth and one sixth of our people. It is hard to celebrate Dobbs when confronted with the fact that its success indicts us for our failures. I agree with the movement to designate June as Pro-Life Month. We should turn June 24, 2022 into a remembrance for the abortion holocaust. I do not think it should involve fireworks, but it should share a sense of God's mercy. We should take June back from its status as Pride Month and drown out the six-stripe rainbow flags with emblems of our reverence for the sanctity of life. But to honor such a Month of Life, we have to reflect on the following points. We failed God, but God's rightful judgment against the nation was held back The Bible provides us with plentiful examples of God's judgment against nations. In Genesis 19, Sodom and Gomorrah are consumed in burning sulfur. In Exodus 11:5, God's judgment against Egypt hardens the Pharaoh's heart and results in the firstborn of every family dying. Israel is doomed because of its transgressions through the prophetic books, often compared to a whore or an adulterous wife. Later, in Revelation, Christ returns in judgment of the whole world, with special condemnation in 17:5 reserved for a mysterious nation known as "Babylon the Great, the mother of all harlots and of the abominations of the earth." Like Israel, the United States was founded to be dear to God's heart, and yet the nation has descended into sexual perversion and literal child sacrifice. If the consummate warning of God's judgment comes in Romans 1:21, which states, "[H]aving known God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor did they give him thanks, but rather they became vain in their reasoning, and their foolish hearts were darkened," Dobbs is a vexing sign, because it shows that the highest judges in America have forgotten God's laws and the role they played in their nation's own Constitution. God punishes Sodom with destruction from the sky, Egypt with skin diseases and mass death of livestock; Israel with invasion by enemies; and the end times empires with the four horsemen of pestilence, war, famine, and finally death. Off the record, many Christians have entertained the possibility that God's judgment has come against the United States already, whether or not we are living in the end times. Had the Court upheld Roe in Dobbs and blocked Mississippi's modest law banning abortion at fifteen weeks, I would say the judgment has already been made, and we must brace ourselves for doom. That did not happen, although what we got was not exactly a world better. It seems that God rather held back His hand against the nation and gave us one more chance. We can't blow it. The church is an entirely different matter. Dobbs was handed down literally two weeks after the Southern Baptist Convention elected as its president Bart Barber, who celebrated his election by taking a picture of himself in a pagan wizard hat at Disneyland. Needless to say, the Southern Baptists' forsaking of Christian witness is laid bare in the embrace of sorcery symbols and endorsement of Disney in the midst of the company's scandals. If you want a full explanation of the complete degeneracy of the Southern Baptist Convention, go to this 7,000-word piece I penned on the subject: "Let the Southern Baptist Convention Burn to the Ground." The Southern Baptists are the largest Protestant denomination in the United States, but they are by no means alone in their depravity. In Revelation 2:5, Jesus Christ speaks of taking away the lampstand from the church in Ephesus, a symbol of God's judgment that a church has failed to pass muster before the Final Judgment. Whereas the nation may not be feeling God's judgment, the churches appear to have already been weighed and found wanting by God. The Supreme Court for all its follies made a decisive move to overturn Roe, using its juridical power to move in a more godly direction despite the flaws in Dobbs. The churches, endowed with tremendous money and influence in America, have squandered and frittered while 65,000,000 babies were killed by modern-day Herods. Some offered a faint resistance, but nothing courageous enough to fit a church bearing the name of Jesus Christ. Dobbs was not great, but it was something. Unfortunately it was a political solution to a spiritual problem. We had to turn to politics because the churches stopped doing their job about forty years ago. The churches became all about money, and politics became the only town square in which to have moral debates. As imperfect as political parties are, Christians will have to content themselves with imperfect political victories, since the priests and pastors are largely happy to take selfies at Disneyland in sorcerer hats while bearers of God's image are killed in the womb. Robert Lopez's book, Cancel-Proof Christianity, will be out in August 2022. Image via Max Pixel. President Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is roughly 270 words long. The Declaration of Independence is around 1,320 words. Those two documents alone prove the power of brevity. (Whenever I find that I am unable to write what I'm trying to say within the Lincoln-Jefferson word limit, I chuck it in the trashcan because I've most likely buried my intended message under parasitic weeds.) The whole U.S. Constitution, the shortest in the world, has only 4,400 words. Yet every two-year Congress since WWII has enacted 4-6 million words of new law. A wise man once told me that if a law can't be written in a single sentence, it has no business restricting Americans' liberty. Over 200 million words of imposed law since the last Great War have no doubt stolen a good deal of Americans' natural rights and liberties. Do we believe the modern American legislature's verbiage is a necessary requirement for fulfilling the promises outlined in our founding documents? Or is it more likely that Congress learned long ago that it could bury monumental power grabs underneath an untamed jungle of distracting weeds and has been writing new weeds into law ever since? Tyranny comes in many forms, yet one of its subtlest is manufactured complexity. Esoteric language + complicated bureaucracy = citizen compliance. If no-one understands the law or how the monetary system works or whether some agency exercising government power is legitimate, then a great deal of corruption and crime can be committed without the public's objection. Complexity is the favorite poison of those with power. Consider how the government's tyranny through complexity makes answering even the simplest questions quite difficult: (1) Have you broken any laws today? (2) How many departments or agencies exert power over you? (3) Is saving money wise? (4) What does the Constitution say? In a society governed by reason and rationality, these four questions should be rudimentary for any citizen. Instead, they are outrageously vexing. (1) There are tens of thousands of state and federal laws, hundreds of thousands of rules and regulations set forth by administrative decree, and limitless possibilities for judicial interpretation to shape what is legal and illegal. (2) The administrative bureaucracy is always expanding with the formation of new agency subsidiaries of some department's creation of this group's authority or that committee's jurisdiction to take a slice of Executive power for itself to wield against ordinary Americans. (3) Because the Federal Reserve is a private company that manipulates the supply of U.S. currency and because the U.S. dollar is not backed by anything except the Treasury's promise that its paper has value, saving monetary currency has the obscene effect of debasing wealth. (4) And ever since Chief Justice John Marshall empowered the Supreme Court alone to decide the Constitution's meaning in the 1803 case of Marbury v. Madison, courts have magically discovered implied powers, hidden rights, and unknown obligations all appearing and disappearing according to the subjective determination of any given jurist to hunt down unwritten language lurking in the "penumbras and emanations" that miraculously exist beyond the plain meaning of the Constitution's text. Just these past two weeks, this last point was driven home when the Court ruled correctly that abortion is not a constitutionally protected right and that New York's restrictions on carrying guns outside the home violate the Second and Fourteenth Amendments. By originally divining a constitutional right to abort a child in the womb, the federal government stole power from state governments. By enforcing a gun restriction that infringes on an individual's constitutional rights, New York stole power from anyone within its jurisdiction. The first case remedied a misreading of the Constitution that has been law in America for nearly half a century, while the second case remedied an unconstitutional power grab that has been law since 1913. That's an awfully long time for Americans to endure illegitimate exercises of power. When the Judiciary embraces imaginary complexity to bend the Constitution to its will, either our governing document or society will eventually snap in two. A regrettably large share of our legal experiences operate not in the shadow of the Constitution and its constraints, but rather in the shadow of explicitly unconstitutional rules, actions, and orders. In the time it takes for improper Executive Orders to be reined, for illicit administrative decisions to be corrected, and for misinterpretations of constitutional power to be overturned, so much of society's activity is framed by what we might call the not-Constitution all those acts of government that are deemed illegal only after they have caused enduring harm. A most troubling aspect of government power is its insistence on pushing past constitutional constraints and operating in a blurry legal wilderness of its own creation while forcing Americans to prove that those power grabs lack legitimacy. Governance is always about overreaction and never about precise remedy. In response to the vast economic aggregation during the late 19th-century industrial boom, progressivism delivered not only curbs on corporate monopoly power, but also the creation of a vast administrative bureaucracy with unchecked powers of its own. In response to unjust Jim Crow laws, the Supreme Court acquired unjust super-legislative powers. In response to air and water pollution, President Nixon created an Environmental Protection Agency whose power has grown to stifle American industry and threaten private property. In response to a perceived health insurance crisis, Obamacare's socialized medicine has only exacerbated the cost of healthcare while giving the government a peek at Americans' private medical records. Every time government identifies a problem, its answer is to expand its own inherent powers and complicate matters further. Historically, Congress's budgetary "power of the purse" empowered the "people's representatives" to restrict Executive overreach and the natural human proclivity to harness unchecked power. The quickest way to arrest illegitimate government power, in other words, was to stop paying for it. A century of central bank money printing, runaway deficit spending, and doomed mandatory spending commitments, however, have handed the "power of the purse" to the bankers and bureaucrats. In exchange for giving away the people's power over their government, Congress legally encumbered the nation's property, monetary, and banking systems in such a way as to maximize the federal government's power over every purse in every kitchen in America. All these legal and economic charades hide government tyranny behind so many layers of complexity that ordinary people throw up their hands in exasperation. What can possibly be done to thwart the machinations of the State when its illegitimate power grabs opened Pandora's box long ago? That feeling of hopelessness is exactly what bureaucrats crave. The more one denies his own agency, the more enslaved he is to whatever system he insists is oppressing him. The more one relies on a socialist system of government, the more he relinquishes individual liberty for the promises of assured survival and subsistence. The more one leans on government to provide human liberation, the further away from freedom he runs. Through the illusion of complexity, one resulting social order becomes guaranteed: a small ruling class controls everyone else. Here's the thing, though: once you realize that complex institutions exist largely to tame and subdue the public, then it's the people with extraordinarily simple yet powerful demands life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness who begin to resonate with everyone else. Should we ever find ourselves returning to those same basic foundations that were succinctly expressed in the Declaration's nimble 1,300 words, I propose we dispose with all laws on the book today and begin again with something exceedingly straightforward: All future legislation must be memorized and recited by at least one member of Congress before becoming law. After all, an easily understood Constitution + a limited bureaucracy = an empowered citizen. That's the American way. Image via Max Pixel. A few days ago, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, aka AOC, of New York informed her 8.6 million followers on Instagram that she was resorting to a new kind of resistance in the wake of the recent Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade. The idea of civil disobedience and resistance was introduced to modern Western political theory by David Thoreau over 173 years ago. Since then, civil disobedience has been used as a mechanism to express dissent against governments in a democracy. So, what was AOCs contribution to this civil disobedience movement going to be? Was she going to lead marches across the nation to protest the overturning of Roe V. Wade? Was she going to lead a strike that would cause a government shut down until the ruling that overturned Roe V. Wade was reversed? Perhaps she would resort to an indefinite hunger strike until the ruling that overturned Roe V. Wade was nullified? As Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher once said, "No! No! No!" AOC was instead going to redo her nails. You read that right: redo her nails to display her commitment to the resistance. The founding fathers of civil disobedience such as Mahatma Gandhi, MLK, and Nelson Mandela must feel like absolute dunces for not envisaging such novel means of resistance during their times. AOC began her Instagram session by wishing followers a happy Friday, adding that joy too can be an act of resistance. .@AOC says she is getting her nails done as an act of resistance post-Dobbs. pic.twitter.com/jqFA1PyhJk John Gage (@johnrobertgage) July 2, 2022 She went on to say the following: I want to talk about personal acts of reclamation because sometimes people will say theres nothing I can doI feel so powerless And there is no act too small that you can engage in, the Representative reminded her followers. Today, I have a personal errand: I need to redo my nails. And Ive decided that I am going to use my new manicure as almost like a personal act of reclamation for me and my story, @AOC says she finds red nails empowering because her family was socially conservative and believed they encouraged loose behavior. pic.twitter.com/UnSyNzFZfO John Gage (@johnrobertgage) July 2, 2022 AOC said she grew up in a socially conservative and religious environment where women wearing red nail varnish and red lipstick were frowned upon and considered loose and "ungovernable". She claimed to use red nail varnish and lipstick only after graduating and leaving her home, also as an act of resistance on the campaign trail. Both the content and style of presentation would have made an excellent comedy sketch. In fact, adding a laugh track to the video would make it more effective. Later AOC posted an image of her red-clad nails, with the caption: "Im gonna be a problem now, AS WE SHOULD BE. Now to get a local bite to eat." This was AOC's way of telling her followers that she had toiled for the resistance for which she deserved a meal. This isnt the only absurdity that AOC has expressed following the overturning of Roe v. Wade. AOC called upon Biden to create abortion clinics on federal land. AOC also recommended the impeachment of Supreme Justices Kavanaugh, Gorsuch, and Amy Coney Barret because she claims they misled the Senate about their positions on Roe v. Wade during their confirmation hearings. WATCH: If Supreme Court nominees lied under oath, @repaoc says impeachment should be very seriously considered. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez: "There must be consequences for such a deeply destabilizing action and hostile takeover of our Democratic institutions." pic.twitter.com/VLU8jsafw2 Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) June 26, 2022 AOC probably knows that her demands for impeachments of the SC justices or for abortion clinics on federal land are not achievable. She probably realizes her claims of redoing her nails as part of the resistance are utterly laughable. But she said it anyway because she knows her gullible voters and the way they think. She knows that people often conflate words for real action. She knows when challenged she can always claim to be just 1 among 435 representatives who despite her best intentions, she is powerless. She could also blame Biden and Pelosi for not leading the party. So, what does AOC really care for? The only cause that matters to AOC is AOC herself and nothing else. While she claims to be against guns and for defunding the police, it only applies to the average citizen. AOC spends thousands on her personal security, including over $4k to an ex-Blackwater contractor. AOC had no time to spare for the exploited Amazon workers in New York who were attempting to unionize. AOC did not respond to multiple invites from union leaders. AOC did have time for the ostentatious MET Gala where tickets are priced at $35,000 per head. The gala was occurring just yards from where the NYPD was arresting "defund the police" protesters a cause that AOC claims to support. AOC is no different from an actor playing a part. Perhaps she is following the Stanislavski system or the method where performers really believe they are the character they play. Perhaps AOC really believes what she is saying and fails to realize how ludicrous she sounds. Obviously, no performance works without a strong script. AOC spends most of her time virtue signaling and portraying herself as a victim. She also talks about compassion for minorities, illegal immigrants, and LGBT+ people. She attends an occasional protest. She has effectively used social media to promote herself and present herself as a regular person addressing her voters informally. Every utterance from AOC works toward building her image. She has accumulated enough clout such that her refusal to endorse Biden in 2024 caused headlines. The fact that AOC hasnt been primaried and rejected by the electorate despite her relentless amateur display proves that she is, despite her appearance and utterance, no fool. She knows her voters and is giving them exactly what they want --i.e., style instead of substance, hype instead of achievement, and words instead of work. AOC will be elected to Congress for as long as she wants. She could even rise higher, much higher. British prime minister Boris Johnson came out with a whopper. In a television interview, Johnson issued this broadside: "If Putin was a woman ... I really don't think he would've embarked on a crazy, macho war of invasion and violence in the way that he has," Johnson told German broadcaster ZDF, adding that "if you want a perfect example of toxic masculinity, it's what he's [Putin] is doing in Ukraine." Johnson obviously had ignored his history lessons. Because one of the greatest expansions of modern Russia took place under Catherine the Great. During her rule in the 1700s, Russia colonized the territory of Novorossiya in southern Ukraine, and Crimea was crushed during the Russo-Turkish War. This is why Catherine was later granted the sobriquet "the Great." Indeed, one historian has credited Catherine herself for Putin's recent adventurism into Ukrainian. Boris Johnson's facile ignorance of history becomes even more eyebrow-raising when you consider Margaret Thatcher's role in waging the Falkland Islands War in 1982. You may recall how Thatcher ordered the deployment of 38 warships; 77 auxiliary vessels; and 11,000 soldiers, sailors, and marines in a bid to protect the remote South Atlantic island. As a result, 649 Argentine military personnel and 255 British troops perished during the conflict. Margaret Thatcher was not the first female English monarch to succumb to bouts of toxic femininity. Beginning in 1553, Queen Mary I, also known as Bloody Mary, betrayed a fondness for burning hundreds of heretic Protestants at the stake. And Queen Anne was the first English monarch to have an entire war named in her honor Queen Anne's War. Thanks to her support, that devastating conflict ravished North America and Europe for over a decade. Moving on to Spain, the scheming Queen Isabella II sponsored a series of military sorties, including the pointless Chincha Islands War against Peru and Chile in 1864 to 1866. No discussion of female leaders would be complete without mention of Israeli prime minister Golda Meir and her role in carrying out the Six Day War in 1967. And what about the United States? In September 2001, Islamic terrorists hijacked three airplanes, resulting in the destruction of the World Trade Center towers and a treacherous attack on the Pentagon. Days after the 9/11 attacks, an Authorization to Use Military Force was brought before Congress. All but one female member of Congress voted in favor of the authorization to "use all necessary and appropriate force" to wage the War on Terror. Ten years later, Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi's security forces killed protesters in Tripoli, touching off a civil war. The American secretary of state was none other than Hillary Clinton, a woman. Clinton demanded that President Obama take military action. Within days, U.S. warplanes decimated Libya's air defenses. Gaddafi was eventually captured and brutally killed. Clinton later bragged, "We came, we saw, he died." (Hilariously, a few months later, Hillary Clinton convinced President Obama to issue an executive order launching the National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security, heralding "the role of women in ending conflict and building lasting security." Yes, really.) Bellicose proclivities are not limited to female political leaders. In his enlightening book, War and Gender, University of Massachusetts professor Joshua Goldstein documents how women throughout history have fomented military adventurism. In the face of imminent conflict, Goldstein documents how women goad their men into combat. Among the Bedouin, frenzied Rwala women bared their breasts and urged their men to war. Before the 1973 coup in Chile, women threw kernels of corn at soldiers to taunt them as "chickens." In the American Revolutionary War, women were known to withhold sexual favors from reluctant fighters. During the Civil War, Southern belles refused to accept suitors who did not take up arms. Goldstein also highlights the White Feather Girls who roamed the cities of England during World War I. They sought to humiliate able-bodied men who had not enlisted to fight in the conflict, pinning white feathers to their lapels. Based on his scholarly review, Goldstein reaches a simple conclusion: "Most women support most wars." It's time to consign archaic phrases like "toxic masculinity" to the dustbin of history and cast doubt on gauzy claims that women are somehow more peace-loving than men. Edward E. Bartlett is a former university professor and worked for 17 years for the Department of Health and Human Services. Image via Pixnio. We know that Democrats and the media (who still claim that no voter fraud of consequence took place in 2020) will try to cheat in November. In light of this, there is no excuse for not acting right now to avoid fraudulent voting and vote-counting as much as is possible. The wheels of legislation can grind exceedingly slowly, so fixing this must begin today. A relatively fraud-free election can happen in November. GOP legislators and GOP voters, as well as the rest of the country, will suffer enormously if our Congress people do nothing today to prevent another fiasco like 2020. Waiting is not an option. Trying to fix problems after the election did not work. This time, we will have to head off problems ahead of the election. In view of the deep corruption in American politics, here is how we can fix this right now with advance planning. Above all, make a law saying that all ballots must be counted by midnight on election evening. Any votes "found" after midnight, without exception, will not be counted. Period. Any unexplained stopping of the vote count will be punishable by imprisonment. In case of a technical problem where votes in a state/city cannot be reported, they will be hand-counted using a paper-backup printout. After midnight, no votes shall be counted. To avoid vote-counters running out the clock and neglecting to count ballots for the candidate they want to lose, severe criminal penalties will be imposed on any jurisdiction that fails to count all the votes by midnight. The excuse of not having hired enough vote-counters will not be valid. Go back to paper ballots: voting machines have several ways votes can easily be manipulated. An algorithm can be programmed to create two Democrat votes for every Republican vote cast, for example. Paper ballots must have signatures that match those on another official document, the address must match that on the driver's license, and the ballot must be uniform from state to state. Include a watermark if necessary. If we can afford to send millions of dollars to Ukraine, we can afford to secure honest elections here at home. Implement voter ID. Black people are not stupid; they can get an ID easily, and they know how to find the elections offices to do so, so the accusation of disenfranchisement or racism will not stand. Voters must show up in person. If they cannot, their ballot must be delivered by certified mail in advance of voting day. If people must have a certified mail receipt to guarantee the delivery of certain packages or registered mail items, they can do the same with their vote. A public service TV ad on all stations telling shut-ins how to vote will be broadcast for two months prior to all elections. No one's vote will be denied. Eliminate mail-in ballots except for the military, whose votes could possibly be delayed. Those votes must be counted by midnight on voting night, which means they need to be cast earlier than voting day. Anyone who wants to vote and suspects that his vote will arrive later than voting day must make allowances for delays. Late votes will not be counted. Americans have been making a mistake in thinking their vote is always secure and that their votes will always matter. We know too much now, and we cannot afford to make the same mistakes again. We need considerably more forethought and vigilance before November; these problems need fixing now, before the election. We will have learned nothing if we wait until after November's election to attempt to rectify the fraud problem. Let's not be stupid again. Democrats are relying on the placidity of Republicans who are not used to fighting back. Why have no Republican legislators done anything substantive about this to date? We have had a year and a half to fix this, and nothing of consequence has been done. Let's bring a legislative gun, not a pea-shooter to this fight today not tomorrow, when it will be too late. Image: tom.arthur via Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. Just a couple of days after Unilever, the corporate parent of Ben & Jerrys Ice Cream, finessed a solution to reverse the end of sales in the West Bank of Israel, which sparked a massive protest and threats of a boycott, another embarrassing situation has arisen out of the troubled brand. Alana Goodman reports in the Washington Free Beacon: The Ben & Jerrys Foundation steered more than $100,000 to a charity run by its own president, in the second case of a sitting board members nonprofit group benefiting from the foundations grants. Social Ventures Inc., a charity run by Ben & Jerrys board member Jeff Furman, raked in around $118,000 from the Ben & Jerrys Foundation between 2016 and 2020, according to financial disclosure records. During this time, Furman served as president of the Ben & Jerrys Foundation from 2018 to 2020 and as treasurer in 2016 and 2017. He was also a member of Ben & Jerrys corporate board and in-house counsel for more than 30 years, according to the foundations website. It's a big no-no in the eyes of the IRS for people involved in managing a foundation to engage in self-dealing, defined by the IRS as the "transfer to, or use by or for the benefit of, a disqualified person of the income or assets of a private foundation." Furmans own charity receiving substantial funding from B&JF (one quarter of Social Ventures revenue in 2020) certainly has the appearance of self-dealing. And it is not the only such instance at the Foundation: Last year, the National Legal and Policy Center filed a complaint with the IRS over the Ben & Jerrys Foundations grants to a different nonprofit group run by another director at the foundation, Anuradha Mittal. Mittal has been a trustee on the Ben & Jerrys Foundation board since 2012 and also serves on the independent company board. During this time, the Ben & Jerrys Foundation gave $195,000 to the Oakland Institute, an anti-Israel nonprofit group run by Mittal that has published columns in support of Hezbollah and Hamas. But it starts to get incestuous: Mittal and Furman appear to have a close working relationship. Furman serves on the board of Mittals Oakland Institute, and he recruited her to the board of Ben & Jerrys, according to the New York Post. So, two charities run by board members of the B&JF have received substantial grants from it, and the two directors work together outside of the B&JF. Needless to say, both Social Ventures and The Oakland Institute are devoted to left wing causes. While unsavory in appearance, such problems of self-dealing are a constant danger for foundations which, especially once their founders leave active management, have little accountability to outsiders, other than to the IRS. Most foundation boards are self-perpetuating, meaning that the board itself picks replacements when directors leave. Quite often this ends up with left wingers capturing foundations, owing to the lefts dominance of most organs of education, media and nonprofits. Such self-perpetuating boards of directors at foundations are an open invitation to abuse. Once the original donor and his (occasionally her) cohort leave the board as time passes, it becomes very difficult to maintain a focus on the original goals and all too easy to favor grantees with special claims on the allegiance of board members. This is especially true at foundations that are not in the public eye. It is structural (or systemic in the current jargon) owing to the lack of mechanisms to restrain the natural effect of self interest on board members decisions. Foundations should not be immortal. They should be forced to spend the assets given them within a fixed period (20 years seems about right) and shut down. Thats the ONLY way to solve this structural problem. The Supreme Court has recently ruled in favor of constitutional doctrine on three of the most fraught issues of our time: guns, religion, and abortion. The ruling on guns simply affirmed the Second Amendment, which states A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. Obviously, the word bear means to carry a gun around. A person who keeps a gun in their home does not generally walk around with it in a holster. The ruling on religion affirmed the right of a person to pray in public as long as the prayer wasnt pursuant to a government policy... or seeking to convey a government-created message. The left reacted with predictable anger to the Constitution being upheld in these areas. When it comes to the ruling on abortion, though, the left has reacted with downright hysteria, even though the decision did not outlaw abortion at the federal level. The decision of how to regulate it has simply been returned to the states. The left considers abortion to be a beautiful thing. The website Shout Your Abortion was created to normalize the procedure. Protests against the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade have spread across the country. Image: A pregnant man (or as they used to be known in circuses, the bearded lady). YouTube screen grab. I cant help wondering why people are so upset about this ruling. We have been told for years that sex is not biological. We have been told for years that men who want to be women actually are women in every sense of the word. We have been told that menstrual products must be available in mens rooms. We have been told to substitute pregnant people and chestfeeding for pregnant women and breastfeeding. Surely we cannot turn the clock back at this late date and resort to scientific reality about biology. If men are not men and girls are not girls, wouldnt it just be simpler all around just to identify as non-pregnant rather than getting an abortion? On the other hand, if pregnancy is an actual biological fact that only occurs to real women, perhaps its time to reject magical thinking and get back to science, which has proven that a human life begins at conception. Pandra Selivanov is the author of Future Slave, a story about a 21st century black teenager who goes back in time and becomes a slave in the old south. Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly attributed its authorship. It is solely Pandra Selivanov's work. North Macedonia: government and opposition divided Unsuccessful Kovacevski-Mickoski. New protests in Skopje (ANSA) - BELGRADE, 03 LUG - In North Macedonia, government and opposition remain divided over whether to accept the new revised French proposal to override the Bulgarian veto and begin EU negotiations with Skopje. This emerged from a meeting today between their respective leaders-Premier Dimitar Kovacevski, head of the Social Democratic Party (Sdsm), and Hristijan Mickoski, leader of the conservative Vmro-Dpmne party, the main opposition force. For Kovacevski-as reported by regional media-the French proposal offers the last real chance to pave the way for negotiations on North Macedonia's accession to the EU, a historic moment comparable to the proclamation of independence and last years' agreement with Greece. Mickoski, on the other hand, reiterated his position that the Paris proposal is contrary to Macedonian national interests, does not guarantee the country's European future but on the contrary favors the "assimilation and Bulgarization" of the Macedonian population. In favor of accepting the French document was President Stevo Pendarovski, for whom it is an acceptable compromise. A new protest demonstration against the French proposal was held in Skopje in the evening, organized by the oppositions under the slogan 'Ultimatum - No, thank you'. (ANSA). Copyright ANSA - All rights reserved HANOI, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam recorded 512 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, down by 218 from Saturday, according to its Ministry of Health. The newly reported infections brought the total tally to 10,748,639 with 43,087 deaths. Nationwide, 9,708,984 COVID-19 patients, or over 90 percent of the total infections, have so far recovered. Nearly 233.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in the Southeast Asian country, including more than 206.6 million shots on people aged 18 and above, according to the ministry. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) Representatives for Ricky Martin have denied allegations that led to a restraining order against the Puerto Rican superstar, who has not been charged with any crime. Police said Saturday that a judge had issued the order against Martin, but authorities trying to serve the order were unable to find the superstar in the Puerto Rican town of Dorado where he lives. The order was filed under Puerto Ricos domestic violence law and police spokesman Axel Valencia said he could not provide further details, including who filed the order. Representatives for Martin described the allegations as completely false and fabricated, People magazine reported. It did not name the representatives. We are very confident that when the true facts come out in this matter our client Ricky Martin will be fully vindicated, they told the magazine. El Vocero, a Puerto Rico newspaper, said the order states that Martin and the other person dated for seven months. The report quotes the order as saying they broke up two months ago, but the petitioner says Martin did not accept the separation and has been seen loitering near the petitioners house at least three times. The petitioner fears for his safety, El Vocero quoted the order as saying. AP has not obtained a copy of the order. Harry Styles said he was heartbroken and devastated after his concert in Copenhagen was cancelled following a fatal shooting at a nearby shopping centre. The former One Direction star, 28, was due to take to the stage at the Royal Arena venue on Sunday night as part of his highly anticipated Love On Tour shows. However, on Sunday afternoon Danish police responded to a shooting at the Fields shopping centre less than a mile from the arena, which is situated on the southern outskirts of the city. People react outside Fields shopping centre in Copenhagen (Olafur Steinar Gestsson/Ritzau Scanpix via AP) In a tweet, Styles said he was heartbroken and devastated for the victims. Im heartbroken along with the people of Copenhagen, he said. I adore this city. The people are so warm and full of love. Im devastated for the victims, their families, and everyone hurting. Im sorry we couldnt be together. Please look after each other. H. Police in Denmark say three people were killed and three are in a critical condition, the Associated Press reported, while a 22-year-old Danish man has been arrested after being detained near the site. A statement from concert promoter Live Nation said: Tonights concert with Harry Styles has been cancelled by direction of the Danish Police. We are all truly devastated by the events of today and our thoughts are with the victims and their families. We are looking into future possibilities for the show, and hope to be able to give ticket buyers direct information as soon as possible. Im heartbroken along with the people of Copenhagen. I adore this city. The people are so warm and full of love. Im devastated for the victims, their families, and everyone hurting. Im sorry we couldnt be together. Please look after each other. H Harry Styles. (@Harry_Styles) July 3, 2022 Large crowds had already gathered inside the arena when the shows cancellation was announced and they were asked to leave. Acts such as Pearl Jam and Queen + Adam Lambert are also due to perform at the venue in the coming weeks. Following the shooting, the Danish royal palace announced it had cancelled a reception with Crown Prince Frederik connected to the Tour de France. The reception was due to be held on the royal yacht that is moored in Sonderborg, the town where the third stage of the race ended this year. Styles was due to take his Love On Tour show around the world in 2020 before the pandemic brought the live music industry to a standstill. The rescheduled tour began in September 2021 in Las Vegas before heading across the US, with the European tour leg kicking off in Glasgow last month. Styles most recent album, Harrys House, was warmly received by critics and lead single As It Was recently claimed its 10th week at number one in the UK. PG&E has been given more time to consider whether to apply for federal funding to keep Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant open and operating. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently granted the utility companys request to extend the deadline for the Civil Nuclear Credit program, a $6 billion funding initiative to help keep struggling nuclear power plants operational. The deadline was pushed back from July 5 to Sept. 6, according to the DOE. PG&E spokesperson Lynsey Paulo noted that PG&E is still considering whether it will apply for the funds, which would reduce costs to our customers should the state want to preserve the option to extend (Diablo Canyon) operations to help ensure grid reliability. State funding also might be available to keep the power plant operational. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the energy trailer bill on Thursday with $75 million allocated to the state Department of Water Resources to potentially prolong the plants life. The governor requested this language, not as a decision to move ahead with continuing operation of Diablo Canyon, but to protect the option to do that if a future decision is made, state Sen. John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, told CalMatters. Since 2018, its been expected that Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant would close its two reactors in 2024 and 2025, after its licenses expired. However, a recent shift has caused many to call for the power plant to stay open, despite strong opposition from anti-nuclear groups. Experts agree that keeping Diablo Canyon open for a transitionary period will be critical to keeping the lights on and the AC running, said Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham, R-San Luis Obispo. Even with expected capital improvement costs, continuing the plants operation will save ratepayers billions, according to a study by MIT and Stanford and thats without accounting for the billions in state and federal funding that might be available to help defray costs. Cunningham added that closing the power plant will come at significant costs to ratepayers, as the state would be forced to buy even more expensive, out-of-state power on the spot market. San Luis Obispo Mothers For Peace, an advocacy group opposed to Diablo Canyon remaining open, wrote in a letter to the DOE on Monday that the federal government shouldnt focus its funding on prolonging the life of the power plant. Diablo Canyons closure will do much more for Californias climate goals, local communities and economic and environmental justice than would be provided by including Diablo Canyon in the (Civil Nuclear Credit) program, the letter said. As for how much money it would cost to keep Diablo Canyon open, PG&E doesnt appear to know quite yet. Current state policy is to retire (Diablo Canyon) at the end of its current licenses, PG&E spokesperson Paulo wrote in an email to The Tribune. If there were a change in state policy, PG&E believes that either the state itself or customers of all local-serving entities in the state should help fund that option. Given that the governor only recently asked us to explore the steps needed to preserve the option of continued operations and our ongoing evaluations of DOE guidance, we dont have any (cost) estimates to share at this time, she added. A 21-year-old Modesto man has been sentenced on vehicular manslaughter and other charges connected to a December 2020 fatal crash, authorities said, in a case that was delayed when the defendant claimed to have COVID-19 last year. According to a release issued by the Stanislaus County District Attorneys Office, Nicolas Villela IV was ordered to serve 12 years, eight months in prison after pleading guilty in April to vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence with a blood alcohol content over .08% and causing great bodily injury. The Dec. 5 crash resulted in the death of Francisco Diaz Lomeli, 20. Four others suffered serious injuries and three more were hurt. According to authorities, Villela had been drinking alcohol at a party in Modesto when he left with three passengers to pick up more friends at the skateboard park in Oakdale. On the way there, Villela swerved into oncoming traffic. At the park, he picked up more friends, making for seven occupants in a Nissan Altima designed to hold only five. Villela drove back to Modesto at speeds of up to 80 miles per hour while weaving within and outside his lane of travel, the news release said. Testimony in court later revealed that Villelas driving made his passengers worried, nervous and scared, and they told him to slow down. At one point, Villela got so upset by his passengers comments that he stopped the car, got out and briefly walked away before getting back into the drivers seat and continuing to drive at a high rate of speed up to the moment of the crash, authorities said in the news release. Villela ran the stop sign at Langworth and Claribel roads, and the Altima crashed into the passenger side of a car being driven by Deborah Mendez. Her passenger, Lomeli, was killed instantly. The six passengers in Villelas vehicle suffered varying degrees of injuries from broken bones and lacerations to complaints of pain. Nineteen people nearby residents and drivers in the area helped the injured and put out a fire that started in the car. At the scene, Villela was uncooperative, hostile and belligerent to emergency personnel who responded to the crash, prosecutors said. He did admit to California Highway Patrol Officer Jason Evans that he had been driving too fast, he had previously known mechanical problems with his brakes and that he had been drinking alcohol before picking up his brother at the skate park and was heading back to Modesto. Villela, who suffered minor injuries, fought emergency personnel who tried to strap him to a gurney, and assaulted Evans. A subsequent blood test showed Villelas blood alcohol level to be 0.149%, well above the legal limit of 0.08%. A preliminary hearing to determine if there was enough evidence to hold Villela for trial started in August 2021 but was repeatedly delayed due to claims of COVID-19. Villelas bail was revoked and he was taken into custody on Nov. 19 after presenting what authorities believed was a fraudulent COVID-19 test result. Judge Dawna Reeves held the defendant to answer as charged on Dec. 15, 2021. He pleaded guilty at his scheduled arraignment four months later. Lomelis family members offered victim impact statements, saying that Lomelis life was snuffed out by someone elses irresponsibility, selfishness and bad decisions. Keep silent I would like to offer some advice for our esteemed Idaho congressmen and senators. Save your political skin. Maintain your silence about the testimony in the Jan. 6 hearings. Stay in the basement. Never say a word to rock Trumps explosive boat because Wayne Hoffman could be coming after you. Dick Bennett, Boise Surface parking The controversy regarding disappearing affordable surface parking is real the city and mayor want it gone. Its something used and needed by us regular Joes, and they dont care it doesnt look fancy and make them money. Theres the core of citizens like the north end that live, breath and spend their money right in Boises center. They rule Boise, which is becoming another Seattle the mayors goal. Gotta have fancy buildings for the deep pockets moving here. Small businesses arent what Boise wants to support and is forcing them out by any means, just like long-time residents being taxed out of their homes. Few older citizens bicycle or walk to commute, and Boise has the worst bus system ever. Boise doesnt care about those who must commute for work downtown, made obvious by better than thou comments. Small businesses, do yourself and your employees a favor move from downtown. Im very glad my employer moved us out. I dont miss the traffic, the bicycles, the long time it takes to go a few blocks, the expensive shops, the unpleasant parking endorsed by the city. You can keep downtown, Im much better off without it. Leah Shaw, Boise Leave Yemen According to the US Constitution, and reiterated by the War Powers Act of 1973, our armed forces are not to engage in foreign war unless authorized by Congress. In spite of this, our country has been involved in the Yemen Civil War for nearly a decade, with no such authorization. United States military involvement in this conflict includes providing weapons, assisting in targeting selection and actively flying refueling missions. I am happy to report that on June 28, the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee voted overwhelmingly to support H.J.Res.87 Directing the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the Republic of Yemen that have not been authorized by Congress. Please join the KCRCC in urging Rep. Russ Fulcher to co-sponsor this bill and for Sens. Jim Risch and Mike Crapo to do everything in their power to withdraw our military from the ill-advised foreign entanglement in Yemen. Bjorn Handeen, Coeur dAlene Justices lied Many have been talking about the ruling on abortion by the Supreme Court. Here is my example: What if you had a supervisor that had to inspect rigging daily and document or repair all problems before work can begin. What if this supervisor signs a statement under penalty of perjury that he performed all task? Now, lets say an accident happened that led to a death, and it was due to the supervisor lying about what he did. Do you think that supervisor should be held accountable for the accident? Here we have the Supreme Court which has three justices who swore under oath that the abortion question was settled law. Yet, all three of these people voted to rescind that law. These justices are guilty of perjury. Now, if a woman dies from an abortion, then these three justices should be arrested for manslaughter at the least. The law is the law, you commit perjury, then you should go to jail. If your perjury causes a death, then you should be held responsible for that death. Jerry Johnson, Payette Salmon plan An abundance of salmon in Idahos rivers is necessary for Idahos ecosystems. Salmon are a keystone species and support life from the Pacific ocean to mountain tributaries. Unfortunately, our salmon populations are declining due to the four lower dams on the Snake River. Removal of these dams is necessary for the restoration of chinook, steelhead, sockeye and coho populations. Congressman Simpsons plan for the Northwest emphasizes the importance of salmon and steelhead revival, energy infrastructure, and tribal justice. His plan to remove the earthen berms next to the four lower dams would double the rate of wild fish returning to Idaho, leading to recovery and abundance, according to the Fish Passage Center. Without wild salmon populations returning to Idahos rivers, many indigenous communities will be harmed. If we follow Congressman Simpsons plan in dam removal, we can take a step forward in returning traditional fishing grounds to their full abundance, boost steelhead and salmon populations, and propose for an investment in Northwest energy infrastructure. Im a part of the Youth Salmon Protectors, working to make Simpsons plan a reality. I urge readers to call their elected leaders and ask them to come to the table and stop salmon extinction. Ruby Bollinger, Boise New responsibility There are some reasons for abortion health of the mother, was the baby the result of a crime? However, if you bypassed birth control, and had a roll in hay without worrying about what might happened, you now have the responsibility of your decision to face the reality you have made a human being. With, Roe v. Wade, it was easy to go kill the child. Now it is time to think before you act, and if you are about to give a life or destroy it, because you didnt think of what could happen when you were having a good time, it is time to do the right thing. There are so many women who would love to raise that gift from God. If you are a good human, and realize you have created a life, there are ways to handle it, and get help. It is a major decision, and if you are in that situation, getting counseling is important. If you have character, and can make things right, make the right decision. Dave Silva, Boise Ohio police released graphic body camera video and additional details Sunday about the shooting of Black motorist Jayland Walker, showing for the first time the moment eight officers released a barrage of bullets at Walker as he ran. Akron officers said they tried to stop Walker, 25, on June 27 on unspecified traffic violations and chased him when he did not pull over, police said in a statement. Police said officers "reported a firearm being discharged from the suspect vehicle" during the pursuit. Walker then jumped out of his car and officers chased him on foot, police said. Actions by the suspect caused the officers to perceive he posed a deadly threat to them, police said. In response to this threat, officers discharged their firearms, striking the suspect. Police said at a news conference Sunday that officers pursued Walker's car on the expressway for several minutes before they exited on a ramp. After the chase on city streets, Walker's car slowed, and he got out through the passenger side door as the car continued to roll forward, police said. Officers tried to stop Walker using stun guns and opened fire after the stun guns failed, according to the department's retelling. Police Chief Steve Mylett did not know the traffic or equipment violation officers cited in trying to pull Walker over. Eight officers have been placed on paid administrative leave as part of protocol in a police shooting, Mylett said. The Ohio attorney generals Bureau of Criminal Investigation, or BCI, will lead the probe of police use of force. In a statement Sunday, the Akron chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police said it believes investigators will find that the officers' actions and the number of shots were justified. "Officers reasonably believed that Mr. Walker presented an immediate threat of serious physical harm or death and lawfully ... discharged their weapons," the statement said. Walkers family has questioned the use of deadly force. An attorney for the family, Bobby DiCello, said he reviewed the body camera video with the family Thursday. Police publicly released the body camera video Sunday from eight officers who opened fire and five others who were at the scene. A protester stares down an Akron police officer outside the Harold K. Stubbs Justice Center during a protest on July 2, 2022, in Akron, Ohio, after Akron police officers shot and killed Jayland Walker earlier. (Jeff Lange / Akron Beacon Journal via USA TODAY Network) DiCello said that Walker was fleeing from police when they shot at him and that he has not seen any evidence yet about allegations that Walker shot at officers. "They descend upon him, and the first two of many officers there use their Tasers," he said. "There can be no doubt he was unarmed at the time he exited the vehicle. Its a nonlethal force when you have a nonlethal threat." DiCello said Mylett did not claim during his viewing last week that Walker made any threatening moves that would have justified his killing. "The chief told us Thursday when he showed us the video that he could not find the movement that caused the shot," he said. DiCello told the Akron Beacon Journal on Saturday that dozens of shots were fired. He is just in a down sprint when he is dropped by I think the count is more than 90 shots, DiCello told the newspaper. Now, how many of those land, according to our investigation right now, were getting details that suggest 60 to 80 wounds. Citing autopsy photos and interviews with police sources, NBC affiliate WKYC of Cleveland reported that Walker was hit dozens of times. NBC News has not obtained a copy of the autopsy report. Mylett confirmed Sunday that the medical examiner observed 60 wounds to Walker's body, but he said the injuries had not been differentiated between entrance and exit wounds. "We do not know the exact number of rounds that were fired. However, based on the video, I anticipate that number to be high. And I will not be surprised if the number at the end of the investigation is consistent with the number that has been circulating in the media, but right now we just don't know," Mylett said. Asked about DiCellos comments about not seeing Walker brandish a gun at officers, Mylett said that the investigation is still ongoing and that it is difficult to obtain details from watching the video in real time. A handgun and a loaded magazine were found on the driver's seat, police said. Police went back to the scene where officers said they heard a gun being discharged from Walker's car, Mylett said. "A casing was discovered at that location consistent with a firearm that Mr. Walker had in his vehicle. BCI will determine whether or not that casing came from the gun or not," he said. Officers independently reported seeing Walker turn in a way that they thought might be a firing position, Mylett told reporters. No gun was found on Walkers body. DiCello told NBC News that the gun appeared to be legal, and he emphasized that it was unloaded, even though ammunition was nearby. He also rebutted the department's contention that Walker fired one round during the pursuit, saying there is no evidence, besides officers' word, that that happened. If Walker did shoot, he said, "the discharge of a firearm in the presence of police does not allow the police to shoot you." He added that while some white suspects who are armed or who open fire in the presence of police live to face their days in court, "my client is in the morgue tonight, and all he did is run from his vehicle." The Fraternal Order of Police said in its statement Sunday that a state Transportation Department camera recorded a muzzle flash as Walker led officers on the chase. The flash was highlighted in video police released Sunday. DiCello spoke to reporters on behalf of Walker's family after the news conference, urging them to ask for peace following the release of the video. "I came here to say what our message is, and that is peace," DiCello said. "If you can do anything for the family, please give peace. Give dignity and give justice a chance." He reiterated the familys wishes in an interview Sunday evening, saying, Please, we want peace, and we want dignity, and we want justice for Jayland. The mood appeared tense late Sunday, with temporary barriers knocked down, at least one window smashed and an apparent dumpster fire, WKYC reported. Officers in riot gear responded and tear gas was fired near the citys Stubbs Justice Center and adjacent police headquarters, the station reported. By early Monday, the number of demonstrators left on the streets seemed to have dwindled, with many of those remaining congregating in small groups. DiCello, the lawyer for Walkers family, said at the news conference that he had seen the video three times by the time he spoke Sunday and that it "doesn't get any easier." "They want to turn him into a masked monster with a gun, and we knew that," DiCello said. "But I want to thank the chief for one thing he said, at the time he was shot ... he was unarmed." DiCello expressed a number of concerns to reporters about the investigation, including whether officers had made statements to the attorney general's investigators by Sunday. He also alleged that he was initially told that the gun in Walker's car was found in the back seat, even though police now say it was in the driver's seat. Walker's girlfriend died a month before his death. DiCello said his family did not observe any issues about his behavior in his grief. "I mean, he was sad, but he was getting through it, and the family was just as surprised as I am today. ... Knowing what's happened here is a big mystery for them," DiCello said. He noted that Walker had no criminal history. A review of public records by NBC News found no criminal records or civil lawsuits against Walker. The single record found in Walker's name was a 2017 speeding ticket in Akron Municipal Court. Protesters have peacefully demonstrated in Akron for days, demanding more transparency and accountability in Walker's death. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, a native of Akron, tweeted that he was praying for his city before the news conference Sunday. Mayor Dan Horrigan canceled the city's Fourth of July festivities amid the ongoing protests and the investigation, saying now "is not the time for a city-led celebration." Horrigan urged residents before the video was released Sunday to remain peaceful, citing Walker's family's desire for them to refrain from violence. "Youre going to have to do one of the most difficult things I can ever ask anyone to do and that is to please be patient and let the attorney general do their work," Horrigan said. A rally was scheduled after the news conference, and a number of protesters gathered calmly awaiting speeches by local clergy, WKYC reported. NAACP President Derrick Johnson described Walker's death in a statement Sunday as a "murder" and said pulling over for police "is often a death sentence." "This Black man was killed struck more than 60 times by 90 fired bullets for a possible traffic violation," Johnson said. "This doesn't happen to white people in America. Why do police continuously target us like domestic terrorists? We are just trying to live our lives, and we are tired of being hunted like prey." The important word he left out So a Republican precinct chair writes on the Opinion page to suggest actions after the horrific attack in Uvalde. (June 29, 11A, To prevent mass shootings such as Uvalde, we must help youths) His solutions are to harden schools, train students to look for red flags in their peers, have the media not mention shooters names and get schools and police to work together. That should fix everything. You know what word wasnt in his commentary? Gun. Sure, work on those other things. But lets get serious. Until we address gun worship in this state and look at reworking the Second Amendment to its original meaning, we are left to wonder if our childs school is next. - Michael Wagner, Irving Roes reversal is a good The overturning of Roe v. Wade was a momentous victory for American democracy. Almost 50 years ago, seven liberal justices took the abortion issue out of the hands of the people. Fridays ruling does not ban abortion at the federal level, but merely puts the decision back into the hands of we the people, where it belongs. The founders never wanted laws made by unelected judges, as was the case with Roe v. Wade. In recent decades, liberal judges have legislated from the bench and the people have had little or no say. This is not democracy. This is oligarchy: rule by a few. All who believe in American democracy should applaud the justices. They returned power to the people, preserved Americas constitutional form of government and gave new hope for the nations future. - Eddie L. Hyatt, Grapevine A painful set of memories In 1972, I got pregnant at 18 and decided to have an abortion. I got a phone number off a billboard for an abortion clinic in Los Angeles. I flew from Love Field to L.A. and attended, with 100 other girls, a seminar explaining what would happen. The next morning, a van took us to the clinic for the procedure. I was home in one day. Traumatized at such a young age: Is this what these poor girls are going to have to rely on? - Debra Nelson, Fort Worth More punishment, gun training The answer to gun violence is clear and simple: punishing, daylong hard labor for those who commit crimes with deadly force. No more watching TV in the day room. We also need mandatory annual state militia training for those who own military-grade rifles. - Sid Barnes, Azle More of us care than you know A recent Star-Telegram letter writer has the mistaken belief that roughly half of American citizens no longer care for democracy, as long as their political interests are served. (June 26, 4C) A Gallup poll indicates that roughly 40% of Americans are independent, and the remaining 60% is roughly divided equally between Democrats and Republicans. One should be optimistic that fewer than a third of Americans are entrenched into the Republican mindset of party over country. Dont make the error of pessimism in the outlook that 70% of us who care about the health of our country and the democracy we need to preserve cannot easily overcome the 30%. - S.R. DeWees, Arlington Court upheld the Constitution After reading Tuesdays letters to the editor, (9A) I wondered what planet these people are from. The Constitution and Bill of Rights are the law of the land. The Supreme Court rules on the basis of our Constitution. Abortion is not in the Constitution. Thank God for the justices decision to stand for life. - Sandra Lewis, Joshua Dont compound the abuse Texas state legislators, please reconsider your total ban on abortions or youll end up punishing survivors of rape and incest. By denying these women and girls the right to end their pregnancies, youre forcing them to relive every day for nine months the times they were assaulted. More babies available for adoption? These women and girls are human beings, not baby factories. Consider, too, the kind of care babies possibly receive from mothers forced to carry for nine months and give birth to unwanted children. Legislators, youve shown us that youre tough on abortions. Now its time to show empathy for these victims. At the very least, change the laws to provide exceptions for rape and incest. - Roger Tuttle, Fort Worth Express your opinion! Fill out this form to submit a Letter to the Editor. Submit The PM asked party leaders and cadre to be more effective in countering Opposition propaganda against the party Prime Minister Narendra Mod with BJP president J.P Nadda and Union minister Piyush Goyal during the BJP's national executive meeting in Hyderabad on Saturday. (Deepak Deshpande/DC) Hyderabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed his anguish over the Opposition parties politicising every initiative of his government aimed at the countrys overall growth and uplifting the poor. He was intervening in the discussion on the lone resolution on the economy and Garib Kalyan passed by the national executive on the first day. Defence minister Rajnath Singh introduced the resolution. Sources told Deccan Chronicle that the Prime Minister asked party leaders and cadre to be more effective in countering Opposition propaganda against the party and the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre. He referred to the agitation over farm laws and attempts to instigate youth against the Agnipath scheme, sources said. The first day of the national executive, however, stayed away from controversial issues, including the latest conflict over former spokesperson Nupur Sharmas comments and subsequent attacks on those who supported her comments. The Prime Minister also asked the presidents of all state units not to turn the home-stay programme into a routine and customary activity. Its not sufficient to just visit villages, we need to stay put for two or three days and interact with people, besides taking the governments initiatives to them, he said. Modi also made a specific reference to the welfare of fishermen. Maintaining that the NDA entrusted the ministry concerned to a fisherman, he said the potential of the sector needed to be harnessed more in the backdrop of the country having lengthy coast both on the eastern and western sides. The minister reminded the Congress of its leaders massacring Sikhs in 1984 post Indira Gandhis assassination Hyderabad: Union information and broadcasting minister Anurag Singh Thakur on Saturday found fault with the Congress for taking shelter under the Supreme Court observations on the controversial remarks of BJP former spokesperson Nupur Sharma while concealing its own incompetence that indeed resulted in Udaipur tailors murder. Speaking to media persons here, the Union minister, who is in the city to participate in the two-day BJP national executive, said he was not aware if the Supreme Court incorporated its observations in the order. It is their (Congress government in Rajasthan) inaction and incompetence that led to the killing, he said. While refusing to comment on the SC observations, the minister, however, reminded the Congress of its leaders massacring Sikhs in 1984 post Indira Gandhis assassination. The BJP, on the contrary, has been implementing its motto of sab ka saath sabka vikas in letter and spirit and has not been discriminating people while extending the government benefits, he said. Heaping praises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Union minister said no Prime Minister in Independent India commanded global respect like Modi. Those who underestimated the ability of our administration to tackle Covid and spelt doom for the country had seen the effective containment of the pandemic through collective efforts of the Centre and states. The investment flow increased and so did the collection of Goods and Services Tax (GST), he said, adding that the GST revenue crossed `1 lakh crore every month during the pandemic too. Ramanas observation comes close on the heels of the top court chastising Nupur Sharma for her controversial remarks Chief Justice of India N V Ramana addresses the Indian diaspora at an event organised by the Association of Indo Americans, in San Francisco, USA, Saturday (PTI Photo) New Delhi: The Chief Justice of India, Justice N.V. Ramana, on Saturday said that there was no space for divisive, narrow, intolerant, and non-inclusive politically driven approach in the 21st century. He observed that any such approach, coupled with the absence of proper understanding of the constitution and the functioning of the democratic institutions amongst the people, is a sure recipe for disaster. "In the 21st century, we cannot allow petty, narrow, and divisive issues to dictate human and societal relationships. We have to rise above all the divisive issues to remain focused on human development. A non-inclusive approach is an invitation to disaster," CJI said in his address at a function organised by the Association of Indo Americans in San Francisco, California, to felicitate him. Justice Ramana said, "This principle of inclusivity is universal. It needs to be honoured everywhere in the world, including in India. Inclusivity strengthens the unity in society, which is key to peace and progress. We need to focus on issues that unite us. Not on those that divide us." Justice Ramanas observation comes close on the heels of the top court on Friday chastising the now suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma for her controversial remarks. A vacation bench of the Supreme Court said that "her loose tongue" has set the entire country on fire and is responsible for "unfortunate" incidents and violence in Udaipur. CJI lamented the concerted attempts to run down the independence of the judiciary, saying, "It is the vigorously promoted ignorance among the general public which is coming to the aid of such forces whose only aim is to run down the only independent organ (the judiciary)." Justice Ramana said, "We still havent learnt to appreciate wholly the roles and responsibilities assigned by the Constitution to each of the institutions." Dwelling on the mindset that dictates both the ruling establishment and those in Opposition, Justice Ramana said, "The party in power believes that every governmental action is entitled to judicial endorsement. The parties in Opposition expect the judiciary to advance their political positions and causes." This "flawed thinking" of all hues, Justice Ramana said, "flourishes in the absence of proper understanding among people about the Constitution and the functioning of the democratic institutions. It is the vigorously promoted ignorance among the general public which is coming to the aid of such forces whose only aim is to run down the only independent organ." Speaking at the gathering of Indo America, CJI told the audience that they could come to America and make a mark for themselves only because "Unites States honours and respects diversity". "This diversity needs to be honoured and cherished, everywhere in the world," CJI said. Justice Ramana said, "It is the tolerance and inclusive nature of American society that is able to attract the best talents from all over the world, which in turn is contributing to its growth. Honouring qualified talents from diverse backgrounds is also essential to sustain confidence of all sections of society in the system." Paying tributes to Indian voters CJI said, "Under the Constitution of India, it is the people who are entrusted with the task of passing judgment on the rulers, once every five years. As I stated earlier on a different occasion, the people of India have done their job remarkably well so far. We should have no reason to doubt the collective wisdom of our people." Lamenting the adversarial approach of succeeding governments towards the policy initiatives of the previous government, including in the states, CJI said, "foundations meant for long term growth should never be disturbed. All over the world, with the change in government, policies do change. But no sensible, mature, and patriotic government would alter the policies in such a manner which would slow down or halt the growth of its own territory. Unfortunately, we do not come across such sensibility and maturity in India too often, whenever there is a change in government." Indulging the Indo Americans, particularly the second generation, to think beyond being employees and service providers and adorn the role of employers, Justice Ramana said, "You have already integrated yourself with the American society. It is time now for you people to enter public life and policy making. You can do a lot more for your community and your country United States by winning the faith of your people." During the event, Justice Ramana was felicitated by the Indo American Associations. The Amravati incident is being equated with the killing of Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur on June 28 An accused in Kanhaiya Lal killing case being manhandled by the public as police take him away after he was produced at an NIA court, in Jaipur, Saturday, (PTI) Mumbai: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the probe into the June 21 killing of Amravati medical shop owner Umesh Kolhe over his alleged social media posts in support of suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma. An NIA team visited the city in eastern Maharashtra on Saturday to probe into the killing of a chemist. The Amravati incident is being equated with the killing of Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur on June 28 by Ghaus Mohammad and Riyaz Jabbar for the formers social media posts in support of Ms Sharma, who had made comments against Prophet Mohammed. Mr Kolhe (54) was hacked to death on June 21. An FIR has been lodged at the City Kotwali police station. The incident took place when Mr Kolhe was returning home on a two-wheeler after closing his shop (Amit Medical Shop) while his son Saket (27) and wife Vaishnavi were accompanying him in a different vehicle. The police confirmed that Mr Kolhe was killed because of his social media posts supporting Ms Sharma. According to the police, Mr Kolhe had allegedly shared a post on some WhatsApp groups in support of Ms Sharma for her comments. He even shared the post in a WhatsApp group in which some Muslims were also members, including his customers. Amravati police have arrested six people in the case, including Mudassir Ahmed Shaikh Ibrahim (22), Shahrukh Pathan Khan (23), Abdul Taufeeq Tasleem (24) , Shoeb Khan (29), and Ateef Rashid (23). Mudassir and Shahrukh, who were seen in CCTV footage while conducting recce, were arrested on June 23. Abdul and Shoeb the next day, and Rashid on June 25. The sixth accused in the case, Yusuf Khan Bahadur Khan (44), a veterinarian who runs a clinic in the city, was arrested on Friday night. According to the police, he instigated the murder by making a post on a WhatsApp group saying Mr Kolhe was circulating posts supporting Ms Sharma. This provoked the accused against Mr Kolhe and they decided to murder him, a police officer said. Union home minister Amit Shah said that the government has handed over the case of Mr Kolhe to the NIA. "MHA has handed over the investigation of the case relating to the barbaric killing of Shri Umesh Kolhe in Amravati Maharashtra on June 21 to NIA. The conspiracy behind the killing, the involvement of organisations and international linkages would be thoroughly investigated (sic)," said the office of the home minister in a tweet. Amravati MLA Ravi Rana said he and his wife, MP Navneet Rana, had informed the Union home ministry regarding this case and demanded a probe by the CBI and NIA. He also alleged that the previous MVA government wanted to suppress the case. by Nirmala Carvalho On 3 July, feast day of Saint Thomas, Indian Christians of all denominations celebrate a day to remember that Christianity is not a foreign religion in their country. This year takes on a special significance since it is the 1,950th anniversary of the martyrdom of the Apostle in Chennai. May Saint Thomas the Apostle help us to be strong in our faith, said Archbishop Poola, chosen by Pope Francis to be a new cardinal. Mumbai (AsiaNews) Starting last year, Christians of all denominations mark 3 July as Yeshu Bhakti Divas, Indian Christian Day. This year the event takes on particular significance since the date marks the 1,950th anniversary of the martyrdom of the Apostle Thomas, a disciple of Jesus, who, according to tradition, arrived in India in 52 AD and was martyred in Chennai in 72 AD. Archbishop Anthony Poola of Hyderabad, a prelate of Dalit origin who will be made cardinal by Pope Francis in the consistory of 27 August, explains the meaning of this anniversary in a video message sent to AsiaNews. "Millions of Christian Indian followers of Jesus Christ join in observing this Jubilee anniversary, the prelate says. This is an annual day of remembrance by the Indian followers of Jesus Christs to celebrate the person and the message of Jesus Christ, which was brought to India in 52 AD by one of his 12 disciples, Saint Thomas, the Apostle of India. This is for us: proclaim, like him, with courage, with renewed vigour and strength, the strong message of Christ. May the Christian Unity Day on 3rd July and on every day of our life become a true witness of Christs love. On behalf of the Archdiocese of Hyderabad, I wish all of you, peace, happiness, unity, prosperity and good health. May Saint Thomas the Apostle help us to be strong in our faith. God bless you all. First celebrated in 2021 from an idea expressed by members of the various Churches of the country, Indian Christian Day is meant to stress the fact that Christianity is not a foreign religion in India. Indian Christian day celebration was an idea born of the need to remove first of all the misconception that Christianity in India is a European religion and, secondly, to assert our historical and cultural rootedness in India, said Fr Babu Joseph SVD, speaking to AsiaNews. For the former spokesman for the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), it is not just a matter of pride in one's roots. This is all the more significant in the contemporary socio-political context where misconstrued narratives about the Christian community is pushed to the front through the media, he explains. The public has a right to know the truth and it is a humble effort to make ourselves known for the right reasons. Hence, We have come up with this idea of celebrating India Christian day. We learnt to assert that we are part and parcel of this great country and our services are always and everywhere meant to promote our fellow sisters and brothers. India, Jai Bharat, is a melting pot of various faiths and cultures, he adds, for instance, the food habits of Syriac Christians of Kerala, their clothing, celebrated festivals have absorbed Hindu aspects. Similarly, tribal Christians have accepted the Christian faith but continue to live their culture. The architecture of some churches, shrines, some of the rituals associated with birth, marriage and death are also synchronised with Hindu customs. Indian Christian Day is also a time to reflect on one's own history and on the wounds that must still be healed, this according to Fr Devasagaya Raj M. Zackarias, former national secretary of the Episcopal Commission for disadvantaged castes. Christianity is as old as any other religions in India, he reminds AsiaNews. It started in 52 AD when Saint Thomas arrived in India. Unfortunately, it remained with the so-called upper caste people and it never reached the backward castes and the Dalits. Only when the European missionaries arrived in the 16th century did it start to spread among these people. Jesuit missionaries divided themselves into Brahmana Sanyasis (to serve upper caste Christians) and Pandara Samigal to serve lower caste people). This division still continues in Tamil Nadu churches. There are two cemeteries, two churches and in many churches, Dalits cannot be altar servers or choir members. Processions are not taken to the Dalit streets. Still, for Archbishop John Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, 3 July is everyone's day. We tribal Christians are disciples of Jesus, we are devoted to Jesus, we love Jesus, he said. Christianity is not something foreign to tribal people and communities. We live the Gospel values in our daily lives. The tribal Church observes this day with gratitude for the faith. I am a tribal Oraon and we believe in the Supreme God who is all powerful, the prelate explained. Our tribal Culture cannot be separated from faith; our culture is related to faith. Whereas at the front, generally speaking, the dimensions of the custom wheels are not something to write home about, not the same can be said for the rear. There, almost all stock wheels are replaced with wider ones, as if Harley-Davidson made some design mistake that its not willing to repair.Most of the time, we see Harley-Davidsons get their stock, standard width tires swapped for 280 mm, and in rarer cases 300 mm wide ones. The rarest of the bunch are the customs wearing 330 mm-wide tires over the custom wheel.Most recently, we came across such a thing with the VROD 330 put together in the shops of a Spanish garage called Lord Drake Customs. Just to give you an idea of how insane that is, consider the fact that for use in Spain, such a wheel required special homologation.Were not entirely sure if thats the case when it comes to Japan, where Bad Land works its magic, but heres another 330 crossing our screens, a Springer Softail put together in stock form by the Americans in 2001.The build, now called Hi Lows, is an older project of Bad Land, having first been shown at the beginning of the last decade. We found it worthy of renewed attention exactly because of that massive rear wheel, and their scarcity on the market.The wheels chosen for the project are of Ricks Motorcycle make and have a diameter of 18 inches up front and 17 inches at the rear. The rubber that wraps around them wears the Avon logo.Aside from fitting the Hi Lows with massive wheels, Bad Land made in house, specifically for this build, things like the fenders, fuel tank, handlebar, and exhaust system.Were not told how much the bike cost to put together, and given how quite some time passed since it was completed, its whereabouts are unknown. We can only hope though that the huge wheel still spins out there somewhere. More and more people are enjoying the freedom that comes with a tiny home. Embracing the "bigger isn't always better" idea, many choose smaller dwellings that allow them to live a simpler life and connect with nature. Rainier is one of those tinies. It's the ideal spot for someone who's looking for a relaxing mountain getaway. But first things first.The driver of a removal van from Worcestershire traveled to St. Ives to the location of a customer when they ended up on Barnoon Hill, a super-narrow street where only regular passenger cars typically fit.The driver eventually noticed the narrow, steep street and tried to go in reverse, only to end up completely stuck when the vehicle hit the wall of a house near the Barbara Hepworth Museum.In case youre wondering what this has to do with Google Maps, it turns out the van driver was using a navigation app to find the location of the customer. No names have been provided, but theres a very good chance they were using either Google Maps or Waze, as these are typically the preferred choices when it comes to navigation solutions on both Android and iPhone.However, most navigation apps, including Google Maps, only provide navigation instructions for passenger cars without taking into account vehicle dimensions. In other words, if you drive a removal van, relying on the navigation route offered by Google Maps isnt by any means a good idea, as the app can send you to a road where the vehicle doesnt fit. Truck and RV navigation in Google Maps has long been a highly requested feature, but so far, the Mountain View-based search giant has remained completely tight-lipped on any plan related to such an update.The good news is that Google Maps alternatives with truck navigation support do exist, including the super-advanced solution from Sygic. But of course, most people unknowingly use Google Maps for this purpose, and this is how they end up getting stuck on roads where they shouldnt be in the first place. Volkswagen emissions scandal Toyota sticking throttle Takata seatbelt scandal Explosive Ford Pinto fuel tank from 1978 - Let's start with the most prominent and well-known recall. We all heard about the Dieselgate scandal in which the German brand was involved back in 2009-2010. Volkswagen intentionally programmed a device to restrict power and performance when the cars were tested to meet regulations on pollutant emissions.However, when the vehicles were delivered to customers, VW removed this device, making the owners believe they had a "green car" when in fact it was the exact opposite. Volkswagen cared about their clients, so they recalled the vehicles to fix this problem by putting that cheap device back on the cars, meaning the vehicles were also underpowered.- Toyota had this problem back in 2009 - 2010, and it was such a huge issue they even released a YouTube video on how to stop your Toyota when the gas pedal gets stuck (check video attached below the text). It's tough to imagine such an error from one of the most important manufacturers in the automotive industry.The exact cause of the defect was different for individual vehicles, creating further confusion and delays in the repairing process. In most cases, the floor mats were getting lodged under the accelerator, jamming the throttle into the floor. In a few other cases, the gas pedal will simply stick down, resulting in more than 60 cars running out of control. Unfortunately, the issue resulted in one death, leading Toyota to issue two significant recalls in 2009 and 2010.The costs of this recall were kept secret, but some Toyota ex-employees estimated that it would have been up to five billion dollars. If this value is real, it would make it the most expensive automotive manufacturing recall ever.(from 1995) - Car manufacturers never make every part themselves, usually leaving many components in the hands of other companies. Takata is a Japanese company that makes components for all the essential Japanese car brands, and a whole lot of others as well.However, in the mid-90s, this partnership was terrible for the likes of Nissan, Toyota, Honda, Subaru, and Suzuki, when a nine-month-long investigation was made after consumer complaints. The study revealed that the button on the seatbelt latch was prone to cracking, meaning the mechanism jammed. As a result, drivers and passengers usually found themselves trapped in their cars. More than eight million vehicles were recalled, costing one billion dollars then, plus the bad mark over Japanese automakers.- In the late 1970s, the Ford Pinto was one of the most popular cars on the American market. It was a practical and stylish car, suitable for everyone, but it had a dark secret. When the Ford Pinto was hit in the back, the rear-mounted fuel tank tended to spontaneously explode.The American carmaker did an early recall, but didn't treat the problem seriously, infamously conducting a cost-benefit analysis of lawsuits per life versus fixing the floor. It was cheaper to deal with law problems than to restore each car individually. However, the "El Plan" made by Ford backfired when a California Court ordered them to pay an astonishing $125 million to one's victim's family. The decision discouraged car brands from playing legal games and playing with owners' life.These are some of the worst car services recalls in the automotive industry's history, but if you know more bad ones like those, please let us know in the comments. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland speaks, on Friday, at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. Haaland announced the US is adding $103 million, this year, for wildfire risk reduction and burned-area rehabilitation throughout the country as well as establishing an interagency wildland firefighter health and well-being program. Cheaper than machines, working 70 hours under exploitive laws life of 500,000 US child farmworkers By Cao Siqi, Liu Caiyu and Xu Yelu (Global Times) 15:45, July 03, 2022 Graphic: Xu Zihe/GT Editor's Note: Inmates in prisons are subject to labor exploitation, minors working as child laborers are abused, human trafficking remains rampant: Today, more than 150 years after the abolition of slavery in the US, the above-mentioned problems still exist in the country. Some American politicians have racked their brains to fabricate the "sad narrative" of "forced labor" in China's Xinjiang region, but a lie repeated a thousand times is still a lie. It is the US, a self-claimed "human rights defender" and "beacon of freedom," that should be held accountable for using forced labor, as the tragedies happening on US soil plainly demonstrate the US' disregard for basic human rights and their brutal exploitation of the country's workforce. The Global Times is publishing a series of stories that will uncover the four crimes of the US, a real "modern slavery empire." The following is the second installment of the series: Cheaper than machines, working 70 hours under exploitive laws - life of 500,000 US child farmworkers. Long working hours, malnutrition, beatings. Most people may remember the horrors described in Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens' classic novel, which exposed the abuse of children in factories and farms in 19th century London. In today's world where most children live in safety, receive education and enjoy a carefree childhood, many assume that the atrocities of child labor had long been expunged from the planet. Few would expect there are still half a million children working on US farmlands. A new report published by the International Labor Organization and UNICEF in 2021 shows that the number of children involved in child labor has risen to 160 million worldwide - with an increase of 8.4 million child laborers in the last four years-with millions more at the brink of falling with them due to the impact of COVID-19. The report points to a significant rise in the number of exploited children aged 5 to 11, who now account for just over half of the total global figure. The number of children aged 5 to 17 employed in hazardous work - defined as work that is likely to harm their health, safety or morals - has also increased, reaching 79 million since 2016. Notably, it is not just a problem in "poor countries." A report from the World Vision International in 2021 shows that about 93 million child laborers, or 58 percent of those in child labor, live in middle-income countries, and 1.6 million child laborers live in high-income countries. Among these high-income countries, the US, a country promoting itself as a beacon of human rights, has been criticized not only by the International Labor Organization but also by domestic child rights protection groups for standing alone in its unwillingness to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Many Americans might have never heard of the Convention and also might not know that their food may have been picked by one of the approximately 500,000 child farmworkers in today's US. And the startling statistic continues. In the past five years, as many as 100,000 people have been trafficked into the US and exploited as forced labor, with half of them being literally sold to "sweatshops" or domestic servitude. Among the exploited there are half a million child laborers, many under the age of 10 and work up to 72 hours a week. About 240,000 and 325,000 women and children in the US are sexually enslaved, and children survive an average of just seven years after being trafficked. Chinese experts noted that behind these statistics there are veritable human tragedies, broken families, and real people whose basic rights have been violated. The so-called beacon of human rights does not shine light on its dark history, and its human rights toolkit has never been aimed at its own social plights. The US needs to face up to its own serious child labor issues and respond to the international community's concerns sooner rather than later. Otherwise, the country will only exacerbate the human rights tragedy of child labor around the world. Long hours for low pay Every year on weekends and summer vacations, thousands of children get up at the break of the dawn in buses. Their destinations are not a summer camp or school, but a place of work. They arrive at the farm at 6 am, and leave at 8 pm, working 10-12 hours a day. They are child laborers at US tobacco farms. Like the slave trade and racial discrimination issues, child labor in the US dates back to more than a century ago, when child laborers were hired and exploited to work down mine shafts, on tobacco farms and in textile factories. The issue remains unresolved today. Child labor was abolished in the US in 1938, when Congress enacted the Fair Labor Standards Act, which restricted most child labor below age 16 and limited hazardous work to individuals over 18. However, these regulations do not apply to agricultural labor because of outdated exemptions based upon an agrarian society largely left to the past. As a result, the horrors of child labor are still a reality in some agricultural contexts. Showing no difference with impoverished countries around the world, children in the US are permitted, even compelled, to do hazardous, back-breaking work to support themselves and their families. This work exposes them to chemicals that will impact their health throughout their lifetime and an environment that will limit their opportunities, creating a vicious cycle of poverty and exploitation. Estimates based on figures gathered by the US Department of Labor and published by the Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs (AFOP), an advocate for migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the US since 1971, suggest that there are approximately 500,000 child farmworkers present in the US. Many of these children start working as young as 8, and go through grueling 72-hour work weeks (more than 10 hours per day), the association said. In October 2021, faced with a labor shortage, the US Wisconsin Senate proposed a bill to lengthen the allowed workday for teens under age 16, which reads like a sequel to Oliver Twist. Senate Bill 332 would allow employees aged 14 or 15 to work until 9:30 pm before a school day and until 11 pm when they don't have school the next day, according to media reports. Farms are the most dangerous places to work in the US for children. A report by the federal Government Accountability Office released in November 2018 presented alarming findings. Researchers found that between 2003 and 2016, 237 children died while working on farms in the US. This happens despite the fact that farms employ less than 6 percent of child workers, highlighting the devastating consequences of weak laws and regulations that don't properly protect child farmworkers. The AFOP also pointed out agriculture is the US' most dangerous occupation for farmworker youth, while pesticides increase the risk of developmental disorders in farmworker children. "Children are at greater health risk from pesticide exposure than adults. Pesticides have been linked to numerous health problems, including asthma, dermatitis, learning disabilities, leukemia, brain tumors and certain childhood cancers. Several factors contribute to this vulnerability. We may think of children as 'little adults,' but in fact, their bodies are not fully prepared to handle toxic chemicals," according to the AFOP. Zhu Ying, a professor of human rights law at Southwest University of Political Science and Law, pointed out that among the industries, of particular concern is the prevalence of child labor in the tobacco industry. "Tobacco is a labor-intensive industry, which requires numerous workforces. As the cost of using modern machinery in the tobacco industry is much higher than manpower, in order to reduce costs, the use of child labor has become a tradition," Zhu said. In addition, the tobacco industry is a gray zone in many cities where local companies would find workers through illegal immigration, which has led to rampant child labor, Zhu said. Tip of iceberg of human rights violations On its platform the AFOP offers an annual Art and Essay Contest to showcase farmworker children's heartwarming and compelling stories. The Global Times reporters were touched by the images and words that had been submitted by the children - words of hope and struggle coming from the US' most marginalized population. "I believe people think food comes from a machine or something. They don't really know that the food really comes from us," read a message left by 16-year-old farmworker Edgar. "Being part of a farmworker family is somehow learning to hustle but never realizing it because your struggle is actually your normal, a normal that is not normal for everyone else," writes Emily WA. In a special survey with farmworker children from three different regions in the West, East and Mid-Central US, the AFOP found that 75 percent of these children are under 15 years old, 49 percent are female while 51 are male. About 95 percent of the kids surveyed started working in the fields between ages 5 and 6, and 78 percent of them said that they liked going to school more than going to work in the fields. These are the stories of farmworker children shared by the AFOP, stories like that of Joel, who works long days in the hot sun, suffering from a headache and impatient to go home. Of Iker, a 7-year-old who has worked since he was 5 and just wishes the bathroom was closer. Of 16-year-old Jharexy, who harvests onions to help her parents buy gas and pay the bills. Far from the rosy ideal of kids learning skills and gaining a good work ethic, Joel, Iker, Jharexy and many others are working themselves to the bone just to keep their families out of poverty, putting their own short- and long-term health at risk in the process. But child labor in the US is all but invisible, and very few people are rushing to correct that misconception. This is because it's in many people's interests to keep child labor hidden. It's in the employer's interest, because it keeps farmworker wages depressed, it's in the consumer's interest, because it keeps grocery costs down and it's in the parents' interest, because "many hands make light work." When children labor in the shadows, they carry these burdens of low wages, low costs, and higher pay on their own shoulders, the AFOP said. He Zhipeng, a professor of international law at the School of Law with Jilin University, told the Global Times that many laws and practices in the US deviate from the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which makes the US government fear it may face more pressure and condemnation by the international community to change its domestic laws if it joins the Convention. "The US didn't join the Convention because the country arrogantly believes that its standards of child rights guarantees were higher than the Convention. But deep down, the root cause is the 'stubborn disease' of the country's class division, ethnic division and occupational division," Zhu said. There are many defects and problems in human rights in the US. In addition to advocating empty freedom complacently, the development and progress of national governance in the field of human rights is really lacking, He said. The expert noted that labor shortage is not a reason to violate the basic moral and value consensus of human society. If it is possible to hire child laborers because of labor shortage, is it possible to kidnap slaves abroad and return to slavery because of labor shortage? He asked. Danny Haiphong, an independent journalist in the US, and co-editor of Friends of Socialist China, believed that the US rejects the Convention for the same reason it rejects nearly every international convention and treaty: hegemonism. "The US does not believe in being regulated or guided by a framework outside of itself. In this particular case, rejecting the Convention also serves the bottom-line of powerful agribusiness corporations which exploit child labor to accumulate extra profits. By rejecting accountability, monopolies can feel comforted that domestic politics will serve them and provide loopholes for the child labor problem to continue," Haiphong told the Global Times. That the US would attempt to punish China over forced labor is a clear act of imperial projection, Haiphong said. Ahead of June 12 which marks the World Day Against Child Labor, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian stressed that the miseries of US child laborers are only the tip of the iceberg of the US's systemic human rights violations. The US needs to face squarely and address earnestly the infringement on child laborers' rights at home, ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child as soon as possible, and properly protect American children's lawful rights and interests. (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji) (THE CONVERSATION) Employers looking for ways to support their workers seeking abortions in states where its now illegal or soon will be dont have it easy. From an employers standpoint, abortion is considered a type of health care benefit and the rules that apply to that benefit are shifting rapidly from state to state. Abortion is also a political flashpoint guaranteed to produce controversy. And the problem is not going away anytime soon. Some companies are vowing to cover the cost of traveling out of state to get the procedure where it is still legal. Others are emphasizing that their insurance plans explicitly cover abortions. As a legal scholar specializing in employment law, I believe theres also a third option that may not be as generous but is less likely to run into legal problems and will help more workers, especially those with low incomes. Covering medical costs directly As of 2020, the median cost of an abortion was US$500 to $600 in the first trimester, and around $900 in the second trimester. Although most women seeking an abortion pay for the procedure out of pocket, some companies cover abortion in their health plans. In a recent statement, for example, Uber touted that its employee health plan includes abortion costs. And employers in a handful of states such as California and New York are required to include abortion in any health plan they offer. However, other states outlaw health coverage for abortion under state insurance laws. Even before the recent Supreme Court abortion decision, 11 states including North Dakota and Texas had already prohibited or limited private insurance from paying for the procedure. Companies that fund their own health benefit plan may be in a better position to avoid restrictions in state insurance laws. But switching to a self-funded plan is unaffordable for most small or medium-sized businesses. And self-funding may not protect companies if states decide to criminalize abortion. In other words, companies do not have a lot of room to maneuver when it comes to covering abortions in states that are determined to prohibit the procedure. The travel expense option Microsoft, Citigroup and at least 50 other U.S. companies have pledged in recent weeks to reimburse workers for travel expenses associated with out-of-state medical care, including abortion. Kroger and Dicks Sporting Goods, for example, offered employees up to $4,000 to cover such expenses, while Zillow said it would reimburse up to $7,500 when travel is required for abortion or certain other medical procedures. Nevertheless, I suspect many companies may shy away from adopting similar policies. A survey in early June found that only 14% of companies already had a policy in place to reimburse abortion-related travel expenses, while another 25% said they were considering it. Although those numbers could grow, leading law firms have cautionedthat such policies could create legal risks similar to those involved in covering health care costs. Anti-abortion states could even directly prohibit travel reimbursement for out-of-state abortions. Texas lawmakers, for example, are already threatening to pass a law that would bar companies from doing business in Texas if they pay for residents of the state to receive abortions elsewhere. And while there are reasons to believe interstate travel would be constitutionally protected, any ensuing litigation would take years to resolve. As a result, many companies may simply decide against offering abortion travel benefits to workers in states where the procedure is banned. A simpler solution that helps everyone This doesnt mean that companies are completely powerless to help workers in an anti-abortion state. Workers who need to drive hundreds of miles for care unavailable in their state will at a minimum need time off work. And while most workers have some access to paid leave, those benefits are predominantly available to high-wage earners. By contrast, roughly half of workers on the low end of the wage scale lack paid sick leave or vacation time. These workers are left in an impossible position if they need to travel for an abortion. They generally arent even entitled to unpaid time off, unless they are covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act and their condition qualifies as a serious health condition. Instead, they are left to cajole co-workers to cover their shifts and hope managers cut them a break. And every hour a worker without vacation or sick leave spends driving to another state for medical care is an hour they arent being paid. An employee making $15 an hour who loses a week of work for an out-of-state abortion stands to forgo as much money as the cost of the procedure itself. In other words, the workers who can least afford to forgo wages for an abortion are most likely to be put in that position. If companies are reluctant or unable to pay for travel expenses or the procedure itself they can at least pay workers for the time they are away from work. Expanding sick leave and vacation leave to a broader swath of workers may also avoid some of the pitfalls of other corporate interventions. Even if state legislatures pass draconian laws such as the Texas law that prohibits aiding and abetting, companies rarely know exactly how workers spend their time off particularly when it comes to vacation time. Its harder then to pin liability on the employer. More privacy, less controversy For the same reason, sick leave and vacation policies also provide workers with a measure of privacy. Unlike policies involving travel or health benefits, employees can often avail themselves of time off without providing receipts or documentation. Finally, a quiet expansion of the companys paid time off enables employers to help women without attracting controversy. Companies are already nervous about abortion-related discussions at work. They may not want to generate more internal conflict at a time when partisan rancor is at a fever pitch. And while expanding paid time off may not seem like a lot, it would be one less hurdle for women experiencing nothing but hurdles. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/abortion-benefits-companies-have-a-simple-and-legal-way-to-help-their-workers-living-in-anti-abortion-states-expand-paid-time-off-185917. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate DALLAS The rollback of abortion rights has been received by many American women with a sense of shock and fear, and warnings about an ominous decline in womens status as full citizens. But for some women, the decision meant something different: a triumph of human rights, not an impediment to womens rights. I just reject the idea that as a woman I need abortion to be successful or to be as thriving as a man in my career, said Phoebe Purvey, a 26-year-old Texan. I dont think I need to sacrifice a life in order to do that. The Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade was a political victory, accomplished by lobbyists, strategists and campaign professionals over the course of decades. But it was also a cultural battle, fought by activists across the country including those in the exact demographic that abortion rights advocates warn have the most to lose in the new American landscape: young women. Often pointed to by anti-abortion leaders as the face of the movement, a new generation of activists say they are poised to continue the fight in a post-Roe nation. Many, but not all of them, are Christian conservatives, the demographic that has long formed the core of the anti-abortion movement. Others are secular and view their efforts against abortion as part of a progressive quest for human rights. All have grown up with once-unthinkable access to images from inside the womb, which has helped convince them that a fetus is a full human being long before it is viable. Many believe the procedure should be banned at conception that even the earliest abortion is effectively murder. But they embrace the mainstream anti-abortion view that women are victims of the abortion industry and should not be prosecuted, putting them at odds with the rising abolitionist wing of the movement calling for women to be held legally responsible for their abortions. And overwhelmingly, these young women reject the notion that access to abortion is necessary to their own or any womans success. Purvey said she supported a legal ban on abortion from conception. But she is increasingly uncomfortable with using the term pro-life to describe herself, because it evokes an emphasis on preventing abortions at any cost rather than on helping women. She prefers life-affirming, and she works at a pregnancy resource clinic in Dallas that uses the same term to describe the free and low-cost prenatal care, postpartum doula services, lactation consulting and other services offered to its primarily Black, low-income clientele. Purvey was born in a Mexican community in South Texas. Her mother was poor and in an unstable marriage, she said, and received prenatal care from Planned Parenthood. The family later received financial and emotional support from their church, which inspired Purvey to provide help to women like her mother. At this point in my life, I hold the rights of pre-born children and women equally, but I consider myself a little more women-forward and women-centered, she said. Thats where a lot of the change happens. A clear majority of Americans say abortion should be legal with few or no exceptions, according to a Pew survey taken in March. Women ages 18 to 29 are significantly likelier than older women to say abortion should be generally legal and that it is morally acceptable. Just 21% of young women say that abortion should be broadly illegal, Pew found. The movements minority status is part of its appeal, said historian Daniel K. Williams, who has written about the history of anti-abortion advocacy. The pro-life movement up until now has had the best of both worlds in terms of attracting young people, Williams said. It positions itself as a countercultural alternative to mainstream conventional wisdom but also champions broadly popular beliefs about the importance of justice and equality for the vulnerable. Historical touchstones commonplace within the movement and much-disputed outside it include the Civil Rights movement and 19th and early 20th-century suffragists. For the majority of American women who support abortion rights, other womens enthusiasm for stripping away their own constitutional rights can be baffling and enraging, a profound betrayal. But overwhelmingly, young anti-abortion women view themselves as human rights activists happy warriors on the right side of history. Its always been a movement of youth, said Kristan Hawkins, who became the president of Students for Life of America in 2006, when she was 21. She recalled a line she heard from conservative activist Alveda King, a niece of Martin Luther King Jr. who is a frequent presence at anti-abortion events: When young people join your movement, you know victory is on its way. Hawkins organization which supports a nearly total ban on abortion starting at conception and opposes oral contraceptives now claims 1,250 groups on campuses across the country, from middle schools to graduate schools. Its signs reading I Am the Pro-Life Generation are ubiquitous at anti-abortion demonstrations. Hawkins said the contemporary anti-abortion movement offers a more empowering vision to young women than abortion rights feminism does. This is 2022, not 1962, she said, observing that womens legal rights to do things like secure loans have advanced dramatically since the pre-Roe era. If feminism tells young women they need to be able to end their pregnancies in order to achieve their educational and career goals, she said, the anti-abortion movement tells them they can have it all. Young people have been part of the anti-abortion movement since the 1970s. The annual March for Life in Washington, held around the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, now draws buses of students from around the country to what has transformed over the years into a festive youth-driven rally. Clare Fletcher, 26, a teacher at a Catholic school in Illinois, has attended the March for Life at least 10 times. She grew up in a strongly anti-abortion home, influenced by the understanding that her adopted younger sisters birth mother had pursued an abortion before giving birth. The event and the movement it represents have always been a source of joy and celebration of life and fun and community, Fletcher said. When she was a teenager, her father led a caravan of buses from Louisiana that she described as raucous road trips involving matching hats, flash mobs, tourist stops and silly songs. She can still sing from memory an anti-abortion parody of the Taio Cruz hit Dynamite: Just wanna celebrate and be pro-life saying ayo, gotta pray-o! As a teenager active online, Lauren Marlowe had a hazy understanding that supporting abortion rights was what nice people did. But she was drawn to think differently in part because of advancements in ultrasound images. Back then, when they looked at ultrasounds and thought it was a clump of cells, that was all they could see, she said, referring to a phrase used by philosopher Judith Jarvis Thompson in a famous 1971 defense of abortion. Marlowe, 22, the social media coordinator for Students for Life of America, launched a small line of trendy pro-life clothes as an undergraduate at Liberty University. The line touts a T-shirt with the word pro-life spelled out in the Friends font, and a hoodie with the cheeky slogan Just a clump of cells. In Tennessee, Kailey Cornett, 28, said she anticipated that her work as CEO of Hope Clinic for Women, a life-affirming center that provides services and support to pregnant women, would grow busier in a post-Roe landscape. Tennessee has a trigger law that is expected to go into effect by mid-August and will ban abortion in nearly all cases, including rape and incest. Cornett received what she experienced as a life calling from God while attending a Christian youth convention as a teenager: to love on young women facing unplanned pregnancies. She volunteered at a pregnancy resource center in Arizona in high school and pursued a degree in nonprofit management with the goal of leading one. Reading progressive Christian writer Sarah Besseys book Jesus Feminist showed her that her faith and her care for women did not have to be in tension. Oh, my gosh, I can be both, she recalled. It turns out I was a feminist the whole time, but I had this wrong definition of it. Hers is one of the rare pregnancy resource centers that provides some forms of birth control to clients. Although the clinic does not engage in politics, she is cautiously in favor of the states coming abortion ban, including its lack of exceptions for rape and incest. Im a firm believer that trauma leads to trauma, she said. A woman ending the life of that child will not make her pain go away. On Thursday, police said they were investigating an arson attempt at Hope Clinic in Nashville, Tennessee, part of a rash of vandalism incidents at pregnancy resource centers across the country. Police said the building was spray-painted with the words Janes Revenge, the name of an abortion rights group that has claimed responsibility for some incidents. Young women whose activism is not connected to religious belief are relative newcomers to the movement, where they make up a small but boisterous niche. Kristin Turner started a chapter of a youth climate group in her hometown, Redding, California. Her Instagram bio includes her pronouns (she/they) and support for Black Lives Matter. She describes herself as a feminist, an atheist and a leftist. At 20, she is also the communications director for Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising, whose goals include educating the public about the exploitative influence of the Abortion Industrial Complex through an anti-capitalist lens. Recently, she started a punk band called the EmbryHoez with a friend in San Francisco. One of their songs is called The Hotties Will Dismantle Roe: They say its empowerment / They say its womens rights / But all I sees oppression / And might makes right. Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising, founded last year, emphasizes direct action, including pink-rose rescues, in which activists enter abortion clinics to distribute roses attached to anti-abortion information. If someone is committing violence against another human being, Turner said, then property lines should not be respected. She said she has been arrested three times in activist settings, include twice performing rescues. The reality is, people are dying, she said. I think that whatever privilege I have, I need to use that and leverage it. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate What started as a Facebook group, on Saturday turned into one of Southeast Texas' most well-attended rallies in support of women's reproductive rights. Zoe Villagral started the "Riot Girls of SETX" Facebook group shortly after the leak of the then-pending U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization late last month, effectively overturning Roe v. Wade -- a decision that disallowed states to prohibit certain abortions. The group, the name of which is coined from the UK-based punk rock group Riot Grrrl, provides a space to organize "women's rights' rallies in Southeast Texas, notably in Beaumont." The group's "about" section also notes it's not exclusive to cisgender women. But even Villagral didn't expect the turnout to be so big so quickly. "Pro-life, that's a lie. They don't care if women die," the group of more than 50 people chanted at Roger's Park Saturday evening -- holding signs and chanting so loud, they could be heard in some nearby subdivisions. Related: Community members hold protest after Roe v. Wade overturn The 24-year-old acknowledged that there isn't much legal action the group can take to substantially help local women access abortion services, as since September, it's been banned past six weeks. But she said she still sees the value in gatherings like the one held Saturday. "My goal is to show the people, the women of Southeast Texas, not to be quiet even though we live in the conservative Bible Belt of Southeast Texas," she said. "We're trying to be a beacon of hope for people." Alex Wyble, 29, who worked with Villagral in setting up the gathering, said they're also spreading the word about an August 20 gathering at the Texas Rose Saloon in support of women's rights. "I have two daughters. I was able to utilize my reproductive freedom ... and right now they won't have that same right. It sets a precedent for abortion, gay rights, interracial marriage -- it's terrifying. We just want to show our support for things to change. And the more we organize, the more we can do." The Beaumont Police Department is searching for a Beaumont man, who they believe is connected to more than one serious crime investigation. Mikale Rashad Bolton, 20, is facing two aggravated robbery warrants, according to the Beaumont Police Department. The warrants were issued after officers received a call for an aggravated robbery shortly after 8 a.m. June 25 in the 3100 Block of French Road. Police believe Bolton approached a man in his vehicle in a parking lot, displayed a firearm and forced the man to give him his vehicle. FAIRMONT, W.Va. (AP) A Marion County, West Virginia, nonprofit wants to empower others about how to identify and stand up against bullying. Communities of Shalom Certified Prevention Specialist Renee Verbanic presented the workshop Bullying Prevention: Empowering Bystanders to be Upstanders at a meeting of the Fairmont Human Rights Commission recently. The interactive presentation focused on how to identify bullying and how to be a better ally. This affects us commissioners because there are residents within Marion County that are being treated unfairly and there are students within the Marion County school system that do not feel safe attending school. Also, there are students and parents within Marion County that feel there is no justice for the wrongs that are being done to them, Human Rights Commission member Tiffany Walker Samuels said. Verbanic started by breaking down myths associated with bullies and bullying. For example, hitting your bully to make them stop, which is something that people have often considered effective, can actually just cause a bully to become worse, she said. One of the myths we have about bullies whether theyre an adult or a kid is that they have low self esteem. ... Thats a myth. Bullying behavior is about intentional power either emotional, physical or social power, Verbanic said. She covered how bullies can become bullies which includes risk factors from family and peers, demographics, cyberbullying and reasons people report being bullied, the top reason being the way they look or their body size. Participants looked at a list of eight options on what to do to help assist someone who is being bullied and were asked to pick their first and last option. Verbanic had participants share their answers. The options included, tell an adult, ask the bully a question, tell the bully to stop, support the target privately, support the target publicly, dont stand around and watch. Move, talk your concerns out with a friend and dont laugh with or empower the bullying behavior. Im going to support the target publicly. Having been in a situation similar, I want other people to know that Im supporting that individual, participant Cathy Reed said. Then, Verbanic discussed with participants the characteristics of passive, proactive and bullying behaviors and that often the proactive person can be blamed for being the bully. She touched on implicit bias or knee jerks and how to be aware of harassing behavior by acknowledging times participants had been bullies or bystanders, which is also known as the Window Activity. She also explained the importance of doing something productive, regardless of whether people may think you are being a snitch. Remember, in the war in Iraq, one brave American soldier came forward and said atrocities are happening there by American soldiers, they investigated and a whole outcry against that one soldier not only by veterans, but by other American citizens calling him a snitch, Verbanic said. Some of the participants expressed that its important to keep the conversation going and that having workshops like this one is something they look forward to do in the future, as they get back into the swing of things as the COVID-19 pandemic lessens. Its not, to me, a one-time event tonight; it needs to be a continued conversation because thats how that practice becomes permanent, participant Jim Norton said. If you'd like to leave a comment (or a tip or a question) about this story with the editors, please email us We also welcome letters to the editor for publication; you can do that by filling out our letters form and submitting it to the newsroom. Authorities say a Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again As Train 1235 pulled away from Gate 6 at the Moynihan Train Station, an announcer welcomed passengers to the new Berkshire Flyer line with a phrase not heard in New York City in more than 50 years This train is en route to Pittsfield. First up, Joe Biden is thinking about dropping tariffs against China. But theres a spy in prison this morning that helps us understand why he shouldnt. Ill explain. Your second brief, If youre looking for a good paying job, you might consider being a CEO for a health insurance company. One executive made $142M dollars last year. Let's talk about that. And as always, Im keeping an eye out for developing stories. Put this one on your radar. Mexican cartels are grooming American kids online and paying them cash to traffic illegals or run drugs across the border. Ill share details. If you enjoyed this episode of the President's Daily Brief, remember to subscribe and listen daily at podfollow.com/pdb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The family of Jordan Ross will be holding a celebration of life in his honour at the campground he co-owned this Thursday. Advertisement Advertise With Us The family of Jordan Ross will be holding a celebration of life in his honour at the campground he co-owned this Thursday. After being missing for almost two weeks, a phone belonging to the 41-year-old man was found on a body discovered in the Assiniboine River near Dinsdale Park on Thursday. Manitoba RCMP are still planning on performing an autopsy. A celebration of life for Jordan Ross will be held at the Grand Valley Campground on Thursday. (File) The event will be held at Grand Valley Campground on Thursday at 11 a.m. Guests are asked to bring their own lawn chairs. The celebration of life will be followed up by a lunch and an opportunity for fellowship. Originally planned while the search for Ross was still active, the Jam for Jordan benefit concert is still scheduled to take place at The 40 that same night from 7 p.m. to midnight. Tickets can be purchased in advance or at the door, with proceeds going to support Rosss family. In lieu of flowers, friends can make a donation to SKATEISTAN, a non-profit that supports children with skateboarding and education, in Rosss name. Ross is survived by his wife Katherine Jeroski and his daughter Micah Ross. The Brandon Sun Teslas sales from April through June fell to their lowest quarterly level since last fall as supply chain issues and pandemic restrictions in China hobbled production of its electric vehicles. The Elon Musk-controlled company over the weekend disclosed it sold more than 254,000 cars and SUVs from April through June, an 18 per cent drop from the first three months of this year and also well below the pace in last years final quarter. Tesla sold far fewer units amid a factory shutdown in China and other supply chain woes. Credit:AP The last time Tesla sold fewer vehicles globally was in the third quarter of 2021 when it delivered 241,000. On Friday, the rest of the industry reported a 21 per cent drop in sales during the second quarter as the average price for vehicles skyrocketed to a record of $US45,844 amid soaring inflation, according to consumer research group JD Power. Former Queensland premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen. Credit: Fitz: So in 1994 you take over as director of public prosecutions. NC: Yes, and that was the most stimulating and rewarding time of my professional life. Fitz: Looking back upon those years, what are the standout cases? What are the ones you want me to chisel on your tombstone in 30 years time? NC: All I want on my tombstone is something like He did his job and left things a bit better than they were when he started. Youve got to remember that for 16-and-a-half years, most of my days were taken up sitting at my desk and making decisions about cases; whether to prosecute; what charges to lay; how to resolve witness issues; victim issues, all that kind of thing. And so, you might do 30 or 40 cases in a day. They were very busy times and every case was important, so nothing really stands out. Some that attracted great public attention are described in my second book Frank & Fearless. Fitz: Alright, let me throw some cases at you. How do you remember the Ivan Milat case? NC: He was one of the most evil people we had to deal with. The police did a very good job with a small investigation team and Im pleased that hes no longer with us. Fitz: Keli Lane? NC: A very difficult case, but even though there was only circumstantial evidence, it was very strong. I thought there was sufficient evidence to justify prosecuting and was proven right. Fitz: And yet, sometimes late at night, as the moon rises and the owl hoots in the distance, there must be times when you think, Theres a bad bastard out there walking around who should be in prison right now if only I had done something differently? NC: No. No, I dont. There are, admittedly, a few who slipped through the net. But I think by and large, we got the right decisions, in the right cases. Loading Fitz: Youve always been a strong voice on the importance of probity in public institutions. What do you think of the culture of politics in recent times? NC: The pork-barrelling seems to be absolutely naked and politicians generally with some outstanding exceptions seem to be more interested in themselves than in us. Fitz: A case in point being how, in the twilight of her premiership, Gladys Berejiklian more or less said, Theres nothing illegal about pork barrelling so get over it you ninnies! NC: Well, thats no justification at all. I think pork-barrelling in the sense that we understand that is a form of public corruption, a misuse of public funds for political advantage, and it should be stopped. Back in 1988, I appeared in the Court of Disputed Returns for an unsuccessful candidate in a state election seeking to have the result overturned because the successful party, the Labor Party, promised all sorts of funding for local community groups, sporting groups and the like to the point that Justice Needham of the Supreme Court found, in fact, that this was corrupt conduct on the part of the successful candidate and overturned the election result. The case is in the NSW Law Reports Scott v Martin. Fitz: Wow! NC: So theres legal precedent for pork-barrelling to count as corruption, and Im surprised that it has not come up elsewhere. Its all there and anyone can read it. And Im strongly of the view that this misuse of public funds should be stamped out. Fitz: Just quietly, youd be a pretty good first federal ICAC commissioner? Youre born for the gig! If Joe Biden can become US president at 78, why couldnt you do that at 76? NC: (Laughs.) I think youd have to live in Canberra and I have no desire to do that. Loading Fitz: What do you make of the recent public appointment of John Barilaro for a position that he created, the NSW trade commissioner in New York even though he has since withdrawn? NC: We will see what evidence comes out of the two inquiries, but on what we know so far it seems to me that the selection process has been corrupted. And when you have a decision emerging from a corrupted process, there is always at least the risk that the decision is going to be corrupt as well. Fitz: OK. I was shocked and thrilled in equal measure a couple of decades ago to see you write publicly, even though director of public prosecutions at the time, that the drug laws you were administering were insane. It defies understanding, you wrote, that the self-administration of drugs should be a criminal offence. Isnt the user doing enough self-harm without having a criminal penalty loaded on top? You said the truth: were never going to win this war on drugs and weve got to normalise drug laws. NC: If anything, my views have hardened since then. I wrote that in 2001, in my first book Getting Justice Wrong. By then I had decades of being involved in drug cases from the minor use and possession level in the Local Court, up to major drug importation cases that I had been prosecuting for the Commonwealth. And I had a pretty good overview of the nature of the drug trade and the complete futility of trying to stop it by criminal laws, when by criminalising you were guaranteeing that the criminals would make extraordinary profits and corrupt everything around them. Fitz: And yet nothing has changed. Loading NC: Things are worse. In the last 18 months in Sydney, at least a dozen men who have been involved in disputes about drug trafficking and turf wars have been shot dead and its all because of the huge profits that are available from drug trafficking. And the only way to stop it and were seeing enlightened jurisdictions around the world coming to this view now and implementing it is to legalise, regulate, control and tax all drugs. And I mean, all drugs, with a different regime for different drugs of course, but we have to take the criminal profits out of the trade. And the only way to do that is to put all drugs on the same sort of footing as we do with drugs like nicotine and alcohol. Fitz: So if you had your way, and I was a heroin addict, what youre saying is there will be a door I can knock on, where Ill say, Here is my script and credit card, so can you give me one vial of heroin, please? And I can even claim it back on Medicare? NC: Yes. Different regimes for different drugs, and with heroin I suggest you would need the prescription, with a medical professional intervening in the process, and the whole intent being to regulate it and take the criminal profit out of it and to provide proper care to the user. Loading Fitz: Ok, the insanity of the laws has long been obvious to medical professionals like Alex Wodak, heavyweight legal-beagles like you and many commentators in the media like me, as well as a huge proportion of the population. Mick Palmer, former commissioner of the AFP, says that we cant arrest our way out of drugs. It has to be obvious to some leading politicians over the years, and yet none speak up! Certainly, no premier comes to mind with the courage to say this out loud. NC: Quite. Politicians wont speak out about it, because they think they will lose electoral support. Theyre afraid people will think that theyre soft on crime which is utter nonsense. I think they would gain support. Its about being smart on crime, not necessarily just tough on crime. It has to be legalised, regulated, controlled and taxed and the criminal law would still apply to anyone who tried to avoid the system. I once had a radio interview with your great friend Mr Jones, where I made the case and even he said, Well, maybe theres something in that I nearly fell off my chair but he never came back to it. Fitz: Over your 16 years as director of public prosecutions, you had four attorneys-general. Who was the best? Loading NC: Bob Debus was the best. He hadnt always been a politician, and he had a huge amount of common sense and a desire to get things done in a practical way. He was always very personable, thoughtful and polite and not given to excesses. Fitz: Moving on. The topic of the week is Roe v Wade being overturned by the US Supreme Court after 49 years. What do you make of that? NC: I think the Supreme Court of the United States is now a totally discredited institution. And thats a pity because over the decades and centuries, its had some absolutely outstanding lawyers presiding, but now it has been turned into a political instrument, which I think is a terrible shame. The decision overturning Roe v Wade totally ignores the principle of stare decisis the reliance on precedent. Fitz: Do you fear for the United States? NC: I do. Part of the problem, I think, is the conservative side in the United States doesnt accept that the country is changing. The population is changing, its becoming more black and more Latin, more progressive, and the way things were done before the Civil War just doesnt apply anymore, although there are some who would like to take the country back to that. And there is a growing failure by the conservative side to put into practice the democratic principles that they go on about all the time. They talk democracy a hell of a lot, but they dont practise it. Fitz: What are you doing with your energies these days? NC: I teach a postgraduate course at Sydney University called Discretion in Criminal Justice. And Ive just published my third book which is, in effect, a textbook for that course with the same title, but I think general readers might also get something from it. I also lecture from time to time at the University of NSW and less frequently at the University of Wollongong. I speak to many Probus clubs and U3A meetings. I am still involved with the International Association of Prosecutors (of which I was president) and the Justice Reform Initiative, which is working to get away from our reliance nationwide on imprisonment as the answer to everything. Nicholas Cowdery, the former NSW director of public prosecutions, pictured in 2013 with his wife Joy at Pittwater. Credit:Fiona Morria Fitz: NSW owes your careers master back at Sydney Grammar a round of presumably posthumous applause. Youre a credit to your calling, and I thank you for your time. Tweet of the Week Welcome to the United States. Where guns have more rights than women. @grey_son7 What they said Similar to the 90s saying, What would Jesus do? Im a bit more nuanced than that. What would Jesus do if he were me in these life circumstances, in this job, with this issue before me and serving the people that I lead? Amy Brown, CEO of Investment NSW and secretary of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment, who appointed John Barilaro to the position of NSW Trade Commissioner in New York. She was speaking to Eternity News in February. I find my workplace very tied with my personal purpose and my personal purpose comes through my faith in the God who made us and loved us and saved us for a relationship with himself. From that comes for me the principle of the intrinsic worth and equal value of all people, regardless of their kind of background or circumstances or mistakes or anything. And so, working for government, that really rings true in terms of our job is to equalise opportunities for all of our citizens. Amy Brown. Its an anathema to the fundamentals of Christian faith. Peta Credlin in The Oz, on why she is disappointed to see Christian leaders in Australia supporting the Indigenous Voice to Parliament. She equally noted the near 20 per cent decrease in Christian belief in Australia since the last census. We will make sure that when a kid is in the womb, theyre as safe as they are in a classroom. Donald Trumps former spokeswoman, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, after her gubernatorial primary win in Arkansas, to stand as governor in November. Loading Ive watched much devastation with two one-in-100-year floods. This is climate change. I cannot stay silent anymore. I cannot be complacent anymore. The colony of Australia, this destructive colony system landed here, hellbent on spreading exploitative practices all over the earth. To those people who are really angry right now, I understand, and its not a good thing to be experiencing. You know what? Climate change isnt a good thing to be experiencing. Mali, the climate change activist from Lismore who blocked two lanes on the approaches to the Harbour Bridge on Wednesday morning. Will this institution survive the stench that this creates in the public perception that the Constitution and its reading are just political acts? I dont see how it is possible. US Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor in oral arguments in December, on the possibility of Roe v Wade being overturned. Now that it has been overturned, many good judges agree. Lets be real: theres a whole lot of men whose lives, careers and families have benefited from an abortion (including several pro-life GOP congressmen). Men, we need you right now. You can get through in rooms others cant. Your power matters. Speak up. This is about us all. The Democrat New York congresswoman, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, tweets in the wake of the Roe v Wade decision. New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has shot to fame since her election in the 2018 midterms. Credit:Bloomberg When Mr. Trump descended into rage, his staff resorted to summoning an aide, nicknamed the Music Man, to play favourite show tunes they knew would soothe him, including Memory from the Broadway musical Cats. The New York Times, on Tuesday, in the wake of the January 6 hearings, detailing the former presidents outbursts of rage. One of the issues [is] weve got an education system thats basically run by Marxists. Liberal senator Hollie Hughes on how the Libs can recover the youth vote. I respectfully submit that senator Hughes is emerging as the Bronwyn Bishop of her time, complete with big statements and a deep following in a narrow band. Teacher here ... finished all my Marxing ... oops MarKing! Oops random (Das) Kapital in there. Everyone knows were all anti-Capitalism as teachers. As its school holidays in Qld, Ill head off now to get hammered and sickled! A teacher, Princess of Woke @sanomum, replies to Senator Hughes. Conservatives used to say that the reds are under the bed. Now, apparently the commies are in the classroom. This is just crazy, isnt it? [Its] more denial from the Liberal party. If they think that they lost the election because all teachers are Marxists, then I dont think theyre looking in the right direction. Federal Education Minister Jason Clare in reply. Liberal smokeswoman Holliday Blues is going to need some evidence tobaccup these BIG claims. Grace Tame after Senator Hughes also denied the existence of any such things as Big Tobacco. Theres still a lot of uncertainty about the question of criminal intent when it comes to a president, but what just happened changed my bottom line. I have gone from Trump is less than likely to be charged to he is more than likely to be charged. Alan Rozenshtein, a former justice department official who teaches at the University of Minnesota law school, after the latest January 6 hearings. Joke of the week The year is 2024 and the United States has just elected the first woman president. A few days after the election the president-elect, calls her father and says, So, Dad, I assume you will be coming to my inauguration? I dont think so. Its a 10 hour drive. Don t worry about it Dad, Ill send Air Force One. And a limousine will pick you up at your door. I dont know. Everybody will be so fancy. What would your mother wear? Oh Dad, she replies, Ill make sure she has a wonderful gown custom-made by the best designer in Washington. Honey, Dad complains, you know I cant eat those rich foods you eat. The president-to-be responds, Dont worry Dad. The entire affair will be handled by the best caterer in Washington; Ill ensure your meals are salt free. You and Mum just have to be there. So Dad reluctantly agrees, and on January 20, 2025 when his daughter is being sworn in as president of the United States, he sits in the front-row seats, beside his wife. Dad, noticing the senator sitting next to him, leans over and whispers, You see that woman over there with her hand on the Bible, becoming president of the United States. Businesses are already looking to get on the front foot and tackle gender inequality, according to the woman in charge of implementing Victorias wide-ranging laws, but experts warn most are unprepared for new federal laws that will force employers to try to stamp out sexual harassment. Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said the government is committed to acting on all recommendations of the landmark Respect@Work report, including the central recommendation to impose a positive duty on employers to take steps to eliminate sex discrimination, sexual harassment and victimisation. Victorian Commissioner for Gender Equality in the Public Sector Niki Vincent says organisations need to get on the front foot. Credit:Simon Schluter We are going to do this and we are going to do it as a priority, he said. Dr Niki Vincent, Victorias Commissioner for Gender Equality in the Public Sector, said many people dont even recognise theyve experienced sexual harassment because they dont realise what it constitutes, and believes putting the onus on workplaces to educate and stop the behaviours is a no brainer. Kyiv: Russian forces tried on Monday to press their offensive deeper into eastern Ukraine after taking control of a key stronghold. The Ukrainian military confirmed its forces had withdrawn from the city of Lysychansk, the last bulwark of Ukrainian resistance in the Luhansk province, one of the two regions that make up the countrys eastern industrial heartland of Donbas. The Russians also control about half of Donetsk, the second province of Donbas. Russian troops and Chechen soldiers pose of a photo in Lysychansk, Ukraine on Sunday as Russia claimed the city. Credit:Telegram/Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov/AP The General Staff of the Ukrainian military said the Russian forces were currently focusing their efforts on pushing toward the line of Siversk, Fedorivka and Bakhmut in the Donetsk region. The Russian army also has intensified the shelling of key Ukrainian strongholds of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk deeper in the Donetsk region. With an aim to achieve the target of 60 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2032, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Government of Rajasthan for the development of 10 GW Ultra Mega Renewable Energy Power Park in Rajasthan. The MOU signing ceremony was held on Friday in the presence of Rajasthan Energy Minister Bhanwar Singh Bhati. According to the Ministry of Power, in less than two years since its inception, Renewable Energy Limited has won 4 GW renewable energy capacity by bidding in various tenders which are under different stages of implementation. Additionally, REL is developing one UMREPP of 4.75 GW capacity in Rann of Kutch, Gujarat and NTPC REL has entered into a joint venture agreement with DVC for developing RE Parks and projects. Meanwhile, NTPC on Saturday declared the commercial operation of the final part capacity of 20 MW out of 100 MW Ramagundam Floating Solar PV Project at Ramagundam, Telangana with effect from July 1. With the operationalisation of the 100-MW Solar PV Project at Ramagundam, the total commercial operation of floating solar capacity in the Southern Region rose to 217 MW. Earlier, NTPC declared commercial operation of 92 MW Floating Solar at Kayamkulam (Kerala) and 25 MW Floating Solar at Simhadri (Andhra Pradesh). With the operationalisation of the 100-MW Solar PV Project at Ramagundam, the total commercial operation of floating solar capacity in the Southern Region rose to 217 MW. (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.) founder has said granting special incentives to Tesla in India was not be in the best interests of the country, as the government has been working to accelerate the growth of homegrown champions in the electric vehicle (EV) sector, the Financial Times reported. Bhavish Aggarwal, chief executive of SoftBank-backed Ola, along with a handful of other companies, including Mukesh Ambanis Reliance Industries and Hyundai, recently won a tender under Indias $2.4-billion programme to boost local battery cell production. Tesla is free to come in and put up shop here and sell its cars, Aggarwal told the Financial Times. They just want to be treated differently from others, which I believe is not in the interests of India. Tesla has not started manufacturing operations in India. Founder Elon Musk tweeted in May that Tesla will not put a manufacturing plant in any location where we are not allowed first to sell & service cars. Musks electric vehicle company has enjoyed tremendous success in China, where it helped develop a nascent industry. In return, Beijing offered the company incentives, including tax breaks and low-interest loans. Although Maruti Suzuki, a subsidiary of Japans Suzuki, sells more passenger cars than any other company in India, many foreign automakers have struggled in India. In September, US carmaker Ford decided to stop manufacturing in India after its top directors in India were granted bail in an alleged cheating case and after years of heavy operating losses. After one scooter caught fire in March, recalled the batch of 1,400. Aggarwal called the incident isolated, adding: In very, very rare cases this can happen as have happened with other manufacturers of other EVs. He said was co-operating with a government investigation launched in March into electric scooter fires, the Financial Times reported. Choice Hotels Asia Pacific, an NYSE-listed hospitality firm, has signed a 15-year master agreement with Suba Group of Hotels in India. Under the arrangement, which came into effect on July 1, the Suba Group of Hotels will assume responsibility as master holder for the 58 Choice Hotels properties open and under development in India. The development comes close on the heels of the American hospitality chain shutting down its Indian subsidiary. This is the second major step for the Mumbai-based Suba Group, which hopes to become the largest hotel chain in the country. Last June, Suba-owned Click Hotels bought a controlling stake in Gurgaon-based 1589 Hotels for an undisclosed amount. It increased the total number of hotels at the firm which till then was confined to Maharashtra and Gujarat, to 50 from the then 15 and added 1800 keys to 400 keys. With the latest move, we become a one-stop-shop for an asset owner with franchisees adding to the bouquet of revenue sharing models, said Mansur Mehta, managing director, Suba Group, adding, Our target is to grow at a fast pace, adding 400 rooms every year. On how Suba will manage the interplay of different brands within its fold, Mehta said inclusion of Choice brands will open up several options for Suba. For instance, in cities where international brands are in demand, Suba will get in with Choice. In smaller towns that do not have any such preference, Subas brands will fill in. According to Mehta, Indias growth story in the hospitality sector has just begun and one has only scratched the surface. The pandemic has brought in a lot of changes and unlike the pre-Covid years, smaller towns and cities are on everyones radar as people are travelling a lot more within the country in order to explore their own land. The master agreement with Choice Hotels is in line with Subas vision of becoming the largest hotel chain in India, said Mehta. This will take the total number of keys being managed by the Mumbai-based chain to 5,100 from the current 2,900, with a presence in close to 57 destinations across India. Suba will be able to address customers looking for budget as well as star properties to meet business and leisure requirements. was an advisor for the deal. Jaideep Dang, managing director Hotels and Hospitality Group South Asia, added that the deal flow looks much healthier in comparison to the previous financial year. Other investment advisory firms too have their deal pipeline running full. If the growth momentum seen in the first two months of the current fiscal sustains over the next four quarters, the hospitality sector is likely to see an investment worth two billion dollars (a billion dollar each in debt and equity) over the next three years, as per the estimates of Noesis Capital & Advisors. He added that the deal flow looks much healthier in comparison to the previous financial year. expects its business turnover to be in the range of USD 3 to 3.5 billion out of which around USD 1 billion will come from exports, a senior official of the company said. Vedanta Group's global managing director of display and business Akarsh Hebbar told PTI that its JV partner Foxconn has all the agreements and required technologies in place to start making electronic chips. Vedanta Foxconn JV is among three that have applied for setting up manufacturing units in the country. Vedanta has also applied for setting up a display fabrication plant to make screens that are used for display in electronic devices. "We expect our turnover to be in the range of USD 3-3.5 billion in the first phase which is by 2026-27. This will be from both display and semiconductor combined. At that time we expect USD 1 billion to come from exports," Hebbar told PTI. has earmarked investments of up to USD 20 billion for semiconductor business, and it plans to invest USD 15 billion in the first 10 years. This is the second attempt of to enter into the semiconductor business. Earlier the company had announced plans to foray into the segment in 2015-16 with USD 10 billion to set up a display fab unit but it could not get government's approval. Later, Vedanta acquired Taiwan-based Avanstrate to enter into display fab manufacturing. The company has now formed a JV with electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn to set up an electronic chip manufacturing plant. "Foxconn is running four foundries themselves. They purchase USD 30-40 billion worth of semiconductors. The reason we don't see it is because the S group is a very small subsidiary of Foxconn compared to the whole of Foxconn. They are going to bring this ecosystem here. Foxconn is a fully integrated unit that can bring IPs (Intellectual Properties) required to make 28 nanometer technology," Hebbar said. He said India's vision is to make 1 billion smartphones by 2030, 15 million televisions and 24 million notebooks per year by 2030 only for local consumption. "Our target is towards local consumption. We will keep 10 per cent of display for exports and 20-25 per cent in semiconductor for exports. Majorly we will make it for India," Hebbar said. The company expects to start manufacturing display units in 2024-25 and semiconductors by 2025-26. Vedanta will look at making a 28 nanometer (nm) chipset. Hebbar said: "28 nm is tried and tested technology. The operational efficiency that it is coming with and the operational model that we are building around this efficiency makes it look like we are going to make affordable chipsets in our country for people to have good business value. Our business structure is robust even without subsidy." Vedanta group will look at manufacturing 40,000 panels of semiconductor and 60,000 panels of display per month, he said. The company's application is under evaluation by the government. Minister for electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that the government will start clearing applications in the current calendar year. Hebbar said 20-30 per cent of the production capacity is likely to be absorbed by Foxconn itself and the company is also in discussion with smartphone makers for business. The government has also assured semiconductor of giving policy support besides fiscal incentives to ensure a sustainable market for them. (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.) In a major success, two heavily-armed (LeT) terrorists including the mastermind of recent IED blasts in Rajouri were overpowered by villagers and handed over to the police in Reasi district of on Sunday, a senior police officer said. Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and Director General of Police Dilbag Singh lauded the villagers for their courage and announced cash rewards for them. However, a political slugfest erupted between the local units of BJP and Congress after one of the captured terrorists -- Talib Hussain Shah -- was reported to be an active member of the saffron party who was recently selected as its IT and social media cell in charge of the minority morcha in Jammu province. Some pictures emerged on social media purportedly showing Shah with BJP leaders. One of the pictures shows J&K BJP president Ravinder Raina purportedly presenting him with a bouquet and a letter issued by party leader Sheikh Bashir on May 9, assigning him the responsibility of new IT and social media incharge of Minority Morcha (Jammu province). Residents of the Tuksan Dhok village captured the terrorists. LeT commander Shah is a resident of Rajouri district and was the mastermind of the recent IED blasts in the district, the officials said. Shah and his Kashmiri associate Faisal Ahmad Dar from Pulwama were in possession of two AK assault rifles, seven grenades, a pistol and a huge quantity of ammunition when they were confronted by Muslim villagers and were disarmed before being handed over to police. The villagers had tied them with ropes. "Today, villagers of Tukson Dhok showed extreme courage in apprehending two most wanted terrorists of LeT who had reached the area to take shelter after continuous pressure from the police and army (in Rajouri district), Additional Director General of Police, Jammu zone, Mukesh Singh said in a statement here. He said the Lt Governor has applauded the courage of villagers and announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh for their bravery, while the Director General of Police announced a cash reward of Rs 2 lakh for them. "I salute the bravery of villagers of Tukson Dhok, Reasi, who apprehended two-most wanted terrorists. Such determination by common man shows end of terrorism is not far away. UT Govt to extend Rs five lakh cash reward to villagers for gallant act against terrorists and terrorism," the office of LG tweeted. The arrest of the duo followed unearthing of a module headed by Shah in Rajouri district on June 28, which was behind the recent series of explosions in the district. While two terror operatives of the outfit were arrested along with five Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), Hussain was on the run and had moved towards the higher reaches into nearby Reasi district to escape the dragnet of security forces. Twin explosions rocked Kotrana town of Rajouri on March 26 and another on April 19, leaving two persons injured. J&K | 2 terrorists of LeT apprehended by villagers of Tuksan, Reasi district, with weapons. 2AK rifles, 7 grenades and a pistol recovered. DGP announces a reward of Rs 2 lakhs for villagers: ADGP Jammu Apprehended terrorists identified as Faizal Ahmed Dar and Talib Hussain. pic.twitter.com/frBrBrktv5 ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2022 Two more persons were injured in another blast that took place in Shahpur-Budhal area of Rajouri on April 24. Shah was in constant touch with LeT terrorist Qasim based in Pakistan and was involved in at least three cases of IED blasts at Rajouri district besides civilian killings and grenade blasts, the ADGP said He said it was revealed during preliminary questioning that both the terrorists were also in touch with a Pakistani LeT handler Salman. People are with us in the fight against terrorism and today's development is a step forward...this is a big success after the busting of two LeT modules in Udhampur and Rajouri which was assigned the task to revive terrorism in parts of Jammu province, the ADGP said. Terming the arrest of Shah and Dar a major breakthrough, officials said the LeT is making desperate attempts to revive terrorism in Pir Panchal districts of Rajouri and Poonch, Chenab valley districts of Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban besides Reasi in Jammu province but "we are alert and ready to meet any challenge". As the news about villagers overpowering the two terrorists and handing them over to the police surfaced, purported pictures of Shah with JK BJP chief and his participation in party functions emerged on social media. While Raina dismissed the presence of Shah in his party as a "conspiracy hatched by Pakistan to target him and the party headquarters", Pradesh Congress Committee chief spokesperson Ravinder Sharma said the ruling party should answer to the nation over the alleged presence of terrorists in their ranks and holding important party positions. While lauding the people for assisting police in capturing the two most-wanted LeT terrorists, JK BJP chief said "they were part of a conspiracy hatched from Pakistan to target him and the party headquarters". He said the BJP is determined to wipe out Pakistan-sponsored terrorism from and "we will not be cowed down by threats or conspiracies". Reacting strongly, the Congress chief spokesperson said "this is for the first time that such a thing had happened (when an office bearer of a party is directly involved in terrorism)." "The BJP should answer to the nation about the presence of terrorists in their ranks holding important party positions. It is a very serious matter and a threat to the security of the nation," 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.) The Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed six teams in various parts of after the Meteorological Department forecast that there will be heavy to very heavy along the coastal belt, south Gujarat, and some parts of central and north . NDRF's 6th Battalion's Deputy Commandant Anupam told IANS, "Three teams are carrying out rescue operations in Anand, Navsari and Gir Somnath district, six other teams have been kept on standby -- three at Rajkot, two in Gandhinagar, one each in Surat and Banaskantha district." He also said three teams are deployed in Rajasthan, one each in Kishangarh, Kota and Udaipur. Weather forecast for the state from July 3 to next five days is, 'heavy to very heavy rains likely at the isolated places in the districts of south like Surat and Navsari, Saurashtra's Junagadh, heavy rains likely in districts like Banaskantha, Sabarkantha, Dangs, Valsad, Tapi, Daman and Dadranagar Haveli, Porbandar, Kutch, Amreli, Dwarka, Gir Somnath in Saurashtra and Kutch region'. In the last 24 hours (July 2, 8 a.m. to July 3, 8 a.m.), Navsari's Vansda received 136 mm, Devbhumi Dwarka's Khambhalia taluka (114) Junagadh's Manavadar (106) and Tapi district's Dolvan taluka received 98 mm . in the last 24 hours, 110 Talukas have received more than 5 mm rains. team on Sunday recovered one more dead body from Kathol village of Borsad taluka. It had recovered two bodies that were swept away in heavy rains on Thursday night. The Borsad taluka in Anand district received 12 inches of rain. Several villages are still marooned in three to four feet water. Anand District Panchayat president Hansaben Parmar have blamed the village sarpanch for this situation. She said if they had done pre-monsoon work properly, water would have flowed easily either in lakes or in farms, but that did not happen. --IANS haresh/skp/ (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 local court on Sunday sent the mastermind of Amravati-based shop owner Umesh Prahladrao Kolhe's murder, Shaikh Irfan Shaikh Rahim to police custody till July 7. The police on Saturday arrested the mastermind and seventh accused in the brutal killing of Amravati-based shop owner Umesh Kolhe.Earlier, six accused who were arrested have been identified as Mudassir Ahmad (22), Shah Rukh Pathan (25), Abdul Thoufique (24), Shoaib Khan (22), Atib Rashid (22) and Yusufkan Bahadur Khan (44). Exactly a week before tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli was hacked to death in Udaipur, Umesh Prahladrao Kolhe, a 54-year-old chemist, was killed in Maharashtra's district on June 21. Initial investigation by the City Kotwali Police Station in following a complaint by Umesh Kohle's son Sanket Kohle led them to arrest two persons - Muddsir Ahmad, 22, and Shahrukh Pathan, 25, on June 23. Investigators so far believe that Kolhe was killed allegedly in retaliation for a social media post supporting BJP's Nupur Sharma who had made controversial comments on the Prophet in a television debate. The number of arrests may increase after the main accused in the brutal murder of an Amravati-based shop owner Umesh Kolhe is nabbed, said a police official on Sunday. "He (mastermind) was arrested last night. He's being interrogated. They have a helpline group-Rehbar group. Several people connected to them. 7 accused have been arrested so far. The number of arrests may rise after the arrest of the main accused," said Nilima Araj, Police Inspector when asked about mastermind of murder. Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed the Investigation Agency (NIA) to take over the probe into the brutal killing of Maharashtra's Amravati-based shop owner Umesh Kolhe on June 21, after he wrote a post in support of Nupur Sharma on Facebook. Home Minister's Office (HMO) made the announcement through its Twitter handle as the matter was similar to the Udaipur case in which a tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli was killed in broad daylight by two men. (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 finance ministry has been planning a lecture in memory of since 2019, but could not do so in 2020 and 2021 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Finance Minister told Business Standard. It will be an annual event from this year, she said. One of the things that Prime Minister decided was to name the Institute of Financial Management after him. And it was decided to hold an annual Memorial Lecture. It could not happen in 2020 and 2021 because of the pandemic. But we will be holding it this year, Sitharaman said. ALSO READ | Trust between Centre and states intact in GST Council: FM Sitharaman The Memorial Lecture, part of the Kautilya Economic, will be held on July 8 at Vigyan Bhawan. The PM will attend the event, and the lecture will be delivered by former Singapore deputy prime minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam. Apart from the lecture, we wanted to hold a conclave of globally renowned economists, bring them in, and have them sitting under Chatham House rules and discuss the economy. And we wanted to make that a calendar event for the finance ministry, Sitharaman said. On Jaitleys legacy as finance minister from 2014 to 2019, Sitharaman said: I never dreamed I'll be able to fill those shoes, they are too big to fill. I am happy so long as I have his blessings. On Monday, Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth will brief the media on the upcoming conclave and the memorial lecture, along with Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran, Institute of Economic Growth President NK Singh, NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand, Member and Institute of Economic Growth President Chetan Ghate. The Kautilya Economic Conclave is a revival of the ministrys old marquee event, the Delhi Economics Conclave, which was discontinued in 2015. The conclave is being jointly organised by the finance ministry and Institute of Economic Growth. Suspension of Internet services for 85 times in the last 10 years is being termed as 'Digital Emergency in Rajasthan. After the brutal beheading of Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur on June 28, the state suspended mobile internet services across Rajasthan. Thereafter, the internet suspension continues in all divisions of the state, except the Bikaner division. Rajasthan has witnessed internet suspension for around 85 times in the last decade, placing the state second after Jammu and Kashmir when it comes to suspending net service over law and order issues. It's been five days since the state suspended internet and the common people here are left to suffer, as they can neither book cabs, nor attend online classes. Also, making online payment has become a challenge. Atharv, a first year B.Tech student, says, "We have become used to this digital emergency ('Netbandi'), which is imposed after any incidence of violence, riot, among others. However, this time the 'emergency' has come during our exams when going to college is a challenge amid heavy rains. Roads are all filled with water. And we can't even book cabs." Another Jaipur resident said, "My phone screen was damaged and I had to go to the service centre, which asked me to pay Rs 19,000 via UPI or cash. As internet was not working, I had to rush to ATMs where there were long queues. By the time my turn came, the cash was exhausted. Now I am managing without a phone, as I have no patience to go to another ATM and face similar woes." "When tension erupted in Karauli on Ram Navami in April, clashes were reported in the neighbouring state of Madhya Pradesh. Curfew was clamped there; however, the MP government did not suspend net services," said Atharv's friend, Apoorv. While the officials say that shutting down internet services would stop the spreading of rumours, Netizens are debating why the government is suspending the internet instead of blocking social media apps like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. "Rumour-mongers are continuing to spew venom on social media with the help of broadband connections," said Mukta, a business woman new to the city, who is facing difficulty in attending meetings as the Google Map on her phone is not working. "The state government should consider providing internet services as a fundamental right. If not, it should re-read the Supreme Court comment made in January 2020, which said 'internet is a fundamental right of the people under Article 19 of the Constitution'. Which means it is as important as the right to live. Net services cannot be shut down indefinitely. This is more like a Digital Emergency," she added. Meanwhile, as the series of bandhs called by different organisations continues in the state, many online services like online payments, mobile banking, cab booking, online home delivery etc. lie suspended. However, state Home Minister Rajendra Yadav said, "The internet services have been suspended to check the spreading of rumours. There is no other way than 'Netbandi' to check rumour spread. (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.) National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) presidential candidate on Saturday visited to seek support from the legislators of the ruling AINRC-led coalition in the Union Territory. She met Chief Minister N Rangasamy and sought support for her candidature in the presidential election. On Friday, Shiromani Akali Dal, which used to be an ally of the BJP, announced that it will support NDA candidate in the presidential elections. The BJP-led NDA had declared as the presidential candidate on June 21.Last month, Murmu had made calls to senior opposition leaders including Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee to seek their support. Murmu has also got support from Biju Janta Dal as well as YSR Congress. BJP chief JP Nadda had also reached out to leaders of some opposition parties in an effort to build consensus on Murmu's candidature. He spoke to Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, National Conference patriarch Farooq Abdullah and former Prime Minister and JDS leader HD Deve Gowda. The elections for the President of India will take place on July 18 and the results will be out on July 21. The term of President Ram Nath Kovind concludes on July 24. Droupadi Murmu is the first presidential candidate from Odisha of a major political party or alliance. She continues to break barriers and was the first woman governor of Jharkhand. She served as Jharkhand Governor from 2015 to 2021. Born in a poor tribal family in a village of Mayurbhanj, a backward district in Odisha, Droupadi Murmu completed her studies despite challenging circumstances. She taught at Shri Aurobindo Integral Education Centre, Rairangpur. Born on June 20, 1958, she pursued BA at Ramadevi Women's College Bhubaneswar.She started her political career as Rairangpur NAC vice-chairman. Droupadi Murmu was a member of the Odisha Legislative Assembly from Rairangpur between 2000 and 2004. As a minister, she held portfolios of Transport and Commerce, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries. She again served as MLA in the Odisha assembly from 2004 to 2009. (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.) Due to a likely formation of a low pressure area over north and adjoining areas during next 48 hours, the IMD has warned of heavy activity over with an orange alert on Sunday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday said: "A cyclonic circulation lies over Bangladesh & neighbourhood and extends up to 7.6 km above mean sea level tilting south westwards with height. Under its influence, a Low Pressure Area is likely to form over north & neighbourhood during next 48 hours." Under its influence, widespread light to moderate activity with isolated heavy (7 to 11 cm) to very heavy (11 to 20 cm) rainfall at one or two places is likely during next 4 to 5 days over some districts of Odisha. The IMD has also warned of enhanced rainfall activity likely over Gujarat, Konkan, and during next five days, over Central India on July 4 and 5, and over northwest India on July 5 and 6. "A cyclonic circulation lies over central parts of Rajasthan in lower and middle tropospheric levels and a trough runs from this circulation to west-central Arabian Sea in middle tropospheric levels. There are strong westerly winds along the west peninsular coast in the lower levels," the IMD said. Isolated heavy rainfall very likely over Gujarat, Konkan, Goa, coastal Karnataka, Kerala, and Mahe during next 5 days, and over central Maharashtra and south interior Karnataka from July 4 to 6. Isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall is also very likely over Konkan and on July 4 and coastal Karnataka on July 6. Isolated extremely heavy rainfall is also likely over Konkan & on July 5 and 6, the IMD warned. --IANS niv/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.) In the wake of protests against the Agnipath scheme by aspiring soldiers, industrialists took to Twitter to announce that they were willing to hire ex-servicemen in their organisations. The government is also a big employer of ex-servicemen. However, veterans complain that reserved for them are too few. Data shows that despite the scarcity, most of the that are reserved for ex-servicemen are not given to them. According to the rules of reservation, there should be 413,688 positions available for ex-servicemen in Groups A, B, C and D . However, less than a quarter (80,135 of 413,688) of these jobs in banks, Central and Central Armed Police Forces are taken by ex-servicemen, according to the data from the Directorate of Resettlement. The Central Armed Police Forces, which announced a 10 per cent reservation for retiring Agniveers, has given only 0.47 of the 10 per cent in Group C to ex-servicemen as of June 2021. Central have staffed 1.15 per cent of the Group C and 0.3 per cent of the Group D vacancies with ex-servicemen, based on the data from 98 of 170 . The data shows that absorbing the first batch of 34,500 retired Agniveers in 2026 will require additional . While Home Minister Amit Shah announced that they will be given preference in recruitment for the Assam Rifles and the Central Armed Police Forces, it is not clear if they will be eligible for the same quota as the ex-servicemen. Source: IndiaSpend Bharova, Khalo and Shanatra villages in Jammu and Kashmirs Bhaderwah, which were once considered poverty-stricken due to recurring drought, have made a mark in the sector by growing exotic Italian pears with a yearly production of about 1.5 metric tonnes. Unlike other places in the hilly Chenab valley region where farmers consider growing fruits as a subsidiary activity and instead prefer maize, paddy and fodder for cattle, has emerged as a viable livelihood option for farmers who treated it at par with . The seeds of positive growth were sown when Haji Mohd Shafi Sheikh (74) of village Bharova, 18 km from Bhaderwah town, decided to switch from growing maize to on his five acres of land about two decades ago. Traditionally I used to grow maize and green fodder in my land completely dependent on rain and the yield never exceeded beyond Rs 20,000 a year, Sheikh told PTI. Sheikhs family owned the land located on the slope of a hill surrounded by thick coniferous forest and was facing a severe financial crisis. Until his elder son Atta Mohds insistence, Sheikh decided to halt the traditional practice of growing maize and adopted horticulture with the hope to earn extra money, despite facing criticism from fellow villagers and relatives. After switching to horticulture in 2002, facing some extra hardships for initial four years, my endeavour starting gradually reaping the rich benefits and today my income from a meagre Rs 20,000 a year has swollen to Rs 25 lakh annually, Sheikh said, expressing satisfaction that he is able to provide employment to 25 villagers in his orchard where he grows exotic Italian pears. Sheikh, by opting for innovative cultivation of Italian pears, made it a successful venture in Bhaderwah by growing more than 200 trees thereby inspiring other farmers as well. During a routine visit of a team of scientists of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, seeing my dedication and the urge to grow my orchard scientifically, one of the scientists Dr Vikas Tandon gave me a few plants of Italian pears and that became a big turning point in my journey, he said. Not only for himself but Sheikh also became a ray of hope for the unemployed youths of his area as they have been working with him for the last couple of years and are earning their livelihood. During the first wave of Covid-19 pandemic, I lost my job and returned back to my village with no means of livelihood but soon I found a job in my own village in the orchard of Sheikh Sahib. I am not only working here but am also growing my own orchard of Italian pears that too scientifically, Mukesh Kumar (27), also a resident of Bharova, said. Getting inspiration from the elderly fruit grower, today 165 families from Bharova, Khalo and Shanatra villages have switched over to growing fruits especially Italian pears thereby becoming the leading producer of exotic fruit in the region. After completing my engineering at Bengaluru, I came back to put an idea before my father to start growing fruit trees instead of maize. Although after some resistance my father agreed, we have to face a lot of opposition from our relatives and fellow villagers who even branded me as mentally ill, Sheikhs son Atta Mohd said. Mohd said he is proud of his fathers achievement as he has become an icon and an inspiration for other farmers in the area. Today our entire area has become a fruit hub and we are leading the race as far as production of fine quality Italian pears is concerned, he said. The exotic dark red colour fruit which is extremely popular among high-end customers has also given a new identity to Bhaderwah valley and has also become an added attraction for visitors. Italian pears, also sometimes called Red dAnjou pears, were introduced to the market in the 1950s after being discovered as a sport on a Green Anjou pear tree. Red Anjou pears taste similar to the green variety, but they offer a stunning, deep red colour that adds a distinctive look to any dish that calls for pears. (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.) About 10 states in India have detected a new sub-variant of Omicron BA.2.75, which may be "alarming" in nature, according to an Israeli expert on Sunday. However, the Indian Health Ministry is yet to officially confirm the detection of the sub-variant in the country. In a series of Tweets, Dr. Shay Fleishon, with the Central Virology Laboratory at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, said that 85 sequences from eight countries have been uploaded so far on Nextstrain, an open-source platform of genomic data. This included 69 from India: Delhi (1), Haryana (6), Himachal Pradesh (3), Jammu (1), Karnataka (10), Madhya Pradesh (5), Maharashtra (27), Telangana (2), Uttar Pradesh (1), and West Bengal (13). Besides India, the strain has also been reported by seven other countries: Japan (1), Germany (2), the UK (6), Canada (2), the US (2), Australia (1), and New Zealand (2), according to the Nextstrain data. "No transmission could be tracked based on sequences outside India yet," Fleishon wrote on Twitter. While he said it is "too soon to tell" whether BA.2.75 will be the next dominant variant, he noted that the sub-variant may be "alarming because it may imply a trend to come". Fleishon explained that in recent months, there has been a trend of second generation variants based on Omicron sub-lineages, namely BA.1, BA.2, BA.3, BA.4, and BA.5. This was based on Omicron lineages with mutations in the S1 section of the spike protein and specifically in the part of the spike protein which the virus uses to connect to and gain entry into cells. However, the rise seen in these sub-variants has been "at a level not seen in second-generation variants from other variants of concerns". Further, until now these second-generation variants have only been found in a few cases within one region. This is the first time a second-generation variant from Omicron has spread to multiple regions. "The fact that such a divergent 2nd gen variant can succeed inter-host is alarming. It means that if BA.2.75 will not succeed, and even if it will, other 2nd gen might grow better over time," Fleishon said. The sub-variant is worth "keeping a close eye" on, Thomas Peacock, a scientist at Imperial College London, said on Twitter. The BA.2.75 was also flagged by Bloom Lab at the Fred Hutch research institute in the US. In a tweet, posted this week, the institute said the sub-variant "is worth tracking, as it has appreciable antigenic change relative to its parent BA.2". The lab pointed to two mutations as key: G446S and R493Q. "G446S is at one of most potent sites of escape from antibodies elicited by current vaccines that still neutralises BA.2. So for immunity from vaccines or early infections, adding G446S to BA.2 will decrease neutralisation," the lab said. "However, G446S will have less effect on antibodies of people with prior BA.1 breakthrough infection. Therefore, BA.2.75's antigenic advantage relative to BA.2 will be most pronounced in people who have not had BA.1 exposure," it said. This means that "BA.2.75 will have antibody escape that is similar to that for BA.4/5 with respect to the current vaccine". The R493Q mutation, on the other hand, seems to increase the virus's ability to attach to ACE2 -- the protein which the Covid virus uses to enter cells. (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.) Latest Live news updates: India on Sunday logged 16,103 new Covid-19 cases, taking its caseload to 43,502,429. With 31 new deaths related to Covid-19 infection, the toll jumped to 525,199. India's tally of recovered Covid cases reached 42,865,519 after 13,929 new recoveries in the last 24 hours. The two-day Executive meeting of the (BJP) in will conclude on Sunday as the party leaders on Saturday discussed the upcoming state elections. Prime Minister will address a public meeting on Sunday after the executive will conclude. The rebel MLAs, who were camping in Guwahati and then in Goa, returned to Mumbai on Saturday on the eve of a special two-day session of the state legislature which will see an election for the post of Assembly Speaker on Sunday, and a floor test of the newly sworn Chief Minister on Monday. As many as 50 MLAs who support Shinde, including 39 rebel legislators of the Shiv Sena, on Saturday evening flew to Mumbai from Goa by a chartered flight. Shinde, who had flown to Goa in the morning, accompanied them back. A mob outside Jaipur court attacked the four accused in the murder of a tailor, who had reportedly extended support to suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma on social media over her controversial Prophet remark. The clothes of one of the four accused were torn, as agitated lawyers demanded capital punishment for them. Meanwhile, the district administration on Saturday relaxed the curfew imposed in seven police station areas for four hours, however, internet services remained suspended. on Sunday recorded 2,962 COVID-19 cases, including 761 in Mumbai, and one more patient of BA.4 sub-variant of Omicron besides six fatalities, the health department said in a bulletin. With the latest additions, Maharashtra's tally of infections rose to 79,85,296 and the COVID-19 death toll to 1,47,940. A day earlier, the state had seen 2,971 cases and five fatalities. The state is now left with 22,485 active cases. The health bulletin said one more patient of BA.4 sub-variant of Omicron has been detected. The 60-year-old woman patient from Mumbai is fully vaccinated. She had tested positive for on June 16. The patient had only mild symptoms of COVID-19 and recovered in home isolation, it said. The cumulative tally of BA.4 and BA.5 patients in the state has gone up to 64 15 in Pune, 34 in Mumbai, four each in Nagpur, Thane and Palghar and three in Raigad. Mumbai recorded 761 fresh COVID-19 cases and three fatalities while one death each due to COVID-19 was reported from the limits of the Thane Municipal Corporation, Pune and Gadchiroli districts. Maharashtra's case fatality rate now stands at 1.85 per cent. A total of 3,918 patients recovered from the infection in the last 24 hours, taking the overall number of recoveries in to 78,14,871. The current case recovery rate in the state is 97.87 per cent. A total of 36,858 tests were conducted in the state in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative number of samples tested so far to 8,21,19,146. Maharashtra's COVID-19 figures are as follows: Fresh cases: 2,962, fresh fatalities: 6, active cases: 22,485, tests: 36,858; total cases 79,85,296, total death toll 1,47,940. (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 death toll in the at a railway construction site in Manipur's Noney district rose to 42 on Sunday evening as eight more bodies were found from under the debris, officials said. Twenty people are still missing with heavy rains and fresh landslides impeding the search operations since Saturday, he said. Bodies of 42 people have been found so far from under the debris at Tupul yard railway construction camp. Among them are 27 Territorial Army personnel and 15 civilians, including railway employees, construction workers and villagers, a defence spokesperson in Guwahati said. The Territorial Army is deployed in the area to provide security for the railway construction work. "Relentless effort to find the remaining three missing Territorial Army personnel, and 17 civilians will continue," he said. The Army, Assam Rifles, Territorial Army, SDRF and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are part of the search operation. "The search operation is continuing despite adverse weather conditions, owing to heavy rains and fresh landslides last night," the spokesperson said. So far, 13 Territorial Army personnel and five civilians have been rescued. Through Wall Imaging Radar (TWIR) technology is being used to find the missing persons under the debris. A search and rescue dog has also been brought in to assist the efforts, the official said. A massive hit the railway construction site on Wednesday night. Construction was underway in the area for the 110-km Jiribam to Imphal line under a project to connect the capitals of eight Norteastern states to the country's railway network, officials said. The debris blocked the Ijei river below, creating a reservoir that threatens to inundate the low-lying areas. At present, work is underway to clear the debris to let the water flow out, they said. Bodies of seven Territorial Army personnel were sent to their hometowns -- Kolkata and Bagdogra in West Bengal, and Agartala in Tripura -- on Sunday, the spokesperson said. Full military honours were given to them at Imphal, he said. Bodies of four civilians killed in the incident were also sent to their native places in Assam on Sunday. (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.) New Delhi [India], July 3 (ANI): The security forces in Jammu and Kashmir are on maximum vigilance amid intelligence report that over a dozen terrorist launch pads have again become active across the (LoC) in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK). As per inputs, a top government official citing intelligence input said, nearly 200 terrorists are waiting on these launch pads in PoK to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir. Considering threat assessment, patrolling of Border Security Force (BSF) as well as Army has been more frequent along the LoC to foil any infiltration attempt, said the official, privy to the development. The official said the terrorists are learnt to use "tunnel and riverine" areas to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir and they have affiliation with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM). "As most of the routes adopted by the terrorists are exposed, they are planning to infiltrate through a tunnel and riverine areas," said the official. Another official said the terrorists are now trying the Rajouri-Poonch routes, the areas of the south of Pir Panjal. "The focus of infiltration has largely now shifted to the south of Pir Panjal," the official said. "The infiltration in Kashmir valley has reduced compared to other routes," the official added. Inputs regarding these launch pads across LoC are significant as the 43-day long Amarnath Yatra-- the annual pilgrimage of Hindus-- has started on June 30 after a gap of two years and lakhs of pilgrims are visiting the Union Territory. The official said there has been a few instances of successful infiltration along the LoC in the valley so far this year as most of their attempts have been foiled and the terrorists were killed in multiple operations. Indicating towards data, the official said 121 terrorists were killed till June 28 this year and the maximum number was of Over Ground Workers linked to LeT (68), JeM (29) and HM (16) while the number of foreign terrorists was almost nill. Of the 121 terrorists, seven were unidentified and one belonged to Islamic State Jammu and Kashmir (ISJK), said the official citing the data. The overall situation along the LoC has been peaceful since the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan in 2021. The officer said the infiltration along the LoC shows a downward trend. From 130 infiltration bids in 2019, it came down to 36 bids in 2020 and 31 in 2021, said the official. (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.) Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], July 3 (ANI): Prime Minister on Sunday lauded the candidature of the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) presidential candidate and called it historic on the second day of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national executive meeting in Hyderabad. Before the political resolution was moved by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, PM Modi spoke about Murmu. Sources said the Prime Minister spoke very highly about Murmu and her life journey. PM gave special stress on her humble beginnings and her struggle throughout her life and yet she did not fail to achieve what she stood for. PM Modi also spoke about her conduct in public life, emphasizing how Murmu worked constantly for the upliftment of every stratum of society. The Prime Minister also told the members of the BJP national executive that it was indeed an honour for India to get its first tribal woman president if she is elected in the coming days, adding that her candidature stands over and above any politics, the sources added. Murmu filed her nomination on June 24 in the presence of Prime Minister Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP national president JP Nadda, Home Minister Amit Shah and leaders of the NDA-led alliance and also leaders from supporting parties like Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party and Biju Janata Dal (BJD). Since the nomination, the BJP has reached out to opposition parties seeking support for Murmu. While Murmu herself has made calls to Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar and Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren. JP Nadda had called Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Jammu and Kashmir National Conference President Farooq Abdullah, JD-S supremo HD Devegowda and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD's) Sukhbir Badal. The former ally of the NDA Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has announced their support for Murmu and so has HD Devegowda's party Janata Dal (Secular). The elections for the President of India will take place on July 18 and the results will be out on July 21. The term of President Ram Nath Kovind concludes on July 24. (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.) Congress leader and Wayanad MP on Sunday said guidelines under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) need more flexibility based on individual needs and circumstances of every state and he has requested the Central government to consider revising them accordingly. Speaking at the inauguration of the construction of a road under the PMGSY in Nilambur area of Malappuram district of Kerala, the Congress MP said that he has written a letter to the Union Minister of Road Transport to consider revising the guidelines. "I am hopeful they will consider it favourably," he said and added that he has given a list of 11 roads for being included under PMGSY for maintenance and upgradation. Besides the inauguration of the road construction, Gandhi also participated in a key handover ceremony in Nilambur in connection with a house built there by Samskarika Sahiti, a wing of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), for a woman who was allegedly denied a house under the Life Mission of the state government after she lost her home to floods. Gandhi alleged at the event that a house under Life Mission was denied to the woman, despite being eligible for it, due to her political ideology and support to the Congress party. The Wayanad MP, thereafter, flagged off several trauma care ambulances from the Wandoor area of Malappuram. Gandhi is scheduled to participate in several other events in Malappuram district on the third day of his three-day Kerala visit before returning to Delhi tonight. (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.) National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) presidential candidate will visit Bihar's Patna on July 5 for campaigning for the presidential election which is scheduled to be held on July 18. During her visit to the state capital, Murmu will meet all senior leaders including Bihar Chief Minister . Murmu is continuously touring in states for the campaign after being made the candidate for the post of President. The preparation for her welcome is in full swing in Patna by the Bihar state unit. As per the sources, all the senior leaders of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP), MLAs and MPs including Nitish Kumar, state president Sanjay Jaiswal, Ravi Shankar Prasad will be present in in the program organised for Murmu. Murmu has visited many states since being nominated for the presidential candidate including Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh, where she has sought support for herself. The sources have also informed that the NDA's presidential candidate is likely to visit more states in the coming days, where she is expected to meet MPs and MLAs. Earlier on Saturday, Murmu visited Puducherry to seek support from the legislators of the ruling AINRC-led coalition in the Union Territory. She met Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy and sought support for her candidature in the presidential election. On Friday, Shiromani Akali Dal, which used to be an ally of the BJP, announced that it will support NDA candidate in the presidential elections. The BJP-led NDA had declared as the presidential candidate on June 21. Last month, Murmu had made calls to senior opposition leaders including Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee to seek their support. Murmu has also got support from Biju Janta Dal as well as YSR Congress. BJP chief JP Nadda had also reached out to leaders of some opposition parties in an effort to build consensus on Murmu's candidature. He spoke to Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, National Conference patriarch Farooq Abdullah and former Prime Minister and JDS leader HD Deve Gowda. The elections for the President of India will take place on July 18 and the results will be out on July 21. The term of President Ram Nath Kovind concludes on July 24. Droupadi Murmu is the first presidential candidate from Odisha of a major political party or alliance. She continues to break barriers and was the first woman governor of Jharkhand. She served as Jharkhand Governor from 2015 to 2021. Born in a poor tribal family in a village of Mayurbhanj, a backward district in Odisha, Droupadi Murmu completed her studies despite challenging circumstances. She taught at Shri Aurobindo Integral Education Centre, Rairangpur. Born on June 20, 1958, she pursued BA at Ramadevi Women's College Bhubaneswar. She started her political career as Rairangpur NAC vice-chairman. Droupadi Murmu was a member of the Odisha Legislative Assembly from Rairangpur between 2000 and 2004. As a minister, she held portfolios of Transport and Commerce, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries. She again served as MLA in the Odisha assembly from 2004 to 2009. (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.) Earlier, the word "conspiracy" was hurled at the Union government or the BJP in case of any central agency probe into any matter in West Bengal. Although that still continues, of late Chief Minister has found a new target on this issue. Having faced adverse judgements in the in all education sector recruitment related cases, that ultimately led to central agency probes, has recently blamed the petitioners in these matters. She asked the petitioners to withdraw their petitions to enable the state government to re-start the process of teachers' recruitment to make room for them. At the same time she advised the petitioners to hound their lawyers who won the legal battle for them in the to arrange jobs for them. IANS spoke to a number of legal brains. All of them said that the legal fraternity in West Bengal has termed this action of the chief minister as sheer disregard of the judicial system and an expression of her fear. Senior advocate of the and former Kolkata Mayor, Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, who was the principal counsel for the petitioners in the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment scam, became the principal target of the chief minister on this count. "Bikash Bhattacharya has lots of money. Go and ask him so that he arranges your jobs since he has been responsible for the court orders that have stopped recruitment of 17,000 teachers," recently told the petitioners at a public rally. Speaking to IANS, Bhattacharya said that this advice of Mamata Banerjee is an expression of her disregard of the judicial system and also an indirect admission that the earlier recruitments were done flouting all norms. "By asking the petitioners to withdraw the cases as a chief minister she is justifying the irregular recruitments. Had there not been irregularities there would not have been so many petitions. And what will the petitioners get by hounding me. I just appeared as a counsel on behalf of the petitioners. I did not file the petitions," he said. Speaking to IANS, Calcutta High Court Bar Association president and senior advocate, Arunava Ghosh questioned whether the chief minister can give a written declaration that jobs for all those deprived will be ensured if the petitions are withdrawn. "I think Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya would have asked this particular question to the chief minister and would have thrown an open challenge. Mamata Banerjee made a political statement without understanding the legal implications of asking the petitioners to withdraw their petitions and that too from the chair of the chief minister. Remember, she made this appeal to the petitioners at an administrative review meeting which she was chairing as the chief minister," Ghosh said. Another senior advocate of the Calcutta High Court, Kaushik Gupta pointed out that when anyone feels deprived or is a victim of injustice, he or she has the fundamental and constitutional right to knock on the doors of the judiciary. "Now by asking the petitioners to withdraw the petitions just because the court verdict had gone against the state government, the chief minister, who herself holds a degree in law, has disregarded that fundamental right to approach the judiciary for justice. If the chief minister feels that any particular court order has not been justified, who is stopping her or her government in approaching a higher bench or a higher court. But probably she also knows very well that approaching higher benches or higher courts will not make any difference," Gupta said. Calcutta High Court advocate Jyoti Prakash Khan took special objection to the chief minister asking the petitioners to hound their counsel for arranging jobs for them. "This is nothing but indirect instigation. If the counsel concerned approaches the court claiming insecurity since the instigation has come from none else but the chief minister, then things can really take a serious turn. In my opinion such expressions on the part of the chief minister are out of fear, understanding that the judiciary is taking an extremely tough stand with regard to the teachers' recruitment irregularities and the corruption involved," Khan said. --IANS src/bg (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 is working to release the new five-year (FTP) before September this year and Districts as Export Hubs scheme would be part of that document, which aims at promoting exports and job creation, an official said. The directorate general of foreign trade (DGFT), the commerce ministry's arm which is formulating the policy, will soon send the proposal to the finance ministry for seeking funds for the scheme. Under the scheme, the aim is to initially focus on 50 districts which have products that are scalable and hold huge export potential, the official said. The DGFT would follow a "challenge route" method to select these districts, the official said adding states and districts that want to avail the financial incentives under the scheme should compete for that. There are 750 districts in the country. "It will be a kind of competition among states and districts. We will come out with detailed guidelines for that. The scheme will find a place in the FTP. It will be a centrally-sponsored scheme, where 60 per cent of the total cost will be borne by the Centre, and the remaining by states. We are trying to release the new FTP before September," the official added. According to a document of the commerce ministry, states need to be engaged actively in the export promotion activities as exports cannot be exponentially increased without their active involvement. Districts as Export Hubs scheme aims to target export promotion, manufacturing and employment generation at grassroot level. The current (2015-20) is in force till September 2022. On March 31, 2020, the government had extended this policy for one year till March 31, 2021 due to the COVID-19 outbreak and the lockdown. It was again extended till September this year. In the policy, the government announces support measures for both goods and services exporters. In 2021-22, the country's merchandise exports touched USD 420 billion and services exports aggregated at USD 254.4 billion. The government is looking at USD one trillion exports of goods and services each by 2030. To push the outbound shipments, India is aggressively negotiating free trade agreements with several countries and regions including Canada, the UK, European Union and Israel. India has implemented a trade pact with the UAE in May and has signed one with Australia. (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 commerce ministry's arm has issued registration certificates for about 1.6 million tonne of to exporters having valid letter of credit, after the ban order of May 13, an official said. The government is allowing shipments for which irrevocable letters of credit (L/C) were issued on or before May 13, when the ban on the export of the foodgrain was imposed with an aim to contain rising prices. War between Russia and Ukraine has severely impacted the flow of in the global markets as they are key players in the sector. Russia and Ukraine together account for almost a quarter of the global wheat supply. Exporters having valid L/Cs would have to register with the Regional Authorities of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to obtain registration of contracts (RCs) to ship their consignments. "RCs for about 1.6 million tonne have been issued so far," the official said adding as Russia has started exports of wheat through Turkey, prices in the global markets may stabilise. India's wheat exports stood at 7 million tonne, valued at USD 2.05 billion, in 2021-22 on better demand for the Indian wheat from overseas. Of the total wheat exports, around 50 per cent of shipments were exported to Bangladesh in last fiscal year. The top ten importing countries for the Indian wheat in 2020-21 were Bangladesh, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Afghanistan, Qatar, Indonesia, Oman and Malaysia. India accounts for less than 1 per cent of the world wheat export. It is the second-largest producer of wheat. It had contributed around 14 per cent of the world's total production in 2020. India produces around 107.59 million tonne of wheat annually, while a major chunk of it goes towards domestic consumption. Major wheat growing states in India are Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar and Gujarat. (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 candidature of for the Presidential poll has more or less united the opposition but the balance is tilting towards NDA candidate Draupadi Murmu after the recent political developments in Maharashtra. The strategy of the Sinha camp is to focus on personality rather than electoral arithmetic so he is invoking his long experience as an asset against the NDA nominee. Both have launched their campaign and are touring the states. Sinha said, "This will be my last electoral battle. I fought many electoral battles in my life and this is my last battle and I am very happy that I am signing off my electoral career by competing for the topmost constitutional post in the country." Sinha was in Telangana on Saturday where the TRS has offered its support to him. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has invoked the personality factor and said, "We are lucky to have selected a good leader for the Presidential election. I appeal to all Parliamentarians to compare both the candidates and select Sinhaji as we need to bring in a change in Indian politics." Sinha, who has been critical of the Modi government, says that he will not be a mere rubber stamp President but will work to protect the Constitution. But as of now the ruling party is comfortably placed with the Shiv Sena breakaway faction and support of the BJD and the YSRCP. The NDA Presidential poll nominee Draupadi Murmu is on the campaign trail too and is reaching out to parties headed by OBC leaders or tribals other than the NDA. All allies of the NDA, including JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar are unitedly supporting the BJP choice. Besides, leaders of two other political parties, the Biju Janata Dal and the YSRCP, (the ruling parties in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh respectively) signed on the nomination papers of Draupadi Murmu, further cementing her chance to win. BSP chief Mayawati has extended her support to Murmu, saying tribals form an integral part of the party's movement. The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, which is in power in Jharkhand in alliance with the Congress, is also under pressure to support the NDA presidential candidate as Murmu had been the governor of the state. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is said to be having second thoughts as she said that she could have considered supporting NDA's Presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu had the BJP informed her about its choice in advance. "Draupadi Murmu has a better chance of winning. Had the BJP informed me in advance that it will field a tribal woman as its Presidential candidate, I could have thought otherwise and made attempts accordingly. For the larger national interest, the opposition parties could have discussed the issue then." Murmu is likely to get more support from the opposition ranks keeping in view the changing political scenario and the upcoming assembly in the country. Some parties may be forced to support her due to political compulsions. --IANS miz/bg (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.) At least 19 passengers were killed and 12 injured when a passenger bus fell into a ravine on Sunday near Sherani district of Pakistan's southwestern province, local media reported. The incident took place near Dana Sar area of the district along the border with northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province after the driver lost control due to over-speeding amid rain, Xinhua news agency reported, citing local media reports. The bus fell deep and overturned multiple times in the process, local media said. The victims were shifted to local hospitals, police told local media, adding that more deaths were possible as some of the injured were in critical condition. Over 30 passengers were on the bus which was heading to Balochistan's provincial capital Quetta from the country's capital Islamabad. (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 deep recession in China's property market has compelled real estate companies to float a bizarre marketing strategy to lure home buyers. China's have started accepting payments for homes in watermelons and other agricultural produce. " in Chinese third- and fourth-tier cities have launched various promotional campaigns recently, including encouraging home buyers to pay part of their down payment with wheat and garlic, in a bid to attract farmers to purchase newly built homes to offload excess housing inventory," Global Times reported. One developer in Nanjing said it would allow home buyers to pay for their homes using watermelon at a rate of 20 yuan per kilogram, as per Global Times. The media outlet quoting a representative of the company said that the bizarre promotional event has been suspended after being ordered by the headquarters. "We were told to delete all promotional posters on the social media platforms," said the representative, noting that they may design other types of promotional activities. A poster for the promotional event starting from June 28 to July 15, reads the property developer would allow home buyers to make a maximum payment of 5,000 kilograms of watermelon, valued at 100,000 yuan, noting the purpose of the promotion is to support local watermelon farmers. The property market was one of the few cherished destinations for household savings. The developers and homebuyers were also willing to take loans from the banks but these good days for China ended last year. The household debt touched over USD 10 trillion. And around 27 per cent of bank loans in China are tied to real estate, reported a think tank, Policy Research Group (POREG). This industry was known to be the biggest job creator in China but now it is termed as "Lehman moment", in comparison to the 2008 bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, which was a trigger for the global financial crisis. More so, when the number of empty homes has crossed the 65 million mark (90 million according to some estimates) - enough to house the population of France, and raised the spectre of a global economy on crutches. The housing market in China is now seen as 'a national threat' as prices rise sky-high, just like the buildings, according to Think Tank citing New York Times. Developers borrowed money in the form of onshore and offshore bonds, trust loans, and wealth management products, in addition to bank loans. Thus, lenders span from institutions to the general people both at home and overseas. (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.) Tesla owner Elon Musk recently marked his return following a brief hiatus with a rare family photo. According to E! News, in the picture Musk, along with his sons Griffin Kai, Damian and Saxon, was seen posing with during a recent trip to Italy. "Honored to meet @Pontifex yesterday," he wrote. An Italian newspaper reported that the businessman and the pontiff had a 40-minute meeting at Casa Santa Marta in Vatican City. Elon talked about his ideas on improving the world and humanity, the outlet stated. Elon shares his four teenage sons with his first wife Justine Wilson. Griffin has a twin, who in April filed a request in a Los Angeles court to change her name to Vivian Jenna Wilson in accordance with her new gender identity. "I no longer live with or wish to be related to my biological father in any way, shape or form," she stated in her filing. Elon, who also shares toddler son X AE A-Xii and baby girl Exa Dark Siderael with ex Grimes, had recently started posting again on Twitter, a social media network he uses regularly and plans to purchase, after being largely absent since June 21. As per E! News, ten minutes before posting his photo with his four eldest sons, Elon shared a throwback pic of himself with his second ex-wife, actor Talulah Riley, dressed up while walking in the Italian city of Venice. He tweeted, "Talulah designed that dress herself and much of my 40th birthday party. She is a party genius. (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.) Struggling developers in have started taking payment for homes in watermelons, peaches and other agricultural produce, state media reported Sunday, as they attempt to lure buyers deterred by a property market slump. China's housing market has been hit by a slowing and debt crisis precipitated by a government ban on builders taking deposits before construction begins on a project. One developer in the eastern city of Nanjing said it would accept truckloads of watermelons worth up to 100,000 yuan as down payment from local farmers, state-run News Weekly reported. In the nearby small town of Wuxi, another developer was taking peaches as payment, the magazine said. Homebuyers in Qi county, a major garlic-producing region in central China's Henan province, can exchange their produce at three times the market price to settle part of their down payment. Accepting crops at inflated prices has allowed developers to offer steeper discounts on homes than permitted by local governments while tapping into an underserved market. "On the occasion of the new garlic season, the company has made a resolute decision to benefit garlic farmers in Qi county," homebuilder Central Management said on social media in late May. About 30 properties had been sold since the garlic campaign was launched, it added. Home sales in China measured by floor area have slid for 11 consecutive months and were down 31.5 per cent in May compared to the same month last year, official data shows. Homebuilder Central China Management said on social media in late May: "On the occasion of the new garlic season, the company has made a resolute decision to benefit garlic farmers in Qi county. We are helping farmers with love, and making it easier for them to buy homes." The AFP report mentioned that in the nearby small town of Wuxi, another developer was taking peaches as payment, the magazine said. The welcomed 661,500 new citizens as of June 15 in the fiscal year 2022, with India the second largest country of birth for naturalised American citizens in the first quarter after Mexico. Throughout our nation's history, the promise of both life and liberty, and the freedom to pursue happiness, is what has drawn millions from across the globe to call America their home," and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director M Jaddou said on Friday. In Fiscal Year 2021, the USCIS welcomed 855,000 new US citizens. In Fiscal Year 2022, the USCIS has welcomed 661,500 new US citizens as of June 15 and made significant progress in reducing our naturalisation pending queues, the agency said. The USCIS said it would celebrate Independence Day this year by welcoming more than 6,600 new citizens in more than 140 naturalisation ceremonies between July 1 and July 8. The US celebrates its Independence Day on July 4. According to the US Homeland Security, 34 per cent of naturalisations in FY 2022 Q1 consisted of persons from the top five countries of nationality: Mexico (24,508), India (12,928), the Philippines (11,316), Cuba (10,689), and the Dominican Republic (7,046). During this period, the US welcomed 1,97,148 new citizens. In FY 2021 Q1, the top five countries of nationality (Mexico, India, Cuba, the Philippines, and China) accounted for 35 per cent of naturalisations, it said. The US federal government's fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30. "At the USCIS, our belief in the promise of America is renewed daily as we work to welcome immigrants as our fellow citizens, said Jaddou, adding "our country will be stronger and more diverse because of the choice they have made. Among the top countries of birth for persons naturalising in 2020, Mexico was the leading country (13 per cent of the total), followed by India (7.7 per cent), the Philippines (5.3 per cent), Cuba (5.0 per cent), and China (4.2 per cent). (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 Israeli military on Saturday said it shot down three unmanned aircraft launched by the Lebanese militant group heading toward an area where an Israeli gas platform was recently installed in the Mediterranean Sea. The launch of the aircraft appeared to be an attempt by to influence US-brokered negotiations between and over their maritime border, an area that is rich in natural gas. In a statement, the Israeli said the aircraft were spotted early on and did not pose an imminent threat. Nonetheless, the incident drew a stern warning from Israel's caretaker prime minister, Yair Lapid. I stand before you at this moment and say to everyone seeking our demise, from Gaza to Tehran, from the shores of to Syria: Don't test us, Lapid said in his first address to the nation since taking office on Friday. knows how to use its strength against every threat, against every enemy. earlier this month set up a gas rig in the Karish field, which Israel says lies within part of its internationally recognised economic waters. has claimed it is in disputed waters. issued a short statement, confirming it had launched three unarmed drones toward the disputed maritime issue over the Karish field on a reconnaissance mission. The mission was accomplished and the message was received, it said. Israel and Hezbollah are bitter enemies that fought a monthlong war in the summer of 2006. Israel considers the Iranian-backed Lebanese group its most serious immediate threat, estimating it has some 150,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel. The US last week said that mediator Amos Hochstein had held conversations with the Lebanese and Israeli sides. The exchanges were productive and advanced the objective of narrowing differences between the two sides. The United States will remain engaged with parties in the days and weeks ahead, his office said in a statement last week. The two countries, which have been officially at war since Israel's creation in 1948, both claim some 860 square kilometres (330 square miles) of the Mediterranean Sea. Lebanon hopes to exploit offshore gas reserves as it grapples with the worst economic crisis in its modern history. On Saturday, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati told reporters that Lebanon received encouraging information regarding the border dispute but refused to comment further saying Beirut is waiting for the written official response to the suggestions by the Lebanese side. (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.) Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib has said that will be compelled to act in accordance with its own national interests for sending the Syrian to their homeland in the absence of a clear plan. He made the remarks on Saturday during a consultative ministerial meeting of the Arab League (AL) in Lebanon's capital Beirut, the National News Agency reported. "The community does not have a roadmap for the return of the displaced Syrians, which will force to act according to its own national interests in this matter," Bou Habib added. "The Lebanese government sees the need for the return of the displaced to be financed by the community, instead of financing their stay in Lebanon," he said. Lebanon will not accept the establishment of camps for displaced Syrians in Lebanon on the Lebanese-Syrian border, Bou Habib added at a joint conference with AL Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, according to Elnashra news website. Meanwhile, Aboul-Gheit said the international community is keen to end the pressure caused by the displaced Syrians, but certain conditions must be met to decide on the return of the refugees, given that Syria's reconstruction will cost at least $500 billion, Xinhua news agency reported. A significant number of Syrian have been living in Lebanon, adding to the nation's already severe financial situation and straining its infrastructure and economy. --IANS int/khz/ (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 Ukrainian Armed Forces claimed on Sunday that it "has killed about 35,970 Russian soldiers between February 24 and July 3, including 100 in the past day alone". The claim was made by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in a Facebook post. According to the post, the Ukrainian troops have also "destroyed 1,584 Russian tanks, 3,744 armored fighting vehicles, 801 artillery systems, 246 multiple launch rocket systems, 105 air defence systems, 217 warplanes, 187 helicopters, 654 operational and tactical level UAVs, 144 cruise missiles, 15 warships/boats, 2,618 other vehicles and tanker trucks, and 64 pieces of special equipment". "The enemy suffered the greatest losses in the past day in the Kramatorsk and Bakhmut directions," the General Staff said. --IANS shs/ (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.) Russia's defence minister said Russian forces took control Sunday of the last major Ukrainian-held city in Ukraine's Luhansk province, bringing Moscow closer to its stated goal of seizing all of Ukraine's Donbas region. Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told President that Russia's troops together with members of a local separatist militia "have established full control over the city of Lysychansk", Russian news agencies reported. Ukrainian fighters spent weeks trying to defend Lysychansk and to keep it from falling to Russia, as neighboring Sievierodonetsk did a week ago. A presidential adviser predicted late Saturday that the city's could be determined within days. Ukrainian officials did not immediately provide an update on its status. Earlier Sunday, Luhansk's governor said Russian forces were strengthening their positions in a grueling fight to capture the last stronghold of resistance in the province. The occupiers threw all their forces on Lysychansk. They attacked the city with incomprehensibly cruel tactics, Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai said on the Telegram messaging app. They suffer significant losses, but stubbornly advance. They are gaining a foothold in the city. A river separates Lysychansk from Sievierodonetsk. Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, said during an online interview late Saturday that Russian forces had managed for the first time to cross the river from the north, creating a threatening situation. Arestovych said they had not reached the center of the city but that the course of the fighting indicated the battle for Lysychansk would be decided by Monday. Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk are the two provinces that make up the Donbas, where Russia has focused its offensive since pulling back from northern and the capital, Kyiv, in the spring. Pro-Russia separatists have held portions of both eastern provinces since 2014, and Moscow recognizes all of Luhansk and Donetsk as sovereign republics. Syria's government said Wednesday that it would also recognise the independence and sovereignty of the two areas. Taking Lysychansk would open the way for the Russians to move west into Donetsk province, where the sizable Ukrainian-held city of Slovyansk has come under rocket attacks several times since Russia invaded on Feb. 24. Elsewhere in the war, the exiled mayor of the Russia-occupied city of Melitopol said Sunday that Ukrainian rockets destroyed one of four Russian military bases in the city. The Russian Defence Ministry said also launched missile and drone attacks in western Russia, on the cities of Kursk and Belgorod, but that the aerial weapons were shot down. Kursk regional governor Roman Starovoit said the town of Tetkino, on the Ukraine border, came under mortar fire. The leader of neighbouring Belarus, a Russian ally, claimed Saturday that Ukraine fired missiles at military targets on Belarusian territory several days ago but all were intercepted by an air defence system. President Alexander Lukashenko described the alleged strike as a provocation and noted that no Belarusian soldiers were fighting in Ukraine. There was no immediate response from the Ukrainian military. Belarus hosts Russian military units and was used as a staging ground for Russia's invasion. Last week, just hours before Lukashenko was to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russian long-range bombers fired missiles on Ukraine from Belarusian airspace for the first time. Lukashenko has so far resisted efforts to draw his army into the war. But during their meeting, Putin announced that Russia planned to supply Belarus with the Iskander-M missile system and reminded Lukashenko that his government depends on economic support from Russia. (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 group of young off-duty Ukrainian soldiers gathered at a military distribution center to enjoy a rare respite from the fighting that has again engulfed their fractured home in eastern . As they shared jokes and a pizza, artillery explosions could be heard a few kilometers away a reminder of the looming battle that threatens to unfold here in the city of Slovyansk, which was occupied by Russian proxy fighters in 2014. Everyone knows that there will be a huge battle in Slovyansk, said one of the soldiers, who could not be named for security reasons. Now, eight years after their city was last occupied, the war has returned. Slovyansk could become the next major target in Russia's campaign to take the Donbas region, Ukraine's predominantly Russian-speaking industrial heartland, if Moscow captures Lysychansk the last remaining Ukrainian stronghold in Luhansk province, 70 kilometers (43 miles) to the east. Another soldier, a 23-year-old accountant who joined up when the invasion began, said Ukrainian forces simply do not have the weapons to fight off the superior arsenal of the approaching Russian army. We know what's coming he said with a sad smile. These soldiers were still teenagers when pro-Russian separatists captured and held the town for three months. The brief occupation in 2014 terrorised Slovyansk, where dozens of officials and journalists were taken hostage, and several killings took place. Fierce fighting and shelling broke out when the Ukrainian army laid siege to the city to recapture it. Actually, the war never left Slovyansk. It didn't leave people's heads said Tetiana Khimion, a 43-year-old dance choreographer who converted a fishing store into a hub for local military units. On the one hand, it is easier for us because we know what it's like. On the other hand, it is more difficult for us since we've been living like this for eight years in a suspended condition. Slovyansk is a city of splintered loyalties. With a large retired population, it is not uncommon to hear older residents express sympathy towards or nostalgia for their Soviet past. There is also distrust of the Ukrainian army and government. After a recent shelling of his apartment block, one resident named Sergei said he believed that the strike was launched by . I'm not pro-Russian, I'm not pro-Ukrainian. I am somewhere in between he said. Both Russians and Ukrainians kill civilians everyone should understand that. On Thursday, a group of elderly residents couldn't hide their frustration after a bomb blast slashed open their roofs and shattered their windows. "says they are protecting us, but what kind of protection is this? asked one man, who did not provide his name. They kneel to that Biden may he die! exclaimed his neighbour, Tatyana, referring to U.S. President Joe Biden. After 2014, Khimion said, it became easier to know who is who in Slovyansk. Now you can easily see: These people are for Ukraine, and these people are for ." She said not enough was done after 2014 to punish people who collaborated with Russian proxies to prevent a repeat of the situation. That is why we cannot negotiate, we need to win. Otherwise it will be a never-ending process. It will keep repeating she said. The mayor of Slovyansk, Vadim Lyakh, reflects the city's new trajectory. Taking his cues from Ukraine's wartime leader, President Volodymyr Zelensky, the mayor has decorated his office with Ukrainian flags, anti-Russian symbols, portraits of national poets even a biography of Winston Churchill. But before 2014, he was part of a political party that sought closer ties with . Lyakh said that while pro-Moscow sentiment in the city has faded in past years in part because of the horrors witnessed in 2014 there are still people who are waiting for the return of the Russian troops. As the front line creeps ever closer, attacks on the city intensify. Three-quarters of Slovyansk's pre-war population has fled, but the mayor said there are still too many people here, including many children. He encourages them to evacuate. He spends his days coordinating humanitarian aid and strengthening the city's defenses. More and more, he is among the first responders at the scene of bombardments. The Associated Press followed Lyakh and recently witnessed what authorities described as a cluster bomb attack on a residential area. One person was killed and several wounded. The mayor says that shelling now occurs at least four or five times a day, and the use of cluster munitions has increased in the last week. Although he remains optimistic that Ukrainian forces can keep the enemy at bay, he is also clear-sighted about his options. Nobody wants to be captured. When there is an imminent danger of the enemy troops entering the city, I will have to go he said. Lyakh said he cannot allow himself to relax, even for a few minutes. It is emotionally difficult. You see how people are dying and being harmed. But nevertheless, I understand that this is my job and that nobody but myself and the people around me can do" it. One morning last week, Lyakh paid a visit to an apartment block that had been shelled overnight. Most of the windows in the building were blown out, doors were broken wide open and a power line severed. The same building was bombed in 2014, when the shell left a gaping hole on the sixth floor, and many residents suffered broken bones. Andrey, a 37-year-old factory worker who has lived in the building for 20 years, recalls the bombing and occupation. He said separatist forces did and took what they liked. People in his circle have different opinions about Russia. Those who have suffered understand what this Russia world' means: It means broken houses, stolen cars and violence he explains. There are those who miss the Soviet Union, who think we are all one people, and they do not accept what they see with their own eyes. In the eight years since the separatists retreated, he said, life has markedly improved in Slovyansk. The statue of Vladimir Lenin that once stood in the central square has been removed. Water and power supplies were renovated. New parks, squares and medical facilities were built. Civilization was returned to us Andrey said. At the military distribution hub, the young soldiers talk wistfully about their lives before the invasion. I had a great car, a good job. I was able to travel abroad three times a year, said the former accountant, who plans to stay in Slovyansk with the to defend the city. How can we let someone just come and take our lives away from us? Khimion's husband is on the front lines, and she put her teenage daughter on a train to Switzerland as soon as the invasion began. I have been deprived of everything a home, husband, child what should I do now? she asks. We are doing everything we can to stop (the offensive), to keep it to a minimum ... But to be afraid is to abandon this place. At the entrance to the city, a monument bearing Slovyansk's name is riddled with bullet holes from 2014. It has been painted over several times. It now bears the national colors of Ukraine, and a local artist has painted red flowers around each perforation. Residents of Slovyansk wonder some with hope, many in fear if the sign will soon be painted yet again, in the red, white and blue of the Russia flag. (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.) Sri Lankan Minister Dhammika Perera handed 5-year visas to Indian business leaders in the island nation to promote investment in the country. Taking to Twitter, Indian High Commission in said, "Hon'ble Minister @_dhammikaperera handing over 5-year visas to #Indian business leaders in #SriLanka!! This is a welcome step in enhancing ease of business and promoting investments in ." Earlier on Wednesday, the Indian High Commissioner Gopal Baglay met Sri Lanka's Trade Minister and discussed diverse facets of the trade. "High Commissioner met Minister for Trade Hon'ble Nalin Fernando today. They discussed diverse facets of bilateral trade, such as increasing trade volume, creating platforms to facilitate business linkages between India and Sri Lanka," Indian Embassy in tweeted. India always comes forward to help Sri Lanka during its economic crisis. India has sent assistance worth several billion US dollars to rescue the money-strapped Sri Lankan government accompanied by shiploads of humanitarian aid, cooking gas, large quantities of fuel, and medicinal supplies. On June 3, High Commissioner to Colombo Gopal Baglay handed over a total of 3.3 tons of essential medical supplies to the 1990 Suwaseriya Ambulance Service. Baglay said that Jaishankar was apprised of the looming shortage of medical supplies faced by the Foundation during his visit to the Suwaseriya Headquarters in Colombo in March 2022. India's assistance to Sri Lanka includes the massive USD 03 Billion credit line assistance, the 40,000 metric tons of diesel, shipments of rice, milk powder, and medicinal drugs all worth Rs 2 Billion. Further, 40,000 metric tons of petrol and 400,000 metric tons of cooking gas also arrived from India. These humanitarian supplies are in continuation of the Government of India's ongoing support to the people of Sri Lanka in multiple forms such as financial assistance, forex support, material supply and many more. These efforts prove that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Neighborhood First' policy which places people-to-people engagement is still active. These are complemented by the people of India who have also been donating generously to their brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka, according to the Colombo Page. Besides the humanitarian and monetary assistance, India also extended USD 15 million to the Sri Lankan Government for promoting Buddhist religious activities, states Sathipattana. India's generosity has made every Sri Lankan citizen, and every political party shower praises for its benevolence. India is becoming a stronger and more mutually beneficial partner to Sri Lanka. Apart from assistance during the pandemic and fertilizer chaos, India is also donating basic products to island nations. (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.) Syrian President has accused the Turkish leadership of committing aggression against Syria, even as is planning a new offensive in northern Syria. His remarks came during a meeting with visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who arrived in Damascus earlier on Saturday, mainly to ease the tension between Syria and Turkey, Xinhua news agency reported. The pretexts uses to justify its aggression on Syrian territory are "false, misleading, and have nothing to do with reality," Assad was quoted by the state SANA news agency as saying. Turkey's conduct has violated law and principles, including the UN Charter, he added. Syria has repeatedly rejected Turkey's plan to impose a buffer zone along the Turkish border in northern Syria. has so far carried out several military operations against Kurdish militants in northern Syria, accusing them of having links to Kurdish separatist groups inside Turkey. Before departure, Amir-Abdollahian said a goal of his visit is to mediate the Syrian-Turkish relationship as both countries have important ties with Iran, Iranian news agency IRNA reported. The top Iranian diplomat's visit to Syria comes days after he met with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in Ankara, where he told a joint press conference that Iran "very well" understands Turkey's security concerns. --IANS int/khz/ (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.) Travellers across the country faced the prospect of cancelled or delayed flights Saturday as and airports dealt with a combination of high demand, bad weather and staffing shortages. As of Saturday night, nearly 650 flights in the had been cancelled and more than 5,200 flights within, into or out of the country had been delayed, according to the flight-tracking website FlightAware. While the number of problem flights was higher than on a typical travel day, travel demand was also higher. According to the Transportation Security Administration, the number of travelers over the Fourth of July holiday weekend had reached prepandemic levels. Travel demand over the same holiday weekend last year had substantially recovered from pandemic lows but was still below this years levels. FlightAware data showed that the three airports in the most affected by cancellations and delays on Saturday were Dallas-Fort Worth Airport and Kennedy Airport and Newark Liberty Airport in the New York area. The number of canceled and delayed flights was far below the levels over this past Christmas and New Years holidays, when bad weather and Omicron-related staff shortages wreaked havoc with airline schedules. Still, the are scrambling to keep up with demand this July 4 holiday, as they struggle with a pilot shortage, weather conditions and air traffic control delays. Delta teams continue to safely manage through the compounding factors of inclement weather and air traffic control delays, which impact available flight crew duty time, a Delta Air Lines spokesman said in an email. Canceling a flight is always our last resort, and we sincerely apologize to our customers for any disruption to their travel plans. Delta said it was offering customers the ability to reschedule flights from July 1 through July 4 with no fare change if they are traveling between the same origin and destination. United also blamed weather and air traffic control programs for its delays. Adding to the stress at American Airlines was a computer glitch in its pilot trip trading system that, the airline said, allowed some trip trading that shouldnt have been permitted. But American said it did not anticipate any operational impact because of this issue and added that the primary drivers of delays/cancellations on Saturday were weather and traffic control issues. The Federal Aviation Administration said the top cause of the flight delays and cancellations was weather conditions followed by travel demand. The agency added in a statement: The F.A.A. has acted on the issues raised by airlines, and is working with them to share information to keep aircraft moving safely when weather and other airspace events constrain capacity. The agency also has added alternate routes and placed more controllers in high demand areas, and increased data sharing. The raft of modifications announced Friday to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), which governs the funding of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), are welcome after the escalating restrictions on the sector since 2015. After the licences of some 6,000 lapsed on January 1 this year, the bulk of them voluntarily, on account of stringent restrictions on donations and spending rules, the government extended to September 30 the validity of entities whose five-year permits would lapse between July 1 and September 30 and had applied or would apply for renewal in this period. Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance. We, however, have a request. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor Prime Minister on Sunday asked members to learn from mistakes of the parties which ruled the country for long but were in "terminal decline" now, and stressed the party's goal was to take India from "tushtikaran (appeasement) to "triptikaran" (fulfilment). In his speech at the final session of the two-day executive meeting here, Modi called upon party workers to strive to make India "shreshtha" (great) and emphasised on qualities such as restraint, balanced outlook and coordination among them. The prime minister, who has often accused opposition parties of practising appeasement politics, said the BJP's goal should be to take the country from "tushtikaran" to "triptikaran". "This will lead to 'sabka vikas' (development of all)." Underlining the BJP's motto of "sabka saath, sabka vikas", he emphasised that workers should reach out to not only weaker sections among Hindus but those among minorities as well. He called for taking out "Sneh Yatra" which, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a press conference, will be aimed at boosting affection and coordination in society by reaching out to different sections of people. Modi called for "P2 to G2" (Pro-people to good governance) in the party's political and governance model. Taking aim at the opposition, Modi said the country was fed up with dynastic and dynastic parties and added that it would be difficult for them to survive long. Emphasising on the need for party workers to stay connected to people, he said they should not make fun of or jeer at the parties which are in terminal decline and instead learn from their mistakes. Recalling that he had noted in a 2016 party meet about BJP workers having qualities of "Sevabhaav, Santulan, Sanyam, Samnway, Sakaratmak, Sadbhavana and Samvad" (service, balance, restraint, coordination, positivity, empathy and dialogue), Modi reiterated this message to BJP members in the Sunday address. The two-day executive meeting saw the party taking stock of its organisational activities and lauding the Modi government over its economic policies and overall governance. Issues such as the killing of a tailor in Udaipur by Islamic fanatics and the Nupur Sharma row were not discussed in the meeting, though the obituary reference did mention tailor Kanhaiya Lal, party leaders said. Referring to Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar, a name with roots in the city's Hindu cultural heritage, Modi said Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel laid the foundation of "Ek Bharat" (United India) by integrating the region into the Union and it is the BJP's historical obligation to build 'Shreshtha Bharat'. Everything that is good in the country belongs to every Indian, he said, asserting that the BJP believes in this philosophy and that is why it celebrates leaders like Patel, who was a Congress stalwart, and paid tributes to every prime minister through a museum dedicated to all previous PMs. The prime minister also hit back at opposition parties for questioning the BJP's democratic credentials and asked what is the status of democracy within their organisations. Modi asserted that his government has worked for everyone and noted that nearly 200 crore Covid vaccines doses were given to people for free across the country. India's exports have surged and the country has received record FDI, he said. Noting the efforts of BJP governments at the Centre and in states to empower women, he said they have repeatedly expressed support for the party in elections and it should continue to work for their welfare. In his speech, Modi also referred to the BJP-led NDA's presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu and lauded her journey from humble background and asked party MPs and MLAs to ensure that they cast valid votes as even a small error may render them invalid. Prasad asserted that numbers are heavily stacked in Murmu's favour against Yashwant Sinha, the opposition candidate. (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.) Rahul Narvekar of the was on Sunday elected Speaker of the Assembly during the first day of its special session. Narvekar, who polled 164 votes, defeated Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena candidate Rajan Salvi, who got 107 votes. The Speaker's post was lying vacant since February last year after Nana Patole of the Congress resigned. Narvekar (45) is the youngest ever Assembly Speaker in the country, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said. His father-in-law Ramraje Naik of NCP is the chairperson of the Legislative Council. The two-day special session of the 288-member House got underway in the Vidhan Bhavan in south Mumbai at 11 am on Sunday. The Eknath Shinde-led government will face a floor test in the Assembly on Monday. The Assembly has one vacancy due to the death of Sena's Ramesh Latke. NCP legislator Narhari Zirwal could not vote as he is the deputy speaker. After the vote count, Zirwal said, Some Shiv Sena MLAs voted against the party whip. Its recording should be verified and necessary action should be taken against them. Out of the 287 legislators, 271 voted, while three MLAs - Rais Shaikh, Abu Azmi (both of the Samajwadi Party) and Shah Farukh (AIMIM) - abstained from voting. As many as 12 MLAs did not attend the Speaker's election in the House. Two of them - Laxman Jagtap and Mukta Tilak (of the BJP)- are suffering from serious ailments. Two NCP legislators - Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik- are in jail in connection with different money laundering cases. Four other NCP MLAs - Dattatray Bharane, Anna Bansode, Nilesh Lanke and Babandada Shinde - did not show up. Bharane did not attend the Speaker's election because of his mother's death a few days back, an NCP leader said. Two Congress MLAs - Praniti Shinde and Jitesh Antapurkar - also did not attend the session. Antapurkar is getting married on Sunday. Praniti Shinde is out of the country, a Congress functionary said. AIMIM MLA Mufti Mohammad Ismail also did not attend the session. Senior Congress leader and former minister Balasaheb Thorat, Thorat, in a statement on the floor of the House while congratulating Narvekar, said, "The Speaker's election took place in a transparent way. This is what we had been demanding with the governor for quite some time. It seems the governor was sleeping for one-and-a-half years. Earlier this year, leaders of the then ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA-comprising the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress) had urged Koshyari to approve the schedule for the Assembly Speaker's election during the budget session (in March). Prior to it, in a previous legislature session, the then MVA government had amended the existing rules to facilitate the Speaker's election through a voice vote. The governor had described the decision as unconstitutional and sought legal opinion. Meanwhile, Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray targeted the Eknath Shinde-led government on the stringent security arrangements in place for rebel Shiv Sena MLAs as they entered the Vidhan Bhavan premises from a nearby luxury hotel. Rebel Shiv Sena MLAs, who support Shinde, returned to Mumbai from Goa on Saturday evening and were lodged in a luxury hotel in south Mumbai. Before the session commenced, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction sealed the legislative party office in the Vidhan Bhavan. A paper was stuck with a plastic tape on the closed doors of the Sena legislative party office in the Vidhan Bhavan, with a message in Marathi written on it saying, "The office is closed as per instructions of the Shiv Sena legislative party. Last month, Eknath Shinde launched a rebellion against the party. Majority of MLAs sided with him, which led to the collapse of the MVA government led by Uddhav Thackeray. Eknath Shinde was on Thursday sworn in as the 20th chief minister of Maharashtra, while stalwart Devendra Fadnavis took oath as the deputy CM. (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.) After winning the maiden major legislature battle - the election of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker - the Eknath Shinde government supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party is now preparing for the crucial 'vote of confidence' in the House, scheduled here on Monday. The Shinde-led government, which was sworn-in on June 30 after the collapse of the 31-month-old Maha Vikas Aghadi government, will seek the confidence vote on the second day of the 2-day Special Session of the Assembly convened by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari. Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the ruling alliance will easily win the house trust as it has 166 MLAs on its side, comprising the BJP, the Shiv Sena's rebel group which broke away on June 20, besides independents and smaller parties' legislators - sufficient to clear the midway mark of 145 (in the 288-member Lower House). The government passed its first litmus test this afternoon when BJP's Advocate leader Rahul Narwekar - a first-time legislator - was elected as the youngest-ever Speaker of the House and also the youngest to hold the august office in the country. While Narwekar bagged 164 votes, the MVA candidate Rajan Salvi secured only 107 votes of the 271 votes polled in the 288-member house. Of the rest 17, one has passed away, 2 are in custody, 3 abstained, and the remaining others were absent for various reasons, including ill-health. Congress leader Nana Patole was the last Speaker, who was elected late in 2019 after the Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party-Congress MVA government headed by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray took office. However, Patole quit the post in February 2021 after he was appointed as the state Congress President and since then, NCP's Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal was officiating for nearly 18 months. --IANS qn/skp/ (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.) Union Minister has launched a scathing attack on the and other for opposing Prime Minister and said these parties are also attacking India. In a special conversation with IANS, spoke candidly on the Udaipur murder, the prevailing atmosphere in the country, attacks by opposition parties, and the Presidential election. Excerpts of the interview: Q. The is constantly targeting the BJP, accusing your party of the Udaipur murder. What do you have to say? A. Such incidents are happening due to the appeasement and vote bank of the . You remember, when Afzal Guru was hanged, who were those who went to the court in the dead of night to save a terrorist? They were the people of the 'Tukde Tukde Gang' who did the of appeasement. If the Gehlot government had provided security to Kanhaiya Lal, the incident would not have happened. He kept pleading for security but the Gehlot government turned a blind eye. This is not a murder but a terrorist attack -- on the lines of ISIS, throat slitting, making a video. In doing so they even warned the Prime Minister, threatening a terror attack. Q. But the Congress is blaming the BJP for such incidents. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has asked the Prime Minister to make an appeal to the nation. A. Ashok Gehlot should first say what he has done in the incidents of communal violence in Karauli and other places so far. He is the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, if he is not able to run the government, then he should resign. Rahul Gandhi just issues a tweet as a formality on such a heinous attack. All these leaders would have made a beeline for Udaipur if the incident had been a reverse, the other way round, there would have been a spate of political tourists. Q. But they are accusing the BJP that because of your party such an atmosphere has been created in the country. A. 'Ulta chor kotwal ko dante' (It is like the thief scolding policemen). They do the of appeasement and vote bank, from Karauli to Udaipur they are sitting as protectors of the people who have committed violence and are making false allegations against us. Shame on Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi. They just go silent on such incidents. Q. But apart from the Congress, other are also accusing the BJP government and the party for this? Mamata Banerjee is also continuously attacking the BJP. A. I talk straight. While opposing Modi, these are attacking India. What did M.F. Hussain do decades ago? At that time, they did not say anything. Modi was not there then. If these opposition parties feel that they will hide their failures by criticizing Modi, then this is not going to happen. As far as Mamata Banerjee is concerned, she has laid out a red carpet for terrorists and infiltrators in Bengal. Q. By fielding Yashwant Sinha as a joint presidential candidate, the opposition is trying to corner the BJP unitedly. A. In the 75 years after Independence, such a large population of the country, the tribal community was never given a chance. Thanks to Modi for the respect he has given to a tribal woman. As far as the siege of the opposition is concerned, Draupadi Murmu will emerge victorious with an even bigger majority than last time. I will appeal to all to support Murmu for the post of President. Those who are opposing Murmu will have to answer the people's anger. --IANS stp/skp/bg (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.) Amid demands by several BJP leaders to rename as Bhagyanagar, Prime Minister referred to Telangana's capital as Bhagyanagar during his address to the party workers at BJP Executive meeting on Sunday, Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Sunday. The BJP leader was addressing a press conference after the BJP's Executive Committee meeting in . "PM Modi said that as Bhagyanagar which is a significance for all of us. Sardar Patel kept the foundation of a unified India and now it's BJP's responsibility to carry it further," said Ravi Shankar Prasad. He also highlighted that now the party's thought process will be from appeasement to fulfilment. "In states where they (party workers) are suffering enormous hardship and yet remain firm to ideology... PM Modi stated that our aim should be to make it clear that our thought process should be from appeasement to fulfilment," he added. The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) executive meeting moved to its second day on Sunday, the key focus remained on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech and the party's political resolution that is expected to be passed unanimously. The political resolution moved by Home Minister Amit Shah at the Hyderabad National Executive meeting also affirmed that in the next two- three decades India will emerge as " world leader". Shah, who made several moves to resolve the long-pending issues of the Northeastern states, on Sunday said that the BJP has found a "permanent address" in the region. He also said that the region will have no more problems in the coming times and that all its issues will be solved by 2024. The Home Minister made the remarks while speaking at the BJP national executive meeting during his address on the political resolution. Notably, in a major step in March, the Centre had removed AFPSA from 15 police station areas in seven districts of Nagaland, 15 police station areas in six districts of Manipur and 23 districts entirely and one district partially in Assam. Assam and Meghalaya governments, in March this year, signed a historic agreement here in the national capital to resolve their 50-year-old pending border dispute. The agreement was signed between Assam and Meghalaya two months after a draft resolution was submitted by the chief ministers of the two states to Amit Shah on January 31 for examination and consideration by the MHA. Speaking on the speech of Shah, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma briefed the media and said, "It has been a journey for us in the north-east and the Home Minister told us that he was delighted that we now have a permanent address in the Northeast and that we are going nowhere." When asked what Amit Shah said about the reason that the Citizenship Amendment Act has not been implemented, the Assam CM said that the objection by the Opposition to the reforms brought in by the government has led to the delay, however, the government is committed to implementing the CAA. "You know that the Opposition has been objecting to a number of things on a number of reforms by the Modi government including the CAA. There has been a delay but we are committed to implementing CAA and the rules will be formed," Sarma said. Detailing how the BJP plans to solve the problems of the Northeast region, Sarma said, "Amit Shah spoke about how the journey of the BJP has been in the north-east and development post-arrival of the Modi government in 2014... We also discussed how the AFSPA has been removed from the northeast region in about 60 per cent of the areas... He also said that by 2024, there will be no more fault lines in the north-east and all the issues will be solved. (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.) Prime Minister on Sunday asked (BJP) members to learn from mistakes of the parties which ruled India for long but are now in "terminal decline", as he emphasised on qualities such as restraint, balanced outlook and coordination among them. In his speech at the final session of the executive, Modi called upon party workers to strive to make India "shreshtha" (great) and asserted that its goal should be "triptikaran" (fulfilment) from "tushtikaran" (appeasement), something it has accused opposition parties of. This will lead to sabka vikas (development of all). No one should be left behind, he said. He called for taking out Sneh Yatra, which, leader said in a press conference, would be aimed at boosting affection and coordination in society by reaching out to different sections of people. Referring to Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar, Modi said laid the foundation of "Ek Bharat" (United India) by integrating the region into the Union and it is the BJP's historical obligation to build 'Shreshtha Bharat'. Without naming anyone, Modi said the parties which ruled India for long are in terminal decline now. We should not mock them but learn from their mistakes, Prasad quoted Modi as having told the gathering. Union Home Minister and senior leader Amit asserted that the next 30-40 years would be the era of the BJP which will make India a "vishwa guru" (world leader). Claiming that the BJP will end family rule in states like Telangana and West Bengal, Shah said it will come to power in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Odisha, states which have so far remained out of the saffron party's power march since it formed government at the Centre in 2014. Shah called for ending the of dynasty, casteism, and appeasement and cited the party's win in a string of recent polls as an endorsement of its " of development and performance. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) AAP on Sunday protested here over Agnipath and said it has sent a cheque for Rs 420 to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing his government of cheating the youth with the new military recruitment scheme, the party said. In a symbolic protest, members of the Aam Aadmi Party's student wing-Chatr-Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), sought money from the public amidst the slogans of " ji ke liye bheek de do" (Give alms for Narendra Modi). After announcing the military recruitment scheme on June 14, the Central government faced flak from defence aspirants across the country. AAP's Uttar Pradesh incharge and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh said in a tweet in Hindi, "Modi Ji said that there is no money for the Indian army and jawans will be given jobs for only four years. The student and youth wing of @AAPUttarPradesh begged all across the state and sent a cheque of Rs 420 to the 420 government of Modi." The amount refers to the Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that deals with cheating. "See the brutality of Baba's (Adityanath) Police and remember that one day @Uppolice will also be on a 4 year contract," he added in the tweet in which he also shared a video clip showing UP police personnel dragging protesting AAP members into buses. In Lucknow over two dozen AAP members were removed from the busy Hazratganj intersection by the police. Police officials maintained that no one was arrested or detained. Singh on Saturday said, that Modi would be told not to do 'char sau beesi' (cheating) with the Indian Army and AAP will also appeal to the government "to not cry for money to protect the country." He added that AAP will continue to protest against the scheme as the government is "misguiding" people by claiming "lack of money for the security of the borders" as the reason behind the scheme. (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.) Prime Minister on Sunday asked members to learn from mistakes of the parties which ruled the country for long but were in "terminal decline" now, and stressed the party's goal was to take India from "tushtikaran (appeasement) to "triptikaran" (fulfilment). In his speech at the final session of the two-day executive meeting here, Modi called upon party workers to strive to make India "shreshtha" (great) and emphasised on qualities such as restraint, balanced outlook and coordination among them. The prime minister, who has often accused opposition parties of practising appeasement politics, said the BJP's goal should be to take the country from "tushtikaran" to "triptikaran". "This will lead to 'sabka vikas' (development of all)." Underlining the BJP's motto of "sabka saath, sabka vikas", he emphasised that workers should reach out to not only weaker sections among Hindus but those among minorities as well. He called for taking out "Sneh Yatra" which, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a press conference, will be aimed at boosting affection and coordination in society by reaching out to different sections of people. Modi called for "P2 to G2" (Pro-people to good governance) in the party's political and governance model. Taking aim at the opposition, Modi said the country was fed up with dynastic and dynastic parties and added that it would be difficult for them to survive long. Emphasising on the need for party workers to stay connected to people, he said they should not make fun of or jeer at the parties which are in terminal decline and instead learn from their mistakes. Recalling that he had noted in a 2016 party meet about BJP workers having qualities of "Sevabhaav, Santulan, Sanyam, Samnway, Sakaratmak, Sadbhavana and Samvad" (service, balance, restraint, coordination, positivity, empathy and dialogue), Modi reiterated this message to BJP members in the Sunday address. The two-day executive meeting saw the party taking stock of its organisational activities and lauding the Modi government over its economic policies and overall governance. Issues such as the killing of a tailor in Udaipur by Islamic fanatics and the Nupur Sharma row were not discussed in the meeting, though the obituary reference did mention tailor Kanhaiya Lal, party leaders said. Referring to Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar, a name with roots in the city's Hindu cultural heritage, Modi said Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel laid the foundation of "Ek Bharat" (United India) by integrating the region into the Union and it is the BJP's historical obligation to build 'Shreshtha Bharat'. Everything that is good in the country belongs to every Indian, he said, asserting that the BJP believes in this philosophy and that is why it celebrates leaders like Patel, who was a Congress stalwart, and paid tributes to every prime minister through a museum dedicated to all previous PMs. The prime minister also hit back at opposition parties for questioning the BJP's democratic credentials and asked what is the status of democracy within their organisations. Modi asserted that his government has worked for everyone and noted that nearly 200 crore Covid vaccines doses were given to people for free across the country. India's exports have surged and the country has received record FDI, he said. Noting the efforts of BJP governments at the Centre and in states to empower women, he said they have repeatedly expressed support for the party in elections and it should continue to work for their welfare. In his speech, Modi also referred to the BJP-led NDA's presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu and lauded her journey from humble background and asked party MPs and MLAs to ensure that they cast valid votes as even a small error may render them invalid. Prasad asserted that numbers are heavily stacked in Murmu's favour against Yashwant Sinha, the opposition candidate. (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.) Meta-owned Facebook 'actioned' about 17.5 million content pieces across 13 violation categories in India during May, according to the latest monthly report by the social media giant. The content 'actioned' belonged to categories including bullying and harassment, violent and graphic content, adult nudity and sexual activity, child endangerment, dangerous organisations and individuals, and spam, among others. Facebook took action against about 17.5 million content pieces between May 1-31, 2022 across multiple categories, while Meta's photo-sharing platform Instagram 'actioned' nearly 4.1 million pieces of content across 12 categories during the same period, according to its recently-released India monthly report. "Taking action could include removing a piece of content from Facebook or Instagram or covering photos or videos that may be disturbing to some audiences with a warning," Meta's report said. Under the IT rules that came into effect in May last year, large digital platforms (with over five million users) have to publish periodic compliance reports every month, mentioning the details of complaints received and action taken. The reports also include details of content removed or disabled via proactive monitoring, using automated tools. Microblogging platform Twitter's India Transparency report of June 2022 reveals that it received over 1,500 complaints in the country through its local grievance channel between April 26, 2022 to May 25, 2022. "In addition to the above, we processed 115 grievances which were appealing Twitter account suspensions. These were all resolved and the appropriate responses were sent," Twitter's report said. "We have not overturned any of the account suspensions based on the specifics of the situation, ergo, all of the reported accounts remain suspended," it added. More than 46,500 accounts were suspended for violating guidelines, through proactive monitoring, the Twitter report said, noting this data represents global actions taken, and not just those related to content from India. The government has issued a notice to Twitter to comply with all its past orders by July 4, failing which it may lose its intermediary status, which means it will be liable for all the comments posted on its platform. Meta-owned WhatsApp has banned over 19 lakh Indian accounts in May, on the basis of complaints received from users via its grievances channel and through its own mechanism to prevent and detect violations, according to the monthly report published by the messaging platform recently. Meanwhile, in case of Facebook, Meta's latest report published on June 30 showed that of the 17.5 million actioned pieces, 3.7 million were in violent and graphic content category, 2.6 million in adult nudity and sexual activity category, while 9.3 million pertained to spam. Some of the other categories under which content was 'actioned' included bullying and harassment (294,500), suicide and self-injury (482,000), dangerous organisations and individuals - terrorism (106,500), and dangerous organisations and individuals - organised hate (4,300). Meta's report contains information for a period of 31 days on actions taken against violating content on Facebook and Instagram for content created by users in India and proactive detection rates, as well as information on grievances received from users in the country via the grievance mechanisms. For Facebook, it said, "Between 1st and 31st May, we received 835 reports through the Indian grievance mechanism, and we responded to 100 per cent of these 835 reports." "Of these incoming reports, we provided tools for users to resolve their issues in 564 cases. These include pre-established channels to report content for specific violations, self-remediation flows where they can download their data, avenues to address account hacked issues etc." For Instagram, in May, 13,869 reports were received through the Indian grievance mechanism, and the platform responded to 100 per cent of the reports. Of these incoming reports, it provided tools for users to resolve their issues in 4,693 cases. "Of the other 9173 reports where specialised review was needed, we reviewed content as per our policies, and we took action on 5770 reports in total," it added. The government is in the midst of finalising new social media rules that propose to arm users with grievance appeal mechanism against arbitrary content moderation, inaction, or takedown decisions of big tech companies. The IT ministry, last month, circulated the draft rules that proposes a government panel to hear user appeals against inaction on complaints made, or against content-related decisions taken by grievance officers of social media platforms. At present, "there is no appellate mechanism provided by intermediaries nor is there any credible self-regulatory mechanism in place", the IT ministry had said. Big social media platforms have drawn flak in the past over hate speech, misinformation and fake news circulating on their platforms. Concerns have also been raised about digital platforms acting arbitrarily in pulling down content, and 'de-platforming' users. The government had last year notified IT rules to make digital intermediaries more accountable and responsible for content hosted on their platforms. (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.) Today, when everyday office conversations on WhatsApp have become part of our lives, most people have moved on from the strict formal language that once was required for official communication. However, for some old-school folks, it is still a necessity. Recently, a young man shared a screenshot on Reddit of a WhatsApp conversation where he got pulled up for greeting his boss with a "hey". The image of the chat was captioned by the user as, "How do you react to this? and how the hell is 'Hey' isn't professional?" In the screenshot, when asked about the submission of a particular test, the subordinate replies by saying, "Hey, No, not yet." Replying to this, the boss wrote, "Please don't use the word 'hey'. It's offensive for me. If you can't remember my name, simply use 'Hi'." He then went on to explain to his subordinate what other words should not be used professionally like 'Dude' and 'Man'. Mostly any junior would apologize in such a scenario just to end the conversation, however, the Reddit user defended himself by trying to explain. He said, "Well, considering that we are having a conversation over WhatsApp and not over LinkedIn or a mail chain. I'm just being casual as you are texting me on my personal number. And coming to being professional I'm not the one being offended." To this, the boss replied, "Whatsapp is not personal space anymore, it has been used for business. I am not insisting my ideology on you. If you understand it, fine; or you will understand it sooner or later," followed by a smiling emoji. After this Whatsapp conversation was shared online, several Reddit users weighed in on the matter. One person wrote, "I'd be calling him 'chap' in literally every communication." "Agreed. You don't use a social media app like WhatsApp to have a professional relationship over the Internet. They should write a properly-formatted email. And that's "Mr NutWrench" to them, too," another person shared. A third one wrote, "My old boss told me "what's up?" is disrespectful... Dude, you're calling me, you clearly need something... What's up?" Another one quipped, "I like. (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.) Wang Jianan beat the odds to win Chinas first gold in the event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships. The 25-year-old jumpers 8.36-meter leap in his last attempt propelled him to the top of the podium. In 2015, Wang received a bronze medal at IAAF World Championships in Beijing, making him the first athlete from Asia to reach the events podium at the world championships Jul 18, 2022 05:41 PM By Liu Yonghai, Wang zhongkui, Liu Sizheng June 10 marks the 23rd anniversary of the end of NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which was launched 23 years ago by the US-led NATO without the approval of the UN Security Council and lasted 78 days. In these days, NATO dropped a total of 22,000 tons of bombs, including 15 tons of depleted uranium, directly killing more than 2,500 people, including 79 children, and turning more than one million innocent residents into refugees. What is more distressing is that the suffering caused by the war has haunted until this day, from generation to generation. Experts point out that depleted uranium munitions have a long latency period for damage to human body and long-term effects on the environment and the human food chain. In the 10 years following the bombing, about 30,000 people in Serbia developed cancer, of which more than 10,000 died. According to the Institute of Public Health in Belgrade, as of the end of 2019, 97,000 people were registered as suffering from cancer in Serbia. Studies by the Serbian Emergency Center show that children born in the country after 1999 had more ectodermal tumors between the ages of one and five, more malignant blood diseases between the ages of five and nine, and a sharp increase in the incidence of brain tumors between the ages of nine and 18. In addition, as of May 2019, 366 Italian soldiers involved in NATO military operations had died of cancer and 7,500 were suffering from the disease Three thousand victims of depleted uranium bombs have commissioned international lawyers to file a lawsuit against NATO. However, NATO tried to exonerate itself under the guise of immunity, which is terribly shocking and infuriating. "We have received a response to the NATO lawsuit," said Serbian lawyer Aleksic, who was leading the litigation team. NATO claims to have immunity. It is absolutely not true. No country in the world, not only in Serbia, has the right to grant immunity to war criminals." Aleksic told the media that NATO's liaison office in Serbia sent a statement to the Belgrade court whereby NATO argued that it had signed an agreement with Serbia and Montenegro on transit participation and support for peacekeeping operations in 2005, and another agreement with Serbia to set up a liaison office in 2006. NATO tried to justify itself to have full jurisdictional immunity in Serbia with these two agreements. In other words, NATO believed that they have privileges in Serbia, so the depleted uranium bombs dropped by NATO were also "legal." In response to the completely unjustified claims, Aleksic refuted that neither of the two agreements granted NATO jurisdictional immunity. And more importantly, even if there was immunity, it couldnt be used retroactively. The two agreements were signed in 2005 and 2006, while the US war crimes of bombing the Belgrade were committed in 1999, and there is no justification for the latter agreement to explain the previous issues. Generally speaking, what NATO did was to cover up its evil deeds after trampling on the national sovereignty of another country, trying to conceal its war crimes by using the so-called immunity argument. NATO's approach not only fails to prove its innocence, but also helps the whole world to fully reexamine its long list of war crimes. Since its founding, its so-called military operations have never brought about peace and stability, but chaos and trauma. War in Bosnia and Herzegovina From April 1992 to December 1995, a war broke out among the three main ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina over its future and the division of its territory. On the eve of the Bosnia War, NATO hastily recognized the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina before the Serbs, Muslims and Croats had reached a consensus agreement on the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which undoubtedly aggravated the ethnic conflicts in the region. NATO launched massive air strikes against the Bosnian Serbs, and eventually forced the three ethnic groups to sign the Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a consequence of the war, 278,000 civilians were killed, more than 2 million people became refugees, direct economic losses amounted to more than $ 6.7 billion, and the vast majority of economic facilities were destroyed. Kosovo War The war in Kosovo was triggered by ethnic tensions in Kosovo and promoted by the US-led NATO without the authorization of the United Nations. It lasted from March 24, 1999 to June 10, 1999. On May 7, 1999 Belgrade time (May 8, 1999 Beijing time), the US-led NATO forces blatantly bombed the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia by dropping five Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) from B-2 stealth bomber. Three Chinese journalists were killed on the spot, dozens of others were injured, and the embassy building was severely damaged. As a result of the three-month bombing, 1,800 civilians were killed, 6,000 were injured, 12 railroads were destroyed, 50 bridges were bombed, 20 hospitals were destroyed, 40% of oil depots and 30% of radio and television stations were damaged, and economic losses totaled $200 billion. This is the first time since its establishment that NATO has launched a war against a sovereign state without the authorization of the United Nations, marking its shift from defensive to offensive and the pursuit of a new interventionist strategy and clear expansionist policy. Zivadin Jovanovic, the former foreign minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, accused that NATO's use of force against Belgrade is a serious violation of the UN Charter and the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, and poses serious challenges to the basic principles of international law. Afghanistan War The US-led NATO coalition launched a war against al-Qaida and the Taliban on Oct. 7, 2001, as a retaliation for the Sept. 11 attack. As of May, 2021, with the sudden and irresponsible withdrawal of US and NATO troops, a total of 241,000 people were killed during the war in Afghanistan, 71,000 of whom were civilians, and millions of people became homeless, according to a study by Boston University. The 20-year war has also brought huge economic losses to the people in Afghanistan. According to the scholars assessment of Kabul University, the war has resulted in an average economic loss of about $60 million per day. The war in Afghanistan has also brought about the disorder of Afghan society. It is reported that during the war in Afghanistan, 72% lived below the poverty line, and 3.5 million children were deprived of the opportunity to go to school. The chaos in Afghanistan has also held the candle to the devil, the terrorist networks such as the East Turkestan Islamic Movement and Al-Qaeda have taken advantage of the opportunity to expand in Afghanistan, further exacerbating the chaos of order in the region. Iraq War On March 20, 2003, multi-nation troops led by the United States and United Kingdom launched the military operation against Iraq . The United States circumvented the United Nations Security Council and unilaterally launched a military attack against Iraq on the grounds that Iraq was hiding weapons of mass destruction and secretly supporting terrorists. The war has resulted in more than 100,000 casualties among the Iraqi civilians and tens of thousands of refugees. Most importantly, the devastation of the war takes a long time to heal and mend. Libya Civil War On March 20, 2011, the multinational coalition of forces led by the United States and the United Kingdom, began an airstrike on Libya that lasted until October. UN Resolution 1973 (2011) stipulates that the ban on all flights is an important element for the protection of civilians and the safety of the delivery of humanitarian assistance. The purpose was not to authorize NATO's use of force against Libya, but to prevent the Libyan Air Force from bombing innocent civilians. So, the NATO airstrikes were actually not authorized by the UN at all. In addition to destroying the Libyan government's tanks and other military facilities, NATO also bombed power stations, bridges, roads and other civilian facilities, causing serious damage to the food supply, electricity and other basic living facilities of Libyan residents, which is completely contrary to the original intention and intent of the United Nations, not to mention the United Nations authorization. Alan Cooperman, an associate professor from the University of Texas at Austin, wrote that NATO launched airstrikes on Libya in 2011 when the civil war almost came to an end which killed about 1,000 people. However, after NATO intervened, more than 10,000 people were killed, that is to say, NATO's intervention has increased the death toll tenfold. To date, Libya is still in turmoil, with the innocent people displaced and homeless. It is obvious that wherever NATO is involved, there is no peace and no tranquility. Member of European Parliament (MEP) Mick Wallace pointed out that what NATO has been doing is exporting war out of the country, and NATO is the war monger with the weaponry. In addition, as MEP Claire Daley noted, "NATO's presence can only create more problems. You can see this clearly in places like Libya, where NATO is on a killing spree. NATO is simply not a force for peace, not only in the Ukraine crisis, but in all previous crises. NATO has never been a peaceful and defensive organization, but a gangster organization led by the United States, a war machine of the manipulating countries behind Washington, a troublemaker in international regions and a creator of world unrest. NATO, the butcher who tramples on humanitarianism, tried to conceal its war crimes by using the so-called "immunity" argument, which will neither be pardoned by the victims in Serbia, nor the peace-loving people all over the world. Editor's note: The authors are with the National University of Defense Technology of Chinese PLA. The article reflects the authors' opinions and not necessarily those of eng.chinamil.com.cn. Russian Tanks in Ukraine ABC Defense Minister Shoygu reports 'liberation of Luhansk Peoples Republic' to President Putin MOSCOW (AA) Ukraines self-proclaimed independent enclave of Luhansk is now fully under Moscows control, the Russian defense minister told President Vladimir Putin on Sunday. After successful military operations, Russian forces and the Luhansk Peoples Militia established full control over the city of Lysychansk and a number of nearby settlements, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement. Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu reported the liberation of the Luhansk Peoples Republic to Putin on Sunday, it said. The total area of territories liberated over the past day was 182 square kilometers (70 square miles), the ministry said. Donetsk and Luhansk both part of Ukraines eastern Donbas region, bordering Russia were the scene of a Russian-backed insurgency starting in 2014, when Russia illegally annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula. President Putin recognized the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk just before starting the Ukraine war this Feb. 24. As with Crimea, all of Donbas is still internationally recognized as Ukrainian territory, and the countrys armed forces continue to fight for it. Elena Teslova/AA Toyota is reinventing the flagship Crown model into a family of vehicles that will meet the needs of a diversified global market. It will be... A national landmark has opened up a 100-year-old tunnel for visitors to marvel at a wonder. A century-old tunnel on the Canadian side of the Niagara Falls is set to open to the public. Back in 1905, the first hydroelectric power plant opened on the Canadian site of the Niagara River, as a way of harnessing something new and creating something new called electricity or hydroelectricity, said David Adames, CEO of Niagara Parks. Inside Edition Digitals Stephanie Officer explains. Photo: Photo submitted. Katerina Jezowiczova just returned to Whistler after spending 10 weeks volunteering in Ukraine. It was the first time Katerina Jezowiczova had been in her Whistler apartment in more than 10 weeks, and she couldnt help but see her place in a newfound light. I got home last night, opened the door of my apartment and I couldnt believe I had such a nice place. I have a flat screen TV, she said. I totally forgot about life here. Im driving in my car and Im so thankful of what I have and the people around me. Jezowiczovas fresh perspective is well earned. The Czech native just got back from volunteering in Ukraine, a whirlwind two and a half months she spent lending a hand wherever it was needed most. She helped organize much-needed supplies in a Polish warehouse; she cleaned washrooms shared by 800 people at a support centre for displaced Ukrainians in the western city of Lviv; she helped at a military hospital in Cherkasy where she heard the heart-wrenching stories of soldiers injured on the frontlines of the largest conventional military attack since the Second World War. So, why did a 35-year-old from the other side of the planet put her entire life on hold to volunteer in the middle of an active warzone? Mainly it was the feeling that this is not correct. This is not right, Jezowiczova said. A lot of people want to help but cant because they work or have a family. I was in a position to just go. The Whistlerite first jumped into action in the weeks following Russias brazen late-February invasion, organizing an in-person fundraiser with some friends at the Whistler Racket Club that netted more than $7,000. She also raised more than $12,000 through a GoFundMe campaign that helped fund her on-the-ground efforts with humanitarian organizations such as World Central Kitchen and Polands Fundacja Folkowisko. Jezowiczova also documented her efforts through an Instagram account, @support_brave_ukraine, to keep donors and well-wishers up to date during her time in Europe. Actually connecting with the right people from abroad was no easy feat, but once she landed in Poland, Jezowiczova said her fortune started to turn. It was really difficult. Before you are actually on the ground, no one really wanted to talk to me about any details because I was too far away and I believe there are a lot of people who want to go and they get someones attention, and then nothing comes from it, she said. It feels impossible to go and help when youre so far away, but once things started rolling, I felt like luck was on my side. Things were just happening and people around me were helping to get me where I needed to be. Spending a few weeks in Lviv, Jezowiczova volunteered at a military hospital, but without any formal medical training, she helped prepare meals in the kitchen. One day she made fruit salad for an entire floor. Another she delivered books, crossword puzzles, cookies and flowersanything to bring a little light into the Ukrainians lives. That was a beautiful day, she recalled. If theres anything Jezowiczova wants Whistlerites to take away from her experience, its that the now four-month-long war isnt going anywhere anytime soon. In fact, between Russian advances and a looming supply shortage, the situation is as dire as it has ever been. I really need people to know this is not going anywhere, even though its not at the top of the news anymore. Its getting even worse because the supplies are going down and downnot enough food, gas, anything, Jezowiczova said. People here complain about the price of gas going up, but you know what? Be glad gas is actually there and you can take a full tank. We complain things are so expensive but we dont realize we actually have the access to it. Its just a shame its going off the radar because the war and struggle there is not going anywhere. Check out Jezowiczovas online fundraiser at gofundme.com/f/support-brave-ukraine. Photo: sexymariathrowaway/Reddit. A bear chases a bird on the Central Park pitch and putt near a group playing on the course. Warning: Some people may find the video disturbing. Several people had a little more excitement than usual on Burnaby's Central Park pitch and putt this weekend. In a video posted on Reddit, a black bear can be seen charging on the course, chasing a group of Canada geese through a group of people. As the bear runs through the area, people scatter, though the bear seems intent on one gosling. The video ends when the bear catches it. The video was shot over the Canada Day long weekend at the popular Burnaby park, which borders Vancouver. There have been no reports of anyone being attacked or injured by the bear while it was in the area. A second video appears to show the same bear around the same time in Central Park, near Patterson Station. This video was taken July 2, around 2:30 p.m., according to Sebastian Plusa, who posted it online. A group of people follow the bear in the park from a distance. Commenters on the video online noted with surprise how deep into the city it got. Central Park is fairly far from large forested areas bears prefer. Burnaby Lake Park is less than 5 km from Central Park, but it is also disconnected from large forested areas. Vancouver Is Awesome has reached out to the Ministry of Environment to confirm whether the bear has been tranquilized and removed from the area. Fifteen-year-old Reagan Paris is still languishing in a local hospital after she was one of six youths shot in downtown Chattanooga on May 28, her family said. A GoFundMe page has been set up for Reagan. While visiting the downtown area she was sadly caught in cross fire and tragically shot in the head. The page says, "15-year-old Reagan was enjoying her day with friends and family.While visiting the downtown area she was sadly caught in cross fire and tragically shot in the head. "She has had 2 brain surgeries and more to come. The hospital is doing the best they can but the parents would like to move her when she is more stable to a better facility that they feel more comfortable with. "We all know things can happen unexpectedly but surely no parent is prepared for a tragic shooting such as this but if you find it in your heart to give ANYTHING to go towards her future surgeries, after care and other things that may arise. "This story has made world news and everyone is praying and we all thank you! Please keep the prayers coming! Its a shame a person cant go enjoy their day without having to worry about gun violence and trying to be safe. Again thank you for all the prayers , thoughts and your donation!" On Saturday night, the Fort Payne Motor Speedway in Northeast Alabama outside Chattanooga hosted its 15th annual FIRECRACKER 50 event for Super Late Models and it was Chase Oliver of nearby Crossville, AL dominating the $5,000 to win / 50 lapper. Oliver, the most recent BAMA BRAWL winner, started on the outside front row along with local racer Kasey Hall, whom normally dominates the weekly Crate Late Model division. Oliver powered into the lead in his #5 Black Diamond racecar sponsored "ORE Race Engines, COR Suspension, Chase Oliver Tire, Coopers Country Meat Packers and Stealth Carburetors", at the drop of the green flag. This left Hall of Geraldine, to battle with Dillon Tidmore of Gadsden. Tidmore got by Hall on a restart after the races second caution for the defending track champion D.J. Hayes of Ider. The event was slowed by six cautions total. Hall held off Lucas Burns, whilst Mark Bangs rounded out the top five finishers. On Sunday night, Super Late Models will invade Tazewell Speedway in East Tennessee near the Kentucky border for the third $5,000 to win race of the holiday weekend. Next weekend Fort Payne Motor Speedway is dormant for Summer Vacation, but action returns Saturday night, July 16, with a full program. Visit the website FortPayneMotorSpeedway.com for more details. 1. Chase Oliver, 2. Dillon Tidmore. 3. Kasey Hall. 4. Lucas Burns, 5. Mark Bangs, 6. Richard Smith, 7. Travis Smith, 8. Bill Mahan, 9. Rod Carroll. 10. Darrell Hayes, 11. Teddy Snow, 12. Tommy Taylor, 13. D.J. Hayes 1. Chase Oliver, 2. Dillon Tidmore. 3. Kasey Hall. 4. Lucas Burns, 5. Mark Bangs, 6. Richard Smith, 7. Travis Smith, 8. Bill Mahan, 9. Rod Carroll. 10. Darrell Hayes, 11. Teddy Snow, 12. Tommy Taylor, 13. D.J. Hayes Boy Meets World Cast Wants Pennsylvania Town to Claim the Family Sitcom Like Riverside, Iowa Did With Star Trek [Exclusive] Cory Matthews grew up in a Philadelphia suburb in the ABC sitcom Boy Meets World, but the show never explicitly stated which suburb. Showbiz Cheat Sheet spoke with Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle, and Rider Strong about where the show was set, but they didnt have a definitive answer. Now, they want a Pennsylvania town to claim the show. Will Friedle, Ben Savage, Danielle Fishel, Rider Strong and Matthew Lawrence | Craig Sjodin/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images Boy Meets World is set in a Pennsylvania town As Friedle explained, showrunners intentionally made the setting of Boy Meets World feel like Anytown, USA. When youre doing a show for younger people, you want kids from all across the country to be able to turn on the TV and imagine they live wherever those people live, Friedle said. Boy Meets World was very Anytown USA and other than occasionally putting Cory in a Phillies hat or the Sixers, it was never Philly centric. The show never confirms the town where the Matthews Family lives During our conversation about their new rewatch podcast Pod Meets World, Strong addressed how the show never mentions explicitly where the Matthews live. We were just talking about how we never knew, Strong said. He also addressed the various settings fans saw in Boy Meets World. I know theres one episode where Sean works for the mob and its a very urban space where there was docks and I was down working as a longshoreman, he added. Most of the episodes seem to be very suburban. It seems like were kind of outside of Philly in some suburb, but I have no idea. We never knew. Will Friedle wants a Pennsylvania town to claim Boy Meets World Friedle said he and his co-stars feel Boy Meets Worlds lack of Philly references was a missed opportunity for the show. I think there was a lot of Philly stuff we could have thrown in, which could have given it another flavor, Friedle elaborated. But [TGIF, ABC, Disney] really wanted to keep it Anytown, USA [so] you turn on your TV and this could be like walking out of your own home. Despite the show never mentioning a specific town, Friedle hopes a Pennsylvania suburb will claim Boy Meets World as their own. Well know we made it if they Star Trek it, he told us. They always say that Captain Kirk was born in Iowa, but then one town just claimed him. Theres now a statue there that says Future birthplace of Captain James D. Kirk.' That town is Riverside, Iowa. James T. Kirk, captain of the Starship Enterprise, will be born in Riverside, Iowa, on March 22, 2228, Roadside America reports. The town also changed their slogan from Where the best begins to Where the Trek beings. If theres a town in Pennsylvania thats like, This is now the Boy Meets World town, we will come and cut the ribbon, Friedle quipped. Well come take the keys to the city, Strong added. Bensalem, Pennsylvania were looking at you. Ben Savage, Ben Salem? Makes sense to us. Hear more from the Boy Meets World cast in their rewatch podcast Join Friedle, Fishel, and Strong every week in their podcast Pod Meets World. Theyre taking fans on a journey through every episode of the hit sitcom with the help of iHeartRadio. Pod Meets World is available on iHeartRadio and everywhere podcasts are heard. RELATED: Boy Meets Worlds Will Friedle Says Feeny Call Was Taken From Him, But Thats Not Why He Wont Do It Anymore When Carrie Underwood was building her forever home, there were three things she wouldnt have been able to live without and none was her mobile gym. After a free-range childhood in Oklahoma, she found massive success in Nashville. But deep down, shes still just Carrie, with simple tastes. Read on to learn more about her childhood as a farm girl and her three down-home must-haves for her dream home. Carrie Underwood | Astrida Valigorsky/WireImage Carrie Underwood grew up in the small town of Checotah, Oklahoma Underwoods adult tastes might reach back to her free-range childhood growing up in Checotah, Oklahoma. In her book Find Your Path she describes it as a small country town full of wide-open spaces. She had a pretty normal childhood as an Oklahoma farm girl. But her country music career has made her adulthood less than ordinary. So, there are two versions of her Carrie and Carrie Underwood. Carrie Underwood is the public me the person you see on the stage or on the TV, she shared. Thats me living out my dream. That version of her is not to be confused with who she is on the inside. Shes Carrie a wife and mom raised in Checotah underneath all the glitz and glamour of Nashvilles bright star. Carrie is just me, she explained, without all the bells and whistles. And guessing by her three must-haves for her forever home, she called on Carrie for some aspects of the design. Carrie Underwoods 3 must-haves for a forever home: a wood-burning fireplace, porch swing, and rocking chairs Mega mansion! Inside pregnant Carrie Underwoods forever home https://t.co/C41OShWv09 Radar Online (@radar_online) October 27, 2018 After an accident outside her former home in Nashville injured her in 2017, Underwood saw a spike in interest in seeing her house. She wanted a home with privacy for her family, so she decided to build her forever home with her husband, Mike Fisher. While they were in the process of construction, Underwood shared her excitement about the build and some necessary features for their abode. My husband, Mike, and I are designing our forever home, she told Country Living in 2017. My must-haves are a wood-burning fireplace, a porch swing, and rocking chairs. By 2018, the house had been built from scratch, and they were ready to move in. Pictures of the home shared by Radar Online show lots of porches, rocking chairs, and what looks like a porch swing by an outdoor wood-burning fireplace. Fans think Carrie Underwood is living the dream due to a smart feature in the closet of her forever home PICTURE: @CarrieUnderwood posted a swimsuit pic for the first day of summer, but it's her AMAZING closet that will leave you speechless: https://t.co/7esTt3WXkO Taste of Country (@TasteOfCountry) June 20, 2020 While Underwoods three must-haves were simple to make a reality, there was something else fans noticed about her house that they thought was noteworthy. She shared a picture of herself in her well-equipped closet for fans on Instagram. Many commenters noted how great the mom of two looks in her closet selfie. But other eagle-eyed observers noticed a washer and dryer in there. One commenter told her having a wardrobe space with appliances was the DREAM! A washer/dryer set in the closet might not be Underwoods favorite feature in her dream home at the end of the day. But its still creating goals. RELATED: Carrie Underwood Accidentally Spent $2,000 on a Sweatshirt and Wore It Only Twice Chris Hemsworths movie career is almost out of a storybook. He went from being almost broke and getting ghosted by Marvel after his first Thor audition to starring in international blockbusters. Hemsworth has starred alongside (Charlize Theron, Jeff Bridges, Russell Crowe) and worked with (Ron Howard, Taika Waititi) several Oscar winners, and he even got to share an on-screen kiss with his wife, Elsa Pataky. However, Hemsworth revealed who his favorite female actor is, and its not his wife. Elsa Pataky (left) and Chris Hemsworth | Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images Chris Hemsworth and Elsa Pataky have been together for years and acted together several times Hemsworth and Pataky met via a talent agent who suggested they connect. That was in 2010. One thing quickly led to another, and they married impromptu while on vacation in Indonesia not long after they started dating. Their rapid walk down the aisle wasnt a rush job. They hit it off immediately and knew marriage was the logical next step. Now, they have three children, and they have worked together, too. Pataky didnt show up in the credits of Thor: The Dark World, but she appeared in the post-credits. She stood in for Natalie Portman for Jane and Thors passionate kiss, so she technically has an MCU appearance under her belt. Hemsworth and Pataky both acted in 12 Strong, and Hemsworth showed up in a small, uncredited role in Patakys Interceptor in 2022. Hemsworth is well aware of Patakys acting chops, but he revealed his favorite female actor isnt his wife. Hemsworth praises the brilliant Cate Blanchett, who he says is his favorite female actor Ahead of Thor: Love and Thunder hitting theaters, Hemsworth sat down for a Google autocomplete interview hosted by Wired. The interview revealed one of the questions fans ask the search engine most is who is his favorite actress. Which let Hemsworth reveal his favorite female actor is Cate Blanchett and gave him the chance to praise her. Oh, the pressure. Cate Blanchett, I worked with on Ragnarok. Being an Australian, a fellow Aussie, someone Ive looked up to for many, many years, and has been in some of my favorite films, played some of the best characters on screen, and continues to do it with such grace and integrity, and has a wonderful sense of humor and warmth and is kind and supportive. Shes brilliant. Chris Hemsworth explains why Cate Blanchett is his favorite female actor Far be it for anyone else but Hemsworth to name his favorite female actor. Considering Pataky is an actor, wed thought shed rate at least a mention as Hemsworths favorite female actor. Still, Blanchett is a solid choice. Shes a two-time Academy Award winner (for The Aviator and Blue Jasmine), has five additional Oscar nominations, and effortlessly bounces between big-budget action movies (The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Thor: Ragnarok) and more delicate films (The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button). Hemsworth will follow Spiderhead with Thor: Love and Thunder in a busy 2022 Fans five-year wait between Thor movies ends July 8, 2022, when Love and Thunder hits theaters. Thats longer than the four years between The Dark World and Hemsworths collaboration with his favorite female actor Blanchett in Ragnarok. Hemsworths list of movies in 2022 includes more than just Thor: Love and Thunder, though. Spiderhead, his Netflix movie with Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski and star Miles Teller, started streaming in June. After Love and Thunder, well see Hemsworth on Netflix again later in the year as he revisits his role as Tyler Rake in Extraction 2. None of those 2022 movies see Chris Hemsworth team up with his favorite female actor Cate Blanchett, but fans are surely excited to see them regardless. For more on the entertainment world and exclusive interviews, subscribe to Showbiz Cheat Sheets YouTube channel. RELATED: Chris Hemsworth Reveals the Greatest Challenge of Playing Thor, Which Is Also Part of the Fun When it comes to the way celebrities live, theres plenty of variety. While some love to flaunt their wealth in unfathomably large mansions and sprawling estates, others live a more moderate lifestyle. Christina Riccis relatively modest Hollywood bungalow was one such example. Now that shes traded it in for a Brooklyn townhouse, what does her living space look like? Christina Ricci has an impressive acting career that started in childhood Christina Ricci attends the Dior Homme Menswear Fall/Winter 2020-2021 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on January 17, 2020 in Paris, France. (Photo by Stephane Cardinale Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images) Christina Ricci could undoubtedly afford to live in a lavish house if shed like. The actor began her career as a child and has amassed a fortune of around $8 million (according to Celebrity Net Worth). While Ricci has often shied away from mainstream blockbuster roles, shes found undeniable success in more offbeat parts. Perhaps best known for portraying Wednesday Addams, Riccis childhood celebrity status has been the foundation of her career. That success has culminated most recently in impressive TV work. She has a significant role in Showtimes successful Yellowjackets. Shes also set to appear in the upcoming series Wednesday. While Jenna Ortega steps into the titular part, Riccis role remains shrouded in mystery. Shes also been announced as the star of the upcoming The Dresden Sun, a sci-fi thriller. In fact, many note Riccis career going through a resurgence. Despite steady work throughout her life, she spent years taking on indie films or more minor roles. These latest appearances give her the most visibility since her heyday in the 1990s. Christina Ricci traded her modest Hollywood house for a New York address Christina Ricci lived in a Hollywood Hills house for years. While the location was prime, she drew headlines for her shockingly modest living arrangements. As House Digest reports, the one-story home features an open floor plan with conventional ceilings and black crown molding. A tasteful retro farmhouse style is present throughout with each rooms subtle character like the quirky wallpaper, eclectic furnishings, and long smooth drapery. Despite its modest size, the home has many amenities, including a lagoon-style pool, spa, and skylight (but probably not any house plants). A smaller place in a posh location seems to be Riccis style, as she followed up that home by purchasing a Brooklyn townhouse Brownstoner remarks doesnt seem especially distinguished inside or out. An additional property in Riccis portfolio is a California home that Frank Lloyd Wright designed. Other real estate dots Riccis portfolio Diane Keaton and Christina Ricci once owned this Mayan Revivalstyle home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright Jr. https://t.co/iSiUs3qVrt pic.twitter.com/dObN3oAqGL Architectural Digest (@ArchDigest) October 7, 2016 Ricci sold the Hollywood Hills home back in 2014 for $1.37 million. This was a loss for the star, who had purchased the two-bedroom, two-bathroom home for $1.5 million in 2005. Her Brooklyn address (which she acquired in 2015) was purchased for around $2 million. She bought the home with her then-husband James Heerdegen. As US Weekly reports, the duo (who share a son born in 2013) have since split amidst an order of protection against Heerdegen that went public in 2020. Since then, the star tied the knot with Mark Hampton, and the pair welcomed a child (a daughter named Cleopatra) in December 2021. Time will tell whether the family plans to stay put, sell their place, or continue to explore new living arrangements to meet their familys growing needs. RELATED: Christina Ricci Once Stayed Naked on Set: Youre Going to Have to Look at My Boobs. Washington: Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader and MLC K Kavitha inaugurated Telangana Pavilion at the 17th Convention and Youth Conference of the American Telugu Association (ATA) in Washington DC on Saturday (local time). The leader launched a book on 'Bathukamma' on the occasion. She also participated in a meet organised by the ATA representatives in the city. Unity and Integrity of the community are the two core guiding principles of ATA, formed with the sole intent of promoting Telugu culture heritage, values, and advancement of Telugu origin people across the USA with the motto of "Passion for Our culture, Compassion for our People". 17th ATA Conference further showcases the prowess of Telugu Intellectuals, Technological experts, Doctors, Prominent businessmen, cultural and literary experts both from India and the USA. ATA 17th conference was a cultural extravaganza par excellence and it is one of the most Telugu diaspora is looking forward to. The event is being held at Walter E Convention centre from July 1 to 3 in Washington DC. Notably, Kavitha-led cultural organisation Telangana Jagruthi scripted history with the screening of Bathukamma at Burj Khalifa last year. Bathukamma, the floral festival of Telangana went global in October last year as the world's tallest building Burj Khalifa in Dubai was lit up in colours depicting the festival. The screening featured the map of India, Map of Telangana, Chief Minister KCR, Bathukamma flowers, with Alipoola Vennela playing the background as the heritage of India and Telangana outshined at Burj Khalifa. The visual feast was attributed to the efforts of Nizamabad MLC Kalvakuntla Kavitha who led Telangana Jagruthi to showcase states' Bathukamma culture and take the festival celebrations global by featuring its depiction on the world's largest screen. Kavitha, who is the former Member of Parliament and daughter of Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, led Telangana Jagruthi, a cultural and literary organization that was formed during the statehood movement for Telangana in India and has been working to preserve and celebrate the cultural heritage of Telangana. Last year's Bathukamma edition of Telangana Jagruthi was quite unique. The organization launched a Bathukamma song 'Allipoola Vennela', which became a superhit and was composed by music maestro AR Rahman, directed by ace Indian director Gautham Vasudev Menon and brought to life by a talented team of artists. Friends writers made it obvious that Ross Geller and Rachel Green were the endgame couple of the series from early on. The shows writers highlighted Ross infatuation with Rachel throughout season 1. Rachels sudden feelings for Ross and their eventual relationship was a major storyline in season 2 and 3. Their relationship, however, was far from smooth sailing. A scene from the pilot episode might explain why the couple could never get it right. Ross and Rachel might have been cursed. Ross Geller and Rachel Greens relationship was rife with conflict Fans were given clues about the eventual relationship quickly. Ross admitted during the pilot episode that he had a crush on Rachel while they were in high school. He never acted on his feelings, but Rachel revealed that she always knew he had a thing for her. Eventually, in season 2, the duo got together. If we are being fair, their relationship didnt start smoothly. Ross was jealous of Rachels dates until he met Julie on a trip to China. Rachel was jealous of Julie once she appeared. Ross and Rachel almost got together until a printing error revealed he had made a pro-con list about the two women. Rachel dated a Ross look-a-like before finally deciding to give Ross a chance. Once they got together, things were OK, save for a few fights, until season 3. Ross decision to sleep with Chloe from the copy place while he and Rachel were on a break. acted as a catalyst for their on-again-off-again relationship. The pair got back together, broke up, considered rekindling their romance, got married in a drunken stupor, and even had a child. Still, they could never get the romance side of things right. A theory suggests a scene from the pilot foreshadowed trouble in the relationship. An umbrella may have cursed Ross and Rachel. A scene in the shows pilot episode might explain why they had so much trouble Ross and Rachels drama didnt really come to a head until season 3, but there is reason to believe their romantic failure was foreshadowed in season 1, episode 1. In the first episode, Rachel ran into the coffee shop to find Monica Geller after abandoning her wedding. When Monica introduced her to the gang, Ross, flustered by his dream girls sudden appearance, accidentally opened an umbrella inside. Opening an umbrella inside is considered bad luck. Friends pilot episode | NBCU Photo Bank While no scientific evidence supports the claim that opening an umbrella inside is bad luck, the superstition dates back centuries. According to Readers Digest, the belief that opening an umbrella indoors brings bad luck may date back to ancient Egypt. The publication notes that some evidence suggests ancient Egyptians used umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun. Opening one inside, away from the sun, was believed to anger the sun god. According to folklore, people who angered the sun god were punished with negative consequences. Since Ross opened his umbrella inside, and it was pointed at Rachel, one could argue that the negative effects they endured focused on their relationship with each other. Where would Ross and Rachel be today? In the final moments of Friends, the troubled lovers finally come back together. Fans of the famed series never got to see the rest of their relationship play out. An actual reboot, where the actors return as their characters, is unlikely to happen. Still, we cant help but wonder what became of Ross and Rachel and if the curse was real. In 2021, fans weighed in on the topic. Rachel Green and Ross Geller | Danny Feld/NBCU Photo Bank In 2021, TV Insider asked fans where they thought Ross and Rachel would be today. A staggering 66% of respondents believe the duo likely got it right this time and are living happily ever after. Perhaps they moved to Westchester to be close to Monica and Chandler, hopefully in Scarsdale, like Ross always wanted. Not everyone is optimistic that they finally figured out their relationship. 15% of respondents believe the TV couple eventually split up again, continuing the on-again-off-again nature of their relationship. 10% believe the couple is done for good, despite Rachel giving up her dream job to be with Ross. RELATED: A Season 1 Friends Episode Creates a Plot Hole in a Classic Season 9 Seinfeld Episode Unthinkably Good Things: What We Know About Karen Pittmans New Hallmark Movie, Including When You Can Watch It TL;DR: Karen Pittman will star in Unthinkably Good Things, a new movie airing on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries on August 28. The movie, which is set in Tuscany, is about a woman who turns to her two friends when shes at a crossroads in her career and love life The film is the first in Hallmarks new series of movies inspired by its Mahogany cards brand. Karen Pittman | Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic Hallmark is preparing to launch the first movie in its new Mahogany line of films. Unthinkably Good Things stars The Morning Shows Karen Pittman as a woman who turns two of her closest friends for support during a challenging time in her life. Its the first in a planned series of movies focusing on Black voices and stories. Karen Pittman stars in the new Hallmark movie Unthinkably Good Things Pittman, who plays Mia Jordan on The Morning Show and has also appeared in Yellowstone and the Sex and the City reboot And Just Like That, is taking on her first Hallmark movie with Unthinkably Good Things. Its about a woman named Allison (Pittman) who turns to her friends Melina (Joyful Drake) and Reesa (Erica Ash) when she is at a crossroads in her career and love life. The two women visit her in Tuscany, where they end up reexamining the state of their lives and their relationships. While each has a different personality and perspective, they know each others truth and help each other make life-changing decisions. Between the good wine, delicious food, and a beautiful Tuscan backdrop (plus a serving of romance), Allison, Melina, and Reesa relish the importance of friendship and inspire each other to take a leap and pursue the life theyve always wanted. Pittman compares her Unthinkably Good Things character to Mia on The Morning Show Join three best friends trip to Italy- Karen Pittman, Erica Ash, Joyful Drake in the all new movie #UnthinkablyGoodThings premiering on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries on August 28, part of Mahogany. pic.twitter.com/0p1g8DT4FZ Hallmark Movies & Mysteries (@hallmarkmovie) June 27, 2022 RELATED: Sex and the City Revival Star Karen Pittman Confirms And Just Like That Doesnt Replace Samantha: Samantha Is Irreplaceable In addition to Pittman, Drake, and Ash, Unthinkably Good Things also features Jermaine Love and Lance Gross. The movie, which was directed by Terri J. Vaughn, was shot on location in Italy. It premieres Sunday, August 28 at 9 p.m. ET on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries. Pittman cant wait for people to see the new film. Fall in love with your fresh start! Please join me on August 28 and meet #drallisoncooper on @hallmarkmahogany in #unthinkablygoodthings, she tweeted. In an interview with Tamron Hall (via Twitter), Pittman drew comparisons between her character in Unthinkably Good Things and her roles in The Morning Show and And Just Like That What Ive had the chance to do in my career, and I feel so lucky, is to inhabit these women, these African-American women, who are highly ambitious, who are articulating themselves out in the world, that are still trying to put together what it looks like to have it all, she said. Thats my character on And Just Like That, thats Allison Cooper in Unthinkably Good Things, and Mia on The Morning Show. Its been a great, great journey for me. The movie is the first in Hallmarks new Mahogany franchise Unthinkably Good Things is the first movie in Hallmarks new Mahogany franchise. The movies are an extension of the companys line of Mahogany greeting cards. Mahogany is a 34-year-old brand that has been an important part of the portfolio since its existence, Crown Media Family Network president and CEO Wonya Lucas told Variety in a 2021 interview. So for us, its not an initiative; its bringing something to life through storytelling. When I look at Mahogany cards, I can clearly say to myself, They see me, Lucas added. It has a very distinctive voice, and it also has breadth. It represents the Black experience in many ways from family to love to sisterhood which is so important to Black women to loss or trials and tribulations. [It represents] our journey. For more on the entertainment world and exclusive interviews, subscribe to Showbiz Cheat Sheets YouTube channel. RELATED: Chesapeake Shores Season 6 to Premiere in August 2022, Hallmark Reveals Anglican priest warns skies are darkening for religious freedom in Hong Kong Pres. Xi declares his political regime in HK has 'widespread approval' worldwide at handover anniversary ceremony Religious freedom in Hong Kong is facing dangerous threats from the Chinese Communist Party, the Rev. Jonathan Aitken warned as Chinese President Xi Jinping marked the 25th anniversary of the city's handover from Britain to China. The skies are darkening for religious freedom in Hong Kong, said Aitken, an Anglican priest and former cabinet minister and member of Parliament, during a speech at the National Club in London Wednesday, UCA News reported. Aitken, 79, said there are increasingly ominous signs that religious freedom in Hong Kong is next on the hit list by the destructive forces of Xi's regime. Hong Kongs National Security Law, which was imposed by the communist regime two years ago, can leave fundamental freedoms almost completely dismantled, Aitken said. The law has four categories of crimes: succession, subversion of state power, local terrorist activities and collaborating with foreign or external foreign forces to endanger national security. The law also positions Beijing as over the Hong Kong judicial system in cases deemed related to national security, the U.S.-based group China Aid reported earlier. This means that the judges in these cases must be Beijing-approved. Hong Kong residents can now also be taken to China, where they will face a courtroom with allegiance to the government. The rule of law, Aitken said, has been undermined and any meaningful autonomy has been eroded. Many former lawmakers are in prison and Beijing has brutally curtailed press freedom, academic freedom and freedom of expression, he added. In 1997, China had agreed to a one country, two systems arrangement to allow certain freedoms for Hong Kong when it received the city back from British control. Critics contend the security law undercuts the promised autonomy. Today, a quarter of a century on from the handover, the whole world came to see that the Chinese communist regime has systematically broken those promises and violated the treaty, he added. President Xi said Friday that the city's political system as it now exists "must be adhered to over the long run," signaling that China plans to preserve the political model, according to the BBC, which added that the audience comprised of mostly pro-Beijing elite. "'One country two systems' has been tested and proved time and again, and there is no reason to change such a good system," he said, adding that the system had the "unanimous endorsement" of residents and "widespread approval" by world leaders. Xi further claimed that Hong Kong's "true democracy began" when mainland China regained control. Xi also defended the policy of only allowing "patriots" to run for office in Hong Kong, saying it was "essential for safeguarding the long-term stability and security of Hong Kong." "No people in any country or region in the world would ever allow political power to fall into the hands of forces or individuals who do not love, or would even sell out or betray, their own country," he said. Describing Xi as ideologically a Marxist Nationalist and politically a brutal control freak, Aitken said his regime is particularly hostile to faith groups. The Chinese communist government is committing genocide against the Uyghurs (a Muslim ethnic minority) of approximately 12 million people heavily concentrated in the Western province of Xinjiang, Dr. Richard Land, president emeritus and an adjunct professor of theology & ethics at Southern Evangelical Seminary, wrote in a recent column for The Christian Post. Its been estimated that over 1 million residents of Chinas Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region have been detained in internment camps for the alleged purpose of re-education and de-radicalization, wrote Land, who has also served as an executive editor and columnist for The Christian Post since 2011. Those who have fled the region have spoken of the horrors of forced abortions and torture. There is no doubt that the impetus for this crime against humanity started at the very top of the CCP food chain. China has also often been accused of rights abuses against other religious minorities including Christians, Tibetan Buddhists and Falun Gong practitioners. Open Doors USA, which covers persecution in over 60 countries, estimates that China has more than 97 million Christians, many of whom worship in unregistered or so-called illegal underground churches. The five state-sanctioned religious groups in China are the Buddhist Association of China, the Chinese Taoist Association, the Islamic Association of China, the Protestant Three-Self Patriotic Movement and the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. Even the organizations within the five authorized religions are subject to surveillance and limitations. Internet censorship targeting Christians in China, including government-sanctioned Christian groups, is severe. In April, a well-known Christian website disappeared after serving believers for about 21 years. In March, it was reported that Chinese authorities had launched a mass training program for more than 100 religious content reviewers to remove non-government religious content from the internet. This accreditation of over one hundred online religious activity auditors will only continue the crackdown of online religious content and put more Chinese Christians in danger, warned the U.S.-based persecution watchdog International Christian Concern at the time. China has been labeled for years by the U.S. State Department as a country of particular concern for egregious religious freedom violations. Islamic State claims responsibility for attacks on Christian villages in Mozambique The Islamic State terror group has claimed responsibility for a series of attacks in Mozambiques Christian villages that left eight people killed, including by beheading, and several houses burned. The attacks took place in six Christian villages in Cabo Delgado, the northernmost province of Mozambique, between May 23 and May 31. The terror group later released photographs of six decapitated bodies and images of the burned villages, the U.S.-based persecution watchdog International Christian Concern reports. Four of those who were murdered were Christians, according to ICC, which added that the Islamic State and its affiliate groups have killed or displaced thousands of Christians in Mozambique. A new wave of violent attacks also hit Cabo Delgados Ancuabe district between June 2 and June 9, triggering the displacement of nearly 10,000 people, Save the Children said in a statement, adding that at least four people are believed to have been beheaded in those attacks. More than 4,000 people have been killed and 800,000 forced from their homes since October 2017, when a civil war started in Cabo Delgado, according to the BBC, which noted that Cabo Delgado is rich with gas, rubies, graphite, gold and other natural resources, but the profits go to an elite in the ruling party, Frelimo, and few jobs have been created a situation that was exploited by the Islamic State and jihadists. The number of children displaced by the conflict in Cabo Delgado has now increased from 370,000 to over 400,000, according to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare, Save the Children added. In March 2021, the U.S. labeled the insurgents as ISIS-Mozambique and global terrorists, and some believe that IS and Washington might be aiming for a proxy war in that country. At least 24 countries have sent troops to support the fight against insurgents in Mozambique, whose army has been accused of being corrupt and having 7,000 ghost soldiers, who receive salaries without receiving any military training or setting foot in a military unit, the BBC reports. In 2017, jihadist insurgents began in the Cabo-Delgado province, winning over some locals due to the fact that they gave back resources to villagers from the government, and killed no one, ICC explained. This did not last, however, as IS started setting fire to Christian villages, and killing those who lived there. On Jan. 13, IS attacked the village of Citate, setting fire to 60 homes, and the following day, 20 more homes were set on fire in that village, leading to 200 more homes being burned in Limwalamwala village on Jan. 18, ICC said. This week in Christian history: God of Our Fathers, Georg Schmidt arrives in Africa Throughout the extensive history of the Church, there have been numerous events of lasting significance. Each week brings anniversaries of impressive milestones, unforgettable tragedies, amazing triumphs, memorable births and notable deaths. Some of the events drawn from over 2,000 years of history might be familiar, while other happenings might be previously unknown by most people. The following pages highlight anniversaries of memorable events that occurred this week in Christian history. They include the first performance of the hymn God of Our Fathers, Georg Schmidt arriving in South Africa, and Jonathan Edwards preaching a famous sermon. 1 2 3 4 Next Chris Pratt clarifies affiliation with Hillsong Church, says he's really not a religious person Actor Chris Pratt has set the record straight about his relationship with Hillsong Church and distinguishes that his faith in God has less to do with man-made religion than his personal walk with the Lord. The "Jurassic World Dominion" star recently spoke with Men's Health for its July/August cover story. Even though many know him for being a Christian, he maintained that he is "not a religious person" and believes religion has been "oppressive." He clarified his affiliation with Hillsong Church as he has faced criticism for being associated with the Australia-based global megachurch that has been marred by various scandals in recent years. "I never went to Hillsong. I've never actually been to Hillsong. I don't know anyone from that church," the 43-year-old actor shared. In 2019, actress Ellen Page criticized Pratt for attending Hillsong Church in Los Angeles. Page, a biologically female trans-identified Hollywood star, now goes by the name Elliot. Page labeled Pratt "infamously anti-LGBTQ" for attending the church. At the time, Pratt clarified that he goes "to a church that opens their doors to absolutely everyone." The church he attended then and still does is Zoe Church, led by Pastor Chad Veach. Pratt told Men's Health that he doesn't attend Zoe Church exclusively and said his daughter was baptized in a Santa Monica Catholic church where his wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger, worshipped as a child. When the Hillsong rumor first began, Pratt chose not to respond to the claims of his Hillsong involvement because he said he did not want to "throw a church under the bus." "If it's like the Westboro Baptist Church, that's different," he said. The sometimes vulgar "Guardians of the Galaxy" actor labeled religion as "oppressive as f*** for a long time" and found it amazing that he became the "face of religion" in the mainstream media. "I didn't know that I would kind of become the face of religion when really I'm not a religious person," Pratt explained. "I think there's a distinction between being religious adhering to the customs created by man, oftentimes appropriating the awe reserved for who I believe is a very real God and using it to control people, to take money from people, to abuse children, to steal land, to justify hatred." The father of three said his relationship with God is more personal. "Whatever it is. The evil that's in the heart of every single man has glommed on to the back of religion and come along for the ride," he added. In discussing the negative backlash he has received online, he said people pegged him as the "worst Chris in Hollywood." "You don't ever wanna get caught complaining or anything, [because] I have so many blessings. I consider everything a blessing truly in my life. [But] why are they coming after me?" The actor has often shared his faith publicly. In 2018, he accepted the Generation Award at the MTV Movie and TV Awards and used the platform to share nine points of biblically-infused advice. After Pratt's divorce from Faris, he revealed that his pastor's books helped him keep his faith strong. "I read books by my Pastor, Chad Veach in Zoe Church LA," he said in a home video in 2017. "I find his book Faith Forward Future to be very helpful!" TMZ first reported that Pratt attended Veach's church after his very public split with his wife of eight years. The actor has also been seen taking his son, Jack, to the church at the Del Rey Theater in Los Angeles several times. Biden seeks 'exception' to the filibuster rule to codify Roe into federal law President Joe Biden is calling on the U.S. Senate to "make an exception to" the filibuster rule to ensure the passage of a bill codifying the right to abortion into federal law. Biden discussed abortion at a press conference in Madrid, Spain, following the 2022 NATO Summit on Thursday. "I believe we have to codify Roe v. Wade into law, and the way to do that is to make sure that Congress votes to do that," Biden said. He urged the U.S. Senate to make "an exception to the filibuster for this action to deal with the Supreme Court decision." The comment comes days after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization that the Constitution does not contain a right to abortion. The ruling gives each state the ability to set laws regulating the procedure and reverses the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide. Biden sees the court's decision as troubling for the "right to privacy, not just abortion rights." "I really think that its a serious, serious problem that the Court has thrust upon the United States not just in terms of the right to choose, but in terms of the right to who you can marry, the right a whole range of issues relating to to privacy," Biden said. "I have written, way back, a number of law review articles about the Ninth Amendment and the and the Fourteenth Amendment and why that privacy is considered as part of a constitutional guarantee. And the theyve just wiped it all out." BREAKING: Joe Biden calls for eliminating the filibuster to codify Roe v. Wade pic.twitter.com/PVih8qG2jJ Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) June 30, 2022 The filibuster rule requires most legislation in the U.S. Senate to receive 60 votes before the debate is ended on a bill. Making an "exception to" the filibuster would allow legislation to become law with a simple majority. Any changes to Senate procedure would require the support of a majority of senators. The Democrat-controlled House of Representatives passed the Women's Health Protection Act in September, but the bill has failed to become law because of opposition from the evenly divided Senate. The most recent vote on the Women's Health Protection Act in the Senate failed to receive the support of a majority of senators even though Vice President Kamala Harris' tie-breaking vote gave them a majority in the upper chamber. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., joined all Republicans in voting against the measure. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the pro-life grassroots organization Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, criticized the president's call to make an exception to the filibuster. "Joe Biden has caved to the abortion lobby, calling for an end to the filibuster so that Democrats can pass an extreme bill forcing abortion on demand up until birth on all 50 states, even painful late-term abortions," Dannenfelser said in a statement. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., suggested that another vote will take place on the Women's Health Protection Act following the Dobbs decision. In a letter to her Democratic colleagues published Monday, Pelosi announced, "Our Caucus has been exploring avenues to protect the health and freedom of American women." In response to the Dobbs ruling, Pelosi had previously vowed to "keep fighting ferociously to enshrine Roe v. Wade into law." Pelosi maintains that "the rights of women and all Americans" are on the ballot for the 2022 midterm elections as a continued Democratic majority in the House and an expanded Democratic majority in the Senate are needed to pass the Women's Health Protection Act. The RealClearPolitics average of polls asking Americans whether they would vote for a Republican candidate or Democratic candidate in the midterms shows Americans prefer Republicans by 2.2 percentage points. Dannenfelser decried Pelosi's effort to pass the Women's Health Protection Act as an effort to "roll back the people's victory and impose abortion on demand until the moment of birth nationwide." She argues that the Democratic late-term abortion stance is "deeply unpopular and a liability in this pivotal election year." Following the Dobbs decision, several states have banned abortion, including Missouri, Oklahoma, Alabama, Arkansas and Mississippi. Additionally, South Carolina's heartbeat bill prohibiting abortions after six weeks of gestation has gone into effect. Additional abortion bans went into effect in Kentucky, Louisiana and Utah, but lower court judges have placed them on hold. While a total of 21 states already have or are expected to ban or severely restrict abortion, 16 states will continue to allow abortions throughout most or all of pregnancy as they have codified the right to abortion into state law. An additional 10 states will likely continue enforcing existing abortion laws unless and until their state legislatures pass new ones and the remaining three states could let voters determine abortion policy at the ballot box. Biden's executive order attacks children, families and the First Amendment Recently, the White House hosted a Pride Month Reception with President Biden signing an executive order, A Proclamation on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, And Intersex Pride Month, 2022. The president also released a Fact Sheet, explaining exactly how he is directing federal agencies. The agenda is an unprecedented, all-out assault on children, families, and First Amendment rights to religious freedom and free speech. The order charges the Department of Health and Human Services to promote expanded access to gender-affirming care. This so-called care is built on the false premises that children are arbitrarily assigned sex at birth and that they might really be the opposite sex or even a different, self-constructed gender. The administration is pushing gender ideology, a theory disconnected from reality, on the entire nation. Transgender medical interventions for children, with sexual identity confusion include the destructive, experimental practice of giving them puberty blockers, powerful drugs that shut down their normal psychological, social, and biological development. Although proponents claim that puberty blockers are reversible, this is untrue. A child can never fully reclaim the time stolen by the off-label usage of these drugs. Puberty is not a disease. It is a natural developmental phase, not something that requires medical interference. White House policies will harm children even further, giving these children opposite-sex hormones and suppressing their naturally-produced male or female hormones. Taking opposite-sex hormones causes irreversible changes in an adolescent or teens body. And they are risky, with possible serious side effects such as sterility, psychiatric disorders, osteoporosis, blood clots, strokes, heart attacks and cancers. These body and mind-damaging drug and hormone regimens are often followed by permanent, body-mutilating surgeries. Girls as young as 13 are given double mastectomies, and 16-year-olds are having hysterectomies. Boys as young as 16 and 17 have their penises removed and are surgically castrated. Transgender treatments dont change a person to the opposite sex. And, there is not one long-term study that shows these interventions are safe or effective for children with sexual identity confusion. It would be so much better to help boys and girls accept their biological reality and embrace their innate maleness or femaleness. But no. Federal agencies are told to shut down any therapy that would help these children, a direct assault on parents rights, religious freedom, and free speech. The executive order also directs agencies to attack state laws that protect children, an infringement on state rights. In many cities and states, parents with an adolescent girl struggling to accept her female body are already unable to obtain real therapeutic help. This administration would spread these therapy bans across the country and around the world. God created humanity male and female in His image, with individuals either male or female. Federal agencies have been ordered to engage in a full-blown assault on these religious beliefs. In addition to banning real therapeutic help for those with sexual identity confusion, the administration orders agencies to work to ban counseling for those with unwanted same-sex attractions. These bans abridge the free speech of mental health professionals and their clients. Imagine youre a 15-year-old boy, struggling with addiction to homosexual pornography. Your faith teaches you this is not Gods best for you, and you want to live according to a biblical sexual ethic. Ethical therapeutic practice gives you the right to determine the goals and direction of your counseling. But therapy bans strip away your autonomy and self-direction, forcing you toward embracing a homosexual identity. The Federal Trade Commission was ordered to consider whether therapy for unwanted homosexuality or transgenderism constitutes an unfair or deceptive act or practice. If the FTC pursues this, Christian counselors, pastors, bookstores, schools, ministries, and churches that teach Gods design for sexuality and offer help to strugglers could now be liable to lawsuits for consumer fraud. This agenda is an all-out threat to children, parents rights, free speech, and religious liberty. We must fight back, working to protect children and our God-given rights. Faith, family and foundation: Proud to be an American this Fourth of July What does the Fourth of July mean to you? How does it make you feel when you see those familiar roadside tents filled with all types of fireworks and other flammable celebratory items? As you move about town, you will see retail stores, community light poles, or your neighbors front porch filled with color bursts of red, white, and blue decor. For this government gal, it fills my heart with the nostalgia of community gatherings filled with various patriotic foods, fellowship, and liberty. When I was a child and still to this day, I loved the song, Im Proud to Be An American, by Lee Greenwood. If I was falling asleep during the televised Fourth of July celebration, I would remind my mom to wake me up as soon as he came on screen. Now as a kid who grew up in church, I thought the lyrics were, I wont forget the man who died who gave that right to me, which I thought was about Jesus. Here are the correct lyrics in case you need a refresher, And I'm proud to be an American Where at least I know I'm free And I won't forget the men who died Who gave that right to me Thank you Mr. Greenwood for paying tribute to our courageous men and women of the armed forces. As we approach the Fourth of July, I wanted to brush up on my holiday history. In school, we learned about the Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War, but I was curious about how the holiday came to be. Quick history recap, on July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence. Interesting side note, one of our Founding Fathers thought we should celebrate Independence Day on July 2nd as that was when the vote for independence occurred. Before the start of the revolutionary years, celebrations were held annually throughout the colonies for the Kings birthday. Bonfires, parades, speeches, and the ringing of bells were some of the traditions observed. When we officially declared our independence, word traveled fast (as fast as a horse could travel from town to town). Public readings were held so all people would hear the words of liberty and freedom. Colonies would express their excitement by firing cannons, concerts, and parades celebrating an uncertain but hopeful new way of life. It fostered feelings of unity and new traditions. In 1870, almost 100 years later, Congress officially created July 4th as a federal holiday. What a beautiful reminder and opportunity for this Fourth of July, that when we come together with sincere hearts to break bread or a red, white, and blue cake God is in our midst. These past two years and even now are difficult for many people. What if this year we look at the Fourth as an opportunity to enjoy our family time but also welcome others into our plans and be an encouragement? We have this wonderful opportunity to make a difference in someones life. Whoever you invite into your home or to the block party, ask God to open your ears and eyes to be sensitive to those around you. When someone shares a struggle or a doubt, let us not just say Im praying for you, but boldly ask if we can pray for them at that moment. (If they decline at that moment, write it down and pray for them during your personal prayer time). If someone around you has a need that you can meet, then let your faith move into action on their behalf. Five people drafted the declaration of independence and that small group of people brought hope to a new nation. We carry the message of hope and freedom with us and it shines brightest when we are in unity and service to others. I wish you all a wonderful Fourth of July and pray as you gather together that joy will fill your homes and that new and old friends will bring encouragement to each others lives to keep running the race! Have a safe and fun-filled celebration. Reaching the unreached: Going into all the world Have you ever wondered why Jesus told us to go into all the world and preach the Gospel in every nation? Every day, we encounter people in our own communities who need to hear the hope that we have the hope in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Isnt the task to reach those in our hometowns large enough? The truth is, both are equally important. The Great Commission, as outlined in Matthew 28:19-20, includes people as close to us as our families and friends and it includes people on the other side of the globe. Jesus told us in Acts 1:8 that we are to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost part of the earth. This covers our hometown (Jerusalem), our region (Judea), regions closest to us but of a different culture (Samaria), and the rest of the world. No place and no one may be excluded. We dont have the option to choose one or the other. Gods command covers both, and our responsibility is to share the Gospel with people at home and around the world. A 2015 Pew Research Center study estimated about one-third of the population (2.3 billion people) claims to be Christian. But most of these believers are concentrated in certain regions. The Joshua Project estimates that 3.29 billion people (42%) still live in areas that are considered unreached that means, less than 2% of the population claim to be Christian. The bottom line is we still have work to do. Most people in these unreached regions simply will not hear about the hope they can have in Christ unless someone goes to them. There are too few Christians within their region for the Good News to effectively spread. If the Gospel is to be shared to every nation, tribe and tongue, we must go. Now, not everyone is called to be an overseas missionary. But that doesnt mean we arent called to share the Gospel. We are all called to share with those in our network of relationships. Next, we are all called to give and support those who go to places we cannot go. And ultimately, all of us are called to pray for the work of the Gospel. With our transient society, many of the nations are right in our own backyard. They are coming to us. We can be ready to share with them the best news they have ever heard! What are you doing to reach the world with the Gospel? Begin today by praying for those who do not have the opportunity to hear. Then ask God how He would like you to respond. Are you called to go? Are you called to support those who go? Maybe you called to train others? Get involved in evangelism in your local church. Reach out to internationals in your local community. Maybe someone you meet has been praying for someone to share how they can have hope for eternity. Perhaps God wants to answer that prayer through you! Hyderabad: A two-day regional consultation on Combating Human Trafficking concluded Saturday with the signing of a declaration by representatives of six southern states. The consultation was hosted by the Telangana government in partnership with the US government at Taj Deccan, where delegates of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Telangana signed the Hyderabad Declaration. The two-day event brought together 36 functionaries from across the six states, including ministers and representatives of departments concerned. The event comprised panel discussions and presentations from senior police officials, members of the judiciary, survivor advocates, prosecutors and cybercrime professionals. Many survivors also shared their plight, emphasising delayed justice by the system. Frankie Sturm, assistant public affairs officer at the US Consulate General, Hyderabad, told Deccan Chronicle that signing the declaration was an important step. Anything that we can do to facilitate conversations that allow the states to work together, were happy to see that happen and be a part of it, he said. The core objectives of the event were to strengthen interstate cooperation and facilitate the setting up of focal points for grassroots workers to provide aid and support to victims. D. Divya, special secretary, women and child welfare department, Telangana government said, What usually happens is that we, public representatives or officers, tend to be in a cocoon of my department, my district, my state... There can be best practices in other states that can be replicated. Two NGOs, Prajwala and Shakti Vahini, also collaborated to discuss ways to combat trafficking. Rishi Kant, a co-founder of Shakti Vahini, expressed happiness over the developments at the event. The founder of Prajwala, Sunitha Krishnan, who is a Padma Shri awardee, stressed cooperation and interstate dialogue to curb human trafficking. What would Jesus do with pride parades? I recently came across my old WWJD wristband. These wristbands, which reached peak popularity in the 1990s, reminded wearers to consider What Would Jesus Do? as they went about their day. Although the phrase and the wristbands are less commonly used today, the question, What Would Jesus Do? was posed in an article I came across recently that discussed Pride Month. The same author published another article earlier this month that made the same point, namely that Jesus never condemned homosexuality and that if He were alive today, He would wave a rainbow flag and march in a Pride parade. While conservative Christians may be tempted to dismiss these articles as clearly unbiblical, I believe it is naive not to engage with these arguments. In fact, studies have shown that those who identify as Christian are increasingly open to pro-LGBT messaging and are willing to reconsider the Bibles teaching on homosexuality. In fact, according to a 2020 study by the Cultural Research Center, 34% of evangelicals reject the idea that marriage is a relationship between one man and one woman. Despite professing faith in Christ, these evangelicals believe that Christian sexual ethics need to be revisited. Thus, contemporary writers who argue that Jesus did not condemn homosexuality, like Michael Coren and Matthew Vines, cannot be ignored. According to Coren, Jesus was radically indifferent to homosexuality. Moreover, since the theme of the Gospels is love, acceptance, and a permanent revolution of grace, Christians should affirm those who identify as LGBT. Considering these recent arguments, how should conservative Christians respond to modern interpreters who argue that the New Testament allows for a pro-LGBT sexual ethic or that Jesus was indifferent to homosexuality? First, it is true that Jesus never directly addressed homosexuality in the Gospels. However, it is wrong to assume that because Jesus never addressed homosexuality directly, He would therefore have affirmed same-sex unions. This is an argument from silence and is unpersuasive. Notably, Jesus says nothing about rape, bestiality, or incest, and yet no one believes He endorsed these practices. Others appeal to an ethic of love: Jesus would have supported same-sex relationships because His core message was one of love, and it is unloving to deny people who identify as homosexual opportunities for love and companionship. Despite its emotional appeal, this argument is also unpersuasive and ignores the available evidence that strongly suggests Jesus would not affirm same-sex relations. Two points are worth noting. First, Jesus believed in the binding authority of the Old Testament Scriptures. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus explained He did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17). He also said, Whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:19). In short, Jesus upheld the requirements of the Old Testament law. For example, when He heals a leper in Matthew 8, He tells him to go to a priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as Leviticus 13 requires (Matthew 8:4). On the few occasions Jesus adjusted Old Testament provisions such as when He limits the grounds for divorce to sexual immorality in Matthew 19 the New Testament is very clear. Because Jesus did not indicate otherwise, the only logical conclusion is that He fully agreed with the sexual ethics of the Old Testament and His Jewish heritage regarding homosexuality. To assume otherwise is an unwarranted argument from silence. (Note: Biblical scholars often make a distinction between civil, ceremonial, and moral laws in the Old Testament. Whereas the specific civil and ceremonial laws were fulfilled in Christ, aspects of the moral law are still in place. For example, the command to not commit adultery still stands, while the command that the Israelites execute those caught in adultery does not.) Second, Jesus affirmed the creation pattern for marriage. When the Pharisees question Jesus about divorce in Mark 10, He responds by quoting Genesis 1 and 2. He says, But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two but one flesh (Mark 10:7-8; cf. Matthew 19:4-6). According to Jesus, married couples should not divorce because marriage is a one-flesh relationship. He affirms the one-flesh nature of marriage by citing Genesis 2:24. But significantly, He also affirms the sexual differentiation of male and female by quoting Genesis 1:27. As ethicist Ken Magnuson notes, If sexual difference, in terms of marriage and sexual relations, was unimportant to Jesus, there was no need for him to cite Genesis 1:27. By drawing attention to humanitys creation as male and female in the context of a discussion on marriage, Jesus signals His acceptance of the Old Testaments vision for marriage and sexuality. In addition to Jesuss affirmation of the creation pattern for marriage, there are other verses in the New Testament that condemn homosexual practices. These include 1 Corinthians 6:9 and 1 Timothy 1:10. In 1 Corinthians 6:9, Paul writes, Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality. Similarly, in 1 Timothy 1:10, Paul includes men who practice homosexuality as among the lawless and disobedient. Both passages are significant for understanding the Bibles teaching on homosexuality. Notably, they affirm the Old Testaments prohibition on same-sex relations. Although each passage merits a lengthy discussion, only the most important details will be noted here. First, in 1 Corinthians 6, Paul lists different kinds of people who will be excluded from the Kingdom of God unless they repent. In the list, Paul includes four references to sexual sin, including two that mention homosexual behavior. The relevant terms are malakoi and arsenokoitai. Rightly interpreting these Greek words is crucial to understanding what Paul teaches about homosexuality. English translators render the relevant terms in various ways. Some translations combine the terms, whereas others render the words separately. Consider a few examples: ESV: men who practice homosexuality NSAB: effeminate and homosexuals NIV (1984): male prostitutes and homosexual offenders NIV (2011): men who have sex with men Although space does not allow for a lengthy treatment of these terms, a few points should be made. First, malakoi had a wide range of meanings in the ancient world. Often it meant effeminate or soft. It was also used in Hellenistic Greek as pejorative slang to describe passive partners in homosexual activity. At first glance, it might seem challenging to ascertain Pauls exact use of the term in this passage. However, context is key. And the context of 1 Corinthians 6, with its mention and condemnation of sexual sin, indicates Paul is using the term to refer to passive partners in homosexual relations. This becomes clear by the placement of malakoi alongside arsenokoitai. The second term under consideration is arsenokoitai, a compound word formed by combining arsen (male) and koites (bed). These terms are found in Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, passages that prohibit homosexual relations. Leviticus 20:13 says, If a man lies with a male as with a woman [meta arsenos koiten gynaikos], both of them have committed an abomination. It seems clear that Paul had the Leviticus passages in mind when writing to the Corinthians. When paired with malakoi, it is almost certain that arsenokoitai refers to the active partner in a homosexual relationship. By using these terms together, Paul includes both active and passive homosexual partners within his list of those who will not inherit the kingdom of God. Finally, in 1 Timothy 1, Paul includes arsenokoitai (translated by the ESV as men who practice homosexuality) on a list that includes sins (sexual and non-sexual) that do not conform to sound doctrine (v. 10). Gods law exposes these sins, and believers are exhorted to not participate in any activity that discredits the Gospel or dishonors God (v. 11). Christians should repent of sin and pursue a life that is consistent with their new identity in Christ. It is worth noting that Paul once again presumes the Old Testaments prohibition on homosexual relations. Although more could be said, the New Testament does not allow for a pro-LGBT sexual ethic. Likewise, it is wrong to say that Jesus was indifferent about homosexuality. The Bible is clear about Gods design for marriage and sexuality and teaches that operating outside of Gods will only lead to pain and hurt. Thus, we can be sure that Jesus would not have waved a rainbow flag or marched in a Pride parade. We can be equally sure that He would have ministered to those most caught up in the sexual sins of our day, speaking truth and love (Ephesians 4:15) to everyone entangled in the moral revolution. We should do likewise. Originally published at The Washington Stand. Christians don't have to affirm transgenderism, but they cant express that view at work: tribunal A London-based employment tribunal has ruled that the British Equality Act protects Christians beliefs that do not affirm transgenderism, but they cannot express those beliefs in the workplace. The Employment Appeal Tribunal in London delivered the judgment Wednesday in a case concerning a Christian doctor whose work contract was terminated over his refusal to refer to a man as a woman. In July 2018, Dr. David Mackereth, an A&E doctor with 30 years of experience, was forced out of his job in the Department of Work and Pensions. He subsequently took his case to the tribunal which ruled that biblical beliefs on gender are incompatible with human dignity and not worthy of respect in a democratic society. The doctor then sought to challenge that ruling. Wednesdays judgment means that the belief that God created humans as male and female and not transgender is a protected belief under both the Equality Act and the Human Rights Act, said the British charity Christian Concern, whose legal arm, the Christian Legal Centre, represented the Christian doctor. Furthermore, it means that more narrow beliefs flowing from that core belief, such as that affirming a transgendered person in their gender identity belief is harmful, are also protected. The right not to believe in transgenderism is also protected, Christian Concern added. Justice Eady said in the ruling, The fact that a belief is likely to cause offense cannot, however, mean that it is automatically excluded from protection. However, the appeals tribunal also affirmed that while the belief, or lack of belief, in transgenderism was protected, its manifestation in the workplace was qualified. Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, called the judgment confusing and muddled. The way in which the judge has driven a wedge between holding a belief and manifesting it means these basic Christian beliefs are protected on paper but not in practice, Williams said. The freedom to hold a belief, but not be able to express it, is no freedom at all, he added. Mackereth said he was grateful to the court for at least recognizing that a belief that we are made by God, both male and female in His image is not incompatible with human dignity. However, he also said he will be taking the case to a higher court. Mackereth said everyone in the NHS should be able to say publicly without fear that a person cannot change sex, but instead we are being forced to accept a massive change to our concept of the medical reality of sex, with no scientific basis for that change. He continued: As Christians, we are not trying to be unkind to people in any way. As Christians we are called to love all people with Christian love. But we cannot love people truly when we live and disseminate a lie. If we are to tell patients that they need to follow the science, then we must not tell them that they can change sex. In 2018, Mackereth was terminated as a medical assessor after refusing to identify clients by their chosen gender identity. In 2019, he took his case to an Employment Tribunal in Birmingham, claiming harassment and discrimination based on his Christian beliefs. Mackereth said during proceedings that he was asked in a conversation by his line manager: If you have a man 6 foot tall with a beard who says he wants to be addressed as she and Mrs, would you do that? And Mackereth replied that in good conscience, he could not. His contract was subsequently terminated. But the tribunal ruled in October 2019 that the Department for Work and Pensions had not breached the Equality Act of 2010 by firing the physician, who now works as an NHS emergency doctor. The tribunals judgment was based on a legal precedent set in the 2010 case of Grainger PLC v. Nicholson which looked at what qualifies as a philosophical belief which is protected under the Equality Act. And the ruling had put Mackereths biblical beliefs on par with neo-Nazi beliefs and was believed to be the first time in the history of English law that a judge had ruled that free citizens must engage in compelled speech. Pentecost Sunday massacre that killed dozens at Nigerian church remains a mystery ABUJA, Nigeria Nearly a month after an attack on a Catholic church in southwestern Nigeria, the number killed and the identity of the assailants remain unclear, though the church held a funeral service for over 40 victims. The June 5 bomb and gun attack at the end of Mass at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo, in normally quiet Ondo state, shocked the city as it did the country. A visiting speaker from western Nigerias Oyo state, the Most Rev. Emmanuel Adetoyese Badejo, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Oyo, said at a June 17 funeral service in Owo that over 40 of our departed people were killed, while ABC News cited an unnamed source as saying there were 82 bodies from the attack taken to a local morgue. A lawmaker representing Owo Constituency I, Oluwole Ogunmolasuyi, who visited the site shortly after the attack, reportedly said at least 70 people were killed and injured, while the state government said 40 were killed and 87 wounded. A priest at the church, the Rev. Andrew Abayomi, told Morning Star News that as worship service was coming to an end, the terrorists threw explosive devices on the church building and shot at worshippers. A spokesman for the Nigeria Police Forces command in Ondo state said that some of the gunmen were disguised as members of the congregation and opened fire inside the church building, while terrorists outside fired at worshippers as they fled. Police reportedly recovered three undetonated improvised explosive devices (IEDs) from the scene along with fragments of detonated IEDs and pellets of spent AK-47 ammunition, according to the spokesman. While Interior officials in Nigeria reportedly said the attack showed marks of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), local people suspected weaponized Fulani herdsmen. Bishop Badejo said at the funeral service that few of the tragic killings that have overtaken Nigeria in recent years could compare with the brutality and gruesomeness of the event on that Pentecost Sunday. No doubt we all gather today in deep sorrow and mourning for this funeral Mass of over 40 of our departed people who were brutally murdered, mindlessly massacred, Badejo said. As our deceased brothers and sisters lay here, there are almost 75 others who sustained different degrees of injuries in the same incident. The dead ranged in age from 85-year-old, Bridget Ozulumba to children like 2-year-old Chukwuemeka Emmanuel Njoku and Mathilda Ogungbade, 3, he said. None of the dead or injured did anything wrong except that they came to worship God at the foot of the cross and altar on that day, Badejo said. There, sudden death was inflicted upon them and deep sorrow upon their dear ones left behind. He appealed to those present to refuse to be crushed but have hope because of their faith in Christ. Today, difficult though it is, let us choose more to give thanks to God that He gave our departed brethren the life, the faith and the privilege of belonging to Him and of returning to Him, even in this incomprehensible manner, he said. I would still understand it if someone here would say to me, Preacher man, come on, you dont feel the anger I feel, you dont know the pain I feel Yet we still find consolation. Badejo cited King David agonizing in tears in the Psalms even as he maintained hope, and Martha in the Gospel of John maintaining hope in the resurrection. So, my dear people, the summit and summary of all our sentiments today is our surrender to Jesus Christ on Whom we keep our gaze as the Author and finisher of our faith. We see Him at the Stations of the Cross. We see him in His persecution, suffering and murder. To surrender to Christ is not to succumb to evil, he said. On this kind of occasion it is opportune to ask: How many more must die before the senseless killings in Nigeria stop? In these coffins a part of Nigeria lies dead too, he said. Our Christian faith, strong as it is, is thoroughly tested when we remember that the massacre in Owo is not an isolated case in our country, and that we see little on the ground to indicate that it might be the last. He cited a report from SB Morgen Intelligence, a Nigeria-based research firm, stating that nearly 900 Nigerians were killed in violent attacks in the first quarter of this year alone. Even as I speak, many priests and citizens of Nigeria are in the hands of kidnappers, Badejo said. How many more must die? Jesus Christ came and died so that we might live. So we are not walking corpses merely waiting to be killed, nor are we suicide cases. So we are compelled to ask Nigeria, our leaders: Are you still our leaders? Are we at war? How many more must die? Nigeria led the world in Christians killed for their faith last year (Oct. 1, 2020 to Sept. 30, 2021) at 4,650, up from 3,530 the previous year, according to Open Doors 2022 World Watch List report. The number of kidnapped Christians was also highest in Nigeria, at more than 2,500, up from 990 the previous year, according to the WWL report. Nigeria trailed only China in the number of churches attacked, with 470 cases, according to the report. In the 2022 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, Nigeria jumped to seventh place, its highest ranking ever, from No. 9 the previous year. This article was originally published by Morning Star News. (Bloomberg) -- A new computer algorithm can now forecast crime in a big city near you. The algorithm, which was formulated by social scientists at the University of Chicago and touts 90% accuracy, divides cities into 1,000-square-foot tiles, according to a study published in Nature Human Behavior. Researchers used historical data on violent crimes and property crimes from Chicago to test the model, which detects patterns over time in these tiled areas tries to predict future events. It performed just as well using data from other big cities, including Atlanta, Los Angeles and Philadelphia, the study showed. The new tool contrasts with previous models for prediction, which depict crime as emerging from hotspots that spread to surrounding areas. Such an approach tends to miss the complex social environment of cities, as well as the nuanced relationship between crime and the effects of police enforcement, thus leaving room for bias, according to the report. It is hard to argue that bias isnt there when people sit down and determine which patterns they will look at to predict crime because these patterns, by themselves, dont mean anything, said Ishanu Chattopadhyay, Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Chicago and senior author of the study. But now, you can ask the algorithm complex questions like: What happens to the rate of violent crime if property crimes go up? Other crime prediction models previously used by law enforcers have been found to erroneously target certain people based on a narrower set of factors. In 2012, the Chicago Police Department along with academic researchers implemented the Crime and Victimization Risk Model that produced a list of so-called strategic subjects, or potential victims and perpetrators of shooting incidents determined by factors such as age and arrest history. The model assigned a score that determined how urgently people on the list needed to be monitored, and a higher score meant they were more likely to be perceived as either a potential victim or perpetrator of a gun crime. But after a lengthy legal battle, a Chicago Sun-Times investigation revealed in 2017 that nearly half of the people identified by the model as potential perpetrators had never been charged with illegal gun possession, while 13% had never been charged with a serious offense. In contrast, the tool designed by Chattopadhyay and his colleagues uses hundreds of thousands of sociological patterns to figure out the risk of crime at a particular time and space. The study, Event-level Prediction of Urban Crime Reveals Signature of Enforcement Bias in U.S. Cities, was supported by by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society. 2022 Bloomberg L.P. SAN FRANCISCO Google said Friday that it would delete abortion clinic visits from the location history of its users, in the companys first effort to address how it will handle sensitive data in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. The location data change will take place in the coming weeks, Jen Fitzpatrick, a Google senior vice president, wrote in a blog post. The policy will also apply to trips to fertility clinics, domestic violence shelters, addiction treatment facilities and other sensitive locations. Google, which holds reams of intimate information about its billions of users, has come under scrutiny since the Supreme Courts decision last week to strike down Roe v. Wade, eliminating the constitutional right to an abortion after almost 50 years. Some supporters of reproductive rights have pushed people to delete apps that track their menstrual cycles online, while experts said search and location data from companies like Google are more likely to be used as evidence. The overturning of Roe has more broadly renewed questions about how much data and digital trails people have produced, which could be used to surveil or target those who try and get an abortion. In states that allow bans or other limits on abortion, law enforcement is expected to be focused on taking action against medical providers, but information about individuals including location data, payments data and more is not hard to obtain through data brokers and other sources. The Alphabet Workers Union, a group representing more than 800 people who work for Googles parent company, Alphabet, demanded Tuesday that the search giant delete any personal data that law enforcement could try to use to prosecute those who are getting abortions. With Fridays announcement, while Google will delete some location data, it did not commit to automatically deleting search records about abortions, which may also become sought after. Users must individually opt to delete their search history. Google has been sued by the state of Texas, accused of continuing to track users even when they use the Chrome web browsers supposedly private Incognito Mode which may further erode confidence that the company will purge all data when people try to browse privately. Google also made no commitments about changing the way it handles government data requests. We remain committed to protecting our users against improper government demands for data, and we will continue to oppose demands that are overly broad or otherwise legally objectionable, Fitzpatrick wrote. The company also said that users will soon be able to more quickly delete multiple menstruation logs stored on Fitbit, a health-tracking company owned by Google, rather than one at a time. The company also reminded users to employ existing settings options on Google to improve their online privacy. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate LONDON (AP) Peter Brook, a British theater and film director known for an influential and distinguished career which saw him garner worldwide acclaim, has died. He was 97. The two-time Tony Award winner, who had settled in France decades ago, directed the film adaptations of his best stage works as well as the 1963 movie Lord of the Flies. Brooks publisher Nick Hern Books said in a statement Sunday that he leaves behind an incredible artistic legacy." French media reports said that Brook died in Paris on Saturday. Born in London in 1925, Brook would go on to study at Oxford University and direct his first London show Doctor Faustus while he was still a teenager. After serving as director of productions at the Royal Opera House, he gained further notoriety through his work with the Royal Shakespeare Company, or RSC, including Titus Andronicus starring Laurence Olivier. He was a Tony Award winner for Best Direction in 1966 for his interpretation of Peter Weiss Marat/Sade, and in 1970 for the production of Shakespeares "A Midsummer Nights Dream." Brook was also the recipient of an Olivier Award, an Emmy and an International Emmy during his seven-decade career. After settling in Paris in the 1970s, the director founded the International Center for Theater Research, for which he would regenerate the rundown Bouffes du Nord theater in the French capital. Worldwide recognition also saw him honored with art prizes including Japans Praemium Imperiale, Italys Prix Italia, and most recently Spains Princess of Asturias in 2019. British actor Adrian Lester, who worked with Brook across RSC productions of Hamlet, tweeted he had been a giant in our field. Brook was married to actress Natasha Parry from 1951 before she died following a stroke in 2015. They are survived by two children, Irina and Simon, both of whom are directors. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) Puerto Rican superstar Ricky Martin on Sunday denied allegations that led to a restraining order against him, with police noting that he has not been charged with any crime. Police said Saturday that a judge had issued the order against Martin, but authorities trying to serve the order were unable to find the singer in the Puerto Rican town of Dorado, where he lives. The order was filed under Puerto Ricos domestic violence law and police spokesman Axel Valencia said he could not provide further details, including who requested the order. Martin said in a tweet that the order is based on completely false allegations and that he will face the process with the responsibility that characterizes me. I appreciate the innumerable gestures of solidarity and I receive them with all my heart, he wrote. He said that since it was an open legal issue, he could not comment further. Representatives for Martin earlier issued a statement and described the allegations as completely false and fabricated." It did not name the representatives. We are very confident that when the true facts come out in this matter our client Ricky Martin will be fully vindicated, they said in a statement shared with The Associated Press. El Vocero, a Puerto Rico newspaper, said the order states that Martin and the other person dated for seven months. The report quotes the order as saying they broke up two months ago, but the petitioner says Martin did not accept the separation and has been seen loitering near the petitioners house at least three times. The petitioner fears for his safety, El Vocero quoted the order as saying. AP has not obtained a copy of the order. One Laredoan is about to not just represent the 956 and the state of Texas but rather the entire country in an international competition scheduled for next year in Egypt. Sydney Rose Salinas recently won the Miss ECO USA 2023 title, and she will now be representing the United States in the Miss ECO International contest in February 2022. Salinas was crowned in Chicago, Illinois last week and said she is already to present herself and her views to the international stage. I went in there and gave it my all, and being 26 years old, I felt in a different mindspace going into this pageant, as I have done pageants for over 15 years, Salinas said. What I noticed about this pageant was how very confident and very excited I was as the last couple of years have been hard on a lot of people, and so I just wanted to go in and have fun. Essentially it is what I did, and I ended up winning and am very excited about this, as to be able to win a national title is a dream come true. Salinas said she is still in shock about her victory. I have goosebumps and I am very shocked, as this does not happen for a little small town girl, so I just had no words, Salinas said. To be able to win and hand hundreds and thousands of messages from people all over the world is insane< as they all want to know how you feel, what you are doing and what your pathway is, and that they cannot wait to see you in eight months in Egypt, so it is so surreal. Salinas is not a newcomer to the pageant scene, as she has been involved for more than 15 years and has participated in various events in the past from the Miss Grand Texas 2020 to the Miss Grand United States 2021 contests as well. My journey has definitely been a whirlwind, quite a rodeo ride as I started in Laredo competing (against) our past Miss Texas Daniela Rodriguez in my first pageant, Salinas said. I then went up to Miss America where I was able to be crowned Miss Laredo, and on top of that I went to the Southwest Texas USA. "Then I turned around and said that I wanted something more than just this, and what I am able to do? (I) reached out to people on the other side of the world to have such a bigger voice and have more culture and dip into a world that is more than just us. That is what I found in this system and in this company. Salinas said from now until the February competition, she will simply prepare as it is 23 days of competition in Africa. Some of the preparations she will be engaging in include preparing and working with the designer of her national costume, which will be designed by her sponsor from New York City, which she has to collaborate to know what they want to wear and also get it fitted. She also needs to wear on an ECO costume, which will be made 100% from recycled material. The same goes for her competition and final evening gown and swimsuit wear as well, which will total to about another 23 days of just trying out outfits. Salinas said she needs to learn how to do her own makeup and hair, as in Egypt she needs to have her own resources. Another thing Salinas will also prepare for is highlighting the campaign platform she is working on which focuses on a Clean Water, Clean Earth. I am very passionate about water, and especially here living (near) the Rio Grande, we know that there are a lot of movements, Salinas said. We know that we need to keep our river clean. I love fish and I love water, and it is just so crazy that so much more education is needed about pollution -- why not to throw motor oil down the sewage lines, why we need to pick up plastic bags and why do we need to use reusable bags. "It is such a shame that on the other side of the Earth -- and some people down our street -- dont have access to clean water when it should be a free thing, because it is the main seed of all life on Earth. Salinas also touched on the fact there is recent and growing concern that the Rio Grande might be drying up, and she said it is time for the communities that benefit from the water of the river to begin implementing strategic managing techniques to make sure it's not misused. She said there are ways in which it is not polluted as much and also to develop better conservation methods. She believes education is key. Salinas said one of the main reasons she is excited for her trip to Egypt has to do with the fact she wants to learn how they implement their eco-friendly techniques. She also hopes she can immerse herself in the culture while also helping showcase her Hispanic and American culture to the people of the city. I feel that America is behind the curve when it comes to practices such as that, so I feel that if they have something to teach in this eco-friendly organization and be out of Egypt, then they must be doing something right, Salinas said. Salinas said she is a full nature gal who loves everything dealing with the outdoors, and her favorite animal is, and continues to be, fish. We are out there, we like to do nature stuff as we live in Texas, and Laredo is really proud about being eco-friendly and just being out in nature period, so that is something that really hit very close to me, Salinas said. We do have a ranch here in Laredo, and I love to be outdoors, and that is one of the reasons why I thought this organization was the perfect (fit) for me. "I think spending that family time on the ranch and being able to talk to people with similar interests and being able with several conservation groups out there in Laredo, whether it is deal with our LIFE Fair and Expo and dealing with children and animals, that is what my family and I like to do. She said she likes interacting with the community as well. Salinas is a graduate of John B. Alexander High School and is currently working in Laredo. She is studying at Texas A&M International University where she is about to graduate in December 2022 with a degree in communications and a minor in psychology. Upon graduating, she will not just work but go straight to her masters degree in political science. She is currently still debating whether to become a real estate agent, go into broadcasting or get into public service. As for what are some things she likes in the city, she says she enjoys to eat enchiladas callejeras. She said her favorite enchiladas can be found at Delcys. Salinas parents are also excited for their daughters accomplishments. I cannot express how ecstatic I was when she was chosen as their representative, said Rose Salinas, Sydneys mother. This is a big accomplishment. Sydney has worked so hard to get to this point, and we are beyond proud of her. Shes the perfect advocate for the Miss ECO system and all they embody. She is going to represent Laredo, the great state of Texas and the United States wonderfully in Egypt. According to Sydney's father, Lauro, the new Miss ECO 2023 titleholder has done pageants since she was 13 years old. Over the years, weve worked on getting Sydney the training she needed, Lauro said. Support is the most important thing that I couldve provided her with. It takes a lot of time and dedication to commit to these events. Its important that she knows she has my support, along with the rest of her family, through it all. Ive been there over the years when weve had to leave pageants disappointed. But all these disappointments only made her stronger and more determined in pursuing her dream. And today she is living her dream. The Salinas parents say all of their family is extremely excited for the journey awaiting their daughter, and they cannot wait until she reaches the international stage next year. She has family and friends scattered across Texas and the nation, Rose said. This has been a long time coming. Shes worked very hard over the years to get to this point, so they are all so excited and very supportive of her. They cant wait to see how she does at the international pageant. The new Miss ECO USA 2023 states that as she is receiving support from many people she is also willing to extend her support to any young girl who is thinking of joining a pageant or is involved in one as she believes help within the community is needed. I needed a lot of guidance and a lot of help, and I didnt know where to look for it especially here in Laredo. Aand since pageantry in the city is still relatively new, but now that I have grown up and been in this organization for 15 years, I think that the best advice I can give is that you dont know is to just ask somebody, Salinas said. Please DM one of us, call us, text us, and I am sure every pageant girl is willing to help in everything. "I really wished I would have helped getting into this, but being at this age, I am excited to know that girls really want to do this and this excites me knowing this. I am here for help. We are here to help and we love this, and I am excited to help anybody from the community, and you dont know how it will change your life until it does. Aside from family, Salinas says she has been in contact with Rep. Henry Cuellar as well who has told her she will be recognized once he is back from official business in Washington D.C. Also, she said the congressman told her he would like to work with her on several events concerning her platform about clean water in and around the community. The ECO contest is hosted by the Miss Grand United States organization based out of Chicago. It has hosted the ECO contest, whose main focus is to enhance eco-tourism around the world and for the participants to bring light to issues affecting the environment and society around the world. Salinas succeeds Miss ECO USA 2021 Jesaura Peralta, who represented the United States at Miss ECO International 2022 and was able to become the second runner-up at the end of the event. As Salinas embarks on her journey to Egypt early next year, people can follow her through her social media channels such as Instagram via @sydney_sal6 to see how she is doing as she nears the international competition stage. The donning of a white coat is no small feat, as many current physicians and specialists can attest. Still, after the fifth cohort of the Laredo Medical Center residency program first slipped on its coat sleeves, it seems like the hard work is just beginning as the 16 physicians will be working amid a medically underserved city in dire need of support. LMC Internal Medicine first-year resident and Laredoan Dr. Andres Martinez said prior to donning the coat, he felt nervous but excited to be initiated and start working at LMC. He lauded his 15 colleagues, as he said the process to reach the white coat is long and often arduous with hours of work and tests, before even starting their time at LMC. As the Webb County area has been marred by years of obesity, diabetes and hypertension, solutions to address the county residents issues have been ongoing. In 2021, the Webb County Clinic was opened to county employees and their families. It provides a subsection of the community free check-ups, including a focus on diabetes and hypertension. Now Martinez and his seven colleagues in Internal Medicine will be a line of defense and support for those residents. He said internal medicine is all-inclusive, as the eight physicians will be working as primary caregivers with patients suffering from hypertension or diabetes as well as having the opportunity to work as hospitalists. This may give way to any of the new residents to open their own private practice or enter into a fellowship to become a specialist. As a local resident, Martinez said he looks forward to the next three years. I am ready, and I am waiting for in the next three years to continue with the same enthusiasm to help the people, he said. Dr. Christopher Ganson, another first-year resident, said that similar to Martinez, he was also nervous but excited to start. Per the white coat ceremony, members of both the medical community and family members all have high hopes for the fifth cohort. A lot of us have worked really hard, taken numerous years, done graduate school, been working and leading up to it -- its just a lot of hard work, a lot of dedication. But we overcame, and we are here and are excited to be here, he said. Amid the pandemic, the medical community was recognized by many grateful locals whose loved ones faced numerous hardships in dealing with COVID-19. This was a similar situation worldwide, but as a medically underserved community, issues were amplified such as limited personnel, the lack of a pediatric ICU and the high uninsured rate of residents. Finding new physicians to stay in Laredo and retaining them is a major factor in the designation, as former health authority Dr. Victor Trevino said there are a number of deciding factors for physicians on where they will continue to practice medicine. The language-barrier, excessive Laredo heat, distance from major cities, the culture and wages can be a deciding factor for nurses and doctors to leave or stay in the area, Trevino said in 2021. Regardless, the 2018 launch of the residency program has now seen five cohorts and has been a core solution by the LMC and Gateway Community Health Center collaboration. We all have a passion for medicine and a passion for helping the underserved, and we love being part of a community and serving that community, Ganson said. Dr. Sabrina Chen, LMC Hospitalist, was part of the inaugural cohort of the LMC Residency program where she started as a family medicine resident. Graduating a year prior, she called it a great experience, albeit it a bit different to a typical residency, as LMC residents did not have upper-level residents. Still, the attending staff were approachable, helpful and aided the inaugural class push themselves further as doctors. Im really happy with my three years as a resident here in Laredo. As I graduated, I started applying with the hospitalist program here in Laredo, and after I graduated, I still worked with the same company that I was at in the Houston area, but I now got the opportunity to come back about three months ago, Chen said. She lauded the residents she worked with and their overall growth as doctors. The return of Chen, her experience and understanding of the residency program will undoubtedly be a boon to the fifth cohort. Her return also highlights the results both Jorge Leal and Elmo Lopez -- CEOs of LMC and Gateway Community Health Center, respectively -- of seeing graduating residents continue their work in the Laredo community. As a preceptor, teacher or instructor for the LMC in-patient service, Chen will be working with the incoming residents on primary care for in-patient and outpatient rotations. The training in the in-patient service will serve as preparation for residents interested in continuing their work as a hospitalist. These are physicians who care for hospitalized patients and can work with both in-patient and outpatient cases. I am pretty sure they will have a very good experience in terms of the curriculum we set up for them, and they will learn a lot of everything which will help them build up their style of practice as they graduate and they will find out what they really want to do, Chen said as advice for the newest LMC residents. Whether they want to do in-patient, outpatient, seek out a specialty I think this residency will prepare them well and give them an idea about the lifestyle after they graduate and what they want to be. Aside from her personal experience within the three-year LMC residency program, Chens experience also coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic. As 2022 medical personnel have more experience and the vital COVID-19 vaccine, 2020 was a different situation. Chen said during the beginning of the pandemic, the fear set in as the first surge of cases rolled through hospitals worldwide. Without the vaccine, the situation was more severe as patients entering the hospital had acute respiratory distress, were in need of ventilators and/or respiratory support. The pandemic tested the expertise and experience of doctors, nurses and medical staff along with a majority of other career fields. Chen described the usual COVID patient as being admitted as an incidental finding through the mandated testing of every patient and not the respiratory distress. Per the fact the vaccine has rendered the COVID-19 pandemic as less severe than in 2020, the resident program experience will be different for the newest class, but not easier. All physicians will still have to tackle a medically underserved community and fulfill the Hippocratic Oath. This same oath was taken by the 16 new residents and showed the community their commitment to the well-being of others with the tremendous skills a doctor has and needs in the field. The modern version of the oath, written in 1964 by Louis Lasagna, Dean of the School of Medicine at Tufts University reads: I swear to fulfill, to the best of my ability and judgment, this covenant: "I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow. "I will apply, for the benefit of the sick, all measures [that] are required, avoiding those twin traps of overtreatment and therapeutic nihilism. "I will remember that there is art to medicine as well as science, and that warmth, sympathy, and understanding may outweigh the surgeon's knife or the chemist's drug. "I will not be ashamed to say 'I know not,' nor will I fail to call in my colleagues when the skills of another are needed for a patient's recovery. "I will respect the privacy of my patients, for their problems are not disclosed to me that the world may know. Most especially must I tread with care in matters of life and death. If it is given me to save a life, all thanks. But it may also be within my power to take a life; this awesome responsibility must be faced with great humbleness and awareness of my own frailty. Above all, I must not play at God. "I will remember that I do not treat a fever chart, a cancerous growth, but a sick human being, whose illness may affect the person's family and economic stability. My responsibility includes these related problems, if I am to care adequately for the sick. "I will prevent disease whenever I can, for prevention is preferable to cure. "I will remember that I remain a member of society, with special obligations to all my fellow human beings, those sound of mind and body as well as the infirm. "If I do not violate this oath, may I enjoy life and art, respected while I live and remembered with affection thereafter. May I always act so as to preserve the finest traditions of my calling and may I long experience the joy of healing those who seek my help. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate HAMDEN Carol May never thought the small nonprofit her husband and his friend thought to launch after a conversation around her kitchen table would last 10 years. But a decade later, House of Heroes Connecticut branch, a Hamden-based organization that helps veterans with home repairs free of charge, has completed 173 house projects, according to May, who carried on the work after her husband, Bill May, died in 2016 following a battle with cancer. Bill May was a veteran himself. A Black Hawk maintenance test pilot, he served in the military for 23 years, according to his wife, who said he was on active duty for seven of them and joined the National Guard after moving to Connecticut. He was so passionate about the military veterans and service, Carol May said. He always knew that he wanted to do something that would give back. May remembered how one day in the early 2010s, the couples friend, Steven Cavanaugh, came to the Mays home. He told them he wanted to use his skills as a general contractor to help the community. A couple of days later, Bill May suggested they focus on veterans, according to Cavanaugh. Some research turned up a Georgia-based organization called House of Heroes, according to Carol May, who said her husband and Cavanaugh began a Connecticut branch. The group competed their first home repair project in 2012; all their projects are completed in a day. One of the first veterans to receive assistance from Connecticuts House of Heroes was Jesse Ede. At the time, he was several years out of the military after doing two tours in Iraq, he said, and he was still struggling to adjust to civilian life. Ede had one child and another on the way, he said. He had just bought his first home. We were very busy, and we were first-time homebuyers, Ede said. My family didnt own before me. He knew little about home repairs. Then he learned about House of Heroes, which sent over Bill May and a group of volunteers to repair Edes house, located in Berlin. They did hours and hours worth of work that saved me thousands of dollars, Ede said. For Ede, the experience was not just a practical matter. Its hard to talk about it without getting all the emotions, he said. It was an overwhelming day, and not in a bad way. Ede remembered how the workers would not let him help in any way, instead telling him to relax. And then he got to talk to Bill May. He was very open and very receptive, said Ede. He was just supportive of me and my family. He was that person that knew how to get along in a civilian world and how to be a veteran at the same time. Ede was able to share his story with someone who understood it. Coming back into the civilian world, when youre trained military, youre not trained to be a civilian, said Ede. People dont necessarily know how to listen to veterans so well, and this organization does that. Seeing a group of people mobilize to help Ede out also meant a lot to the young veteran. It gave him validation that being in the military served a purpose, because theres a good nation that wants to support us and help us. This phenomenon that a days worth of home repairs can be deeply moving for the veteran being assisted is one Carol May also described. While House of Heroes does almost all of its projects in Connecticut, in 2015 it received a grant from Stanley Black & Decker to do five projects in other states, May said. One of the clients, a Vietnam veteran living in Indiana, needed significant help with his home, May said, adding that House of Heroes gathered about 200 volunteers to get the job done. (The veteran) said that this was one of the most important days of his life, even more important than when he came home from Vietnam, May recalled. Just the goodness of everybody being there was overwhelming to him. The veteran said no one previously had thanked him for his service due to the controversy over the Vietnam War, according to May. Thats one of the reasons she thinks the House of Heroes project meant so much to him. Bill May was there that day, performing a small ceremony House of Heroes does for every veteran it serves. He would thank the projects sponsors and tell the veterans story, Carol May said. Though at that time Bill May already had been diagnosed with cancer, Carol May said, he was determined to see the out-of-state projects through. When he died in 2016, Carol May and Cavanaugh decided to keep moving forward with the work. May currently serves as the organizations executive director, while Cavanaugh serves as its president. While they started with a trailer and a small storage unit, Carol May said, they now have an office in Hamden, a cadre of tools and a truck. Thanks to a new partnership with the Connecticut carpenters union, Cavanaugh said, the nonprofit can do more than before. He hopes eventually to set up a leadership team in all of Connecticuts counties so that House of Heroes can complete eight projects each Saturday. On Memorial Day weekend, which marked 10 years since the groups first home repair, House of Heroes completed five projects, Cavanaugh said. One of the veterans they served was 91-year-old North Haven resident Frederick Lubenow. House of Heroes enlarged Lubenows bedroom door so that his wheelchair could fit through, Lubenow said. They also did a significant amount of work in his yard and power-washed his house, he said. Since then, Lubenow said, neighbors have told him how good his yard looks. The day was very good, he said. They really did a great job. meghan.friedmann@hearstmediact.com KAKINADA: Bhimavaram town in West Godavari district awaits Prime Minister Narendra Modis presence to mark the 125th birth anniversary of revolutionary freedom fighter Alluri Seetharama Raju on Monday. The PM will unveil a 30-feet bronze statue of the freedom fighter by remote signal and then launch the birth anniversary celebrations of Seetharama Raju. Security agencies have made all arrangements for the public function in which the PM will pay his tributes to Seetharama Raju. Shortly after landing by a special flight at Pedaamiram village near Bhimavaram, the Prime Minister will address a public meeting. Officials have laid a bridge on Velpedu canal enabling the PMs convoy to go straight to the venue. West Godavari Collector P Prashanti declared a public holiday in the district on Monday. All shops and establishments will remain closed till Modi departs from the area. Chief minister Jagan Reddy, Union minister for tourism and culture Kishan Reddy and others will accompany the PM. Some 37 persons will be honoured on the occasion, of which 27 are related to Seetharama Raju and the rest are members from families of Rajus associates. According to sources, the PM will felicitate Alluri Srirama Raju, the son of Satyanarayana Raju (Alluri Seetharama Rajus brother). He will greet the remaining family members. The PM will spend nearly 80 minutes there. The Kshatriya Seva Samithi of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, the Alluri Seetharama Raju Seva Samithi and the Union Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Affairs are jointly organising the events. Collector Prashanti told the media that traffic restrictions will be in force in the area from 8am to 1 pm. Eluru Range DIG Pal Raj said parking places have been set apart for the people to park their vehicles. Cell phones would not be allowed in D Zone and its enclosures. Two-wheelers would be diverted to NTR statue area. Some 3,000 police personnel have been deployed for security arrangements. More than 60,000 people are expected for the meeting. Officials said waterproof tents have been arranged for the event in view of likely rain. A photo exhibition has been arranged on the life and times of Alluri Seetharama Raju. The West Godavari SP, Ravi Prakash, said traffic restrictions have been imposed on the town. Security has been beefed up in Bhimavaram town and in the vicinity. The 'most affordable' Texas roadtrip An online travel site recently outlined the 'most affordable' Lone Star road trip. These are the health benefits of ginger, according to a dietitian Heres why two dietitians say you should actively seek out ginger for its health benefits. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate INDIANAPOLIS (AP) When drastic increases in food costs spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic left Andrew Caplinger struggling to find fresh catfish for his restaurants, he decided to try an experimental solution growing his own. In the coming months, the Indianapolis restaurant chain Caplingers Fresh Catch Seafood will begin sourcing its second most popular menu item from fish ponds at his 28-acre farm in southern Indiana. The goal is to produce up to half of the 800 to 1,000 pounds of catfish fillets served at the restaurants each week. Ive never done anything like this Ive sold dead fish my whole entire life, he said. It's tough, and it might be risky. But assuming things go well and these fish grow like they should, we wont have to look at raising our store prices again for some time. Its a move that could increase local appetite for fish, Caplinger said. But even with fish and seafood consumption on the rise in the U.S., the number of Midwest aquaculture farms is declining, and many fish producers say they face challenges getting their produce to consumers in the region. Midwestern states compose a fifth of the countrys land but contain about a third of all U.S. farms, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Although experts maintain the region could be a strong aquaculture producer, the number of aquaculture farms in the Midwest has fallen to roughly 271 from 336 a decade ago. This could be because the region has historically relied on wild-caught seafood, said Amy Shambach, an aquaculture marketing outreach associate with the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant. Seafood produced in the Midwest also must compete with cheaper, imported seafood. Our input costs are a little bit higher than other places, and (that) contributes to some of the slow growth, Shambach said. Stagnant fish farming in the Midwest aquaculture industry has national implications, Shambach said. With global seafood consumption expected to increase by 100-170 billion pounds by 2030, the growing seafood trade deficit means more fish will need to be farm-raised, opening the door for Midwestern farmers to meet demand. Joseph Morris, former director of the North Central Regional Aquaculture Center at Iowa State University, said growing the industry is a challenge, noting problems with marketing, fish processing and high labor costs. The big hurdle to tackle how can they produce a product, economically, to meet the consumer needs and still stay in business? he said. How do you reach the growing market of people wanting to eat fish? Mike Searcy, who owns a trout farm in Seymour, Indiana, said the Hoosier state one of only two in the Midwest to report an uptick in farms in the last decade lacks a central processing facility for gutting and filleting harvested fish. He sends most of his fish to Kentucky for processing and distribution. "We have demand from our local customers, but the biggest hindrance is the lack of processing, filling that gap between the farmer and the restaurant owner. That holds us back," said Searcy, who is exploring having a processing facility at his own farm. When were competing with foreign markets and much cheaper labor, they can supply a fillet to the grocery stores a heck of a lot cheaper than what I can. Shambach said the lack of processing available in Indiana allows only a handful of Indiana aquaculture farms to produce for food businesses. Instead, most fish raised in the state is sold live to Asian food markets in Indianapolis, Chicago, New York City and Toronto. Still, Morris said, fish farmers are vying to grow their businesses and increase profits which could succeed if producers can better market their fish. A new generation of folks are eating more fish, and theyre asking more often, Wheres my food coming from? Thats where the Midwest comes in, Morris said. One solution for farmers could be recirculating aquaculture systems, which allow fish and shrimp to be grown in tank-based systems. The method gives producers control over water quality often preventing fish disease and the need for antibiotics and allows various species to be raised year-round in land-locked areas. The method is costly, though, precluding many small- and mid-size farmers. Searcy, whose farm runs entirely on the technology, cautioned that the operation is also completely dependent on electricity. Environmental activists argue that recirculating aquaculture systems require abundant water resources, and they voice concerns about the disposal of waste. Tyler Isaac, aquaculture program manager for Monterey Bay Aquariums Seafood Watch, said that with sustainably sourced fish feed and proper precautions, the recirculating systems could lead to more fish farms in the Midwest. Its always a game of tradeoffs, but I think at the end of the day, recirculating systems are a really good step forward, Isaac said, adding that renewable energy sources would also make such operations more environmentally friendly. The development of an aquaculture industry in a place like the Midwest is a good thing. It just needs to be done with appropriate safeguards. Morris said other emerging technologies such as AquaBounty's genetically modified Atlantic salmon being grown in Indiana that grow faster and are less susceptible to disease could also be very attractive for producers," although it could be several years before similar genetically altered fish become mainstream. In terms of Midwest aquaculture overall, the growth has got to be with the food-fish operation. Thats where your market is a consumer basis, Morris said. There are only so many ponds to stock out in the Midwest, only so many anglers. But there are consumers wanting to eat more and more fish in Midwest. We have to focus on that. ___ Casey Smith is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Smith on Twitter. Glenn Ivey wasn't planning on being in the parade, but as he pulled up behind it in District Heights on Juneteenth, he thought - why not? He hopped out of the car, his hands full of campaign literature, his campaign staffers - his family, actually - carrying "Glenn Ivey for Congress" signs, and started greeting the voters who lined the street for the festivities or watched from their front lawns. "I heard you're the next congressman!" a resident yelled out as Ivey hustled to the next porch. Never mind keeping up with the parade. If he wanted to be the next congressman in Maryland's 4th District, Ivey had work to do. He's up against Donna Edwards, the district's former congresswoman, in a race for the Democratic nomination - arguably the state's most competitive congressional primary. In this deep-blue, majority-Black Prince George's County-anchored district, Edwards is seeking to mount the rare congressional comeback, hoping to reclaim the seat she held for more than eight years during the Obama era by positioning herself as the most experienced candidate who's already done the job. She has the most powerful member of Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in her corner, support from key labor unions and liberal advocacy groups, such as Emily's List and the League of Conservation Voters, which recently spent $550,000 on pro-Edwards ads and mailers. "I feel really confident in being able to go back and start delivering right away for the people of the 4th District," Edwards said in an interview. But some of the same criticisms that hurt her unsuccessful campaigns for Senate in 2016 and for Prince George's county executive in 2018 have resurfaced, leaving Edwards at times on defense against charges that she had ineffective constituent services during her time in office. A super PAC associated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee - which has endorsed Ivey - has spent nearly $2 million on ads highlighting that criticism and supporting Ivey, a campaign Edwards acknowledged was "daunting" in the final leg of the race. J Street, the liberal pro-Israel group that endorsed Edwards, has spent $660,000 on pro-Edwards ads and mailers to counter the negative narrative. And Edwards has too, at one point getting help from Pelosi to swat back at the super PAC's claims. "When Glenn Ivey comes after me, I'm still fighting for you," Edwards said in her latest ad, highlighting her support for unions, school meal programs and abortion rights, among other things. Still, the attacks have created an opening for Ivey, who's built a campaign around pledging to boost resources for public safety and economic recovery in the district. He's already run twice for the seat, dropping out of a primary bid against Edwards in 2012 and losing in 2016 to Rep. Anthony Brown, D-Md., who is running for attorney general. Now, Ivey's hoping for a third-time's-a-charm victory. "I think the principal focus for the voters, the point of distinction, is performance. Evaluate us on our track records and vote accordingly," Ivey said - naturally, arguing that "I think I definitely have a better record of working with people in the community." Seven other candidates are also seeking the nomination, including former Prince George's delegate Angela Angel, though none has been as competitive with Edwards or Ivey in fundraising or endorsements. Because of how blue the district is - President Joe Biden won it by 80 points - whoever wins on July 19 almost without doubt becomes the district's next member of Congress after the November election. With just weeks to go, the campaigns have reached for some late-game momentum. Accruing more Democratic star power for Edwards, Hillary Clinton held a virtual birthday fundraiser for her just last week. The next day, Ivey held a rare news conference where former Prince George's County executive Rushern Baker III (who paused his gubernatorial campaign) announced his endorsement - support that Ivey argued was more valuable than national figures. "There's no one who's going to fight harder to make sure we have the jobs we need in this state and in this district than Glenn Ivey," Baker said, adding Ivey also helped him reduce crime during their time in office. In a district just 20 minutes from the U.S. Capitol, the race indeed appears less about national politics and more about local personal relationships forged over the years - and local issues, among them public safety and gun violence and the cost of living, according to voters who spoke to The Washington Post. Both Edwards and Ivey have centered those issues in their campaign ads, with Ivey touting his record fighting crime as the former Prince George's state's attorney and Edwards highlighting her support for gun restrictions in Congress and fighting for a living wage - attributes that have resonated with voters. "I seen her on TV - she said she would support gun violence prevention," said Sharrief Lee, a 59-year-old Temple Hills resident at the District Heights festival concerned about gun violence, who said she had never voted before but was ready to start now with Edwards. "I know [Edwards] has done her due diligence for us as well, but I think [Ivey] being in law the way he has been speaks volumes to what he could do in Congress," said Arlene Spann, an Upper Marlboro small business owner who liked Ivey's record and some of the programs he created. Though Ivey says voters probably will find little distinction between him and Edwards on liberal issues - both, for example, put out spots emphasizing the need to protect the right to abortion - the two candidates are pitting very different experiences in public office against each other. It's been over a decade since Ivey served as state's attorney - but his wife, Jolene, serves on the county council and son Julian in the state House, boosting his familiarity across the district. Ivey, a white-collar attorney, got his start on Capitol Hill working for several Democratic stalwarts including Sen. Paul Sarbanes, D-Md., in the '80s and '90s. Ivey was first elected state's attorney in 2002, inheriting a local criminal justice system plagued by police misconduct necessitating federal oversight. Ivey says he sought to strike a balance between cracking down on violent crime and police accountability, frequently pointing to the fact that violent crime significantly fell by the time he left office in 2011. Ivey touted community-outreach programs he created to involve residents in crafting policy. His office didn't win favor with public opinion in every case, such as after Ivey announced he didn't have the evidence to indict officers in the death of a man who was found dead in jail after being charged with killing a police officer. But the prosecution of other police officers such as Keith Washington, who shot two furniture deliverymen and killed one while off-duty, drew high-profile attention; Washington had argued self-defense and was recently released from prison after being resentenced. Krystal Oriadha, executive director of PG Changemakers who served with Ivey on the county's recent police-reform task force, described Ivey's perspective on the task force as "forward thinking," challenging members to "think outside the box" about how to transform policing tactics - something that has been personal to Ivey, who has noted he and his five Black sons have been stopped by police on "pretext stops" that appeared more tied to their race. Ivey said if elected he would seek to tie federal police funding to departments serious about rethinking policing tactics. But Oriadha added that pledges to boost public safety resources and address violent crime still resonate in the blue county, where "I think overwhelmingly you hear an outcry from community members who want to feel safe," said Oriadha, a county council candidate who added she is not making an endorsement in the race. Oriadha noted, though, that if Ivey and Edwards are similar on many of the issues, Edwards's and Angela Angel's argument that the liberal state of Maryland needs to have a woman in the delegation may be strongly appealing to some voters, particularly Black women. Maryland has not had a woman in its delegation since Edwards and Democratic Sen. Barbara Mikulski left office in 2017. Edwards first came to Congress after defeating incumbent Rep. Albert Wynn in the 2008 Democratic primary, going after Wynn over his support for the Iraq War while leveraging her reputation as a community activist and lawyer who had worked on the Hill to pass the Violence Against Women Act. "She was the beginning of what we call the Progressive Caucus on Capitol Hill," Del. Nicole Williams, D-Prince George's, said at a recent news conference in support of Edwards. Edwards, who had a leadership role in the Democratic Caucus, says there is a difference between her and Ivey on the issues - she was advocating for them as a member of Congress before him. She noted she was an original co-sponsor of Medicare-for-all and a member of the gun-safety task force that advocated for an assault-weapons ban and closing the so-called "boyfriend loophole" to prevent abusive dating partners from obtaining guns, a provision that just passed in Congress. Sitting on the House committee with oversight of the General Services Administration, Edwards also pushed to build a new FBI headquarters in her district - efforts that are still ongoing in Congress and that all the 4th District Democratic candidates said they would prioritize if elected. But of her critics, few if any take issue with her record in Congress on liberal causes, or her work on issues such as transportation and infrastructure. For Edwards the hurdles go back to her record on constituent services, the work lawmakers do to assist constituents with problems with federal agencies or in their communities. And throughout the campaign she's been trying to make amends. "I hear the criticism," Edwards told a voter at a senior-living community in Beltsville in May when asked whether her constituent services would be better this time. "And all I can say is the commitment that any legislator makes, which is that I'll do better. I've heard it and I'll do better." Ricarra Jones, political director of 1199SEIU, told The Post in May that Edwards made a similar pledge during the union's interview with her before endorsing her. The union, which supported Edwards in her earlier years in office, withdrew its support during Edwards's 2016 Senate race, citing issues with Edwards's responsiveness to constituents who had Social Security issues and her support for a new non-unionized hospital. But Jones said the union was willing to give Edwards another shot, seeing her as a strong pro-labor voice in Congress - and a voice for women. Deni Taveras, a Prince George's County Council member, said she, too, was willing to overlook her past concerns about Edwards's constituent services record after having a conversation with her about it. For Taveras, her endorsement came down to Edwards's experience level, believing she'd be able to build on existing relationships to bring more resources to the county. "I've been a strong critic of her in the past with regards to her constituent services," Taveras said. "That was troubling to me before. And I feel, and I hope, that is something she has learned from." Edwards, however, hasn't been able to smooth things over with everyone. Matthew Biggs, president of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, said the union decided to endorse Ivey because it couldn't shake a negative experience it had with Edwards after it brought concerns to her office about racial bias within NASA Goddard's performance-review system. Biggs said Edwards "didn't do anything," a disappointment that Biggs said cost her the union's support in 2016 despite its past enthusiasm for her. (Edwards said her staff did work with Biggs on this issue but hit a roadblock when it learned there was pending litigation on the issue from an employee at the Wallops Island NASA facility; Biggs said he would have understood if that was the case but had never heard that until now.) "Her labor votes were all good - we need every member to support our legislation," Biggs said. "But when you're not taking care of the people in your own backyard, that should really be a priority of any member of Congress. That just has not been the case with her." Edwards said in an interview she recognizes that people have had different experiences with her office, but noted there were also plenty of people her office helped with foreclosures during the housing crisis or other issues. Back at the District Heights Juneteenth festival, several voters agreed. Edwards arrived just after Ivey left, drifting to the front of the crowd to greet them. "You already got my vote!" retired teacher Charlotte Faison cried out, telling Edwards she had just seen the negative ad and didn't believe the claims were true. "I have a personal connection with Donna," she told a reporter. "She's been with my church. She's been so personable in the community." Edwards held out her hand to greet the other women in Faison's group, introducing herself with perhaps the most potent few words at her disposal: "Hi," she said, "I'm Congresswoman Donna Edwards." Officials from the Benzie-Leelnau District Health Department were honored for their service by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. During the the Michigan Premier Public Health Conference in June, Lisa Peacock, former health officer for the district, was selected as this 2022 recipient of the Roy R. Manty Distinguished Service Award, according to a press release from the Benzie-Leelanau District Health Department. It is strongly believed that the Roy R. Manty award should remain the highest individual award given by the local public health community, said Norm Hess, executive director at Michigan Association for Local Public Health. (Roy R. Manty's) philosophy may be stated as helping the helpless, correcting the correctable and assisting all people to fulfillment through good health. Lisa is a true servant of public health. She has served her community, through many challenges, with grace, professionalism and a steadfast commitment to the best of public health. The release noted Peacocks nomination, which showed progression in public health. Peacock has served as nurse practitioner providing gynecological care to women of all ages, a clinical instructor, a school nurse, and as a staff nurse and nurse practitioner at a medical facility serving pediatric patients and their families. Lisas sheer dedication to promoting the health of the community is evidenced by her achievements and the success of each agency she supported over the last 28 years, said Dr. Josh Meyerson, medical director for the health department. We are so fortunate that her vision and enthusiasm for public health touched our agencies. Lisa has always been an exemplary professional and an empathetic chief. According to the press release, since beginning her career in 1991 as a staff nurse at Munson Medical Center, Peacock dedicated her personal and professional life to enhancing health. Peacock continued her career in public health with the Grand Traverse County Health Department, serving as a program coordinator for adolescent health and then as an administrator overseeing the maternal and child nursing division. Peacock joined the Health Department of Northwest Michigan in July 2010 as a nurse practitioner/family and community health supervisor, and within five years was named health officer overseeing agency operations for the Benzie-Leelanau District Health Department through a shared staffing arrangement, the release states. I was so honored to be nominated for this incredible award, and now to be selected as the recipient, I am truly at a loss for words," Peacock said. "None of the successes noted of our agencies would have been possible without the unrelenting support, dedication and passion for public health demonstrated by our incredible staff at both agencies. To my colleagues and staff both in the agencies I served and across the state, I thank you for the guidance and steadfast support. The Benzie-Leelanau District Health Department also was commended during the conference, along with every other health department across Michigan for dedicated service, support and resiliency. Each agency was honored with the Directors Award. Dan Thorell, interim health officer for the Benzie-Leelanau District Health Department, accepted the award on behalf of the department. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) The Afghan policeman opened fire on us with his AK-47, emptying 26 bullets into the back of the car. Seven slammed into me, and at least as many into my colleague, Associated Press photographer Anja Niedringhaus. She died at my side. I could barely whisper, Please help us. Our driver raced us to a small local hospital in Khost, siren on. I tried to stay calm. At the hospital, Dr. Abdul Majid Mangal said he would have to operate and tried to reassure me. His words are forever etched in my heart: Please know your life is as important to me as it is to you. Much later, as I recovered in New York during a process that would turn out to eventually require 18 operations, an Afghan friend called from Kabul to apologize for the shooting on behalf of all Afghans. I said the shooter didnt represent a nation, a people. For me, it was Dr. Mangal who represented Afghanistan and Afghans. I have reported on Afghanistan for the AP for the past 35 years, during an extraordinary series of events and regime changes. Through it all, the kindness and resilience of ordinary Afghans have shone through which is also what has made it so painful to watch the slow erosion of their hope. I have always been amazed at how Afghans stubbornly hung on to hope against all odds. But by 2018, a Gallup poll showed that the fraction of people in Afghanistan with hope in the future was the lowest ever recorded anywhere. I arrived in Afghanistan in 1986, in the middle of the Cold War. It seems a lifetime ago. It is. Then, the enemy attacking Afghanistan was the communist former Soviet Union, dubbed godless by United States President Ronald Reagan. The defenders were the U.S.-backed religious mujahedeen, defined as those who engage in holy war, championed by Reagan as freedom fighters. At that time, the God versus communism message was strong. The University of Nebraska even crafted an anti-communist curriculum to teach English to the millions of Afghan refugees living in camps in neighboring Pakistan. The university made the alphabet simple: J was for Jihad or holy war against the communists; K was for the Kalashnikov guns used in jihad, and I was for Infidel, which described the communists themselves. There was even a math program. The questions went something like: If there were 10 communists and you killed five, how many would you have left? When I covered the mujahedeen, I spent a lot of time and effort on being stronger, walking longer, climbing harder and faster. At one point, I ran out of a dirty mud hut with them and hid under a nearby cluster of trees. Just minutes later, Russian helicopter gunships flew low, strafed the trees and all but destroyed the hut. The Russians withdrew in 1989 without a win. In 1992, the mujahedeen took power. But it wasnt long before the mujahedeen turned their guns on each other. Thrice the AP lost its equipment to thieving warlords, only to be returned after negotiations with the top warlord. One day I counted as many as 200 incoming and outgoing rockets inside of minutes. The bloodletting of the mujahedeen-cum government ministers-cum warlords killed upward of 50,000 people. I saw a 5-year-old girl killed by a rocket as she stepped out of her house. Despite the chaos of the time, Afghans still had hope. In the waning days of the warring mujahedeens rule, I attended a wedding in Kabul where both the wedding party and guests were coiffed and downright glamorous. When asked how she managed to look so good with so little amid the relentless rocketing, one young woman replied brightly, Were not dead yet! The wedding was delayed twice because of rockets. By mid-1996, the Taliban were on Kabuls doorstep, with their promise of burqas for women and beards for men. As international sanctions crippled Afghanistan, one-eyed Taliban Mullah Mohammad Omar got closer to Al-Qaida, until eventually the terrorist group became the Talibans only source of income. Then came the seismic shock of 9/11. Many Afghans mourned the American deaths so far away. Few even knew who Osama bin Laden was. But the country was now squarely a target in the eyes of the United States. Amir Shah, APs longtime correspondent, summed up what most Afghans were thinking at the time: America will set Afghanistan on fire. And it did. I was the only Western journalist to see the last weeks of Taliban rule. The U.S.-led coalition assault began on Oct. 7, 2001. The powerful B-52 bombers of the U.S. pounded the hills and even landed in the city. On Nov. 12 that year, a 2,000-pound bomb landed on a house near the AP office. It threw me across the room and blew out window and door frames. Glass shattered and sprayed everywhere. By sunrise the next day, the Taliban were gone from Kabul. Afghanistans next set of rulers marched into the city: The mujahedeen were back. The U.S. and U.N. returned them to power even though some among them had brought bin Laden from Sudan to Afghanistan in 1996, promising him a safe haven. The hope of Afghans went through the roof, because they believed the powerful U.S. would help them keep the mujahedeen in check. Yet worrying signs began to emerge. The revenge killings began, and the U.S.-led coalition sometimes participated without knowing the details. The mujahedeen would falsely identify enemies even those who had worked with the U.S. before as belonging to al-Qaida or to the Taliban. In the meantime, corruption seemed to reach epic proportions, with suitcases of money, often from the CIA, handed off to Washingtons Afghan allies. Yet schools were built, roads were reconstructed and a new generation of Afghans, at least in the cities, grew up with freedoms their parents had not known and in many cases looked on with suspicion. Then came the shooting in 2014 that would change my life. It was two years before I was able to return to work and to Afghanistan. By that point, the disappointment and disenchantment with Americas longest war had already set in. Despite the U.S. spending over $148 billion on development alone over 20 years, the percentage of Afghans barely surviving at the poverty level was increasing yearly. In 2020, the U.S. and the Taliban signed a deal for troops to withdraw within 18 months. It was the sudden and secret departure of President Ashraf Ghani that finally brought the Taliban back into the city on Aug. 15, 2021. The Talibans rapid march toward Kabul fed a rush toward the airport. For many in the Afghan capital, the only hope left lay in getting out. Now the future in Afghanistan is even more uncertain. Scores of people line up outside the banks to try to get their money out. Hospitals are short of medicine. Afghans are left to face the fact that the entire world came to their country in 2001 and spent billions, and still couldnt bring them prosperity or even the beginnings of prosperity. I leave Afghanistan with mixed feelings, sad to see how its hope has been destroyed but still deeply moved by its 38 million people. Most certainly, though, I will be back. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate In the moments after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, enraged abortion rights supporters poured into the streets. Many wore green. From Washington to New York to Los Angeles, women and men marched and chanted with green bandannas around their necks. They carried green banners and released green smoke into the air. For women at the other end of the hemisphere, the scene was familiar. Women in Latin America have worn green for abortion rights for nearly two decades. Now they watched in awe. Their Green Wave had reached the United States. The green bandanna has become a universal symbol of abortion rights - a sign of solidarity among activists across Latin America. Its journey began in Argentina generations ago. The idea was inspired by the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo - the women who began gathering outside Argentina's presidential palace in Buenos Aires in the late 1970s to protest the disappearances of their daughters and sons by the ruling military junta during the country's Dirty War. On their heads, the women wore white scarves made of cloth used for children's diapers. Decades later, two Argentine women had an idea. Marta Alanis, the founder of Catholics for the Right to Decide in Argentina, was preparing for a national gathering of women in 2003. Abortion, illegal in the South American country, was controversial even among feminists. But that year, Alanis and other activists hoped to create consensus around abortion rights as a key issue for the movement. Alanis planned to take bandannas to the gathering to draw attention to abortion rights while paying homage to the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo. But she wanted a new color - not white, which was taken by the mothers, and not purple, the traditional color of the feminist movement. She called her friend Susana Chiarotti to brainstorm. "How about green?" Chiarotti suggested. The color represented nature, growth, life. Facing off against a movement described as "pro-life," Chiarotti thought, "The term life should return to us." Alanis and Chiarotti ordered nearly 3,000 bandannas for the 2003 gathering in Rosario, Argentina. They were a hit. The bandannas appeared on the front page of the local newspaper: "For the first time, 10,000 women demanded the decriminalization of abortion, the right to contraception and to decide when and how many children to have," Pagina 12 reported. The bandannas spread across Argentina. Teenage girls began tying them to their backpacks - at times getting in trouble in their Catholic schools. Activists wore them to massive protests against femicide in 2015 and 2016. Those protests, prompted by the murder of a 14-year-old Argentine girl, grew to become a movement across Latin America known as "Ni Una Menos," or "Not One Less." By 2018, Alanis said, "the green bandanna had exploded on the streets. It was everywhere." That year, Argentina drew closer than ever before to legalizing abortion. Thousands of abortion rights activists gathered outside the Congress in Buenos Aires to support a landmark bill that would decriminalize the procedure. They held up their bandannas in a sea of green - an image that went global. The bill was defeated, but the moment galvanized the movement. "Abortion started being talked about everywhere, in the home, in the neighborhoods, in the bakery," Alanis said. That year, she said, the country began running out of green fabric. "Women had to cross the border with Bolivia to get the fabric," she said. Antiabortion protesters, meanwhile, began wearing blue bandannas. In December 2020, Argentina's Senate voted to legalize abortion - a seismic shift in the birthplace of Pope Francis. By then, the green bandanna had begun to spread beyond Argentina. It appeared in Chile, in Peru, in Colombia. Whenever Argentine activists traveled to conferences or gatherings in other countries, they would take bandannas. Activists in each country began making their own versions. In Brazil, the bandannas said "no prison, no death." In Colombia, they were emblazoned with the name of the abortion rights coalition "Causa Justa," or "Just Cause." Activists packed streets and filed lawsuits. Last September, Mexico's Supreme Court voted to decriminalize abortion. And in February, Colombia's constitutional court followed. Abortion is now decriminalized in three of the largest countries in Latin America - all of them majority Catholic. Many of those activists were stunned to see the Supreme Court decision taking the United States in the opposite direction. The country is one of three in the world, with Poland and Nicaragua, to tighten access to abortion in the 21st century. Still, the activists were moved by the videos and photos they saw on the news - women on the steps of the Supreme Court wearing green bandannas. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., speaking to abortion rights supporters, tossed one over her shoulder. Another speaker called on activists to follow the example of the women in Mexico, Colombia and Argentina who "came into the streets, day after day, with the color green." Some have asked whether the use of green in the United States amounts to appropriating a Latin American tradition. But for the activists who have been at the forefront of the movement in the region, the color is a sign of unity. "The United States has rarely looked south and asked what they can learn from us," said Catalina Martinez Coral, regional director of the Center for Reproductive Rights, one of the groups that brought the lawsuit before Colombia's constitutional court. Maybe, she said, now is the time: "We're part of the same movement." Days after Roe v. Wade fell, Argentine women gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires. Waving green bandannas in the air, beneath billowing green smoke, they stood together in protest. TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) Israel's caretaker Prime Minister Yair Lapid held his first Cabinet meeting on Sunday since taking over as leader, promising a functional government despite the political instability that is sending Israel to its fifth elections in less than four years. Lapid, sitting next to his predecessor power-sharing partner Naftali Bennett, also warned that Israel would take any step necessary to defend itself after it shot down three unmanned aircraft launched by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Lapid took over last week as prime minister as part of an agreement forged last year that created the coalition government. Bennett led it initially but stepped down following a series of defections and legislative defeats. Parliament dissolved itself, triggering new elections and handing power to Lapid. Israel will head to the polls again on Nov. 1, when Lapid will seek to convince voters to adopt his centrist vision and deny former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was ousted last year after more than a decade in power, a chance to return to lead the country. Bennett will not run in November. In the coming months our goal, of this whole table, is to run the government as if there is no election campaign. The citizens of Israel deserve a functioning government at any given moment, Lapid said. Lapid faced his first challenge on Saturday, when Hezbollah launched its unmanned aircraft toward an area where an Israeli gas platform was recently installed in the Mediterranean Sea. The move appeared to be an attempt by Hezbollah to influence U.S.-brokered negotiations between Israel and Lebanon over their maritime border, an area that is rich in natural gas. Hezbollah continues its path of terrorism, undermining Lebanons ability to reach an agreement on the maritime border. Israel will continue to protect itself, its citizens and its assets, he said. Lapid, who served as foreign minister under Bennett, will use his months as caretaker leader to prove to Israelis that he is prime minister material. He travels to Paris this week for meetings and then next week hosts U.S. President Joe Biden, a potential pre-election boost. The upcoming election, as in the previous four, will likely be a referendum on Netanyahu's fitness to lead at a time when he is on trial for corruption charges. He denies wrongdoing, but several political parties have refused to join a government led by him, complicating efforts to form coalitions and end the political turmoil. BOSTON (AP) A letter written by Alexander Hamilton in 1780 and believed stolen decades ago from the Massachusetts state archives is going back on display though not exactly in the room where it happened. The founding father's letter will be the featured piece at the Commonwealth Museum's annual July Fourth exhibit, Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvins office says. It's the first time the public is getting a chance to see it since it was returned to the state after a lengthy court battle. It will be featured alongside Massachusetts' original copy of the Declaration of Independence. Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury whos been getting renewed attention in recent years because of the hit Broadway musical that bears his name, wrote the letter to the Marquis de Lafayette, the French aristocrat who served as a general in the Continental Army. Dated July 21, 1780, it details an imminent British threat to French forces in Rhode Island. We have just received advice from New York through different channels that the enemy are making an embarkation with which they menace the French fleet and army, Hamilton wrote. Fifty transports are said to have gone up the Sound to take in troops and proceed directly to Rhode Island. Its signed Yr. Most Obedt, A. Hamilton, Aide de Camp. The letter was forwarded by Massachusetts Gen. William Heath to state leaders, along with a request for troops to support French allies, Galvin's office said. The letter was believed to have been stolen during World War II by a state archives worker, then sold privately. It resurfaced several years ago when an auctioneer in Virginia received it from a family that wanted to sell it. The auction house determined it had been stolen and contacted the FBI. A federal appeals court ruled in October that it belonged to the state. The Commonwealth Museum is open from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Monday. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate HEIHE, China -- On the bank of the Amur River across from Russia, Wang Xuzhen sat scrubbing some shoes on a sunny afternoon. Wang, 67, has lived for decades within sight of Russia here on China's northeastern fringe, but she has never felt moved to take the short ferry ride to see Blagoveshchensk. She recalls how frightening the fortified border was before exchanges began in the 1980s. She tells her grandchildren not to forget a Russian massacre of Chinese residents more than a century ago. Near the water, a sign urges vigilance against spies. Despite the enduring wariness across the river, Wang is clear where she stands. When it comes down to it, she says, Russia and China are on the same team, resisting what she sees as America's global meddling. She says Ukraine should have accepted its place in Russia's sphere of influence instead of courting the United States and NATO. "I support Russia," she said. "Two neighbors have to stick together so they aren't bullied." Wang's outlook mirrors that of many of her compatriots. Around the world, ideological lines are hardening. In the United States, politicians and lay citizens alike increasingly view international affairs through the lens of great-power competition against China and Russia. The same is the case in China, where many see the Ukraine war as a proxy conflict with the United States. Western governments have rallied to the cause of Ukraine, in Europe, and Taiwan, in Asia, calling them bastions of the "free" world that must not fall. In China, these moves are seen as worrisome attempts to ramp up the Western sphere of influence on the doorsteps of Russia and China. The widening ideological gulf is grist for China's government to shore up its standing at home by playing to nationalist sentiment, galvanizing citizens against an overseas enemy to distract from domestic troubles. It also raises the risk of further international conflict, as governments and militaries boost preparations for any great-power confrontation. In Heihe, many residents' views on the Ukraine war don't stray far from Beijing's official stance, and it's hard to say where government propaganda ends and where grass-roots opinion begins. The effect of propaganda is particularly strong in China, where news programs are closely controlled, many international websites blocked and social media comments censored. People are regularly punished in China for political speech that diverges from the official line, and some in Heihe were wary of saying too much about the war in Ukraine. "We shouldn't talk about it in the countryside," said Chi Xiude, a 78-year-old who grows cabbages on the city's outskirts. "It's a war. It hurts the average people." Wang, though, could hardly contain her anger over U.S. geopolitical interventions abroad. She named her toy poodle "Trump," after former president Donald Trump, so she can scold the dog: "Can't you behave? What are you biting now?" While sympathetic to the plight of Ukrainian civilians, she put the blame on Ukraine's leaders for not pacifying Moscow. "Once a little brother, always a little brother," Wang said. "You should help each other. What are you doing, running around with the United States and those scum of the Earth?" China-Russia relations have long been tenuous. After close cooperation between the Soviet Union and Mao Zedong's China in the early 1950s, relations turned bitter, leading to military clashes along the northeastern border in the 1960s. In recent years, Moscow and Beijing have found common cause against the West, with China's leader, Xi Jinping, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, touting a "no limits" relationship in February. Still, the two countries do not have a formal alliance, and the bond is often described as a marriage of convenience. On June 10, China's first highway bridge to Russia opened in Heihe, connecting it to Blagoveshchensk. The 4,200-foot bridge was a symbol of Beijing's commitment to supporting Moscow -- one that Xi touted in a phone call with Putin on June 15. Local Chinese authorities have said the bridge will decrease shipping costs across the river. But this symbol of friendship isn't quite so clear-cut: The bridge's construction was completed in November 2019, but the opening was delayed because of China's strict pandemic controls and negotiations over tolls. Although it can handle more than 600 trucks a day, the red-trimmed bridge had little use on a recent afternoon, with only a lone, empty flatbed truck seen making its way from Blagoveshchensk. China has been wary of violating Western sanctions on Russia that could trigger secondary sanctions on its companies. Nor is it willing to relax its "zero covid" measures for the sake of trade. Russian tourists have yet to be allowed back into Heihe, leaving the tourist town ghostly quiet. The two sides sometimes wave to each other as their boats pass at a distance over the Amur's coffee-brown waters. Chinese purchases of Russian oil and other commodities have soared, and Xi recently pledged trade with Russia will reach new records. But China's exports to its northern neighbor remain well below prewar levels, according to a study from the Peterson Institute of International Economics. Beijing has pushed back against Moscow's requests for greater support in recent weeks, according to Chinese and U.S. officials, The Washington Post reported. "The Chinese side has been very, very cautious about what kind of trade is going on," said Jacob Gunter, senior analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Germany. Despite Beijing's efforts at caution, the Commerce Department on Tuesday put five Chinese companies on a trade blacklist for allegedly supplying Russia's military or defense industry. China's Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Fishing on the bank of the Amur River, a Heihe resident who would only give his surname, Wang, said the Ukraine war had little to do with them, except for higher gas prices. But he said Heihe locals followed the news and knew what was going on. "There's no way we'd support Ukraine," he said. "The Americans are trying to cause trouble." Another Heihe resident, 57-year-old Liu Hongyao, agreed, saying China's fate was linked to Russia's, so the two needed to hang together. He called Ukraine "cannon fodder," saying he thought Western countries had somehow provoked it into a self-destructive confrontation with its powerful neighbor. "If America wipes out Russia, then China is toast too," he said. Beijing has avoided calling Russia's assault an invasion, and it has rebuffed Western requests for it to publicly denounce Moscow. The International Criminal Court is investigating evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine. A handful of figures in China have publicly criticized Moscow, including a group of university professors who published an open letter in February. "As a country that was once ravaged by war, where families were destroyed, where everywhere people were dying of starvation, . . . [w]e sympathize with the pain of the Ukrainian people," it said. Chinese authorities have tamped down recent news of Russian atrocities toward civilians in Ukraine. But there is a different collective memory here in Heihe that is allowed. In 1900, amid Russia-China clashes, Russian Cossacks drove the Chinese residents on the far side of the Amur into the river, resulting in thousands of deaths. People in Heihe today continue to recount the horror in vivid detail, although it happened long before they were born. "The river was full of blood," Liu said. The Aihui history museum on the outskirts of Heihe keeps alive the memory of that massacre in Blagoveshchensk, as well as other Chinese humiliations, such as when the Qing dynasty ceded a swath of land across the river to Russia in 1858. Wang said she had taken her grandchildren to the museum twice. "I told the children, 'Never forget the nation's humiliation,'" she said. "A country must have strong national defense. Or look what happens. They cut the barbed-wire fence and pushed the peasants into the river." - - - Lyric Li in Seoul contributed to this report. HYDERABAD: In what comes as a major embarrassment for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the security at its national executive was breached by an intelligence department officer of the Telangana state police whose actions forced the BJP top brass to declare that they had no secrets to keep, and had the Chief Minister wanted to attend their event, he would have been welcome to do so. We would have been happy to share the copies of the resolutions with them, had they wanted them, Union minister G. Kishan Reddy and state BJP president Bandi Sanjay Kumar, accompanied by Union minister Piyush Goel, told reporters. Kishan Reddy was answering a question on the breach of security in the tightly controlled environment at HICC, the venue for the BJPs national executive meeting. The incident occurred late in the morning, just about 20 minutes before Union home minister Amit Shah was to move an all-important political resolution. The intelligence wing officer managed to get a copy of the resolution, took images of the document and transmitted it using WhatsApp to his superior officers. Though he was caught soon after, his phone confiscated, and was kicked out of the HICC, the incident was an embarrassment for the BJP, and the security apparatus that enveloped the venue. Even more galling for the BJP was the information that the intelligence official managed to get what sources said was a pass that granted him access to several areas of the venue from the organisers the state unit of the party. Kishan Reddy said the state police was in-charge of the security matters, and as far as the BJP was concerned, it was a matter of illegal entry. The police are responsible for security. If K. Chandrashekar Rao wanted, we would have sent him copies (of the resolutions), he said. Goel said the BJP believed in transparency and had always done so even at its previous party events. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BAKHMUT, Ukraine - Alina Mykhailova was asleep on the floor of an empty warehouse, the only woman amid dozens of soldiers getting what rest they could after days of fighting. She awoke at the sound of an explosion, such a frequent occurrence on Ukraine's front lines that it didn't disturb most of her exhausted companions. "I had a strange feeling about this one," said Mykhailova, a medic in an army assault company, and she was already dressing when she got the call: A Russian missile had hit the unit. Mykhailova sped to the location and found a soldier with gaping wounds in his belly. They loaded him into the converted Volkswagen Transporter for the rough hour-long drive to the hospital. "Every time we hit a bump, he groaned," she said. "I realized there must be shrapnel moving in his body, cutting the organs." Weeks later, she recalled that the patient's blood pressure was plummeting so she improvised a treatment, packing gauze into the wounds to keep the sharp metal from shifting dangerously and slicing vital organs. At no time has her wartime transformation been more striking: From vegetarian political science major in Kyiv to combat medic on the front lines. "I was simply a girl who liked to snowboard," she said, sitting in her ambulance with the sound of artillery all around, waiting for the next call as casualty rates spike under Russia's withering attacks along the eastern front. "But I decided this is where I needed to be." The front line units fighting against Russia's push to take control of the entire Donbas region are overwhelmingly male. But when the men are wounded, often a woman jumps out of the ambulance. Women now account for about 22 percent of Ukraine's military, a climb that began with the Russian-backed war in the east starting in 2014 but has soared since Russia's full-scale invasion four months ago, according to Kateryna Pryimak, co-founder of Ukrainian Women Veteran Movement. "Since February, the numbers of women signing up keeps growing and growing," she said. Hanna Khurava has seen a big jump in the number of women serving in front-line units since she became a medic in 2016. Then, women served mostly in support roles and cooked in unit kitchens. "Now I see women drivers, mechanics, medics, machine gunners, commanders." A few weeks before Russian tanks rolled across the borders, Khurava married the soldier who drives her ambulance. "Nice place for a honeymoon, right?" she asked, looking around at the sandbags banked against the hospital in Kramatorsk where she brings many of the casualties. Her new husband tried to dissuade her from joining the front-line effort, telling her it was his time to take risks and her time to be safe. She told him nothing had changed with their exchange of rings. "I said, 'If you are going to be on the first bus going out, I'm going to be on the second bus,' " she said. On Friday, the couple was spending a 24-hour shift in a village west of the embattled city of Lysychansk. Their ambulance was parked under a tree to shield it from being seen by Russian drones, next to a dugout bomb bunker covered in logs and earth. It had been quiet until a Ukrainian Grad artillery battery erupted in smoke and thunder just across a village pasture. The Grad, a Soviet-era mobile rocket launcher, can launch a salvo of up to 40 122-mm projectiles, then speed away before the Russians can lock onto the location and return fire. Within seconds after the barrage, a whistling boom sounded and a massive plume of smoke billowed from the Grad's launch spot. And another. And another. "We fire the Grad, and then the Russians retaliate," Khurava said as she pulled on her flak vest. Sure enough, 20 minutes later a group of soldiers screeched to halt by the ambulance. They were carrying a soldier with shallow wound on his forehead from one of the blasts. "Come back to get the bandage changed," she told the soldier after she had patched him up. Women who travel into the most dangerous parts of the war say they do face resistance, often from male partners, parents and older soldiers who see their own wives, sisters and daughters in the faces of the young medics. "Right now, I am basically lying to my parents," said Liana Nigoyan, a 24-year-old medic who deploys out of Bakhmut. "They think I'm working at a good job opportunity in Kyiv." Nigoyan was a nurse in a clinic in Dnipro when the war started. She had been a volunteer medic in 2016 and signed up for the army medical corps immediately. But four months later, she still fears it would be too upsetting for her father, who has a heart condition, to know she has exchanged the sterile calm of a private practice -"Everything was white; everything was quiet" - for a routine of ducking and counting to eight after an artillery strike before she sprints to the next patient. The shift was hard for her, too. Her first battlefield casualty, a soldier shot by a sniper, died in her ambulance. The urgent reality of her new work hit her hard, she said. She was more steeled for the second call, a machine-gunner hit by shrapnel. "We saved him," she said. "One of the other guys in the unit, a veterinarian, helped me." Dozens of a subsequent calls have taught Nigoyan, who can't find body armor small enough to fit her properly, to exude confidence with soldiers who are bigger, older and more battle-hardened. "If I have to be strict, I can be," she said, recalling one wounded soldier she overruled when he asked her not to cut off his pants out of modesty around a woman. "It helps to relax them for me to be sure of what I'm doing." Irina Pukas, a 13-year veteran of the army medical corps, said she has honed a blend of maternal care and combat cred to be a more effective medic to soldiers who are often younger than her own grown sons. Her artillery unit was hit hard by Russian shelling a few weeks ago. After treating the injured - and securing the dead - she was asked to help a group of soldiers who were so frightened they refused to take off their vests and helmets even after they had been evacuated to safety. "I tried to relax them as both a mother and a soldier," said Pukas, 48. "It helped that I was woman, and also that I could tell them I have been under serious shelling myself, many times." Life on the front lines means toggling between war life and personal life. On a recent afternoon between calls to the front, two medics hurried outside a hospital in Sloviansk to be with a friend when her soldier-boyfriend proposed to her. "He's coming back from the front and said for her to be here at 3 o'clock and to change into nice shoes," said Maria Budnichenko, 20, one of the medics. Her friend, waiting on a bench, was wearing a spangled slippers with her green fatigues. The soldier, on one knee, popped the question a few minutes later in front of a cheering crowd of their unit mates. "It's a war, but love continues," Budnichenko said. Back in the bumping ambulance, Mykhailova, who wears a pair of trauma sheers on her flak vest and a Glock 9mm handgun on her hip, needed all her experience to keep her patient with internal injuries alive. At the hospital, they woke doctors who wheeled the wounded man in for six hours of surgery. When the doctor came out, she asked, "Who packed this man's wound so full of gauze?" Mykhailova remembers panicking before raising her hand; that had been her improvised treatment. "Good work," the doctor said. "That is one of the reasons he is alive." WASHINGTON (AP) A truck hit a bicyclist and careened into a fireworks stand Saturday evening at an intersection in northeast Washington, killing the bicyclist and a man working in the stand, police said. No other injuries were reported. The accident at the corner of Minnesota Avenue and Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue NE occurred about 5:30 p.m., the Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement. The adult male victims were pronounced dead at the scene. Russia claimed control Sunday over the key city of Lysychansk, the last major Ukrainian foothold in the Luhansk region - signaling a potential turning point in Moscow's campaign to take all of eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian officials said their forces had withdrawn from Lysychansk after fierce fighting to preserve lives from the Russians' relentless assault. The slow Russian advance across the region it has targeted since the invasion began in February has been facilitated by overwhelming artillery power that has leveled cities and towns and left a trail of wounded and dead prompting comparisons to the devastation of World War I in Europe. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said in a statement that Russian troops and pro-Kremlin separatists of the self-declared Luhansk People's Republic "have established full control" over Lysychansk "and a number of nearby settlements." The Ukrainian military's general staff said Sunday that Ukrainian forces were forced to withdraw from Lysychansk after waging a stiff but losing battle. Ukraine had tried to defend Lysychansk for weeks. The military said it decided to withdraw because remaining in the city would bring "fatal consequences," given the Russian forces' "overwhelming advantage" in "artillery, aviation, ammunition and personnel." The decision was "made to save the lives of Ukrainian defenders," according to a statement posted on Facebook. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to return. "If the command of our army withdraws people from certain points of the front where the enemy has the greatest fire superiority, in particular this applies to Lysychansk, it means only one thing: We will return thanks to our tactics, thanks to the increase in the supply of modern weapons," Zelensky said in his nightly address Sunday. "Ukraine does not give anything up." The city is a key target in Russia's battle to capture the Donbas region, the heavily industrialized area bordering Russia that is partly controlled by separatists loyal to Moscow. In 2014, they unilaterally established two independent "republics" in the Donbas region. Russian President Vladimir Putin cited false claims of Ukrainian "genocide" against Russian-speaking residents there as justification for his invasion. Russia's latest advances in eastern Ukraine add to creeping doubts among U.S. lawmakers and observers of the war that the Ukrainian government can stop Putin from seizing territory. Optimism sparked by the defeat of his forces in the battle for Kyiv in the spring has faded as Russian artillery hammers Ukrainian forces and civilian targets. President Joe Biden said last week that U.S. support for Ukraine is unshakable and will continue "as long as it takes" to ensure a Russian defeat. "We continue to fight. Unfortunately, the steel willpower and patriotism are not enough to achieve success - we need the technical resources," the Ukrainian military's statement added. Ukrainian troops withdrew just over a week ago from Severodonetsk, a city across the Donetsk River to the east. Russia's capture of Lysychansk, if confirmed, would be a major victory that gives its troops clear access to Donetsk, the other region that makes up Donbas. Biden administration officials say Putin's gains have been uneven and have come at a significant cost, highlighting the steep death toll among Russian troops. But Ukrainian forces also are paying a heavy price, which U.S. military officials rarely acknowledge. Control over Donbas is the primary goal of Moscow's military operation in Ukraine, after it failed to capture the capital, Kyiv, and other areas in the initial weeks of the war. Russian troops and their allies have been making steady gains in the east, as officials in Kyiv say they are outgunned and running out of ammunition. Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesman Yuriy Sak told the BBC earlier Sunday that Ukraine controls other cities in Donetsk and argued that "the battle for the Donbas is not over yet." Serhiy Haidai, governor of the Luhansk region, said earlier in the day that in attacking Lysychansk, Russian fighters used tactics even more brutal than in Severodonetsk to overcome resistance. Photos showed bombed-out residential buildings in Lysychansk early Sunday, amid a barrage reminiscent of the destruction of Severodonetsk. As recently as Saturday, a Russian-backed politician said Lysychansk was "completely surrounded," but defense officials in Ukraine said they still had control of the city. Those counterclaims were probably "outdated or erroneous," according to an analysis from the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War think tank (ISW). It cited unconfirmed videos showing Russian forces erecting a red "victory" flag in Lysychansk and "casually walking around" its neighborhoods. "Ukrainian forces likely conducted a deliberate withdrawal from Lysychansk, resulting in the Russian seizure of the city on July 2," it said. As Russia issued its claim of control over Lysychansk on Sunday, Slovyansk, a town about 50 miles west in Donetsk, came under intense shelling that killed at least six people, local officials said. Mayor Vadym Lyakh said in a video on Telegram that "the biggest shelling of Slovyansk recently" had left "a large number of wounded and dead." Tetyana Ignatchenko, a spokeswoman for the Donetsk region, told Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne News that at least six people were killed and 15 were injured in the shelling. She added that missiles hit the town of Kramatorsk, to the south of Slovyansk. In its assessment Saturday, the ISW said Russia was likely to fully take over the Luhansk region "in coming days" and would probably "then prioritize drives on Ukrainian positions in Siversk before turning to Slovyansk and Bakhmut," in Donetsk. In other developments, Ukraine's ambassador to Turkey said Sunday that Turkish authorities have detained a Russian-flagged cargo ship loaded with stolen Ukrainian grain. Millions of metric tons of grain await export from Ukraine, blockaded by Russia's control of Black Sea shipping lanes. The export blockades have resulted in global food shortages and rising prices, which have particularly affected poorer countries. Three people were killed in Russian strikes early Sunday in the Kharkiv region, Ukrainian officials said. Cities across Kharkiv were shelled Saturday and Sunday, according to regional governor Oleh Synyehubov. In one district, Russian forces "burned farm buildings, garages, and shelled open areas," he added. Russian forces have recently intensified their attacks on Kharkiv, and some Ukrainians worry that Moscow is planning to renew its stalled attempt in March to seize Ukraine's second-largest city. - - - The Washington Post's Bryan Pietsch, Paulina Villegas and James Bikales contributed to this report. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) Two Russian airplanes departed Bulgaria on Sunday with scores of Russian diplomatic staff and their families amid a mass expulsion that has sent tensions soaring between the historically close nations, a Russian diplomat said. Filip Voskresenski, a high-ranking Russian diplomat, told journalists at the airport in Bulgaria's capital Sofia before the flights left that he was among the 70 Russian diplomatic staff declared persona non grata last week and ordered to leave the country by the end of Sunday. Bulgaria's expulsion decision was announced by acting Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who took a strong stance against Russia after it invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Petkov, who lost a no-confidence vote on June 22, has claimed Moscow used hybrid war tactics to bring down his government. Petkov has said that Russia will retain 43 of its employees after the expulsion and noted that Bulgaria has just 12 diplomatic staff in Moscow. Anyone who works against the interests of Bulgaria will be called to go back to the country from which they came, he said. On Friday, Russian Ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova issued Bulgaria an ultimatum to reverse its decision and threatened that Moscow would fully sever diplomatic ties. I intend to urgently raise before the leadership of my country the issue of the closure of the Embassy of Russia in Bulgaria, which will inevitably lead to the closure of the Bulgarian diplomatic mission in Moscow, she said in a statement. The expulsion, which has severely strained diplomatic ties, is the greatest ever number of Russian diplomats expelled by Bulgaria, which has European Union and NATO membership. Bulgaria has strongly backed the Wests sanctions against Moscow since it launched its war on Ukraine more than four months ago. The European Union, which Bulgaria has been a member of since 2007, responded to Russias unjustified threat and said it stands in full support and solidarity with Bulgaria. In late April, Russia cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria after officials refused a Moscow demand to pay gas bills in rubles, Russias currency. Bulgarias defense minister was also ousted in early March for referring to Russia's war as a special military operation, the Kremlin-preferred description. ___ Stephen McGrath reported from Sighisoara, Romania. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) A gunman opened fire inside a busy shopping mall in the Danish capital Sunday, killing three people and critically wounding three others, police said. A 22-year-old Danish man was arrested after the shooting, Copenhagen police inspector Sren Thomassen told reporters, adding there was no indication that anyone else was involved in the attack, though police were still investigating. Gun violence is relatively rare in Denmark. Thomassen said it was too early to speculate on the motive for the shooting, which happened in the late afternoon at Fields, one of the biggest shopping malls in Scandinavia and located on the outskirts of the Danish capital. When the shots rang out, some people hid in shops while others fled in a panicked stampede, according to witnesses. It is pure terror. This is awful, said Hans Christian Stoltz, a 53-year-old IT consultant, who was bringing his daughters to see Harry Styles perform at concert scheduled for Sunday night near the mall. You might wonder how a person can do this to another human being, but its beyond beyond anything thats possible. Thomassen said the victims included a man in his 40s and two young people, without giving details. Several others were injured, three of them critically, he said. He said police received the first reports of a shooting at 5.37 p.m., and arrested the suspect 11 minutes later. Thomassen described the suspect as an ethnic Dane, a phrase typically used to mean someone is white. Danish broadcaster TV2 published a grainy photo of the alleged gunman, a man wearing knee-length shorts, a vest or sleeveless shirt, and holding what appeared to be a rifle in his right hand. He seemed very violent and angry, eyewitness Mahdi Al-Wazni told TV2. He spoke to me and said it (the rifle) isnt real as I was filming him. He seemed very proud of what he was doing. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the Scandinavian country had been hit by a cruel attack. It is incomprehensible. Heartbreaking. Pointless, she said. Our beautiful and usually so safe capital was changed in a split second. Images from the scene showed people running out of the mall, and TV2 posted a photo of a man being put on a stretcher. After the shooting, an enormous contingent of heavily armed police officers patrolled the area, with several fire department vehicles also parked outside the mall. Laurits Hermansen told Danish broadcaster DR that he was in a clothing store at the shopping center with his family when he heard three, four bangs. Really loud bangs. It sounded like the shots were being fired just next to the store. The shopping center is on the outskirts of Copenhagen just across from a subway station for a line that connects the city center with the international airport. A major highway also runs adjacent to the mall. Organizers called off the Harry Styles concert, which had been scheduled at the nearby Royal Arena, by order of police. On Snapchat, Styles wrote: My team and I pray for everyone involved in the Copenhagen shopping mall shooting. I am shocked. Love H. The royal palace said a reception with Crown Prince Frederik connected to the Tour de France cycling race had been canceled. The first three stages of the race were held in Denmark this year. The reception was due to be held on the royal yacht that is moored in Soenderborg, the town where the third stage ended. In a joint statement, Queen Margrethe, her son Crown Prince Frederik and his wife, Crown Princess Mary, said: We do not yet know the full extent of the tragedy, but it is already clear that more people have lost their lives and that even more have been injured. The situation calls for unity and care, they said in a statement. The shooting came a week after a mass shooting in neighboring Norway, where police said a Norwegian man of Iranian origin opened fire during a LGBTQ festival, killing two and wounding more than 20. It was the worst gun attack in Denmark since February 2015, when a 22-year-old man was killed in a shootout with police after going on a shooting spree in the capital that left two people dead and five police officers wounded. ___ Ritter reported from Unterseen, Switzerland. KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Time Warp Tea Room on North Central Street closed its doors this past week after 20 years of business in Knoxville. Along with it, the Time Warp Vintage Motorcycle Club reached the end of an era, no longer able to call the Happy Holler hangout its home. Knox News visited the final Tuesday night motorcycle meetup to find out what makes retro bikes so attractive and why the tea room was the perfect place to form this tight-knit community. Motorcycle clubs start up all the time but then they dwindle, never growing beyond a handful of riders looking for nothing more than a few hours out of the house. Time Warp Vintage Motorcycle Club, on the other hand, has continued to grow in Knoxville since it was formed in 2003 and is now more than 250 members strong. That wasnt always going to be the club name, though. The first thought was Club 38, as all initial members shared the same 38-inch waist size. In fact, membership forms still ask for your measurements. However, the club eventually decided to share part of its name with the host business, Time Warp Tea Room. And on this particular Tuesday, more bikes than normal gathered in Happy Holler for the groups final meeting at least, at this location. Time Warp Tea Room is closing, and the clubs future is a bit uncertain. Peggy Moriarty is co-owner of Time Warp Team Room with her husband, Dan, who operated a coin-operated machine business next door until cell phones and household video game systems challenged their inventory. The business had pinball machines and jukeboxes, which ended up being perfect decor for what would become his next venture: a motorcycle-themed hangout. Dan also owned a lot of the quirky motorcycle memorabilia that adorn the walls of the Tea Room, and people have donated items to his collection over the years. Theyre all over the place, Peggy said. People have brought him helmets and T-shirts and just everything. We dont know what were going to do with all of it. But of all the items, an old-school photograph of her and Dan following a race at Chilhowee Park is her favorite and yes, Peggy said, she is the trophy. Eddie Edwards 1966 Sears Campus 50 bike only has about 1,100 miles on it. While members dont get to ride their vintage bikes every day, doing so is a thrill words just cant describe. Pat Deason is out of commission when it comes to riding following some complications with his hand. But five years ago, at age 66, he started racing on dirt again. Its not like getting in your car and you know youre going to make it somewhere, he said about vintage motorcycles. You have to be so much more aware of everything going on around you. If you dont understand old machines, youre not going to get this, but machines have life. They develop character, they develop a soul. But a new machine doesnt have that. The only real requirement for joining the club is owning at least one vintage motorcycle. Some members have dozens, including 85-year-old Richard Webb, who was the sixth person to join the club. He has owned his oldest bike for 60 years. I just ride because they need exercise, he said about his bikes. Sometimes I dont even want to go for a ride, but they need to be run. The meetings usually start around 7 p.m. and are relatively informal. Members raise their hands to share safety tips or suggest a new outing. They also talk about any new bikes they have purchased. The secret to the clubs success? It costs $5 to get into the club, one member told Knox News with a smile, and it costs $50 to leave. Nobody can afford to get out, he said. At club meetings, Webb said, all my friends are right here. Its rare to find two or three people with the same interests these days, let alone 250. Many members have similar stories to share and come from the same basic background, igniting their fascination for riding motorcycles when they were just kids. For older members, who never could afford a dream bike in their prime, retired life lends itself well to making up for lost time. These are time machines; they take you back to a different period in your life, Deason said. You get on these motorcycles, you remember the adventures you had on them, where you were, what you did, who your buddies were. Thats the real attraction. Even on the last day, co-owner Dan Moriarty stayed busy, cracking last-minute jokes with longtime customers and handing beverages across the bar. Peggy still grins at the business name. Although Time Warp sells tea, its menu is far more rooted in coffee. We never did take on the alcohol route, she said. Bikers and alcohol dont mix, to us. Dan has always liked coffee, Peggy said, and after meeting a woman who owned a coffee shop in Bristol, the couple hired her for training prior to opening Time Warp in 2002. Coffee is even part of the clubs motto: We want to be free to drink our expresso, ride our machines and not be hassled by the man. This approach has resulted in mild meetings and fond friendships. Dont expect any burnouts here. Deason is thankful for the day he stumbled across Time Warp Tea Room after noticing vintage motorcycle gear through the window. I had no idea what this place was, he said. I thought, This is bizarre. I love old motorcycles, and heres a place thats devoted entirely to old motorcycles. Where do you find that? What Deason didnt expect to find was a community made up of members who have encyclopedias of knowledge about motorcycles in their heads. While members will miss the social interaction, whats even more sad for Deason is the loss of knowledge that could happen if the group disbands. If anyone has a question about their motorcycles, theres at least one person in the group who knows how to help. Sometimes helping means giving a push start to a friend. Club members hope friendships like these will continue when the group visits Twisters Shakes and Sundaes on North Central Street for its next meeting. Time Warp Tea Room struggled to stay open during COVID-19 but made sure the lights were always on for the club on Tuesdays. While the Moriartys would have loved for someone to take over their business and keep its current character, the couple has sold the building to new owners in California, whose plans are still unknown. It has really been wonderful, Peggy said about Time Warps 20-year journey. Its really hard for us to have to close the doors. Theres nothing else like it anywhere. AL-TANF GARRISON, Syria - A burst of Russian and Iranian maneuvers against U.S. interests in the Middle East has forced the region's new military commander toward an early reckoning over how to re-establish deterrence without sparking a wider conflict, a perennial problem that has taken on new urgency amid the global instability ignited by Moscow's war in Ukraine. Army Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, who took charge of U.S. Central Command this spring, met in late June with dozens of the approximately 300 soldiers, Special Operations forces and foreign trainees stationed at this sprawling base in eastern Syria. The high-level visit occurred just days after Russian fighter jets attacked a combat post operated by Syrian opposition fighters inside the garrison. Russian military officials, citing a purported vehicle explosion they claimed had wounded Syrian government troops, notified the Americans of their intent 35 minutes prior, according to a U.S. military official. The Biden administration is presiding over a unique moment, as familiar threats like those posed by Iran and its proxies have, in ways, been overshadowed by Russia's aggressive posture toward Europe and China's quest for regional dominance in the Pacific. As the U.S. government looks to reprioritize, key Middle Eastern allies - including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Israel - are growing impatient, acutely aware that Washington's attention and war capital are being drawn elsewhere. It has given new urgency to a classic strategic challenge: How much harassment is the United States willing to tolerate, and how can it deter adversaries from testing Washington's red lines? "The biggest question U.S. policymakers have to wrestle with is that at some point, the Emiratis, Saudis, Israelis, and other Middle Eastern allies, if they don't believe that the United States is going to deter Iran on its own, they'll be looking for ways to deter Iran by themselves," said Raphael S. Cohen, who researches military strategy and doctrine at the RAND Corporation. No U.S. personnel were harmed in the Russian strike on Tanf. But that was little solace to Kurilla, who characterized the incident as part of a wider attempt by U.S. adversaries to assert dominance in the region while betting that the United States will not mount a kinetic response. "They're going to push to what they think our limits are going to be and then re-establish our red lines," Kurilla told those assembled in the bright morning desert sun. "We're ready to come off the leash whenever the time comes," one U.S. service member interjected. Kurilla cracked a smile. "I have no doubt," the general replied. The month of June saw multiple instances of what U.S. military officials have decried as "provocative," "escalatory," or "unsafe and unprofessional" acts by Russia and Iran. In addition to the strike here at Tanf, U.S. officials said they documented Russian aircraft menacing U.S. military planes over Syria through maneuvers that failed to adhere to long-established deconfliction protocols requiring that both sides assent to, not simply warn each other of, planned operations that could put either country's personnel or interests in danger. Central Command declined to offer further details to bolster its claims. The brush with Russia has coincided with an escalation in provocations by Iran and its proxies, including a recent near miss at sea when fast-attack boats operated by Tehran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps crept up on U.S. vessels in the Persian Gulf, coming within 50 yards of one. The Pentagon earlier this year scrambled in response to attacks, orchestrated by Iranian-affiliated rebels in Yemen, targeted U.S. and UAE troops at a base south of Abu Dhabi. Iran, the United States' most formidable rival in the Middle East, has long been a preoccupation of CENTCOM commanders. Kurilla, who spent much of the spring traveling throughout the region and meeting with foreign counterparts, is fixated on the aggressive activity Tehran has gotten away with and frequently references a recent NBC News analysis that counted 29 attacks against U.S. targets since October that did not elicit a forceful response. The Tanf garrison, located along Syria's borders with Jordan and Iraq, still bears scars from an Iranian militia attack in October. Marks from where drones struck the compound are visible on a building near the U.S. military's command center, where a whiteboard logs recent incidents within the 35-mile deconfliction zone that surrounds it. A floor-to-ceiling map of the area marks exactly what parts of the territory those threats have rendered vulnerable. The U.S. military has enough firepower here to beat back an attack, officials say: There are armored vehicles and two high-mobility artillery rocket systems with the range to hit anything encroaching on the deconfliction zone. But most of the time, as with U.S. assets elsewhere in the region, they sit unused because the perceived dangers of responding with force are adjudged to be too high. "The last thing we want to do is start a conflict with Russia right now," Kurilla told the troops at the garrison. But, he added, "we will defend ourselves ... We won't hesitate to respond." Russia's aggressive actions against the United States have only complicated a balancing act in the Middle East that in recent years has dictated how the U.S. military manages its interests. "Iran routinely tries to test where American red lines might be, and march up to that," said William Wechsler, director of Middle East programs at the Atlantic Council and a former high-ranking Pentagon official. "They're trying to establish an accepted set of behaviors that work to their advantage ... and we have, in effect, largely accepted these malign norms of behavior over multiple administrations." "For red lines to work, one of two dynamics must be in effect. One is that we understand our own red lines with great specificity internally and communicate those externally very clearly," Wechsler said. "The second way is that if you have a degree of overwhelming power, then you can have a degree of strategic ambiguity. But I fear those days are behind the United States ... Fear of American power has faded in the last 20 years." In the Middle East, in particular, the United States is scaling down after decades of war in Afghanistan and Iraq. That creates opportunities for adversaries to flex, experts say, and show they are a force to be reckoned with. In the case of Russia, the obvious factor driving tensions with the United States is the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin is furious about the U.S.-led effort to constrain Moscow and arm Kyiv - and its leaders, analysts say, are worried about losing clout elsewhere in the world. Kurilla attributed Russia's increased bravado in Syria to Colonel-General Aleksandr Chayko, who has returned to the Middle East after stunted tenure commanding Russian forces in Ukraine. "What we don't know is, is he a dog off-leash trying to re-establish himself?" Kurilla said to U.S. troops at Tanf. "What is the reason for some of this more aggressive behavior?" There are questions as well about what is driving the escalation in attacks backed by Iran. Generally, they coincide with the long, slow breakdown of efforts to revive an international compact to constrain Tehran's nuclear ambitions. The incident in the Persian Gulf also tracks closely with the United States imposing new sanctions against Iranian petrochemical producers and tit-for-tat incidents between Greece and Iran involving the seizures of oil tankers. But there is another element at play: shifting signals from Washington. The Biden administration has not shown the lenience toward Russia espoused by his predecessor, nor the unsparingly hard line toward Iran. Unlike President Donald Trump, Biden has adopted a posture of defiance toward Moscow while putting greater emphasis on diplomacy with Tehran, though the administration insists it is not allowing provocations go unanswered. "There is nothing President Biden takes more seriously than the security of U.S. personnel deployed overseas," said a National Security Council spokesperson, speaking on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House. This person said that the upon taking office, the Biden administration acted swiftly to deter attacks by Iran-backed groups, deploying a variety of tools, including military strikes, plus diplomatic and coercive measures. "Not every response will be seen or visible, but Iran fully understands that the United States is prepared to respond directly to any threat against U.S. personnel," the spokesperson continued. Though U.S. government officials are coy about what would trigger a military response, there is a consensus among experts that one clear red line for the United States is the killing an American citizen. "Deaths of Americans demand a response. Destruction to U.S. interests or U.S. partners and allies, it's a question mark," said Matthew McInnis, a senior fellow with the Institute of the Study of War. "That's just where the American people are right now." ACCRA, Ghana (AP) West African leaders attending a regional summit agreed Sunday to lift sanctions on two neighbors led by military governments that are now promising a return to democratic rule. The summit of the Economic Community of West African States resolved to lift all economic and financial sanctions imposed on Mali and Burkina Faso, although those countries will remain suspended from the regional bloc, said Jean-Claude Kassi Brou, an Ivorian politician who has been serving as president of the ECOWAS Commission. Guinea, the third country under sanctions, received no reprieve because it did not submit an acceptable roadmap toward elections, he said. He said the suspension of all three nations from ECOWAS would remain in force until they hold elections. In lifting the sanctions on Mali and Burkina Faso, leaders at the summit in Ghana's capital, Accra, accepted transition plans presented by military authorities in those countries. Mali's junta proposed scheduling a presidential election by March 2024. Burkina Faso proposed a 24-month transition leading to polls. ECOWAS sanctioned Mali severely in January by shutting down most commerce with the country, along with its land and air borders with other countries in the bloc. The measures have crippled Malis economy, raising humanitarian concerns amid widespread suffering. The wave of military coups began in August 2020, when Col. Assimi Goita and other soldiers overthrew Malis democratically elected president. Nine months later, he carried out a second coup, dismissing the countrys civilian transitional leader and assuming the presidency himself. Mutinous soldiers deposed Guineas president in September 2021, and Burkina Faso leader Roch Marc Christian Kabore was ousted in a January coup. Burkina Faso authorities said Saturday that Kabore, who has been under house arrest, is now a free man. The political upheaval came as many observers started to think that military power grabs were a thing of the past in West Africa, an increasingly restive region that also faces growing danger from Islamic extremist fighters. Some leaders who spoke at Accra's one-day summit urged action as armed groups expand their footprint in the region. These terrorist attacks are now not only focusing on the Sahel, but also expanding to the coastal states in our region, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo. "It is imperative for us to continue to implement our regional action plan against terrorism and to coordinate our various security initiatives. In the first half of 2022, the region recorded a total of 3,500 deaths from 1,600 extremist attacks targeting countries including Togo, Burkina Faso, Niger and Nigeria, according to Brou. In Burkina Faso, where attacks blamed on Islamic extremist fighters are soaring, gunmen killed at least 55 people in the country's northern Seno province last month. ___ This story has been corrected to show that Guinea remains under economic sanctions imposed by the ECOWAS bloc. Dark clouds and pouring rain greeted the steam train as it chugged to a stop in Sioux Falls, S.D., on June 1, 1891. Accompanied by her maid and private secretary, a smartly dressed woman of obvious high standing descended from the plush first-class rail car and took stock of the small city before her on the banks of the Big Sioux River. The entourage, which also included her dog, Tweedles, then climbed into a horse-drawn carriage and rode to the well-appointed Cataract Hotel. This oasis of opulence on what was then the edge of the American frontier would be their home for the next three months. The woman - 37-year-old Baroness Margaret Laura Astor De Stuers, known as Maggie since childhood - had undertaken this four-day trek from the East Coast so she could establish legal residency in Sioux Falls. While this was the end of her 1,500-mile rail trip, it was only the beginning of the New York City socialite's journey to find personal independence and a new life. The baroness - like tens of thousands of other women in the late 19th and early 20th centuries - traveled to this remote outpost in search of divorce. They sought marital emancipation by relocating - temporarily, in most cases - to the state with the most lax divorce laws in the country. All that was required was 90 days of residency. Before Nevada allowed quickie divorces in 1931, South Dakota held the title of divorce capital. For a period of about 20 years, the state was known as the Divorce Colony - so labeled by news media, cultural critics and evangelicals alarmed by the trend of migratory divorces. Before statehood in 1889, the Dakota territory had the country's biggest increase in divorces - 6,691 percent - between 1882 and 1886. In the culturally repressive era of the 1890s, ending a marriage was social anathema - and virtually impossible legally. Most states had near-blanket laws against divorce, which was viewed as a form of moral decay. Much like antiabortion regulations before Roe v. Wade - and perhaps again now that the Supreme Court has overturned that ruling - divorce laws reflected the religious and political ideology of the day. Many states allowed divorce only in cases where adultery could be proven - a difficult legal process. A few states, like South Carolina, had no provision for divorce. "Women were at an extreme disadvantage then," said April White, author of the book "The Divorce Colony: How Women Revolutionized Marriage and Found Freedom on the American Frontier," published last month. "A man could simply walk away from a marriage, but a woman had few rights under the law and faced extreme societal prejudice if they didn't have a husband." It was different in the West, though. New states and territories had some of the most progressive laws in the land. The pioneers recognized that legislation needed to reflect the reality of living on the frontier, where life was hard and sometimes short. White said Sioux Falls became a top divorce destination due to its relative accessibility. "Sioux Falls was most similar to the experience these people would have known from New York and Chicago. It had many of the amenities they were looking for, even though it was a city of 10,000 residents." While divorce was available to both sexes in South Dakota, it was embraced by women by nearly a 2-to-1 ratio - not a surprise given the legal and cultural restraints placed on women at a time when they had virtually no political power. "The lack of divorce had a really profound impact on the way women could function in the world," White said. "Much like abortion in the 20th century, divorce provided women with greater access to participating in society - whether through careers, education or other factors. It improved the lives of many women." Because of its location in the Upper Plains, Sioux Falls was a hub of commerce. Five major rail lines served the city, and the Cataract Hotel became a luxurious way station. As word of lax divorce laws spread eastward, the grand hotel - equal to those in New York, Boston and Chicago - was the perfect place to live until residency could be established while waiting to negate nuptials. In 1891, Maggie rented a suite of rooms at the Cataract. She later bought a home to cement her claim of residency in South Dakota. Though she did not announce her intentions, she drew the attention of residents and the media as a woman without her husband. At the time, the phrase "going to Sioux Falls" was euphemistic for getting a divorce. On July 14, six weeks after Maggie arrived in the city, the New York World reported on its front page that she was living in "the Divorce Colony." It was viewed as a major scandal, since she was a descendant of real estate magnate John Jacob Astor and niece of Caroline Astor, matron of the ultrawealthy family and leader of "The Four Hundred" club, a group of the most influential New Yorkers at the time. Sixteen years earlier, 22-year-old Maggie Carey had married Baron Alphonse Lambert Eugene De Stuers, a Dutch diplomat 12 years her senior. The couple had three children and lived grandly in Paris for several years, thanks to Maggie's wealth and De Stuers's social status. Cracks in the facade soon appeared, however. Maggie tried to divorce her husband in 1890, but her aunt sniffed out the plot and convinced her to return to Paris. Even though Mrs. Astor's own marriage was a sham - she essentially lived apart from her husband because of his drinking and carousing - she would not tolerate the disgrace of divorce within the family. That left Sioux Falls as one of Maggie's only options. "She is one of the first big names that goes out there," White said. "Maggie really sets the dominos in motion. She is the spark that turns everyone's attention to Sioux Falls." Maggie's plans became more apparent when her attorney filed her case at the Minnehaha County Courthouse in Sioux Falls on Sept. 3, 1891, 94 days after she moved to South Dakota. Those files were sealed until her husband could be served with papers in Paris three weeks later. That's when the media storm descended like a Great Plains tornado. Reporters from major newspapers across the nation started filing stories from Sioux Falls. In her divorce suit, Maggie alleged cruelty by De Stuers and concern that he was plotting to steal her inheritance. She described how he had taken control of finances and had tried to have her committed to a mental institution. De Stuers countered that it was his wife who was the unkind one, displaying a lack of affection toward him and their children. He also alleged that Maggie was involved in an adulterous affair with a man posing as her private secretary under the name William Elliott. In reality, he was William Elliott Zborowski, also a wealthy New York socialite. The case went before Judge Frank R. Aikens on Feb. 8, 1892. The only testimony given was by Maggie and her maid. De Stuers did not travel from Paris for the trial. Instead, he had his attorney argue the case while presenting numerous depositions in his defense. Aikens handed down his decision a month later, on March 5. In granting the absolute divorce, he found De Stuers guilty of "acts of extreme cruelty" against his wife. Two days after the judgment was announced, Maggie was back at the courthouse. This time, she was there with Zborowski, requesting a marriage license. They were married about half an hour later in her suite at the Cataract Hotel. "Most women in that era needed to remarry," White said. "It was a path to security and respectability. Maggie probably didn't have to remarry. She had a name and a lot of money. I think she really loved her second husband and wanted to be with him." The Divorce Colony would be shuttered in 1908, when South Dakota changed its residency requirement to one year. By then, public opinion had shifted. Two years earlier, President Theodore Roosevelt had proposed a constitutional amendment to enable Congress to set national marriage and divorce standards. When that effort failed, many states began altering their divorce laws to reflect changing cultural attitudes, though the first no-fault divorce law would not be enacted until 1970 in California. White's book cites the struggle of women like Maggie De Stuers in trying to free themselves from marriages they no longer wanted. In many ways, they were pioneers in forcing legislatures and society to re-examine how divorce was enforced and perceived. "These women changed the way we look upon divorce today," the author said. "Those brave acts were only meant to be personal, but they ended up turning the tide toward the attitudes and access to divorce." Maggie found freedom and love in her new marriage, though her joy would be short-lived. The couple had a child together after rejoining high society in New York. Zborowski took up the new sport of auto racing and was killed in an accident in 1903. Maggie died eight years later. Their son also died in a racing accident in 1924. In 1891, Maggie couldn't have foreseen those tragedies. She wanted only the freedom to live the life she desired. She told a reporter that year, "I made up my mind to leave my husband to save myself." This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate NEW ORLEANS (AP) President Joe Biden's administration on Friday proposed up to 10 oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico and one off the Alaska coast over the next five years going against the Democrat's climate promises but scaling back a Trump-era plan that called for dozens of offshore drilling opportunities including in undeveloped areas. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said fewer than 11 lease sales or even no lease sales at all could occur, with a final decision not due for months. New drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts would be blocked, after being considered under Trump. President Biden and I have made clear our commitment to transition to a clean energy economy. Today, we put forward an opportunity for the American people to ... provide input on the future of offshore oil and gas leasing, said Haaland, whose agency oversees drilling on federal lands and waters. The proposal brought immediate backlash from both environmentalists who accused Biden of betraying the climate cause and oil industry officials and allies, who said it would do little to help counter high energy prices. Gasoline prices averaged $4.84 a gallon on Friday, a strain on commuters and a political albatross for Bidens fellow Democrats going into the midterm elections. That has left the White House scrambling for solutions, including Bidens call last week for suspension of the 18.4 cents a gallon federal gas tax. The Interior Department had suspended lease sales in late January because of climate concerns but was forced to resume them by a U.S. district judge in Louisiana. The Biden administration cited conflicting court rulings about that decision when it canceled the last scheduled lease sales in the Gulf and Alaska during the previous offshore leasing cycle. That prior five-year cycle, a program adopted under former President Barack Obama, expired on Thursday. There will be a months-long gap before a new plan can be put in place. The oil industry and its allies say the delay could cause problems in planning new drilling and potentially lead to decreased oil production. Theres unlikely to be an offshore lease sale until well into next year, said Frank Macchiarola, senior vice president of the American Petroleum Institute, the industrys top lobbying group. And, he said, administration officials went out of their way to say there might not be any lease sales at all. Its very important for the administration to send a signal to the global oil markets that the United States is serious about increasing supply ... for the long term, he said, repeating a longtime claim by industry officials and Republicans that ties uncertainty over oil supply to high prices. Biden in recent weeks has criticized oil producers and refiners for maximizing profits and making more money than God, rather than increasing production in response to higher prices as the economy recovers from the pandemic and feels the effects of Russias invasion of Ukraine. The leasing announcement was a bitter disappointment to environmentalists and some Democrats who rallied around then-candidate Biden when he promised to end new drilling in federal lands and waters. The proposal comes a day after the administration held its first onshore lease sales, drawing $22 million in an auction that gives energy companies drilling rights on about 110 square miles (285 square kilometers) in seven western states. The sales came despite the administrations own findings that burning oil and gas from the parcels could cause billions of dollars in potential future climate damages. Our public lands and waters are already responsible for nearly a quarter of the countrys carbon pollution each year. Adding any new lease sales to that equation while the climate crisis is unfolding all around us is nonsensical, said House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona. Cynthia Sartou, executive director of the environmental nonprofit Healthy Gulf, called the lease-sale plan a huge loss for Gulf residents, American energy policy and the global climate. Moderate Democrat Joe Manchin, who chairs the Senate energy committee, welcomed the proposal as a chance to get our leasing program back on track. While Americans everywhere are suffering from record high gas prices and disruptions in the global oil market caused by (Russian leader Vladimir) Putins senseless war in Ukraine, the Department of the Interior hasnt held any successful offshore lease sales since November 2020, the West Virginia lawmaker said. Under the Trump administration, Interior officials had proposed 47 sales, including 12 in the Gulf of Mexico, 19 in Alaska and nine off the Atlantic coast that were later withdrawn. Trump lost the 2020 election before the proposal was finalized. The current format of holding Gulf-wide sales was put in place under Obama because of dwindling interest in offshore leases. Prior to that there had been decades of regional sales. Fridays announcement opens a 90-day public comment period, then a final plan must be submitted 60 days before it goes into effect. The government held an offshore lease auction in the Gulf of Mexico in November that brought $192 million in bids. A court canceled that sale before the leases were issued. Haaland has said previously that the industry is set with the amount of drilling permits stockpiled and at its disposal. She testified during a House hearing in April that the industry has about 9,000 permits that have been approved but are not being used. Oil production has increased as the economy recovers from the coronavirus slowdown, but its still below pre-pandemic levels. Energy companies have been reluctant to ramp up production further, citing a shortage of workers and restraints from investors wary that todays high prices wont last. Major oil companies reported surging profits in the first quarter and sent tens of billions of dollars in dividends to shareholders. Athan Manuel of the Sierra Club said delaying offshore sales until next year is an important step toward protecting communities and climate, and we urge the administration to finalize a plan that commits to no new offshore drilling leases, period. __ Brown reported from Billings, Mont. Associated Press writer Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this story. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate WASHINGTON The chief security officer of the Supreme Court has asked that Virginia and Maryland officials enforce laws that would prohibit protests outside the homes of Supreme Court justices after weeks of demonstrations favoring abortion rights. In four letters sent to Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland; Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia; Fairfax County Board of Supervisors chair Jeffrey McKay; and Montgomery County executive Marc Elrich, the Supreme Court marshal, Gail A. Curley, cited protests and threatening activity in her request. After a leaked draft opinion in early May showed that the courts conservative majority was poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, which guaranteed a constitutional right to an abortion, protesters regularly gathered outside the homes of those justices to denounce the decision. The court formally issued its opinion in late June. Protesters gathered outside one Justices Fairfax County home chanting expletives, read the letter to Youngkin, which was sent Saturday. And dozens appeared outside anothers Fairfax County home chanting no privacy for us, no peace for you! This is exactly this kind of conduct that Virginia law prohibits. The laws cited by Curley are both state and local ordinances that would prohibit various kinds of demonstrations outside of private residences with certain exceptions, but it is unclear whether protesters have necessarily violated the laws. In one of her letters, Curley also referred to the arrest last month of a California man who was found with a pistol and other weapons near the Chevy Chase, Maryland, home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Federal officials said the man planned to break into the justices home to kill him and have charged him with attempted murder. On the evening of June 24, after the Supreme Court ended nearly 50 years of federal abortion rights, a small crowd chanted, sang and banged pots and pans on the street in Burke, Virginia, where Justice Clarence Thomas lives. Police barricaded the entire block. Protesters also appeared outside Kavanaughs home, seemingly outnumbered by police officers, and security vans were seen guarding Justice Samuel Alitos house in Alexandria, Virginia. The protests prompted by the leaked draft opinion intensified concerns about the safety of the justices, and a fence was erected around the Supreme Court building in response to demonstrations. Last month, the House quickly passed a bill that would extend police protection to the immediate families of Supreme Court justices. The Senate has already passed the legislation, and it awaits President Joe Bidens signature. All six of the Republican-appointed justices live in wealthy enclaves in Fairfax County, Virginia, and Montgomery County, Maryland, which border Washington. Elrich, the Fairfax County official, said in a statement that he did not have any record of a letter from Curley, but he criticized her request, saying that the federal government was primarily responsible for ensuring the safety of justices and their families. It is very troubling that the court would take this approach, Elrich said. If the marshal is concerned about security, then she and her staff should communicate directly with our police chief, myself, and my staff rather than having a letter released to the press. In a statement, the Fairfax County Police Department said it was responsible for protecting the public, including three justices, and safeguarding the constitutional right of people to protest. It was well versed on the laws that govern protests, it said, adding that it had a unit specifically trained to help crowds that gather to express their views. Both Youngkin and Hogan have previously expressed concern about the protests. In statement posted to Twitter on Saturday, the communications director for Hogan said the governor has directed Maryland State Police to further review enforcement options that respect the First Amendment and the Constitution. He added that the Justice Department had declined a request from Hogan to enforce federal statutes prohibiting protesting at the justices residences. Sadie Kuhns, an organizer with Our Rights DC, a group created by protesters in May that has organized more than 30 protests outside the homes of the conservative justices, said the group has not seen a law enforcement response to its demonstrations and has no plans to stop. These six people have control over millions of peoples lives, Kuhns said. And if the only thing we can do is exercise our First Amendment rights outside of their homes peacefully, thats what were going to do. It empowers people. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. WFO NORMAN Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, July 3, 2022 _____ SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING The National Weather Service in Norman has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for... Northwestern Clay County in northern Texas... * Until 245 PM CDT. * At 159 PM CDT, a severe thunderstorm was located near Henrietta, moving northwest at 20 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Hail damage to vehicles is expected. Expect wind damage to roofs, siding, and trees. * Locations impacted include... Henrietta, Petrolia, Dean and Jolly. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building. Large hail and damaging winds and continuous cloud to ground lightning is occurring with this storm. Move indoors immediately. Lightning is one of nature's leading killers. Remember, if you can hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck by lightning. _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather Can I enter Canada if I work in the airline industry and have a criminal record? Can I enter Canada if I work in the airline industry and have a criminal record? How to overcome criminal inadmissibility to Canada. Can I enter Canada if I work in the airline industry and have a criminal record? How to overcome criminal inadmissibility to Canada. Can I enter Canada if I work in the airline industry and have a criminal record? How to overcome criminal inadmissibility to Canada. Julia Hornstein Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif Sans Font Size A A If you have a criminal record, it is likely that you will experience issues entering Canada. If you are a foreign national who has been arrested or convicted of a criminal offence, you may be considered criminally inadmissible to Canada. This can cause problems for workers with criminal records in the airline industry who work routes or itineraries that stopover in Canada. Fortunately, there are solutions available to you as long as you prepare in advance of your trip. Schedule a Free Legal Consultation with the Cohen Immigration Law Firm There are three main ways for those who work in the airline industry to overcome criminal inadmissibility to Canada: Submit a Temporary Resident Permit application Submit a Criminal Rehabilitation application Legal Opinion Letter Temporary Resident Permit Application A Temporary Resident Permit (TRP) is an option for an individual considered criminally inadmissible as it grants temporary access to Canada for a certain period of time. A TRP is used in situations where a traveler has a valid reason for entering into Canada and the benefits of their entry outweigh any risks to Canadian society. A TRP application can be granted for up to three years, depending on the reason of entry. A person can apply for a TRP at any point and does not require the completion of a criminal sentence. Criminal Rehabilitation Application The Canadian Government offers the opportunity to submit a criminal rehabilitation application to permanently clear your past criminal history for the purposes of entering Canada. The criminal rehabilitation application is a one-time solution that does not require renewal. Upon receiving approval for criminal rehabilitation, an individual is no longer considered inadmissible and would not require a TRP for entry into Canada. In order be eligible for criminal rehabilitation, you must meet the following criteria: Must have committed an act outside of Canada that would be equivalent to an offence under the Canadian Criminal Code, Must have been convicted of or admitted to committing the act, and Five years must have passed since the sentence has been completed. This includes jail time, fines, community service or probation. The most critical requirement is determining and understanding the equivalent offence in Canada. Per Canadas Criminal Code, the nature and the gravity of the offense is important, as Canadian immigration authorities characterize offences based on serious versus non-serious criminality. Legal Opinion Letter A legal opinion letter can be used to pre-emptively avoid being found inadmissible to Canada. If you have committed or been convicted of a crime, you can address a legal opinion letter to the judicial authority hearing the case. The letter, which is drafted by a Canadian immigration lawyer, will explain the consequences of a conviction for the Canadian immigration purposes. It will refer to relevant sections of Canadian law to help the person decide how to respond to charges and how different outcomes (conviction, sentencing, etc.) would affect their ability to come to Canada. The letter can even suggest alternate infractions that would not render the individual inadmissible to Canada. The effects of inadmissibility can have severe effects on employment as well as ability to see family members in Canada, so the letter can appeal to a judges compassion and be taken into consideration when deciding on an outcome. If you are in the airline industry and are looking to take the steps to overcome criminal inadmissibility, a Canadian immigration lawyer can guide you. They will sit down with you to identify the past path forward, whether it is through the TRP application process, helping to find a Canadian Criminal Code equivalent for criminal rehabilitation or draft an appropriate legal opinion letter. Schedule a Free Legal Consultation with the Cohen Immigration Law Firm CIC News All Rights Reserved. Discover your Canadian immigration options at CanadaVisa.com. Sorry, no valid subscriptions were found for this Publication. Please select from an option below to start a subscription. SUBSCRIBE TODAY! 24 Hour Access What is Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad exactly up to? The recent Harvard certificate graduate, who claims to have saved Newsweek, is being accused of fraud and launching threats against Christian churches, including a Christian university, in "collusion" with Newsweek Editor Naveed Jamali and others, a source says, after weeks of silence following threats from the Newsweek CEO. The source, who is very close to the matter, requested anonymity due to fears of retaliation from Pragad, Jamali, and the Newsweek newsroom. Earlier this week, New York State Education Department (NYSED) announced its decision not to renew the Permission to Operate (PTO) of Olivet University's extension site in New York. Olivet University has been operating an extension site in New York for close to a decade with Permission to Operate status granted by the NYSED on November 5, 2012 and which was renewed several times since then. The existing PTO expired on June 30, and the NYSED has decided not to renew the PTO again. "I am certain that Newsweek had played some role or influence, fully or partially, in the NYSED's decision not to renew the PTO," a source close to the matter said. This reporter has confirmed that Newsweek had reached out to NYSED several times regarding Olivet University. The department itself has acknowledged that Newsweek had contacted them several times, and almost in exasperation, stated, "the Department has gotten multiple inquiries from Newsweek, most recently today [June 30]," according to an email this reporter has seen and verified. It appears that Newsweek's targeting of Olivet University, and its aggressive contacting of governmental agencies, stems from the desire of Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad to unlawfully take over full control of the company. According to the source, Pragad had threatened in March that he would go to the media about "OU (Olivet University) raid by DHS" and allege "human trafficking" - threats aimed to help him further his business goals. Towards the beginning of 2022, Pragad began believing that he was the "savior of the news" and because of it, he deserved to own the company outright. From there, he began to orchestrate the removal of company's founder and other shareholder, Johnathan Davis. Since he had no legal standing, he instead launched a series of threats, not only on Davis, but on Davis's church and a Christian university where his wife had served as president. "If Olivet (the bible school), JD (the Newsweek shareholder) ... or others attack me then I'll go to media about Olivet raid by DHS for human trafficking etc to protect myself ... [and show] ... that they are trying to undermine Newsweek," Pragad messaged the source on March 2, 2022. This reporter has verified the message. When asked if there was any action done from Davis or others that would have provoked a response the source explained, "nothing was done at all. Pragad escalated it all unilaterally." Just weeks after this threat, on April 22, 2022, Newsweek published an inflammatory hit piece against Olivet University that alleges Olivet University is being investigated for human trafficking, among other things. Neither DHS, nor any other government agency, has officially confirmed what Newsweek has alleged. "I was shocked to see Newsweek publish this article, and I was even more shocked to see this article being published as the main headlines on Newsweek site. The article could not be further from the truth. As soon as I saw the article, I was convinced that he (Pragad) had started weaponizing Newsweek newsroom to attack the university and carry out his threats, under the guise of 'protecting himself'," the source told this reporter. The source said that he now understands clearly what Pragad's threats were all about. "Subsequently, in no uncertain terms, he told me his demand - he said loud and clear that he wanted the 50 percent shares of Newsweek that is owned by the husband of the former president of the Christian university. If he got what he wanted, he said he would remain an 'ally' of Olivet. If not, the attacks would be launched." The NYSED's decision to not allow Olivet University to continue operating in New York makes the source now even more convinced that Newsweek has played a role or influence in NYSED's decision. "It is interesting to note that all the Newsweek articles were published soon after he (Pragad) had issued the threats and more interestingly, all the inflammatory articles related to Olivet University or related entities, were published as the main headlines of the Newsweek site. It is as if Newsweek, a national newspaper that should be focusing on more important and newsworthy pieces, desperately wanted the Olivet-related articles to gain attention. I am utterly disappointed to see how Newsweek has degraded into a tabloid, just as I am certain Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad has weaponized the newsroom to kill Olivet University in New York," the source said. Editor's note: HNGN was registered by Davis in 2016, before he divested the publication in 2018. HNGN was an advertisement partner of Newsweek during 2017 and 2018, a period when Dev Pragad was the CEO of Newsweek. Ryan Lee is an acquaintance of Dev Pragad, and is a member of the same church that Davis attends. Pragad left the church just before Newsweek articles were published. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The police chief of the Uvalde school district resigns from his post on the City Council following allegations of massive error in responding to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School that killed 19 students and two teachers. Chief Pete Arredondo said in an interview with Uvalde Leader-News on Friday that he quit his post for the benefit of the city administration. As per a report published by NPR, the 50-year-old police official was voted to represent District 3 on the city council on May 7 and sworn in on May 31, a week after the horrific incident. Arrendondo told the local media outlet that he decided to step down from his membership in the city council "after much consideration". "The mayor, the city council, and the city staff must continue to move forward without distractions. I feel this is the best decision for Uvalde," he stated. The Associated Press has repeatedly asked Arredondo for a response. George Hyde, his attorney, did not immediately reply to questions for comment sent by email on Saturday. Parents and locals demanded Arredondo's resignation during an emotional school board meeting last week, according to ABC News. Several contended that because of their alleged poor decision-making, police should be held partially responsible for the fatal incident. Bad Decisions Led to Tragedy Director of the Texas Department of Public Safety Col. Steven McCraw claimed last month during a state Senate hearing that Arredondo, who was in charge of the situation when the shooting occurred on May 24, made "terrible decisions" and that the actions of the police were an "abject failure." After Arredondo mistakenly assumed that the scenario had changed from an active shooter to a barricaded subject, 19 law enforcement officers with firearms waited 77 minutes in the hallway outside the classroom containing the shooter, Salvador Ramos, 18, according to law enforcement. Read Also: "I Am Certain Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad Weaponized Newsroom to Kill Olivet University New York Extension Campus," Source Breaks Silence "The only thing stopping a hallway of dedicated officers from entering Room 111 and 112 was the on-scene commander who decided to place the lives of officers before the lives of children," McCraw underscored during the Senate investigation. The police chief defended himself in a media report, saying that he did not consider himself as the commander in charge of operations and he assumed that someone else took over the law enforcement response. He also told the Texas Tribune that he called for tactical gear, a sniper, and the classroom keys using his cellphone as he did not have police and campus radios during the incident. Investigations Proceed During a hearing on the shooting that the Texas state House of Representatives held in an executive session last week, Arredondo provided testimony for nearly five hours. A special Senate committee from Texas is also investigating the massacre at the moment. The shooting is also being probed into by the Uvalde district attorney and the U.S. The Justice Department is examining the police response. Outrage over the Texas school shooting helped rally support in the US Congress for the first landmark federal gun regulation in almost 30 years, signed into law by Democratic President Joe Biden on June 25. Arredondo was already on the verge of losing his City Council position after skipping multiple meetings before announcing his plans to step down, per Al Jazeera. He was placed on administrative leave from his post as police chief by the city's school district on June 22. Related Article: Former Trump Officials Cast Doubt Against Secret Service After Agency Denies Testimony Amid January 6 Riot Investigation @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war has left the forces of Volodymyr Zelensky with less time to train and familiarize themselves using Ukraine weapons originating from the west. According to the outlet Foreign Policy inability to maximize training with western weapon systems is getting to be a problem, as reported last Friday. Aside from the lack of training, Russia has been demolishing these arms with regularity via its aerospace forces. Ukrainians Need More Training for Advanced Arms The special operation by Russia from late February has left Kyiv asking for more weapons, even heavy weapons, as fast as they can arrive. A senior US defense official criticized Kyiv for requesting such advanced arms but did not use them effectively, reported RT. On the other hand, the Ukrainians want the US and allies to speed up weapons deliveries and hasten relevant military aid. Experts express regret that Kyiv cannot cope with advanced systems like HIMARS and western artillery despite their demand for them. Oscar Jonsson, a researcher at the Swedish Defense University, commented giving it to Ukrainian forces will not be enough for obvious reasons, it will always be too little, too late. However, sending equipment without training and logistics will not work out. Furthermore, training to fly the F-16 and F-15 jets will take time, despite complaints that pilots don't have enough planes to fly, they can leave the country to train, noted 180 Gadgets. Volodymyr Zelensky has been asking for jets to fight on equal footing. The outlet's article was published the same day when the Pentagon unveiled an additional $820-million package of military aid, including two air defense missile systems to support the Russia-Ukraine war and augment Ukraine's weapons. Read Also: Donald Trump Net Worth 2022: Did Trump Get Richer Since Leaving the US Presidency? US Military Aid for Ukraine The weapons inventory will rocket for the HIMARS, two National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), 150,000 150mm artillery munitions, and four extra counter-artillery radars. By the end of June, Britain pledged to send advanced air defense systems, UAVs, and electronic warfare equipment, with extras worth 1 billion ($1.2 billion). It followed after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson offered more training for Ukrainian forces, claiming that 10,000 soldiers could be trained in 120 days. Despite this outlook, the west discounts the loss of Zelensky's troops by the hundreds and thousands and the destruction of stored western weapons via precise missile attacks and artillery. Russia told the west that pumping up Zelensky's forces with weapons would only lengthen its proxy war and give the west problems by the bushel. Also, Russian forces will wreck any western arms seen on the enemy's soil. The Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated earlier in the week that more arms deliveries to Kyiv will add to the mauling Ukrainian troops are getting even with advanced weapons, as a stern reminder of what is happening now in the DPR and LPR. Moscow reminds the west that Kyiv did not honor the Minsk agreement and that it denied the DPR and LPR. Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has admitted that the cessation of hostilities was mainly intended to buy time and strengthen its armed forces. Continuation of the Russia-Ukraine war will ensure that Volodymyr Zelensky will lose more troops due to inadequacy to use Ukraine weapons provided by the west. Related Article: Russian Defense Ministry Reports Elimination of the Notorious Nationalist Battalion in the Ongoing Conflict in Ukraine @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. NSW hopes to tap into semiconductor industry The New South Wales government has created the Semiconductor Sector Service Bureau (S3B) with the goal to enhance the capability, workforce, market connectedness, and competitiveness of NSWs and Australias semiconductor sector. S3Bs creation was a recommendation of the 2020 Australian Semiconductor Sector Study. It is formed by the University of Sydney, Macquarie University, UNSW Sydney, Australias national science agency CSIRO, and the Australian National Fabrication Facility. [ Keep up on the latest thought leadership, insights, how-to, and analysis on IT through Computerworlds newsletters. ] S3B will address market frictions and failures that curtail NSWs and Australias ability to participate in global semiconductor markets. It has the role of advocating for the sector, connecting companies and researchers with design and manufacturers globally, said director Nadia Court from the Sydney Nanoscience Hub. 4 universities experienced a significant cybersecurity incident in 2021 The New South Wales Audit Office found that out of 13 universities in the state, four suffered a significant cybersecurity incident in 2021, with one not reporting the incident to their governance committee as they deemed the event low-risk because the threat actor did not ultimately gain access to sensitive or financial data. All four universities undertook procedures to contain, evaluate, and respond to the incident and applied preventative controls against future incidents. The financial impact of a cyberattack to a university is estimated to range in between $5 million and $239 million, said the report. This is especially due to confidential research, intellectual property, and copyrighted material. Also concerning was the finding of 45 repeat findings of control deficiencies. All universities have drafted or implemented a cybersecurity policy and established a governance committee accountable for cybersecurity. However, the report found improvements could be made in recording and monitoring of attempted cybersecurity incidents, assessing cybersecurity risks relating to IT vendors, and implementation of cybersecurity control measures for key systems. Ultimately, the report recommends universities and controlled entities should prioritise improvements to their cybersecurity and resilience. Specific actions include: implementing appropriate cybersecurity mitigation strategies to key systems (the crown jewels). having processes whereby the head of the entity and those charged with governance formally accept the residual risks where current cybersecurity-control measures have not addressed all identified risks. MacTel still having trouble with promised data centre Macquarie Telecom is still waiting approval to begin the expansion of its IC3 data centre announced in August 2018. The publicly listed organisation published an update saying after 12 months of lodging its development applications the approval is yet to be obtained, with MacTel now expecting it to happen between late calendar year 2022 and mid calendar year 2023. Currently, its Macquarie Park data centre campus has a 17MW capacity, with the expansion the company expects that to become 50MW. As reported by Computerworld Australia in July 2021, the company was unable to clarify how much of the newly announced 32MW was actually new at the time. Western Australia announced creative tech hub The Western Australia government is investing $1.2 million over the next four years to establish a creative technology hub in Bunbury. The goal is to assist in growing a future-ready workforce, entrepreneurs, startups, and innovators in the state and its regions. The hub will focus on creative digital industries including gaming, experiential and immersive technology, software development, product design, advertising, film, and media. The hub is expected to support hundreds of businesses with specialised advice and services. ASIC warns of ransomware impacting liquidators The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has issued a warning about a ransomware attack on systems located in the cloud which resulted in significant disruption to several registered liquidators. It is unclear if the systems have been breached or information accessed, but liquidators get access to all financial data pertaining to organisations that find themselves in liquidation. High gasoline prices have prompted many Connecticut residents to reconsider their travel plans for the long Fourth of July holiday weekend. Just in time for the holiday, gas prices in Connecticut are starting to head downward with Wednesdays average price at $4.84 per gallon, 8 cents lower than a week earlier, according to AAA Northeast. But the price of gas is still $1.72 cents higher than it was a year ago at this time. Even though gas prices are declining, they are still high and historically they affect holiday travel volumes, said Fran Mayko, AAA Northeast spokeswoman. Thats certainly the case with Cheshires Annie Holland and her family. Its prompting us to stay home, Holland when asked about travel plans for the Fourth of July. Montvilles Sheryl Lambert said she and her husband, will be sticking close to home and enjoying the parks and other attractions. So yes, shorter trips because of gas prices, Lambert said. Thomas Saul, of Wallingford, decided to host a family picnic to celebrate the Fourth of July. We jumped on the bandwagon ... so we did not have to travel, Saul said. A newly released data analysis by QuoteWizard, a Seattle online information company, found Connecticut residents had altered driving habits enough this year that they were using 10 percent fewer gallons of gas during the first three months of this year than during the last three months in 2021. That represents the seventh largest decrease among the nations 50 states. The QuoteWizard analysis found that Connecticut drivers are using 380,000 fewer gallons of gas each day this year than in 2021. The average Connecticut driver now uses 266 gallons of gas every six months. Others who responded to Hearst Connecticut Media inquiries about their holiday plans said they have been modifying how much they travel on a regular basis in order to afford longer trips at least once during the summer. Despite the rise in the cost of gasoline, it is not going to impact the weekend plans, said Morris Armstrong, of Cheshire. The increase in gasoline has strained the budget somewhat, but fortunately, I do not drive much more than maybe 10,000 (miles) per year and have a car that gets okay mileage. If I were still commuting 60 miles a day, my tune would be different! Nearly 90 percents of the 2.7 million New Englanders traveling more than 50 miles this weekend will be driving, according to officials at AAA Northeast. Another 179,000 New Englanders plan to fly while 105,000 will take some other mode of transportation when they usher in Independence Day. The cost of fuel is also resulting in higher airline ticket prices. Hayley Berg, an economist at Hopper, a Montreal-based company with an app that tracks ticket prices, said jet fuel prices are up by 134 percent As a result, Berg said airfares this weekend are the most expensive that they been for the holiday in the last five years. The average domestic airfare for this weekend is $437 per round trip ticket, which Berg said is up 45 percent compared to 2019. International travelers can expect to pay closer to $1,200 per round trip ticket, up 31 percent compared to 2019. Michael Boyd, president of the Colorado-based airline consultant Boyd Group International, said most of the people traveling this weekend probably booked their flights a month and half ago. So they probably werent impacted by the prices that are being reported now, Boyd said. Travelers booking flights now for trips later this summer will feel the full effect of the price increases, he said. Mayko said driving is becoming the preferred method of travel because of uncertainty caused by an ongoing spate of flight cancellations in Connecticut and nationwide. Even with the higher cost of traveling, there continues to be a pent-up demand to travel, Mayko said. People cut back in other ways in order to afford to travel, she said. They go out to eat in cheaper restaurants or stay in cheaper hotels. luther.turmelle@hearstmediact.com